A Message from the Depths of Jet Lag

Home again, home again. What could be better than a shady ocean-side cottage after a hot Baltimore summer?

The cockroaches took over the house, but I think I'm back in control again.

The dogs are thrilled to have me home. TC just stared into my eyes for 15 minutes while I petted him last night.

Apparently Yum Yum was in heat this summer and kept the landlord's family awake for three nights. I know what that's like. So now Yum Yum is probably pregnant (AGAIN!) and as disobedient as always. The landlord wants to bring her over the Nahn mwarki on a plate and I told him I'm fine with that.

Wanda disappeared over the summer. That means that we have all boy dogs, except for Yum Yum.

Anyhow, it was a great summer. I got my first manicure/pedicure, went swimming in the Atlantic, baby-sat a 13-month-old for an entire day and saw lots and lots of plays, symphony performances, operas, dance concerts and movies. Now I'm ready to spend another year in this cultural wasteland (Ooo, that sounds harsh!).

During my layover in Hawai'i this week, I went to a performance by Jerry Santos on the lawn of the Aquarium. Watching hula, hearing Hawaiian music and watching the sunset: how perfect can life be?

The high point of the summer was our performance of "Welcome to Micronesia!" at Theatre Project on July 7 & 8. We got former Micronesian expats from Baltimore, Washington DC, New Jersey, Minnesota, California and Guam, plus a lot of friends from Baltimore in the audience. More than 150 people total came to see the show.

It meant so much to me to be able to share my experiences with them all and I was so touched that they all went to the trouble of coming.

I was especially grateful to the actors: Alise, Hope, Janhabi, Jonathan, Relinda, Rohaizad and Timothy for traveling to Baltimore and giving up the week for intensive rehearsals - what a sacrifice.

But it turned out to be a fantastic performance and people were raving to me about it up until the time I left. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Jonathan's wonderful script and Rohaizad's creative directing. Who would have thought that chairs could be used in so many ways? Plus, the clothes lines with towels hanging over the stage and the thousands of cups filled with water surrounding the stage - sheer brilliance!

Stay tuned for one more year of adventure and photos from this little corner of the world!