And i'm back!!

Hello all!
After a wonderful 22 month experience in the Warm Heart of Africa, I'm back in America gearing up for grad school in the nation's capital. There's a lot to fill you in on from my first month back stateside, so sit back and enjoy!

Making my way stateside...
Let's see...where to begin?
If you don't know, well now you will. I ended my contract early with the Peace Corps to pursue my Masters. It was an extremely difficult decision for me just because I love(d) living in Malawi and I enjoyed the work I was doing. It ultimately came down to the fact that I would need a Masters in order to continue working in the field of work I was doing in Malawi, so best to get it out of the way sooner rather than later. I made the decision to leave in March, which gave me plenty of time to prepare for my departure. I figured a month and a half was a good amount of time in between Peace Corps and grad school, yet some days I feel like I should have given myself a bit more time to transition back into American culture.

I was surprised that I didn't cry a lot when leaving Malawi. It all felt surreal until I got on the plane bound for South Africa. When we took off, I shed a few tears because it all became real. But, lucky for me the airplane served wine, so I got a bottle, drank it, and took a nap to take my mind off of what I was leaving. I had a four hour layover in South Africa which was uneventful but it felt weird to be in an airport of that size again. I hadn't been in a large airport since we arrived in South Africa 22 months prior. I wandered about for a bit before sitting by the gate to my next flight. There were tons of World Cup fans(assuming a majority American because my flight was full) and they were interesting quite a few "backwoods" type of people(I guess living in the back woods allows you to save some money to afford a trip to World Cup, still having a hard time understanding the whole financial crisis with that one). One girl got mad because she didn't get a receipt for her duty-free booze and the guards were getting ready to confiscate it. I guess the moral of that story is always get receipts for your duty-free booze.
Anyway...
Once on the plane, I sat in the middle seat between some asian dude and a dad. Neither were all that friendly and for the 19 hours we were on the plane we did not speak to eachother once. I enjoyed watching some movies but mostly t.v shows just because I was in and out of sleep. I would watch the little plane tracker map thingy they have and once I reached America I cried again, knowing that I really was no longer in Malawi. My flight made it to Atlanta at 6:30am and my connecting flight was scheduled for 7:30am and the customs lines were LONG...But I figured I already waited 22 months to see my family, what's another few hours if I miss my flight? I get through the line with 30 minutes to spare and after being scrutinized by security for my absence from America for 22 months(just a safety precaution I guess) I made it through security and to my gate. As soon as I got on my flight I went to sleep for the remainer 70 min flight to Chicago.
Sadly, I arrived in Chicago and no one was there to pick me up!!! How rude! Just playing, I didn't tell anyone when exactly I was coming home because I wanted to surprise my mom. So I grabbed my bags and headed for the train. Ahhhh, the CTA. You never quite feel like you're back in Chicago until you get on the dingy CTA train with disgruntled riders. I get off at what I believe to be the right stop and wait for a bus. Unfortunately, that bus would not take me where I needed to go so I had to get off that bus. But I really didn't know where I needed to go. So, thanks to Peace Corps and their small travel allowance(a whole $32) I was able to catch a cab home. I showed up and surprised my mom! Yay! It was successful.

My first thoughts upon entering Chicago were 1. There's a lot of cars. 2. Where are the goats? 3. What type of pizza should I indulge in? 4. Welcome home Me!

Summer is my favorite season and seeing as it was winter in Malawi I believe coming home in late June was a good idea. I haven't done a good job adjusting to weather under 75 degrees, so coming home during winter may have been a huge problem for me.

Readjustment...
Readjusting to American culture has had its ups and downs. Some days are better than others, some days are more overwhelming than others. My plan was to give myself two weeks to bum around before doing anything related to any type of work. Oh, how quickly that changed. Seeing as I had to move to DC, I really couldn't invest 2 of the 4 weeks I had to lay around being a bum. I had a total of 2 days, and I guess that will have to be good enough for now. It was nice to see my friends and family in person. To see how much my nieces have grown and to see how the city I grew up in has changed. Its interesting, as large as Chicago is I felt like I have outgrown it. I don't know if its because I've been gone so long or if my new global perspective is larger than a city one, all I know is that Chicago will always have a spot in my heart but its not where I need or suppose to be at this point in time. And on a side note, what the hell is up with all these folks shooting eachother there? Damn...get it together. Anyway, I think the most overwhelming thing is personal time and reconnecting with people. I have spent the past two years for the most part living in my own little bubble. I mean from 6pm-6am it was all personal time. At first it was hard to have so much me time but then I realized that I do enjoy being with myself from time to time. Coming back and living with my mom was difficult just because I'm not use to sharing my space with anyone. I'm not use to having someone around a majority of the time. Sometimes I just need to be in my own mind and i'm starting to see that its quite difficult doing that here without neglecting folks. Reconnecting has been interesting. For the most part I have been able to pick up with my friends where we left off, but its hard to not want to talk about Malawi all the time(I'm sure y'all are bored by now) and its even harder to understand some of the problems that seem pretty trivial to me after my experience. I'm not going to go too much into my perspective on immigration, financial crisis, people or the government, just know my thoughts around these topics have been shifted due to my experience in Malawi and for me to hear some of the things going on here after some of the things I saw there, makes it hard for me to relate.
Not a day goes by that something doesn't remind me of Malawi. I miss it dearly and some days I wonder if I made the right decision by coming home early. I know I would have to come home at some point but...life in Malawi was just easier and I miss that. I miss my community, my house, my friends, the lake, the goats, all the adventures on the minibus or other public transport, hitching(yes, I hitchhiked and there have been several moments while waiting for a bus here that I've been tempted to stick my hand out and try it here...except folks are crazy!) , I miss the friendliness of people, the Peace Corps staff, the nsima, the children, my girls, I miss everything...

Making moves...
I landed in DC on Friday August 6th. It was hot, it was weird being on an airplane again. After a 24 hour flight from Malawi to Chicago, I wasn't really looking forward to being on a plane again. But you have to do what you have to do, I guess. I spent my first nights hanging out with friends, including D'Lynn, a volunteer and friend who served with me in Malawi. It was nice being around someone who could relate to what I am going through. I've been making my way around the city and getting adjusted. I'm getting use to the metro and how the city is split up in quadrants. I'm getting use to the fact that you have to pay 5 cents for a bag in stores(I know...i'm still tripping but I guess its all a part of being green. It does remind me of Malawi though..) People here are friendlier than folks in Chicago, there's a lot to keep me busy. Its compact but not too compact where folks are on top of eachother. Its diverse and I love meeting people from all over the world. Besides galavanting around the city, i've been trying to find work. I have my breath held for one position. AGE(Advancing Girls Education) in Africa a non-profit organization that focuses on girls education in Malawi is looking for an executive director. If you know me, then you know this is right up my alley and my dream job. I'm a bit worried that they're concerned with how the position will interfere with my graduate studies, but i'm going part-time and when I have something to get done and i'm passionate about it i'll get it done. I've been thinking about what I could do for this organization to bring it to the next level, If I could get paid for my thoughts then I would be making bank right about now. I'm excited to be in the running for this position just because I want it soo much.If for some reason I don't get the position, well, i'll have a heart attack..naw, just kidding. If I don't get it, I know this wasn't the right time in my life for this position, but will give me something to strive for since I have more of an idea of what is expected for this type of position. Either way i'm going to keep hope alive, but it keep it moving too. I've applied to all types of jobs even for an organic gelato shop, so i'm hoping something comes through soon seeing as my funds are disappearing.

Ok. I believe this is enough for now, feel free to post questions or comments!