Moldovan Superstar

Yeah, being stared at makes me feel special. I did not write the last web log to whine or complain or attempt to be rude or make fun of the great people of this country. They are amazingly helpful, hospitable and generous. As anyone that has been in a country in great contrast to their own can attest, being the center of attention takes its toll after a while. Most days I don't notice, as I went through many phases growing up that made me susceptible to long stares from passerbys. It is only the days when things seem to go wrong or I am agitated that I take note and detest it. Yes, sometimes I am being overly sensitive or easily disturbed. Rarely, in my going on eight months that I have been here have I been annoyed and this is a first for me. I do not find myself getting annoyed or getting pissed at my family members (my host family, that is). Ok, only when my host niece is screaming bloody murder for the fifth time in an hour...but those episodes are becoming rarer as she gets older. My co-workers are nice and I do not get frustrated at their counterproductive ways or annoying habits, as I did in America with the people I worked around. My friends do not wear down when I am around them. I appreciate and treasure the time we spend together (how cheesy, right) and have a tinge (alright, a touch) of sadness when I have to tear myself away from them. I am slowing stripping off the material things that defined me and helped shape me in America. With the layers of material, undesired qualities and behaviors surface but it is a lot easier to change who you when you have a bare bum.