Garrison Keillor, Where are you??

Well, it's been a quiet week in Dhaka, my hometown...  I admit to being a bit of an NPR addict (my kids will one day complain as we ride in the car, "Why can't we listen to music like NORMAL people?" - but luckily at this age, they don't seem to care too much), and I admit it's strange the things you miss while you're not in the states.  Radio, for instance.  Yes, there are internet alternatives, but I really miss being able to listen to the radio while driving.  Especially since driving always takes so long! A blog I read a while back from a family stationed in south-east Asia said that instead of dreading long car rides, you need to pack a book, bring your iPod, have games for the kids, and appreciate all of that nice "quiet" time.  Once we're in our house and have our HHG - including my iPod dock - I'll be able to listen to NPR podcasts to my heart's content, but until then...

All ready to go to the reception

And on that note, no, we still haven't moved.  I know, I know.  I said it would be soon.  And we really thought it would be.  I'm not even sure I can really adequately explain why we're not in our house yet.  But we're not.  And we're okay with that.  As Josh pointed out yesterday, there are people who sleep every night in the unfinished building next door that is still under construction (remember the noises through my bathroom window?) so I can't really complain too much about being in a fully furnished apartment.  But I also admit to still feeling unsettled.

This week has been fairly uneventful.  We briefly stopped by a Bangladeshi New Years celebration at the embassy, Josh and I had a reception at Mirpur (where I got to experience my first BG-style military function), and other than that, we've just been trying our best to stay busy.  The pool is open at the American Club after several months of refurbishment, so we stopped by there earlier in the week and the kids played the entire morning.  This also gave me a great excuse to have some more of the yummy pad thai they serve at the club.

My washing machine broke over the weekend - and by broke, I mean it emptied all of the water inside of it through the bottom and all over my floor.  At this point, I should perhaps point out - in case you were not aware - that I have a split level kitchen and my washing machine is upstairs.  So when all of this water started pouring out, there was a mad dash to grab the mop before I had water pouring down my stairs.  Nothing like a little excitement in the middle of the diaper load.  The maintenance guys stopped by Sunday morning and said it was definitely broken and they would be back to replace it the next day.  All was fine and good except the new washing machine they brought by was also making strange noises.  We have been using it now without incident for most of the week, but I hold my breath every time it goes into the spin cycle.  While I'd love to say we could survive without a washing machine, I have a chronic bed-wetter and another child in cloth diapers, so there's really a limit to how long I can go without washing things before the smell here gets truly overwhelming.  And on that note, I have some laundry I need to get out of the dyer :)  Tune in soon for (and here I go cursing it again) pictures of our new place!