Well, we've only got three days left. The past couple weeks have been calm, though I am constantly going over everything in my head to ensure this is as trouble free as possible.
We have three bags, each weighing right at the limit of 50 lbs each. We have one smaller bag that will probably weigh well under the limit at 35 lbs. These 4 are getting checked in luggage through to San Pedro Sula, Honduras. We are also each carrying a backpack, and we'll have one carry on. It really wasn't as bad as I originally thought, but there are some things that we are leaving behind, for sure.
We are both certified Divemasters now. We ran a little late getting that done, but, it's done and that's all I care about right now. I bought a digital copy of the PADI Instructor Manual, a CD packs much smaller than a 1000 page binder. But, I got a little creative. As I thought it would be beneficial to also have a paper copy, I resized the entire thing and printed it on 5.5x8.5" paper. It's essentially a half size instructor manual (and the print is still decently sized). It cost me $60 in ink, two small binders and a ream of paper, and took three days to do (on and off) but it's tiny in comparison.
Lets talk needles. I HATE needles. I hate giving blood, I hate getting shots, etc. Diamond could care less. Oh well. Anyways, Immunizations. Ugh... For Central America, the Center for Disease Control recommends vaccination against a bunch of things, but we weighed our options and went for Hepatitis A and Typhoid Fever. Hep B really only transmits through sexual contact and blood transmission, which we will not have to worry about. Typhoid Fever is a pretty serious disease, but the immunizations have a 50-80% coverage. Needless to say, it's not very common in the immediate area we are going to, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. The other common one is Malaria. Unfortunately, there is no immunization for Malaria. Instead, we will be taking Chloroquine pills once a week the entire time we are there, and for 4 weeks after we leave. We should have been better prepared and done this a couple weeks ago, but I digress, it kinda got put aside.
Yesterday, we went to the store and got some personal items, made sure had toothpaste, deodorant, razors, etc. I'm sure all of this will be available in one form or another, but it'll be nice to take our own with us for familiarity sake in the beginning. Yesterday, I also made copies of all of our documents - passports, drivers licenses, social security cards, insurance. Copies to keep with us and copies to stay here at home. I also e-mailed them to myself just in case both original and copies were to be lost, we can reprint them from any internet terminal. We always hope it doesn't come to this, but you can never be 100% sure.
Today, I have to get my car ready for storage - change the oil, top off all fluids, inflate tires to max pressure, get some mothballs to scatter around the car, and fill up the gas tank with premium (I already use premium, but gas loses it's octane rating over time), and add a fuel stabilizer to the gas. Also going to clean all the crap out of the car, and take window covers with me. The Lexus is staying at a friends house for the duration (or until I'm sure we aren't coming back anytime soon), and the Maxima is for sale, and will stay with Diamonds parents until it is sold.
Tonight we are having a little going away party at our house, then going to hit up a bar or two afterwards. Tomorrow will be a major day of packing our stuff for storage - clothes, junk, whatnot. Then Monday, hopefully will be a brainstorming day making sure we have everything. Monday night, Diamonds parents are taking us out to eat. A good night of sleep (hopefully I can sleep at all, hell, I'll probably be up all night), then Tuesday, we'll be at the airport at 1:30 for a 3:30 flight to Ft Lauderdale.
As time gets closer, I get more and more excited... We've waited over a year for this opportunity!
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