Crafts, Shoes, and Bella Napoli

Surprisingly, a lot has gone on this past week which was unexpected considering my lack of consistent work and being out of school. Last night, Lindsey, a "friend" of Jon's, asked me out to ice cream while the guys rehearsed for their gig on Saturday. It was so nice to get out of the house and spend time with a girl. As much as I love hanging out with the guys all the time, it's great to hang out with other people too. We talked at Dairy Queen for 3 hours until they kicked us out since they were cleaning and closing up. The rest of the night I spent listening to music and talking with Kurtis, Jon and Robbie who is staying with us for the next week to see if he wants to move in sometime.

Today I left the house around 10:00 which has become the new bright and early for me considering how late musicians stay up. I got some new shoes to wear with dresses but that are more casual and then I went to Michael's craft store which is a weak spot for me. Lindsey gave me a fun idea last night to make earrings which I got super excited about and got the supplies for. You take clear moonstones and glue an image onto the back and then glue them onto earring posts and then you can make whatever designs you want! I can't wait and I have enough to make 30 pairs of earrings so watch out. At that rate I can have a different pair for everyday of the month.

This afternoon I took a nap and watched the Office (tough life I know) and then met up with Kurtis to picket the crazy Italian guy's restaurant. We're pretty sure that his lawyer must have talked some sense into him because he stayed inside the whole time for the whole two hours. Last time he ran into one guy and then threw a sign at someone else. They made a video of it if you want to see the level of maturity we are working with: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHuBlEtILp0.

After the picket, we went to Bread Co. to unthaw for dinner. My pinkey toes were actually white and numb after 10 minutes of standing outside and after two hours I was unsure if they were attached. Luckily they were and after my bread bowl and vegetable pesto soup I am all warmed-up. Kurtis is taking the day off from painting tomorrow so we are going to get some shopping done for his Mexico trip. Hopefully we will get to go to the bookstore we got a coupon to as well. You can never have too many books although Kurtis and I are apparently attempting to prove that wrong.

Tomorrow night Kurtis has a gig with The Sellouts, which is Stella but doing covers, basically just to get some extra gigs. It's at the J&M in Pioneer Square (don't worry Mama, I will lock my doors). Sunday I am hoping on coming up to Lopez for the day until I leave again until I come back up on Friday.

On Tuesday I worked for a family taking care of a two year old boy named Jackson and a 6 week old baby boy while the mom was there. We went to a bounce house, it was Jackson's birthday and he ran around laughing with a huge smile on his face. This next week I am going to be working Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday for them too which I am pretty excited about and then 3 more days later on in December. Jackson is the sweetest, cutest little boy but to be honest, taking care of a 6 year old is a little nerve-wracking at first. It's good to get that experience though and it really is easy after you get the first few minutes down. So I am sure I will have some stories after those days so until then...

Washington Again

I am back home here in Washington and the northwest is playing up to its stereotypes. It has been raining here all day, can't even get out to go on a run. It is cozy inside though but not as nice as the wood heating up on Lopez.

I got the gelato from the groupon coupon that I had yesterday and it is delicious. I got 6 different flavors: pumpkin, lemon, strawberry (gelato and sorbeto), raspberry, and blackberry red wine. Now I understand what all the hype about gelato is all about.

Steve is coming up tonight, he will be teaching in a lineman school I think all week so he is staying over tonight. Kurtis and Jon will be out at their Apple Jamm practice so I'm going out to dinner with Steve I think.

I have been reading all day, I just started a great book that I got from the Thanksgiving Library book sale called "Elegance of the Hedgehog". Turns out it was originally written in French and then translated into English. There is a literary bell-waiter and a genius 12 year old suicidal girl looking for reasons to live who is extremely observant. It sounds weird, and it is, but it is very interesting.

Home Sweet Home

It is such a relief to be home. Although this quarter was not nearly as busy as usual (as you probably already know from my previous posts), I still feel immensely relieved to be back in the Pacific Northwest. I have been in the Factoria mall since noon today and it is quarter to 5 now. Kurtis had to record in Capital Hill and I wanted to get some shopping done. Surprisingly enough, I have not been bored even for an instant. Thank the Lord up above for Bread Co. and free Wireless internet though.

I got up early and made scones and scrambled eggs this morning which was a switch from Kurtis' usual bowl of Raisin Bran. Last night I made him and Jon BLTs too as a welcome home present to them.

There is a piano just outside of Bread Co. and a guy just started playing and he is really good! How cozy, haselnut coffee+live piano+christmas trees and wreaths+Kurtis coming to meet me for dinner. Life is good.

I am looking forward to this break. Turns out I will only be needed to work after the 29th of November so I am in the clear until then which is so nice. I can't wait to get to Lopez, the air is so clean there and it is so beautiful. I will always like going home to Lopez, that is a guarantee.

