More Drama

First Sergeant decided to have a talk last night with the girls about the hotel situation. Two girls who I thought were rooming with me and my roommate decided to room with two other girls, leaving us to split a room between just the two of us. I can't afford that. It brought all of my money fears to a head, in addition to how I'd been feeling all day. I hate crying in front of people, yet I ran out of the room sobbing. I locked myself in a bathroom stall for a while, then walked to the phones to call Matt.

I can only imagine what he thought when he answered the phone to my crying. He made me feel better though and told me to go on the trip anyway. Sgt Wills & SrA Vincent stopped me on the way back to my room to talk to me and offer support. Sgt Wills prayed with me. When we got done with our prayer, the black dog who hangs out on base walked by. I think God knew I needed an animal to comfort me. He happily came up to me and I petted and cried on him for a few minutes.

The First Sergeant found me when I got back to the dorms. He told me that the Commander was going to help pay for my room. He also let me know about some assistance funds available through the Air Force and the state of Georgia. That made me feel a little better. I think I finally got to bed around eleven.

Today, the two girls who made me so angry yesterday won't look at or speak to me. That's ok, I'm not exactly in the mood to deal with them. Tears were close to the surface this morning, but work did me good for all that it was messed up. I think we've got a handle on it. We've made a lot of progress today. We got the faces for all of the soffits measured and half of them cut. We should be able to finish mounting the panels this week and do finishing work next week. If not, that's up to the next team to do. Hopefully we get through the rest of these panels with the saw blades we have. I don't know when we'll get more. But the day went fast aside from some stomach issues. Nothing a little Pepto can't fix. I wish I could figure out which food is doing it.

Then tonight I called Matt in much better spirits. He's applying for a couple jobs today. Hopefully something comes of it. I need a reason to celebrate.

Eilat

Yesterday we went to Eilat and the Red Sea. It was a beautiful ride out. The land here looks more like canyons than sand dunes. Lots of rock with mountains in the distance. The strangest things to see were dairy farms in the desert. There is not a single blade of grass, but all of these cows were living under sun shades, living off of hay and grain. I don't know where they find the hay, but the bales were huge. They were also bleached yellow by the sun.

The Red Sea was beautiful. I wish I'd had the money to go snorkeling. It's probably best I didn't bring a swimsuit because I would have spent money I didn't have. We did eat at a really good place called Boston Seafood and Grill. I had a shrimp and calamari salad. Very tasty. Then we walked around. We didn't get to see much beyond the boardwalk. The shops were mostly trinkets. I decided to save my shekels for Jerusalem. I did get a couple postcards though. Now I just need to find stamps. I tried calling Matt when we got back. I really miss him. I couldn't reach him at the house or on his cell, so I called my parents instead. Dad was home, so I got to talk to him, Mom and Tyler. Ryan and Anna were at a retreat. I tried Matt again and still couldn't reach him so I went back to my room.

I spent this morning shoveling bird poop out of a warehouse. I spent the afternoon feeling ill. Part of it was the heat, part of it was needing a break. There are people everywhere. I can never get time alone. My roommate interrupts me when I'm reading. People try to make polite conversation or ask what's wrong when I'm lost in thought. Everyone seems to annoy me. Maybe it's because I don't feel well. Maybe I just miss Matt and how well he understands me. I should try calling him, but I just don't feel very talkative right now. I think I'll just throw my clothes in the dryer, take a shower and go to bed.

Second Day in Israel

I'm amazed I even know what day it is. We left Robins AFB Tuesday evening. I hated to say bye to Matt, but I'm glad he drove me. It was good to spend a few more hours together before I had to leave. This is going to be a long two weeks. Ok, almost three weeks, but who's counting? Then we spent Wednesday in Sicily. I would have loved to stay there longer. I tried speaking a little Italian. I ended up ordering five deserts when I only wanted two. We walked around Catania and tried taking pictures, but it got dark. Then it started raining and we got soaked. Umbrella vendors kept following us, trying to get us to buy them. I think I said no out of spite. Beautiful city. I really hope to go back someday.

Then Thursday we got into Israel. We haven't seen much of it yet, but we're going to Eilat and the Red Sea tomorrow. Today we went to Arad for a bit. Everything was closed because of Shabat. There were a lot of cats though. The one I stopped to pet would have stood there all day if I hadn't needed to catch up to the group. Sheep herding is big here too. It's like the old days before fence laws and shepherds took their flocks from place to place in search of grass. I noticed a lot of underground rivers and oasis here that had herds grazing on them. We also saw a lot of folks riding donkeys. Saw a few horses and camels as well.

Tonight was Shabat. There were Hebrew prayers followed by a banquet. It was delicious and there was so much of it. I shouldn't have eaten as much as I did, but I couldn't help myself. A lot of veggies too, so it was kind of healthy. Got a chance to talk to Matt after dinner. I hate when there is drama at home and I'm not there to help. He lost his job Monday and is having trouble filing unemployment. He's trying to work on the taxes and doesn't know his password. He got into a car accident Wednesday (not his fault) and now has to get a quote to fix it. The dogs are getting loose and not listening. Apparently he's forgotten when he learned in dog training. Now I'm stressed and feel guilty about being here. I did send him a post card from Sicily. Hopefully it cheers him up. I'll have to send him one tomorrow as well. I don't want him to feel forgotten. All I think about is how much I wish he was here to share this with.