Is It Hard To Get Into The Peace Corps? Part 2

Last post I spoke about how with the Peace Corps there are some prerequisites thats you need before you even think about applying. This post is to look a little further into the mystery of the application process from a PCV's perceptive.

First things first:
There are 12,000 applicants each year and only about 4,000 invites.

This looks pretty grim right? I mean thats one out of three get in. Not to worry. To be honest, getting from applicant to invite is easier than it seems. Why is this?

Starting with the application. Some people don't even make it through the application. Why? Well there are many reasons for this but I assume that the biggest reason would be that they are not that serious about the Peace Corps. I have a sneaking suspicion that the application is very long for a reason. I think that the application is long because they want to be through and also because they want to weed people out of the process. What will weed people out? A little bit of hard work. It can take days to complete the whole thing. It really makes you think about if you are serious about joining if you have fill out all kinds of paperwork.

So you turned in the application and you went to the interview. Great! Now Peace Corps will look over your application to look for crazy red flags or just to see if you are a general fit. Hopefully the interviewer nominates you either now or sometime in the near future. (I hope to post more details about the interview later. )

According to Peace Corps only 8,000 people make it this far every year.  Again, why such a drop off rate? I think that the biggest reason for not getting nominated for service is not that you answered questions wrong in the interview (though some do bomb the interview) but I assume it's because of the basic prerequisites that you didn't meet. Also, if you are looking for a really specific nomination in lets say South America doing small business development but never have had any business experience or don't speak any Spanish. Why would the interviewer nominate you for it. They are looking for people with real skills and volunteer experience.  Also, I think some people have a the wrong idea of Peace Corps going into the interview and the interviewer straightens it out and the person is no longer interested. I assume that most people at this stage drop out on their own accord. It can be a number of things.

Now you are on to medical clearance. I think this is the most exhausting and most difficult part about the whole nomination process. Why? Well, quite frankly dealing with doctors, dentists, and medical staff of Peace Corps can be difficult. This isn't a terrible thing. They just want to make sure that you are completely healthy so that over the next two years you can have the best experience possible. This is also to cover the Peace Corps in the event you have a condition which they can't facilitate overseas. I think it makes sense but it can be frustrating.

A lot of people drop out during this process. I believe for some it is because it is expensive, especially for those without insurance.  Sure they do re-inverse you but the payback is minimal. If you have any abnormalities in any of the tests that you have then you have to pay out of pocket. I had a minor condition and I had to end up paying a couple thousand on further tests because I didn't have the insurance to cover it but Peace Corps said I needed it checked out. If I didn't do it then that would have been the end of my process. This can take a while to get all these things straightened out. Even though I have heard of people that are really healthy getting medical clearance within a week but that is rare. The paperwork itself can be confusing for the doctors. I have heard that 70 percent of the people do not complete their packet correctly the first time and have to have it sent back to them.

Dental can be expensive if you have to have your wisdom teeth removed or have any type of procedures. For more information about dental check out this detailed document that covers anything you would need to know about it. In short there is a lot to go wrong. Stay persistent and get it right the first time to speed up your invitation.

Now you finished with medical and dental clearance. Next is legal clearance which shouldn't be an issue unless you are trying to hide something. Now hopefully you will be both medically and legally cleared. If you are their is a really good chance that you are going to get an invitation to serve. This is the time where you are starting to check your email every hour to make sure that there isn't anything new and any time a phone rings your heart skips a beat. This is like the final check to make sure you have what it takes and that you are serious about this commitment. Then they should invite you over the phone. Now all you have to do is wait for your invitation packet in the mail.

Congratulations you have made it this far! Only 5,000 invites have been sent out this year and you became of one of them. Even out of these 5,000 only 4,000 choose to become volunteers. Why? Many reasons. I think a lot of people didn't get a country they wanted. Or it could be that their situation has changed over the past year. Or now that it is here they really can't leave there job. Pick a reason. People are complex beings and to put everything on hold for two years is a lot to ask for. So if you accept you invitation then you made it!  Welcome to Peace Corps!

So is it hard to get into the Peace Corps? In my opinion, no. If you meet all of the prerequisites and you are persistent about the application, medical, dental, legal and whatever else they might throw at you I think most normal people can make it in. It's not an exclusive club as some might believe. There has been around 200,000 volunteers since the beginning of Peace Corps. I will never forget what my recruiter said to me, "If you want to serve and you have the qualifications why would we stop you from serving?" Keep that in mind.

