Cultural Differences

Sometimes, when I walk around certain parts of Amman, I notice that vast differences between this culture and American culture. Other times, when I walk by Starbucks or Burger King, I realize that people keep trying to mix the two. I think deep down, people want to understand each other, they want to know what the other one is thinking/feeling. Today, I had to send an e-mail to my work colleagues about things that have not been changing and are now starting to really affect my work with the clients. To me, and to Julie, my e-mail was direct and to the point, asking to meet in person but relaying thoughts and ideas that have been mentioned the past two months. To my surprise, offense was taken to the e-mail by more than one party even though one person was never criticized. The project itself was split into issues that have come up but wow, I was taken back by the reaction of the staff. This is a great learning experience for me because I am sure I will deal with issues like this no matter where I work but here, because of the cultural differences, reactions are magnified x 10.

In other news, our symphony concert is tomorrow night! The strings were a little shaky tonight but overall, our sound is very good. The concert is called "A Triple Tale Night" for the three big composers we are performing. I love the Beethoven symphony but man, if we take the second movement any slower, we'll kill the audience :o) Hopefully later in the year, I'll be able to record one of the concerts of part of it to share with you on my blog. I also promise to update pictures soon!! When October 1st rolls around, my internet will be back to normal. Woohoo!

I did have a wonderfully awesome surprise this afternoon and that was receiving 6 letters in the mail!! Some of them were posted from the beginning of September, others from the middle, but I got them all today. It was so nice to read what people were up to, receive pictures, and I just felt so loved. Thank you thank you, I am so lucky and blessed to have such a great support system. I know that I am busy here but I do think about you at home all the time and I miss everyone so much. Just think about how great it will be when I come home in 10 months. Not too long, we can start the countdown ;o) but I do want to take advantage of all my time here too. Alright, off to bed. I"ll let you know how the concert goes tomorrow! xoxo

Mount Nebo and Mar Elias

The last two days have been full of great moments with friends, traveling, and spending some time in quiet. Finally feeling much better yesterday, I managed to wake up on time to walk down to the first circle and take care of some things at the bank. Then, Lisa/Grace/Amy and I jumped in the cab with Ahmad and made our way to Mount Nebo. The drive there is sort of the same as the drive to the Dead Sea, then we started to make our way up the desert hills and man! the view was beautiful. As soon as my internet picks up speed, I will be sure to post some of the pictures I got. The pictures really do not do it justice, you can see to Israel, the Dead Sea, Jericho, very cool. The desert heat was quite hot as well, luckily we brought snacks and water but I was worn out by the time we got home. Finished the evening off with some symphony rehearsal, then a wonderful Italian meal out with the crew from symphony. After overstuffing myself with cheese tortellini covered in a mushroom cream sauce, I then proceeded to eat a scoop of coffee crisp ice cream, FANTASTIC! Both the pasta and the ice cream were around Abdoun circle. Abdoun is like the Beverly Hills of Amman, the very westernized, up to date, nice nice part of down. When you stand at the circle, you can just watch all of the very pricey cars drive by, haha.

I had the complete opposite experience of that today. A group that I got hooked up with from Julie went to Mar Elias, the place where Elijah was fed by ravens, to have a spiritual retreat. In 1999, they started excavating beautiful old church ruins with mosaic floors. The place is also said to be close to where Elijah was born as well. Let me tell you, being there this morning, looking out over the hills was ridiculous, really awe-inspiring. I know that the pictures will not be the same but it was like I was in the clouds, looking out over the vast land. The retreat was based on the passage in Kings where God speaks to Elijah with a gentle whisper, the idea was to take time to be by yourself, in the midst of nature, focusing solely on God and his voice. The morning session was about an hour and a half, then lunch all together talking and mingling, then the afternoon session about an hour and 15 minutes, closing with prayer and sharing. The group was very multi-cultural and all different occupations, quite fun to get to know new people :o) Both sessions were spent completely alone, I picked a beautiful spot on the rocks where I could sit under a tree and look out over the land. The breeze would come up and cool me off, then the sun would warm me when I needed it. It was really comforting to have that space to listen to God's voice. A strong pull that I keep feeling from him is that we will always have our 2 natures inside of us, good and evil, and we cannot follow good intentions alone, we NEED God, the Holy Spirit, living in us to guide us on the right path and the ultimate goal is to love each other with self-less love, show Christ to others. And enough preaching for today, haha.

