Besides the fact that my voice sounds as if I've been chain smoking since the time I was in the womb...I'm beginning to feel better!

Some may say it's thanks to the meds, but I'd like to think it's happening because my AMAZING FRIENDS--A & J--brought over CAMPBELL'S TOMATO SOUP yesterday!

Yep, Campbell's Tomato Soup has finally arrived in the Ancient City!

So in honor of the Prophet's birthday (and an extra day off work)--I stayed in my pj's, ate that amazing soup, and scrapbooked. I also may, or may not, have watched several episodes of a t.v. show that I'm ashamed to admit I love (but it starts with: Dawson's and ends with: Creek).

All in all, it's been a lovely day. Tomorrow it's...back to work...April 1st...AND....(drum roll, please)...the CARDINAL'S OPENING DAY!!!!!!!!!!! I should go to bed now to prepare for it all!

Yesterday I thought I was dying. Well, sort of.

Ok, so two days ago I definitely felt some sinus issues coming on. No big deal. I usually end up with a sinus infection or cold this time of year. I could handle it.

However...I was not prepared for the full-on fever, aching, sinus problems, and stomach issues that were to follow! I promise you that there were parts of me hurting that I didn't even realize I had! I'm guessing that my eating out in the villages is finally catching up with me.

The last thing I remember from yesterday, is that before I fell asleep, I prayed..."Please God, take this from me."

Pathetic, huh?

Well, it worked. Almost. My head is still majorly congested, but at least it doesn't hurt to move!

And as I sit here, thankful to be alive :), and finishing up some stuff at the office that I wasn't able to do yesterday, there are a few things that are making me very happy...

1. Rain and cooler temperatures.--I LOVE days like today!
2. Joss Stone (her new stuff and "Soul Sessions") and Jamie Lidell's "A Little Bit More." --If you're looking for some pick-me-up music, try them!
3. The realization that we have a 3 day weekend ahead of us! --Happy Birthday, Mohammad.

So I've been waking up super early these days. Like 5 am early. I don't do that on my own...usually. But the sun's been shining through my windows bright and early and my room has been a little too warm for comfort. (Note to Self: Get some curtains made ASAP!)

I am confident that it will be His grace, and His grace alone, that gets me through the coming summer months. Of this I'm sure.


In other news...it's spring! I love spring (even though it feels like summer right now). And since it's been a while, I've decided to give you some "-ING's." (Don't ask me how "spring" and "-ing" words connect?)

Right Now I'm...
*Display-ing a picture from Busch Stadium on my computer background. (YAY! Go CARDS!)

*Wear-ing my cute, new, polka-dotted flip-flops that Special K sent, along with my cute, new, green head covering that I bought in the Desert with Babs' Birthday money! (THANKS TO YOU BOTH!!)

* Drink-ing a very cold Pepsi. (Well, it's sitting on my desk next to me. I wouldn't want to spill it on Mac now, would I?)

*Watch-ing turbaned men drive by on motorcyles...3 women in burqas walking along the street...and 2 little girls holding hands as they walk to or from school. :)

*Work-ing on finishing up our project's financial reports for the month of March and on a more fun note, I'm creating a new video, which hopefully will be posted on my other website soon.

*Smell-ing lunch being cooked downstairs. It definitely smells like french fries, but the rest will remain a mystery. At least for another 15 minutes.

*Plann-ing what I should bake for tomorrow. My teammate L is leaving next week to go back to the States and get married. We're having a bridal shower for her that will be for both ex-pats and national ladies alike. (I'm just hoping no stupid games with toilet paper are involved!)

*Wish-ing that all my friends would understand Dad's call on their life to come to this land so we could all live nearby and have barbecues and rooftop parties and lots and lots of time to laugh and be.

And last but not least...

*Think-ing that I should get back to work. Even though this time of day is my most unproductive, I should probably try and focus. :)

Sometimes my life is so...what's the word?...extreme. Today, like many others, I find myself coming up short in the word department as I feebly attempt to express what I've just seen and experienced.

This place is such a contrast of beauty and destruction...hope and despair...life and death.

