People
Every time I have an experience with anyone in Ireland inside or outside of the university I am generally amazed by the kindness and warm personality of Irish people. Now, I’m sure there are mean Irish out there but I seem to have really good luck or something. During the first weeks I was here I would go out to bars because I didn’t know anyone and within thirty minutes of sitting down just about anywhere I would almost always have someone sit down with me and talk to me about anything from their day to some epic story that they feel is important to everyday life. Being a person who loves to listen this friendliness is an amazing concept to me. Since those first few weeks, while I may not go out quite as much I still seem to find friendly Irish people everywhere.
I would love to be able to tell you that I have pinpointed the source of all Irish friendliness but I really haven’t the foggiest where it comes from. Its powers never cess to amaze me, however, as it creates so many occasions of ‘good craic’ and reaches out to all sorts of people.
A common term used in everyday language here is “Craic”. This term is used in everyday language generally to describe a good time, generally involving a group of people. The first time I feel I was truly involved in some ‘good craic’ was one evening when my flat mates and I all went out and then afterwards we came back to our flat and had a couple friends we had met up with when we went out over. I would not call this gather necessary a great party or anything, it was simply a gathering of friends to sit around and have some laughs and engaged in some interesting conversation to maintain the fun vibes of the night for as long as possible. That night we stayed up for approximately three hours just sitting around talking after having been out at the student union until one thirty, despite having classes the next day, which I can only describe to my friends back home as a good time where we enjoyed each other’s company.
While this is not a foreign concept to me, hanging out with some good friends for some good company, I feel that this is something that is not near as common where I am from. Sure kids will hang out back in Raleigh and have a good time without plans, and my group of friends that I hang out with at my home university also have this ability to just chill together and enjoy each others company, but I feel that that is something that is special and someone unique to my group of friends, as I do not hear about many other groups being like that. Here, however, being able to settle in for an evening of “Craic” seems to be the norm and is something that can rather easily be cultivated amongst almost any group of people.
This ability of the Irish people to cultivate a good time does not seem to be attached to their location either which I think is an amazing quality. I have met people from Ireland in places such as Italy and they were just as kind and friendly as if they were here in Ireland. In fact I was explaining to them a situation I was in that I was going to be stuck at the Belfast city airport overnight waiting for a bus the next morning and they offered to let me stay at their place for the night because apparently the airport is a miserable place to spend the night. This kindness was even surpassed when I was on the flight home and was explaining this situation to another Irish person and someone from nearby where I was staying overheard my issue and offered me a ride back to my flat since they were heading that way anyways and I ended up being able to make it home an hour after my flight landed which was amazing since I was originally thinking that I would be stuck in the airport for 6 hours and then on a bus for at least 2. And that is just what I feel is my strongest example. This leads me back to my question, what makes the people I have encountered in Ireland so friendly?
Settling In
3-20-09
As I returned home from my short trip to Belfast, walking the familiar streets of Derry I had a pleasant relief sensation, something I have not experienced in quite some time, almost as though I was heading home. And I do suppose that this is as close as heading home, I will be doing for some time. I believe that every time I leave my home it simply makes me appreciate my true home, Raleigh North Carolina, more and more. This I think should speak levels about how much I enjoy being home. However I can feel myself sort of ‘settling into’ the idea of here, my flat, being my home. I am becoming more and more comfortable being here and especially after traveling to other cities enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of Derry as my ‘home base’.
On this same note however I have also built up confidence in my ability to travel by myself, which it looks like I will be doing a lot of. One very helpful thing I have found for this is the Lonely Planet book series, I have the Ireland one and it has come in handy more the a few times with is good maps and phone numbers for local area things and prices. I am hoping to purchase the Italy version of the book for my Easter trip I’ve been planning to Italy. I’m beginning to really see the perks of traveling by yourself, you get to see and do what you want, when you want to. I really wysh that I had a close friend or a family member to travel with because I think that would be my ideal way to travel, and that way I could have some company and wouldn’t have to be as super careful/ nearly paranoid all the time but, there’s not too much I can do about that right now.
4-25-09
Now that I have been on even more trips from the Republic of Ireland (for a week) to England to Italy (14 day backpacking trip) I feel even more comfortable here in Derry. Looking back at my time here I realize that I have evolved a lot as person. I feel like I have now proven to myself that whatever I want to put my mind to taking on I can accomplish and more. Once I complete my course work I will be embarking on another big trip this time around mid-central Europe, I’m thinking Switzerland, Germany, Hungry, etc. Things have turned around so much for me since I even just started to try and study abroad. And now here I am about to complete a semester abroad, having establish a new since of home, having learned that I can do whatever I put my mind to, and looking forward to bringing my new changed mindset back home with me.
