I'm back at work after my first break. For the last three weeks I've been in Raleigh except for a short visit to Portland for my cousin's wedding (it was lovely) and to visit my dad. My break went by very fast, and I stayed very busy with catching up on my sleep, recovering from a nasty cold, catching up with people, paperwork, and errands. It was very good to be home.
Now I'm back in New Mexico. This is a picture that I didn't take (my camera is acting up) of a typical view from our field area in the northern Chihuahuan Desert. My flight was really great. We got to see all these dune fields near Roswell from the plane. Then my boss, Billy, and I sat down and talked about my progress towards the first set of goals called START. My last workset I worked with all the various jobs that make up our team, here. This week and next, Billy and I will be talking to the various department heads to see how much I learned and evaluate me. Assuming that all goes well (cross your fingers guys), I'll go on to the final task in START: START School. I'm scheduled to leave for school on the 10th of January. School is held in Abu Dhabi in the UAE. Its 6 weeks on, but I'm scheduled for an extra class on the end, so I'll be there for 7 weeks. On the way there, I get to spend a day in Paris and on the way back I get to spend a day in London. If any of y'all have been to any of these three places and have suggestions for what I should see, let me know!
