Ooo, it's been a WHILE!

Hi, everyone... or perhaps just me, since I never update this. It's been over a year - and so much change! I'm still an immigration attorney, and very much enjoying it. True, they "don't call it going to play" - it's definitely work - but I am becoming more adept each day as I venture into the murky and treacherous swamp of U.S. immigration law and regulation... and customary practice.

I'm now co-chairing a nonprofit, GAIN, the Georgia Asylum and Immigration Network. We help coordinate and provide pro bono legal services for individuals in need of asylum and other immigration assistance, and we are soon to expand into VAWA (Violence Against Women's Act) and U and T visa cases. I love working with GAIN, particularly helping steer policy. We assist the most vulnerable subset of an exceedingly vulnerable population. The work is more rewarding than I can describe.

As is always the case when I write, I am about to travel! My last trip of note was last April, when I went to Anna and Phil's wedding in Newcastle, in the UK. I attended the hen night on Friday; traveled through Scotland (Edinburgh and Aviemore and many an Indian restaurant) with Colette and Alex for a week, and then rejoined my girls from France (Anna, Melissa, and Katheryn) for the wedding the following weekend. It was a magical trip - from lost luggage to my first hen night to Edinburgh with Colette to knee-deep snow and scotch-tasting with Russians in Scotland to almost-hare krishnas at Anna's wedding to a deeply moving last visit with Katheryn - the trip was memorable, and intense.

So now - I am off to Chile! Flying stand-by on a Delta Buddy Pass (thanks to Rhett and Melissa O'Brien!), going to Santiago from December 26 - January 3. I am going for my first visit. For the first time ever, travel is boy-motivated. I am dating a wonderful man (man? sounds funny, but is true... I'm 30, after all) who recently moved from Atlanta to Santiago, Chile. This trip is to visit him in his home (he is Chilean) and to meet his family (other than Mom - met her a few weeks ago, and she is delightful. She also seems to like me... Thank God!).

So - I am ready! Have packed and am waiting on my ride to the airport, the illustrious Matt. This trip is very different for me, as it's not motivated by wanderlust or exploring a new corner of the globe. It's so different, in fact, that my traditional buying and scouring of travel books has been somewhat limited. Of course, I bought my Culture Shock! Chile and my Discovery Guide, but I'm trying to develop as few preconceived notions as possible. I want to go into Chile with an eye toward discovery, but more by getting to know Santiago through my hosts' eyes, and through my own eyes, than by reading a book and forming a pieced-together mental picture. I remember when Mr. Tiller advised me about going to France that I should go with no expectations - just let myself discover it, let France just exist, and allow myself to enter the strange expatriate dance. That's what I did, and I fell in love with all the quirks, oddities, and inexplicable idiosyncrasies of the heart of the francophone world. That's what I intend to do again, to simply arrive and float into the Chilean dance. But I still have my book if I need it. ; )

Since I'm flying stand-by, I'll be waiting at the airport for, oh, a riveting 3 hours... so I'll probably post again. Doorbell rang! My ride is here! Here we go!!