Long time since the last post: this means I'm getting busy, not very interesting, or just inheriting a horrible case of carpel tunnel. Time has finally grown some wings and has started to really take off. My 3 weeks in Coleraine are over and the 7 in Derry are about to begin.

The temperature has been nice here (so sorry to rub it in, but I'm sure there's good sledding, or ice fishing eh?). We got a Hollywood hail storm here- as you can see in the picture. What you can't see is the 250 production crew member named Al above the picture dumping a pail of paper snowflakes for the picture (hence the Hollywood hail storm).

During the 3 weeks of intensive knowledge sciphering, we took a couple of field trips to Northern Ireland's two largest cities: Belfast and Derry. While in Belfast, we stopped by the U.S. consolite [the picture manifests Joanna's excitement] to see what good ole' America has been up to in N.I.....nothing. Since William Clinton's term (direct involvement with the Good Friday Agreement- which was a huge step towards peace), we've chosen a more passive role in Northern Ireland affairs. Obviously, the country was occupied in more relevant and violent sections of the world. We also stopped by Storemont, the national governing location; now that elections are approaching (March 7 here- which is pivitol) the spotlight is back on. Depending on the result, the assembly could be up and running by March 27th and the future of N.I. could steer towards peace....or one party will refuse to work with the other which could be 5 steps back in the whole process. So stay tuned.

Besides Belfast we also traveled to Derry- which is where I'm currently spending the rest of the next seven weeks working in my internship. There are murals all over the country: telling stories of significant events, showing loyalty to paramilitaries, and conveying hundreds of different messages.

Today was the first day of my internship and it went over well. I'm gonna like the position I'm in I just hope i can help. I should be involved in mediating continentious situations between two parties. The people within the organization are great and my 'slagging' technique works great (it's just basically teasing each other to the point of tears...or close to it). One roomate Andi and I traded a hobo a burrito for his guitar. It's a little ragity, but hey, he was hungry. This helps to fill some time and act as a release. For the rest of this post I will include pictures of Derry, the Maiden City. Keep reading and post comments or drop me a line in order to prove that I'm not just posting to meself. I'm pickin' up a wee bit of the lingo already too. Adieu.