Spaghetti and Laptops

Happy New Year everyone!!! I hope that everyone had a great holiday season. We here in the EKZ kept things nice and calm while ringing in 2006. After a crazy Christmas, with tons of friends and activities, we decided to keep New Years low key even though it is a huge deal here in Kazakhstan. My sitemates Jay and Heather came over, and while Jay whipped up homemade spaghetti, Heather and I watched movies. It was a great fun to watch him slave away while we did absolutely nothing except occasionally yell out encouragement and sample when he wasn’t looking. At midnight we popped the obligatory champagne, made our resolutions, and toasted in the New Year while watching our neighbors set off fireworks (yep, that’s right you firework lovers, no bans here.)

Another exciting moment in my life occurred last week at the Post Office. I received a Laptop and a Printer in the mail!!!! It is/was super exciting! I did not bring any electronic equipment with me to Kazakhstan thinking I wouldn’t use it. My organization does not have a printer, and our only computer runs on Windows 95, and does not even have a USB port for me to plug in my thumb drive. This has been just the largest blessing, I know can work on a computer at the same time as my director, and even more exciting, all of the programs are in ENGLISH!!! Yeah!! So to the anonymous donor of my laptop and printer, just know you have been the biggest blessing of the New Year!!! Thank you so very much!!!!