2010, wooo.

SO much has happened in the last month. Christmas and New Year's, the worst of the cold season, mandatory flu shots, dates, and much more. Now that January is almost over, the extreem -40 degree weather is slowly becoming more and more tolerable. In fact, every day we get 3 or so more minutes of sunlight. There's always rumors that this week or next week will be really bad, but those are things you have to deal with when they come up. The winter this year was bad though. My town in particular had a lot of livestock die from the cold and starvation. This winter was much worse than last year for exactly one reason. There weren't any mid-minter warm day like last year. Last year we had one or two days a month that wasn't bitterly cold. It gave the ground a little time to melt a bit of the snow away, but I don't think even the first snow ever melted. This way, the snow doesn't water the ground, it becomes icy hard, and the animals don't have any way of getting grass. Plus, the constant cold eventually kills them.

Cruddy news out of the way, Christmas and New Year's were pretty good, considering I'm away from home for the second year in a row. I was able to make it to a Catholic mass on Christmas. It made it feel that much more Christmassy. A friend went with me. It just reminded me again how much I miss my congregation at home. I spent the New Year's countdown with some friends in my aimag center. It still makes me crack up how different Mongolians do it. Last year, they didn't count down at all. This year, they did a count down over and over and over again from, like, 25 seconds. They did it starting about 5 before midnight til a little after. Priceless.

A lot of my friends are going home. We have a terrible early termination rate. It's like 30% that have gone home now. One of the ones who went home was my friend that I went to Cambodia with. Another was asked to leave for medical reasons. It feels like our close of service gathering is gonna be sadly unpopulated.

I got in trouble with the M-20s for calling them newbies. Those noobs can just go get stuck in the hodoo with nothing but their useless signal-less phones. I say that because I know now that they read my blog. Sorry.

Teacher's day is Friday, which means competitions, a lack of focus on work, and of course a party. I don't know if I'll make it to mine. As I recall, last year I won some sort of award, I never figured out what it was for or if I was supposed to get a certificate. I do remember them calling my name. After this, everything will center around the English olympics. At least I'll have more direction. As it is, every time I get on a schedule, something happens and I get thrown off again. First it was swine flu, then it was Christmas, then it was flu shots, now it's gonna be planning this English seminar.

Personally, I'm realizing that I've changed more than I can even say. I feel so much less crazy (after spending so much time in crazy mode here) than when I left. I mean, my head is on straight in a way it hasn't been in a while. At the same time, I'm totally lost as far as what I'll be doing in about 7 months. I'm in constant prayer about it. And it's not just that, I'm here, there, and everywhere about what to do in the present as well. It's strange that I relate feeling sane with being confused like that.

My good friend Tysen is going to come by this weekend. It'll be really good to see him. He was coming just to visit my site, but we rethought the plan and now I'm gonna meet him in between. The two of us already spend enough money calling one another on our cell phones. I'm pretty excited.

Teacher's day, Tsagaan Sar, English Olympics, one more quarter, and I'm done. That's how I'm counting time, and I know I'm not alone in that.

Good luck Wes in Paraguay. I'm sure you'll do awesome. I want to hear all about it.

Good luck everyone else.
Peace be with you all.

First, thanks to everyone who sent christmas cards my way. I've recieved 12, mostly from the Northlake family. At this time of year, when the days are short and cold, it's really hard to get my head in the game. Lonliness is so real sometimes. Thanks for the reminder that I'm not as alone as it seems.

Thanksgiving was fun. We had an embassy party again. There was turkey and all the goodies volunteers brought. I didn't stuff myself like last year. I had a pleasant time though. I was able to see some people that I will not see again until we do our close of service. There were the parties and craziness you might expect from volunteers when they get together. I bought another gallon of hot sauce at the store that let's you do that. I went through a gallon in the last year. We'll see if I can do it again. I'm well on my way. Hot sauce gives Mongolian food that extra tolerability needed for my happiness and a successful completion of my service here.

Work is back. My school gave me a new system to use in counterpart development. The old system was working until the school closings, and we all know how hard it is to get things going again that have been halted for some reason. The new method requires a lot of motivation on the Mongolian's part. It's one of those things where the more they give, the more they'll get. I'm fine with it, but when they are too busy or unwilling to work, it makes me look all the more unbusy. I'm hoping the rest of the month will turn out better than the first part.

