Preparations before leaving

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Nov 16, 2008

So here we are, Sunday night. In 3 days I am going to boarding a plane heading to a destination I have always wanted to go: South America. I just sat down on my computer after rushing all week- working lots and sleeping little. Trying to get these book chapters done before we go to Brazil and finish up all the loose ends with clients and other work before we disappear for 2 weeks. Paul and I are co-authoring 3 chapters on reptile behavior- it has been a big project to fit it into our lives. Opportunities keep coming and it is sometime hard to be selective about what to say “No” to. But how could we say no to Brazil??

Paul was invited to lecture to a group of wildlife veterinarians in a 2 day lecture/lab series on reptile medicine and practice. I get the trip paid for too since I am a vet tech, and also have a lot of lecture and teaching experience. So we fly out on Wed, Nov 19th in the morning- Milwaukee to Dallas to Sao Paulo, Brazil- arriving the next day on the 20th. We will find way to get to Santos, about an hour away where we will stay until Nov 27th for the conference. Then we will take a plane south to Curitiba in the early afternoon, getting supplies for the second leg of our trip and finding a place to sleep in the city. The next morning, the 28th, we will take a stunning train ride down the mountain side to Morrettes, with final destination of Marumbi Park. There we will spend a few days hiking and rock climbing with a local climbing guide, before heading back to Curitiba, Sau Paulo, Dallas, and home to Milwaukee on Dec 3.

We have been trying to climb as much as possible to get into shape for this trip. Over the past 3 months we have been building strength and endurance- walking the dog for about an hour every day and rock climbing in the gym twice a week. This has caused me to drop 3% body fat and about 6 pounds, which is a lot for me since my body has been fairly static for years. My chiropractor has been telling me to build more back & neck muscle for about a year now. Brazil has been the right sort of motivation to make that happen.

Paul is taking on the book tonight to finish up his part, I am to spend the rest of the night starting (could I even finish??) a lecture that I give this Tues night to a roomful of veterinarians. Just made some hot chocolate on the stovetop. Mixed some soymilk and eggnog in a heavy pot, added some rich cocoa and whisked until creamy. On the side we ground some dark organic fair- trade Sumatran coffee. Once finished brewing, I filled the heavy mug half full with the dark coffee and topped it off with the hot chocolate off the stove. The result: a big mug of rich tasty frothiness! Yum.... now I need to finish my work, or at least start it tonight!
Heather

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