School is out, finals are over, and I'm never going back. Hooray!

Just to clarify, by "never" I mean "not for 2 1/2 weeks." I am so tired. I wrote papers in lieu of finals for all of my classes this quarter, and they were all due on Monday. So, I've been fairly stressed out for the last few weeks because I just haven't had time to write them. I was up all night Sunday night finishing up the papers, then I left at around 9:30 am to go turn them in. After that, I came home for a couple of hours, then went to work and worked until 10:30 pm. And due to my work schedule, I sustained that sleep deprivation for the remainder of the week. I finally slept in a little on Thursday, only to have a Family Guy marathon with some friends until around 4 am on Friday morning - then I had to work at 11. Genius, I know. Oh well, I'll get some sleep eventually. But for now, I've got to get ready for work.

Atrocious

I know it's been approximately eleventy-billion years since my last post - and for that I apologize. However, this post is still going to be brief. The reason for this is that I have to write 2 papers and a take-home exam in the next 8 days. All in all, it amounts to about 30 pages. Not only that, but I'm scheduled to work 30 hours next week. So I hope you can understand my brevity- perhaps even have a little pity for me. Hey, I'll throw the party and look pitiful, all you have to do is come with violin in hand.

So, why am I choosing to post now? Two reasons: 1) Procrastination/avoidance technique; 2) I came across a sentence (in the loose sense of the word - it had a period) in a scholarly journal that was shockingly atrocious. Here it is: "For example, part-time workers were awarded the same rights as full-time workers in the United Kingdom in the 1990s by the House of Lords applying EU-based law saying that to do otherwise would be to discriminate against women (because the majority of part-time workers were women), several years before this entitlement was clarified in the Part-Time Workers Directive." The question I pose is this: How did such a monstrosity find its way into an academic journal? Incidentally, the article is from Social Politics, published by the Oxford University Press. If you want the rest of the citation, let me know. I'll even give it to you in MLA format. But for now, I'd better get back to my studies - I do my best work in the middle of the night.

My couch is a hungry little fella

I got an MP3 player for Christmas last year. It was really nice to have for the commute to and from school every day. Actually, to be honest, I almost never let a week go by without skipping school at least one day - so "every day" is probably not the appropriate phrase here. But that's another story.

Anyway, I am once again commuting to and from school and having that MP3 player made such a difference - the first day of class, that is. You see, upon arriving home after that first day, I discovered that someone had stolen it from me. I'd had it in my pocket, and my suspicion was that someone on the crowded bus lifted it without me even noticing (obviously, I wasn't using it at the time). I searched all through my purse and backpack to make sure, but it wasn't there. The poor little guy was a goner.

A few weeks later (aka last night) I was performing that age-old ritual that men and women around the world continue to perform to this day - I was hunting for the remote. I looked under the couch, around the couch, retraced my steps to figure out where I might have laid it, but to no avail. So I decided to do it all again. As I was peering underneath the couch cushions, I spotted something small and round. Upon further examination, I discovered that it bore a striking resemblance to one of the earpieces of my beloved old MP3 player. The thought of the little guy brought a single tear to my eye. "No," I thought, "I'm not going to cry. He wouldn't want me to." Quickly I blinked the tear away in an effort to do justice to the memory of my little friend. As I did so, I leaned in closer, attempting to identify the object. There was a cord attached to it. No! It couldn't be... but it was! Frantically I grasped at the earpiece and cord, hoping against hope that it was still plugged in to the MP3 player. I was a little afraid to put my hand inside the jaws of the couch, but if there was a chance that my funny little friend was there, no way could I leave him hanging. So I closed my eyes, gritted my teeth, and plunged my hand into the depths of the couch, following the cord. Before I knew it, I was up to my shoulder. I broke into a cold sweat. "Think of happy things," I told myself, "remember the good times you used to have with your MP3 player, that'll pull you through." I took a deep breath, reached down a little further - and there he was! We were reunited! The good times weren't over after all!

Now, I know you're probably wondering if I ever found my remote. The answer is "yes." It was way underneath the couch. Yeah, that couch is a tricky little character. He's got shifty eyes and I don't trust him. But I think the real question is: Why am I spending my time writing this blog when I have a 5-page outline for a 15-page paper due on Monday and I'm not even sure when I'm going to find the time to write that? I'm not going to answer that. I'm just going to end this post.

