Stuffy Nose and Stuffed Frog

Yes, it really does take 15 minutes to upload one photo. So I am uploading a photo while I write a short post in Word.

Today was our day off and we actually went somewhere. Well, we went to Kirivong, which is another training village, to see the other trainees and to see this mountain they were all bragging about.

Well the mountain was pretty cool. It was hard-core, scorching hot, steep, and through the jungle. Then at the top there was the remains of an ancient temple, a beautiful view of the green rice fields, and a glimpse at the Vietnam border.

And on the way down, the sky had a gift for us—rain! This felt great but made the trail realllly slippery. But we made it alive and mostly all in one piece.

As exciting as the trip to Kirivong was, I didn’t get a chance to do my laundry or to study Khmer. Bad bad bad.

And I probably made my cold that much worse. I hate having a cold here.

My favorite thing about my family is how close they all are and how hard they are always laughing with each other. Except when theres drama lol. I don’t really know whats going on. According to my younger siblings, my older sister is angry at my older brother. According to my mom, my sister is sick. According to my mom, I’m sick (lol). I also think I might have offended my mom because she didn’t want me to help with the dishes tonight but I wouldn’t take no for an answer. Ah well.

I found a large dead millipede in my room today.

I have had frog for almost every meal in the last week. Enough is enough.

I denied my first Khmer food today. My mom tried to feed my duck fetus. No thank you.

My family loves peanut butter. As do I.

Khmer people make the best Iced Coffee ever.

Khmer people love American wrestling. I’m not sure if they know it is fake.

My youngest brother dropped my camera today. He felt so bad that he wanted me to hit him with a comb ten times. What? No way.

Picture descriptions:

First is the view from the Guest House we stayed in for a few days before we moved in with our host family. I’d say it’s a typical provincial street. Across the street is the place I had breakfast a few times.

Second is a great picture of me and my host family! Just kidding. My and some cows/water buffalo. I don’t know what exactly they are. But they rock.

3 weeks down. about 112 to go! haha

I bought a USB internet modem, so I have internet at my site now. It works just fine for internet, but I haven’t quite figured out skype yet. I’m usually on every morning around 6, 7, 9, or 10, and every evening around 8. I’m certainly not going to use internet that often, so don’t get used to that. I just wanna get this darn thing figured out. So hop online at those times (those are the American times) if you wanna help me.

Okay, so Peace Corps… Cambodia… we are just completing week three. Which also means that this is the longest I’ve ever been away from home. I’m feeling okay about it. But I just always wanna call or be called or just somehow be in touch with people back home.

Host family is good. Great even. There is never a dull moment at my house.

Like the time when my family was teasing Leeny and saying he wasn’t their son, and they told him to pack his clothes in a bag and go (sounds awful, but it was hilarious).

Or the time where I took out my laptop and had a dance party with my younger siblings. Turns out they love Aretha Franklin, but hate Wagner.

The food is good still. Though I am finally kinda starting to get sick of it. I just want some variety! But there really is none.

I’ve eaten frog 3 times for dinner now.

2 days ago, my dad made French fries for me. Amazing. Then yesterday he brought home a can of Heineken from Vietnam for us to share. If I could speak Khmer, I would know WHY he went to Vietnam for one day.

A typical Khmer meal at my house usually consists of

1.      4 or 5 heaping scoops of rice.

2.      Fried vegetables with chicken, pork, beef, frog, crab, fish, or squid

3.      Soup with vegetables and any of the meats listed above (except frog… I think).

Parts 2 and 3 of the meal are in bowls in the center of the table. You take one or two spoon-fulls of each and you put it on your rice. Bon apetit.

Training is going fairly well. The language is tough because the sounds are so foreign and the grammar is so hard to figure out. But I am improving slowly. It’s hard to imagine a time where I’ll be able to listen to a native speaker and know what they are saying, but I hope that day comes soon.

My friends from college will find it hilarious that not only am I writing lesson plans, but I also have to make a portfolio during Pre Service Training. I am so happy about it…

We had our first “peer teaching” assignment this week on a topic of our choice. So I chose to teach the basics of harmony and chords, and have my “students” sing a I IV I V I IV V I chord progression lol.

Our next peer teaching assignment is on Monday. I have to teach about adjectives and adjective clauses, so I am in the process of writing a lesson plan for that.

