Miscellaneous updates

Well, I'm finally done with finals (and obviously, school) and on summer vacation. In a word: FINALLY. I now have my life back again xD I'm very happy to be free at last now. This means that I can be free to go to bed at and sleep in until ludicrous hours of the night/day, hang out constantly with all the friends I'll be missing while abroad, swim, be sad about this year's AFSers going home, stuff my brain with Arabic until it bursts, learn about Egypt and its history/culture obsessively, and await more information from AFS IN PEACE. AT LAST. ^w^

The problem is that I still have not received any information about my host family or travel itinerary at all. Not to mention my visa instructions. And this is beginning to frustrate me. I keep hearing posts about people that finally receive their information, posting about how they proceeded to freak out and now feel so satisfied. And I want that to happen to me, so I can freak out too and I can feel satisfied like that too. I know that I should be patient, I know that this process takes time and that the information could be here in a heartbeat. But I'm just so eager to have all of this information in the palm of my hand that I'm starting to go crazy waiting for it. Every time I'm on the computer, every time I check my email, I think it might be the time I get lucky. But, so far, I've always been disappointed. I'm trying to just keep myself occupied and exercise patience. It will come when it comes, obviously. I need to remind myself that all I can do is wait. I'll try not to be bitter and adopt this attitude instead: One of these times that I check, I will be rewarded, so I may as well keep checking, because the time will come soon. Perhaps (HOPEFULLY!) sooner than I think.

In the meantime, something cheerier: on the 19th I traveled to the big, fun amusement park known as Cedar Point with the AFSers of this year. :D I had a lot of fun with them, and I'm extremely glad I decided to attend. The only problem now is that soon they'll be going back home to their respective countries, and that's a very sad thing. :'( Two already went home today. :'( I miss them both terribly already. Most of the rest will be going home on the 25th. And there’s one who’s staying until July 7 to go on a trip with her host family. It's going to be very hard to say goodbye D: This will be quite painful </3

This is always a really sad time when it comes to AFS friends. After a year of befriending them, spending time with them, and getting to know them very well, it's hard to watch them pack up and go back to their homelands. My hope is that they'll all come back here someday to visit their friends and host families. And I'm trying to remember that I'll be seeing the Egyptian AFSer on his home turf in a few months :D

Well, that's enough for now. Hopefully the next time I post will be because I've received either my host family or travel itinerary, inshallah. :D (Maybe if I'm super extra lucky, I'll have both xDD OK, let's not get carried away; even just one of them is fine ^_^)

an overhead picture of Cedar Point

a picture to symbolize the joyful freedom I currently feel :D

I plan to be doing a lot of this :D

and this - sleeping in late :3

and saying this to all the local AFSers :') 

~Bye!!!