Itinerary!

I've just left Evangeline Downs since I had to visit the track at least once more (even if I did lose a/b 40 bucks). Good news, however, free rum and cokes with a slice of lime for me! That's right, gents, I am somewhat giddy writing this blog. But that's also because my staging packet came in the mail today! I'm headed to Philadelphia on June 4th. Looks like I'll be leaving out of Lafayette at exactly 6 am on Continental. Errr. That's the ONLY flight available it looks like. I'll be in Philadelphia around noon to register around 1:30. There's a group of about 40 and we'll be leaving on the 6th and will arrive in Cameroon on the 7th at about 6 pm. Oh wow, that's almost a whole 24 hours of air travel. Gods, help me. You know how I love air travel. I have jet lag worse than anyone usually. Good news is... uhh... well... I'll be flying over the ocean... and then the desert! Yay! I've never done that before. And right before we leave for the international flight, we'll get all kinds of injections and medications. I can take it.

I've just cleaned out my stuff. There were gobs of things to give away and throw away. And when I was done cleaning, I looked around at the empty space and sort of felt the urgency of the moment. The pressing time. It's only a few weeks away. And I felt it completely. It's awesome and scary and great and overwhelming all at once. I have to say, this hodge podge of emotions makes life worth living.

P.S. I love you! (I watched the movie and cried about 7 times. Made me want to go to Ireland too!)

"Hurry boy, it's waiting there for you"

Wow. Thirty days to go. I'm attempting to organize my packing list and finish some of the cleaning I have to do in order to get rid of the stuff I've accumulated over the years. Thirty days really doesn't seem like much but in this time, I'll try my absolute best to spend some time with family and friends. Thirty days to do the things I love. I'm sure I'll visit the racetrack a couple more times, eat Mexican food and Maggie Moo's a handful of times, and enjoy hot showers everyday. And please forgive my blogging skills as I won't pretend I know how to catch the blog reader's eye. (Note: poor attempt at name and background). But I'll try to make it as interesting as possible. It's my way of working toward goal number three. You see, Peace Corps has 3 simple goals:

1. Helping the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women.
2. Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.
3. Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.

It's also my way of creating a support system back home. Every peace corps volunteer I come across has their rough patches. I don't have romantic notions about my service as I'm sure I'll have my own hard times. In the states, it's always my friends and family that help me to chug along when I need it.

If you guys want to email me, send mail to:

brandithib@hotmail.com or bnthib@gmail.com

Letters and packages can be sent to:

Brandi Thibodeaux, Peace Corps Volunteer

Corps de la Paix
B.P. 215
Yaounde, Cameroon

Peace Corps volunteers seem to really enjoy getting burned cd's and dvd's, sauce packets for creating meals, dried foods, candy, and magazines and books. Packages are likely to take at least a month to get to me and sometimes won't get to me at all. Therefore, don't send anything valuable. I've heard somewhere that if you write on the package in red ink and it appears to be a religious package, it might help to discourage theft. Also, number your letters so I can determine if I didn't receive something. Packages should be sent via air. In French, that's "Par avion." Bubble envelopes work better than large boxes. Don't send express mail. It's expensive and probably won't make a difference in time. It's actually probably subject to "more scrutiny by Cameroonian customs than regular mail." I also have to pay a tax when picking up packages so huge packages could result in a hefty tax. I'm sure it won't take long for me to miss the U.S. postal system. "Welcome to the third world, Brandi."