Big News!

It's been a big week for good news! First, I heard early last week that there was a TDY opportunity coming up. I expressed interest, and got it. In mid-November...I'm going to...

INDIA!!!

It will be a one month TDY in Chennai India (south east...down towards Sri Lanka). It will be hard work, but I'm soooo excited!! I'll get full hotel/per diem, and I'm hopping to visit some temples in the region, go to the beach, buy a sari, and buy silk fabric. Interviewing should be interesting there since I don't speak any of the languages...but we're needed badly enough that the people in charge don't care. They're providing translators. So, I'll be gone from November 18-December 15 (being away for Thanksgiving and returning Christmas week). Dave and I had been planning a trip to Istanbul for Thanksgiving...but oh well! I guess the Germany Christmas markets are also out. :) We're seeing if Dave can get a bit of time off to come with me for a week.

I've already gone to get my shots updated (I really hate Typoid shots...my arm is killing me and I'm sick to my stomach). I'll also be taking Malaria medicine, but this time I'm taking a different medicine (no more Lariam for me!).

In other news...I got promoted on Friday!! This is my third promotion, but it was the first time I was competing for it (the others were automatic while I was at the entry level)! I wasn't eligible for this promotion until I was tenured in November, and this is the first promotion board that convened since I was tenured. It feels great, and I'm offically at a mid-level rank. The raise isn't bad either! To celebrate, Dave took me out to dinner on Sunday night to the French restaraunt we like.