Time to go

Well I leave tomorrow morning (later this morning really) at around noon out of Providence. These last couple days have been really surreal and have gone by in a flash. Went to the beach at Watch Hill, ate clam fritters, had hotdogs and Mike's, played Pictionary, and got together the stuff I had been putting off getting. And It's as if I'm going through all the right motions and actions of someone leaving for Africa for two years but at the same time I feel a real emotional disconnect from the whole concept. I know what I needed to do, I've done most of it, and now I'm leaving - but it doesn't register yet. It was like when we visited Kenya, it took me a few days to really look around and believe I was in Africa - zebra and giraffee everywhere and everything. I've been packing up and leaving for a while since I was 15 for boarding school, and though this will be longer, much farther from home, and well THE PEACE CORPS - I feel like my brain's still regarding it as another year of school or something.

My bags are packed and they are heavy. I know practically nothing about backpacking - but I know that my backpack is amazing. I have 4 bags, really: a really big backpack, a normal backpack, and a messenger bag and a tiny messenger bag as carry on. Total checked baggage weight is probably between 70-80 lbs which my brother says is nothing considering the circumstances (he does know about backpacking)- but it still seems like a lot. The big bag is the most comfortable, despite its 48 lbs. We'll see how it goes.

So I'm up late taking care of lose ends I shoud have taken care of by now such as insurance, paperwork, finding my immunization records, loan deferrment stuff, and this blog entry.

FYI, my cell phone will be no longer working as of about 3 tomorrow. Sprint agreed to put me on a military suspention thingy which is pretty neat: you pay nothing for the time you're gone and then when you get back, when you're ready, you can pick up your number again, and have a cell phone again.

Katherine's still here which has been great, and Tiana came down from Boston this evening, after moving herself, and we all hung out with my parents. Now it seems like everyone, including the cat, is asleep and snoring, so after I print a couple papers, I'll do the same.

I get really nervous about leaving for a long time. Not that I've really ever had that much practice with it, but I start thinking about all the worst things - such as the fact that my parents and all my pets are rather senior. But really there's nothing to do and it's not something to put your life on hold about so you just gotta get goin.

I'll be in the States until the morning of the 5th, and then we'll fly to Paris, and then down to Burkina. If the hotel we're in isn't a shack on the side of the road, I'll have wireless at the hotel we'll be at, so I'll post more once I've actually ventured out of Connecticut.

Peace.

Oh and I just got my Bio GRE scores back and despite my pathetic attempts to study well for the test, I got in the 90th percentile so GO CORNELL for making my brain swallow so much science so quickly.

Alright lets see - these last days have been pretty crazy. I went to Minnesota to visit my brother David, his wife Jodi and their three kids Tristan, Gabriel and Sierra. My brother Tim wasn't able to make it out - but that's how it goes sometimes. Katherine came out with me which was super awesome and we had 5 days jam-packed with dodgeball, wiffle ball, the sound of music, popcorn and tons of family pictures and home movies. It's crazy to think how old the kids will be when I get back - i'm so used to seeing them every Christmas and summer that it's quite the change. Here's a pic of Sierra playing soccer at her soccer practice.


Yesterday I went to Pine Point to visit people and see the school and use their scanner to take many of the film prints I have and convert them to digital files so that I can print them all in one go and for much cheaper than if I just copied the actual photos. The school is really changing - in a good way I think. They have these crazy solar panels now and have built a new observatory with a 12" Meade SCT scope in it! How sweet. Anyway, it was good to see people before I left and get some email addresses and such and talk about where I was going and stuff - Burkina Wha????

And last night Eliza and I drove up to Boston to see Tiana for her birthday party. We went out to dinner and then to a strange bar with pretty drinks and loud music and danced for hours. Then we retired to her apartment where the real party began. We stayed up all night and finally crashed as the sun came up.

So now I'm getting together pictures and things for my photo album and tying up other lose ends. It's basically one week now.

GRE = DONE

Well I took the General GRE today and it's OVER. I did alright. The writing section felt really good and the rest was a 1300. Math part was good but the verbal wasn't as good as it usually is. Oh well - I can always take it again when I get back and in the meantime a 1300 won't keep me out of too many places and I shouldn't have trouble doing better if I redo it.

