forty days out...

as you journey through life,
choose your destinations well,
but do not hurry there.
avoid the shortcuts...
wander the back roads...
enjoy the scenery.
and remember
that the true worth of your travels
lies not in the destination
but in who you come to be
along the way.

no ordinary man.

so i just had an awsome time at a speech/book signing with paul rusesabagina, the main charecter in the movie 'hotel rwanda'. if anyone hasnt seen the movie yet you really should. hearing paul speak about his expiriences in the rwandian genocide illustrated what a great portrayl the movie is. and a particular response during the q&a resonated deeply within me. the audience member asked how he was able to stay strong during the turmoil. paul said that he didnt feel as if he did anything extraordinary, rather he did his duty as a human being, to save lives when presented with the chance. this was special to me b/c i feel as if i am about to do my duty to help others when i join the peace corps. while i will not be saving lives as paul did, it is my hope that i will be able to make a few lives better. and afterwards when i had the honor to meet paul and shake his hand i asked for one piece of advice while i am in zambia. he said "be careful". i seem to be hearing that a lot these days and i promise i will.

so i didn't really plan to make any posts until i got over to zambia b/c i didn't think there was much worth writing about here and i haven't even given the address for this blog to anyone yet other than my fellow future pcv's (which is kinda funny b/c i made a post asking for peoples addresses so i can write, but the only people who read it will be in zambia too). then i read on two of their blogs that they have been stalking the rest of us for updates so i figured it would be nice to give them one, and felt obligated since i have enjoyed reading theirs as well (but not stalking...you guys need help). so here it goes...
tommorow is april 5th, exactly one month till my last day of work at pfpc, which i am thrilled about. i'm kinda in my swan song now, doing no more than the required amount to get by, making as many wisecracks as possible and basking in the glow of artifical light while trying to keep my soul intact. not that its a terrible job, but its not the rite place for me at this point in my life. i will never forget it though, as i met great people and tasted success there. it was also in the confines of my cubicle where i had time to truly examine myself and work up the courage to put my pc dream in motion.
cinco de mayo will put me at one month till meeting all of my future fellow pcv's, presumably in philly, before we head off for africa on june 7th. i can't wait for this month without work. after graduating college four years ago i never took any time off and went rite to work. knowing what i know now i would highly recommend college grads take time off before starting work. i'll keep busy by traveling a bit, to rhode island for my cousin kate's college graduation and to indiana to see my sister and brother-in-law and a day trip to dc. also i'll be doing the things that work has been so good at making me too busy for, like volunteering at philabundance, going on really long bike rides and taking meditation courses at the shambhala center in philly to name a few. the month of may will be both a reward for sticking with it at my job for so long and a time to reflect on the past/prepare for the future.
after that comes the big adventure, so stay tuned...