Paperwork

Today, I met with my professor about the trip - things that still need to get done and who to send paperwork to as I finish it. I also met with the person responsible for handling my W-9 that I need to fill out for my grant. I still have much left to take care of, but I'm pretty relaxed about it. I'm just excited and ready to fly home tomorrow for a 3 week break before South Africa.

In addition to doing concrete things to move me closer to getting to South Africa, I also went to Borders and bought Nelson Mandela's autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom. I'm not sure if I will have time to read it much before I go, but my goal is to finish it before leaving South Africa. There is also another book that I want to read while I am there - Dark Continent, My Black Arse by Sihle Khumalo - but I need to buy that in South Africa because it won't be printed in the United States until October. It's about a black South African man's journey from Cairo to Cape Town via public transportation. It should provide an interesting perspective on the country.

35 days until I start work at the Commission.