Just a Thought.

Metamorphosis from Glenn Marshall on Vimeo.

I have been all things unholy. If God can work through me, he can work through anyone.
Francis of Assisi

Four days.

S-Salamu Alaykum, comment ce va?

Well, at least I will be able to say the equivalent of "hello" when I get there. Seriously, I've been reading up on these Arabic lessons and went ahead and looked around at this page to get a better idea of the sounds, but there are 28 letters in Arabic, and almost all of them are written differently depending on whether it is alone or at the beginning, middle, or end of a sentence. And apparently there is a symbol you are supposed to attach to the vowels. That, and even with script, some letters don't attach on the left or right hand side. My only comfort is the fact that according to statistics, 9 out of 10 volunteers make it through the trainee stage, which is bixir, l-Hamdullah.

Though I know it is not as important, I am trying to learn French, as well. I am beginning to memorize words, but every time I read the lesson on any sort of conjugation I begin to cry. Why did I have to take Latin in high school?!? What was I thinking?!? I could have taken French, but no, I had to grow up Catholic and decide to impress everyone at mass and delude myself into thinking I could be a Cardinal or dare I say Pope.

Okay, now that I got that out of my system, time to look at my packing list:

1. equipment
     a. laptop (reason obvious)
     b. laptop fan (so it doesn't overheat)
     c. Nintendo DS (for continued French)
     d. converter and surge protector
     e. alarm clock with Ipod connection
     f. camera

2.shoes
     a. sneakers, one pair
     b. sandals, one pair
     c. flip flops, one pair
     d. dress shoes, one pair

3. pants
     a. nice khakis, three pair
     b. cargo pants, two pair
     c. jeans, two pair
     d. sleep pants, two pair

4. tops
     a. collared dress shirts, five pair
     b. collared polo shirts, three pair
     c. sweaters/sweatshirts, four pair
     d. undershirts, eight pair

5. miscellaneous clothing
     a. hat
     b. scarf
     c. gloves
     d. handkerchief
     e. socks
     f. underwear
     g. thermals
     h. belt
     i. ties

6. miscellaneous
     a. books
     b. yoga deck
     c. blanket
     d. teas
     e. memory cards
     f. memory sticks
     g. photo book
     h. binoculars
     i. journal/pens

and then toiletries, no use in going into detail for those...

I have three bags: my large checked backpack weighs in at 45 lbs and 60 linear inches. The limit is 50 lbs and 62 linear inches. My checked back weighs in at about  25 lbs and 45 linear inches. The remaining allowable weight is 35 lbs and 45 linear inches. And then I have my laptop bag, which my family says is allowable, but I'm calling the airline tomorrow. 16 days and counting.