London Study Abroad

My Last Post

Hello Hello!

Happy New Year's Eve!  I am writing to you as I sit in my comfortable bed in our new house in Lake Tahoe.  I hadn't had the privilege of visiting during the summer before London, and now I have the luxury of spending new year's up here.  I can definitely see many good years to come in this house. 

Any who, I am home.  And it feels so good.  I arrived a day later than expected, and therefore did not have an initial transition day.  I had many appointments set up, I think four in two days, which for a jet lagged young woman it takes a toll.  I managed to stay awake for all of them, although I did get hit pretty hard with a cold.  Major sinus pains...my tooth even hurt...I had no idea that a toothache would be related to sinus irritations.  Sort of just felt like crap.  But I did get to drive...I love driving...everything about it, and getting into David's car...ah...it was so smooth, so natural, so right.  And although I still have difficulty crossing the street and not knowing which way to look, my driving has not been effected at all.  Thank goodness. 

Christmas came! Saw relatives that I hadn't seen in a long time, especially my nana, I love her.  It was a nice evening fairly low key, and my cousin is now 15 so the whole holiday is starting to take a different tone because there aren't any kids around anymore.  I GOT NEW MARKERS!!! I color, and my markers that I took with me were dying, but now I have professional ones!! I am a happy girl. 

My sister and Mik came home the day after I did, and Mik sadly had to go back to work on Monday, but Clea stayed with us.  The four of us came up to Tahoe, and there is so much snow! I love snow.  We have just been relaxing in the new house.  This morning we all woke up really early, said goodbye to Clea (she is going to mik's family for new year's...hate this whole splitting the family thing) and then I went back to bed, while the folks took her to the airport. 

So that has what has filled my time since I have been back.  Probably more than you wanted to know, but it's the last time I get to tell you all the details of my life, thought I would take advantage of it.  I keep noticing different things between home and London.  At Safeway one doesn't pack their own bags, but at Sainsbury's in London you do.  People also do much bigger shopping trips here than I noticed in London. I do miss being able to walk or take transport to wherever I want to go.  But I don't miss having that feeling of needing to escape the flat by going on a walk.  17 people is just too many.  I am eating much yummier foods here, one because David is the best chef, and two because I do not have to watch every single penny I spend.  I miss my internship, but I can't wait to start a job I love and report back to them.  Oh sidenote: I did fine academically this semester...I was very worried, but all turned out well. 

I cannot wait to return to Guilford.  My people are there.  I've got friends that were also abroad returning, and people who held the fort while we were gone.  There are professors I want to see, and I can't wait to regroup with QLSP.  I am so excited about classes.  I have a great line up, and I missed being academically challenged, so although I may complain, I love learning, and I love working really hard.  I will also love studying in my single room!! Yes, yes, I got an apartment!! Not really sure who the other girls are, but I am sure it will work out beautifully, I mean I have a single and a kitchen...what could be better? 

Speaking of Guilford, I would really like to thank those who asked me to write this blog, Ty Buckner, Sara and Aimee, and I believe Jim Hood had a part in this as well.  I had planned on doing a blog before being asked, but I knew I wouldn't keep up with it.  This opportunity really allowed me to commit, experience, and enjoy sharing my experiences.  At first I was a little nervous because I was going to be representing Guilford...I mean right there on the home page...I questioned my abilities.  I received so much support though, which allowed me to be more honest and to share more than I probably would have.  I wrote this for me, I wanted to have some documentation so that in thirty years when I have a freak out in life I can refer to my time in London, and simply remember how much I have grown.  I feel like I did my best here.  I do not say that often.  I had fun.  I enjoyed writing each post, I never thought it was a burden or a hard task.  Some days I did postpone it for a bit, mainly because I wanted to be in a better mood while writing, but overall I really looked forward to sharing.  The London experience taught me certain things, but this blog certainly gave me more of a voice than I thought I had at Guilford.  I will certainly take my fifteen minutes of fame with pride, and pass the duty on to the next person.  I hope you all enjoyed reading just one post here and there or were a devout follower, I thank you for your support as well. 

Have a great new year, be safe, have fun, love yourself. 

over and out

be well dear ones

Stuck

hey there,

So I am in the process of coming home.  Things have been a bit crazy the last few days.  I finished up my internship, sad to say goodbye to Frances and Rita, (but I got pictures of them! and also he office where I worked).  Went to Emily's birthday party on Friday night at the Zoo Bar, was fun and interesting, hot, and intense all at the same time, got in for free, and really that alone made it all worth it.  Saturday I had to go to the Apple Store in London to try to fix my computer.  I was upgrading my OS system, but the computer lid closed in the process and screwed my whole computer up.  I had to wipe my hard drive, but not before Waltina worked his magic and transferred all my stuff to his handy external hard drive.  He then wiped mine, and then installed Snow Leopard...it is like I have a completely new computer...with most of my stuff saved too (I think I lost so word documents along the way...impermanence must be practiced here). 