Lisa, Grace, and I were able to find the season premiere of Grey's Anatomy online tonight so we watched most of it, it cut out when we had watched 72 minutes of video so we'll have to catch the rest tomorrow. Should be fun finding it each week online :o) I need to get some sleep, long day tomorrow. I have symphony rehearsal from 10 am -1 pm, then work in the afternoon until 5, then another rehearsal from 6:30-10:00. Miss everyone so much, torn between two continents right now. talk to you soon, xoxoxo.

oh life

Being sick is never fun, let alone when you are in another country but luckily, I have really good friends that look out for me here. Because my toilet is STILL not fixed and I am having that slight cockroach issue, Lisa let me stay in her apartment (which still feels a bit like home) and she took care of me all day yesterday, not a job I would have wanted. I couldn't even keep water down for about 7 hours but now, it's getting much better and I am eating easy stuff now. Amy brought me a pepsi to try to help settle my stomach, Grace brought crackers for me to try out, John called to check on me, and Julie called twice to make sure I was doing alright. I felt really loved to have all that support.

Besides being sick, the dinner party was a lot of fun the other night (Monday night!). John made a southwestern feast for 10 people and we all enjoyed every bite of it, then sat outside with coffee and peach melba with ice cream, yum!! The Patrick Swayze video of choice was in fact, Dirty Dancing, so all the girls loved it and all the guys handed in their man cards to watch it. ;o) Obviously yesterday was not much of a day because I was so out of it but today shall be better, and hopefully tomorrow, we are going to go visit Mt. Nebo, the place where Moses was shown the promised land!

Today is kind of a free day to get feeling the rest of the way better, do some cleaning, dishes, laundry and then we have symphony rehearsal tonight. In other news news, there is a possibility of me moving, yes moving, once again. When we were over at the dinner party, we found out that the flat above the one we were in was available. It's a 3 bedroom flat and split between us, would be cheaper than what we are paying now. It's cleaner, in a more residential neighborhood, and Lisa and Amy and I would live together. The other cool part of it's location is it's down the street from Curves, the ladies gym, which would possibly save my sanity!! There are a couple cons to the idea as I originally wanted to live alone for this time in Jordan and the neighborhood where we live now is great, lots to walk to and busy place to be. We shall see but I think we are leaning towards the move. I would definitely enjoy myself in a place where I don't have cockroach friends daily.

Alrighty, off to get my cleaning day started. Talk to you soon, miss everyone so much.

vacation days

Ramadan is officially over and it is the week of the feast and celebration, the Eid. Because of that, I do not have sessions until Saturday and I do not have symphony rehearsal until Wednesday evening. Yesterday, I just took the day to relax and start hanging pictures in my apartment so it is starting to look a bit more like home. I'll also ease your minds and tell you that I found cockroach bait traps and put them out today, hopefully that will help get rid of my little visitors. The little ones aren't too bad, just the big ones still scare me!

I'm on my way to a dinner party with some folks from the conservatory and we are going to have a night of remembrance for Patrick Swayze by watching some of his movies. I'll let you know which ones we end up watching. Just a quick update on my day today. Lisa and I decided to really do this vacation thing right and since we couldn't travel, we wanted to pamper ourselves. Right in our neighbor, there is a place to get Turkish baths. This particular place has a great reputation so we made reservations for noon today. Let me tell you, I have never experienced anything quite like it. For about 30 US dollars, I got to sit in a sauna, drink wonderful juice, rinse off, then sit in a jacuzzi with jets for awhile (I'm in a bathing suit the whole time by the way), AND, it's all women in the room! then I was exfoliated with this crazy looking scrub, felt like a car getting washed down. The woman showed me all the dead skin coming off my body, it was pretty gross, but I had nice smooth skin afterwards. Then, I laid down and received a full body massage which was AWESOME! The woman really worked out a lot of the knots in my shoulder and back, lovely. Lisa and I walked home in slow motion, it was such a relaxing experience. I'm thinking I should do that more often, hehe. It was a treat for vacation but I might do it again before I leave Jordan for sure.

