I look at my old Peace Corps friends' facebook statuses... 3 months to go they say, counting down the days until their return. It seems incomprehensible to me that I could still be there. It seems that so much has happened since my early departure. I don't question my decision for a moment, but still I wonder what I would be doing if I were there, what kind of person I would have become.
Although Morocco seems like ages ago to me, it is still constantly scratching its way to the surface of my brain. I'm not sure if a week goes by where I'm not telling some anecdote about my time there. I feel a bit like an old man that has a part of him stuck in his past, launching into stories that all begin with the same line: "back when I was in Morocco..." And it still does cling to me, the exotic nature of it all, the fantastic adventure, but also the slow days and weeks that bled together into nothingness.
I wonder how all the PC Algeria crew is doing, and I do miss them from time to time. Soco with her fantastic improv guitar, Colin with his mellow nature and the occasional beyonce dance move, Joe with his artistic mastery and joking manner that always made you feel welcome and right at home no matter where you were. I really do hope to see them again someday and catch up on what has happened in the interim.
As for me, I have moved on to the next adventure. My time in Portland is up and I've relocated south for the remainder of the winter and spring. I'm doing invasive species removal on Catalina island as an intern with ACE. I've only been here a week, but I am loving it immensely. The weather is fantastic, the work is relevant to my degree, and I have a crew that can't be beat. I almost enjoy my work days more than my days off.
There is some pretty fantastic wildlife out here... there are a lot of plants and animals that occur nowhere else in the world. Of course, that is pretty common for island ecosystems. The cute macrofauna figurehead over here is the Catalina Island Fox, of which I have seen a few. We have our fair share of introduced species as well, the most noticeable being the Bison that roam the island. One was hanging around our campsite just the other night!
Well, I had best be going for now. To all my Peace Corps buddies... hang in there, you are on your way out, and to the rest of you, I hope you are having excellent adventures of your own.
Although Morocco seems like ages ago to me, it is still constantly scratching its way to the surface of my brain. I'm not sure if a week goes by where I'm not telling some anecdote about my time there. I feel a bit like an old man that has a part of him stuck in his past, launching into stories that all begin with the same line: "back when I was in Morocco..." And it still does cling to me, the exotic nature of it all, the fantastic adventure, but also the slow days and weeks that bled together into nothingness.
I wonder how all the PC Algeria crew is doing, and I do miss them from time to time. Soco with her fantastic improv guitar, Colin with his mellow nature and the occasional beyonce dance move, Joe with his artistic mastery and joking manner that always made you feel welcome and right at home no matter where you were. I really do hope to see them again someday and catch up on what has happened in the interim.
As for me, I have moved on to the next adventure. My time in Portland is up and I've relocated south for the remainder of the winter and spring. I'm doing invasive species removal on Catalina island as an intern with ACE. I've only been here a week, but I am loving it immensely. The weather is fantastic, the work is relevant to my degree, and I have a crew that can't be beat. I almost enjoy my work days more than my days off.
There is some pretty fantastic wildlife out here... there are a lot of plants and animals that occur nowhere else in the world. Of course, that is pretty common for island ecosystems. The cute macrofauna figurehead over here is the Catalina Island Fox, of which I have seen a few. We have our fair share of introduced species as well, the most noticeable being the Bison that roam the island. One was hanging around our campsite just the other night!
Well, I had best be going for now. To all my Peace Corps buddies... hang in there, you are on your way out, and to the rest of you, I hope you are having excellent adventures of your own.
Peace Corps Algeria misses you my friend. Bzzf amounts. Maybe a California reunion this summer is in order.
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