I just want to do a good job in these last months. The end is just about in sight. Not quite, but just over the horizon. I am starting to think about what things I'll bring back, give away, or throw away (burn). I'm remembering the struggle I was having last year, trying to stay focused on work with winter pulling me down.

I know I'm seeming distant from people in the states lately. I've had a couple people tell me I'm being way too withdrawn. I'm really sorry. Know that I think about you all everyday. I just hate to communicate when I'm not feeling so great. Don't get me wrong, I'm alright a lot of the time. It just takes a lot of energy to stay up. Your prayers have helped a lot. I've gone through this part of the winter before, and I'm sure I'll get through it again.

Ahhhh. So let's just take a breath and remember that we are in Advent. Christmas is coming! I really hope I'll be able to spend it with others and not have to be here alone on that day. I'm sure I won't be sticking around if I can help it. Like I mentioned last year, Christmas is an empty word to Mongolians. Most believe that it's just another word for new year, and they are generally unimpressed when I explain that Christmas and New Year's are two different holidays.

So, life is good but tough. I'm looking forward to having a good Christmas, but mostly I'm wishing I could just teleport home for a minute and come back after. Hopefuly, this'll be the last Christmas away from home though.

I wish there were more to share, but it's a lot of the same. I miss you all. And I hope your holidays are full of love and family.

Peace

 

 

One thing before I get started. The other night it was –11C. It’s supposed to drop lower this next week. Hahaha. IT HAS BEGUN!

All the schools in the country are out for a month. That’s the last two weeks and the next two weeks. They haven’t been able to stop the rapid spread of swine flu, so they’re taking all the precautions they can. All travel to and from the city is prohibited. The students are learning from home via television broadcast. I feel weird cause soon enough the Americans will be inoculated. But a lot of people are freaking out. Surgical masks aren’t uncommon in Asia to begin with, but everyone seems to be wearing one now.

 

So I’ve got this time to do what I want, except the higher ups have decided to restrict all traveling for volunteers until the vaccines are in. I’m left in my small corner of the world to read, reflect, etc. 

 

It would be a crime (against my mother mainly) to not use this time to update y’all as much as possible. My home church has been really supportive lately, sending emails and the like. It’s coming at a really needed time. It’s odd. My work is going great. Socially, I’m thriving here. I feel prepared for whatever the winter might throw at me. I’m happier than I’ve been in a long time. Yet, some days I still feel like I’m not going to make it. I get this voice in my head that tells me that the gamble I took coming out here, all that self-motivation I gave myself about throwing myself to the wolves and seeing what comes of it, that it wasn’t worth the risk. Odd right? Perhaps it’s that everyone hears right before the finish line, the final attempt by your inner demons to distract you because their cause is almost lost. Here’s to hopeful thinking because there’s no way I’m turning back now. 

 

I had a visit by some PC managers. Talk about validation. They talked with my director and counterparts at the school to hear their thoughts on my work. They said they were very happy with me and my work, and they hope the next volunteer continues in my footsteps. Now, Mongolians are not the type to talk down on anyone, especially the guest American, but it felt sincere. I just hope I can some through with some of the promises and plans I’ve made. That being the week long teacher’s camp I’ve proposed and the English lounge that they’ve asked me to help build. If I can just get those two things completed before I go, I’ll feel like that and the work I’ve done/am doing will make my work there a success. 

 

The Mongolian who I visited in Korea is here, visiting his brother, my counterpart. It’s good to see him again. I’m definitely planning to stop back in Seoul on my way home. I just don’t know what I’ll do with all my luggage and whatnot. The plan so far is to go to Korea, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and then home to Atlanta. But who can see that far in the future. I really wondering how much it would cost to send home some of the things I won’t need on the way. I’m guessing a couple hundred dollars. Yanaa! That’s a lot of tugriks.

 

Thanksgiving is coming on us fast. I hope the travel ban is lifted before then, cause we’re supposed to have a party with TURKEY on the Saturday after. It might just be the last time I’ll see some people before I close service. Many people I won’t see before then. 

 

The newbies are already starting to complain. It’s funny because it was this time last year that we started to as well. It is nice being on the other side of that equation, listening to what their schools are making them do or how they can’t get things done like in America, and then telling them what’s what. They’re losing that blind optimism that we all had coming in. I just try to let them know that it’ll be hard but it’ll be fine. Blind optimism turns to frustration, but eventually it becomes a vision for the future.