One thing I came into this experience with was the feeling that this may be my only opportunity to go abroad and experience new cultures like this. Now I fully realize how expensive a process that is but I have a feeling deep in my heart that if I want to do this again, which I do, I will find a way to pull it off. This is not an end to a great opportunity I’ve been given, rather this is an opportunity for me to apply all that I have learned here to all that I now appreciate back at home.
Another Town
The breeze of the rotating fan sitting on top of a chair in front of the kitchen wafts the smell of homemade tomato sauce towards me as I sit on the couch of my childhood friends’ air condition less flat. Procrastinating on writing this entry I glance out the doorway to the terrace watching the Italians pop out of their windows yelling to their friends on the street and shaking out their rugs. This is quite possibly the most relaxing place I have ever been with a plethora of amazing food available on every doorstep and great weather and lovely places to get lost in.
I have now been in Milan for two days staying with my good childhood friend. I absolutely love this city. So far Italy has been lovely. I am here on my spring break, which was headed off by a three day stay in Birmingham and then followed by two days in Venice. Tomorrow I will be departing from Milan to Florence where I will be for three nights and then it’s off to Rome. I cannot believe I am already halfway through my break; it has been such an amazing experience though. Just about every place I have been I feel like I have fully appreciated by the time I left. I will admit that I am a bit sad to see that I will be leaving Milan soon and I am not looking forward to my return to Ireland, as it will involve much hard work, trying to get my projects done ahead of time so that I can travel more, as well as deciding where and when I want to travel.
This trip has been an independent endeavor and traveling alone, I think, is definitely the way to go. It’s so much more hassle free and you get to see everything that you want to see at your own pace. However for those traveling alone I think it is highly recommendable to meet up with people along the way. This makes traveling so much easier especially in situations that I have put myself into particularly with my language barrier, being in Italy as an only English speaker. Being here in Milan with my friend has been amazing because she can speak both English and Italian and can show me around to all of the Italian type of places to go and things to do and tell me about some of the history. Otherwise I end up spending a lot of time with people who I cannot really communicate with that easily which can also be quite fascinating. However I have learned so much from this experience I think it has definitely been worth it. I find Italy to be an absolutely gorgeous place though and it has been so amazing to finally have some really high quality food as well as be able to get some real sunshine and warmth on my skin which is something I have really learned to appreciate since going to Ireland despite that it is a little bit too bright for my eyes comfort some of the time.
Transportation
In the last few months I do believe I have taken every form of transportation available with the exception of ferry (this is because I have been told to wait until May to do that, as it will be cold and miserable before then). Planes are my least favorite way to go by far, it is just ridiculous I think the amount of time you spend waiting, sure it may be a little bit faster but it certainly doesn’t seem like it, first you have to find a way to the airport then you have to wait through security, which is retarded btw, it’s just a hassle and really doesn’t make me feel anymore safe, and then you have to sit around for an hour waiting to board the plane and then you may get 30 minutes of pretty views but then you’re just staring at clouds for the remainder of the trip it seems like. I, being the incredibly cheap person that I am have become well acquainted with busses. Before coming to the UK I had never actually taken public busses before and I have learned to appreciate them now. Of course they have many downsides such as, tons of people, and take a while longer than any other form of transportation but the important thing is they work and are reasonably priced plus they usually bring you through major cities so along the way you get to see a whole bunch of beautiful countryside and then ride through the middle of town, maybe even do a little window shopping from the bus and see what the people are like for a few minutes at the stops. I still think that London by far has the easiest transportation and after that one night we got lost I feel like I can successfully find my way just about anywhere using busses without much trouble, though the Tube is a far superior way of traveling in London. On my trips I have taken just about every form of transportation and I feel fairly comfortable with all of them. And when I don’t know what I’m doing I have never had any trouble finding someone to point me in the right direction. I do not have too much experience with taking trains but I have taken them a few times and feel comfortable doing so, in fact for my Easter break I have planned a trip to Italy during which my primary form of transportation will be by train.