I hope this blog will help people who are interested in becoming a volunteer or at least getting some information about the process from an insiders point of view. This is not an exhaustive account so if you have specific questions let me know.  Good luck to everyone!

Is It Hard To Get Into The Peace Corps?

This is a question that I see a lot on message boards or on the Peace Corps Journals website. There is a lot to be said about this so I hope to do this in two parts (hang in there). The straight forward answer to question is yes and no.  Okay, I admit it that isn't that straight forward at all but at least you get an honest answer. 

The Peace Corps is a service in which you volunteer for but you are also trying to get hired on by the government. They don't take just anyone. Because of this there are several prerequisites. If you do not meet these requirements don't bother applying. It wouldn't be worth the effort. Here are a few.

-You must have a four year college/university degree in something. It really doesn't matter what it is in really because they can always fit you somewhere teaching English. I hear it is not always required to have a degree but you would have to have had some real time experience in the field somewhere.  I believe it is three to five years minimum. This is the one I see the most confusion on. I see a lot of people out of high school excited to serve but have not read the fine print. They will most likely won't even look at the application because they want people that can be a true service to the host country nationals. Not just someone with a great heart. 

-You need to be willing to commit to 27 months of service. Peace Corps does not offer shorter terms. Twenty seven months isn't for the faint of heart. It sounds so fantastic to live in a foreign land, to learn a new language, etc. The truth is that in the beginning it does feel fantastic to be doing these things but just like the feel of a new car it wears off. Apply for the right reasons. Think it through. Don't just apply for an escape. Sometimes where you escape to is even more challenging then where you came from. 

-You need to have some past volunteering experience. That was one of the things that was asked of me in my entire process from application to invitation. They wanted to make sure that my experience matched the job that they wanted to give me. This is partly because they want to make sure that you are serious about wanting to serve. I am sure that the thought process is that if you haven't shown that you served somewhere in the past then why would you be a good candidate to volunteer for such a long time. They want to make sure you are relevant when you get to your host country and have real skills to offer. 

-You need to be healthy. Straight to the point: You are an investment. They want people who have little to no health problems. This is because they do not want to have to spend a lot of money on you when you get in country. They are running on a budget (part of the government remember). So why would they accept you over another when you might have or had health issues. Also remember that things like past surgeries are risky and need to have supervision. There are chances that you could be restricted on where you go because of medical. I know I didn't get my original nomination because of health stuff. In the end it's a really great feeling that you that you can be safe away from home. They are looking out for you and themselves. If you have questions of what it means to be "healthy" check the PC website for more detailed information. Also, here is a PDF which speaks about the subject.

So there you have it. A little information to think about and I hope to have a part two in the next couple of days. If you have any questions leave a comment and I will try my best to answer it. 

What Exactly Is A Peace Corps Volunteer?

Disclamer: This is forward and it's my opinion. So in other words this post is probably incorrect and you need to take it with a grain of salt. :)

I read several blogs about PCV's and I have noticed a trend in several of them. I have noticed that everyone has their own preconceived notion of what a Peace Corps volunteer actually is. When some people think of a Peace Corps volunteer they think of a person in the middle of Africa living off of rice and beans in a mud hut wearing back packing clothes able to speak the language fluently, no electricity or running water, listening to the BBC is the extent of entertainment, there is not another volunteer within 50 miles, people around have AIDS and you are there to educate people about simple preventive measures on how not to get the disease, ideas of changing the world, living a simple life, living off of little money, roughing it, having an adventure, and challenging yourself.

When it comes down to it there are only three things that define a PCV:

-Helping the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women.

-Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.

-Helping promote a better understanding of other people on the part of Americans.


These are the things that define us as volunteers. Even here in Morocco as volunteers we all have had some of these preconceived notions of what a PCV might be like. Are we not volunteers if have running water and electricity? Are we not volunteers if we cannot speak the language fluently? No, honestly being a volunteer is what you make it. Are you working for peace and not division? Are you living in a foreign country?  Are you trying to build a community and empower people? Are you working hard to accomplish the three goals? Have you swore in as a PCV? Awesome, then you are a PCV and the rest is personal choice.

