I’m sitting on the floor at lovely Frieda’s house, with whom I’m staying til departure. I am surrounded by neat piles of clothes, her scale and miscellany, wearing my red fleece bathrobe and a vintage rabbit fur hat that is one part Elmer Fudd and one part Russian. Ah, packing. I’m exhausted, probably self-inflicted for being so damn emotive. The scale is to weigh the disparate bags that I’m packing. Am down to 8 lbs. of summer clothes! Am planning to wear many layers of clothing on the plane to offset luggage weight. Am so ready to leave, tired of saying goodbye’s and explaining what/where/when. Am whining. Am writing like Bridget Jones wanna-be. Am, or perhaps have, lost mind.

The remainder of the trip down the eastern seaboard went well. After NYC, I went to DC, to visit Nanny and got the bonus of time with my cousin, Kelly and her charming husband, Jae. They were asking about winters in CO, wondering if they’d enjoy moving here, but are worried about the weather. The weather here?! It was sleeting and freezing in DC, which one knows will be followed by a steamy and dank summer. I’m not sure who’s doing the PR for CO weather, but they need a new marketing campaign. Actually, with the number of people moving here, I guess we need to keep up the subterfuge regarding the weather.

In DC, I visited with Nanny in her nursing home, the aptly named, “Sleepy Hollow.” It is a surprising name, as it seems to me that many such facilities prefer more euphemistic names, such as “Golden Sunsets.” It was a good visit, she knew who I was and was happy to see me. I’m not sure if I’ll see her again alive and that is difficult.

Then, I took Amtrak to NC, where Mom picked me up at the lovely Cary train depot. I must admit to a bad attitude about the ‘burbs. We traveled farther south to SC, to visit WONDERFUL, INSPIRATIONAL, FANTABULOSO Great Aunt Eva. She is so much a hero to me. Her attitude, spirit and sense of humor, at any age but particularly at 85, give me such joy and hope about growing old. Before we arrived at Aunt Eva’s house in Great Falls, SC, we visited to other great aunts, Theo and Sadie, both residing at Bethea Baptist Home, a wonderful facility for white Southern Baptists.

Aunt Theo is 97 and she told us this visit that she’s tired and ready to go to heaven. Aunt Theo never married and lived a very full life, first working all over the southeast as a nurse, and then in retirement, traveling with her church and with friends. We always spend a lot of time during our visits looking at her carefully put together photo albums and hearing her stories. Sadie is the 92 year old matriarch of a large family and an avid seamstress. While it was difficult to hear Aunt Theo talk about being ready to go to heaven, it also is good to hear someone be clear about dying and even really for someone to talk about it at all.

A Southern tradition that I just recently learned is that of buying and erecting one’s tombstone before one passes. The name and birth date are carved in, awaiting the final date. The first time I saw Aunt Theo’s it creeped me out, but now I see the practicality and control that it gives a person. Aunt Eva, who takes care of Aunt Theo since she doesn’t have any children to do so and because Eva is the baby girl of that generation, told Mom and me that Theo has already picked out her burial outfit and what she wants in the coffin with her.

After SC, we returned North. We had a party with many of my parent’s friends who have known me since I was a lil’ girl. That was a lot of fun and everyone was super interested and supportive. Ken, our old next door neighbor, had the funniest comment: “Wendy, (say with good sized drawl) do people ask you all the time what the fuck you think you’re doing?” referring to going to work in some God-forsaken part of the world where they probably hate Americans.

It may be cheezy, but I think I will draw substantial amount of comfort and imagined support thinking back on these travels when I am far far away from home.

love,
wlu

Hello after a brief hiatus! I am in NYC visiting family at present and grateful to have finished the majority of dealing with storage and moving out of the charming house on Spruce back into friend Frieda's palatial condo. Regina, roomate of said charming house, gave me a very sweet card in parting. Hawk is now soujourning with Sarah as I make my way down the east coast. Yesterday, I drove ALL BY MYSELF through the city to La Guardia. All these years I've been coming to the city and I've always avoided driving like a mushroom pizza, but there was a need for a driver and I decided that I should risk it. Fran, ex-wife of my Dad's and still family, gave me excellent directions and it was a hassle-free adventure, cutting off taxis and singing along w/ Norah Jones.

After returning to the city w/ Fran and Karen, I walked east to meet Dad for lunch. Afterwards, he took me up to the condo in Trump Tower that he's renovating. It belongs to a commercially successful author, Robin Cook, and is a tad nouveau riche for my taste. Then I kept walking about mid-town, first east to the Ukrainian Consulate, which was closed, then back west to meet Sam and walk in the park. We stopped for a moment at the boat pond and there were 2 Asian wedding parties having their photos and videos done. The brides were very elaborate white gowns and the bridemaids wore pastel dresses and all had their hair twisted, sprayed and decorated high.

Today, back to the Consulate for dog shipping info, downtown to work at Dad's place, then meet a couple, Tom and Tina, for dinner. They are in the same group to Ukraine and I think we'll go to dinner somewhere in the East Village, perhaps a Ukrainian place they know. I need to look for calling cards there.

