alacrity

Although my 2nd birthday in Angola wasn't as big of a success as last years (which was basically impossible to top), it was full of sweet messages from home and 2 rounds of 'Happy Birthday' - on the platform and at dinner.  I rounded out my day with FRESH, delicious pineapple that was probably better than any cake in Angola.  My boss also gave me two red velvet Oreos, which is basically gold out here.   

I got one of the biggest compliments this week, and it had nothing to do with my birthday.  One of my co-workers decided to leave the company to get back closer to home and he did an excellent job of giving people feedback before he took off.  He's one of the best people I've worked with, so no surprise there.  Anyway, he told me that I supported processes and procedures with alacrity.  I had to do some googling to figure out if he was complimenting me or not, but it turned out that he told me that he admired my enthusiasm for one of the most boring parts of our job.  His sweetness made my day so much, that I decided to be as positive and cheerful as possible out here because it really does make a difference.  When I'm contemplating jumping off the platform (or throwing someone else off), I'm just going to think of David and remember that a kind word can change someone's entire day - which is SO easy to forget!      

I'm into my last week(ish), and I'm ready for some sunshine!!!  We are well into "dry season" out here, which means that the temperature has cooled down a bit (thank goodness), BUT it also means that the sun just hang out behind the clouds for the better part of the day.  All of these UK folks are used to dreary days, but I need my SUN!  

xoxo....