I feel like I should buy myself a beer or something.

Happy Mothers Day!

Plane Reservations

Well I called Sato Travel today and set up my travel arrangements to get to my Staging. Staging, for those of you who don't know, is a couple days at the beginning of your experience with the Peace Corps where you're still in the US and you get your vaccinations and get introduced to the Peace Corps and get ready to go overseas. Mine will be on June 3 - June 5 in Philadelphia. So I'll be flying out of Providence at 11:55 am on the morning of the 3rd.

Had the first of two going away parties last night. We were at Ally's with Nick and Jatoya and Kristen. We made a lot of margaritas. Like - a lot. And I took my first Tequilla shot the right way - you know - with the salt and the lime and all that. Other than that we just sat around and talked and danced and sang and made a 3 am Dunkin' Donuts run - on foot no less. These people are so different from my Cornell crowd that it's refreshing.

Today I got my very first pair of prescription sunglasses (pricey but well worth it), and a spare pair of normal glasses for the PC and the guy waiting on us threw in 5 lens cleaning cloths, an extra case, and extra sets of screws when he heard I'd be in West Africa for the next two years.

Went to Sprint, and they said that canceling my contract would be no problem. That was too good to be true, especially for Sprint.

I think that my solar panel set up will now work just fine *knocks on wood*. It's a MyPower All by Tekkeon (they gave me one free!!). It powers and charges my PB 15" laptop and i *think* my solar panel (Sunlinq 12W) charges it. I'll know for sure tomorrow and try to figure out the charging rate.

This is really gross I'm sorry you have to look at it but inquiring minds want to know

Two months ago I shut my right index finger in the door to the Saab and then the door auto-locked. When I got it out it hurt quite a bit. Doctor looked at it 2 days later and burned a hole through the nail and let out a lot of blood and now, two months later, the nail's falling off. Problem is, it's falling off from the bottom first, and the top is very much alive. EWWWWW.

Well, my leave date got pushed one day earlier. I'll now begin my staging on June 3rd, not June 4th. Everyone and their mother has expressed interest in getting together between now and when I leave so this might get kinda crazy.

Getting deferments on my loans is going to be easier than I anticipated *knocks on wood*. Even though I owe Cornell about 12 grand at the government about 27 grand, they both have simple "are you in the Peace Corps?" forms to fill out and that's that - for up to 36 months.

I scheduled my general GRE for next Monday at 11:00 am in Warwick, RI (that's more a reminder for me than juicy gossip). Four hours of standardized, computerized fun!

There's a pair of Canada geese nesting in the pond across the way from my house - so I think I'll wander down there with a piece of bread and see if I can feed them. Based on the friendliness of the Canada geese around Ithaca, I figure it can't hurt.

I'm trying to get better at crossword puzzles but it's not working. I was alright at the ones from the Cornell paper since they were from the LA Times, and therefore current, but the ones that Addie has laying around are designed more for older persons so I don't stand a chance. That's ok! I'll keep trying. Here's a nice pic of Addie facing down the daily crossword. Mwuahaha sneaky pictures.

Here's my schedule for the next few weeks:

GRE Mon 5/14
Go up to Cornell 5/15
Come back from Cornell with Katherine 5/16
Fly to MN 5/18
Come back from MN 5/22
Tiana's BDay Party in Boston 5/27
Going away Party in Mystic 5/??
Fam from RI get together in Mystic 5/??
Leave 6/3 for Philidelphia
Leave 6/5 for Burkina Faso

So yes, I'll be in Ithaca for the evening of the 15th and the beginning of the 16th and chances are - I'd love to see you. I'm coming up so I can see people and help move out Katherine so I'll be wicked busy but I hope I see you all - you know who you are - cuz yah - it'll be a while to say the least.

New shoes!

I have new shoes! They're not my Chacos - who knows when they'll arrive. These are Merrell waterpros - got them on super sale since they're a weird color. That's ok! They'll blend in with the red African soil or something...

They're meant for water but also for hiking and they're super good for hot weather beacuse the orange parts are mostly mesh so your feet can feel the breeze.