Said lots of goodbyes, hard to see the St. Norbert kids go, because I really won't see them again.  I will see most of the Guilford kids next semester, but it is still weird not to have them around...I know it has only been a day but it is like my body knows they aren't going to be around anymore.  Had a bit of anxiety the night before our flight (Kelsey and I flew in to DC together on Sunday morning).  Severe weather delays. 

Our flight was delayed about three hours, which made me miss my connecting flight, and all the other flights yesterday were sold out.  I waited in a three hour line, with at least two hundred other people to see if there was a flight I could get on today.  David called United and somehow got me on a flight at 4:20 today.  No earlier flights had any room, and standby has like 20 plus people on the list.  So I have a seat, after spending six hours waiting, standing, fuming with frustration, and seeing people in much worse situations from the time I landed to getting to my hotel.  I am a bit peeved.  Apparently it took at least a couple hours for Kelsey to get her luggage...that makes no sense and is unacceptable.  Oh by the way, this is all United...I would think twice, maybe three times before I book with them again.

So now it is 10:40 am in I think Virginia, I am actually not positive as to where I am, my east coast knowledge is slim, especially in the DC area.  Have free wi-fi in the room, so I thought I would explain my absense in the blog world.  I will of course update again once I am home. 

I have noticed some cultural differences already...no Ground floors, bigger (more comfortable) hotel rooms, American accents EVERYWHERE.  no more evening standard newspaper.  I think coming back might be more of a transition than I originally thought...

Now I wait, I have my computer with a movie on it, and oh, my coloring book, that just made me excited.  Trying to locate a toothbrush, (hopefully my bags are in SFO by now), I will raise hell if they aren't when I arrive later.  yay for wearing the same clothes again...if I were smart I would have brought an extra pair...sometimes lessons are learned the hard way. 

All right, I am going to go.  Please wish me luck, send good thoughts to the weather gods and the airport fairies.  Let's just get home.

Stay warm, be well dear ones.

Changes

I think this is an appropriate subject heading for today. 

As of right now, I have six days left.  Just six.  One more day of class, two more days of work, and then packing and home.  Home sweet home. 

But let's not get ahead of ourselves, I still have six days.  Six more days. 

Today was one day.  I had class, did a presentation, got defensive, bored, and didn't give the most highly marked evaluation.  I think it is ridiculous to have an internship class when we aren't just talking about our internships, and actual experiences, she tried to weave it in, but there was this whole other agenda programmed, that I didn't care about or connect to, and now I have to write a paper that incorporates those readings, which means tomorrow I will be reading.  I also think it is odd that the final paper counts for more than actually showing up to the internship three days a week for seven weeks.  I am just over the whole thing. 

We went to Dutch House Pancakes for 5 pound pancakes today, but of course this is one of two mondays out of the whole year it doesn't count...too close to the holiday's...they want more money.  Really lame.  But I still had a yummy crepe, and the waitress thought she was doing us a favor by giving us a 10% discount, but that comes with since we are students. Duh.

I went to work after lunch, I managed to be productive even though Rita wasn't there to make me chuckle.  I stayed for Changes, a coming out group for women. 

Groups like this always make me think.  We reflected on our past year, how have we grown with our sexuality?  what changes have we made?  What has our journey looked like?  I have reflected on the last year before, but not in terms of just my sexuality.  It is an interesting look back.  I started the year with a girlfriend, but I end the year with the possibility of returning to a boy.  It is a bit strange.  I am living the definition of a bisexual, I like both, no harm in that.  But it feels weird.  If I am with a boy, am I still identifiable with the gay community, or am I part of the straight world?  I would like to think it doesn't matter, but it does.  The lesbians I have noticed are rather exclusive, they want a woman to be all the way gay or not at all, they don't know what to do with us inbetweeners.  I feel like a lot don't understand that sexuality is a spectrum.  And because of this, I want to fit a mold, I just want to have a category that everyone can put me in, I don't need to be different, stand out, make a point, and I don't want my sexuality to be the center of everything.  I feel like I have done a pretty good job of this.  I don't shout it about, but I don't deny it.  But what about when I am in a relationship with a straight boy, do I talk about my sexuality then?  Do two straight people talk about how much they like straight people?  I guess I would need to be in a relationship that support the conversation, because although I don't shout aloud, I will still want to chat, express and share.  At the London Friend holiday party last week I noticed that all the conversations surrounded gay issues, their gay lives, everything gay gay gay.  In a way it is liberating for them to be able to express these opinions with people who can empathize and understand, but on the other hand, I don't want to just talk about gay things with gay people.  My insides are all twisted around this, I don't have a clear stance, which in a way makes sense, because I believe so strongly in a spectrum, that to be wavering along the line of how okay I am with each scene gay or straight is okay, natural, nothing to be concerned about.  It still is uncomfortable, I still feel vulnerable, although I have never been personally attacked because of my sexuality, I am only 20, I have a lot of living to do.  People search forever for answers.  I am searching, peeking, hiding, covering my eyes and ears to certain comments, yet speaking my truth, I feel lots of energies and emotions around the whole issue.