I figure I deserve it for dealing with my broken toilet and cockroach situation at home. :o) I can be spoiled for a day. Alright, off to the dinner party. I"ll keep you updated! Talk to you soon, miss you lots. xoxo

Surreal Moments

What I think gets me the most is this strange mix of Western/Eastern culture that I experience and see everyday. Compared to much of the Middle East, Amman is relatively Westernized in parts but today, I felt that I was in the Middle East for sure. Ahmad, our driver, invited both Lisa and I, as well as Julie Soetji and the kids, to his house for Iftar- to break the fast at sundown. He and his family live in Ajloun which is about an hour and fifteen minutes outside of Amman. Ahmad has to drive to and from Amman everyday for work! Unbelievable. Anyway, because we were going that way anyway, we decided to stop and see the Ajloun Castle which has been standing since before the Crusades. It was built to protect the area and most of it is still standing, well worn, but still standing. I'll put some pictures up so you can check it out. Julie's kids both enjoyed the trip a ton, it was so exciting for them to explore a castle! I love watching their faces light up when they are happy and excited. Later in the evening, it was amazing to see how the kids are uncultured and just interact with each other in a totally innocent way, not knowing that American and Jordanians are dining together etc.

After the castle, Ahmad met us so we could follow him to his house (Soetiji rented a car for the day to get us around). Lucky we did follow him because we were winding through beautiful, tree-filled mountains, and would have gotten lost for sure by ourselves. Ahmad took us on a slight detour to show off their natural springs which were surrounding by fig and pomegranate trees!!! They just picked them and handed us some, sooo tasty :o) Once we got back to the house, I was introduced to Ahmad's mother-in-law, sister-in-law and fiance, his 6 children (Age 2 -17), and his wonderful wife. They greeted us with such warmth, it was so comforting. We then sat in the receiving room on low cushions, Julie speaking with Ahmad and family in Arabic, me trying to pick out the words that I knew. Then they cleared out the middle of the floor and set down the meal. When the pray started at sundown, we were able to break the fast with a fabulous meal! Sitting on the floor (cross-legged), we helped ourselves to what seemed like an endless amount of rice, chicken, a stew type mixture with okra, stuffed somethings with rice and meat, lemon Labana (yogurt type dish), fresh cucumber and tomato salad, pita, a special sauce that I have no idea what was in it, and more. Then after the meal, we were invited into the family room to spend time with the kids and were served HUGE plates of fresh fruit including apples, figs, and grapes. I tried to learn the Arabic words for the fruit, we'll see if I remember them! To end the meal, we were served wonderful Turkish coffee. During our time with the family, I could not understand a lot of what was being said but I could definitely understand their faces and actions, such an inviting family, so comfortable to be around. For sure a surreal experience.

Tomorrow, I have my group sessions, always a blast and it is also the LAST DAY of Ramadan! Woohoo. Sunday through Thursday is called the Eid - the big celebration at the end of Ramadan. Most businesses are closed and people just party. Hopefully Lisa and I will be traveling or treating ourselves to something fun through our days off. I get Sunday through Tuesday off because Wednesday I have symphony rehearsal. We have a concert in just 2 weeks!! Hope we will be ready. Anyway, enough blabbing from me, I will update you soon. Miss you a ton.

A Change Does You Good

I always have to remind myself that change is good. For some reason, for more people than not, change is a difficult thing, no matter what aspect of life is changing. My challenge while being here is that everything is constantly changing, I have had no routine as of yet besides my regular client sessions. Otherwise, I am always learning something new, experiencing a new food, seeing a new sight, meeting new people, feeling excited, feeling overwhelmed, always changing. Change is not a bad thing, it usually is a positive, causing growth, in my case I am hoping personally and professionally. I keep relying on faith, knowing that God has put me here for a reason, even if I do not understand that reason yet. One person that I look up to a ton told me tonight to remember, that even if I touch one life while I am here, that is something. It's not about changing the whole world at once, it's about loving people one at a time, personally getting to know them. I need that constant reminder to not get stuck in the politics of work etc. but to remember to love.

In other news, I had yet another symphony rehearsal tonight and it went really well. Again, no yelling at the flutes (because we are so good! :o) ) and we have a concert in 2 weeks at the Dead Sea. Hopefully we'll be ready! All I know is that it feels really good to be playing flute again, although I should be practicing more!