I know of PCV's (very few) who have this smug attitude because they live in the middle of nowhere and they don't have electricity or running water and they come to another site that does sometimes conversation can become, "Wow, you're living in the "Posh Corps" or, "This is not Peace Corps". So? What's the point here? Is it that we cannot help others or volunteer our time if we have an oven, a refrigerator or that we can buy cheese here in site? Also, things like if you are not fasting during Ramadan, going to weddings every other weekend, working three weeks of summer camp when you only have to work one, wearing a headscarf in site, not having a computer in site, wana (internet) stick doesn't work in site, don't have enough transport, can't get veggies until souq (market) day, can't drink the water without purifying/ boiling it, etc. become contests of  "I am roughing it more than you" hence I am a better PCV or I am having a better/more genuine experience than you. This does not need to be. Community among PCV's is just as important as community among your host country nationals. We are all trying the best we can.

Peace Corps is not about about having lack of things. Truthfully I live better here then I did in America money wise. I don't have to pay for insurance, my housing, we get money back for things like job related travel, and we get a bit of cash each month to spend. Not to mention that I am married so we get to pool our money together so we can actually save money.  My point is that a volunteer can be exactly what I described above or it can be the exact opposite. Case in point:

So which of these people are PCV's? Obviously both. For those looking to job the Peace Corps know that perceptions of that you think it is going to be is probably going to be the direct opposite of what it turns out to be. It turned out that way for me.

Peace and Love
Matt

Tuesday

Tuesday was a great day! I had my Beginner’s English class at the Women’s Center and I’m at about 12-15 women and girls each day. We went over the months and words like ‘month’, ‘day’, ‘year’ and then I gave them some ways to use these words in a sentence.

After I finished class I met up with the Small Business Volunteer from the nearest town, Joy, and we worked on learning how to use a foot powered sewing machine. I think we got the hang of it by the end. I sewed up one side of a purse that I am working on.


Hopefully the end result will be good. Joy and I got the fabric at a ‘Ponj’ shop, which is like a couch shop. So it is pretty thick material. We are hoping to come up with a good pattern that the women at our Women’s Centers will be able to create and sell on their own. All of the female volunteers in my area are getting together at my house to do some planning for a Women’s Wellness Workshop to train a few women from each center to teach Aerobics and health related issues. I don’t yet have an aerobics class but I am hoping that the director of my center will know a couple of women that would be interested to do a class with me. I’m really looking forward to this meeting and hope it goes well.
After leaving the Women’s Center I went home and made lunch (always a long ordeal). Then Matt and I went to the Dar Chebab (Youth Center). We had a Beginner’s class of 14 today. I’m really excited because when we first started we were just getting like 1 or 2 kids showing up. It’s hard to teach a class with 2 kids in it.
I think that my language is really picking up I feel much more confident speaking Darija and have more fluency. It’s exciting to have a conversation in another language. After 4 months in Morocco I already speak way better than my Spanish after 4 years in high school. Though sometimes people do try to speak to me in Spanish. (Morocco is very close to Spain.)
Well now I need to do some shopping. I’m our of peppers.

Little Update

Here is a slight update of our site.

Language has had it's good days and really bad days. I have found if I am tired that day I cannot speak hardly any Darija (Arabic). My mind just shuts down even if I know the words that are being spoken. Some days I feel like I am doing great and I am going to learn the language quickly. I am starting to finally string a few sentences together so that is encouraging. I have a host sister who is 9 years old and she has been a big help. She is my "usteda' or teacher and is teaching me a lot of stuff and challenging me with my language. She really enjoys it and really likes me too.

When it comes to my tutor, I found one but I do not think it is going to work out. He wants me to learn "fossa" or classical Arabic because the past volunteer wanted to learn that. I am not as advanced has he was starting out and he seems to be frustrated by that. He huffs if I do not say the word exactly right. I just want to communicate with the people and be understood. I will worry about perfection later. I told him all of this but he does not seem to care much. I am not worried about this because I have many contacts for tutors.

Our site is very big. Beggars really hit us hard every time we go out and it can sometimes be abrasive. I few times now beggars have grabbed me and asked for money and just stood in my face with their hand out. Sometimes stuff like that is hard to handle but it is get getting better daily. We now know most of the trouble spots in town and when we go out we try to avoid them. So it is all together not that bad just we are getting used to everything.

