we all see the same moon

Today marks one week since we set sail from Dulles in search of Ethiopia. We have since been on a Peace Corps crash course of the Ethiopian way. Many agree that our time spent here feels more like a month than it does a week; every day has felt more like three full days than one 24 hour cycle. In one of my first journal entries, I wrote that I felt like a newborn baby, cast about a world I barely understand, surrounded by people speaking in tongues that relay no meaning to my ears. As true as that statement was at the time, babies who will soon have to play a part in teaching English to Ethiopians must attain understanding about their surroundings at a substantially rapid pace.

In just one week’s time, I can tell you more about Ethiopia than I can about most cities in the United States. I have picked up some basic Amharic; enough so that my face doesn’t twist with confusion when the King’s Hotel staff offers a “Dehnah deh?” when our paths cross each morning. I helped teach a minimum of 30 Tygrinian children how to say “baseball” and thusly throw said sphere. I have learned that John Cena is beyond popular among Ethiopian boys (I learned this in Tigray, but apparently it’s true everywhere). I’ve figured out how to deflect barrages of “frenji!” from the many small children who own the streets of Wukro. I’ve even taken quickly to use of the shint bet, wherein I’ve realized my hidden talent of impeccable aim when directing my own waste toward a hole the size of a coffee can.

pack your bags

After four months of eye twitching, likely related to unprecedented stress and drinking lots of coffee to acclimate myself to life in Ethiopia, I can finally take a deep breath of some relief. It's all official. By way of the Peace Corps desk in Ethiopia I have received final confirmation of my departure details. While there have been many points along the way where I've said this, never has the actualization of my Peace Corps dream felt so real. My final weeks stateside until 2014 have arrived. It's time to start packing my bags.

what i really do

A friend sent this to me. A glimpse into my future, perhaps?

wish you a good journey

If you've been paying close attention to the social networks, the cat has been creeping out of the bag for months now. But even if you are one to Tweet or update a Facebook status with feverish regularity, we've got some catching up to do. Without further adieu...

At last update, I thought that I would be going to Central or South America for an assignment starting some time around, well, now. A little more than two weeks after lamenting my goodbye to baseball, I received a call from a strange number on a Thursday while sitting at my desk (editing content, naturally). Seeing as it's my personal policy not to answer calls from strange numbers, I identified the occurrence as automated telemarketing and moved on. That is until I listened to the message that shortly followed, the content of which confirmed the other part of my personal policy; if it's important enough, they'll leave one.