Yikes

When I got home from work today, I ran into one of my neighbors on my way in. It was one of the guys who helped me move my sectional. Anyway, we chatted for a few minutes and we were discussing the apartment complex we live in. He was saying that he didn't like it and he mentioned that someone was murdered a couple of weeks ago in one of the buildings. So that was kinda freaky. I did a little research on the internet and found out he was right. Not cool.

I want my weekends back :(

I'm tired. School has started and I've added a full-time class schedule to a full-time job (I've been averaging about 35 hours per week lately). I usually work on the weekends and have two days off during the week, but now that I have classes during the week - they won't really be days off. However, since I don't have classes Tuesday or Thursday, I'm hoping to have one day off most weeks. This week I have 3 presentations to make (two by myself and one with a group) and a quiz. So much for starting out slow. Anyway, I was trying really hard to save tomorrow so that I can relax at home and get my homework caught up for the week. But I just found out that the only time everyone else in my group can meet is tomorrow. So now I have to spend 2 1/2 hours commuting to and from campus just to work on this group presentation. Wah. Yeah, that's right, I said, "Wah." Go ahead, call the Wambulance. I don't care. And yes, I would like some cheese with my whine. I may not get to relax tomorrow, but I'm gonna have a pity party tonight!

Highway robbery

As I mentioned already, classes started last week. So, the first day of classes, I bought my textbooks. As you can see from the picture, I don't have too many books and they aren't very big. My back is really going to appreciate that. That's not why I took the picture, though. I took the picture for anyone wondering what $200 worth of books looks like. There it is. Yes, that's right, I spent just under $200 on that small stack of books. Do you know how much clothing I could have bought with that money? *sigh* Question of the day: What is the most you have spent at one time on books(textbooks or otherwise)?

That was the end of the post, but I just had a random thought: Remember when you were in elementary school and the teacher would pass out those little book catalogs that you could order from? How cool was that? I was always anxious to see how many books I could convince my mom to buy for me. Then the teacher would get all of the books in and you couldn't wait for her to give you yours. Fun times.

Courteous bus drivers?!

My first day back to school went quite well. To begin with, the commute was a pleasant surprise. Last night I complained about the fact that I was planning on leaving at 8 am this morning. Well at 7 am, after just 4 hours of sleep, I wasn't very inclined to get up. I ended up leaving at about 8:45. It was fine, though. I got to campus just after 10. The bus system was really easy to figure out. It was kind of weird, I rode the bus all the time in Spain, but I've only rarely ridden it in the States. So commuting today brought back memories of being in Spain. The first bus I rode was pretty crowded and I had to stand up most of the way. However, nobody was pushing, and if anyone bumped into anyone else, they apologized. Not only that, but it didn't smell bad. Clearly deodorant does make a difference. It was quiet, too. Also, not only will a bus driver stop and let you on if you get to the bus as he's pulling away, but if you are making a connection and you see your next bus pulling away as you arrive at the bus stop, you can actually have the first bus driver honk at the other bus driver for you so that he will wait for you to get off the bus you're on and board the other bus. Nice, right? I think if I ever asked a bus driver in Spain to do that, he would laugh in my face.

My classes all seem like they'll be interesting; it's good to be back in school. I'm going to be doing a ton of writing, though. For starters, my German Lit. class has a writing assignment due at the beginning of each class. Luckily, I only have classes on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. That should make it a lot easier to juggle my job, classes, and homework. Not to mention the fact that I'll save a lot of time only commuting 3 days per week. I had a lab class that I was going to be taking on Thursdays, but today I got it switched to Friday mornings. It's definitely worth getting up 1 hour earlier on Fridays to save 3 hours out of my day on Thursdays. So I'm sleeping in tomorrow :)

Back to school

Tomorrow begins my last year of college - well, technically today does since it's past midnight. I'm mainly posting right now to complain about the fact that I'm leaving my flat at 8 am. My first class isn't until 10:30! The problem is, I'm not sure exactly how long it will take to walk to the nearest bus stop or how long it will take to walk from the bus stop where I get off to my first class. Once I have things sorted out and know exactly how long it will take me, I may be able to leave as late as 8:45. But still, an hour and 45 minutes for 15 miles? That's ridiculous! I can run that fast! Not for that long, though... Hopefully the carpool thing works out. Anyway, I just wanted to complain publicly. I even have to make my own coffee tomorrow. I'm used to getting up and going to work 15 or 20 minutes early so someone else can make my coffee. Hey, I make coffee for other people all day long. Is it too much to ask that someone else make me coffee in the morning? Oh well, I should probably go to bed since I have to leave in 7 hours.