These are my thoughts that one little session has spurred.  So much thinking. 

I will write tomorrow on my adventures from the last few days, Amelia, Waltina's girlfriend has been here, and we have gone on some excursions, with I believe a few pictures....

Be well dear ones.

It's Official

I have been replaced.  Sad day.  No longer does my link sit tightly, comfortably, proudly on Guilford's main page, instead a few clicks must be installed and programmed into your muscle memory to take you to the student blog page off of admissions.  Hopefully you will follow me over there as I am surrounded by other bloggers, it actually has my picture up now, I guess that is pretty sweet.  Hmph. Wednesday morning, woke up sweating, no new thing, the heat keeps getting turned up in the middle of the night, not good.  Ready for my internship today, not quite sure what I will be doing, probably just getting ready for the AGM tomorrow night, and fixing up for the party! 

I SAW EDDIE IZZARD.  I know I know, be jealous, it is okay, I won't judge you.  He made me laugh.  Shauna had extra tickets so I joined her.  We had dinner at the Sherlock Holmes Pub, then took the Thames Clipper over to the O2.  Really cool to see London at night along the river.  I will miss that.  The lights, the architecture, the blackness of the water, but everything just seemed so crisp.  The fresh air was nice, especially with the bottle of champagne we enjoyed drinking (Shauna paid for flutes, but they handed her the whole bottle instead...who is going to say no to that?).  The O2 is massive, thousands of people, and Shauna had purchased tickets that were right in the front, like 13 rows back, on the floor, crazy close.  I enjoyed him a lot.  Didn't quite know what to expect, but I did chuckle quite a bit. 

Thankfully my class got canceled yesterday morning, so I could take it easy after a fun night out.  Wrote some more of a paper, 2/3 done. Heck yes.  Waltina and I ended up going to the Trafalger, because we were bored.  We had some interesting conversations, flat life, ad ten it switched to QLSP.  We sort of debated it's presence, meaning, purpose, political position.  Interesting conversation to have with someone not part of QLSP.  He thinks we are a mystery, I don't blame him because we struggle defining our own identity.  Something we are working on.  He can think of it as a cult, or a frat, or some exclusive group, but I love it, and don't think it is any of those, well, perhaps a little exclusive in the way that you have to apply, but you don't have to be Quaker, I would be the case in point there.

All right, I really need to finish getting ready, I had just noticed that my blogging fame moved locations and I thought I would lead you all to the correct new home.  Thank you for your support.  Have fantastic days, smile. 

be well dear ones

 

Picture Time!!

These are really delayed...but they are finally here.  Three links should follow, the first is pictures fro Paris, the next are pictures Tara sent me from Paris, and the last are pictures from when Clea and Mik came to visit and Ireland.  Enjoy. 

http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/slideShow/Main.jsp?token=115799367211%3A2128244

http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/slideShow/Main.jsp?token=215799367211%3A407147857

http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/slideShow/Main.jsp?token=315799367211%3A930717645

Also, yesterday was a fantastic day.  A much needed day in fact.  It started off with Walter getting a new nickname...Waltina.  hehe.  I won't put the origin of the new nickname, because, well, that might embarrass him.  So, Waltina, Kelsey and I headed over to Portobello market, we ate at Earl of Lonsdale, yum yum.  We then headed over to Foyles, picked up some books, then went to the Tate Modern.  It was a big day, but we laughed and laughed.  Then went to Nando's for dinner, interesting experience.  Came home and tried to relax as most of the flat got ready to go out.  2 weeks, just 2 more weeks, thank goodness.  No one should enter our kitchen now.  It is utterly disgusting.  I think Ike, who is finally back, is going to lay down the law, good, it's about time.  Can't wait to come home!!  I need to write a paper today, and figure out a presentation later.  Have good Sunday's!!!

be well dear ones.

Funkytown

I would like to apologize for the delay, for the clicks onto the site with no reward, for the anticipation that just ended up getting deflated. It's not fair, I am aware.  Life is hard.  

