Down with the sickness

**NOTE** Some of this entry will be gross. I apologize now.

The week before Christmas I was diagnosed with bronchitis. Nothing like coughing up green phlegm right before trying to fall asleep. Alas I got better and enjoyed my holidays. Suddenly I get sick again. I thought "wow...again...really?" I woke up feeling horrid on Wednesday. I knew I was coughing a lot and felt beaten up. So I went to the doctor on Thursday, he was out on Wednesday. I let out all my symptons to the nurse and after a bit of time the doc came in. He let me know that I had a resperatory viral infection and wrote a prescription for cough syrup with codeine and told me to keep on taking dayquil and nyquil. Yay. Now I cough up green phlegm and blow my nose to green snot. Mmmm.

So I decided to take the day off today so I could sleep in and try and feel better. Yay.

I mentioned in my last post that I hadn't received an email from one volunteer where I thought I was going. Well I spoke too soon. Its a common theme apparently.

It was a good read and I'm learning more about the culture without being there and also making a good friend in the process.

Oh and a major thank you to both Dave and B. I really appreciate the comments you guys leave, no idea if B is male for female so I use the term "guys" loosely. The last post was kind of an internal struggle that I've been dealing with since I applied.

Its a running theme in this process finding someone to talk about all the PC stuff with. I feel separated from my family about it all. My mom will tell anyone who will listen that I'm going but shows her side of it all. I can list on one hand the family members that "support" it all. By support I really should state "don't care really". My sister is the really only support for it in my family. She's interested in knowing more about why I want to go and where I will go. Mike, my cousin...technically my dad's cousin, thinks its an interesting idea and that I should do what I think is right. And my uncle Gary. Although he hasn't given me great approval he's stood up for me to my mom. That's almost unheard of really. Her brother telling her to show me support. He personally thinks its pointless, and that I'll marry some German woman, but that its my choice.

But I guess thinking about it all makes me realize why people interested in the PC, and PCVs/RPCVs, stick together. Sharing in the excitement of it all with someone else going through it is amazing. We love talking about it, thinking about it, and worrying about it. I was fortunate enough to find a couple of penpals that let me exude my excitement. If anything I think me showing my excitement has grounded them a bit, or so I've been told. Hopefully one day while I'm serving I'll be asked by an applicant about what I'm doing. That way I'll be able to look back at it all and remember why I'm doing it all.

Oh and before I close, the penpal in Azerbaijan let me know that invites were about to go out for AZ5 and to let her know if I get my invite. So here's hoping I'll hear something shortly. Maybe a couple weeks or so. We'll see.