Family Tradition

Today is really my first day blogging without my camera, so I apologize for the lack of pictures from today, but hopefully my camera will miraculously be healed by God soon. I took it out of the box of rice today and the lens is still really blurry and I don't think that it is going to dry out any more. I tried to put the memory card in it and it won't snap into the slot. I think it is toast. This is pretty sad for me because I have been everywhere with that great camera and it has recorded some really great memories for me.

We had class today at 10 but I went with Daniel at 9:30 to buy paint for CADEC. Class is always very interesting here because it doesn't really ever feel like class because there is only 3 of us in the room. This is kinda good and bad. It's good because we can all voice our opinions easily and it usually leads to a pretty interesting conversation. It's bad because I can never skip class and not be noticed (just kidding, Daniel).

So the buses here are pretty crazy. I don't know if I would call the drivers extremely talented or just plain stupid, but riding the buses is kinda like an amusement park ride. Riding the bus while standing up is pretty hard, riding the bus while standing up and reading a book is very difficult (I've almost mastered it), riding the bus while keeping paint cans from sliding everywhere is pretty impossible.

At CADEC I went about removing all the wall decorations and cabinets and then smoothing rough patches with a putty knife. I didn't have much to clean the walls with so I just used water and a towel. It was disgusting how dirty everything was. After this I mixed up some ready patch and filled in the many holes. The job was really hot and tiring because I had to keep the door closed and the fan is broken in this room. Also, I was working on top of a stack of chairs as a ladder and scrubbing the walls and ceiling. The combination of sweat and dirty water left me soaked by the end of the day. Everyone thought this was really hard work, but I prefer this any day to working with 40 kids. I think that is one of the hardest jobs I have ever done.

We finally got back from CADEC at 6 and I got some great news via email. I was recently awarded a spot as a WVU Foundation Outstanding Senior and today I got word that they want me to interview for Order of Augusta. I believe that about 30-50 Outstanding Senior awards are given each year and only 8 go on to be Order of Augusta. Order of Augusta is the highest honor bestowed upon a student and there could possibly be a scholarship to med school associated with it. Also, yesterday I received an email from Dr. DiFazio that I have been nominated for Outstanding Senior of the Department of Biology. I don't know if I will get this honor since I'm sure there are many competitive candidates and it doesn't help that I am going to med school.

I was talking to Laurel when I read the good news and then my mom walked in. I told her that I needed a haircut and we immediately went to the barber shop. This was my first time in a barber shop since my mom, me, or Laurel have always cut my hair. I guess I should have been nervous about have a man cut my hair that I couldn't even communicate with, but I used my broken Port and hand signals to get the gist across. I actually think it turned out pretty good but he left the borders very jagged and didn't use a razor on my neck or around my ears. He did however use a razor on my hair. After he went around with scissors, he then took a straight razor and pinched my between it and his thumb and then pulled out on my hair. I have never seen this done but it did a great job and I feel like my head can breath now!

Since I now have fast internet, I bought unlimited calls to landlines through Skype for only 12 bucks a month. Isn't technology amazing? I called Mama and Papa and it was great to hear their voices again. I can tell that they are worrying about me, but I tried to reassure them as much as possible. I then tried to call Grandma (forgot that she is still living at Norm and Marianne's) so I called her house phone. I also tried to call the Beatty's, but I just left a message.

I wanted to go for a run today, but I thought it best to rest until I get completely over my cold/cough/scratchy throat. I really don't understand this sickness, but I am going to beat it NOW. I already had it for about 3 weeks and it really got bad last week. Every time I think I am over it, I wake up with a really scratchy throat and I cough half of the day before I can really breath normally. Crazy climate.