 

Again, I miss all of you. I’ve been inspired as far as what I’d like to do with the rest of my life. The epiphany also came at a good time. It’s given me some new energy. I’ll talk about that later. It’s too early to report on now. If you’re interested you can call me or email me. I’d like to discuss things with someone. Which reminds me, I need to email my bro Carson.

 

I’ll hit you up again soon…Internet…

 

Love, Love, Love, Love. In a word, it’s love.

Apologies. Seriously.

Part of the reason, i think, that I haven't updated is that now, in the second year, it's a little difficult to find interesting things to write about.  Either I have to worry about repeating myself, or I have to take things that have become normal and treat them like they are special enough to write about.  I'm not sure how many of you want to read, "I continue to eat with Mongolians everyday.  They still rotate making the same three dishes continually.  or   Wow, I was in a bus today for 6 hours even though the trip should only take 1.5 hours.  It was crammed with 17 people, even though the max capacity is 11."

I think about writing a lot.  But I don't know what to say.

Here's my attempt at just giving some sort of update.  The school year is up and running.  Right now I'm in a near by town with some other volunteers.  The week break between quarters was supposed to be the second week in November, but the minister of education pushed it forward to this week because of the bird flu "epidemic", hoping that sepatating the kids will slow the spread.  I had work to do across the country during that week, and now I won't be able to go do it because I'll need to teach.

I started up the computer class again.  We put a certain program on the computers to replace the defunct DynedLab that we had last year.  Still, no internet, but the kids love this new program.  It's very user friendly.  We have 3 classes a day of 20 kids each.  that's 300 kids that volunteer to come in and do an hour a week of extra english work.  I'm loving the succes of this one.  So many of the things I've tried to do have fallen apart for one reason or another.  It seems that I've finally gotten the hang of working here.  This year is seriously easier, less stressful, and much more productive than last year.  It's unreal.  I think both the lessons I learned from my first year and my vacation to Cambodia and Korea contributed to how great things are going.

I miss home a lot.  It's come up quite a bit in my mind in the last couple weeks.  I was recently able to speak with one of the returned volunteers from the group before me, a good friend.  She's also from Atlanta.  It just drove the point home in me.  I'm now 96% sure I will not try for a 3rd year.  In fact, I'm gonna try to leave a bit early to make it to my cousin's wedding next year.  Missing home isn't causing any doubts as to whether I'll make it to a solid close of service.  I'm just realizing that a lot of what I like about myself comes out from being around friends and family.  There's a spiritual dimention to my journey that has diminished.  I know it's waiting for me in the States to come back to, and I'm finding new ways to remain headstrong, but at the moment I really miss the feeling of being engulfed in a large crowd of hamonizing singers.  I miss hearing a sermon in person...in english.  I miss communion.

I'm pretty tired at present.  Sorry if some of this blog reads oddly.  What else?  Oh, I'm going with my school to an english compitition in the Gobi next month.  That's gonna be rad.  I haven't made it down there yet.  I'll make sure to take pictures.

To my nieces and nephews.  I'll be back soon.  Please don't grow too much too fast.  Just wait another 9 months or so.  Ok?

I'll try to post again soon guys.  Really.

Grace

Without further delay

Being back in Mongolia puts things into a new perspective.  Like a Monday morning's refelction on the successes and failures of weekend activities, being around the familiar faces and places here have me thinking about where it all went wrong and where it all went right.  For the last 3 weeks I've been in my happy home of Khujirt.  I had a couple meetings, worked on my community project, checked out what my peoples are up to, but mostly sat around my ger and watched tv shows on the computer.  I'm intent on making this next year mean more to me, professionally, than the last.  We'll see about that.

Now I'm in the city.  The new batch of volunteers is just about finished with their training.  They swear in on Wednesday.  The change that was so thick in the air a couple months ago is thinning out as the M-20's prepare to spread out over the country and do their civil duties.  The immediacy of a new school year now confronts us M-19 teachers. 

My province, Ovorkhangai, is getting 5 new volunteers.  I met them yesterday at their training site.  All of them seem pretty cool in their own right.  Finally, there is going to be another volunteer in a small town like me.  His town is about an hour away from mine.  It'll be nice to have someone else nearby who'll be going through the same challenges that I faced last year.  For one, I'll be able to give a bit of advice about how to handle the situation.  Two, I'll be going through the same things, and it'll be good to have someone who can relate.  It's hard to remember last winter as anything than a dream, but soon enough (it'll start snowing in just over a month) excessive layers of clothing and stove fire maintenance will be a part of everyday living.

