these Chacos will never be this clean again.

After much searching and frustration, yesterday I finally found a store who had these in stock. They're leftovers from last year, but I certainly don't mind. I feel much closer to being ready now that I have the proper footwear. All the rest is details, right? ;)

Peace Corps called me at home today to tell me that I won't have to wake up at the crack of dawn on Monday to have my mom drive me to the airport in Philly to fly to staging in Atlanta, because the staging event has been changed to Philadelphia. That's pretty sweet for me - one less flight, one less step between here and Senegal. I also think my mom will be happy to be able to drive me right to the hotel and drop me off in the lobby, rather than leaving me at the security checkpoint at the Philly airport. Security is where we said "au revoir" at JFK when I left for my year in France, but this time is going to be different. Two days between the tears and the takeoff.