where am i?

Drinking coffee as a bedtime snack? At midnight? Probably not the smartest decision I've ever made. I guess caffeine really does affect me after all. Huh. Perhaps it's for the best though, as I am now updating my blog - something I have neglected for some time. Cool beans.

So here's the deal: I'm back home now. But what is home? Is home where you grew up? Is it where your house is? Is it where your family is? And what is family? Are they blood-related to you? Or could it possibly be a much broader definition? These are only a few of the questions I have been left with after returning from my cross cultural in South Africa. What a brain exercise; I don't know if I'll ever get these things figured out.

Really though, it's good to be back. I have enjoyed seeing my family and am looking forward to seeing even more people I love who I haven't run into yet. For instance, this weekend I'm driving ~8hrs to see my brother Zach and his wife Monica in Pittsburgh. Huzzah! Road trip! I will admit I have really missed driving over the past four months. Crazy, crowded taxis with the bass turned up so loud you can feel it in your chest, buses that stall out on steep hills and roll backwards a little, getting your butt slapped by a person hanging off a train pulling away from the station... ahh, it's nice to be in control of my own transportation again. Dear Buick, I have missed you. Love, Me.

In other news, things have changed while I've been gone. My nieces and nephews grew up a little more, my mom got an android (she also got skinny), my dad likes to eat zucchini, and the weather is roughly 50 degrees colder. That's a lot of change. And I've changed too. I've changed in ways I don't even think I know yet. There are some things I can put my finger on, but others I think I will just have to give it time. South Africa was and will continue to be so much more than just three and a half months of traveling. It was a life experience. A huge, mind-blowing, knock-your-socks-off, life-will-never-be-the-same sort of deal. How am I supposed to process all that? I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Don't you love when someone says that? "We'll just have to wait and see." It's so vague and open-ended. Ha!

So anyway, I want to go back to Africa someday. It was that great. But... I also want to go to Europe. And Asia. And South America. And... ok, everywhere. What am I going to do with myself? My good friend Leah just wrote this to me today: "You are now a world-traveler, and Adventure is like dark chocolate on your tongue---making you thirst for more and more." I love that. It's so true. However, she also claimed that I will soon be eating seaweed soup and barbecued dog testes. Now those... well, let's just say I'm not quite there yet. Chicken feet and cow stomach - been there, done that. I think that's enough adventurous eating for now!

Man, I am on a roll tonight. Thoughts, thoughts, thoughts. Caffeine, caffeine, caffeine. Maybe I should actually drink coffee in the morning. Good idea, Rebekah. Let's try that sometime.

In closing, I would just like to say that I love my friends, I love my job, I am looking forward to school, and I am excited for what is to come. I also love iwastesomuchtime.com. It's true. And I really enjoy bungee jumping. I should do that again someday.

Oh, by the way, this whole blogging thing isn't over. Stay tuned for more (topical) thoughts and reflections about South Africa.

But only if you enjoy it.

If you don't, then never mind.

Ok? Ok. Ciao for now!