Here in Derry it is not unusual for people to hop in a cab and go to where ever they need to go, cabs are fairly reasonable and usually have a friendly driver willing to have a nice chat with you, however, personally however my favorite method of transportation is definitely walking. If I can get there by walking within an hour than I will choose the walk over any other form of transportation. Walking is very refreshing and it makes me feel much more close to the town and evolved. I also love walking as an opportunity to get to know towns better, I find my way around and even find short cuts that after wondering around a little bit with some locals even they did not know about yet, which made me feel very accomplished. One thing about here though that makes me very glad I purchased my long trench coat is that it will be very nice out and then it may be raining a bit. My trench coat definitely comes in handy this way that I can just throw it on and walk around the town without worrying if I am dressed appropriately because when its open it functions as a light jacket, closed a warm coat and also a rain coat which is basically all the functions I need. Also as I tend to do a lot of wondering around on my own I have adopted the plug in and go addiction I suppose you could say to my Zune. Whenever I am feeling particularly down or bored or just like I need to do something I will just throw on my trench coat put on my ear buds and walk around the town listening to music until a café catches my interest then I may have some tea and read a bit and then keep on wondering around until the sun goes down. I think this is a great and healthy way of spending an afternoon and most of the time I find something new about the city which always makes me feel a little accomplished too. I will sometimes do this in the evening as well and just stop by a pub and get into a conversation with some local which always very pleasant.
Weather
Weather in Ireland is, in my case, nicer than I expected. I am a lover of the rain and I was hoping for rain everyday, which it generally does rain everyday here but the difference is, when I think of rain I think of North Carolina rain that you hear on your windows and the roof and has that light refreshing sound to it. This is still true for Ireland rain sometimes but generally it is more of a mist than a rain so to speak. This still will create the nice fresh after rain smell I love so much but it’s not quite the same as being able to hear it inside. Another thing is after a week of being here I had adjusted to the cooler temperatures and while it has warmed up a good bit I really couldn’t tell. I am so used to the bipolar weather of North Carolina I keep bracing myself for it to be super hot one day and freezing the next. Here in Ireland I’d say with the exception of the temperature drop with the setting of the sun (which should be expected) all temperature changes are very gradual and therefore I don’t really notice them.
As far as adjusting from Fahrenheit to Celsius, it’s really not happening. For a while in the beginning I was looking at things in Celsius and for a little while I had a good idea of what it meant, this I believe was simply because things were so close to freezing that the equation was easy for me. In the beginning there was also a lot of sleet and such apparently I was told it was one of the coldest winters they’ve had in a while but I think I missed the worst of it as there was only about a week or two where it was really nasty winter weather, threatening to snow and instead sleeting and freezing. But now I find there is not real point in looking up the weather I just expect it to be cool outside with a chance of rain and generally I’m right, this stayed true even during my week trip across the south western coast of Ireland. Up until this week I had only had two days that I have actually seen the ground partially dry since I’d come here. Today and yesterday however it has been dry and sunny outside, lovely weather just in time for St. Patrick’s Day here.
Here are couple quick notes on the topic of St Patrick’s Day. I could not believe the amount of people from back home that thought that Americans celebrate St. Patrick’s Day more than the Irish and I must say that they are quite mistaken. A least here St Patrick’s Day has been more like St. Patrick’s week. There have been activities since Saturday in commemoration of St. Patrick’s as well as having the day off and most of my classes for this week cancelled. On the day of there were tons or parties as well as church and there was a parade and every place that was open had live music. Unfortunately I have been very sick and had to spend the majority of my time sleeping to try and recover but I did manage to get out to see the parade on the day of St. Patrick’s and saw a little live music and went to a small party in my friend’s flat which was all plenty of excitement for me. But the weather these last few days has been positively lovely and has l have been taking advantage of it as much as I can take walks around the town and keeping my window open pretty much constantly.
Food
Immediately upon entering the closest grocery store (other than Longs), Sainsbury’s, there is a whole variety of Fruit, often with some sort of special on a citrus such as clementines or oranges. As you proceed forward there is a large variety of produce from blueberries to potatoes. The produce here is fairly reasonably priced and if I felt that I was better at cooking I would probably take advantage of this. As you move toward the back of the store you enter a relatively small refrigerated area. This area has some meals, on one isle and on the other it has an assortment of yogurts, and cheeses. As you move the next refrigerated isle there are many different types of meats from packaged pre-sliced ham to “bacon” and everything in between.
