Crunch Time!

Do you remember this scene from Star Wars? They're in the big trash compactor and the walls are closing in on them. Hmmm. I can relate. The walls are definitely closing in on this family. Just 3 days until David leaves, and we've been thrown for a few loops. There is a job that David has been waiting a couple of years for, and the woman currently in the position is retiring. Back in February, the school district posted the job--meaning you could send in an application. So David did. The school district has had 15 weeks to get their act together and start the interviews, but they kept putting it off. Wouldn't you know, David gets a call on Thursday telling him they'll be starting the first round of interviews on Tuesday. As in Tuesday, the day he leaves!

Can he do it? Yes, with a lot of juggling. The interview is scheduled for 8:30 am, so he will have to rent a conference room at Denver Int'l. Airport and do it over the phone. We will probably have to leave our house at 4:00 am on Tuesday to drive the hour+ to the airport, make sure he gets through int'l. security, and he can get to this conference room to use a phone. He doesn't want to use a cell phone for fear of getting cut off or a bad connection. Oh, and it gets better. If he makes it through the first round of interviews (which he will), the next round will be on Friday--when David is already checked out of his hotel in Rome and sitting at the Rome airport. We're trying to figure out the time difference and getting through security in Rome so he can do the interview, but the phone is a kicker. Our international cell phone charges $4.99 a minute, and this second interview will probably be a good 45 minutes. We're looking into phone cards, anything.

So our weekend has been stolen from us. Our last few days together as a family of 4 were pulled out from under us, so to speak. David is a ball of stress, and I am trying to just stay out of his way. This job situation steals the attention we had wanted to give to the trip and to the adoption. The timing could not be worse. David has a lot to prepare for with this interview. And it's not like anyone in HR for the school district cares that he's leaving the country. It doesn't matter if you're having your leg amputated, they schedule the interview, you figure out how to get there.

We are watching the weather closely, too. Another big storm is scheduled for Monday/into Tuesday. I think we have to be completely ready to leave this house--packed and paperwork ready--by Monday morning in case I need to drive David and Diana up to Denver a day early. Big storms here mean they close the highway.

I'll keep you posted.