So many people from my group have left over the summer.  I'm pretty sure our drop out rate is somewhere over 20% by now, and if history tells us anything, the beginning of the new school year and the beginning of the cold season will have a fw more out soon.  Some people who have left are people I'd never have expected, and in the same respect, some people I'd thought would have left by now are still here...some thriving.

That last paragraph was a grammar lesson all its own.

For the time being, us veteran vols are getting the most out of what the city can provide before it's time.  Yet, you can tell by out spending habits and likelyhood to stay in rather than go out, we've grown up a lot.  Of course, by growing up I mean going long periods of time being completely broke. 

thanks to evryone who reads these blogs.  there's no sight of internet coming back in my town.  so for now, you'll all have to make due with these postings only when I have the chance.

best of luck.  best of times.  peace and grace

I'm in Seoul.

I took 5 bdays off of my Cambodian vacation to visit some Mongolian friends in Seoul.  I came without knowing anything but their names and the fact that they are Mongolian.  It worked...even though I had their names wrong.  It turns out they go by different familiar names here than they do in Mongolia. 

I searched the internet for the area in Seoul where Mongolians live.  I took the train to this place from the airport, found a Mongolian run restaurant, told them my story, and 7 hours later I was eating Huushuur with them.  If I had known only their names or the name of their restaurant, or even a phone number, it would have taken only a minute.

I feel lucky as it is though.  I figured that if I couldn't find them, I'd just convince some other Mongolian to take me in, which I had already worked out when Khishgee walked into the barber shop I was at.  Someone heard that I was there looking for Mongolians from Khujirt, that I was an English teacher, and that I had been invited.  They at once said, "That must be Genden!" (my mongolian name).

They've been so incredible to me.   They will not let me pay for anything, no matter how hard I protest.  They say that 5 days is not long enough and that I need to tell Peace Corps that I'll be here a month.  HA!  As if that were possible.  They've shown me all around Seoul.  Korea is amazing.  It reminds me a lot of Atlanta. 

Still.  It's been over a month since I left Mongolia, and I'm really looking forward to getting back to site.  Thanks to my lovely big sister, I have a good collection of movies and TV shows to keep me occupied this winter.  I need to get busy on my secondary project, and I really need to begin putting english learning programs on the computers at my school.

It's possible that I may get the internet back this year.  If I have to, I'll help pay for it.  Learning how to navigate the internet is going to be key for those students who want to be a part of this technological generation.  I really want to teach typing classes and give instructions on search engines and informational websites.

I keep thinking about the coming winter.  I don't know why, but it keeps going through my head that I'm gonna endure it one more time.  I have a battle strategy this year of how to keep from going crazy and stay on the up side of depression.  I mean, it's gonna happen.  It happens to everyone, but this time I'll be ready for it.  I have battle plans for keeping warm, keeping clean/smelling good, eating well, exercising, etc.  I really don't think I'm over thinking this, although other PCVs are telling me they'd rather not even concider it until the time comes.

I leave for Mongolia on Sunday.  Then it's work work work.

Blessings and Peace

Greetings,

What is the one thing I think while walking down these Cambodian streets?  "Why-o why-o why-o was I not placed in Cambodia." No offence Mongolia, but LOOK AT THIS PLACE!!!  Everything's green, and you can buy fruit right off the side of the road.  Sure, everyone has that original cotton-eyed hit of beauty when they first see a place, but I've now seen 3 different cities and they are all so pretty.

Ben and I met up with a couple of Volunteers in Kampot.  One guy is an ex-PCV who works at a restaurant.  He gave us some free beers, (that's right, come on down and get free beer in Kampot), and he and his girlfriend talked to us for awhile about their service.  Cambodia opened up as a PC country a couple of years ago, so these guys are building the program from scratch.  They're pretty pleased with their placement.  In all seriousness, I am too. 

The food here is great.  $1.50 will get you a nice dinner with fish and rice and dessert.  The two of us have been wandering around where ever the bus is going.  We got on a bus to Kampot, but it broke down in front of a town called Kep, so we decided Kep was as good as Kampot and stayed there.  Then the guesthouse owner in Kep had a friend that was going to Kampot anyway, so we rode with him to this place. 