In a lot of ways I am assimilating into the culture.

I actually prefer squat toilets over most of the western toilets they have here.

I thoroughly enjoy my bucket bath every day.

I can go to the market on my own and buy things without getting TOO overwhelmed.

My skin is tanning, as pointed out by my older sister lol. She just looked at me and said “you are black. You are more black than yesterday).

I showered with a frog. Whatever.

I can watch awful korean TV shows with Khmer voice-overs without being rude and lol-ing.

I pray for rain.

In other ways I am not at all.

Almost every night I dream about America. And I am so confused when I wake up.

I want chocolate. and candy. and junk food. and pizza. and cereal!

speaking of cereal, i just dont think i will ever get used to having fish soup for breakfast.

i am still culture shocked about coining.

i want to love on the dogs so much and it kills me that they are covered in fleas

Of course I could go on and on forever. It’s only been 3 weeks, but I have a million stories already and a million and one things I have learned. But I’ll just give you this for now. And how about a few more pictures?

omg this dumb picture took 20 minutes to upload. so you only get one picture this time. Its just a street full of motos, as usual, taken from my bus seat from Phnom Penh to Takeo 2 weeks ago. Notice the long sleeve dress shirts on everyone. too hot!

Character Descriptions- My Host Family

I am paying 1,500 riel at an internet cafe right now. I knew how to ask how much, but I don't know how to ask for how long in Khmer. So I am just going to assume I have an hour.
1,500 riel may sound like a lot but in reality that is about 38 cents. But on a volunteers "salary" this stuff adds up fast.

Ok, so TRAINING IN CAMBODIA! I can't believe I've only been living with my family for 5 days. It feels like so much longer. In a good way. I LOVE my host family very much. They are all such interesting people and are such characters in their own unique ways. I will give you the brief rundown.

There is my father. I think his name is Samsan? For those of you who went to Italy with me, the best way I can describe him is like a Khmer Roberto. He is creepy, but in a harmless way. He even does the derpo walk. He works as a police officer in the province of Tramkak. He makes a good living and provides very well for his family. They even have a car and television! and electriciy! But no running water. But no one really has running water here.

My mother is like the most amazing person in the world. She somewhat reminds me of my own mother just with her work ethic, but her work is very different. My host mom is a housewife caring for 5 children (though one lives in Phnom Penh).  Her cooking is phenomenal. I haven't had a meal that I didnt like yet! She thinks I am lying that I say everything is delicious, but I'm really not! She is up at like 5:30 every morning cleaning and just continues to do so all day. She helped me do my laundry for the first time yesterday. And when I say "helped" I mean that she really did most of it. Then, sneaky sneaky, when I was at class, she took down my clothes from the line and folded them for me. I have to try to tell her not to do that anymore. She does too much for me.

I have an older sister, Marady, who is 24 and went to college. She studied some english so I am able to talk to her a little bit. She works in the market for a cell phone company, but she is home most every night. We get along great and I know we are going to be great friends. Every night she helps me study Khmer, and she helps me communicate with my mom and dad. I joke around with her a lot and she always asks me "are you crazy???" haha.

As I said before I have an older brother who lives in Phnom Penh, but I haven't met him yet.

I have a younger brother named Jimmy who is 15. It is taking some time for him to warm up to me. I couldnt tell if he wasnt talking to me because hes a teenager and hes too cool or because of the different gender norms in cambodia. i think it is a little bit of both. But now he at least sits with us when I play/study with my other brothers and sisters. How could he not? I am a very entertaining foreigner.

I have a younger sister named Teetee who is 12. She is so cute and so funny. I cannot really talk to her much because of the language barrier, but we make faces at each other a lot. And I can always tell when she is making fun of me. Like when she felt my stubbly legs and then started laughing and speaking in rapid Khmer.

I have a younger brother, Leeny, who is 9 and.. well quite the character. I think he is the pudgiest (sp?) little boy in all Cambodia (a fact that his family is very proud of). But he LOVES spending time with me. He is always following me around and helping me out. He likes playing with my bicycle lock so he never lets me do that. He also likes to practice my Khmer pronunciation with me, and he likes to pretend he is a big spider because I told him I am scared of them.

And thats it. except the dog. who is really cute, but covered in fleas.

