"It's 4:03 and I can't sleep..."

It's actually 5:06, but I've been awake for hours. These last ten days or so, I go to bed exhausted and sleep until 11 or 12, then it's been toss and turn for the rest of the night. Once my head starts going, I can't shut it off, thinking about the trip, and things to do before I go. This morning, I couldn't get the ideas of my mini voice recorder and Picasa out of my head, so I finally decided to get up and do something. Spent the last 90 minutes reading the recorder instructions and trying to make it work. Dennis got it for me for Christmas a few years ago, and it's been sitting in my drawer because all the options frustrated me and I didn't take the time to learn how to use it. Last time I checked, it worked fine, but this morning, it won't do anything. I put brand new batteries in, read the reset instructions and it seemed dead. I left it sitting while I tried to look up trouble shooting on line, and a few minutes later, I glanced over and the little red record light was on. But it still wouldn't do anything. I think it may be because I left the old batteries in too long from the last time. They weren't leaking or anything, tho, so I don't get why it doesn't work. Figures. I wanted to learn it now, and take it with us so I could record while we were out with our guides. I guess I'll have to either go without it or get another one. Shit.
Yesterday, I found out that internet use in South Africa can get a little pricey, so my blogging may not be exactly what I was hoping. Which led me to my other bouncing brain activity this morning---getting my friends and family on Picasa, so they could look at my web album. That 's my next project and hopefully it won't be too complicated. It's all this little last minute stuff that keeps popping into my head that's been making me crazier than I already am. I hope once we get over there, my brain slows down a bit. I'll probably crash and sleep for 2 days while everyone else is out on game drives.
Going to try and get a few more zzzz's now, before it starts getting light.

Heads Up Warnings

Hi to anyone who received my message today about my new email address and blog! Keep in mind that when I write I try to keep as true to my own voice as possible. So if you tend to be offended at occasional --or frequent--colorful language, consider yourself forewarned--there will be obscenities peppered throughout the entries.
That's it for now...

Monday, 9/20 6am

Less than two weeks to go. I'm up early-as usual these days. Having trouble sleeping with so much on my mind and all the excitement of getting ready to go. One of the issues has been cursing myself daily, as I knew I would, that I didn't spend more time learning about our cameras. My husband is a "learn on the fly" guy, as he said yesterday, but I can see us out in the bush, trying to capture lion cubs on video, and him going-"DEN! How do you do this???!!!!!" I feel like I'm back in school cramming at the last minute for an exam. No wonder I wasn't a good student.

In addition, this laptop has been giving me problems. Now it's a matter of figuring it out myself. I don't want to have anything to do with calling Dell. I got frustrated last night after a few hours and just shut it off, but I'm beginning to suspect that it's this new Windows 7 and Internet Explorer, rather than Dell. My husband has neither of those on his netbook, and the old dinosaur upstairs definitely doesn't have them. Neither the netbook or old Dino have the issues this has. I don't need to be spending hours figuring this out right now. If I can't get it, it's going to have to wait until we get back.

I'm so nuts-getting back is a worry. Not the idea of coming home-I don't really have any worries about that-it's all the shit I'm going to have to catch up with once this trip is done...bills and changing closets to winter clothes-my two most dreaded things to do. I'd better learn to relax and live in the day I'm in at the moment or I'm gonna drive myself---and my poor husband---out of our minds...

6:21....time to start my day!