Letter to Joy and Mark

Dear Joy and Mark,
Hey guys how's it going? Just received your very nice package of goodies, and I'm writing to say thank you. Thank you! It was really nice to get it. The book I have been reading by your recommendation, little by little. Its nice little pep talks to get me through the day are just what I need. Sometimes I read the short chapter a few times a day to help internalize it a little more. There are days I'll need it. :)

Your letter was nice and gave me a warm fuzzy, so thanks. The photos are great and make me very anxious to get back and join the fun as soon as I can. Sounds from the recent moves that there's a shift in immigration back to Wisconsin. I really like Wisconsin, so i may be part of that trend in the near future. There's a fellowship program that I'm interested in doing that's located in Milwaukee. I have to finish up my whole tenure here to get it, so we'll see how it goes. It sounds like you guys are loving it up there in Wisconsin. Do you get to visit the other ISC alumni very often?

Things here are going as usual. Today I didn't have much planned besides washing my undies and drying some tomatoes. Pretty exciting, I know, but it allows for time to write and read a lot.

Yesterday, I did kill a black scorpion that was hanging out in my bedroom. It's the first one I've found actually inside my house, so now I'm a little paranoid and on the look out for more. The black ones are the worst kind unfortunately. Supposedly not deadly, but they have the strongest venom that hurts like the dickens. Last night, even though I was tired, I didn't sleep too well, dreaming of scorpions in my bed. Good times. I guess I'm a chicken, but I get paranoid about things climbing around in my bed.

Right now Burkina is in the midst of what could be called an Indian summer. After or near the end of the rainy season, it gets really hot for about 3 weeks and finally cools off for November, December, and January. Cools off meaning it starts getting down in the 60s at night and stays in the 70s or 80s during the day. It's pretty funny to see folks wearing, literally, parkas in the morning and evening to keep warm. All the children and infants will be wearing wool hats, mittens, and scarves. It's pretty cute.

I'll be better acclimatized this year, so I'll probably bundle up a little too, but last year I was still wearing shorts at home to keep from sweating all day. Right now it's about 90 degrees and humid in the middle of October, and I'm hanging out in the shade to keep relatively cool. Just another day in Burkina.

That's it for now. Hope this letter finds you both happy and healthy. Take care of each other and hopefully see you soon.

Always, Laura