The evildoer is back

Just when we were relaxing in our new home here in New Zealand, enjoying the spring weather and looking forward to a summer at the beach, I woke up on a Sunday morning to find this:

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What is that evil thing doing in our house? I immediately woke Don from his slumber and, with tears in my eyes, said, “You have to come here and kill this, it’s huge and ugly and it is in OUR HOUSE!”

Thinking I meant a spider of course, he got up, grabbed a tissue, and when I showed him what I was talking about he just gave me a look and pratted back to bed.

THIS THING, this evil thing, is Don’s new PDA/cell phone/portable computer. It’s a Telecom Pocket PC. Now that he’s official and full-time for good, he has to be hooked up to the office 24/7 using that metal box. Well, he would probably say that differently.

I, on the other hand, have gladly accepted an offer to increase my hours at the Nelson City Council to 9-3(sometimes 5), Monday-Thursday with absolutely no electronic connectivity outside of those hours and no expectation that I will be “reachable by cell.” In fact, I think I am (NOW) the only person in the country without a cell, it used to be a title Don shared, but not any more!

So, apparently the time has come for us to rejoin the real world and work a little more and have less free time. Well, moreso Don, I am still resisting with all my might. As hideous as the idea sounds, in practice both of us are still able to leave the office on time and forget about work entirely. Evenings after dinner strolling the beach or going for a swim are still on the agenda—without the pocket pc in the beach bag!