When I arrived in London, I found that I'd forgotten my information on where I was actually going in London, and how to get there! Dead tired, and having checked my bag with my pen (never forget to pack a pen in your carry-on bag!!), I found an internet terminal (2£ for the 20 minutes took online to find my email and borrow a pencil). I then navigated my way from Heathrow to the tube toward my friend.
On the tube, I met 4 people from South Africa who had many very wonderful observations that I felt I could learn from: 1. progress is a process (be patient in trying to make changes in the US, in terms of voter registration, help for the homeless, getting universal health coverage, etc), 2. Be very well informed, not just about things that seem to touch on the US and the Mediterranean, but as much else as possible (BBC news, El Mundo, The Guardian) 3. (must look up my notes)

I've decided to be a lobbyist by day, and an adult literacy/ed. teacher by evening, (when not dancing, of course), and use the adult lit. to help register voters, as well as to stay in touch with the real world, which should complement my lobyying activities.

I'm changing my mind about education: universal health care is more important. I've met several people who are hard working and intelligent, but have been thrown into poverty as a direct result of lack of preventative medical attention, which led to emergency surgery, and unpayable debt. In a nation with as much wealth as the US, it is embarrassing to be the world's only industrialized nation with such inadequate health care for its citizens.