Today I am....

• Wearing underwear with bad elastics, because all the good stuff is packed.
  
• About to start my course of anti-malarials.
  
• Getting that fluttery butterfly feeling that comes from embarking on a big trip.
  
• Getting seriously excited about the "work" portion of the trip, which looks like it will not only involve school visits, but a journey to meet flood victims and learn how CARE's emergency preparedness training helped several villages mitigate disaster.
  
• Resigned to the fact that if I get gored by a rhino, anyone who comes to muck out my house will take one look at my floor think I didn't own a vacuum cleaner.
  
• Missing my cat, even though it's only been one day.
  
• Excited about being back on the dark continent.
  
• Eating what's leftover in my fridge. Today's morning snack: smoked oysters.
• Giddy for two weeks without deadline.
• Getting ready to leave tomorrow.