Home stretch

I have one month to go.  I have been counting down the time until I get to go home.  I have read on other blogs and sites about expatriation that months three and four are the hardest.  It takes that long to make friends and find out what you really miss about home.  There is one thing I really miss.

I only have one more day until Robyn arrives tomorrow.  I am so excited that I can hardly concentrate.  It feels like Christmas, I need to clean the apartment and decorate it, and in the end I get a present.
Ugh, I do need to clean the apartment.  I have not had a visitor since the census lady a couple months ago.  Luckily there is not much to clean.  It only takes me about an hour.  But I need to wash all the sheets and towels, and make sure all the clothes I want for vacation are washed and ready to go.

Once Robyn leaves Paris and heads home, I will only have two weeks to wrap up my research here in Lyon.  That means I must get enough work done that we can continue the collaboration via long distance.  The work here has progressed a bit in the last couple of weeks. Still have a bunch of work still to do.
Before I leave, I need to hold a garage sale (give away) of all the things I have accumulated, including my nice brand new reading chair.  The graduate students will get first choice as they are as lowly paid as graduate students in the US and it costs more to live here in the city.  Most of them do not need any of the stuff, but I will offer it to them before giving it away.

I just realized that I have not driven a car in over three months.  It is hard to imagine not doing that for a lifetime.  I miss being able to drive from Boulder, (what I now consider to be a small town) and visit the tiny villages of Colorado and the rest of the western US.  Getting out into the open spaces where there are no people.  When I get back and get into my giant american super-sized truck, it will feel as big as my apartment.  Hope I can still park it.

I just heard from Robyn and she is on her way to the airport.  I should head to the apartment and start my chores.  I'm so excited!