(no subject)
Well I'm making progress with trip preparations. It would make things alot easier if I could find my passport. Right now it's somewhere in the middle of the mess that is my room, I think. When she's located, it's off to the post office to apply for a tourist visa for India. I have the application, photos, and money order ready to go.
Things were put on a little stand-still as my dad entered the hospital last Friday. He wisely drove himself in after having chest pains. This is a fatalistic move if you ask me. My dad is repels doctors. He will see them. But it's always too late, after he's been ailing for three years, or if he bumps into them at restaurants. But this time I guess his own mortality snapped some sense into him. He drove himself in on Friday after having what he originaly thought was heartburn, for about two hours. It kept getting worse. Once in the ER, he was given oxygen, and the pain subsided. After a weekend of resting in the hospital, and multiple tests, the doctors found out he had 99% blockage of his left front artery, and they immediately performed angioplasy and fitted him with a double stent. Operation a complete success! My dad's eating habits (and mine too for that matter) are horrid, and I am praying that this experience will finally push him into a healthy eating routine - he needs it (and so do I!). I sincerely hope my dad can come up with the funds to make it to see me in Greece. It would be so meaningful to see him shed some pounds, save some money and arrive in a foreign country with a new outlook on life. One can only hope.
So back to trip planning. I have spent an unbelievable amount of time shopping for shoes. Hiking boots really. I honestly think I have tried on 15+ pairs. I am so digging Merrells, but need to find a pair that also have Gore-Tex. The first pair I bought (and loved) were only "waterproof" but not Gore-Tex. I've since found out this is like the difference between front row and general admission. Or first-class and the luggage rack. Or something like that. There is also a company called Vibram that fits their treads onto popular hiking boots. So I'm shopping for a Merrell boot, with Gore-Tex lining and a Vibram tread. Of course they had one at Dick's Sporting Goods...but it was size too big - just couldn't do it.
This weekend I hope to finish the shoe-shopping, as well as some other big-ticket items, like a backpack, and my short list of nylon, breathable clothes. Maybe I'll even get my laptop this weekend too? I've got to step things up a bit, in case I order anything online and it needs to be shipped. But all in all, I'm in pretty decent shape.
And I got my tickets in the mail today!! So wierd to see airline tickets from Indonesia and Royal Nepal Airlines with my name on them!
Ok enough of this - it's time to hit the AT for a few beers with Kacy.
Things were put on a little stand-still as my dad entered the hospital last Friday. He wisely drove himself in after having chest pains. This is a fatalistic move if you ask me. My dad is repels doctors. He will see them. But it's always too late, after he's been ailing for three years, or if he bumps into them at restaurants. But this time I guess his own mortality snapped some sense into him. He drove himself in on Friday after having what he originaly thought was heartburn, for about two hours. It kept getting worse. Once in the ER, he was given oxygen, and the pain subsided. After a weekend of resting in the hospital, and multiple tests, the doctors found out he had 99% blockage of his left front artery, and they immediately performed angioplasy and fitted him with a double stent. Operation a complete success! My dad's eating habits (and mine too for that matter) are horrid, and I am praying that this experience will finally push him into a healthy eating routine - he needs it (and so do I!). I sincerely hope my dad can come up with the funds to make it to see me in Greece. It would be so meaningful to see him shed some pounds, save some money and arrive in a foreign country with a new outlook on life. One can only hope.
So back to trip planning. I have spent an unbelievable amount of time shopping for shoes. Hiking boots really. I honestly think I have tried on 15+ pairs. I am so digging Merrells, but need to find a pair that also have Gore-Tex. The first pair I bought (and loved) were only "waterproof" but not Gore-Tex. I've since found out this is like the difference between front row and general admission. Or first-class and the luggage rack. Or something like that. There is also a company called Vibram that fits their treads onto popular hiking boots. So I'm shopping for a Merrell boot, with Gore-Tex lining and a Vibram tread. Of course they had one at Dick's Sporting Goods...but it was size too big - just couldn't do it.
This weekend I hope to finish the shoe-shopping, as well as some other big-ticket items, like a backpack, and my short list of nylon, breathable clothes. Maybe I'll even get my laptop this weekend too? I've got to step things up a bit, in case I order anything online and it needs to be shipped. But all in all, I'm in pretty decent shape.
And I got my tickets in the mail today!! So wierd to see airline tickets from Indonesia and Royal Nepal Airlines with my name on them!
Ok enough of this - it's time to hit the AT for a few beers with Kacy.