send off partay

Yesterday my parents threw me a barbecue and it was amazing. We had an incredible turnout (over 100 people) and everybody seemed to have a great ti

me. I felt so honored that everyone went out of their way to help me celebrate the occasion. The weather was awesome, the food and drink even better, and saying goodbye/getting last minute pieces of advice from some of my closest friends was the best. Special high points were:

-the cake--marble with raspberry filling yeahhhh

-my godmother showing up in a winter wool coat and a scarf wrapped around her head complaining about how cold the 72 degree day was and how she should have worn her fur

-my reunion with Lauren--bffs since the womb but separated for many many months

-smores

-all my home friends, school friends, and friends that I mooched from Andrew (but am truly fond of and would like to consider my own)

-Magic Hat

-My dad giving a strip of the lawn a buzz cut so that we could play bocce and my mom's reaction to it.

Thank you everyone for your presence and well wishes.

anticipación

As my date of departure fast approaches, I find myself getting cold feet.

I have spent many restless nights fitful with anxiety and apprehension. When I climb into bed, my mind begins to race with anticipation and I am growing quite accustomed to the tangle of bed linens I awake to find myself trapped in each morning.  

Neither my excitement, nor my aspirations have diminished. My yen for adventure, service, and travel remains vibrant. Rather, cognizance of the approaching unknown is toying with my sanity. I am about to bid farewell to a world that is comfortable and friendly. The moment I step off the plane in Lima I will be bombarded by unfamiliars...and I am terrified---I mean excited!  

I feel my ties to home constrict whenever I try to imagine what these next two years will hold. I'm afraid to let go. I am discovering new reserves of patience and fondness for those around me, and while this time ought to be blissful, untroubled, and buoyant, I find myself concurrently burdened with solemnity. Both the organic and the inert stir my emotions as never before. One of my objectives for this trip is to divest myself of materialistic habits, and yet I suddenly look at my car, my books, and my favorite rocking chair with a sense of longing.

I hope Peru will enrich my soul and bestow me with good, lasting friendships. I look forward to the experiences to come and do not wish to demean the excitement I feel by expressing my trepidations. I realize there will be dark days and happy days and I am ready to embrace both with enthusiasm. Bring on the unfamiliar, I say!

Hopefully, Good Bye will be the hardest part.

Haven't arrived yet but already made it to Machu Picchu

Just a quick entry to write about my recent activities. Ok so the title is a bit deceptive. Last Sunday night I met up with my friend Leigh and went to dinner with her Peruvian friend, Cynthia, and Cynthia's boyfriend. We dined at a Peruvian restaurant (called Machu Picchu, thus the title of this blog entry) and Cynthia answered many of my questions. After this experience, I am really looking forward to Peruvian cuisine. As my vegetarianism kept me from venturing beyond seafood, I sort of "chickened out" (pardon my pun) on the meat dishes and ordered rice and beans (tacu-tacu). Cynthia let me try some of her ceviche, which had a strong lime flavor--i love limes-- and we all shared fried yuca. I can't wait to try ceviche again although am a bit leary about eating raw fish just anywhere. The best part of the meal was the pitcher of chicha morada. This is a juice made from boiled purple maize and chunks of pineapple. It was delicious. I learned that Peruvians are very proud of their corn and potatoes. Apparently there are over 2,000 potato variations in Peru. Another fun potato fact is that the cultivated potato is of Peruvian origen---around the Lake Titicaca area.

peru here I come

I began my Peace Corps application in August of 2006 and did not submit it until April 2007. Although Peace Corps is something I've entertained in the back of my mind since high school, the thought of actually following through with the idea terrified me. I dragged my feet filling out the application during my senior year of college, doing a bit here, a bit there, but never doing enough to submit it. In my own defense, senior year can be a troubling time. For many, it is the first time one is faced with making his/her own decisions. My path was laid out nicely for me up until college...even the decision to go to Providence College was not entirely my own (not that I would have changed anything, Dad). All of a sudden there is no clear next step. One can do anything he/she wants and this is scary. What's more, my senior year was chock full of other pressing worries, like making sure I had enough credits to graduate, boy troubles, planning commencement, etc. I did not want to have anything to do with the abyss that was looming as of May 21, 2007.
Well I finally got my act together and submitted my application around April. My interview was then scheduled for May 21, 2007--the day after graduation, the day I moved out of college, and the day the abyss became reality. I found the interview to be disheartening. My recruiter told me that I would not do a whole lot during my first year of service and that I should take that as an opportunity to catch up on my reading. Don't get me wrong, I love to read but the idea of living in poverty for 2 years if it was all in vain did not sound appealing. She also told me nominations for Latin America (the region I had my heart set on) were super competitive, particularly for those who are not already fluent in Spanish. I minored in the language but am in no way fluent. After expressing my apprehensions, she told me to sit on the idea for a while and to get back to her. After two weeks, I sent her an email saying I'm still in and might as well go through with the rest of the process to see where I end up. She responded saying she had nominated me for Latin America to do youth development and to depart in June, 2008. Perfect!
I thought the hard part was over but then came the medical packet...which was sent back to me about 5 times. Because I'm a not-so-responsible vegetarian, I am anemic and the Office of Medical Services would not accept my medical packet until I got my iron up. It's a very fortunate thing that my nomination wasn't until June because that gave me a year to get all that nonsense completed.
So now, almost 2 years after beginning my Peace Corps application, I have finally received an official invitation to serve... And to serve in Peru (which is a dream come true because I have always had a fascination with that country, for some bizarre reason, and now fate seems to be kicking in, the stars are aligning, I have realized my destiny etc etc but that is another story for another day)
I will be leaving June 4, 2008 for a new adventure and I am scared out of my mind --in a good way. Until next time,
Patty

By the way, this entire post was an effort to procrastinate writing my Peace Corps aspiration statement. Pretty lame on my part but I hate self-evaluation assignments.

test run

I'm trying this out for the first time...whohooo i'm officially a blogger.