The Book of Rory.

Here I sit in my office, tired, a little cold and unsure what the day will bring. The weather recently, in the past few weeks, has been perfect. With temperatures in the 60s and low 70s and the sun shining strongly, I have taken advantage of the spring arrival and spent my afternoons after work outside by the stadium playing volleyball or taking the dog for a walk. The weather has never had such a strong impact on my daily life as it has here in Bulgaria. In the states, we have learned to control the weather. If the temperature is too cold outside, turn your little dial on the wall and Poof! there is heat flowing throughout the house and it stops once an ideal temperature is reached. Then you realize, you have to go to the store. That's not a problem, run outside quickly, turn your car on and run back inside, or just go into your garage to do that, or, if you are really lucky, press a button on your key chain. After you drive your temperature regulated car to the store and park in the nearest parking spot available, you will spend the most time of your day in the weather when you scurry from the vehicle to the store. Once again, the store will be a comfortable 66-70 degrees Fahrenheit. The same is true for summer. You can spend years without being genuinely cold or uncomfortably hot. And that was exactly how I spent the last few years in the states. Now, I am susceptible to the forces of nature and rules of weather. During winter, it's a fire and stove that keep me warm in my apartment. During the summer, it's... it's nothing that cools me down. Maybe a drink of ice water and my own overly productive sweat glands help a little. Anyways, as the weather is getting nice, my mood is drastically improving. I am feeling better about everything and anything. I am also aware that after a month or so, the real heat will start again and I will slip back into a state of sweaty misery. I have memories of last summer sitting in a concrete office, with the sun beating on me through the windows, temperatures of 100+ inside and outside, in long pants, closed shoes, and a sweat drenched t-shirt. They are not the most pleasant memories and I will do my best to prepare myself this year for the ensuing heat.

So besides the long analysis of the weather, my parents told me that they are coming out here April 4th until the 15th! I am super excited about there arrival and I am making plans that will surely keep them busy during their stay. For any of those that have had the honor of experiencing a "Nolan Vacation" you are aware that 9 times out of 10, you need a vacation after the vacation in order to finally get some rest. Vacations are no time to rest! There are things to be done!

Scooter is causing problems and I honestly might have to get rid of him. I feel bad cause he is a good dog but he needs more attention and space than I am able to give him. He is a 2 year old outside dog and has never been trained. He has some aggression issues as well. Now he is living in my small apartment and hangs out there alone for 8+ hours a day while I am at work. He isn't so happy and I can see his frustrations growing, which unfortunately can result in exacerbating the unpredictable aggression he has shown. Through looking at pictures and what not, I have basically theorized that Scooter is a Lab/Pit Bull mix. Not quite what I was looking for. I know Pit Bulls are good dogs, and reliable and loyal and all that stuff, but they are also as a breed predisposed to aggressive behavior, and they play rough. I wouldn't mind this if I didn't work with kids! I just can't take him around kids. Which means that I can't take him for walks. When kids see me on a walk with the dog here, they run up in groups and want to pet him. I can't afford an incident as I am certain it would taint my reputation in town and possibly jeopardize my service term. So we will see...

These past few weeks, Cveti and I have been preparing my apartment for my parents. We have been doing some serious spring cleaning. The place looks completely different and 1000 times better! I will not lie, Cveti is doing most the work and therefore deserves the credit. Don't get me wrong, I am helping, but she just sneaks off and cleans! I'll be watching something, cooking, doing anything really, and she will just disappear into another room. I won't pay attention to it for a little while, then I'll realize she has been gone for a half hour. By the time I find here, the other rooms been rearranged, swept, dusted and all-around cleaned. She is like a cleaning ninja. She sneaks around in the dark secretly cleaning. By the time you realize what's happened, it's too late, you've been cleaned.

So let's end this on a good note. I applied for a grant funded by Hannah Montana and Disney back in February. The grant was for 500 dollars and would help fund our project to clean up and improve a park in town. There were 100 grants awarded in the world. Well, 90 of them in the USA and 10 international. I found out on Sunday that we won the grant! We are getting 450 dollars which is basically 650 leva. This will cover a HUGE amount of our project. I am super excited. Not only am I excited, but it seems like the whole town is excited. My youth group, that developed the project and will spearhead everything, was ecstatic. They were pessimistic about receiving money, but now that this has happened, they are really proud. We met with the mayor yesterday and everyone is excited. I had people stopping me on the street yesterday saying congratulations! So yesterday, with the 70 degree sunny weather, the victory, the work, the pride and increased respect in town, I strolled through the town feeling like a small hero. It was a pretty good day. One of the better days to date.

This is a long one. Sorry for that, but hey - it's been a while and this is my life. Actually, I'm not sorry. Dig it. Soak it up. Read my preaching and hang on to every word. This is the word of Rory. Take these with you through your days and apply them (not sure how) to your daily happenings. Or whatever.

Take care and say a quick silent thank you to Hannah Montana for making a big impact in my experience here.

Rory

Baba Marta and Scooter

I got me a dog! He is crazy. His name is Scooter and he is a rescued dog from a shelter in Sofia. He is a small black lab mix. I am not sure exactly what his bloodline is, but he is not very big, he is black, skinny and he is strong. His hind legs look like a pit bulls, but his face is nothing like one. So who knows. Anyways, he has a lot of energy, loves to run and jump and play. He is territorial and has kind of freaked out a couple times when there are other people over. He doesn't have a single interest in balls or other toys. He steals my socks and puts them in his "bed" so he can smell my delicious feet. His bed is made of extra blankets that I had. It is set up in the kitchen. He has been peeing and pooping all over the apartment. I have recently trained him to at least go on the balcony when I am not home or its during the night. But now he likes that spot and basically refuses to go outside. I guess that works for me, for now. During the summer when the weathers better, I'll take him outside more. For now, it's still too cold and unpredictable outside, so the balcony works. During this week, as he is getting more used to living indoors, I will start actually training him. For now, I taught him "watch me" where he stops all the wandering and running and jumping and just stares at me. That is the first step. Once I can get him to pay attention to me, then I can get him to sit, come, lay down, etc...

He has been the main concern of mine for the past 2 weeks. But on March 1st, there was a holiday here called "Baba Marta" literally meaning "Grandmother March". The holiday is celebrated by exchanging red and white bracelets with your friends and colleagues. These bracelets are to be worn until you see a stork. When you see a stork, you take the bracelet off and put it on the branch of a tree. A fruit tree is preferred, but if there isn't one around, then any tree will do. This is for your health. An interesting holiday, but a fun one. I helped make over 200 bracelets to give to the students in kindergarten through 3rd grade and then to the staff of the town offices. It was fun in a mundane sort of way. On that day, I walked around with a Baba dressed as Baba Marta and a couple kids. The kids and Baba Marta gave out the Martenitsi (bracelets) while I took pictures.

I also made a website for pictures from town. The site is www.picasaweb.google.com/koynare. You can check them out.

Other than this jazz, I don't really have much else to say believe it or not. So enjoy your day. It's snowing here again.

Rory