My new boss came through as promised with both a generous compensation package and a challenging job description. I am very excited. I emailed him back accepting his offer. Here's the checklist of things I need to do:
1. Find a lawyer to hire to assign as my power of attorney to manage the sale of my house and personal property left behind.
2. Find a live animal relocation service to ensure my greyhound and siamese cat make it to Calcutta
3. Find an agent in Calcutta to help me find suitable housing, a housekeeper, cook, car and driver, plus a school accredited in the U.S.
4. Track my son's passport renewal process. Once received, apply for employment visa at the consulate in Chicago.
5. Go through everything in the house. Divide into deep storage (ship to mum's house), sell, pack, throw away, and freecycle. Organize corners in living room to piles of each.
6. List sales on all listserves and craigslist.
7. Limited to 300 cubic feet of material to go to India. Considering bringing just what I'd miss in a fire and replacing everything else. The estimates are typically around $3K USD, so each cubic foot is costing me $10. Use it wisely.
I'm thinking of re-naming my son Lay-Z, "Lay-Z is in da house, dawg". He hasn't touched his room. I am pretty overwhelmed myself. I am also very excited.
I made a new email address on gmail that I can access anywhere; previously I have been using my phone service and my cable internet service for email, both of which will end when we move.
I also opened up a Skype account so that my family and friends can call using VOIP for free. This will also help Will stay in touch with his friends here. Being 13, the culture shock will be even more severe for him, since attitudes toward sexuality are so different from the U.S. and my sensibilities. Once he figures out a rubber is just an eraser in India, he'll be so disappointed :-).
I feel like I'm making progress. Slow, but progress nonetheless...
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2 comments:
Hmmm... what on EARTH possess a person with the madness to MOVE to India???? I ended up staying longer than planned, and India was probably my worst nightmare. But I stayed for specific reasons.
I do hope you have some help there, perhaps work to help you occupy your time and find friends because it will be difficult and you will be lonely. Be prepared; you will be scammed to the left and right from morning to evening.
I do with you all the best, though, and good luck.
I completely disagree with your comment. How long were you there? Where did you stay? I spent over a year there, in college, living with a Parsee family in Mumbai and I have nothing but positive things to say about my life in India. It changed my world view so significantly that I realized that my life here in the US was uninformed and US-centric. I realized that most of the world didn't live like us. I learned that most people didn't mistake religion for government. Sadly, I have realized that most countries don't take down the leader of another country just because they think it's the right thing to do. I have a son who is 13. I need to show him there is another life out there - the one everyone else is living and I KNOW I'm doing the right thing.
You have to open your mind to new experiences. You can't recreate your life in the U.S. You need to assimilate and appreciate the life you live in another country. Respect its culture, learn about it. I love bharata natyam and mendhi. I love the food. I love the hill stations. I love the people. I love the lifestyle. India's culture is not something to experience in a week - it's a fine wine, built for the long term, requiring aging and demands the appreciation of those who have taken the time to educate themselves. It's not for someone happy with a box of wine - its complexity and maturity will be completely misread by those not initiated in its esoteric millieu.
Perhaps you'd be happier at the Ramada outside Orlando. Best of luck.
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