Today, I also had a new experience with laundry. The washing machine in my new apartment is missing the little lint bag holder.....and what I did not take notice of was that because that is missing, a jagged piece of plastic sticks out of the side of the washer. Well.....when I got my clothes out of the washer, there were lovely HOLES in a few items. Not fun at all, kind of annoying, but then I just had to laugh. Laundry is not something I had to think about a lot back in the States, I usually did my laundry on Sundays and that was that. Well, here, I have to do it on Wednesdays because that is water day, when the water runs freely all day. And now, I have to watch out for my crazy washing machine! :o) The best part of laundry here is hanging it out to dry. I love my roof terrace. I'll take pictures for ya'll tomorrow.

Alright, bed time for me. Meetings and sessions tomorrow! Missing you and talk to you soon, xoxo.

Daily Life

Alrighty, nothing too too exciting to report this time, but sometimes that is a good thing. Routine is not always bad, not saying I have a routine yet because that would be crazy! This last week was very busy with symphony, new people I met from symphony, getting together with people at night, dinner at Julie's, working with my clients, paperwork, and attempting to make my apartment look more like home. I am still staring at blank walls but I don't want to go crazy buying things quite yet. It's such a dilemma because I am only here for a year....BUT, it is a year and I want this to feel like home when I come home. I found a great art supplies store downtown so I might walk down there today and see what I could buy to make my own decorations :o) oh the big problems of life, just kidding! I have been so blessed while I am here with people taking care of me. My landlord is so funny, always making sure that everything is ok, telling me not to worry about the cockroach, they just come to say hello once in awhile. Julie and Soetji invited me over for dinner last night so I stopped by after work and hung out with the kids for a bit, so wonderful, then had tea and cookies with Julie, just relaxing and talking. I always feel a bit more "normal" (whatever normal is) when I spend time with her and her family.

Yesterday, I successfully told the taxi driver, in Arabic, how to get to the conservatory. For some reason, no one could understand my accent before this :o) hehe. I also had awesome sessions yesterday, it's so rewarding to see some of my clients making jumps forward. Sometimes in therapy, it seems like nothing changes, nothing changes, and then all of the sudden, a BIG change! I have to remind myself that I have not been working with them for that long yet so time is still available. Being here is really forcing me to slow down and take it all in. In the States we run around, trying to be efficient with every moment of the day that sometimes, I think we miss the good moments, we're too busy for them. Here, I feel like I am beginning to get the hang of slowing down (just a little bit) but it is making me notice the small things, the good moments. I like it! I still don't like how business runs slower but I'll just have to get used to that while I am here.

My first symphony rehearsal was on Saturday and let me tell you, it's quite different getting together with a bunch of talented musicians. We were all sight-reading our music but sounded pretty decent! The director was pretty tough on people for missing notes and dynamics, even though we were sight-reading, I was surprised! The funny thing is, he would kind of yell at or embarrass some of the instrument groups that would miss things but he would never do anything to two flutes. Amy and I must have looked like we would cry if he said anything because he would just look at us and say something like "be careful with that note". :o) Just thought that was kind of funny.

Time to get things done today. Exciting news for next week, Lisa and I are planning on going to Galilee and Nazareth, will be an awe-inspiring experience I think, to be in the places talked about in the gospels. Anyway, I am missing home quite a bit but I know that things are the way they are for a reason. Love you and talk to you soon!

Fun Adventures

Well folks, it's always a story with me. Moved my stuff up one floor from Lisa's apartment to mine yesterday and began to do some cleaning. The problem with living in a desert is that everything gets dusty in about 20 seconds after you clean it. grrr. :o) I have a big double bed in my bedroom so first thing yesterday, I went downtown and bought a comforter and sheets and pillow cases (all hand made and cost about $40 for the set) and then came back and made the bed. I'll be sure to take pictures once I get the rest of the place set up. John and Amy made dinner last night so Grace, Lisa, John, Amy, and I sat around and talked for awhile, then we proceeded to go get some coffee, I had a milkshake (of course!), and then walked to the home store up the street for a few things I needed, like a shower curtain, important. Once back in my apartment, I started feeling very alone. It's funny how our comfort level changes in a place. For the last month, I have been looking forward to having my own place, etc. but in the mean time, I had gotten used to sharing Lisa's place and having her around to talk to and hang out with. Luckily, she's only one floor below but it's still another adjustment that she and I have to make. Well, as it turns out, I was not alone last night. I was trying to figure out the internet connection when a HUGE HUGE HUGE cockroach came out from under the coach. I seriously have never seen one so big. I tried to smoosh it but it ran back under the coach so I called Grace who has bug killer. She came upstairs and we got it into the corner, then sprayed but it didn't die, instead it ran around the corner in MY BEDROOM! We were a fit of girly screams but managed to kill it and put it in a bucket. I cannot tell you exactly what it is but I really dislike big bugs like that. I shouldn't, I'm bigger than them....but I cannot get over it. haha. Hopefully he will be my only visitor. Other than that, the apartment is great....very big! Large sitting room area, good kitchen, and the bathroom is workable -especially for only one person.

