We've both agreed that this is the hardest thing we've ever done. Physically and mentally exhausting. Whatever part of our brains it is that's responsible for decision making has been fried to a crisp from overuse -- do I pack this? Sell it? Bring it? Every object in the house, every number programmed into the phone, every piece of mail that comes, every card in your wallet -- all suggest a different task to do, address to update, friend to contact, payment to arrange, account to cancel. House is a shambles, but it's starting to look like we're actually moving. My parents are in town to help and see us off, which is great. We took them out to our favorite restaurant, Fritti, tonight.

Heard this song while driving around the other day, and it really put a lump in my throat as it relates to some feelings I've been having...

Galbraith Street (by Ron Sexsmith)

I woke up on Galbraith Street
Where the houses stood like twins
Oh and even though the door's been closed
I can find a way to get back in

For in daydreams my mind returns
Like a ghost upon the hill
As I knock upon old doors again
And find my friends all live there still

So many good times to speak of in a life
But none compare to the good times I had there

The world looks so much brighter when you believe in every word
Now I'm holding on to all those years like a tear before it falls unheard

So many goodbyes to speak of in a life
But none compare to the goodbyes I said there

The sun went down on Galbraith Street
I saw it from my childhood bed
As the red and gold brick houses stood
Underneath a crimson sky that bled

WWWWWWWWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUGGGGGHHHHHHHH
HHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! We are going nuts from the stress. No time for details.

SCANDAL I went to Doc Chey's, one of my favorite noodle places, last night with some friends. On the way out we passed a garbage can full of chicken flavored RAMEN NOODLES!! THEY USE RAMEN NOODLES!!!! I'm so disappointed in them.

IMAGINE NO POSSESSIONS I wonder if I can..... I'm trying hard to decide what comes with us, what stays here. It's a really a hard decision. I don't want to bring any extras, but at the same time, there are certain things that can help a hotel room feel a bit more like home that it might be worth bringing....but which things?
Our porch is completely empty now, the American Family Foundation came and took a bunch of our stuff to give to people who need it more than we do. And more and more of our possessions are disappearing into cardboard boxes, they'll be there at least 6 months, maybe longer if we decide we like being nomads.

I was looking at my key ring the other day, when it dawned on me: soon, I will have no keys. I will also have no car, no house, no television, no phone, no internet access (other than rented)... It goes on and on. I understand I'm supposed to feel more "liberated" without these things, but it sure doesn't feel that way yet. Not very Zen of me, I know; maybe some will rub off on me while I'm over there.

I have been trying to gain a better understanding of the religions we'll be encountering while we're over there, through a bit of reading. As far as Buddhism goes, I don't put much stock in karma or reincarnation, but it's interesting nonetheless, and of course I'll be respectful while I'm there.

Today was spent dealing with the cars. We had them detailed, then took them in to Carmax to see how much they'd give us for them. Marjorie got a decent deal, but I didn't. So now I have the headache of selling it myself to deal with. Took out this ad in AutoTrader. Know anyone looking for a nice convertible for the coming winter months?

INDOCHINE Mark and I rented Indochine this evening. It's a really visually beautiful movie, amazing cinematography. Now I'm really excited about going to Vietnam.
On the work front, now that we've stopped worrying about it, it seems as though there may indeed be a (short-term) job for Mark in Singapore at around the New Year. We may cut our wandering short in order to go to S'pore for work. I suspect if the job is just for a few months that will resume our trip afterwards.

Just got back from seeing Glenn Tilbrook with friends Bruce and Cathy (after they treated us to a fabulous meal at Alfredo's)... Glenn is always a treat (except when he shows up late and we get subjected to a talentless opening act pushed up on stage to kill time). Another day, another set list:

Red Dragon Tattoo (Fountains of Wayne cover, a nice surprise)

This Is Where You Ain't

Take Me I'm Yours

Black Coffee In Bed

Goodbye Girl

A Woman's World

By The Light Of The Cash Machine

Some Fantastic Place

Picadilly

Is That Love

Truth Is Not My Middle Name (?)

Electric Trains

Touching You, Touching Me

Up The Junction

Hourglass

Another Nail For My Heart

Pulling Muscles (From The Shell)

Tempted
Plus several I wasn't familiar with or can't remember. What can I say about a man who can sing, write, play, and perform, all at a level I could never hope to achieve? Glenn is a massive talent.

WE'RE GOING TO SEE GLENN TILBROOK TONIGHT which should be alot of fun. I just wish we didn't feel so crapulent due to the excesses of last night. Last night was an unofficial going away party for us, and truthfully, probably the last time we will see many of our friends before our journey. We only have about 10 days to go now, and about every hour of that time is scheduled with moving activities or last get togethers with close friends.

Wow. I just hopped up the street to catch Frank Black at a solo acoustic in-store performance at Criminal Records. He was a lot more affable than I've ever seen him. The set list, near as I can remember:

Manitoba (new)

Monkey Gone To Heaven (Wow! I could swear I read that he said he'd never play this song again)

Whiskey In Your Shoes

Bartholemew

California Bound

Mr. Grieves (!!! another big surprise)

End of Miles

21 Reasons (partial, he forgot the words to the last verse)

Robert Onion

Bullet

To paraphrase Beavis and Butthead, you could see this guy walking down the street and you'd never know that he rocks. I'm kinda bummed; he's playing in town tonight, but somehow I never got word, and now it's sold out...