Our counterparts here in country are helpful. I honestly have not had much time to do my job yet because we have been running around doing things like Carte de Jour and finding a place to live. On the plus side of this it seems that we have maybe found a place to live. It looks nice and is much bigger than our apartment back in the states. It is in a safe area and we have great connections with a mechanics shop down the road. They all said they would look after us. The place even has a western style toilet. No squatting for us. This is about all I have time for now so I will update more when I have the chance.

Happy Eid Kaber
Matthew

Morocco

Hello Friends and Family,

Just wanted everyone know that we made it to Morocco! Tanie and I are still really sore and jet lagged from the flight and travel. It has been good so far. We are right next to the ocean and it is very nice outside. We have been getting to know our fellow Peace Corps Volunteers and most of them are great!

Over the next few days we have a pretty tight shift and we have lots of training to do. Right now I am sitting in the lobby and I hear a boy speaking arabic and having a great time. I hear the ocean crashing against the shore. I like this feeling of really not knowing what could come next.

I hope to post a few videos soon. So I hope to keep you updated whenever I can.

Matt

Updated Peace Corps Timeline

Updated Peace Corps Timeline

Early July – My wife and I spoke about maybe joining the Peace Corps.

Next Day – Started the application and talked to our recruiter for the first time. Tells us we can have an interview that weekend if we get all the paperwork in time.

July 12th – We both got all our paperwork in and had our interview. He told us that he could not nominate us yet because we were a married couple and he will have to check a few program areas and get back to us.

Sept. 16th – After a long wait we got a nomination in the mail for Youth Development and English Teaching.

Sept. 18th – Received our medical packet. Now the hard part starts.

Jan. 2nd – Dental Clearance – That was pretty easy.

Jan. 26th – Received a letter requesting more information and paperwork I did not seem to include :)

Feb. 13th – Received medical clearance! What a huge relief! I really did not know if we would get past this part. This seems to be where they are the most picky when it comes to invite after all the normal requirements.

Feb. 18th – Received an email from my Placement Officer asking if we can send things like our updated resume and a copy of our final transcript from college.

June 5th - Received our invitation packet and we are officially invited to serve in Morocco. Both of us Teaching English and working in Youth Development.

In this time they asked us to send additional information and update resumes. There is all kinds of questionares they have us fill out so they know our personalities better. This helps the Peace Corps with Training.

Sept. 8th - Staging at Philly.

Sept. 10th - Flying to Morocco!

Packing List

Hello Internet,

It is becoming closer and closer to September. This is really a scary thought but also very exciting. On Tuesday of this week we reserved a moving truck this was the first time that it really hit me hard that we were leaving the states. I had a strange reaction of nostalgia, greed or something else. I like the states most of the time. We have everything we need and want and for that we are blessed. The truth is I am going to miss Fort Wayne. I am ready for a change but to leave our first apartment and hometown it will be hard to leave. There are so many great people we will leave behind. We are also excited to make new ones too.

I have complied a list of just about everything we will be taking to Morocco. This list is only for me (Matt). We can bring up to 80 pounds because of airline restrictions. All of my stuff comes out to be about 60 pounds so I can bring a little more luxury items. That makes it nice :)
Matt


Matt’s Complete Packing List

Luggage
Backpacking Pack (Check)
Duffle bag (Carry on)
Backpack (Carry on)

Clothing
T-shirts (5x)
Polo (1x)
Dress Shirt (1x)
Dress Pants (1x)
Underwear (8x)
Socks (8x)
Dress Socks (1x)
Thick Socks (1x)
White T-shirts (4x)
Jeans (2x)
Shorts
Shoes (Chuck Taylors)
Sandals (Chaco’s)
Dress Shoes
Sweater
Long Sleeved Shirt (1x)
Zip Hoody (1x)
Hiking Pants (1x)
Swimsuit (1x)
Belts (2x)
Rain Jacket
Thermal Shirt
Under armor

Electronics
Laptop (Netbook)
Laptop Charger
Laptop Case
PSP System
PSP Charger
PSP Games
Portable Hard Drive (500 GB)
Hard Drive Case
IPod Classic (120 GB)
IPod Charger
USB Stick (8 GB)
Flip Camera (120 Mins)
Tripod
Digital Camera
Camera Case
Camera Memory Stick (512MB)
USB Cable
Battery Charger
Voltage Converter
Rechargeable Batteries
8x AA
4x AAA
Headphones (2x)
Power Adaptor Plugs (3x)
Headlamp
Maglite
Travel Speakers