In other news, sessions are continuing to go very well, I have my favorite group today. I still need to get my creative brain in gear. It's still distracted by adjusting to a new country, making new friends, trying to be normal :o) but soon, it will be in full gear and things will keep running smoothly. The translator really is helping with talking through some issues, especially with the teenage clients.

I start symphony rehearsals next week so we shall see how it goes! We rehearse twice a week for orchestra and twice a week symphonette (the smaller ensemble) and have one concert a month for orchestra. Trying to keep my schedule straight in my head. Soon, things will become more regular, especially after Ramadan. Only a few more days left in Ramadan and then the big celebration at the end! Hopefully, our trip to Damascus, Syria will take place over the few days we have off at the end of the month. Don't worry, we'll be safe. I'll be seeing places that are talked about in the bible! How cool!!

Alright, time for me to stop writing and get to work. Talk to you soon, missing home a lot lately. Sending good thoughts. xoxo

Moving Into My Own Place!

Hey everyone, just a quickie update but wanted to tell you that I'm moving into my own apartment today! I have some cleaning to do but that will get done. I'm very excited and will tell you more later :o)

Open Hearts and Open Minds

I am continually touched by the warmth and openness of the people I meet here. I am not saying that Amman, Jordan is without crime and hate, but I am so lucky that the people I am able to interact with are wonderful. Last night, after my group sessions (which were crazy by the way), Lisa and I were invited over to one of the family's homes for the "Iftar", when they break the fast in the evening. The meal is called 'breakfast', hmmm, that makes sense! Anyway, so we were dropped off at the house and went downstairs. The family is a single Mom, from Egypt, and her three daughters who are clients of mine. This is where the lines blur a bit, being in Jordan rather than the States. In the U.S, I would never be able to go home with one or three of my clients for a meal like this, but here, that boundary line can be crossed.

We went inside and Mom showed us to the sitting room, telling us that we should feel at home and just relax. We were not allowed to help with any of the preparation of food or clean up for that matter. We just got to sit and talk with the girls, getting to know them on a more personal level and let me tell you, one of the girls is just 15 years old and wants to be a woman from Jordan who makes a difference in the world. Listening to her talk, she sounded like a college student, and more than that, she has gone through many struggles in her life and she still can see the good in people and the worth in life. Finally, at 7:15, we listened to the pray and call to break the fast, then rushed to the table!!! So much food was spread all over the table, fish/rice/potatoes/salad/dates/juice/a new Egyptian veggie dish/and more. The food tasted delicious and I was stuffed by the end of the meal. During eating, no one really talks because everyone was so hungry beforehand. Lots of smiles were passed along throughout the meal though. After dinner, Lisa and I were not allowed to help clean up so get this, we watched NCIS (one of my all time favorite shows) with the family and had Turkish coffee, with some hookah on the side (Lisa loves hookah!, apple flavored). Then, Mom and the girls turned on some great Arabic music and began to show us how they belly dance. In Egypt, the women are known to dance very well, they say it is just in their blood, they were never taught. I cannot move like that! I attempted but it's going to take a lot of work, and muscle, haha. To top the evening off, we sat and chatted a bit more and then, Mom literally opened her home to Lisa and I to stay, spend time night and said we are always welcome in her home, we are family now. How beautiful and comforting that was to hear!

In today's news, I had more individual sessions and they went well. I am always learning new things about how music therapy can be implemented here and what the kids respond and don't respond to. Two music educators observed me today and hopefully, they were able to learn more about what music therapy is and how it works in this population.

I have been craving coffee and chocolate lately, a TON of it, so I haven't been falling asleep on time at night. Hopefully, I will lay off the coffee this week and sleep a bit more :o) but it tastes so good!

Miss you a lot and talk to you soon, xoxo

Yeah!!!

