The East Coast

Dad and I effectively made it up through North Carolina and Virginia yesterday. The warm springs in Bath County were fabulous. For my first "big step," I decided to go on into the warm springs in my birthday suit. I was in, of course, the women's bath. It was absolutely wonderful. I floated around for an hour and then enjoyed a pressurized water massage. Dad and I spotted some very funny church marquees as well as some very interesting, very deserted towns and buildings. And now I'm in the heart of D.C. What a stark contrast!
We arrived at our hotel last night after dark and settled in to watch our last Sunday night baseball game for a while. The Red Sox lost to the Yanks, however we did get to see that the Mets beat the Phils in extra innings. A nice way to say goodbye to my beloved baseball season. I will, however, likely be able to at least check on how they're doing, and god willing ( :) ) I will still hear about them come November.
I am currently in the lobby of the Crown Plaza near Reagan International Airport waiting to check into my room. Dad left a while ago, and I had already met some fellow Peace Corps Volunteers (PCV's for short) who generously let me keep my baggage in their room while I'm waiting. Then I went to get some coffee (a triple grande Honey Latte from Starbucks, which I will miss the taste of but not the price of course!) and now I'm going to write a list, a work in progress, of the Top Ten things I need to get done before leaving. This will likely change after orientation begins!

10. Receive my new battery and memory chip for computer.
9. Find a computer savvy whiz to install these items. Or at least someone with a small tool kit (damn! the only thing I forgot to get!) so that I can attempt the process.
8. Finish filling out loan forbearance forms.
7. Repack my things which have somehow grown over night. Or something.
6. Finish my first cup of coffee for the day. My nervousness has faded and thus also my state of hyperactive awareness, and the midday slump has officially shown that yes, even when you're excited as ever, you can feel quite tired.
5. Mail my cell phone and charger back to Grandmommy and Grandaddy. I will have my phone for the next two days, so feel free to call me!
4. Make sure I know how to work my keys for luggage locks. Don't lose key for luggage lock. Don't lose key for luggage lock. Damn, that would suck.
3. Iron my clothes. Having never done this before, I realized last night what a pain in the a-- it is!!! How do you guys DO that so often?
2. Try not to burn myself.
1. Stay calm, meet people, have fun. Dad gave some pretty good advice. HAVE FUN.


Also, I'm going to write in my journal. Hopefully at least I'll have SOME cool things to write about that I don't want my whole family knowing about. :) Just kidding...
I miss you already.

Love from the Capital of Obfuscation and Acronym,
Dora