No, you didn't accidentally go to the wrong blog. And, no, Dan did not suddenly grow his hair out and undergo major facial surgery and, well . . . nevermind.

What Dan did do was leave Papua New Guinea. If you don't believe me, here's a picture of him getting on the plane at the small airstrip from which we fly in and out of Ukarumpa, where we live.

I guess he's been telling you he was going to leave . . . well, he's really done it. Which, by they way, is one of the things I love most and hate most about this job: meeting so many cool people and then saying goodbye to them. I've already said goodbye to a couple of close friends, and so far it hasn't gotten any easier to see them leave. Each time I have to ask myself . . . is it worth it? And each time, even through the tears, I have to say yes. I would rather have known the people I've met here, as much as it hurts when they leave, then miss out on knowing these amazing people who have taught me so much about enjoying life, God and people.

But enough of all that, when I haven't even introduced myself! Well, here I am, you can see the picture. I've been living in PNG for about a year and a half now, which is hard to believe because it's absolutely flown by. I never meant to be a missionary . . . I just loved God and people and languages, and this is the job that tied those loves together. While it has its fabulous moments and not quite so fabulous moments (like any job), overall I think I pretty much have the coolest job in the world and I wouldn't trade the past couple of years for anything!

And I'm going to stop now, because we're leaving in 12 hours (and it's 6pm right now . . . ) for a survey near the north coast. This one will be short, only five days, so check back soon for an update and some (hopefully) cool pictures!