Not fun times

One of my coworkers took a look at the Jeep today. He said it's not the battery or the starter. Unfortunately, to find out what it is, he would have to take it apart. So when I got off work, I gave him a call to see if he thought he could fix it. But he's never worked on a Jeep before and he would have to do some research before working on it.

As frustrating as it is not having a running vehicle, it's even more frustrating not knowing what's wrong with the Jeep or how much it's going to cost me to fix it - not to mention where I'm going to take it to get it fixed and whether or not they're going to rip me off.

At least I know that God will take care of me. Please pray that He shows me what to do and that I'm able to get this taken care of soon.

Free pass on the 2-10

I walked home from work today. That's not such a bad thing in and of itself- it's only a 2 mile walk. The problem is, I drove to work. I worked yesterday from 2:45 pm to 11:15 pm, then today from 7:30 am to 4:00 pm. So when I climbed into the Jeep after work today, I was more than ready to go home. The Jeep wasn't. I turned the key and nothing happened. I checked to make sure I hadn't left the lights on - no problem there. But I thought maybe the battery was dead anyway and it wouldn't hurt to try and jump it. So I went back inside to find out if any of my coworkers had jumper cables. A set of jumper cables and a guy to operate them later, there was still no luck. So I walked.

One of my coworkers asked me earlier today if I would switch shifts with her tomorrow. She just started school and somehow her new schedule didn't get into the system at work. So I agreed. I didn't really want to, I was scheduled to work 6 am to 2:30 pm and now I'll be working 12 pm to 8:30 pm (I've really been enjoying the morning shift lately - weird, huh?). But as things turned out, I'm glad I switched. Otherwise it certainly would have brought back some hiking memories when I left my apartment and started walking at 5 am. Well, anyway, hopefully it's something minor. Either way, I need my own car soon. I wish it were as easy to not have a car here as it is in Madrid. Make up your own question of the day.

The honeymoon's over, baby

Now I know you may be thinking, "How can the honeymoon be over? You're not even married." Duh. I'm trying to use a metaphor here. Work with me, people, would you? *exaggerated sigh* Okay, back to my point...

I believe that I may be reaching the end of the honeymoon stage at work. I still enjoy my job, don't get me wrong, but sometimes the days drag by even when I'm busy. For one thing, I've developed a love-hate relationship with the drive-thru in my store. When I'm at work, I like to be busy. It makes the time go by faster. The drive-thru is always busier than the cafe, but the downside is that the customers tend to be snobbier, too. I must say, I was completely shocked at the percentage of customers that come through talking on their cellphones. Most of them do not even stop talking long enough to pay and get their drinks, they just hold out their money and keep talking. After a while, it starts to get to you. Then there are the customers who, although they are not on cell phones, just ignore you anyway. They pull up to the window and stare straight ahead the whole time. They don't talk. They just hold out their money until you take it, then keep their hand there until you put a drink in it. I'm not exaggerating - people really do this.

It's not all bad, though. We have a lot of nice customers who come through the drive-thru, too. Today one of the drive-thru customers asked me what my name was. She told me that she has been going to Starbucks regularly for five years and I'm her favorite, that I'm the only one who always gets her drink right. That made my day. Especially since I have only been working there a month.

It's nice to be settled in and know my way around, too. I've begun figuring out some of the stuff that they don't teach you during training. For example: the walkie-talkie function on the drive-thru headsets. Oh, sure, it's there to make our jobs easier and enable us to provide better customer service- but hey, it's just like a walkie-talkie! The possibilities are endless. We have a customer that comes in every day and orders some sort of alcoholic drink. I'm sure some people found it funny the first time, maybe even the second, but enough is enough. I've only worked there a month; I don't even know how long he's been doing it. Dude needs a new joke. When he came in today, he asked if it was happy hour. Then he asked if he could get a couple shots of tequila. After he finally ordered his actual drink, he asked if he could get an extra shot of jagermeister in it. As I went to the back room to get some ice, I couldn't resist making a sarcastic comment about the novelty of the joke in my handy-dandy walkie-talkie. I know, not very nice, but I'm sure that's what the walkie-talkie function was truly intended for. Sarcasm.