Training is going very well. I have the best teacher in all of Tramkak. She actually lives in this district so we go to her beautiful house to have our Khmer lessons. Just the ride to her house through the rice fields is the most breathtaking thing I've ever seen. She does a homestay. If you're interested in seeing some pictures of her compound, go to her website: http://www.cambodianhomestay.com/

Okay, I should really stop writing now, though i have so much to tell. Maybe I will stop by the internet cafe next week again.

Goodbye, call me, text me <3

Quick Update On Days 4 and 5 in Cambodia

I managed to steal some internet! I am at the "training hub site" in a hotel. We are here I think until Sunday. Sunday night we move in with our first host families. There will be 3 or 4 other volunteers in the village I am in (i dont know where yet) and one LCF or Language and Cultural Facilitator, which is a Cambodian here to help us and teach us. This hotel does have a tiny bit of wifi. I couldnt get it to work yesterday, but I got it today!

So things have been very different since leaving the capital.

I am covered in mosquito bites

toilet paper is a thing of the past

my bed is infested with ants

i made out with a bug the size of a bird

cold showers are WONDERFUL

I have found whole chicken feet in my soup

and whole fish

ok ok good things now

Today we had a "basic life skills fair", where at different stations we learned how to do different things like set up the mosquito net, spray clothes with special bug spray, set up a water filter, how to use a 'squat toilet', how to rinse using a bucket, how to take a bucket bath, how to get to the outdoor bathroom without flashing your neighbors, how to hand wash clothes and hang them to dry, and how to eat with a cambodian family without horribly offending them.

we got our bikes today. mines a city bike and it has a bell AND a basket :-D

we went to the market to buy some Cambodian Professional clothing, called Sampots, as well as Sarongs (the wonderful invention that brings you to the outside bathroom without flashing everyone), and this scarf thingy.

I have learned a few more Khmer phrases, including what is your name? my name is diana. how are you? im fine. i have diarrhea. food (is actually NOM like lolcats!), rice, it's delicious, it's delicious a little (which actually means its bad), and maybe a few other things. but not really. we still havent had a language class. I think our first one might be tomorrow?? I hope. 

We play soccer in the evenings with other trainees and some teachers. it is a BLAST and I don't do too horribly bad. I made the cambodian people laugh a lot when i played goalie for a bit because every time the ball would come near me i would scream CHEWY PONG!

Khmer people are HILARIOUS! They have a wonderful sense of humor.

I played hide and go seek in the market with five little boys.

And that's pretty much a summary of the last few days.I'm learning a lot, but I am still AMAZED with how little I know about these people and how much I have yet to learn.

Pictures

1. Right off the plane at Phnom Penh airport!

2. A building in Phnom Penh. Probably something important. I dunno what.

3. A tuk tuk. They are actually not usually filled with tourists, although this one is. And in case you were wondering, 6 or even 7 Peace Corps volunteers can fit in one tuk tuk.

Welcome to Cambodia

I hope that this post is somewhat coherent. I've never been so exhausted in all my life.

Staging happened! In San Francisco. It was pretty much what I expected; a lot of paperwork and sessions, masked by cheesy ice breakers and creative short projects. I was pleased to find though that I was comfortable and found some people I enjoy talking to.

I went into class clown Diana mode. When Diana is in a new situation, she like loses her filter and just makes really bad jokes about everything. I think it's to make life seem less awkward. But I think it was okay. Some people humored me :-P

Many of us went out to get Mexican food after staging. Delish!!!! I had a giant burrito! Then, despite all I had said about wanting to tear up San Francisco, I went back to the hotel and was out like a light in no time.

The following morning we piled onto buses, to the airport, and then to the gate. Our plane was delayed! So we passed the time with some card games and I played some uke and guitar.  I called my mom and dad and emily one last time to say goodbye and A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO EMILY!

hahaha I just fell asleep on my laptop. So I'm going to put this away and finish in the morning.

MORNING: Hi, this is blogging, take two.

So first we flew to Tokyo. That was about 10 and a half hours. Lucky for me (not) I wasnt seated near any of the other Peace corps volunteers. I was nicely sandwiched between two Japanese men. But I wsas talking to one who was very nice and told me a little about Cambodia because he lived there for 4 years. They showed awful movies on the plane. Both guys next to me slept nearly the entire time. I literally sat there staring at the back of the chair in front of me for 10 and a half hours haha. I have no idea how I survived.