Surprise, surprise. The yard sale-cum-porch sale actually went surprisingly well; we got rid of a lot of stuff -- including the snowboard, CD rack, two cabinets, a lot of clothes, CDs, albums, books, toys, microphone and mic stand, vacuum cleaner, two guitars, and a chair.

Just now I've been going over Vietnamese restaurant menus I've found on the web in an effort to come up with a cheat sheet for deciphering menus once we get there. Especially, to come up with a list of dishes to avoid. So far, here's what I have on the avoid list:

Item	Translation	Reason to avoid
Cua	Crab	May contain "flukes" which get in your bloodstream. Ick.
Trung	Egg	Found someone's tale online of getting served fetal goose, still haven't gotten over the heebies.
Huyet	Pork blood	I've been phasing most kinds of blood out of my diet.
Long	Intestine	I'll have none of that tripe!
Ech	Frog	Eat Kermit?

Bummer. Yard sale starts in five minutes and it's pouring down rain. Somehow I don't think we're going to get rid of quite as much stuff as we had hoped.

Hard not to feel loved when you become the inspiration for a Friday rap.
I'm currently reading a book called "backpacker" by Emily Barr about a girl who backpacks through Vietnam, Loas, Thailand, Singapore.....It's the perfect chicktion before our journey.

My friend Matt occasionally will send out a "Friday rap" to all his friends on email. Today we were the subject. The last line is a reference to the fact that we go out for chicken wings most every Sunday. Dig dis:

G-raj sale money trying to lighten the load,
Marky Mark and Marj-ry bouts to hit the road,
Goin on a trip but who knows how long,
Tiki bar pint slammin wit the Viet Cong,
Safe and injected with the ant-e-dote,
Yellow fever ain't the flava with the bags in tote,
Extra supa happy meal, burger made of dog,
Sunday night spicy, bufflo wing? no bufflo frog.

Last day at work -- for who knows how long. Woop! There's going to be a lot of water under the bridge before I can really start enjoying my time off though. Every day for the next two weeks is mapped out. It's no fun being this regimented.

Stuff is gradually disappearing from our house, into boxes, or the hands of friends, or the garbage can. Possessions are a burden, but so is the lack of them.

TWO WEEKS TO GO I'm working daily to check things off on the "to do" list. Traveller's checks have been purchased, prescriptions for Malaria prophylaxis filled, charity truck scheduled to come and pick up all the items we don't sell at the yard sale, flyers put up around the neighborhood advertising the yard sale. Every day there's a list of tasks I try to take care of so we'll be ready to leave. In spite of all this activity though, it still doesn't seem real. I suppose the reality of going won't hit me until we get on the plane.

This is interesting. I actually used to work with the guy, before he switched over to this latest project. He's a smart man, and doesn't seem to be as nefarious as Safire is painting him to be, but who knows. His latest initiative does sound frightening.

I'm a little irked at Hotmail right now; for the past week or so, I keep getting

You have made too many unsuccessful sign-in attempts with an incorrect password

messages whenever I try to log in. It takes me five or six tries to get through. Wonder if someone's trying to hack my password or something? I'd complain but Microsoft won't let you complain unless you sign up for their Passport service. Serves me right for getting into bed with them this far. Too late to switch to some other mail service now; too many people know my Hotmail address...

Not for the faint of heart. Please remember, he had plastic surgery to look this good.

I'm hopping on the band wagon and copying Mike's googlism. Here's the edited version of the Marjorie seach
Googlism for "Marjorie".

marjorie is born
marjorie is the author of the book the divine right of capital
marjorie is one of mistaken identity
marjorie is an astute observer of people and behavior
marjorie is a gifted artist
marjorie is having a midlife crisis
marjorie is placed within the boundaries of her home
marjorie is also a contributing reporter for the show
marjorie is often on the road giving demonstrations
marjorie is her mother
marjorie is a hopi field nurse
marjorie is part of london zoo’s history herself
marjorie is listed as appearing
marjorie is on pages 1
marjorie is out enjoying her garden
marjorie is on her way back to the ocean
marjorie is one of our best tour guides
marjorie is sitting at her desk at home
marjorie is content to do what she thinks he wants
marjorie is a profoundly loving and compassionate healer
marjorie is recovering from a mental crisis
marjorie is going to stay at your house until march 27
marjorie is a successful motivational speaker
marjorie is not volunteering at the peace and environment resource centre
marjorie is almost like a jewish phyllis
marjorie is founder and chief executive of sane
marjorie is
marjorie is reluctant to tell her friend to leave
marjorie is pleasant to be with
marjorie is not catholic
marjorie is responsible for making sure all parties are medically screened and the results forwarded to the doctors offices before any procedures are done
marjorie is also illustrating children's books and greeting cards
marjorie is already encouraging him to call her "mum" ;by day three they're rolling around in bed together
marjorie is a fearless driver
marjorie is a regular moderator on diabetes station
marjorie is the well
marjorie is a mess
marjorie is returning home from work and stops at a corner store
marjorie is certainly no stranger to difficult circumstances
marjorie is extremely well read
marjorie is the instigator of everything
marjorie is already a cartoon
marjorie is suffering from a severe case of midlife angst
marjorie is the co
marjorie is available for bookings in clubs
marjorie is a brilliant lady with a keen sense of curiosity and the tenacity to plow through details that would send anyone else running
marjorie is restless
marjorie is now
marjorie is very proud to be returning to the bus after a north american tour
marjorie is a member of the huronia rose society