Settling on being unsettled

School has started for the kidlet, and after four days' vacation, I'm back to the office on Monday. There's still boxes remaining to be unpacked, and furniture I need to acquire - you wouldn't know by seeing the place that I've been here nearly two months. I'm mindful that the lease is only for 12.5 months - by 07/2010, I have to have some idea of What Happens Next.

Meanwhile, back on the ranch... my dad is moving into my house in Portland. The interior's been repainted, he's transferred the utilities into his name, and by mid-September, he'll be in place. He's indicated that he plans to remain there for the rest of his life, and as he's off today to hike around Mt. St. Helens, that could be a pretty long tenure. (Note to Dad: the mortgage payoff date is in about 26 years.)

POR ("plan of record", for those not conversant with the Corporate Masters' lingo) is to return to Portland next July. For those who know the Corporate Masters(TM), you also know that "POR" is often a moving target at best. Three doohickeys, two widgets, and a half-sized thingamabob in April, targeted for release in November, can turn into five bits of stuff, a double-sized thingamabob, and all doohickeys delayed 'til the next release - which will be in June, following the October release of the first version. "POR" can be most ephemeral at times.

All of which is a long way of saying "I have no clue where we'll be in a year." Honestly - there's about a 25% chance it'll be Portland, 25% chance it'll be San Jose, 25% chance it'll be Mexico - maybe Guadalajara, maybe Mexico City - and then another 25% chance it'll be an undisclosed location, NOT with Dick Cheney, but for various reasons can't be discussed at this time. The kidlet's aware of the liminality of it all, and so far, appears to be doing well. As I commented to another mom of a strikingly similar son this morning, he spends a lot of time in his own world. He's got his cats, he's finally learning to use his cellphone to call family - friends to follow - and he's fascinated by the world around him. Keeping an eye on him closely through the transition, but so far, so good.

It's harder for me right now, not having something as simple as a chair in the living room. If I can get in touch with The Teacher(TM) (also known as "friend with pickup"), I may remedy that, and pick up a desk for the kid along the way. We've also joined the Y, and getting into a routine there would be a Good Thing as well. This may be but a waystation on a bigger journey - but isn't that life itself, after all? Might as well take a look around and get to know the place while we're here, however long that may be.

Next weekend I'll go on my first trip after moving here, heading to a conference on the other side of the US. Kiddo will stay here, and I'm busily making sure that primary caregivers and backup are settling into place. More travel will follow, including a trip or two to Mexico this fall - again, a bit of normalcy returning after the big jump south. It's a start.