There are only 44 days now until we leave the country. It seems like such a huge undertaking (and there’s lots to organise, as our Operation GPL Wiki is testament to), but really it’s just a (seemingly endless) series of very small tasks one after the other. We spent the weekend getting ready for the house opens (lighting so many candles!). On Saturday Orlando was oblivious to the inspections as he spent the entire day sleeping under a bush in the yard. Sunday, however, he was more alert to the strange goings on, so we had to put him in his travel box and take him for a walk to the park. We spent a nice half and hour under a shady tree with Orlando on the picnic table sniffing the air for all the new smells. I don’t think he’d ever been for a walk before.

I will take him to Dr John’s this week to get an idea of how his kidneys are faring.

I only have five weeks of work left. Work is very busy, but much of it is now preparation for next year, so I have this sense of feeling oddly detached.