Long time... no post... soon home!

So, a week from tonight I will be dining on Sushi at home with my mom and my sister! I am so very excited to see everyone!
Lets see, whats been going on. Christmas here was great! Got to hang out with the new J9's (most of whom I had not met) and just be with friends! Then for new years me and my friends in the south (we are a small contingent of just three) got together for dinner down in Wadi Mousa and then headed home! Not much of a new year but since I usually am asleep before midnight in the states (not a big holiday for me, i'll admit) it was fun to be with friends. And I also got a call from a friend in London that I have reconnected with recently from high school so that was an extra new years treat!
Then, I had been really anxious about packing to go home. The thing is, is that my villagers equate "size" with "wealth"... not taking into account that jewelry or laptops... things very small... are much more expensive but small. Anyway, I am trying to take home some of the stuff I have accumulated over the past year and a half that are not worth much (except to me)... for example, my landlords son transformed an old chicken cage into a cat carrier when I got my cat vasi. My cat (who at that point was a kitten) has now outgrown it so I'm bringing it home cause it is one of those things that will always remind me of his family. So I have packed two very big bags... and I was afraid I was going to get a lot of grief from my landlord (who always delights in giving me a hard time) about the size of my bags... but I learned today that our school bus driver (who is much more mellow than my landlord) is going to drive me down into wadi mousa on the day I head up to Amman. Which just eased my fears so much. And my teachers are so sweet! One of them wants to ride along with me to see me off at the bus station in Wadi! Next year when I leave, its going to be a mess! My teachers are already saying they want to drive me to the airport and see me off at my flight! They are so sweet!
So, now I am on countdown mode. Today Josh (my village mate) came to my center and made pizza with my students! It was great fun!
ANyway, next post will probably be from home so can't wait to see you all soon!

Ry