Off to the Midwest tomorrow. Yippppppy! Don't know what to really expect other than bitter cold and an overdose of intellectuals that never leave their offices only for the occasional nature call.

Marx finally threw me a bone. Ok here's the good news. I was accepted into Michigan State and the University of Minnesota. Minnesota was soooooo kind enough to offer me a 5-year funding package including research dinero for summers. The best part is I might not have to teach....ever! Bittersweet news also arrived ; rejected by the UofO AGAIN last week, denied by Wisconsin this week. Six more to go but as of now it looks like I'm movin to the Midwest and hangin' out with Prince. Ahhhhhhh, Minneapolis, the city of the heated sidewalks. Look out comrades there's gonna be a sickle and hammer rising in the 10,000 lake state. Go Golden Gophers!

Ok.......yesterday I had an awkward moment with three of my little cousins. To be exact it wasn't necessarily one of those bonding episodes I so like with my future comrades. Instead I was forced to explain to them the "birds and the bees". What is one to do!? Quickly trying to change themes, my perdicament was resolved by telling another story of passion and survivial.....oh yes, proletariat liberation. "O.k. boys and girls I'm going to talk to you about two unattractive figures who I'm sure got busy once in awhile. We're going to talk about Che and Mao." I couldn't help from noticing a sign of confusion in their faces for obvious purposes, but the really trouble was yet to come. First I had to restrain the youngest (6 yrs.) from running around the house chanting "Che Che Guevara Che Che Guevara!" (Oh yeah, by the way this was at my aunt's house were a few women were having a Bible study and I was the designated babysitter.)
In the end the sex talk turned into a propaganda campaign, however, it did not prevent one of them from vilifying my so well pictured utopian society tale when saying...."this sex story stucked Nando."