AZDonna

My sabbatical started last night and I couldn’t even write about it until today. My cable has been out. There was a microburst yesterday afternoon and it downed power lines, which in turn, knocked out CableAmerica in a large portion of Mesa. I’ve had to watch TV from rabbit ears! Cable came back on tonight in the middle of the Diamondbacks game (which we won, I might add.)

But back to the most important event in my little world. Sabbatical! As I drove out of the Intel parking lot last night, I called Daryl, because I knew he would understand the elation. Then I called Alice, then Mom, then Robin. It feels good. It won’t really sink in and feel real, though, until Monday morning when everyone is getting up and going to work except me. All right, I know there are people who read my blog who don’t get up and go to work on Monday mornings, but I’m talking about my co-workers in my department still trying to tape out that chip. Yes, it slipped the deadline, and they are still working on it. But not me! I have 10, count ’em … TEN … glorious … weeks!!!

I’m leaving on Wednesday night for Alaska. I talked to Robin last night, and it looks like I’m going to need to pack sweaters and pants. Their highs have only been in the 50s. We had our last forecasted 100 degree day today, so fall is on the horizon, but it’s going to be a few weeks before our high is only 50. The Alaska temps will sure feel chilly.

With the disaster in Mississippi and Louisiana, Glenda and I are waiting to see if our road trip plans still make sense by October. If gas prices continue to hover around $5-6.00 a gallon in some parts of the country, we may make some adjustments to our route. We are also waiting to see when we can leave. Glenda’s dad is having surgery as soon as he is able (he is battling an infection that needs to get cleared up before they will operate on his hip). Of course, Glenda needs to be here with him until he is over the hardest part of his recovery. So we may not leave here until the first or second week of October instead of the last week of September. Since I took an extra two weeks of vacation, we have until mid-November to complete our travels.

Be sure to check out Heather and Mark’s website. They’ve joined the blogging world.

I ran across a website the other day called “This is Broken“. Pretty fun stuff. From there I linked to here, a website full of signs and manuals that should have been run past a proof reader. These got me giggling, and the more I clicked, the more I laughed. By the time I got to page 5, I couldn’t stop. Maybe it was because I was reading it really late on Saturday night (early Sunday morning), or maybe they really are funny. But I sure got a kick out of them.

Don says it’s time for an update, so I’ll comply. Nathan is asleep in the other room. I brought him home to spend the night and we watched Lady and the Tramp. It’s been a long time since I watched that one all the way through. Boy, if I didn’t have grandkids, I would forget all the great Disney Classics!

I’ve been continuing to work overtime as our chip gets closer to tape out. I brought my laptop home last night and did a little work from home and worked about four hours from my kitchen counter this morning. This project should be done in three more weeks. I leave on sabbatical that Friday. Perfect timing!

I’ve got my sabbatical travel plans just about solidified. My first official day off is September 12 (Dale’s birthday). On Wednesday, the 14th, I fly to Anchorage and will be there for a week. Steven’s first birthday is Friday, the 16th, so I worked out the timing perfectly to be able to celebrate with him. I haven’t missed one of the grandkids’ first birthdays yet!

After returning home on the 23rd, I have a few days to prepare for my 4 week road trip. Glenda and I are leaving on the 28th, and driving northeast. We have stops planned in Evansville (to visit Wendy & Dennis) and Niagara Falls, and on up into New England for about a week. Then we will head south through NYC, Philadelphia and Washington DC. We’ll spend 3-4 days there seeing the sights. As we drive further south to Orlando, we’ll stop in colonial Williamsburg, Atlanta, and possibly try to see the Kennedy Space Center. After 3-4 days at Walt Disney World, we skedaddle home, because I’m sure we’ll both be longing for our own beds by then! We’ll also, no doubt, be out of money…especially if the price of gas keeps climbing like it is. That should be about October 24th or 25th.

My main disappointment has been Alice’s recent decision not to join Glenda and me on the trip. She’s feeling snug in her little home in Portland, and reluctant to strike out across the country with us. I told her we had already dreamed of new memories we would be making with her, and so will miss her terribly. Until we arrive in Buffalo, I’m still going to hope that she will change her mind. (That’s where she is supposed to fly in to meet up with us.)

I found a house and dog sitter who I am thrilled about. She’s a friend from church. She said she is looking forward to my cable TV. I think she will be a Tivo fan by the time I come home, don’t you?

I’m off work until November 6, unless I take an extra week or two of vacation, which I might.
So the countdown is really on now. I have 15 working days left and I’m outta there. See ya later, alligator!