Lots to catch up on:-)

Ok then with the whole marriage thingy out of my system I have a lot to catch you guys up on. Since there is sooooo much to write on I split up the topics.
Jared's Birthday
Jared (one of my training village mates) had his 25th birthday earlier this month and his host family threw him a party. It was a pretty calm affair with just the rest of Dtown (Dmitrievka)and our lanugage tutor. It was nice to have celebrate his birthday bc we're surrounded by so many new things that when an occasion arises that makes you feel at home again you snatch it. Not to say that people in KG don't have or celebrate birthdays, but it was nice to do something that I did in the states often. During the party we sang songs in russian, danced, ate our fill and Jared's host brother played the accordion. For some reason dancing with the locals here is great fun and really innocent. They all dance in a group with ample space between you and your partner using wavy arm movements and simple steps to the music. Suffice to say it was a really fun night and a nice break from language.
Tech Issues
So my technology has seen better days in KG. My ipod blew out, my computer AC adaptor is shot which means my laptop is also down. Also my clippers gave out when I let a fellow volunteer borrow them and they also died. These unfortunate events have made me a sad panda in the tech department and more importantly it means that I have no music to work out to and 8000 pics still on my camera lol When looking at this from a positive perspective I've been able to write a lot and talk to my host family and fellow volunteers more often. On the flip side, my two outlets that made me feel at home are down and sometimes I just wanna veg out and watch a movie or play solitare for hours.......or cut my hair with good clippers, that dont leave streaks lol
Victory Day
On May 9th KG celebrated Victory day which markes the victory over Nazi germany in WW2. All over the former Soviet Union countries porudly remembered their veterans and observed the sacrifice that people made. The local school children sang songs for us and there was a big parade thoughout our village. Think the 4th of July meets Veterans day. I met some KG vets and they attempted to tell me some old war stories which I only understood tiny fragments due to my limited language skills. Again it was a good day:-)
Relationship Dynamics within the PC
The relationship dynamics that are created by the PC constantly intrige me. I remember my first roommate in philly, the it Issyk-Kul hotel (the first place we stayed in Bishkek), my language group (hehehe gotta rep Dtown), and my new crew in Karakol (again rep'n the Kings of Karakol lol). Its crazy to think that all of the people in these groups have been assigned by the PC and luckily they all have been very fufilling. Although there are plenty of other volunteers that I want to get closer to, I am limited to once a week at hubday, which is usually filled with administrative meetings. Just imagine the friend overload that you get when you see 58 of your newest friends every week! This aspect of the PC is something I think few of you guys back home will understand, but its one of those dynamics that make the PC experience so interesting, I wouldn't trade it for the world.
Failures/Bad days
I was looking at this blog one day and I realized that for the most part its a super happy reflection of what goes on here. Let me get one thing straight, I DO have bad days, typically tho I really don't want to relive them by typing them at my infrequent internet visits. With that said, I remember thinking that the toughest part of the PC would be the physical strain. I never gave a second thought to the emotional or mental aspects. I mean I felt like I had done it all, I graduated in 3 years and I did tons of activities during that period. I thought I was adequately prepared for what was coming. Hahahaha NO WAY!!! Its funny you never realize how stressed you are until after the fact, and over here the rules for dealing with stress are entirely different. Back home I was rarely stressed because I always worked out, slept, or had awesome friends to talk to (OBO 4 LYFE;-). Here, I have none of that. I "work out", can't sleep because of the rigorous PST and language schedule, the whole integration processes, and my friends here are all "tough". The interesting thing is that, everyone over here is going through the same thing but since we all think that no one is supposed to be "weak" everyone puts on a front. We all crack at some point, I know that personally, I cracked a few weeks ago. When it happens you can't blame anyone because it's no ones fault. Its a combination of things. Between always being watched by the local people, the language barrier, regular PST stuff, demands from home(America), and building new relationships. Then all of a sudden you find yourself overwhelmed and unfortunately some volunteers can't make it through, luckily I did. I made it though because I stopped caring about putting up a strong front and talked to my fellow volunteers about it, who in turn shared the same problems. Reading, listening to music, and watching movies also helped a ton. In short I just wanted you guys to know that it does get rough sometimes, and if I'm in a bad mood, or I text you or whatever just wanting to talk, recognize that even when I'm happy theres a lot of stress on me already, so just CHILL OUT, and don't make it worse by adding stress. lol
Well thats all I got for today, next blog is gonna be about site visit, hehehehe get ready:-)

-Peace