Nômoshkar, hello, how are you? March 14, 2012. Ok, I complain about buses and traffic a lot, but yesterday was worse. Yesterday I was in a bus whose engine was deafeningly, cripplingly loud. It was less like a purring kitten and more like shattering dishware. Like a whole pottery barn, exploding.

Thursday, January 17, 2013. I need food to fuel my body, not pleasure my taste buds. I often repeat to my boyfriend. Monday, January 7, 2013.

While high school seniors were taking their national exams or potentially copying from bootleg answer keys, I was a thousand miles away from any possible scandal, swimming with manta rays. Labuan Bajo houses on the seaside. Some kids paying football by the water. Little boy on a sack - main street of Labuan Bajo.

I retired my awesome Oakley boots today. They will not see American soil. I ordered them my first few weeks in country, and now in my last week, they will be sent to the trash. It has gotten to a point where I have to shoehorn my foot out of them at night. What should take seconds, often takes minutes. I loved them and they served me well. They are way more comfortable than the issued boots.