Personal Care
Deodorant (3x)
Razors
Face Wash
Toothbrushes (3x)
Toothpaste
Floss (3x)
Camp Towels
Allergy Meds
Motion Sickness Meds (2x)
Glasses (2x)
Contacts (6 boxes)
Contact Solution
Contacts Case
Hair Stuff
Shampoo
Body Wash
Loofa
Razors Mach 3 (x3)
Electric Shaver

Utility
Gerber Multi-tool
Knife Sharpener
Duct Tape
Sunglasses
Headlamp
Box of Pens
Cards
Zip Lock Bags (Gallon)
Tupperware (2x)
Money Belt
Wallet
Sleeping Bag
Travel Pillow
Index Cards
Carabiners (2x)
Travel Locks (2x)
Wallet

Books
NIV Slimline Bible
Moleskin Notebook
Lonely Planet Morocco Guide
Photo Album
Pocket Dictionary
Pocket Thesaurus
Five Star 2 Subject Notebook
Small 2 Year Planner

Packing

Hey everyone! Now that we are down to two weeks left in our apartment we have been packing like crazy! We have boxes spread out all over the place and piles of stuff. It's nice to be getting rid of a lot of stuff that we don't really need. We like to simplify our lives. It's amazing how much junk we have accumulated in our 1.5 years of marriage. It looks like we will be able to sell Matt's car soon too so that is exciting! Check out our youtube account we put up a video about packing awhile ago. :-) Oh and I'm not sure if we mentioned it but Matt cut his hair off!

Learning the Language

Hey everyone!
Matt and I have begun to learn Moroccan Arabic from some language tools that the Peace Corps gave us. I made a little video that shows what I have learned so far.

Looking Forward

Hello people. It has been a while since either of us have updated. So we though we should bring you up to date!

As of late we have started to think about our last days here in the states. We have taken a few boxes down to my hometown. Mostly just books that we don't plan to read any time soon. We also plan to put my car up for sale really soon. We have also been selling random little things around the apartment that we probably wouldn't use in two years time. We also finished up all of the paperwork that came in our invitation packet. We finished it quite awhile ago actually. So we are excited about getting government passports and are now waiting for our staging materials to arrive in about one month. Tomorrow is exactly 2 months until our projected departure date!

We are very excited to be able to start our lives over again and sort of improve upon ourselves. I believe the Peace Corps will help us with understanding ourselves and also the continual process of changing. I know with the way I am that if you look at pictures it seems like I change the way I look about every 6 months or so. Well my looks will soon be changing again. I am going to cut my hair off. I corresponded with a peace corps official in Morocco and he informed me that my long hair would most likely cause a silently negative reaction, so off it goes. I want to live my life in a way that helps me to truly understand the world that we live in rather than living in the same place, doing the sames things for my whole life.

Matt

Peace Corps Duties

Come to find out that teaching basic English is a part of the youth development program but it is not everything that we do. I am not really sure with the in's and out's of it all but I know we will be working in youth centers. We work in organized activities likes sports, arts, gender development, cultural exchange, and camps etc. All that is really vague to say when we get there we will find out when we get there. They have to assess our progress of everything really see how we are catching on to the culture and language to see where we will finally end up in country. After we find out our location then we have to assess the community and see in what ways we can help. Some things, like teaching English, are set in stone already but the other projects we have to start and develop maybe from scratch.

We have no clue in country where we will be but it seems it will probably be is a large town like Casablanca or Rabat. But who knows we could end up with the Berber people who are the farmer, lower classed types in Morocco. Either way we do not really care. We are just looking for a great experience.

It has been like a breath of fresh air since we got our invitation. I have not even updated our blog since because I have just been tired and trying to figure out what we do now. We have so much stuff to do and still have work responsibilities here to worry about. We would really like to have a going away party sometime in August. So we can explain to people what we are doing. We will see though.

We are hoping to do a video blog of sorts. We are going to buy a small portable camera called a Flip. It is very small and you can use it for up to 2 hours of recording at a time. Then you can put it on our computer.

I will write more soon. I have a ton to catch up on.

Matt

Waiting on the Invitation Packet

Hello World,

I just wanted to update you a little. Have not received our invitation packet yet. It has only been two days now but I was under the impression that they overnight it, I guess not. I suspect that we will get it within this week. FedEx is the company that they are shipping through. I have always had bad luck with them. The last thing I got online it took a couple of weeks to get. I hope it does not take that long.