In many ways this is a very typical grocery store and I find it very nice how familiar it is to maneuver. The only problems arise in the locating of certain ingredients. For example, I was trying to find some powdered sugar, which they do not appear to carry, by looking with the rest of the baking goods, spices, salt flour etc. and after much searching asked a worker who promptly showed me to the drink section where there was a large selection of sugars, dark, light, sweetener, granulated, and so on but was very confused by the whole concept of ‘powdered’ sugar and tried to get me to by a very fine sweetener for coffees and such instead. Also there are around 3 isles of “confectionaries” which are the sweets isles completely filled with candies of all sorts but mostly dominated by chocolates which I’m sure is not a good sign for my waist line as I have a bit of a chocolate addiction that I has only been fueled further here.
There are also about three isles of breads and then two of ‘biscuits’. One of these is some people may consider to be cookies, however I think while they are quite excellent do not quite deserve the name of cookies and biscuits is an adequate description, most of which have some sort of layer of chocolate on them and are quite tasty and nice for dipping in warm drinks such as hot cocoa. The other is more like crackers and has a variety from the American ‘stone crackers’ if you’ve ever had those to “Cheddars” which are something like a cheese flavored Ritz cracker and so on.
On the far end from where you come in the store is separated into two parts. The front of which is a freezer area with basically microwave chicken and things of that nature (this section also surprisingly includes in bins above the freezers canned tuna and salmon and the back of which is an “off License” area, aka booze area with a decent selection of beers, wines, ciders, vodka, and more, which is fenced off and has signs saying something about 21 or over which doesn’t make since to me as you can purchase anything in there at the age of 18.
As far as eating out I really do not have that much experience. I have found that most pizza places are good and as far as ‘Traditional Irish Food” I have learned that this basically includes potatoes maybe some carrots as far as vegetables good and then pub food for just about everything else I would say that this includes pot pies burgers and Irish breakfasts. There are other things which can be found I really just cannot afford to go out to eat much so I’m not that informed.
However I have been making a valiant effort at learning to cook here as its about the only way I can afford to eat, with eating out being so much more expensive here than back in the US one must find a way to get by. I have learned how to cook myself potatoes a couple different ways that I find quite delicious. I have also learned the great art of making French toast which is a great way to use those extra things around the house that are about go to bad that you do not want to waste. I’m very grateful for noodles however as they are an easy very good meal in my professional cooking opinion, however I very much and realize how much I was spoiled back at home having two parents who cook and a sister who cooks and being able to go out when they were not feeling up to the task and I am very excited to return to that.
Communication
3-2-09
I am not a dialogue specialist by any stretch of the imagination however I have notices quite a bit of differences if communication here. To begin with there are accents. Just about every other person I meet has a different accent. Apparently it used to be that you could tell where someone was from by within a mile by their accent, of course I am nowhere near that good, nor will I ever be most likely. Also I have determined that there is no such thing as a definition ‘Irish’ accent. There are about 30 different accents from each part of Ireland. A lot of which I’m not even sure I would be able to distinguish the difference between. The locals can tell the difference between the accents and give you a rough guess of where a certain person may be from but unlike back in the day an accent is no longer very reliable for that as people tend to move around a lot more now than they used to. Something I find great about this, however, is the fact that everyone has such a good since of humor about it. For instance while talking to my flat mates about this particular subject one of them point out that a lot of them are very ugly and which ones she prefers. In the process of this she says that my other flat mate is amongst the ones she finds ugly. This leads to a friendly round of offences and teasing which ends in laughter. On another occasion on the mention of accents, a few of my friends all pick one of them that they say has such a weird accent that he sounds Scottish, to which he simply smiles, chuckles and waves away the comment.
Also there is a whole bunch of slang that I am adjusting too. For instance everything here is ‘wee’, for example “I was talking to this wee girl and she was just torn to pieces”, “we can meet later this week for a wee chat and see how you are doing on your project”, and “Ah, wasn’t that a nice wee trip”. Also they like to use the cuss word “Fuck” and they think it makes them sound American, or from hard core Boston or something. Instead of saying “umm” they tend to say something like “ayyyee” until they think of what their trying to say. The thing I think I have started doing the most is when something is good they say “that was lovely”. Also they use the word “class” to describe when something is very nice. And supposedly they call someone a lord when they do things extravagantly, though I’ve only seen a few people do this. Another big thing is “the Craic” this is a term used for a variety of things for example, “what’s the Craic?” what’s going on, what’s new? “that’s good craic” that was fun, “it’ll be good craic” it’ll be a good time. There are some other terms as well but I cannot think of them off the top of my head and I’m sure there are many more that I simply so not know yet.
