“Hello?” “Are you there?” “Did I lose you?” This has been the story of my life the past eight weeks as my boyfriend has been in Africa. The initial excitement that a phone call comes through is soon lost in the frustration of a dropped call. Now it seems that there is a bad connection for me in general with phone calls now that I live in Hamilton. It is understandable being in a different country, but I am still in the USA (right…?). You can imagine how difficult it can be receiving calls from Africa when both signals are weak. To talk this morning I stayed home in one place and got close to a windows upstairs where I had enough signal. It is kind of amusing to figure out places I can at least get 2 bars of 3G network. In Tulsa I had full 4G at my house. Just another small town adjustment. Bad connections aren’t limited to just my cell phone though.

While there are many great connections I’ve made in Hamilton, here are some examples of things that just don’t connect well with me.

*Humidity.
I naturally have wavy, curly, red hair. (That made me think of the girl on Charlie Brown Christmas…moving along…) When I blow dry my hair and style it straight or curl it, it goes crazy in humidity. The past couple of weeks, I’ve spent an hour getting my hair ready only to have it flat by the time I got to work (which is a 3minute drive away). Also I’ve learned that my clothes that I hang up to dry as opposed to putting in the dryer never really dry here due to humidity. I now understand why people hang their clothes outside around here. Brings a new meaning to “fresh spring scent”

*Slow paced life.
While I enjoy having a few hours to wind down and read, this slower paced life really takes some getting used to.

*Allergies.
This has already been mentioned but bares repeating. I’m not connecting well in this area.

*Bugs.
I’ve never seen so many bugs in my life. Honestly. It is a fight to get into my door especially at night with all the flying creepy things. I’ve always been the extreme girly kind of girl. When I was outside as a kid I was never playing in the dirt or handling rolly pollies. I instead enjoyed collecting smooth rocks (true story I had a large collection) and writing with chalk on the driveway. There is a type of bug here that looks like a daddy long legs. My best friend swears they aren’t that, but I don’t know what else they would be. They are everywhere but my favorite is when literally dozens spray up off the sidewalk of my apartment when I walk by. Now I know what you are thinking. Its kind of magical right? Sweet swarming serenades of these little critters greeting me, cheering me on as I go about my day. It reminds me of moments in Disney movies where animals serenade whatever Princess and her love. If their intent is to woo me, I’d rather they not. Instead of being a graceful Princess I usually have some random darting and hopping to get through them. Yes I am really girly. Where are my two brothers to kill bugs for me when I need them??

The great thing about bad connections is the opportunity to still have a positive outlook. Among these situations I just find myself laughing and thinking at least I have something to write about :-)

Until next time I’ll breathe in the freshly cut grass smell and listen to the crickets chirp away!

Today’s Walmart count:1! I ALMOST hit my two day goal, but I needed scotch tape and soy milk. I have high hopes for this week though :-)

Remember my introduction to Coco from a couple of days ago? Well he bit me today!! He is a puppy so it didn’t hurt but it shocked me and snagged my jeans a little bit. When the neighbor drove by and saw Coco she apologized for him getting out and coming over. She told me if he misbehaved to roll a newspaper up and smack him. I shouted to her that he had bit me and her response was that he was just playing. It was a little odd to me to be so casual about your dog roaming around and biting a friend of your neighbors. Anyways another difference of the south I guess :-)

I’m going to bed early due to the allergy attack I had this morning. The trees look beautiful but they are certainly dusting the town with pollen. Tulsa has a lot of allergens and I’ve always had problems in the Spring, but being in a more deciduous place I’m not used to the tree pollen. There is also a significant amount of bumble bees and wasps here in Hamilton. Additionally I’ve had numerous bug stories since I moved here. I’ll have to incorporate some in the days ahead.

Walmart count for today was just one for a work errand. Although I needed to go and return a few items. I’ll have to make one of my daily trips tomorrow! I’m probably traveling some in state this weekend so I will blog more soon!!

So today was a big day in small town adventures being that I wasn’t in our small town all day. Today…brace yourself…I went to TUPELO MISSISSIPPI!!! Oh yes, all of you Elvis Presley fans will know this place well (um…maybe). This town is birthplace of the King of Rock& Roll. It also happens to be the nearest town with options other than Walmart (by the way I did not have to go to today!!). Now don’t get too excited. There is no Target or Whole Foods here. I of course investigated this previous to moving. However I did enjoy a nice visit to Smoothie King. In traveling to the U-Haul store I was thrilled to find the property backed up to the street where Elvis’ birthplace was because it would be an adventure. I used to impersonate Elvis as a little girl and sing and dance in the living room. I learned a few things about him in my brief stop. One being that Elvis had a twin that died at birth. Secondly his father was in prison for a while when he was young. Jailhouse rock inspiration anyone?? I saw the Assemblies of God church that he attended and honestly felt the manifest presence of God on those front steps. I believe Elvis had to have encountered God in a tangible way as a young boy. This made me lead into streams of thoughts revolving around the importance of a solid father and the church’s responsibility to steward and encourage gifts of God. Elvis was a catalyst that changed the culture of an entire generation that is still being reflected in music today. What could that have looked like using it for righteous purposes? God has given placed incredible potential in all of us and it is our responsibility to walk that out rightly before Him.

In conclusion, the tree pollen is absolutely insane here. My car is red but appears green from certain angles. I’m learning to do small town things like leave my car doors unlocked in the day. I can’t get too comfortable with this as I am moving to Dallas soon. I have started to smile and wave at everyone I see and I’m learning to allow time for “small town” chats. Life in the “city” wore me out today!! This country girl is going to hit the hay ;-) ok not literally as I do have a bed.