Kurtis has a Robbie Christmas gig tonight so we will be going to that and then up to Lopez first thing in the morning. I have been talking to people at the school about helping in classrooms during my 2 week spring break and I think it is a go. I can't wait to get the experience and get to hang out with little kids. Yay! Much love to my family, I love the holidays and I will miss Baba and Katie but I am happy for them in China, maybe they will have fishy turkey and fishy pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving (if they are lucky!)

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, there's only tomorrow!

I get to fly home tomorrow! So excited! I had my last class yesterday of Wildlife Conservation which only lasted for an hour and was just evalutating the class and then Spanish in the afternoon. We walked down about 25 minutes to the new bakery/cafe in Elsah to find that it is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays so we walked back up to campus through a trail that meanders through the woods, over a bridge made of a fallen tree and planks secured with a single nail. When I saw deer running I was not so sure that we had made the right idea by walking through the woods considering it is hunting season but if a hunter is stupid enough to shoot into a group of Spanish speaking clothed deer, then we have bigger problems to worry about. When we got back to campus we had spent an hour walking which was great and we went to the pub. Tough life, I know.
I had a nice long talk with Baba and Katie last night, they are doing well in China, dealing with the lack of popcorn, egg McMuffins and Mexican food but just barely. I also got to talk to Jon when I called Kurtis last night which was nice, I am looking forward to seeing them tomorrow! Wow, how did that happen! This is the most relaxed end of quarter I have ever had hands down. To-do list before I leave tomorrow: 2 pg. Spanish reflection on movie, turn in 6 page Spanish paper (literally just turn it in), pack my room, and write my volleyball final. Not tough stuff, but I have still been putting it off for Harry Potter and The Event. Today I will put it off for The Biggest Loser which wasn't on last week and nearly broke my heart. I new they hadn't taken a break so really I was just missing out, being put on hold for a week! How dare they.
I just got my flight itinerary for Prague, and Ally and I will be staying until the 3rd of June instead of flying back the first and waiting around beautiful Illinois for graduation. I emailed Heather at Willamette yesterday with a few questions about experience needed, and tests so I am expecting to hear back from her soon. Life is good, can't wait for tomorrow!

Finals, yeah right, I'd rather read Harry Potter

Yep, that's right. I started the 4th Harry Potter book last night if for no other reason but just because I can. I finished Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell, last night and it was a great book. It was so nice to finally have time to read something for myself, I really miss reading.
I have been emailing back and forth with a woman about taking care of her kids while I am up for break and she wants to meet this Friday. The problem is, I have no car and unfortuneately the public transportation system in the U.S. is seemingly unexistant unless you have several hours to spend in route or you live in Downtown Seattle. Neither of these are the case for me so I am left not sure of what I will be doing. I would love to have a job, I hate getting bored and Kurtis is going to be so busy all the time that 3 or 4 hours a day, a few days a week would be great.
Thursday, Katie Duntley is coming up to campus and Katie, Sara MacDaniel and I are going to go to the Thanksgiving lunch together and then Sara is taking me to the airport. I said goodbye to Hannah yesterday, she is off to Alabama to see her Grandma and sister and little nephew for Thanksgiving. I'll be seeing her next quarter though because the Athletic Dept. hired her again.
I got an email yesterday that our plane tickets have been purchased for Prague! I can't believe that it is actually happening! Thinking about my family, Kurtis will be in Mexico, Baba and Katie will be in China and then France and I will be in Prague and Austria. You would think that we were from old money, think again! Or maybe Mama's real origins are not only German, Austrian, French, Scottish, African, Japanese, and Thai but stem back to the blood of Genghis Khan and we have inherited all of his riches. We'll never know although I am sure Mama is nodding her head readily in agreement.
I am looking forward to getting back, leaving in just two days, I can't believe it! I get home Thursday, Kurtis has a Robbie Christmas gig on Friday, Saturday we have a Seasol action at the Italian restaurant, Sunday we go to Lopez, then Wednesday is a Stella gig, Thursday Thanksgiving, and it just keeps going, can't wait. Plus now, I have started Harry Potter #4 so how can life not be awesome! I'm such a nerd, sometimes I trick myself into thinking that I did not inherit the unfortunate trait that my brother so readily took on from my father (sorry Baba, but you are a nerd, you call your ipad your "baybay", and sorry papa but if it looks like a duck, and it quacks like a duck, then you call it a duck). Then I am quickly reminded of my love for Harry Potter and my lack of a social filter and I realize that I am yet my father's daughter.

Relaxed Finals Week?

I feel like I have stepped into the Twilight Zone...I only have two papers left for this week and they are both already written and only in need of editing. Really? Finals week my senior year and I am bored? Impossible, someone must have spiked the hot chocolate.