We were in the Japanese airport for about 3 or 4 hours. I tried my first strange food. It was like... dried crab. But whole crab. Shell and all. and you eat it like a chip. t was very strange. They glazed it with some sort of sweet coating, but it still had an extremely fishy taste too. Not my favorite.

The flight from Tokyo to Bangkok in Thailand was 6 hours I think? Unfortunately I wasn't feeling well during that one. I don't know why, but I had really sharp pain in my stomach the whole time and i was very uncomfortable. I guess we'll blame the plane food? Or how about that crazy crab? Or maybe you're not supposed to eat a mass amount of gummy bears on an empty stomach. Who knows. But I'm better now.

The little piece of Bankok that we saw was so cool! The airport was very contemporary. We got into Bangkok at abour 11:30PM and we were exhausted. So we piled into buses and went to a hotel that Peace Corps so nicely provided us for the night. Some people went out for food, but I was too exhausted. The hotel was BEAUTIFUL! Probably one of the nicest I've ever been in. Only weird thing was that there was a large window between our bathroom and our room lol. creepy! Oh, btw I forgot to mention I've had a roommate this whole time. It's been fun.

After sleeping for like 4 hours, we had to get up again to go back to the airport for our final flight to Cambodia. Again, that flight was delayed. But thats okay cuz there was free wifi in the airport! The flight from Bangkok to Phnom Penh was only an hour.

When we landed in Cambodia I was so excited! Everyone was saying "welcome home!" and that felt weird but exciting. Our group of volunteers is called K5. The K4s have been serving in Cambodia for a year. Many of the K4s came to meet us in the airport and cheer as we came through customs. It was a good time.

We loaded most of a luggage into a truck and said temporary goodbye to that. We will only have access to our large bag once a week during training. Thats alright, I can live off essentials for a while. I think.

Then we packed like sardines into two buses and went to two different hotels in Phnom Penh. The hotel is pretty decent. There is air conditioning and something like a shower lol. Which reminds me... Cambodia is HOT! like really hot! Like hotter than Africa and Haiti was. So humid! And we have to wear long skirts and blouses. Should be fun.

We settled into our  rooms, then got back on the bus to head to the Peace Corps office in Phnom Penh. They fed us a Khmer lunch, which was pretty good. The rice was delicious! There was some sort of egg thing. That was good. There was musy eggplant. That was alright. And there was like a fish curry. That was interesting. The vegetables were very good (you heard me right, mother). And there was some fruit. I'm not too sure how I feel about dragonfruit. I think I like it? It's almost like a really mild kiwi. Its not my favorite, but its okay I guess. They also had this spiky grape like thing. I forget what its called. That was delicious!

Then it was time for business and we went into the conference room for introductions and such. We met the new Country Director, Penny, and our Medical Officer Joanne, and everyone else that I dont remember. Joanne gave us like an hour rundown of important medical stuff; everything from how to cross the street and not die to how to kill mosquitoes using and electric tennis racket that the peace corps provides haha. We got our medical packets too.

Then we separated in separate groups for a mini tour of Phnom Penh led by a K4. My group was scheduled to get our vaccinations first. There were two rooms doing the vaccines. One was Joanne's office and the other  was 2 Cambodian Doctors. I was the first one in the Cambodian office haha. I don' think they were ready for me? Becuase they seemed very confused and almost like they didnt know what they were doing... They were like arguing with each other in Khmer and running around putting stuff together. They tried talking to me, but even though they spoke okay English it was so hard for me to understand their accent. I'm sure I'll get used to it though. So I got three vaccinations. Typhoid (SO PAINFUL) Rabies (OOOOUUUCH!) and... something else. I forget.

After my group was done we went on our Phnom Penh tour. We took tuk-tuks (carriages pulled by a moterbike) to the Central Market and we just walked around there. They had everything there like textiles, electronics, jewelry, toiletries, etc. We exchanged some money. Here, american money is pretty much accepted anywhere, but they don't use coins for smaller change. They use riels. So when buying small things its easier to have riels on you.

Then we to another Tuk Tuk to a bar where we met up with the 62 K5 and like 25 K4s. We hung out there for a while introducing ourselves and talking. The K4s were so nice and so happy to have us there. We were happy too.. but exhausted. I promised them we were more excited than we were letting on lol.

