March 16, 2007 - My Birthday!

Hey! Its my birthday!This morning my companion and the two sisters who live in a nearby building surprised me with a cake with 22 candles right as I got out of the shower. It was really sweet and they sang me the Mongolian birthday song, which goes a little something like this: "Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you!" That's right, they just use the English one, but they took out the one line that makes the song personal and interesting. Crazy Mongolians!

Actually, Mongolians seem to have gotten over the unspoken taboo of writing new birthday songs that we Americans can't seem to overcome. The most popular Mongolian pop song topics go in this order 1. Love 2. Mothers 3. Birthdays 4. Fathers. There are tons of birthday songs here and I hope I get sung some of the other more original ones today.

So, my mom asked to know a little bit more about my companion. She's 21, her birthday is April 2nd, she has been a member of the church for three years, and next Tuesday she's being transferred to Choibolson! That's right, we had another transfer and she's outtie. I, however, am not outtie. I'm innie, I guess. I'm staying in Sukhbaatar for another two months. My MTC companion, Sister Balli, is going Khuuduu-ing. She's headed to Darkhan, which is so cool. Everyone hopes to be sent out to the countryside for some part of their mission, but some missionaries spend they're whole time bumping around in the city where there are more than 10 branches. And some missionaries, like me, apparently, can't seem to keep a companion for more than a month and a half. It's really sad because Sister Uugantsetseg and I get along really well. We just have a blast together. It's okay though, because I already know my new companion and she's really awesome too. Her name is one of my favorite Mongolian names, Nergui. It comes up a whole lot more than you would think, given its meaning: "no-name." For reals. Her name is No Name. Hee! Anyway, she's really fun and we're just going to tear it up here in Agoo Sukhbaatar.

As far as birthday plans go for today, I think we're going to head out to the Zakh, the big outdoor market. My companion needs to get some things before she ships out to the boonies (and not just the regular boonies, the boonies of Mongolia, which is like the boonies squared), and I'm going to get something for myself. Probably clothes of some sort. I have been wearing the exact same clothes every single day for the past 5 months, and my wardrobe is starting to wear on me...LITERALLY! HA! Get it? WEAR on me? Anyway, my wardrobe has only gotten smaller since I've gotten here due to the intense Mongolian conditions (two of my skirts had big holes bitten out of them by meeker benches- all kinds of metal things stickin' out where they shouldn't). Other than that I don't really need/want anything.

Oh wait, I do need some things, and you all can help!

I need some simple recipes for American foods, preferrable ones that only require basic ingredients (we don't got Velveeta or Crisco out here). I'm talking essentials here like chocolate chip cookies and banana bread. If you want to send me a meat-type recipe, make sure its sheep-compatible, cuz that's probably what I'll be using. Also, I love to teach songs in my English classes, and my companions love to learn them too, but I can't always remember all the lyrics. I need lyrics from ......Beatles' songs ...musicals, (Sound of Music, King and I, Fiddler, the good stuff) ...Lionel Richie's "I Just Called to Say I Love You" (don't question, just do it!) ...children's songs. Anything you can do would be a great help. We have absolutely no curriculum or guide on what to teach out here, and it's pretty hard coming up with stuff on my own, especially when my English is rapidly getting worser and worsier. There seems to only be room for one language in my head at a time.

Also, I need addresses from: Emily Muir, Messy and Ryan Palmer, Hobbs and Sebastian Dunlap, anyone who is going to be moving/graduating/going somewhere different from the current address that I have. I don't really have time to write all you people, I just like knowing where you are ...hopefully in a non-creepy way.

Any responses to my requests can be directed to my lovely secretary, Ann/Mom,who can be reached at ann.johnson @ archpoint.net. [take the spaces out of the email address when you send an email--I am just trying to avoid those web spiders that gather email addresses from web sites for spam. Ann] Thanks to everyone who has written me. It really does brighten my week.

Happy Birfday to me, again! -Sister Johnson