Waffle

Emigration: I now have a list of the documentation I need, plus a rough budget for the whole process through status adjustment after marriage. I think we'll be able to do it all for less than € 2000. What I don't know yet is a timeline for the project as a whole, but it looks like US consulates are capable of processing visa applications reasonably fast (the status adjustment/green card process is a whole 'nother matter. I've heard horror stories. As for citizenship, that's gonna take years, but it also happens to be something I'm not very concerned about at this point). I have also been reading up on other people's subjective experiences emigrating from the Netherlands to the US. However, the stories I've found (in Dutch and not bookmarked) were both from people who won the Diversity Lottery, which obviously isn't going to be my route to emigration. I did get the message that I should expect a lot of surly/grumpy behaviour from people at the consulate, and that this is one process where mistakes can cost you dearly. This may also be of interest.

Health/exercise: The other day I ran 500 meters in 1:41. I should not do that again. The reason I overdid it was that my running group had picked that day to test everyone, and it felt to me like we'd only just done that. So instead of going for a time that would guide me towards target times for real runs, I just went all-out. Of course when I thought about it later, the last test was actually back in May, before I went to the US. There seems to be some sort of mental compartimentalisation going on, in which I remember my stays in the Netherlands and my stays in the US as separate, uninterrupted experiences.
Sticking to my budget means there aren't any fattening snacks in the house and I'm eating very healthily.

Work: Working normally, going to discuss my contract renewal tomorrow. Contemplating doing some temp work on the side in the early evening.

Stuff/Money: Nothing much to report. I've started mentally marking out specific items in my home for giving away to specific people, and I've put in some work to unclutter my finances. Specifically, I was still getting rent and health rebates on my taxes that I am no longer entitled to, and I've finally reported this so I can start paying the money back (I have not spent it and did not report it earlier out of pure laziness and inertia). This will give me a much clearer picture of how much money I actually have.

Comic: Still unmotivated, but doing practise sketches to keep the skill up. I'll put some of these up as on my DeviantArt site as soon as I've accumulated some usable ones.

Here's what I've done in the past few days to reach my various goals in the run-up to my wedding and emigration:

Emigration: I have looked at the requirements for a Nonimmigrant Visa for a Fiance(e), and started taking action towards fulfilling them. The proverbial low-hanging fruit here turned out to be getting a copy of my birth certificate, which I ordered online.

This weekend, I will inventory fully, sort the requirements, time path and budget into a format that is easy for me to access and read, and start gathering up the other documents. Compared to when I last looked into this stuff, the process doesn't look so hideously complicated, but I will need to break it down into simple, manageable steps.

Stuff/money: I have found a taker for my old, large drawing board, who is willing to pay €100 for it. That will go towards paying for that visa application. And the drawing board will go to a good home with someone who will take good care of it.

Health/excercise: I have trained my guts out on Monday and Wednesday with my running group, running at the highest level even though I'm out of shape. It was hard, but if I do this three times a week, I will be back in shape in time for the 4 Mijl in October.

That's it for now. Work starts in earnest on Saturday with the emigration process inventory.