Friday morning shots

Well, my arms are still a little bit sore, but getting vaccinated was a much more fun experience with friends than it would have been without them.  Dennis, Kevin, and I met at Passport Health Services in Tempe to check this task off our list together.  I was impressed with Nurse Kelly's knowledge and kindness to us.  I felt like I learned a lot instead of just getting jabbed in the arm multiple times.

We are now ready to face just about any sort of virus, bacteria, germ, or infection that comes our way.  We are vaccinated against mumps, measles, rubella, typhoid, tetanus, pertussis, whooping cough, hepatitus A and B (and maybe some other things I have forgotten), and we have medication to fend off malaria and to tackle *ahem* other traveler's concerns.

As may be obvious from the above picture, Kevin is pretty much a big baby when it comes to pain.   (Or, is so very accommodating when it comes to posing for a picture...you make the call).  Actually, we were all pretty stoic when it came to the shots, and I was impressed that Dennis managed his in one arm while recovering from shoulder surgery on the other. 

Unfortunately, I am still getting used to this compact camera.  The picture with Kevin and Dennis and the map is supposed to be very funny.  The map is entitled, "Risk Areas for Travelers' Diarrhea."  The interesting part for me is that over half of the world is marked red, for high risk.  So, apparently, if you travel pretty much anywhere, be prepared.

Afterwards, Kevin and I stopped off at a nearby Starbucks, where he spotted the Papua New Guinea poster at the top of this post.  Who knows, they may have them in every Starbucks everywhere, but neither of us had noticed one before, and we found it very cool and encouraging that we saw it right after getting the vaccinations.

I am ready for a great trip with both of these friends, as well as the rest of our terrific group.  I continue to be so thankful that God has put the exact people together to benefit one another, others we will serve on the trip, and the purpose of the trip. 

It's getting shockingly close to one month until departure!!!