exit strategy

Three weeks to go and another nail in the coffin of my time here firmly hammered in place: ticket purchased.

Whenever I have left a place, it has always been a bittersweet affair.  Excited to head to the next experience, but sad to be leaving friends/family, well earned familiarity and a cache of favorite places.  I hate to think/say/write this, but my departure from here has none of that.  I am leaving a place for which I have no positive feelings.  Looking at that sentence, I feel a bit sad.  And as I have had an exceptionally bad run for the last several months or so (someone purposfully running into me, stones thrown at me from teenagers and many instances of another's selfishness and impatience).

To make the taste of this place even more bitter, I am engaged in a tit-for-tat with my overseers to see who can extract the most capital from whom.   I attempted to avoid this as I followed the letter of the contract, giving as much notice as possible.  Luckily and intuitively I also kept my exact details as close to the chest as possible.  From the beginning I could tell that this was going to be an ordeal. 

First, the initial company that I signed on (guess it is what I get for making a pact with the devil-defense contractor) with did what so many American companies do these days-sold us off to subcontractors.  Then, the Saudi company now holding the contract decided to switch the rules on me (as these days contracts are called memorandums of understanding-so are as malleable as clay)-loss of holidays, lack of departure support and not allowing me to use my remaining holidays to fill out my last months.  So I decided to stay longer, as I had accounted for that money in my budget for travel.  Then they decide to not pay my soft landing package.  Enough being enough, I turned to my conniving side (not proud of it) and I switched my departure date to recoup loss of pay and to a more expensive date (cash in lieu, thank you very much).  Now they say that I owe for overspent vacation, and its my turn to volley back.  Quick with my accounting, I quickly had to show my days.  This possibly sounds petty, but as I have bartered the last three years of my life for a trunk of gold, I want what was agreed upon in full.  Or maybe I see the neck of the golden goose on the chopping block and I am scrounging for any last scrap of shell that I can stuff in me pockets-greedy am I?

I can't wait to clear this place and see which voice has been telling me the truth these last three years and to recalibrate my ego/psyche/soul.  It is very possible that the old me would have disowned me years ago.