Years become mere hours!

I am here at my desk trying to bring the disaster that it is into some order so that I can leave without those dreaded little nagging thoughts that there was something left undone. "I know I forgot something!" When that thought creeps in you can be pretty sure that you will not figure out what it is that you've neglected until the moment you are faced with that which it would have fixed. "Sir, this jar of South African mosquitoes you have so bravely collected in the swampy area behind the bar while drinking after the US win over England are all infected with malaria, typhoid, yellow fever, and something yet unnamed but makes you pop your collar up and act like a d-bag." Immunization shots! Dammit, I knew I forgot something! Stupid, stupid!
The solution to this is, of course, a slew of lists. Packing lists, shopping lists, to-do lists, and the ever important, list of lists. There is something comforting about a bunch of lists with all the entry's crossed out. A sense of accomplishment. I have to just hope that I haven't lost a list somewhere in this quagmire of folded clothes, copied documents, battle regalia and cords. I have a bag of cords! I need a second piece of luggage for my chords? Camera, I-pod, phone, computer. Chords for power, chords to connect, upload, download, unload, reload. Can't just take a picture anymore and wait until you've come home after thousands of miles of worldly travel and find that you have taken 10 rolls of film with pictures of your index finger, the bottom half of your friends faces, blurry photos of sleeping animals at the zoo, and random strangers in varying stages of celebration. "Who the hell is this person and why do they have my shoes on their ears?" Nope now you have to take chords so you can take the equivalent of 100 rolls of film, save them all on your computer and then try to remember who, what, and where the hell all of these pictures are when you get home. Technology is freedom! I mock this only because I am horribly inept with technology, but I have a kick ass new camera! Now to figure out how to use it.
So the reason for all of this is the World Cup! South Africa 2010, and the 4th consecutive World Cup in attendance on foreign soil. Brett and I have made this a regular expedition and I wouldn't have it any other way. However, we are not alone this time around. Our numbers are growing and I imagine that this trip will be one of the best yet. Jim, Corey, Clint, German and Ryan have joined the ranks and we will be a 7 man platoon in Sam's Army. Our tickets are bought and our bags are packed. The only thing left to do is to wait until 6/8/2010 when at about 8 in the evening I will board a big plane and begin the next journey across the planet in hopes of watching my national soccer team win the biggest sporting event on the planet. I haven't been this excited in a long time. Keep your eyes open for us, we'll be there and no doubt we'll be loud!