Pirates?!

According to VietNamNet, 77 fishermen were recently released after more than two months being held captive by pirates. Crazy! I guess it's been of a problem in the area for a while. Some are still being held. Really; whoda thunk?

Update--again

It's been a while, eh?

We're still struggling along, hobbling at this point. I had to change jobs and after searching for months, I finally found something. Of course, it's still not a full-time job and now I'm earning about $400 less a month than I was. I don't even make enough to cover rent and utilities. So I am continuing to look, every single day. I've been able to snag a few writing assignments, but the pay is intermittent. I'm afraid I will be giving notice on our shared housing on 1 March. There is simply no way to pay next month's rent. I'm not sure what we'll do, to be honest. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that I will actually get a tax refund and be able to get through another month.

Audrey's been down with strep throat, missing an entire week of school. Finally, she got a prescription for penicillin and is on her way to getting better.

I've gotten lost in the worry about money and have neglected both this blog and my VietnamWithKids.com site. I've got to get it finished and market it like crazy so I can figure out a way to make money/get a book deal out of it. Wishful thinking perhaps, but I'm hoping.

In less than two weeks I will know if we are going to Hawaii or not. If we don't go, I don't know what I'll do. I want so badly to go back to Vietnam. Life was so simple, even when it was difficult. Life in America is sucking the desire to live right out of me. Nothing has made me feel quite so much like a failure as the last few months have. So frustrating.

With a bit of good news, I did get my first essay published in a glossy. And you read it here back in July.

Tung and I are still plotting on getting market totes made of rice bags (by his sister and a friend) over here to sell. Look for them soon-ish.

Happy New Year!

It's a bit different this year, celebrating in the States versus Viet Nam, but it's a lot less overwhelming, as well.

We attended two Tet celebrations this past weekend, though both were cut short by a flu bug that the kids can't seem to kick. Tomorrow, we're planning to have dinner at our favorite Ban Cuon Tan Dinh restaurant. And Friday will have me hosting a party to celebrate, inducting all my friends into eating lots of yummy and strange (to Western palettes) foods.

I've started a new job, writing for an adoption agency, and tomorrow I have a big interview for Teach for America. I'm hoping the good luck of Tet will rub off on me and things will continue to improve a bit. The last few months have been inordinately hard. If they get better, and I can pay rent without worry, I'll start tucking money away for a trip back to Viet Nam.

My former students are getting ready to head out to study abroad and none are coing to the States, so that means I have to visit them before they go. Time to start stashing the coins and bills away in hopes of getting enough to head back for a quick visit.

Give me a month and I'll have a lot better idea about what's going to happen to our lives this year.

Happy New Year with health, happiness and love to all.