how did i get here.

where to being.

everything was set. i had put in my two weeks notice at the preschool; i had sold my beloved first car; i had a massive garage sale, basically giving everything i owned that represented "my life" to strangers. all that remained were a couple photo albums, my collection of reading material that i simply could not part with, my CDs... it all fit in a small plastic trunk in a corner of my parents' house in orange county.

i was joining the peace corps and making the committment to live in a "third world country" for the next twenty seven months. my assignment: teacher trainer in belize.
plane ticket reservations made, i received a phone call four days before i would be departing to washington D.C. for the orientation weekend. my group was being deferred, but that was all they could tell us. no explanation, no new departure date. just me standing in my living room, phone in hand, trunk in the corner.

a week later, after spending my jobless days soaking in the beach, playing with the new family puppy, and throwing a few final fiestas with my loved ones, the phone rang again. "you're leaving for D.C. in three days."

...and thus it began.