Those little things

Before a major transition happens, it feels a little abstract. Intellectually, I know I'm going to teach English in South Korea for a year. But it's not until I start to do those little things you don’t think about, like getting rid of my cellphone, that it starts to hit home.

Today I bought the books I will read on the plane. I’ll need plenty to keep me busy, since I’ll be traveling for more than 24 hours to get to Seoul.

I’ll be reading “Pop. 1280,” a book about a twisted small-town sheriff by one of my favorite pulp writers, Jim Thompson.

I’ll also try to read “To the White Sea,” by James Dickey, who wrote “Deliverance.”

“To the White Sea” is about a World War II soldier who survives a plane crash, of all things. That should be comforting.