Boys On The Docks

This will be the last post I make from the US for a while. Kristy and I are PCT's!!! We signed on the line yesterday. There is such a great feeling of unity here at the training. We are being taken care of well and having fun.

I just got a Skype account so I can chat with video, audio, or just IM if you have Skype let me know so we can chat. I would love to see and hear from you.

Know that we are safe and and our thoughts are with you. I will post again as I am able. Write me in the mean time.

Leaving On A Jet Plane

I know that I mention leaving a lot lately and while it is a major part of what is happening with this part of the journey, I want to focus the rest of this part of my journey on arriving. I have decided that my migration is no longer going to be an emigration but is going to be immigration. Our lives are colored by the way that we look at them more so then what is actually happening; I am not nervous, I am excited it’s the same energy caused by the same thing but it means a world of difference.

Tomorrow: I arrive in Atlanta, I will reunite with my lovely wife, and I get to meet the people that will be braving the Sahara with Kristy and I. It’s going to be fantastic, this is the culmination of years of work for us and it’s almost surreal to think about. I get to live in a country that so few have even heard of, work with peers from all two different continents, learn about new cultures, attempt to do some good, and all of it next to the smartest, strongest, most beautiful person I have ever met. I couldn’t ask for more out of my life.

Leaving Jesusland

I have been trying to leave Ohio and go see the world again for half my life; I have accomplished this feat. I currently have no apartment, no car, and a sparse amount of belongings between my wife and I in our bags and packs. The feeling of having so little is liberating and intimidating at the same time. I think I like it.

Kristy and I lived at Shannon’s for a few weeks and her kindness and patience have been tested to limits. She will never know how much she has done for Kristy and I because words cannot express it.

Kristy is in Colorado and will continue to be until the 17th when the group of RIM Peace Corps Trainees meets up at our hotel. Shannon and I dropped Kristy off at the Akron airport and drove to Philadelphia on the 12th it was a great drive and a good time. I am in Philly visiting my Jeremiah, Kelly, and Pops. We were received warmly; it is good to see them. My brother’s shop is fantastic; when I look at it I see that he is a thriving businessman who lives the dream, instead of merely dreaming the life.

Over the last week I have said goodbye to so many of my friends and loved ones. It has been one of the most humbling experiences of my life to receive so many well wishes from the people whose opinions and affection I hold so dearly, thank you to all the people who have helped us along this crazy ride.

One of the places I had the honor of saying goodbye was at Saric and Erah’s (Eric and Sarah) wedding; it was awesome, truly. I was privy to stand next to my best friend while two people dedicated themselves to their loves before their friends, family, the Earth, and the creator. I am glad knowing that I can leave them in that state of happiness and marital bliss, I wish only the best for them. Leaving my friends and family from that reception hall was hard; tears flowed as freely as the beer and champagne.

I feel that the amount of my blogs will slow down soon so I am trying to take advantage, as I am able. I have a journal and will be transferring some of the entries that I feel are appropriate for the eyes of interweb. I have started a Picasa account and will be adding pictures to it as soon as I can, look for the link to pictures on the sidebar.

So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish

My school year is over, it is a bitter sweet thing. Most everyone is off to bigger and better things, some of my students are doomed to repeat history (class). I had the most amazing bunch of coworkers, seriously the Executive Cluster helped me out phenomenally. I am proud to have been a part of it and I will carry the lessons that I have been taught as a n0ob teacher and now walk away with a fuller pack of skills and I am proud to say that I have the "stop what you're doing and get back on task look".

I was given some parting gifts, trinkets for our journey, help from trusted friends, promises of future contact, and the sweetest book of memories. The cluster banded together and had the students write down: what they learned from Mr Sisco, what they liked about Mr Sisco, and a wish for the future for Mr Sisco. I was deeply touched that many of the lessons I taught included pieces of character in addition to American or World history.

I already miss room 111 and Robinson Middle School.

If any of my former coworkers or students from any of my schools read this; I would love to hear from you and will write back.


I can count my days left in Ohio on my hands.

The Old Apartment

Kristy finished her last 2 weeks at her job last week, I have not seen her happier in a long time. It's unfortunate that she grew to dislike that place so much. I am glad she is happy, that is all that matters.

We had a going away party on Saturday! It was great fun! There were some absent faces, people we very well may never see again, especially because Ohio will only be a place a visit - briefly - from now on. Kristy and I have our eye on Colorado after our service, we shall see. Back to the party, I wanted to take pictures and start my flicker account but alas I found myself with drinks in hand and not a camera. People said some extremely nice things to us, about us. It was a very touching thing to have so many people tell us they will miss us and wish us well. Kristy's biological parents even showed up. One of the best parts of the whole shin dig was there was NO DRAMA.

