gearing up

amidst all of the moving preparations are the excitement and nervousness one is forced to bury during such hectic times. i know they're there somewhere, but i think maybe they won't make themselves known until i'm on the plane to bangalore.

when i make room in my brain to think about our upcoming adventure, i think about all of the new sights/sounds/smells i'll be graced with, the people and accents and languages, the work opportunities and our radio show (stay tuned for more on that), and soaking in the landscapes that long bus and train rides across the country will reveal.

i'm looking forward to all of that, and i'm nervous about some other things. mostly i'm nervous about how i'll be treated as a white-looking USer. i know that because of my privilege, i will be treated in ways that will make me uncomfortable, and it may be challenging to figure out how to navigate it, especially if i want to be teaching childbirth classes. i've been in similar situations in latin america, when i was younger, and i never quite figured out how to be okay with it. talking to uzma last night helped me think about it in another way, though. (thanks, uz.)

speaking of uzma, god i'm really going to miss everyone. hey, did you know that we'll have a webcam? any of you who have webcams, please can we video chat all the time? sangeeta's sister leaves the webcam on sophie for hours at a time. i like that idea. i think i could watch genevieve for hours at a time. except when she's sleeping. okay, really i won't be staring at a computer screen for more than what is a healthy amount of time each day. i will be out there, exploring the city, finding clients, making playlists for the aforementioned radio show, receiving ayurvedic oil treatments, practicing yoga, dreaming up big ideas in my aquarian way, and eating lots of yummy south indian treats.

how can you resist coming for a visit? let's review our visitors, shall we?

friends who are committed:

greta
judy

friends who are seriously considering it:

kari
jess
teju
mel and sangeeta
bekah and marissa
mom
blake, allie, and the G
tara and ari

friends who were already going to be in india at some point in the next year:

christian, sunila, and stinko
sahana, thambu and the little monkey
nalini and gopal

Bengaluru

Just as we were getting ready to make the move to Bangalore, they go and change the name. Bengaluru. The Kannada pronunciation of Bangalore. I guess they can't tell, it's not acually a different name...

They've done it before and they'll do it again. Mumbai/Bombay ~ Kolkata/Calcutta ~ Chennai/Madras. Regionalists and nationalists will always find a way to assert their agendas in coded ways. and when the religious fundies get in the mix...well, then history gets re-written!

But here is a piece of history that we are writing as we go along...
Paige and I are moving to Bengaluru/Bangalore!

It is the perfect time to go on an adventure in the "dirty south" of India. My girl Paige, like it or not, comes from the dirty south of this here U S and A... and we're talking Texas dirty. So I thought it was high time for her to get a taste of just how dirty we southie desis can be. (and this way she can escape another harsh new york winter!)

So being that we will be so far from all of you for a year or so, we thought a blog essential for keeping you abreast of the developments and adventures in our life. We don't actually leave until January so please do join us for debauchery in the meantime and let the countdown begin!

Onward to Bengaluru!