Bring your own toilet paper...or else.

When I get bored over here (which isn't often, believe me), I ask myself broad philosophical questions, like "is there such a thing as a FULL marshutka (mini-buses that people--often entire towns--ride around town)? Will I ever find a way to get rid of the tiny ants that have invaded my apartment? And finally, is there such a thing as a clean public toilet in Ukraine?" The answer to all of these questions appears to be an unfortunate NO. I've solved the marshutka over-crowding by walking pretty much everywhere and I'm going to buy some anti-ant spray soon which will hopefully help me commit ant-mass-murder, but the public toilet question is a bigger issue. Finding a place to...go...outside of my apartment is easier for me than for women because the "pay" toilets in city-centers and train stations often amount to a hole in the ground. My solution has been to find the nearest McDonalds because they really are toilet oasis'.

School is almost done over here and it's starting to get hot. I wore shorts the other day when my friend Michael visited and we played catch on the beach (yay for baseball!), and the Victory Day celebration in the center of town was really fun. I love and miss you all!