9.20.2008

Tuesday, September 20, 1988 – 3:30 p.m.

The Adventure Begins…

I arrived at Doug Schoener’s house in Yardley, PA in preparation for our departure to England the next day, where we will be studying at Humberside College of Higher Education in Hull. We made our way to Thatcher Travel, where we purchased plane tickets on British Airways bound for Manchester, England. It was slightly north of our projectorate – Heathrow – but it should actually work to our advantage, since Manchester is closer to Doug’s European parents (Mrs. Richmond), and just east of mine (Dr. Ian Morrison) in Liverpool.

Dr. Morrison’s son, Glen, arrived at our house in late August in preparation for his year in the United States studying in my place at Millersville University. He was a nice fellow, and very artistic. From what I can tell he has in interest in pursuing his art after college, and has the skills to pull it off. Hopefully he’ll benefit from a year at Millersville.

Back to today, where our biggest concern is our luggage. We had to pack for a full year in the space allotted by the airlines, and we’re not sure all of our stuff is going to meet those restrictions, plus concern about hauling our heavy baggage from here to our final destination. Let’s hope luck is on our side. I’m going to have my parents ship a box of things over to me that I won’t need right away.

At the “last supper” with my parents at Doug’s house, I bid them farewell until they visit me over in England, hopefully, next summer. It’ll be the longest time I’ve gone not seeing my family, so that will be a huge adjustment. But wow, what started as a casual conversation with Doug along the banks of the pond at Millersville last spring has turned into a reality. Little did I know that when Doug mentioned to me that he was returning from a meeting for students studying abroad that I would end up joining him on the adventure. But he caught me at the right time. The weather was warm and sunny, classes were a bit of a drag, my relationship with my ex-girlfriend Deb was coming to an (amicable but obvious) end, and it just seemed like the right thing to do. I guess we’ll see.

I spent the rest of the evening conversing with Doug about what we hoped to see and do while we were in England. His friend Lara stopped by a bit to say farewell. “Love and adventure,” as Doug says, referencing the Pseudo Echo album. “Take it as it comes,” as I say, referencing The Doors song.

(Photo: Back home a few weeks before Rick departed for England are (from left to right) sister Angela, Rick, Exchange Student Glen Morrison, Mom, and Buster.)

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  • Number One Song in Britain This Week: "A Groovy Kind of Love" - Phil Collins
  • Number One Song in America This Week: "Don't Worry, Be Happy" - Bobby McFerrin

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