On the other spectrum of the definition of communication there are ‘Mobil phones’ as they call them here. I am on a pay-as-I- go plan so not everyone’s works like this, however a lot of people do go on them there. Where when I got my phone I got a credit card so to speak that I can put in a machine and put money in the machine and that puts money on my card which counts as “topping up” which gives me more credits towards making phone calls and sending text messages. With the company I have every month I top up I get 300 free text messages which is handy, as everyone here for the most part uses texting as their main form of communication. The cool thing about the plans here is this that as long as you are in your network you can receive calls and texts for free from anywhere in the world. Anyways I think that’s about enough for now, till next time.
Accommodations
2-8-09
A little bit about accommodation here at Duncreggan Student Village. I have been here for over two weeks now and here are some must knows. I live in Block three, blocks one through three are considered the “ghetto blocks” these are the older blocks of the village. Blocks 4-12 are all newer and have a different layout from the first three blocks. These other blocks I don’t know as much about as I have only been there to hang out with people but each person has their own bathroom with a shower, toilet, and sink in their room. Also their living areas seem to be a bit smaller and more combine with the kitchen. The ghetto blocks are all laid out in the same way, upon entering a ghetto block you walk into a room that is a large cylinder with a ceiling three floors up. Off of the cylinder room which has a walk on each floor there are many doors going into flats. There are four flats off of each floor, twelve total, and stairwells in between.
When you walk into a flat there is a hallway with seven doors. The first door on your left is generally the bathroom and all of the subsequent doors are generally bedrooms and t hen the door at the end of the hallway is to the living area/ kitchen. Each room is equipped with a good size desk, lamp, little set of book shelves, a sink with mirror, a wardrobe, a nightstand, two chairs, and one of the worst beds I think I have ever slept on (very thin and you can feel the wire holding it up). Outside of that I am very happy with my room as it is not much smaller then my dorm room back at UNCG and I have it all to myself, not to mention I have just about the whole flat to myself most of the time because all my flat mates go home as soon as they can. Also every plug has a switch on the wall to turn on and off the power. Then there is the living room/kitchen. Luckily I have flat mates who purchased a TV so we have a TV in the living room with a DVD and VHS player. One weird thing about TVs here is for some reason the dorms can only have TV from “bunny ears” which must be purchased with a license or something like that, I don’t really understand. In the kitchen there is an oven/stove, toaster, fridge with freezer, mini fridge, a microwave, a kettle type thing, and a little sandwich press thingy. All of which are shared by all of the flat mates. My flat mates are kind enough to let me use their silverware and cups and bowls, so I’ll I’ve bought myself is a plate and I think that will suffice. Also all two washer machines for the first three blocks and two dryers are located on the ground floor of block one, which our cards also give us access to.
Some important things to know about when you arrive are as follows. First, don’t buy sheets from the accommodation people, their no good and you can get much better sheets for much cheaper prices if you go shopping for a little bit. Second, the heat in the buildings and also the hot water is controlled by the building maintenance people, it has specific hours that it’s supposed to be on but there are not always accurate and vary by hours sometimes. Also roughly a week and a half after I moved in they decided to switch the access system to get into the blocks and I had go to down and switch my swipe card for a credit card looking thing that you just hold up over this little pad and then it lets you in. I learned this the hard way; always make sure the hot water is working before you get in. In the room there is also internet LAN connection, which I must say is on the slow side but more disappointing then that is the fact that I have come to learn that most video streaming sights do not run for the UK. This discovery has lead to a constant need to attempt to plan my travels incessantly searching out bands to go see, searching for flights ferries and buses for trips across Europe, and the discovery of many new sources of accommodation from hostels to couch surfing because it does not require fast internet to do and I feel like I need to get out of the dorm more often. Anyways, things are lovely here, it’s been lightly snowing on and off all week it seems like, more next week.