I have to throw a special shout out to Leslie C. for providing 90% of the amazing Lebanese food, she has no idea how much that meant to Kristy and I especially because of familial obligations she was not even able to attend. Thank you Leslie your kindness to me has always left me in awe. Me dear ol mum deserves some props too. She, provided the beverages without alcohol in abundance. Props to Lisa H. my dear cousin who has grown to be quite an amazing young woman drove my drunk butt to the store and helped me restock - she would not take no for an answer. I know that no man is an island and this weekend reminded me that there are people who love Kristy and I. Thank you to everyone who attended and wished us off.

Kristy and I are moving out, I hope t0 accomplish quite a bit today. We plan to not live here after this Thursday. Our apartment complex is giving us the shaft; minus lube that costs extra. We will be happy to put this part of our life behind us and start our adventure. We will not have interweb of our own until we return (unless the interweb fairy visits me in Mauritania).

I am wrapping up the school year, its hard to care when the kids don't and I have so much on my plate. These last few weeks have been so hard and I am so ready to move on. If I can teach at Robinson I can teach anywhere.

For about a week we will live with my seester Shannon. From there Kristy is heading to Colorado to see Debbie and I am going to Philly to visit Pops and Jeremiah. We will be departing separately to Atlanta and be reunited where we will meet the other volunteers in our group.

Oh! there are some new links on the side including: snail mail (non electronic mail) & care package ideas. Send us stuff, heck you don't even have to wait anymore. If you send it now, Kristy and I will be there before the package. The kids with the most mail are the coolest, and you know you want us to be the coolest people in Mauritania.
You can make this happen.

Surf Wax America

Our apartment has a hollow feeling, we no longer have fuzzy friends here. Its hard, I see them out of the corner of my eye, I expect that they are sleeping on the couch or on the bed, I still look to feed or water them, and I wait for their calls to wake or go to bed. I had hoped that it would not have been this hard, it feels a lot like losing Isis all over again. My only consolation is that they are with good people, I mean truly good people. This family opened their home to our cats for 2+ years agreed to take care of them the way that we do.

Mark and Chelsea THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

I was given a choice to have a different job while in the Peace Corps! I was offered the opportunity to be a Teacher Trainer instead of doing TEFL. My inbox this morning said that my PC Account had been updated, I scoured but couldn't find any job description stuff. I know its a bit premature because I haven't been given the position yet but the opportunity is newsworthy enough to blog about. I could help write syllabi's, lessons, and textbooks for the whole country's English language programs. This is mind boggling! Unfortunately this means that I will not be teaching students unless I have a second job teaching, but I think that this is a fantastic thing and I will let it ride if it happens.

What this would mean for Kristy and I, is that I would need to be in a Regional Capitol. A Regional Capitol is like a State Capitol but I am unsure if Mauritania has states, I think its only Regions. This also increases our chances at having some basic amenities like electricity. It will make our cost of living a bit higher, but leave us with all things that come with living in a larger city as opposed to a small town.

If You Don't, Don't

I haven't written in this since the beginning of the month, so here goes everything. Packing goes slowly, I loathe it, and I am super lazy. All I want to do when I get home is nap. I recently dug through many of my old pictures in my mad dash to condense my life. I found my first passport picture. Here it is. I still have all those cowlicks.

I have 38 school days until the end of the year. w0oT!!! After that I put away World History (western social studies) and Early American History for a couple years. I think that without the soft sciences I will definitely feel a void in my heart. To remedy this I have already decided I am going to look to document local folklore and hopefully organize it to be able to put it in a book. That would be the awesome. I have always wanted to write a book and I think that this is as good a time as any.

The weather in Ohio is amazing! Kristy commented the other day that these days are almost as good as autumn days, our favorite season. I am inclined to agree with her. I shall not miss the blustery cold or the snow. These days however; the cool breezes, the blooming life, the green, the rain, the birds, the bright frosty mornings that tell me its time to engross ones self in learning I will miss with all my heart. I hope that desert mornings are as inspiring and breathtaking in their own way.

I will soon start to compile a list of things I feel I am going to miss to compare it to my feelings when we get to where we are going. I know you are all dying to read about what I think I am going to want after I purposely deprive myself American living for two years. This is some fine whining right here.

Until there is time and purpose for me to write you will have to reread this over and over again you silly stalkers.