Welcome!

So, friends and family, I have decided to abandon the high-maintenance webpage for this simpler mode of communication. I'll try to put up something new once a week, or whenever inspiration strikes.

For those of you just tuning in, here's a summary of the past year:

• Arrived in Macedonia September 2003.
• Lived in Kochani (in eastern Macedonia) with great host parents for three months while going through language/cultural/environmental training.
• Moved to Gostivar (in western Macedonia) in late November 2003 to work at a local environmental NGO that applied to receive a volunteer and Peace Corps deemed would be a good match for me.
• Spent 8 months doing nothing, but always with the promise that "something" would happen "as soon as we get the money."
• Went to Budapest for a week with my PCV friend, Beth, to visit her brother and eat Mexican food.
• Spent a couple months preparing for and implementing a week-long environmental summer camp for kids as a joint effort between the handful of environmental PCVs in Macedonia.
• Went on vacation to Greece with the real parents, brother, and soon-to-be sister-in-law.
• Resumed doing nothing for 3 months.
• Decided that if I'm going to be here for another year, I would like to do something in addition to nothing, although I've gotten very good at occupying myself with various hobbies and housekeeping. In order to do something, I need to find a new group of people that also want to do something, preferably something that appeals to my interests, skills, and Peace-Corps mandate of environmental activities, as per my job description.

So now I'm trying to find another organization, such as a school, in Gostivar that is interested in doing some sort of environmental education activity, such as beefing up their current curriculum or starting an environmental club. However, Peace Corps won't let me flounder around without an official tie to an organization, so if I don't find something in Gostivar, there's the potential for me to be moved to another town in Macedonia. Which I don't really want to happen. I think you're all up to speed now.