Besides the moment when I watched two old ladies swinging punches at each other and the subsequent conversation I had with my co-workers concerning the WWF that followed...today has been full of heartbreaking stories.

*I surveyed 20 women today and all of them...*ALL*OF*THEM*...have had AT LEAST 2 children die.
*I met with a 12 year old girl who was just married off to a 25 year old man. (TWELVE YEARS OLD!)
*ALL of these families get their drinking water from the sewage ditch.

While the list of stories could drag on, I think I am personally finished for today. My heart is hurting too much. And while I know He is calling the weary to Himself, there are moments like this when I feel the weight of the world on my shoulders.

In case you were wondering, I am alive.

The last 2 days of break with Trickie were packed full of fun. And even though as I type, I’m having a hard time remembering what we actually did…I’m certain that it was good. Right, Tricks? Unfortunately the saying still holds true and all good things really do come to an end.

I said goodbye to my friend late Thursday night (Tricks, I miss you already!) and early Friday morning I made my way back to Ktown. I was supposed to fly out to the Ancient City on Saturday, but after sitting in the airport for 6 hours, they finally just canceled the flight. This seems to be a trend for my traveling adventures in this country so I guess I’ll chalk it up to that.

I eventually made it home on Sunday and on Monday afternoon the family that I live with, along with a team of 7 doctors and nurses from the US, also arrived to our house. I’m convinced that nothing says “Get back to work,” like taking a short-term team out to 2 villages for a 2-day adventure. Somehow I found myself thrust back into the thick of the culture here, as the ladies needed a female translator and there was no one else to help out.

But even though it’s been a chaotic start back into life here, I am happy to be home. I honestly think this is one of the first times since I’ve been working in CA that I can say that after a break and it feels good. It feels very good.

Today begins our weekend and as I sip my freshly brewed Starbucks and prepare to spend some quality time with Dad, I am once again reminded that I am exactly where I am supposed to be.

So I'll leave you with that for now. Happy New Year's & SPRING Everyone...
(March 21st is the first day of the year for the calendar used here. The year is now 1386.)

It's been a busy couple of days here in Vacation Land. For all of you keeping track out there, here's the scoop.

Day 1: Tricks arrived late. And after enjoying Christmas in March with me (thanks EVERYONE for the goods!), we headed off to sleep.

Day 2: What better way to get rid of jetlag and to be initiated into this city than...to shop. We spent the entire day at the largest mall in the world outside of North America. (Correction: Trix just said that we were "probably only at the mall for 5 hours." Apparently that's not a lot of time!) Afterwards we waited in traffic for what seemed to me an equal amount of hours. Uggh. Our attempt at finding the horse racing was to no avail but we did manage to see some camels and eventually made it to another location where we watched "Flashdance" on the big screen under the stars. The movie wasn't the greatest but it was so fun to be outside, sitting on a rooftop in bean bags, enjoying the amazing weather!

Day 3: Sunshine and surf. Ok, not really, because I was too afraid of the freaking jellyfish that were lining the shore to actually get in and swim much. I kept having memories of that "Friends" epidsode--the one where Joey gets stung by a jellyfish and someone has to urinate on him to make the sting go away. Yeah. No thanks! We did manage to enjoy lots of sunshine..a highschool dance off (picture in your mind "West Side Story")...and the lack of gawking men thanks to the fact that it was "Ladies Day."

Later that evening we went to the Hard Rock Cafe and enjoyed the live music. Check out the "Rockstars" pictured here. (Don't look too closely or you might notice that our signs are a little off.)

Day 4: It started out with a leisurely morning hanging around the house. Trix napped and I did laundry. (Special K sent over Tide AND Downey Simple Pleasures!!! I'm in heaven!) We hit McDonald's for lunch and then headed off for a desert safari.

