Additions

It was brought to my attention today that if you subscribed to my blog posts, then it does not also send you a notification if I posted anything on my "Pages" widget, which I renamed as "Common Inquiries" on the right side of my layout.  Therefore, now I am making it known that I have posted a section of links that takes you to a separate, stationary page or post that is respective to the name of the link.  The only link I have on there right now is called, "Why the Peace Corps?"  I figured it is a commonly asked question, and I thought it best to keep it on a separate page instead of having to scroll all the way to the bottom or the oldest post to find it.  It is a little lengthy so I understand if you don't get through it all, but it does give a decent scope on why I chose to apply to the Peace Corps.  I will be adding more links later as I see fit, but for now you just get the why answered.

[In case you were wondering how to subscribe to my blog, there is a box near the bottom, left side of my blog that reads, "Enter email to subscribe."  After doing what it says and submitting it, it will take you to a window to type in the verification characters.  Once you type those correctly and click the button to the right of that, you are done!  The subscription basically signs you up so that you receive a notification for every time I post an entry instead of having to stalk my blog every day to see if there is anything new.  Yay for efficiency!  Anyway, I digress...]

Another feature I have on the right side of the blog is one that has been there since the birth of this digital log, but some of you may not have seen it or paid it any notice - a Twitter feed.  I recently got a Kindle Keyboard 3G that I will be taking with me to Tanzania, and I hope the Kindle's 3G, or in this case EDGE coverage, will allow me to connect to the internet at my site, even for a handful of minutes at a time.  The internet, IF I have any at my site, will definitely be unreliable and slow, but it is something.  I should be able to connect to Twitter at least to post something like, "I'm alive" every once in a while.  ;)

Lastly, I have added my Flickr photostream.  This is the first time I have ever actually made an effort to post any pictures on Flickr, though I presume it is as good a time as ever.  I will still try to post "highlight" pictures in the actual blog post, but every picture I deem worthy to enter the realms of my Flickr account will be displayed as thumbnails on my blog, the most recent first.

Those are the main changes for now, but I am sure other updates will ensue once I get in-country.  Sneak preview: I may be including a wish-list. *wink wink*

Anxious

Two weeks from this very moment, I will be mid-air somewhere between Philadelphia and Tanzania.  Yes, the time is drawing nearer for me to be leaving the comforts of my home to step foot in an unfamiliar place.  I am extremely excited, more than my body can bear, but of course, the nerves are definitely there.  (Oh hey, that rhymed!)  I don't think I have ever felt so nervous about anything in my life, but it is a good kind of nervous.  I just can't wait to get there and there is pretty much nothing that will stop me from going!

I am scheduled to leave on the morning of Sunday, June 3rd and will spend about a day and a half in Philadelphia for staging.  I get to spend the afternoon and evening in Philly for the first night I am there, but once I check-in to staging events, it will be a full day of Peace Corps activities from noon to about 7pm.  I mentioned briefly in a previous post that staging will include a Peace Corps welcome, filling out and turning in forms, and getting a plethora of vaccinations.  (Remember, I will not be finding out my site information just yet - that will come much later at the end of in-country training.)  Once the day is done, I will eat, sleep, or more accurately take a "nap," and then check out of the hotel at 2am to get on a bus that will take us trainees to JFK Airport in New York.  Then, I will be on my way to the big TZ!

Another thing that I am getting a wee bit anxious about is the fact that I have not exactly packed yet...  BUT, I have been doing some research lately via my resources (aka PC Wiki, current PCVs, and some fellow rookies connected through Facebook) and have compiled quite a list to pack.  I will touch more on that in one of my next posts about packing.  There seems to be so much to do and so little time!  I don't think it has really hit me yet that I will be going so soon...but I am sure it will hit when I am on the plane, when I land in Tanzania, or something of the sort.  Hopefully the person next to me is a really good listener. :)

Well, that's it for now, at least until I report on the hefty task of packing!

Uke

Four days ago, May 3rd, marked the one month prior to my departure to staging.  Much has already happened since that date, let alone since my last post.  For one, I finally received my staging information, which I will follow in another post shortly.  Secondly, I have been doing quite a bit of travelling to Houston and Austin to make my rounds and bid friends good tidings before I leave.  Thirdly, it was Cinco de Mayo a couple of days ago, so ¡Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

To add to the excitement of me leaving in less than a month, I BOUGHT AN UKULELE!!!

I initially wanted to bring my guitar to perfect my playing, but my parents (Dad) convinced me it would be more than I would probably want to carry.  I was insistent on bringing a musical instrument, therefore, I decided to buy myself a lovely, little uke.  Yes, it was with my own money, so that may or may not have been my convincing argument.

One of the sole purposes of buying it now instead of getting a used one in Africa is because I wanted to start learning and playing now.  I absolutely love it and was overjoyed when I walked out of Guitar Center with it.  : D

I am thoroughly excited to play more once I am in Tanzania, though I have learned a couple of songs already.  The first one I learned was also the first song I learned on the guitar.  "Which song?" you ask.  Well, it is a 1950s song called, Why Do I Love You So by Johnny Tillotson.  I have yet to be able to sing and play it at the same time, though I am gradually getting there!  There are a few other songs I have been working on and have had slightly better luck at singing while playing; however, my skills are much too novice to share at the moment.  With the help of a wonderful gift from a co-worker (thanks, Colin!), I will be building on my ukulele song binder and will hopefully come back an expert ukulelist.  For now, I shall have to resort to carrying it around the house and bugging my family with amateur playing.

In case anyone really wants to know which ukulele I bought, it was a Lanikai LU-21 Soprano Ukulele.  And here are pictures!  [Yes, I know the first pictures on this blog are of my ukulele, but now you can imagine how ecstatic I am for having it!]