From the EFMs (Eligible Furry Members)

The Tabbies have asked if they can have a word with you all this morning.
Actually, they would like to use some pictures and therefore (they reminded me), have 3000 words:



From Bogato to Mexicat, Dodger's remains our color guard.

Daphne contemplates our new situation from her secure balcony: "House with yard? I believe that will be adequate. Scorpions? Not sure what those are, but I'm sure I can eat them. Four days' drive to get there? I call shotgun."
Always the Diplocat, she never loses her composure.

  

Toby is fitting into FS life just fine (so long as there's a new cat tower with each post, he adds.)

 

 

Next: Starting the Foreign Service After 40

4th of July from Colombia

We've packed out; the apartment is echoingly empty and we're living out of suitcases. The Tabbies' tower has been donated to animal shelter ADA where we still volunteer and all that's left is a week of work and two big Embassy 4th of July events - our first.

The first Independence Day celebration will be tomorrow (the 5th of July?) and I'll be in business dress working the event as the Ambassador hosts the Embassy's Colombian friends and contacts. I haven't done this before, but apparently we'll be briefed on the protocol of "pushing and pulling" en route to the event. No, it's not like a Japanese subway worker's duties, from what I understand, pushing and pulling means moving guests towards (and then later away) from the Ambassador to encourage a good mixture and discouraging one person from hogging all his time and conversation. Should be interesting; I'm practicing sentences in Spanish along the lines of, "..but have you seen the buffet?!"

Then this weekend will be the "community" 4th of July event which will be a more traditional family-style pic-nic gathering. The Community Liaison Office (CLO) who organizes these events first made it a pot-luck, with dishes divided by last names (we were side dishes). But later an announcement came out saying, "forget the potluck - just come!" I thought maybe that meant that they weren't getting enough RSVPs (I must admit, it was getting complicated thinking about what we could make and bring, and in what container, as we're living sans tupperware out of the Welcome Kit now) - but perhaps it's the opposite, and they sold so many tickets that they're now sporting the bill for the franks and beans? Who knows, but not having to make something palatable for hundreds and transport it in a zip loc bag is a relief.

But today is the actual 4th of July!
So I celebrated it in a true American fashion: I went to the dentist and got a haircut.
Woo-hoo.
It was a far cry from parades, BBQs and fireworks, but it was a day off work where the Colombians were still open for business, so I had to take advantage of the time. Colombia's Independence Day is July 20th and the Embassy will be closed in their honor. In fact, Embassy Bogota enjoys 22 local and American holidays per year, which is (I've been told) the second-greatest number for any US Mission abroad. Someone said we are topped only by a Mission somewhere in Eastern Europe. In fact, we also had Monday off for a local holiday for Saint Peter and Saint Paul. There were no processions to the church or colorful displays of saints or candles in windows, just quiet streets as people headed for the countryside for the "puente" (long weekend).

I hope the festive feeling comes tomorrow, because today has been just another mostly-overcast 64 degree day with buses flying by the apartment, businessmen and women in suits having lunch in the park nearby and the construction site on the next block fully operational. Heck, I'm even wearing beige. Perhaps we'll find some fireworks simulcast tonight on TV?

Nine days left in Bogota.
It's bittersweet to leave, but I'm ready for the next adventure. I hope our 4th of July events act as a nice send-off, offering a feeling of closure for this Colombian chapter.

Coming next: Tim goes to the Amazon and saying goodbye to the Big Brick City.

From the Tabbies

The Tabbies would like to apologize for not keeping up with their part of the story lately.
They'd like me to tell you that they've been very busy:

They thank you for your understanding.

What's the price of guilt?

From the Tabbies:
So yesterday we heard a key at the door, two lady voices (one was mom) and then some kinda' loud dragging noises. We weren't going to stick around and see what it was, no way, so we bolted under the bed - I mean c'mon, what would YOU have done? But after the coast was all clear - about an hour - we came into the living room and we see this, this thing:

Mom kept picking us up and putting us on it, she seemed pretty excited about it but this thing didn't smell right, wasn't like anything we'd seen before. Really, did she expect us to be all rolling and scratching on it already? We're not dogs! We see what she's up to; she's trying to bribe us. She'd better be feeling guilty for dragging us out of our kittenhood home to this place with weird noises and smells and NO GARDEN.

Okay, y'know, I guess it's not too bad. Good to get the claws into some sisal rope again. We're not gonna' go sleeping on it or anything, but, you know - we'll give it a try.

So, to answer the question: the price of guilt is about... $129

I can't wait to see what she drags in if we move to Africa!!