Sorry for the delay in an update this week but it has been a busy one! Still no change on the apartment but according to the landlord, maybe tomorrow or the next day. Today is Friday, the Holy Day, so nothing will happen today I am sure. Don't worry, Lisa is awesome and being very patient so hopefully soon soon, I will have my own place.

In other news, my sessions are continuing to go very well! We have a female translator now who just started a few days ago. Her name is Noora and she is about our age, very cool, and did a very good job yesterday in my sessions. It is an interesting thing because for about 75% of the session, the music really speaks and I don't need a translator but then there are those 25% of other moments where it is SO helpful to have Noora translate the client verbalizations and needs. I am just excited because the kids are still excited to come to music every week and I'm really building good relationships with them. With work, Lisa is trying to figure out if she is staying until May ( I hope she does!) and yesterday, we met all the new teachers that came to teach at the conservatory (percussion, horn, clarinet, violin, cello, theory, etc.) It is so cool because everyone is from all over the place and great personalities. We went out for dinner to get to know each other and it was a blast! I met John who is from Alabama and might be living in the same building as Lisa and I. He just got here 24 hours ago so he looks like I did, a bit overwhelmed but he was able to relax a bit with dinner. It was our first late night, 1 am! for Lisa and I so we are a bit sleepy today, luckily, it's the day off so we can just take care of things around the apartment, groceries, etc.

Ok!! So my big news that I am super excited about is...........I made the Amman Symphony Orchestra!!! I will be playing 2nd flute, 2nd chair, which is fine fine with me, I am just excited to be a part of the group and play with all of these people from all over the world. :o) Apparently, my audition was graded a "B". I'm cool with that, just means I"ll have to work up to an "A" by the end of my time here right? hehe. We rehearse just twice a week until the last week of the month where we have five rehearsals and then a concert on Wednesdays. We'll see how it goes and I'll be sure to keep you updated! I heard we even might travel around to perform, how awesome!

Alright, time for me to be productive. I miss everyone a ton, it's such a strange thing to have these great things happen but everyone that I love and want to tell is FAR away. Luckily, I know that I carry you in my heart everyday. sending good thoughts. xoxo

I Hate Needles

Today, Lisa and I had to go down and get our blood test as part of the screening to get our residency. First, we met at the conservatory because two other new employees needed to get the test as well. Then, we got into a 1982 Toyota van, SCARY!, with a driver from the conservatory and headed off to the one place where we were supposed to get this blood test. After driving up and down hills throughout what seemed the entire city, we pull into a parking lot, get out of the van and the driver asks for all of our passports. The other two people were from Ukraine, the woman I found out is teaching cello at the conservatory. We then followed the driver to a small, falling apart building where lots of other people were waiting for the same thing I suppose. After he paid for us, we went upstairs, through lots of people, and found the room to get our blood taken. Now, coming from the States, this particular room was not what you would call sanitary, the edges of the floor falling apart, dusty,etc. Luckily, the materials for getting the blood (aka -needles) were clean. The woman taking the blood was very nice and seemed to know exactly what she was doing, it was quick and didn't hurt at all. I got a band aid and a cotton ball to stop the bleeding. Of course, Lisa and I were nervous so our arms were more tense then they should been but we were brave :o) felt like I deserved a lollipop afterwards, haha. If the blood test comes out with HIV or anything strange like that, you actually have to leave the country, they will not let you stay. Luckily, I am not worried about that but still, what a law.

Once we arrived back at the conservatory, I turned in my audition CD for the symphony, grabbed Mozart and Beethoven and headed to the practice room. What a great feeling, to just sit down and play some piano....nothing quite like it. The nice thing are the practice rooms with the windows, not the dungeon ones. :o) We'll have to see about the flute audition, I am assuming they will let me know sooner rather than later but you never know.

In other news, Grace and I went to Carrefour last night (the Wal-Mart type place) and took our time looking through the huge grocery selections, who said grocery shopping can't be fun? We made it fun! Then we chilled with some hot chocolate (it is getting pretty cold here at night) and when we looked at the Ramadan hours, found out that the mall is actually opened until midnight during Ramadan! Reminds me of a Christmas type schedule. My big find at the mall was eye-makeup remover, how exciting.

Oh!! And exciting news on the work front, they found a female translator for Lisa and I! We are meeting with her tonight to get to know her and tell her about what we do, how we hope to incorporate translation etc. Woohoo! More updates to come, miss you all so much. xoxo