What I'm thankful for this year

Happy Thanksgiving!!

• No monkey attacks in 2007! You all laughed when I said that last year – who’s laughing now???
• A pretty amazing last 12 months including exploring new places (Sydney, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Kodai, Ellora, Orchha, Matheran, Goa - twice), and new experiences (first Indian wedding, first big concert in India, first elephant safari, most enjoyable Legwarmers concert yet, tango-ing with a fat sikh man in a turban, cheerleading in a Malaysian mall, getting blessed by a temple elephant)
• Facebook and the ability to reconnect with some old friends – I’ve missed you guys – and play scrabble
• The visits of Mom, Rachel, Bev, Cheinan, Carolyn and Todd – looking forward to seeing the rest of you soon!
• I’m sort of embarrassed to admit this but I’m thankful for Ultimate Frisbee Games at Nehru Park – it’s so nice to be outside, with fun people, getting some exercise.
• That John is recovering well from knee surgery #1
• That I was able to go to Kristin’s wedding – it’s so nice to be friends with people who have known you almost all your life. Clearly Kin wins that title but there are actually quite a few of you who help by reminding me what a dork I really have always been.
• The rise of steak and bagels in Delhi – it’s not great yet but it’s getting there. Next mission: good filter coffee, dannon coffee yogurt and real pies!
• I can’t say enough about the people who make my life possible here:
• Satender: Anybody who offers to come in on the biggest holiday of the year to give my cat an injection as I’m out of town has my undying loyalty. Driver, personal assistant, negotiator of all things India, cricket coach… what doesn’t he do?
• Tenzing: It’s pretty easy to take for granted the clean house, wonderful food, made bed, folded, perfectly hung clothes. But it’s the preparing a little tin of ground coffee for me when I’m headed out of town, the coming in on her days off when she’s worried I might be sick and the sharing of her son’s successes that remind me of how wonderful she is.
• Jagdish: While I don’t directly employ him, and when I come home late at night or early in the morning, he is generally sleeping and un-wakeable (not great traits in your night guard), I really enjoyed meeting his family and having him open his home to me.
• Krishna: my new, five foot tall, nepali, professional kickboxer (“kickboxing, sport of the future? Maybe you’ve heard of it? I can see by your face, no”- anyone?) personal trainer who is giving me some new energy to get in shape.
• BC’s great football start. While they’ve clearly slumped in the last few games, it was really fun there for a while. Really wishing they’d announce bowl games further in advance so I could plan to go to one!
• In total hypocrisy, I am thankful that Doug is generous enough to give me access to the commissary. I recognize that I will continue to insult the bizarre-o-land that is the American Embassy Peeps but the frozen blueberries and chocolate chips do improve my quality of life.
• While work is going through a rough spot with cut funding I am still very grateful to work with such amazing people. Where else could I say “What have I done this year? I’ve led efforts that prevented an estimated an estimated 500,000 men from getting HIV this year.” Proven success that beats all benchmarks and saves lives is pretty cool.
• Less work travel – it may be because our funding is cut but man does it help to not travel two days a week!
• Air Crash Investigations - how else would I know to sit over the wing?? OK fine, I've learned nothing useful but it's bizarrely entertaining.
• Travel coffee filters - to ensure I get my fair trade, organic, shade grown black coffee and none of this nescafe madness.
  
• Kali – the aptly named “goddess of destruction” cat – without whom my life would be boring and drama-less.