We had to sign up earlier in the day for "dinner groups" that were each going to get a different kind of food. Italian was all filled up.. so I went for Indian food! For Vinny and Emily lol. It was good. I just had chicken curry. It was very tasty and satisfying, and so was the company, but I was beyond ready for bed. Finally we were able to go back to the hotel at around 9 and call it a night. And thats when I fell asleep on my laptop.

It is now 6:18AM. Our call time is 7:25. I think its basically more orientation stuff today. who knows.

So I survived my first day of Cambodia. How do I feel you ask? Overwhelmed. Really really overwhelmed. I am so lost here and I have no idea what I'm doing. I have so much to learn. I look at the K4s and I worry that I won't be able to get this whole Peace Corps Cambodia thing down as good as them. I think its best for me to just take it one day at a time. We've been asking tons and tons of questions about what our service will be like, and its a lot to take in. It's better for me to just tackle one day at a time.

So day two, here I come.

You make it hard for me to leave

I don't know if this is actually their plan, but my friends and family are making it nearly impossible for me to leave for Cambodia in 5 days. I knew it would be hard leaving but I thought I was mentally prepping myself for this for a while. And to be honest I haven't really felt like sincere full out sadness about leaving until the last few days. So either its just finally hitting me, or my loved ones are showing me what I'm leaving behind and how crazy that is.

This whole summer has been nearly perfect. It was one of the best summers I've ever had, even though its been so short.

Yesterday was my Bon Voyage party, and I don't even know where to begin to explain it. We have never had so many people in my house before. Cars were parked up and down the entire block. Family came in from all over the place. I had family in from Jersey, Massachusetts, and even Hawaii! I am blessed with an amazing family who may not always understand my decisions, but will always back me up anyway.

All kinds of friends stopped by or stayed to hang out. I saw friends that I haven't seen in 2-3 years. Honestly, I really didn't know I had that many friends. I guess you never realize all the people that you can impact in your life. And wow, are my friends supportive or what? Many came with the sweetest, most thoughtful gifts. I can't even list all the things, but among them were music, photos, slideshows, books, movies, etc. But the gifts meant nothing compared to some things people said to me and what was written in their cards. My friends believe in me and they are proud of me, more than I ever knew.

Oh, and there was this one teensy surprise for me at my party. My favorite singer/songwriter... Julia Nunes... was hiding behind my tree lol. Ok, heres the watered down version of the story. Basically, my friends from college got together and contacted Julia and her manager. They explained their limited budget and asked if Julia would come play a show... in my backyard haha. Well she agreed. And she popped out from behind a tree and I screamed like a little girl. She played for the whole party. I got to play and sing with her. And then the coolest part was she stuck around for a little while to hang out. She let me listen to her CD that she is still working on that no one has heard yet! It was incredible! We sang for her too, a little bit of classical vocal stuff.  I still can't believe that all of this happened, and I can't believe what amazing friends I have.

The whole day was completely overwhelming. I wanted to spend hours with every person there to let them know how much they mean to me, but with so much going on I couldn't. It was nearly impossible for me to even keep track of who was here, who was leaving soon, who was on their way, etc. I hardly ate anything all day, but all the craziness was worth it. I never dreamed I'd have a support system this big.

So then why wasn't I able to sleep last night? Why was I up tossing and turning for hours? Trust me, its not because I wasn't tired. I was exhausted. All this love and attention is just making it harder and harder to leave. Leaving would be so much easier if everyone left me alone the last few days before I left. Truthfully, I'm scared now, which is something I haven't been before. I'm scared of not being able to find the happiness that I have found here. And the other thing is the amount of pressure that I feel right now. Of course this was not intentional, but with so much support inevitably comes expectations. I don't even know if I'm going to be good at this Peace Corps thing. Plenty of Volunteers don't even finish training, let alone the whole 2 years of service. I am gonna try and I am going to do my very best, but I really hope that's good enough and I am able to live up to even half of what my friends and family say they believe I can do. But it would be really awful and embarrassing if after all this, I'm home in 3 weeks.