PC Cambodia has been very good to us.  They forwarded out an email to the vols here asking if anyone would mind a visit from some Mongolians, and we've gotten 4 responses, which is good because we're less than a week into our month stay and a third way through our money, no fault of our own natually.  This way we can go to different sites in Cambodia and stay with Volunteers.  Travelling should be our biggest expenceonce we start on that route.

It's not as hot here as I thought it'd be.  The mornings are blazing, but around noon it rains for a while and everything cools off.  The humidity in Cambodia is a welcome change too, just like momma used to make. 

We welcomed in the new volunteers in the best of PCM tradition.  As all the newbies are coming off the plane, tired and jetlagged from being on planes for 18 or so hours, they are met by a sreaming and hollering crowd of over-hyped, unsensitive, and seasoned volunteers.  It was obnoxious, but I think they felt welcomed.  They are probably in language class right now wondering how suffix prepositions work, and practicing asking their host families if they like fruit.  I don't miss those days.

Oh, weirdest thing.  I was at the airport in Seoul, enjoying my 14 hour layover, and a kid comes up to me and asks me in Mongolian what time it is.  I'm like "Chi Mongol hun mon uu?"  Or, are you Mongolian? And he says yes and we start this conversation up.  How random does it get?  Just as I was leaving the Mongolian tongue behind, I got in one more conversation. 

Well.  have a blast.

Brandon

Hello all you patient people.

Sorry for the delay, and sorry for this short post.  I leave for Cambodia in a few hours.  I'm gonna have a 14 hour layover in Seoul, so that'll be fun.

I've been working, believe it or not.  I took a trip out to Zavkhan last week for a teacher's camp.  The trip was 35 hours in a bus that was 4 people over the official limit.  Travel is a whole other post for another time.  The camp was great.  Zavkhan is amazingly beautiful.  There are trees and mountains and rivers.  We saw the highest peak in Mongolia, Otgon Tenger.  It was snow capped and majestic, all that good stuff.  On the 5th of June it snowed all day long.  So that is my first time seeing snow fall in June...officially.

The ride back was a lot better.  I had my own seat, and I was able to make my way to the front where I could stretch my legs a bit.  It was only 25.5 hours to get back too.  That driver meant business.

So for th last four days I've been in the city.  Some volunteers from Kazakstan came by the Mongolian office.  It was cool to hear their stories and compare.  From what it sounds like, they have a very similar experience there.

For the next month I'll be on the beach eating seafood and wondering...remembering how the other half live.  If you want, send me an email.  If you're important enough you already know the email account that I check.  I'm talking to you Northlake church of Christ.  NcoCKBATW!!!  I just made that up.  Don't ask what it means. 

Have a wonderful time.  I know I will.
Peace and Love and All that is Good.
B

The end of my first year is approaching.  My first year of school here is also coming to a close.  It's a pretty emotional time.  I can't believe how fast this year has gone by.  I can't believe how much AND how little I've gotten done.  I can't believe it's almost half way over.  This ride has been like nothing I've ever done before.  It's hard to see, day by day, the little changes that go into the making of a tried and true PCV.  Winter is now totally over and we are beginning to have days that are so hot I don't want to go outside at all.  Yeah.  I've also seen in the last month 3 blizzards.  The spring Mongolian sky is like a moody person.  You never know exactly what you are going to get from hour to hour.  My total person from flesh to mind to soul is feeling better.  Sure I've been sick lately, but the bright shining sun makes all the difference.  It doesn't get dark until about  9:00, and soon it'll stay light until after 10.  It's so much eaisier to wake up when the sunlight breaks through the top of my ger before my alarm goes off.  Spring is not only for the grass and livestock.  It's also for our spirits.

My Mongolian family has been very busy taking care of their new lambs and kids.  We now have over 100 in our livestock, and everyday they take them all out to pasture and every evening they bring them all back in to my front yard.  One of my teaching counterparts is off at a month long seminar where they can only speak English, good for him, but this doubles the work for me.  Also, one of my other English teachers is in the hospital.  There are only 3 weeks left to teach, but this is turning out to be my busiest month yet. 

I've decided that I'm going to go with one of my friends here to Cambodia for a month during our summer break.  I'm so excited.  I really need a break.  Mongolians ask me all the time if I miss my family or if living in Mongolia is difficult for me. They really can't imagine.  I couldn't have imagined it before I came either.  Some days it seems that nothing is the same.  Some days, everything I have to do is seasoned with that special Mongolia salt that makes things difficult, confusing, and insanely backward.  I've met Mongolians that have gone to Korea for only 2 or 3 weeks and they come back saying that all they wanted was to get back to Mongolia where everything makes sense.  The thing about living continually in a different place is that every little thing builds up...all the time, all day long...and never seems to let up.  The solitude is the worst really.  When I visit friends in some other place, everything is so much easier to deal with.  I can talk to someone who not only knows where I am coming from but is also going through the same thing.  I can finally talk to someone in English without having to talk 30 words per minute.

