Fate can be sort of a prick sometimes, yeah? The breadth and depth of what comes to write about is a bit overwhelming for even a cloudy morning with new Sigur Rós and tea lining the background, and piling work and what feels like the last 200 of an 800 yard dash which is me doing the robot in picking up eesti keelne proficiency. Fuuah. Within the last month I have been staggardly punching progress holes into conversational ability (though not the sort of holes a Jesse Ventura would be able to punch). All the same and due to a conglomeration of wide-ranging and very- to semi-relevant conditions, about a week ago I sucked in a breath and made a Decision (no coin toss or decisive Bozo buckets involved, mind you) that, yes,
I am moving back.
Now to just carry through with that. I started with leaking it to some Estonian coworkers and friends, which felt like it should have been one of the more difficult parts anyways. I reassured them, and I do actually mean, that I will be moving back for a few years for grad school and the like, and throughout all of it traveling back often, holding my residency in Estonia temporary for as long as I can see. Hell, about the only places to speak Estonian in the street are here and in Toronto, and I'm not an avid Maple Leafs fan. It even seems to time out well, given that the people involved in the few 'better' friendships I have been able to develop are set to up and off themselves to mandatory army conscription or other parts of Europe. Plus the draws of being back with those in Minneapolis and the closer surrounding Midwest make fronting myself through explaining the decision easy.
Done. Next, tickets. Done. September 16th (Northwest got drunk and tickets dropped below a grand from London.. Hu-ra-h.). Done. Start plans for being back, sharpen a CV and start feeling out for jobs. Alright.
Now, tell the boss.
It would have been loads easier, had this entire thing not coincided with another momentous event.. I am legally residing in Europe! Fucking finally! After six months of delay and pissing about, the Migration Board (just about as organized as the local Beaver Appreciation Society, which in my mind even has more admirable goals) descended from on high and presented me with a excessively-spaced letter detailing my name, birthday, and that their answer is
'Alright, sure.' This is actually a really sweet deal, and allows me to until February 2010 spend as much time as I want living and working in Estonia, as well as temporally unbounded travel in the rest of Schengen. I'll also get an Estonian identity card on 3 August, which will make me feel, in the most majestic of expressions, 'fucking pimp' when I walk through border controls in Europe.
Alright, great. I still plan on moving back, however. Even if I wanted to extend it, the first one is the only bitch of a process from what I hear.. renewing takes a week or two and could probably be done on holiday if needed.
My employer came up to me yesterday with all these things he is supposed to fulfill, however.. still not sure how all or any of these really concern me
(our conversations are usually thoroughly interesting though range from point to point faster than Obama can wink at each member of a rally.. which I can believe is stunning). I also very, very loosely grasp how this would equal him wanting to demonstrate to the government that he (wants to.. what?!) will (have had) paid for my return tickets back Stateside. All jolly, yes.. don't understand any of it, and only slightly wary and offset by this.. though.. what?! I did slip into the conversation that I am actually planning on going back and slapping through the master's. I am somewhat sure he heard me. If he connected that to the rest of my sentence saying 'not sure if I'm coming back right away' is another matter. So now I need to go out and set it down straight.. I mean, shit, I already texted my landlord about it! Not sure how this will affect my residency permit in full, though..
suck in another breath, and take this one on with determination.
In other news, the sun almost fully sets for close to a few hours now. Whoo!
Ho..
Edasi, вперёд..
So.
14:25 hit the London skies, and following in-flight movies and ticket-price-included Heineken onboard..
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