Hangin' in Minnesota

I’ve been home for almost a week now and have without question confirmed what I already suspected: ten days goes by very quickly.

I spent the first few days running errands and getting ready for Chelsea’s open house. Between REI, the mall, and Target, I made a serious dent in my wallet. However, as someone pointed out, I don’t have to go to any of those stores again for two years. Salespeople at Target and REI were very interested in my trip. The cashier at REI told me all about his trips to Kenya and the Middle East; he was glad to see that I had purchased some “magic underwear”. The cashier at Target was shocked by all of my toiletry purchases- including plenty of sunscreen and Purell.

Sunday night Lindsey stopped by. She was in town for a wedding, and we talked her into staying for dinner after Nick and Emily got home. We all went up to Minneapolis and met Josh at the Loring Pasta Bar, a high quality restaurant near his apartment in Dinkytown. After dinner Chelsea and I made our third consecutive trip, this time with Nick and Emily, to the makeshift amusement park in Cub Foods’ parking lot. Surprisingly excellent rides. We also saw Pirates 3; it was long and had a convoluted plot. Disappointing, but as Emily said, we’d all go see Pirates 4 if they made it.

Chelsea’s open house went off without any major hitches. I don’t know any of her friends except Natalie and my adopted sister Mari. I do, however, know many of her friend’s parents, so it was nice to talk to them- especially those who have older kids that I know. I also got to see a couple of teachers from my high school days and some good family friends.

Yesterday Dad, Josh, and I drove down to Racine to see Grandma, Grandpa, and Jill. Dad’s GPS got us there right on time, and we all had a nice dinner at Perkins. I got apple pie for dessert because “You know Zachary, they don’t have pie in Burkina Faso.” Thanks Grandma. After a quick breakfast this morning, we’re now on our way home. Like everything else this week, it was a short visit, but I’m glad we came. Grandma is doing very well- walking, talking up a storm, and even going up and down stairs. We’re going to stop in Madison to see some relatives and friends and will probably make it home tonight around midnight.

Goodbye, San Francisco!

Here we go! The physical part of my journey to Africa begins now. It still hasn’t hit me though.

I’ve spent the past three days selling my bedroom furniture, donating all but two bags of clothing, and cleaning the apartment. Daytime was a flurry of activity with people coming over to buy crap and me rushing out to the garbage bins every half hour or so. Monday was garbage day , but I managed to completely fill all three garbage bins alone yesterday, including one recycling bin. It’s amazing how much crap can accumulate when you don’t downsize for six years. It was very refreshing to throw/donate it all (eight garbage bags, four blankets, and one large Tupper Ware to Goodwill).

Evenings and nights were fairly typical. Monday Alec brought strawberry shortcake over. Amy, Alec, Selina and I made a Goodwill trip, had Papa Lote, and ate Nancy’s shortcake. Mexican food and sweets: probably won’t have a lot of either in Burkina. Tuesday was a fantastic ultimate Frisbee win; down 9-4, we managed to come back and win by one on the last point. We had a great time celebrating at the Shamrock after the game. I hung out with the Dead Bananas (my SFUL team) and Kill my Landlord (the team I played with a bit this spring). I feel like I’m just beginning to make friends in the City- people I know and have hung out with more than a couple of times- and it’s tough to leave them.

And tonight was my farewell dinner. Except for a bit at the end, it seemed like a regular night with the gang. Just about everyone was there. It makes me so happy to think of how much my friendships have grown in the past six years. I had no friends in the state when I first fame here, and now I feel like I’m leaving my second family in the Bay Area. But just like my real family, I know they’ll be here when I get back. As a going away present, they gave me a beautiful photo album, complete with notes and input from each friend. I love it. So many memories; I will definitely take it to Burkina and use it to show people what life is like in America…though they may get a skewed perspective with people dressed up in costumes in about half of my pictures.

After a slight mix-up with the airlines, I’m now on a plane headed home. With all the activity of the past week, I had neglected to check my plane reservations…at all. I knew I had a late night flight and assumed it was on Northwest. Luckily Dad was able to point me to Sun Country and give me my confirmation number over the phone. Lesson One: double-check all flights.

Exit row. Too bad Alec and John aren’t here.

Time for some shut-eye.