and time whirls on

it's saturday afternoon and i'm lounging on my balcony enjoying the sunshine of the beautiful afternoon. i'm sitting on my gorgeous world market patio furniture. writing this on my sweet new work laptop. "stealing" the internet of an unknown stranger who hasn't secured his network.

my, how life has changed. this blog was created to share my experiences of life as a PC volunteer, but in an attempt to do more writing i'm thinking of transitioning it to a blog of all purposes. i don't know if anyone out there is still reading this, but let's give it a whirl!

my last post was way back in february and i was in the midst of a tumultuous job search. i was also still struggling with the transition back to life in america and i'm happy to report good news on both fronts. I accepted a job in Madison, Wisconsin and have been there for two months already. i'm going to save myself the trouble of mentioning the name of my new employer so that i can be free to speak candidly in the future.

For now i'm happy with the job and am looking forward to completing training and getting out there with a real project. keeping my fingers crossed to be assigned a client in a warm, sunny location as i will be traveling back and forth for the next year or so.

Madison is a very nice city. a medium sized college town with lots of restaurant diversity and constant things to do. i live next to the biggest park in town! with the weather growing nicer each day, i'm looking forward to getting out for some real exploration. any visitors are more than welcome!

i still miss the simplicity and routine of life in morocco. in the beginning it seemed boring, but i learned to entertain myself and quickly came to love and be comforted by the daily routine.

get up around 10
eat breakfast, clean, listen to the tv as i got ready for my day
an hour at the internet cafe
visit the home of one of my favorite women, help her finish lunch and eat with the family
teach women's english class
home for an hour to relax and prepare for my youth classes
go to the dar chebab to teach and hang out with my students
make dinner
watch tv
20 minutes of reading and off to sleep

ok, so that was just my wednesday/friday routine, but i think you get the idea. i was so relaxed, so non-stressed. nothing was too pressing, everything could be missed if need be. i didn't need to tell anyone i was coming for lunch, just to show up. it was glorious and now that it's over, i feel badly for not appreciating it more at the time.

i miss couscous on fridays. i miss wearing my glasses everyday because i had no one to impress. i miss sugary mint tea, lemon cookies and gossip with my best friends. i miss looking forward to a night with an american in the big city.

but america certainly has its perks. i no longer feel eyes all over me as i walk down the street. here i get to eat raisin bran crunch every morning and can eat salsa without having spent 30 minutes to make it. i can go out for a beer at any time, with any one. my friends and family are within a much shorter reach. target. i really love target.

my focus right now is on setting new routines for this new working woman life.

each life with it's own pros and cons, but honestly i'm still undecided as to which i prefer. am i meant to live out my days leisurely on the moroccan coast? or to rise to the top of the american workforce and use my frequent flyer miles to travel the world?

either way for today i'm happy to be enjoying the sunshine on my very own balcony in my very own apartment. stay tuned!