Monday is a good day

Today was a really good day, especially for a Monday. I went to the dentist-- no cavities!! I went running at Cyprus Groves nature trail-- no raccoons!! Last time I was there a gang of hungry raccoons followed me and I'm pumped that didn't happen again. It was pretty there- the trees are really pretty- in color AND structure :) and it was warm today.
I talked to Dr. Al (my boss) today about going to Sierra Leone. He is the only person on earth more excited than I am about me going to Africa. He's from Ethiopia and he's just really excited about people caring about Africa. He was talking about how to really be helpful in Africa, but I think it pretty much applies anywhere:
~You don't need to think big to make a difference, think about the small things you can do. Take off your big American hat and put on a small one. Think about what you can do with what they have. They use gourds for lots of things; think- how can I improve the quality of life using this gourd. This is how people become famous in Africa, they do small things and then other places want them to do the small things there and these new things spread and the quality of life is better in a wide area.~
I'm really thankful to be working for someone who is so understanding of me taking a month off, much less someone who is glad I'm taking extra time off.
My Thanksgiving holiday starts tomorrow. We head to Ohio to stay with my dad's family. I'm excited about hangin out with the fam!