Tico Tuesday, May 25th

Guess what day it is!
Here I am hard at work at my desk. Yep, it's kinda cluttered. That's just kinda how it always ends up getting, no matter how often I clean it off. (Some of the junk is Brenda's though. She took this picture when she came to visit). Anyway, for those of you who wonder where I work, well, this corner is it. Well, the whole room is my office. And it's pretty much what you see. Creamy white with not much on the walls but the big map and some missionary prayer cards. This is where I study, write e-mails, chat via Skype with my coworkers (it's free and the phone is not), make phone calls and do whatever else I do in a day at work. I'm working on decorating my office, but that never really gets to be too high a priority. Maybe someday before my 3 years come to an end. Jijiji.
May God bless all of you in your work, studies, play and whatever else you do this week!
Carrie


Good news! The letter I've been waiting for for weeks was finally written today. Now I just need don Rolando to sign it and get it to the Ministerio de Salud ASAP!!!

I think I was going to comment one other thing. Oh yeah, Mommy and Daddy's 31st wedding anniversary is tomorrow! What a great couple and what a wonderful example they have set! I love them so much!
I'll confess, I've been finding myself feeling a little more homesick lately. I haven't seen Mommy since last June and Daddy since a year ago January! NEVER again do I want to go that long without seeing them! The other day I was frustrated by some things and took to my habit of looking at plane tickets. There was a round-trip flight to Tucson for $456! TALK ABOUT TEMPTATION!!!! I really almost did it. I could leave here on Saturday, come home Tuesday in the wee hours of the morning and spend Father's Day with my DADDY. Father's Day here will be a bit sad, but I know I'll Skype with my parents. And my trip in August is coming really fast. I have one month till the trip to Isla Venado, another month, then a trip to Mexico de Upala and then I fly out the next day! So, I'm going to be a busy bee in the meantime!
I think another thing that might contribute to missing my parents is the fact the the family is so much more the basis of society here. Yes, there are tons of broken families and it's tragic. And yes, it is getting more individualized as the US continues to invade and powerfully influence people here (with people moving here, TV, US owned/run restaurants and companies, call centers, etc). But, pretty much everybody has family nearby. People don't move out of the house they grew up in until they get married. People rarely move from one town or province to another. Parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, all live relatively close to each other. Oh man, the other day I was talking with a kid from youth group and he asked me about my family. He was shocked when I told him they were in the US. He was like "You moved here without your family?!?!?!" He couldn't fathom it. I, on the other hand, can't fathom moving to Costa Rica and bringing my parents along. Most people from the US just don't do that. My parents are welcome here and I sure hope Mommy comes to visit, but I haven't lived with them for some 6 years now. And there's the practical aspect that Daddy would not ever really be able to get out of the house because sidewalks are so scarce and the ones that do exist are lousy and almost NOWHERE is handicap accessible. (Daddy has muscular dystrophy for those of you who don't know).
So, that's the scoop for now. Thanks for reading!