This weekend was a great way to wrap up the quarter. On Saturday we had the volleyball fundraiser at 9 a.m. and we got all the bags assembled and delivered by 11 which was great. After that I ran home to take shower and get ready to go to St. Louis with Christy and Ally for a cafe day. We drove all the way into St. Louis and commandeered a table for 4 hours to eat lunch, drink coffee, draw, talk, eat muffins, and tlak some more. It was the perfect day too. Christy and I had looked up the weather because we wanted to make sure that we were doing this on a cold and cozy day and we sure got it right. I think winter came that morning and now I can feel that it isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

That night I ran into Kiersten and her roommate Owen and helped them bake a cake. We watched a movie, Bounce, and met Natalie for dinner. That night all of the women's dorms blew up 3,000, literally, balloons and filled the concourse with them. It was quite amazing. It was slightly terrifying and unsettling to see the lunch ladies pop the balloons that were making their way into the scramble room though. This one woman got this crazy look in her eyes and went berzerk on those balloons. I was witness to the balloon massacre of 2010, it was terrible.

Yesterday, I went to church and then to a play in St. Louis with the Prague abroad group. It was called Rock n' Roll and it was about the role of rock and roll in the Prague revolution but it was more confusing than anything. There was good music in between scenes but if that was the message that I left with, I am starting to think that I didn't really grasp the real essence of the play.

Anyways, last night we had a Christmas party in Howard. I was walking back from working out and it was freezing cold and then I could smell smoke from our chimney and then I saw the christmas tree all lit up in the window. As I got closer I heard the christmas music playing and girls laughing, it was so cozy. We had a white elephant gift exchange. I got a great mug and hot chocolate, peppermint bark, and a huge candy cane stick. The poor girl that got my present just got a bunch of candy, one thing of hot chocolate and a huge cookie, essentially the things I was not going to eat from my volleyball fundraiser bag. It was lots of fun and we had hot apple cider and popcorn and hot chocolate.

I am planning on taking a nice, long nap today, I am all tuckered out (as a 95 year old woman would say). I stayed up a couple hours later than normal last night finishing a movie and then talking to Kurtis, what a bad influence he is! We are starting to realize how long 5 months without seeing eachother is going to be, more than twice the amount of time we usually have to spend apart and that is painful enough as it is. This break will be our alst chance to see eachother until June 4th, ugh. We will have many fun stories though and fun adventures that I am sure we will be distracted from missing eachother too distractingly much. I hope so at least.

Home Stretch, Here I Come

I realize now how close I am to finishing this quarter-and thank the good Lord in heaven for that. I wrote two papers this week, finished a 12 source annotated bibliography, typed 15 pages of quotations, turned in my phase 5, got my capstone contract formed by nearly every staff member, had our volleyball banquet, and gave an hour long presentation in Spanish.
And now I am almost done! I'm at work right now, as you can tell they have me weighed down with loads of work. It has been one of my most productive places to do homework everyday. The other day I went shopping for the banquet and our goodie bag fundraiser supplies with Mary Ann, Hannah, Sara, and Gary. They took us to the Original Pancake House beforehand to start us off energized for shopping. In reality, I drank two cups of coffee and ended up just really having to go to the bathroom most of the time. When we came back, two girls on the team were auditioning their choreographed dances for the Dance Production that goes on in the Winter quarter. They did so well and we found out last night that they both got accepted. After that, I worked out and then Cat and I went into Alton to get presents for the coaches and eat dinner at Bread Co. Yum Yum.
I am so grateful that today is Friday, I will only have two more classes after today (I only have 1 today) and I think that one of those class periods will mean watching Planet Earth, I have a tough life.
Kurtis is still crazy busy with music, lessons, painting, and meetings. I am looking forward to getting home though, although I'm skeptical as to whether I will help his busy levels or not. Tomorrow we are doing the volleyball fundraiser which is always fun and then I am going out with Christy to have a cafe day. It is getting colder, that is for sure, and I hear that it is cold back home in Washington too.
My cousin Katlyn just got engaged, YEP, you heard it right! I just saw on Facebook. Isn't that weird, that we learn about people's personal lives on the internet now. No personal contact or intentional conversation but we still know what is going on in eachother's lives. I'm not convinced that that is a good thing. I'm actually thinking that it is terrible. I wish we still had to write letters to people and appreciated a good phone call once in a while. It's weird how the easier communication appears to get, the more ways we can communicate increases, we actually communicate less. How does that work? I think it's the laziness of being able to post something to the whole world and then not having to take the time or maybe even the awkward conversations to talk to each individual person. That's exactly what I am doing on this blog though, hmmmm...........