It is good to be in the city and it is good to see family. I love just walking around, observing odd New York moments, typical New York moments, sad New York moments. Examples in order: 1. guy boarding bus w/ traveling cart full of board games such as "Green Eggs and Ham, the board game." 2. Woman, dressed to the nines in big shades, big hair, fur coat and Monolo Blahniks talking loudly on cell phone while strolling down 5th Ave. 3. The street guy w/ a kempt beard, nice feng shui on his decorated cart. The organized street people really make me sad.

love,
wlu

Last night I dreamt a long time about Ukraine. The people were rather more Northern Scandanavian and all spoke very good English. Their sense of personal space was much closer than mine and I was uncomfortable with their proximity and shoving about. I was at a church of some kind, after riding on a bus with a Chinese family that spoke no English, and it was a holiday. A handsome, red-haired lad tried to get friendly with me. He told me my hair looked like a copper scrubby thing and meant it as a compliment. Hawk was tied up outside, so I didn't stay long in the church, but long enough to listen to the service. While I'd been on the bus, the vista had been one more suited to Nepal than Ukraine, with soaring mountains and brown-skinned people wearing hand-woven garb. (the Nepal bit maybe came from an NPR segment yesterday about a new internet cafe at Mt. Everest base camp). There was a man on the bus of the previous description and he was trying to figure out what language I spoke and where I came from. He asked me in French, Spanish, German then English if I spoke each of those languages.

It's getting very close, soon all of this life in Boulder will seem a distant and surreal dream.

Off for Hawk and my daily sanity-preserving run.

love,
wlu

Today, I met Peace Corps Ukraine Business Dev. Project Group 24's Rizwan Merchant and Scott Lasher (who I already met last wk) to hike to Mallory Caves west of NCAR. Meeting people in my group has been so helpful, particularly because the two I've met so far have been such compadres! Creating a sense of community this early really helps me with any lingering fears I have about being REALLY alone, instead of just being alone. :-D We discussed some of the threads on our discussion board on Yahoo! (PeaceCorpsUkraine) and where we'd all been in our lives when we decided to join the PC, relationships, etc. Good news: Rizwan can cook northern Indian, hurrah!

Am still in the process of selling my car. Today, a lovely and well-meaning lady who test drove it, asked if she could "rent" the car for 2 weeks, then decide about buying it. I had to decline her offer. I'm hopeful that a college student that drove it today may buy, otherwise, Super-Rupair will on Fri. Then I'm moving out of this lovely home on Spruce St. and going back east to see my Dad & Samala (NYC), Nanny (DC), Mom (NC), Great Aunt Eva (SC), etc.! It will be the Gran Tour'd'East Coast and I hope to remain calm thru out.

Non-sequitor alert: Yesterday while running past some Boulder HS students taking a morning gym class, I saw how some were thin and athletic and others were lagging at the end of the line running. I wanted to shout out something to them from my older vantage point. "Get used to exercise - you need it!" or "Don't despair, the thin and athletic ones aren't perfect!" Anyway, I didn't because I realized suddenly that I had no wisdom to share, that I have fewer answers than ever. I'm comfortable with that.

love,
wlu

Today was a day of logistics and a bit demoralizing. I've been trying to be up front with people interested in buying my car and they seem to use this as a bargaining tool. In any case, I know it will all work out in the next couple of weeks and will seem no big deal in retrospect. It just makes me tired. I'm so looking forward to being done with all the errands and such and living out of my backpack. I say now. :-) Off to read and sleep early, the best cure for exhaustion.

xo,
wlu

This morning was a classic example of everything I love about living in Boulder. I got up early to run in Mapleton Hill w/ Hawk, then met Amy Wicker, Fried and a couple other ladies for a Hike n' Brunch for Amy and Baby Wicker. We hiked an easy loop at Chataqua and it is beautiful, warm, sunshine for days, perfect Boulder Sunday. I think knowing that I am leaving makes me appreciate the mountains, endless sunshine and comfort of Boulder. I'm still so excited for this change, even as I sort of mourn leaving this amazing place. I think I'd be bored if I stayed - too much sun, too many smiling, 3% body fat, fit people, no diversity. But I will miss hiking and trail running with friends, feeling small under the flatirons, eating great burritos, the farmer's market, a myriad of things. This has turned into an Ode To Boulder. :-D

love,
wlu

Welcome to my Peace Corps::Ukraine blog! As I begin this journal, our group (Group 24) has 36 days to departure. On 2 Mar. 2003, we will go to Chicago for a 2 day pre-training ("staging" in Peace Corps parlance), then fly to Kyiv, Ukraine on 4 Mar. Last night I had my first going away party, a "Take What You Can Carry" shindig, where I invited people to take whatever stuff that I was getting rid of. My friends helped me out by taking nearly 1/2 the bags of clothing, shoes, books and miscellany as well as drinking a good bit of sangria. Made my job today much easier hauling away the remainder...

Last Thurs., I met Scott Lasher, who is a trial attorney in Denver, lungs-of-iron-mountain-man and also going to Ukraine with Group 24 in March! We had a great time hiking Mt. Sanitas here in Boulder and comparing pre-trip notes. It was so comforting to meet someone from my group and triply so because he is rather a kindred spirit. I can't hardly wrap my mind around what my life will be like in a few months, but I guess that I don't really need to.

That's it for today's report. Please check out the FAQ and maps that I posted at http://www.wendylu.com/pcUkraine/info.

I wonder if Hawk, my dog who is peacefully and a little odiforously lying beside me, is aware of our imminent changes?

over and out,
wlu