update:
this is the last update before i leave tomorrow and probably the last one until after i arrive in taiwan. due to a stroke of extreme stupidity/forgetfulness/obliviousness, i'm not going to have power on the plane... except for my 2 and a half hour battery (the trip is about 14 hours). i was going to get an adapter that would let me plug in on the plane at least for the longer ride on the Continental flight from US to japan, but here i am, adapter-less and best buy is closed... rawr! guess that means i'll have to be much more creative in occupying my time (and my sister's). i think my mom's a little disappointed too... the idea was to watch dvds on my laptop or something. *sigh* anyway.. enough upset ranting. here's the real update...

funds: $270 ... craziness!!!!! that's from five college kids!! (sorry... you're all older than me... except jet ... haha! :P ) and what's more... every single one of you who got a letter (and some people who didn't) are all praying for me! thanks, friends. it really does mean a lot to me to know all my friends are praying for me. as panicked as i am ... it makes me feel better... and reminds me i'm surrounded by spiritual support. :)

prayer requests are about the same, with two additions:
- i still haven't heard back from my co-teacher of english. i don't know anything about what we're gonna do with that and no idea where she is either. we're going to be teaching college students at a university somewhere... so it'd be nice to have some prep.
- i'm genuinely concerned that playing bass will be physically challenging for me... those things are heavy! if you didn't know, i have some mild back problems. i'm worried that i won't be able to handle having a bass draped over my shoulder for that long.

thanks again, everyone. looking forward to seeing you all again, whenever (and wherever) that might be.