Brrr..

Dang I'm tired. Considering everything that's been packed into the last few days, I guess I have reason to be. Yesterday we went to church and Sunday school and came home for lunch. Then John (my uncle) and Kresha (my cousin) sang in a benefit concert for the Spokane Food Bank. It was a fun little shindig that included a local Celtic group called The Celtic Nots, (good stuff...I almost bought the CD) some opera, (John and Kresha and a friend of theirs named Susan. Kresha sang "Glitter and Be Gay" and she absolutely brought the house down.) gospel, blues/Americana, and the Spokane Children's chorus. We came home around 7:30 and I went for a run while they practiced for their upcoming family concert. Then around 10:00 Kresha, Katie and I went back into town to a little pub called Europa where we met our friend Chris.

Today, Katie and I went back into Spokane and volunteered from 10:00 - 2:00 at Global Folk Art, a really great fair trade global import shop. Afterward we shopped a bit. I finally found a good pair of hiking boots!!!!!!!

I found out two interesting bits on info yesterday. First, Paivi and Marcos and I are going backpacking while I'm in Finland (Yay!!). Second, where Paivi lives in Finland is near the 65th parallel. The North Dakota/Canadian border is at the 49th parallel and we get pretty dang cold. This is gonna be some cold camping. Should be fun!!!

Panic!

Katie and I went swimming in Lake Cour D'Alene today. It was great. I have this feeling that it's September and I'm supposed to be in school...but I'm slacking off and going swimming instead. I love it!
I rechecked my flight itinerary today and I realized that I leave for Finland (to visit my friend Paivi) on Oct. 11. Panic is setting in. There's so much I need to do before then and so little time.
I said I'd teach Sunday School on the Reservation back in North Dakota. I want to make some sort of scrapbook for Sidewalk Sonday School. I said I'd help plan next year's curriculum for Sidewalk Sonday School....and that's just the beginning. There are all sorts of little travel and packing details to sort out before I leave. And I still need to book a flight from Helsinki to Oulu. And then there's Verena who I met at Holden and who I want to visit in Germany, but that means even more travel planning....and I don't even know if I can afford all this or not. But hey....God will provide. It's all gonna be okay.

Civilization

I left Holden Village at 1:45 this afternoon. I put my hand out the bus window and waved and waved and my new friends stood and waved and waved until the bus was out of sight. After a bus trip down the mountain, a ferry ride down Lake Chelan, a LinkTransit bus from Chelan to Wenatchee, and a train from Wenatchee to Spokane, I am now at my aunt and uncle's house where I have internet AND a telephone for the first time in three weeks. If you're ever faced with the choice of travelling with a large backpack or a wheeled suitcase, take the backpack. I took the wheeled suitcase, a small backpack and a guitar, plus I had a loaf of Holden bread tucked under my arm. I wasn't moving very fast. Fortunately I didn't have to walk long distances and people were very kind and offered to help me carry things.

I don't have the time or energy to even begin to describe Holden Village. I will say I did some AWESOME hiking. (Including my time in South Dakota, I've hiked 73 miles this summer. I want to break 100 by October. Shouldn't be too hard.) I met wonderful people from all over the world and I want to go back again soon.