Waiting, the story of my life. Will update my you guys as soon as I hear something.

Matt

Official Invites!

It is official we are now invites to be Peace Corps volunteers woke up with this message saying that we have been invited. We should still be going to Morocco but who knows. We should get the paperwork sometime in the next couple of days yo find out for sure. I suspect that they should call us today for further correspondence. This is very exciting and I cannot believe that we are finally invited! It has been a long road but one that I think should pay off. Now more waiting till Sept: Departure!

I will blog more when I have more information.

Matt

More Waiting...

This is the current email that I have received from my placement officer. This only means more waiting! It has been a week so I suspect it to be another 3 weeks till we hear anything else about placement. This has been a long and frustrating process. It would be nice to have a final word soon. Oh well. Here is the email:

Dear Matt,

Thanks for checking in. As we discussed last week, before inviting any married couple to any program world-wide, we must email the Country Director and Programming Officer in country “X” and provide them with a summary of your respective experiences and background. They’ll review that information, confirm whether they have a community that has requested your skills, and offer the necessary pre-approval to invite you or deny the request for some practical reason.

We sent that request last Friday and just haven’t received a response yet. As soon as I receive a response from them, I’ll let you know. We generally tell applicants that it can take 2-4 weeks to get a response and this particular Post tends to fall in that timeframe.

With Thanks,
________

And The Country Is....

Ready for the latest. It is not definite but we should know by next week when we get an official invite to this country. I know the country though...are you ready...It looks like we are going to Morocco!! That is in North Africa! Africa!! They said that our departure date is September 7th. Oh my goodness... This is exciting yet scary at the same time. Now we are just waiting on the country to see if they want us for sure but they said that it rarely happens that they would not.

Normally people have no clue where they are going but I have figured it out for sure. Our Placement officer said that it would be North Africa. There is only one country that the Peace Corps serves and that is Morocco. And just to make sure I wanted to match up the departure date he told me with the one on the PeaceCorpswiki.org website and it matched up perfect! September 7th! Now we have to wait a little more but it is almost absolute now. It looks like we are going to be Peace Corps Volunteers!

Matt

Placement Clearance

This is super exciting! Just got an update from our Peace Corps Status saying that placement has cleared us officially. There is nothing else to do but just sit back and wait for the phone call tomorrow. I think we have about a 75% chance of getting placed but we will see. Yikes! This is scary! It all comes down to this.

Matt

A Little Closer to Placement....

I talked to the Peace Corps today and he sounded very positive about finding us a place to serve. He is going to get back to us on Friday!!! We just cleared up a couple of questions that they had about our application. Things like what do our parents think and did we know that if we got pregnant that we would have to end our service. Our Placement Officer said we have been cleared with Placement we now it is the next step: Placement!!! We should know where we go, when we go, or if we go on Friday! We will keep everyone informed of the situation if we are to learn anything more.

Matt

Delayed till....?

Just got some news from the Peace Corps Placement Office. I found out that we will not be leaving in July...The place that they were looking at placing us (my guess Cambodia) does not allow the restrictions that both of us have. I am a little down but he said that there might still be something on the table but it wouldn't be till August through October. He said that he would call me before Friday and talk to me about more information! At least I have some news that I can report instead of saying I don't know what's going on. Hopefully I can report a little more on Friday or Saturday. All I can think through this whole process is that if we are not invited, then what?

Nothing and More Nothing!

Nothing! That’s what I have got. No news! I understand that these people are busy but I find it very rude when they say they will get back to you next week and never email you back. This like I said, really in my last post, this is to be expected from a government agency. This isn’t little news either. This next piece of information really could change the outcome of the next several years of our lives. Yes or no either way things need to change but everything is pending on this decision. I think we are both ready for a change. I am just hoping that this wait isn’t because of a medical restriction either of has or they are having a hard time placing us. At this point the Peace Corps being busy or lazy might be the best thing!

Tanie will be walking in her graduation on the 9th of May. This also means that my parents are coming up along with my sister and my brother-in-law! This will be really nice refresher that I will be thinking about this all weekend while I am working the graveyard shift. Also my birthday is on the 8th. All I want is… news from the Peace Corps. Maybe they are holding off on the news to surprise me! Yeah right…. Man I am just crawling with pessimism.

Happy May! The best month of the year!

Matthew