While lying awake last night I did a lot of thinking about the twists and turns my life has taken and how God has provided. My life is proof that God makes you go through changes, and sometimes those changes cause more pain than you'd ever imagined. But God always will give you the strength and circumstances to get through it. And on the other side, you will be a much stronger person. As many know, just 4 years ago I was in a relationship that I thought was it. Even though the boyfriend was emotionally abusive, I loved him deeply and was 100% sure that was the path my life was going to take. Then it ended. I was not ok for what felt like forever. I had put everything that I was into this one person. When he was gone, I was completely empty and I didn't see any more purpose for me. A line from a Relient K always helps me understand what happened. It goes "You said I know that this will hurt, but if I don't break your heart then things will just get worse. If the burden seems too much to bear, remember, the end will justify the pain it took to get us there." And its true. God placed these people, one at a time, in my life. Slowly they dragged me up from my depression and built me up into who I am today. And last night I realized that I am more full than I have ever been. I have way more love for these people than I ever had for my ex boyfriend. And its true. I am stronger than ever. I never would have the guts to do something like the Peace Corps, had I not gone through what I had to go through. At the time, I thought it was the end my life, but on this side, I realize that it was all part of Gods perfect plan.

And now here I am again, moving on to something different. And it hurts everything within me. And part of me is saying "God, really?? I just found my niche here and I'm finally happier than I have ever been!". But from experience I know that God will always give me ways to make these changes and then glorify him.

So friends and family, thank you for everything. Whether you've known me since birth, since middle school, or just a few short years, every second I have spent with you has been a gift and has shaped me into what I am today. Knowing that you are responsible for shaping me, I hope you are proud of what I have become, and I hope you know of your right to share in every triumph I have made and will make, because without you it would be impossible.

I am going to Cambodia and I am so excited. I'm ready to work hard and learn as much as I can about the people and about myself while I am there. And then you know what? Before we all know it, I will be home. I will have amazing insights and experiences to share with all of you. I am excited to see what the future brings, not just for me, but for all of us. Welcome to the first day of the rest of our lives.

And here's to my welcome home party in October, 2013!

Packing Fail.

I'm not even close to being done packing and I already have over 80 lbs of luggage. Geeehhhh what do I doooo?

I was afraid I'd have this problem.

Allow me to use this blog to try to diagnose the problem.

I have one suitcase that has about 50lbs in it (which is the most you can have in one suitcase). In that suitcase is all my clothes, a bag of toiletries I'll need on a daily basis, my shoes, towel, sewing kit, a binder of movies, and ziploc bags. Hm. 50 lbs seems like its a lot for just that stuff. Did I pack too many clothes?? maybe. Ok, Let me go through my clothes and try to consolidate...

20 minutes later: I got rid of 8 articles of clothing. I also put back a pair of flip flops. I decided 4 pairs of flip flops are excessive. So now I have 1 pair for the shower and 2 to walk around it. I would get rid of all the flip flops and just buy there, but I'm a size 10 shoe and something tells me its going to be near impossible to find shoes my size in cambodia. With the new room in my suitcase I was able to fit my hats (i put 2 back though, leaving me with 5. i like hats), a pencil box, my headlamp, and deet. I guess that's slight improvement.

I have a small suitcase that I was going to use to put most of the rest of my stuff in. I just weighed the suitcase. It's 6lbs. Is that a lot for a small suitcase? Maybe tomorrow I'll look at kohls and see if they have a miraculous giant suitcase that weighs in at like 2 lbs.

-I have a bag of toiletries I have to take. That's 6 lbs there.
-I have a box of church-y stuff. I need that because I'm my own pastor, worship leader, and devotion leader over there. So there's another 5 lbs.
-Those are the bigger things. Then I have a bunch of small things I have to throw in the suitcase. Let's say that theres about 10 lbs worth of paper, sunglasses, belts, drink mixes, address book, backpack, water bottle, and glasses.

Now here's the part where it's going to start to hurt.
-I have 8lbs of books I wanted to bring to read...
-I have 10+ lbs of printed music I wanted to bring to practice/study/find comfort in.

10 mins later: I now have 6 lbs of books and 8 lbs of music. Apparantly Handel's Messiah weighs a lot haha. It was sad to put that back. I really should take my Music Theory textbook out of the book stack, but I don't want to! I wonder if I'm the first Music Major to go on to do the Peace Corps. Probably not, but I would love to know how past people coped with leaving music study for so long. And if I'm debating doing music again after the Peace Corps, I can't allow myself to get too rusty.

I'm the worst Peace Corps packer ever. I swear I'm not materialistic. I just.. have packing issues? I dunno. I'm leaving this for the night though. I will re-evaluate in the morning.