Labor Pains

Mama giraffe is in transition

My due date is fast approaching, and I believe I am already in the transition stage of labor – that most intense period when contractions are the strongest and most rapid, and the urge to push is overwhelming.

Expecting

I have known for over a year that this day was coming, and I have known for several months that the actual date would be January 6^th. But when people ask me if I am excited or nervous, I really can’t say. It feels just like it does when you’re having your first child:  you know that on a specific day, your life will change forever in ways that you can’t even imagine, and yet you are itching with anticipation and filled with curiosity about what this new life will look like.

And like an expectant mother in the throes of nesting, I am maniacally trying to tie up all the final details of my departure. There’s a lot left to do in these last three days, believe it or not, but the list is definitely dwindling.

My biggest disappointments in all the preparations I made are (1) that I didn’t get to spend as much time as I’d hoped to studying German, and (2) that my nine boxes will not be waiting for me in Vienna as planned. Invoicing disputes, the holiday season, U.S. customs (in general, not specifically about me) and the storms along the west coast of Europe have conspired to delay my shipment, which for all I know could be still rolling along on the bounding sea. The latest communiqué from the shipping company projected delivery to my apartment about a week after I arrive. Keep your fingers (and toes) crossed please.

One area of better-than-expected accomplishment, however, is how well Scout has adapted to her travel crate. You may remember my earlier attempts to acquaint her with it (see photos in my post “Pet Prep”) while we were still in Teaneck.

Not long after Thanksgiving here in Maine, I reintroduced her to it, and found after a few short days that she was wandering in of her own accord. I think it helped that I rather slyly positioned it right in front of her favorite window, and she had no choice but to venture in so that she could peer out into the world. But she soon seemed to appreciate its coziness, and began to take naps in it.

Then I brought out and let her sniff the cover for a while, and finally wing-nutted it into place on top. Lo and behold, she liked it even more. Now it’s like her own personal bedroom (with a canopy bed, if you will), and she spends quite a bit of time each day and at night sleeping there. (She’s in it now as I write this.)

And while this over-anxious pet owner still worries about how the experience of the flight will upset Scout, I take some comfort in knowing that at least she will feel like she is in her own place (even if it is noisy, somewhat cold and very lonely).

And now, dear readers, it’s time for the giraffe to give one last push, and to say ...

Gute Nacht, auf wiedersehen, und nächstes Mal schreibe ich von Wien!

[Good night, so long, and next time I’ll write from Vienna!]