I have been absent, with no other good reason except that I didn't want to write because I have been in a funk.  It has been more internal this time around, I am not as obviously in a funk as earlier in the semester.  Change is about to happen.  Big time.  In two weeks from tomorrow I wilI be packing up and heading home.  I am not worried about reverse culture shock, or relearning which direction to look when crossing the road, or even not being able to drink in public (just for three months though!!!), because well I have lived like that much longer than the three months here.  I just get worried about all the unknowns.  I am excited to go home, nervous to go back to school.  Where will I live, who will I live with (hopefully Kelsey and Savannah in the new apartments, hint hint nudge nudge to those in charge at Guilford)?  Many of my friends have been abroad this semester, what kind of changes have they been through?  How will it show?  What about the people that stayed?  Will we be able to meet on the same level?  Oh, and it will feel like I am in a new school because there have been so many physical changes to campus, old news now, but I still haven't seen it.  

I don't think these are outrageous concerns.  I am sure everyone who transitions wonders the same thing, it is just hitting me pretty hard.  I am really having to separate the two locations, I am still here, now, and I will be there, then.  Treat it like that.  Stay present here, enjoy my last two weeks, even though dynamics have already begun to change.  I am okay.  Just need to remind myself that. 

Okay, just needed to get that out.  Moving on.  Today is going to be an excellent day.  Kelsey Walter and I are going to check out Portabello Market, (clea - I am going back for that cute dress we saw...because now I have boots to wear with it) eat at on of our favorite pubs, head over to Foyles, because who doesn't love a massive book store, and then finally after three months here we are going to the Tate Modern.  This is the one museum that I have most wanted to go to, but never found the perfect time to go, I believe that time is today.  It is sunny right now, so hopefully we can go before the rain starts. 

Paris was fantastic.  So, so much fun.  I will tell you in brief what I did.  Took the train over, highly recommend that form of transportation, met up with Tara (Dan's fiance) and we walked.  Walked all over, stumbled upon a massive market that had lots of antique things, and many stamps, apparently that is in, precarved stamps.  We also found a market that serves a variety of ethnic foods and so we enjoyed some Lebanese cuisine.  Very tasty indeed.  Oh, I speak no french, besides hello and thank you, other than that I just smile and nod, but Tara is fluent, phew.  Oh. I bought a pair of red sneakers, they are adorable I must say.  Met up with Dan that evening, ate at a traditional French Bistro, had a steak and pomme frites.  yum yum yum.  Ended up meeting Bruno, a colleague of Dan's as we went out for drinks later that night.  I passed out.  Pretty sure I slept for 12 hours or just about.  So nice to sleep in a bed that isn't bunked.  Saturday we ventured to the biggest wine tasting in all of France.  Hundreds of wines, thousands of people in this big arena venue.  I think I tried about 15, mostly reds, Bruno said it was better for the stomach to start with red and move to white.  Okay Bruno.  It was a lot of fun.  Except for the whole language barrier, I pretty much just stuck my glass out and they filled it.  It worked.  I also had a duck fois gras baguette which was mighty tasty.  After about four hours there, we headed over to Bruno's apartment where we ate a traditional French meal, fromage (cheese) and bread, with pate, and sausage. Oh. My. God. I was in heaven.  Now, my stomach cannot do dairy, it is a bit finicky like that, but it wanted this meal, and said please feed me more.  I fell in love.  It was all good, nothing I didn't like.  Found a new goat's cheese that I love, hopefully we can find it in the states.  I have pictures of everything.  yum yum yum.  Sunday we played it cool, slept for a really long time, went out to breakfast/lunch, then Dan peaced out because Tara and I were shopping, we found a Salon de The. It must be one of the oldest tea salon's in Paris.  Imaging just a bar of melted milk chocolate, that was our hot chocolate.  So thick, so creamy, so delicious.  I also has some sort of rasberry tart with custard and passion fruit, also hit the spot.  Sunday night we ate at their favorite falafel place, I didn't know falafels could be so good.  Headed home Monday morning, back in time for class. 

I could not have asked for a better weekend in Paris.  I really appreciate Dan and Tara's generosity and am grateful that we were able to share such a wonderful weekend. 

Work is going really well.  Yesterday I felt useful, I put together some statistics and made a chart, Frances approved, so all is good.  Went to Galop yesterday, an organization that helps fight gay hate crime, people can call and report abuse, harassment, crimes, and then Galop deals with it.  Great organization, made me excited again as to why I am at not only London Friend, but in small organizations that are really helping society.  Without these places, then a lot of people would suffer.   It is always good to be reminded of that. 

Hmmm.. Oh. seeing Eddie Izzard on Monday!!! he is so funny.  Shauna got extra tickets so I am going with her. 

See these posts get so long when I haven't updated in a while, I suppose that is good motive to write more often.  We shall see. 

Have a good weekend everyone, be safe, have fun, smile. 

Take care dear ones.