A few highlights from that adventure include, but are not limited to, the following:
1. Dune Bashing...driving sideways, straight up, and straight down and any other way the driver could take us to get a squeel.
2. Camels & Sunset
3. Knee injury from trying to climb a steep dune to see the last of said sunset. (see photo)
4. Crazy Indian dancers
5. Henna tattoos (nasty, according to Trix)
6. Shisha Pipes (AKA "henna pipes" according to Trix)
7. A much calmer ride back to the house

And now lots of laughs as we've relived these memories trying to share them with you. :)

Isn't life grand?

Vacations...Vacations.
How do I love thee?
Let me count the ways...

*Sunshine
*Starbucks
*Cute clothes
*Freedom
*Late nights
*Sleep
*IKEA
*Shopping
*McDonald's
*Laughter
*Outdoor dining...napping...and anything else I want to do
*The Ocean (well, Gulf)
*Fresh pineapple and strawberries and avocado...oh my!
*Swimming
*Rest
*And in just a few short hours....

TRICKIE!! :)

And THIS is why I love this show...

"We all think that we are going to be great.
And we feel a little bit robbed when our expectations aren’t met.
But sometimes our expectations sell us short.
Sometimes the expected simply pales in comparison to the unexpected.
You gotta wonder why we cling to our expectations.
Because the expected is just what keeps us steady…standing…still.
The expected is just the beginning.
The unexpected is what changes our lives. "

~Grey's Anatomy (Episode: Great Expectations)

A Photo and Memories

All photographs are there to remind us of what we forget.
In this - as in other ways - they are the opposite of paintings.
Paintings record what the painter remembers.
Because each one of us forgets different things, a photo more than a painting may change its meaning according to who is looking at it.
~John Berger

Above you will see an image of my sweet friend and I hanging out last week. Just looking at it brings a smile to my face and reminds me just how very much I love that girl.

Although it had been over a year since I last saw her, it seemed like mere days upon our reunion. The hours that we shared ran together with laughter...conversation...new music...coffee...God...men...dreams...apple pie...and Apple computers. Dad has led us on quite the journey since our days teaching across the hall from each other at KIA. And while I'm still waiting for HIM to place us back together in the same location (Remember your email J!), I'll take any moment I can get to enjoy the blessings of this sweet friendship.

Now, I'm not sure what you see when you look at this picture. But if the quote above holds true, then I'm guessing the meaning for you is something different. Now, I'm not really into telling people what they should see or think. But I'd really like to hear your thoughts.

You see, The Crushing One and I challenged each other to blog about our day and see who could get the most comments. Of course, neither of us are really that into rules, and so it's not really clear as to how we will determine the winner. All I know is that, in the end, the loser owes the winner a dinner out on the town. (I'm pretty sure we just wanted an excuse to go out!)

So...click on her name above and see what she had to say about our time together. Then leave a comment for whoever you thought said it better. :)

I know what I think when I look at this picture. And I also know that no matter how much time passes between our visits, I won't forget. I couldn't. This girl has left her mark. And I'm a better person because of it.

Thanks J!!!

I don't remember whose idea it was to go by bus from the north central region of the country to Ktown (read: my own stupidity), but I was pretty sure I was going to die before I actually arrived. (Obviously that didn't come to pass.) I made it. After 3 slips on the ice and 1 semi-accident which involved our bus sliding off of the road and hitting the wall of the mountain tunnel (just a bit)...Ktown never looked so good. Who knew 10 hours could feel like eternity?

But I made it. PTL! And for the next few days that followed, I enjoyed good friends, fresh snowfall, and lots of coffee in the city that I once called "home." Ahh. Good times.

So here are a few pics from my time in the north.
*The kid in the picture above has the most amazing eyes.
*The ladies that you see with me were also attending the seminar. Their nationalities are Irish, Kazakh, German/Romanian, & Korean. We went out for dinner that evening and around the table sat 9 people--8 different nationalities and the ability to speak 13 different languages. It's moments like that which give me a true picture of His very culturally diverse Bride. I love it!
*And lastly the picture to the right is of a man outside the mosque. I'm not sure if it's his job, but he sure had a way with those birds.

Now I have one picture left to share from my last 2 weeks, but I will save it for a post all its own. Maybe tomorrow?

4 more days until I get to see Trickie!!! :)