So here we are... a little more than a week before I go home.  After 8 months of living in one of the not-so-great parts of Manchester/Salford, we have finally experienced one of the worst downsides of living in this area: our house got broken into.  We were dumb enough to leave a couple first floor windows open, but we're pretty sure whoever did this had been watching the house, counting how many people lived here, and waiting until we were all out.  It's a frustrating (and sad) object lesson in what can happen when you allow a false sense of security to make you think it's ok to let your guard down.

My laptop was stolen along with the laptops of 5 other team members, an iPod, our xBox (which was our DVD player), and a Nintendo Wii.  I'm realizing just how much we were dependent on those electronics to provide us with entertainment... Hilary and I feel like we don't know what to do with ourselves now.  At least now I'll have lots of time to do the laundry, sorting, and packing I need to do before we head to debrief on Sunday.

We would appreciate your prayers as we deal with the frustration and anger that's arising from this situation.