going goin gone

Bed Bath and Beyond has the most crazy amazing selection of travel-sized products there is.

Ziploc bags are the most fabulous, indispensable travel accessory. That and pashminas.

I don't know what else to say except that we're leaving for England in half an hour, then Uganda here I come!

t minus 15 days

I'd really like to be one of those people that can pack light, anytime, anywhere.

So right now, I'm trying to figure out how to take one packback for one month and one week. Advice?

Some updated items for prayer for the team:

-a young mom is coming along, she's wanting baby #2 pretty soon but that plan could be shot if she gets malaria--pray for no malaria!

-one of our fashion people got kicked out of her studio (there was a "no sewing machine" policy...it's sketchy), she was so upset she was contemplating not going--this is SO classic pre-trip crisis--pray for her to have peace of mind to go forward!

-cross-cultural MIScommunication...nothing ever goes the way you plan...we've been thinking the whole time that we'd be leading trainings for small groups of 3-4 locals. But apparently, word got out, and there may be 20-30 people at a time--pray for us to handle the unexpected with grace!

All for now! Thank you for all the support!!

Tasting Menu: Year One

Watching my seven spring-green garbed sisters rising up the stairs of the chapel as Tony played his cello, and Euge and Karlene sang.

Staring out at that sea of faces on June 10th with my new husband (!); faces from Shanghai, San Francisco, Boston, Toronto…and even some that would be with us in New York.

Angsting for two and a half months as intern year wreaked havoc. The ridiculous plans we considered (call Oprah? A boat?), Tim Keller for company, and the amazing support of friends and family.

A phone call from SKC, an envelope in the mail, a long-car ride and all turned to setting up house: unpacking, furniture shopping, budgeting, learning to live with a boy (MAD LAUNDRY, and MAD cooking to feed one MAD appetite), finding new community, new everything…and having almost all of that be fun.

Marveling at the skyline from the Empire State Building, until it all faded against the brilliance of a full moon.

Savoring McDonald’s after seeing a so-so opera at the Met (a la Carrie!).

DH pacing anxiously whenever someone turkeys towards his all-time high score in Wii bowling.

Sucking it up--For me: slapping on a smile at all the awkward doctor events where one can pick out, IN AN INSTANT, all the other glazed-eyed, significant others. For him: eating unreasonably large amounts of sushi and Korean. Yeah, this is clearly not a fair bargain.

Perfecting the art of Randy-Yo-Check-It-Out-DOG-Jackson impersonations, and other American Idol inspired fun (I will not spell ‘dog’ any other way).

Having our first ridiculously clichéd, “The toilet paper must roll THIS way” argument.

And because I have to end this on the proper note:

Reminding the other who they really are, because sometimes, they forget. I'll say it like Seal, "Love can help me know my name."

To many more!

t-20 days: the list

To Do (in no particular order)

1. Get traveler's insurance
2. Finish lesson plans
3. Collect travel-sized toiletry bottles
4. Get $100 bills, 2001 and later
(apparently, anything else is not cool)
5. Get quick dry towels and underwears
6. Get mosquito net and repellent
(If I'm around, NO ONE else will be bitten)
7. Get anti-diarrheal drugs
8. Send off long-promised letter
9. Get stinkin' vaccines and malarial drugs
10.Organize travel-appropriate clothes

How spoiled I was in my youth: I had teams
put together packages of stuff for me.

Then again, thanks people, for all the encouragement and support!

along for the ride

Inspired by one of my fellow travelers to Uganda this summer, I'm going to try and take you along for the ride in all my preparation and planning--and update more frequently leading up to the trip.

And we'll start with culture shock.

The Canadian in America kind of culture shock that I thought I was over after marrying into this land.

But nope, I don't know if I'll EVER get over the way health care is done in this country.

I was supposed to get vaccinations for fun stuff like meningitis, typhoid and rabies today. Being the silly, NAIVE person that I am, I assumed that I could go to my travel clinic appointment, talk over the specific precautions with a doctor, get some shots, get my malaria drugs prescriptions, pay a nominal fee and be outta there.

In the midst of pages of paperwork, I realized that I was not in Toronto anymore. Nothing IS covered, "Because these are preventative measures." (My public health friends will know better than me, but isn't a major reason why health care is costing gajillions of dollars here because of the LACK of foresight to cover preventative care in the past?)

STICKER SHOCK: $100 consultation fee (with a nurse not a doctor) + $125 meningitis shot + $10/pill for malaria and on and on.

Anyway, chalk it up as a learning experience: the system SUCKS. I HAD called my insurance company last week to check that what I needed was covered. They said yes, this accursed clinic says NO. STUPID messed up annoying awful system.

what i'm doing this summer

Uganda in 28 days!

So here's the update:

I'm going with a team of 9 women (where are the men you might ask, we wonder sometimes too), all from NYC. It's a pretty multi-gifted bunch: we've got people from the fashion, finance, public health and education worlds all going to lead workshops in their respective fields. The workshops will be for staff and leaders of small, grassroots organizations who are on the front lines of caring for the millions of orphans in Uganda; the result of parents dying from AIDS, of civil war and poverty.

Some of the reasons for why we are doing this:

Uganda's Street Children

AIDS Orphans

Currently, we're drafting workshops and doing all the culture-shock prep we can. If you are willing, please keep us in your prayers!

window views

Two window views before some major updating action.

The first, from our 21st floor view. Though it may try, the city is no match for magnificent, late spring sunsets



The second, from a trip back to TO last weekend. S and K's amazing 26th floor view.



It was a too-short weekend of the best Cantonese food (dare I say it) in the world, OLD friends, and SWISS CHALET!!!!