DeMark's post

Hey everyone, it's DeMark.

Just thought I'd add my own two cents since this blog frequently mentions "we" and "us" and just to prove Colleen isn't crazy ("She's got 200 multiple personalities, unfortunately, they're all Abraham Lincoln." "I was born in 200 log cabins!").

The gambling posts aside, this trip has been extraordinarily exciting, especially for 2 biologists. We've seen howler, capuchin, squirrel and spider monkies, as well as peccaries (like warthogs), poison dart frogs (my favorite!), orb spiders and others types of spiders, collared anteaters, dozens of different bird, fish, crab, and insect types (including the really cool leafcutter ants). It's been a great trip through many habitats, including cloud forests, dry forests, rain forests, beaches, volcanoes, and everything in between. Beyond that, we've been so lucky thanks to the generosity of so many family and friends to have been whitewater rafting, canopying touring (think ziplining from mountain top to mountain top through the trees), hiking, surfing, scuba diving (my first time- it's awesome!), snorkeling, and even some plain old lounging on the beach.

It's going to be weird for me in a couple of days when Colleen leaves for Chicago and back to her life there while I stay here and study for the rest of the summer. It'll be weird because Colleen and I have spent practically every minute together for a month and also because all of a sudden I'll be working hard in a country where all I've done up to date has been anything but. Bittersweet for sure, but I am excited. When it's all said and done, though, I'll have so many memories to look back on. Truly both a wonderful way to start a new life with such a wonderful woman and to really kick off my international human rights law study (with a nice side of the biology I miss so much).

Anyway, just thought I'd let you all know how I was feeling. Also, the Reds haven't fallen apart in my abscence, which is really important. The last two times I left the country, they didn't win a game until I checked in on their progress (which, unfortunately, was 17 days later the last time).

Enough from me. Rock on.