Down to the wire...

I'm back in Minneapolis after successful trips to Phoenix and Lincoln this week. Phoenix was a personal trip. The Bogotron invited me down for some R&R and let Mike and Margie cook for and entertain me. Lincoln was a work trip. We got a lot of stuff sorted out, and also ended up realizing there's a lot left to do. That's OK, though. As the Kiwis are fond of saying: "No worries." On the vaguely work-related front, PSICAT has been getting a lot of attention recently so that's rewarding.

Tomorrow Elizabeth and I have a fair amount of packing and errands to run before we head our separate ways on Saturday. Tomorrow is also my last chance to get some decent food. I'm going to miss my Chipotle burritos, so I'll probably have to stop and have one for lunch. I also think I'm going to cook some halibut steaks with a pineapple salsa for a nice, romantic dinner.

On Saturday I fly to Los Angeles by way of O'Hare, so that will be about as fun as a kick to the head. Last year I almost missed my flight to New Zealand because nothing ever gets out of O'Hare on time. I hoping for better luck this year. I'm also hoping I win the seat lottery on the flight to New Zealand. If I get stuck middle-middle, you can bet I'm going to be taking advantage of the complimentary beer and liquor.

In Christchurch, I'm staying at the Windsor Bed and Breakfast. I stayed there last year and it was great. The owners are really nice and it's centrally located for easy walking to places. My two planned stops are this hole in the wall fish and chips place I found on my first visit to NZ and the Dux De Lux for a few beers.

I know a lot of people are following the blog again this year. If there's something you're curious about or want to see, drop me a line via email or the comments and I'll do my best to put it in a blog post. I also have a few invites for Dopplr, so if you do a lot of traveling yourself or have an intense burning desire to know where I am, let me know. Cheers.