March 3, 2009, Galveston, TX., 7:53 a.m., C.S.T.~

Dear Journal~

Howdy!  It's just me, li'l ol' Teeka Daniels!  I hope this finds y'all well!

I am doing good; family still intact, parents are employed, and my brothers and sisters are buggin' me!  LOL  I'm also doing good in school; we've been going to a temporary school until our building has been repaired; it got smacked around by (Y)Ike; there was a lot of damage to our school.

Of course, the other kids don't like the crowded conditions, but hey, we couldn't help it; we didn't ask to be visited by Hurricane (Y)Ike!!

Yesterday at school, we got to choose penpals from out of state.  I chose a 10-year-old girl from Alaska named Aurora Borealis Kiatuq and a 16-year-old boy from Tennessee named Johnathon Sandusky.  The girl is Inuit, and she lives in a tiny, remote village smack in the middle of the Arctic, where it's always cold. 

As for the boy, he is in a wheelchair because he has muscular dystrophy, and he has a very big family; I think he has a million brothers and sisters.  LOL

I plan on writing to Johnathon and Aurora as soon as I get out of school today.  I hope they write back!  I always like making new friends!

The weather here is warm:  temperatures in the upper seventies to middle eighties; instead of winter gear, we are wearing tee shirts or shorts!  It's really crazy; but this is the norm here along the Gulf Coast:  the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico keep us warmer than average (most of the time, that is)!

Which is just as well:  if the temperature gets below sixty degrees, I'm freezing to death!  No kiddin'!

I don't know how people like Aurora keep warm:  I was looking on the Internet about highs in Alaska, and where Aurora lives, it's like near zero degrees!  BRRR!!  I think my blood just froze!!  Geezeamighty!!  That's a little too cold for me!!

At least Aurora Borealis doesn't have to worry about things like hurricanes!  I just hope this year is a lot nicer (and quieter) for us; we had more than enough with hurricanes last year with (Y)Ike and Gustav!

If we have any more hurricanes, I'm moving to where Aurora Borealis lives and learn how to make igloos or put up with subzero temperatures!  Or fight off polar bears and eat seal meat and whale blubber for supper! *YUCK*  LOL

Well, the bus is due to come, so I'd best run along now, or I will miss it, and then mama will have to drive me to school.  I will write in here another day; until then, this is Teeka signing off!  Bye for now, and God bless!

~Love, your friend, Teeka Daniels in Galveston, Texas. :D