Not that I'm all down, quite the opposite.  I'm so up right now that I feel confident taking about how rough it is sometimes.  When I'm feeling really down I always question my right to feel so.  It's hard to remember that the stresses that are laid on me right now are very much real stuggles.  My friend Dwan recently reminded me that people tend to forget how sad or frusterated or burnt out or on edge they are until it's pointed out or until that stress is relieved.  That's so true for me.  I forget the burden I carry just living here and then I'm suprised when I flip out for something really small.  Lately I've been accutely aware of how stressed I am and it's helping me to be less suprised when I break down or something.  It happens.  I love my job.  I love where I am.  I wouldn't trade it for nothing, but the Monglolians I work with cannot possibly know who badly I need this vacation. 

I love you all and I'm really happy that I'll be coming home in just over a year....15 or so months.  Until then, know that I'm doing exactly what I believe I need to be doing, and I appriciate every little morsel of support you send my way everyday.

Thanks so much

God bless you all.

Wow, it's been a long time.

Things are going great.  Well, I'm pretty sick at the moment, but other than my health, things are terriffffic.  I may just have internet in my town soon.  It's supposed to be at the bank.  I went once and it worked.  The next time I went it was down.  We'll have to see. Every new day is a new day of adventure here in the U.S. of Mongolia. (not the real name of this country)

This semester is promising to be the best one yet.  My teachers are the most excited to work with me yet. This might have something to do with the fact that I told the training manager to make a schedule that my counterparts have to adhere to.  I didn't want to do this before.  They are all so over-worked as it is.  I wanted the meetings to be on a volunteer basis, but I betrayed myself shortly thereafter.  I felt like one of those people who say they'd like to give you a "by donation only" copy of a religious text, like the Bhagavad Gita, but then get upset when the donation you want to give is $.00.  That sounded better in my head...anyway, I feel like I'm getting lots of work I needed to do done. 

I'll give you one story about what kind of frustrations a volunteer might face in Mongolia.  I've been training these two girls who won a regional English competition for the provential olympics for the last month...every day...even during breaks.  They worked so hard, and I was extreemly proud of them.  One student is all but fluent.  She's amazing.  She was a shoe-in to win and go to the national competition.  The problem was that she also was scheduled to take the chemistry olympic exam too.  The two exams happened to be scheduled at the same time, but no one said anything about it until the day before.  They made her choose which one she would take.  They wouldn't let her take both.  Now, there is no rule about being in two competitions.  Other students were able to compete in as many exams as they wanted, the olympics go on for three days.  I was so mad when I found out that they were forcing her out of one of them.  She had the right to prove herself in both fields.  She worked so incredbly hard, studing everyday after school, on weekends, and on breaks.  Anyway.  That is how it is here.  To me there was no reason to wait for the last second to tell her she had to choose, let alone no reason she couldn't have taken both tests.  It would have been so easy to accomidate and facilitate her.  I'm going to talk to the person in charge about this as soon as I can.  I asked and I've been told I have to take it up with the Minister of Education.  I suppose I'll give them a call on Monday or find the best way to bring this up.  They have to know this is a problem.  There has to be some precident set in place for if and when this ever happens again.  'Cause that is the problem at the heart.  The competition was on a Friday, and there was no precedent and no one to call to get permssion to give her a special time to take the second test.

So what do you think.  Am I overreacting?  I don't know.  Maybe that's just the way it is.

Summer break is coming like thunder.  I've seen the light(ning).  one mississippi, two mississippi.  This summer I hope to keep real busy working on projects, but just as much, I'm looking forward to doing the chilling game.  I want to spend the first three weeks of summer vacation in my town.  I plan to go out into the mountains and hike and sleep in my sleeping bag.  I probably wont go alone, but I'm sure there'll be someone willing to go with.

They say the second year goes by faster than the first.  We'll see on that too.

I really just don't know what else to say.  Life is good.  The weather is getting warm.  I'm feeling good (everything but my intestines).

Peace to yo motha.  (Hi mom)

B