Week One: Complete
2-02-09
This first week and a half here has been positively crazy. The trip here, taking just about every form of transportation known to man (bus, walk, train, trolley, plane, and cab) then once I got here, the mess of trying to get registered, makes me appreciate the UNCG online registering process. The process when something like this ‘oh talk to this person’ next person “ oh talk to this person’ next person ‘get this form and take it across campus to be filled out by the last person’ that person’ oh take this to this office that’s only open after eleven until one’ and then from there you can get an id. It took me a good four days to complete the process which was not helped by the fact that the main building was under lockdown because of a political meeting. The good thing about that was that by the time classes started I had a fairly decent since of where everything on the campus is and how to maneuver the buildings. The thing that took me the longest to figure out was the automatic doors, they only open one said, the side that’s labeled “automatic door” seems simple enough but it’ll catch you off guard the first couple times, especially when you’re used to everything just opening.
I will admit the first few days here were very hard for me. I miss everyone from Greensboro and my family. I also had many bouts of wondering why I did this to myself, which was not helped by just about every other local that I run it too almost inevitably asks me why I would want to come to this town. This weekend however has been the relief point. I have learned my way around most of the town and feel comfortable wondering the streets at any time, which is very nice. There is a new appreciation for a friendly bar atmosphere that I am fairly sure will stay with me forever and I just want to share it with everyone. While I willing to admit I am still rather addicted to the internet, to keep up with old friends, I don’t see it as a bad thing and I am truly excited about the possibility of my friends coming here because I would love to show them around the town and take them out for nights on the town.
It is very nice to be in this size of a town where I can walk everything I need and most things are a mere fifteen minute walk away. I have spent a large number of hours which I have not kept track of simply wondering around the town getting my bearings as far was where things are, how much things are and where I can get the best deals. I have found that Tesco probably the best priced place for any food essentials and there are a few things you can get a little cheaper down the street at another grocery store. I have also found that if you take the time to look around from store to store you can find just about anything clothing, boots, bags, and jackets for 20 pounds or less which if very nice to know, as I am on a very tight budget especially since I haven’t gotten a job yet. Also I have learned that in order to get a job you must first acquire a national insurance number so I am in the process of doing that.
So much has happened in this last week that I really just do not even know where to begin and really don’t want to get into too much detail so I picked out a few key things for this first entry. I feel that I will have a whole collection of amazing stories by the time I get back to the US too. Right now I am focusing on trying to get together a plan for what to do in the next months. I want to go travel, the London trip was amazing (I wrote myself a journal entry a good two pages long about it that I don’t think I will share on this as you were there for most of it) and (with the help of my trip to and around Derry) has given me confidence that if necessary I can travel alone quite comfortably. More to come
Pack, Unpack, Repack
1-14-15-09
I suppose nerves get the best of all of us at some point. Sixteen hours from departure, the idea of leaving the country for nearly a half a year is beginning to hit me. All of the stuff I have in my room is no longer useful, but rather something I either have to worry about packing or wonder why I have or realize I will miss. I still have so much to do especially on the packing front have packed and unpacked at least six times, I feel like I have waay too much stuff and at the same time I feel I am lacking necessary goods. And I’m completely overwhelmed by the amount of people that want to see me before I leave. On the one hand I want to see them all very much and on the other I simply feel too overwhelmed by all of the people and I am fairly sure that I am trying to cram way too much stuff into the remainder of time I have in North Carolina, besides I will be back. And at the same time I feel completely worn out and all I feel like doing is sitting around my room for hours and hours, sleeping and watching movies, which lord knows will not happen for quite some time.
I feel like this is a great opportunity for me to not only affirm my own independence but also for me to learn to survive on much less then what I have. I have always been interested in the concept of surviving on the bare minimum and now that I find myself in a position where that is possible I feel myself worrying that I will not have enough and will not be able to make it. I am not sure how it will all work out but somehow I will consolidate all of my belongings into one suitcase and figure out how to make it all work for me. But in the mean while I am trying very hard to keep a level head on the situation. It does not even seem real to me yet, rater it feels as though I am caught up in some sort of fantasy that I have convinced myself that I will live out, despite the consequences.
The time is running out I am thrilled and exhilarated and on the same hand terrified. I just keep trying to center myself at a happy medium and not get too worried about what will come. Besides somewhere deep down I know everything will turn out just fine. I cannot wait to see how it goes. Today will be hectic I have two more things to run out and buy that I stupidly forgot to buy on the last billion trips out to get supplies and I have to put together some copies of my vital papers in case of emergency. Well I think I should probably fit sleep in here somehow. I can’t wait to see the girls in London, I’m sure we will have a great time and it will be good to spend the first leg of the journey with people I already know, for that I am very grateful.
