The new group of trainees officially became Peace Corps volunteers today in a ceremony at Coconuts Beach Resort. The very nice ceremony was highlighted by a funny speech by one of the new PCVs recounted all hilaious events of training.

Ambassador Charles Swindells was on hand to administer the oath and present the new volunteers with their treasured ID cards. He's the distingished gentleman to right, one of the few people in the picture who doesn't look like he just arrived on Fantasy Island.

The new group will all be working in Village Based Development, Intercoastal Management and the Future Farmers program. Welcome aboard and best of luck to all of you in the next two years.

I almost didn't make it to the ceremony. I was woken up right before 4am with a searing pain in the middle toe of my right food. When I tried to touch my, the pain was excruciating. I wasn't sure what happened, but my first thought was that I was bitten by a centipede. I hobbled out of bed, opened the med kit, sucked down some antihistamene and 4 Aleve. Even with the pain didn't go away for several hours and I couldn't get back to sleep.

I needed to get back to sleep if I was going to be at coherent the next, even if it was only for a few hours. The alarm didn't wake me up, but I popped up out of bed with a few minutues to spare before the last bus arrived which would get me into town to the hotel where the trainees were staying.

I was tired I almost fell off the bus when I tried to get off. I sucked a cup of tea at the hotel and somehow managed to get through the day.

The worst part about this is I couldn't catch the centipede and kill it which would have mad me feel a hell of lot better. Of course, the kittens were totally useless. They slept through the whole thing.