UPDATE

Well, I'm not "on the road" yet (I leave on my next journey in 44½ days) so I'll attempt to bring things up-to-date.

Since I returned home at the beginning of this month, I've been been working hard with only one day of "fun" (when I went to the Balloon Fiesta).  I also spent several days with the flu — the first time in a couple of years that I can remember being really ill.

Much of my time lately has been spent putting together Melissa & Bryan's wedding video (in fact, I'd finished authoring a really nice version of it when it was decided to include the photographer's slideshow so I'm awaiting that to arrive in the mail now before completing the project).

I've also spent many hours (off and on over the past two weeks or so) researching and booking itineraries, airfare, and accomodations for my "grand adventure" in late December/early January.  I'm still planning to keep the primary destination a secret from everyone (except for one friend who will be sent a copy of the flight & hotel details in case of emergency) until I make the family phone call on Christmas morning.  I'm REALLY looking forward to this trip and I think I've put together a fantastic journey.  I got some great price deals all around and was amazed that the "high-end" rooms at one of my destinations topped out below $20 U.S. (the one I chose will cost me a whopping $6.75 per night!).  In fact, I'm saving so much money on all aspects of the trip that I'm considering splurging on a really fancy hotel (not my usual style) for the last couple of nights of the trip (the only part I haven't booked yet).

In between the short trip for my birthday, and the longer trip at the end of the month, in mid-December I'll be spending a few days in Portland, Oregon, with the intention of finding a place to live.  I have my heart set on one particular high-rise close to Washington Park (ironically, right across the street from where I stayed in September), but will also check out other locations (I would love to live in one of those cool buildings downtown).

I have also scored a ticket for U2's concert at the Rose Garden on December 19 — their last show of the year.  It's kind of a nose-bleed seat so I'm trying to score a better one closer to the stage.  With prices for GA tickets going to astronomical levels on eBay, I'm considering trying to buy a pair of those and then reselling the extra ticket at (hopefully) a profit along with my upper level seat.  We'll see...

I also got an invitation to the 10th anniversary party of the @u2 website, to be held at an Irish pub the night before the U2 concert.  There will be contests (with some really cool prizes), a huge birthday cake, and Bay area U2 tribute band Zoo Station will perform.  Sounds like a fun evening.

And that's it.

As usual, there are many other projects at home I'd like to work on (and, someday, actually finish).  But there just never seems to be enough time.  I've been feeling really unorganized as there are stacks of stuff on top of my desk and nearby shelves that I need to attend to.  My piles of unwatched DVD's and unlistened-to CD's are also becoming ever taller.  Someday...

Hopefully, things will slow down a bit in the next week or so.  My slate will never be completely clean but I think I'll be able to breathe a little easier when the wedding DVD is finished and the last bit of my reseverations are booked.  Then, perhaps I can clear some stacks off of my desk and get some control over my life again.  What I'd really like to do is spend the next several weekends with music on the stereo — staying away from the computer and television — so I can start cleaning out closets, throwing out (or putting in the "eBay box") unwanted or unneeded detritus, and preparing for next year's big move.  You can never start packing too soon, I think.  I should also start scheduling hour or two-hour blocks of time for various local photo safaris — there's a lot of Albuquerque that I'd like to capture on "film" before I go.

I can't believe I'm finally going to leave New Mexico after years of promising to do just that!  I'm going to miss parts of this place, but I'm really looking forward to starting a new life in the Pacific Northwest.