What the hell is going on??
Soon after Michael and Kristina got together, they started talking about what to do with their lives. After a while, they formed a long-term plan that involved saving money and biding their time. After a year or so, they would then be able to follow their dreams. Michael wanted to write a book, and Kristina wanted teach.
One day (4/9/04), Michael came home and suggested that maybe instead of pursuing the course of maximum safety they should just go for it. Right now. He showed her how, if they did things just so, they could pull it off. And Kristina thought that was a fine idea. Three days later (4/11/04), he asked her to marry him, and Kristina thought that was a fine idea too.
Things began to happen very quickly as they realized they wanted to share their wedding with their friends and family before leaving. That meant planning a wedding in very short order.
In the meantime, having done research on where they might live, Austin seemed like the best bet. It was both affordable and interesting. There seemed to be a lot going on there, but they wouldn't have to spend all their time making enough money to just live there. School, after establishing residency, was cheap. That was that. One week after deciding to "accelerate the plan" (4/17/04), they flew to Austin to check it out.
It was clear after a short time there that Austin was probably a good choice. They spent some time driving around and also looking for houses. After seeing many houses, they found the one they loved. They are now waiting to see if their loan will go through. Closing date is May 18th. And the Wedding date is June 12th. A million things have happened in the intervening three weeks to make this zany plan more and more feasible and wonderful.
Michael and Kristina are very very pleased and grateful to all those who've helped.
LATE BREAKING NEWS: We got the loan as of today 5/14/04!!!!!!!!!