Don’t bug me. I’m doing business.

I’m buying airline tickets from a travel agent in Singapore via email at 1 AM in New York City. This makes phase two of my trip slightly more real. 6 days or so in Laos. It’s previously surreal nature was due to the fact that I wasn’t sure how the heck I was going to get from Singapore to Laos. Now I know: a hop on a Thai Airways flight and then a trip on a [shudder] Lao Aviation flight. They don’t call this kind of trip an adventure for nothing.

Almost at escape day. My project at work is coming together and I must say, I’m quite ready to kiss my job goodbye for a month. I’ll be leaving with projects nicely wrapped up and no software problems to hop around in my head while I’m gone.

I’ve kept to my pre-trip alcohol-free plan except for a wee bit of red wine with a friend’s home-cooked meal, and it feels good. I enjoy alcohol, but I sure enjoy being totally weaned of it for a while.

Aji’s meeting me at the airport in Singapore, which makes my midnight arrival a piece of cake. It could have been a lot tougher. It’s been over two years since we’ve seen each other. Last time was in Bangalore, India, helping Meeta and I turn over the keys to our apartment to our rotund landlord and pack us off for a flight to Bombay. I’m looking forward to it tremendously. Another thing that wasn’t part of the plan when I decided on the trip. Ah, serendipity.

Bit of non-voyage-news. Volleyball season ended tonight with another three losses and me on the sidelines. I really wanted to play, but listened to the wise words of Will and Anthony and preserved my healing foot for the mountains of northern Thailand. We were 6-24 on the season, a marked improvement from 0-24 last season. Next season starts when I get back. I want to rock it. Huge spikes. Wins. Adoration of screaming fans. High fives and celebratory pitchers of beer. I can practically taste it.