It's getting a little chilly outside. Today I was forced to break out the wool socks and my coat. Luckily the constant rains that accompany winter here haven't started quite yet. It's nice to be able to walk around and not break a sweat everywhere I go, like during Summer, but I think the cold is going to get a little old too. I don't have any heating in my house and my nose already gets cold while I'm on my couch reading. Oh well. I'll just pretend I'm in Alaska or something.

The weekend was good. I went to Elbasan for a volunteer's birthday and we had a good time. From there I had to go up to Tirana for a training on being a warden. We have a emergency plan for Peace Corps and because I live in a city with quick access to Italy by way of ferries, I am going to be one of the consolidation points if we have to evacuate the country for some reason. The training was rather boring, but it was fun being in Tirana with a bunch of the other volunteers. Plus PC gave a per diem and paid for our hotel rooms. That really helped to cut down on the costs. Tirana can be expensive on a PC volunteer budget.

The weekend was a little sad too, as I found out that one of the volunteers in my group has to go home because of medical reasons. She had been sticking it out, but they found out her situation is worse than they thought, so she is going home. It's always sad to lose someone, and now we are down to 22 from 27. Also, my friend who is a volunteer in the Repulic of Georgia had to go back to Washington for medical reasons, and may not be able to recover in time to continue service. To both of you, if you read this I wish you speedy recoveries.

Work is the same. Nothing to say there.

Ok, happy birthday in a couple days to my sister-in-law Staci.