kenya :D

I am going to Kenya in three weeks! Rodgers is there already; he left Texas last week. He is staying for the whole summer, but I get to visit him for 2 weeks. I will leave June 10 and return June 25. I expect you know Kenya is in Africa, but for those who are not geography nerds, here are some maps:

Kenya is on the east side of Africa, bordering Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan, Uganda, Lake Victoria, Tanzania, and the Indian Ocean. The Equator runs through the middle of Kenya.

The capitol is Nairobi. Rodgers and his family are from the coast. I will fly in to Mombasa. Rodgers will meet me at the airport. We will spend some time in the city there, but also spend some time out in the countryside with his mother. (That red triangle at the northern point of the country is a disputed border. Kenya controls it, but Ethiopia and Sudan also claim that area.)

Along the coastline, about 70 miles north of Mombasa is Malindi. Rodgers' family lives out in the country somewhere near Malindi. Of course, we will also make frequent visits to the beach - the "real" beach as Rodgers says.

Stereotypically, when people think of Africa, they think the weather is just hot. Either desert hot or hot and humid. Kenya is actually quite mild. Nairobi is cooler, since it is in the mountains (elevation is around 1 mile). Mombasa is not as cool as Nairobi, but as you can see from this chart the average high temperatures for every month are under 90 degrees. June is a cooler month. Depending on the source, the low average is either high 60s or low 70s. The high average temp for June is in the low to mid 80s. So, it will be much hotter here in Texas while I am there than it is in Mombasa. Of course, you will have a/c here, and I don't think most places in Kenya do.

I will be taking as many pictures as I possibly can. And I will have to remember to bring plenty of spare batteries, because I'm not sure if I'll be able to use my battery charger.

rodgers' graduation

Last Thursday was a momentous occasion for my Rodgers. He graduated from Blinn with an Associate Degree in Psychology! I'm so proud of my man! Here are some pics of the commencement.

Here I am arriving with 2 of Rodgers' moms (Pam in blue, Bonnie in black) and his Taiwanese girlfriend Poni.

The procession. Rodgers is about in the middle of this shot.

Still processing, he's got his arms crossed in this one.

Now all of his friends are screaming his name and cheering, so he is waving to us.

Here's Mom and I watching the graduates find their seats.

Rodgers with 2 of his moms at the after party.

At the after party.