Classes start on Wednesday. I'm looking forward to the classes, but not to the commute. What would be a 20 minute drive(if traffic wasn't too bad) will end up being a minimum 45 minute bus ride - but that's only if I take an express bus. The last one leaves at 7:30 am every day. I intentionally arranged my schedule so that my first class doesn't start until 10:30. It doesn't seem to have paid off. So now I can either take the 7:30 bus and go work out at the University gym before class, wait and take a bus at 9:00 for a longer commute, or find someone to carpool with. Knowing me, I'll probably plan on taking the 7:30 bus to school every day and actually take it about once a week. The other days I'll press the snooze bar eleventy-billion times and take the 9 am bus. So the 2-part question of the day is: What is the longest you've had to commute for school/work? Do you prefer to drive, carpool, or take public transport?

I'm falling apart

When I decided to go on a 12-day hike in June, I had no idea how long it would take for me to fully recover. After the second day of said hike, I lost patches of skin of about 1-1/2" in diameter from both heels of my feet. Also during the hike, three of my toes were smashed. Two toenails on my right foot were smashed by my too-tight hiking boots (incidentally, also the inspiration for my patented invention, Peel-Away-Skin). One toenail on my left foot was smashed during a fight over whether a certain food item is referred to as a "cookie" or a "biscuit." I won't mention any names, but if you're at all familiar with my hiking companions - it shouldn't be too hard to figure out who I was fighting with. And no, a "ciscuit" is not a good compromise. My heels healed over (hmm...) within a week of finishing the hike, but the skin there is still pink and shiny. My toes, however, are a different story. Within the last week or so, I have lost portions of three different toenails. So, of course, I have pictures to share!

It's kind of weird. I've always been really healthy and never had to go to the hospital for broken bones or other injuries growing up. But during the course of the past year, I've been a wreck. In November, I broke the little toe on my left foot (you can tell by comparison in the above picture that it didn't heal back the same!); in February, I gave myself a mild concussion and bled all over the place; then in June, I destroyed my feet on this hike. So the question of the day is: What is the most memorable injury you've had in the last year? Alternative question of the day: What is the stupidest thing you've ever done to cause injury to yourself? My answer to both questions is the same: The concussion I gave myself in February happened when I stood up quickly, hitting my head on the cupboard door that I had just left open. I unknowingly cut my head on the glass pane and discovered it moments later when blood started dripping on my clothes. This just happened to be right at the beginning of finals, and it unfortunately affected my memory. I got headaches whenever I listened to, read, or spoke Spanish - not a good thing since my classes were taught in Spanish and my finals were given in Spanish. One night I even had to have Kelly explain my own notes to me because I didn't understand them (I had written them all in Spanish). Needless to say, not one of my proudest moments.

Hey

So I'm a little overdue for a post. I think the main problem is that I always wait for a reason or some sort of motivation to post. Why not just sit down and write something? So that's what I'm doing this time.

Just 10 days left until classes start up again. I think that's a good thing. It should be interesting going back to juggling a full load of classes and part-time work. Last year not only did I not have a job, but I didn't actually study except for during finals, either. That won't really be an option when I have to write papers and things.

On the workfront, things are going well. I've worked there just under a month and I feel pretty comfortable. I'm getting lots of hours, too. It's kind of funny, though. I think I actually prefer opening, even though it means I have to be at work by 4 am. I like the morning setup and it's nice getting off in the middle of the day. I'll probably be closing a lot once classes start. I don't mind that either, though. One thing is for sure, I'm definitely still taking full advantage of the free beverages. Most of the time I get one before work, one after work, and one at each break - so on a full day of work, that's 5 drinks. One or two of them are usually Passion Tea Lemonades, so it's not all coffee. However, the fact that each of the other drinks often have 4 shots of coffee in them, probably makes up for that... heh heh heh *twitches*

Here's a funny story: I bought a sectional couch off of Craig's List last week. I had been looking for one for a few weeks, but the problem was that I didn't have much money or any way to move a couch if I got one. Anyway, this one was advertised for pretty cheap and the guy told me he could deliver it. I went to look at it and it seemed to be in pretty good shape. So I bought it. We brought the shorter piece in first, without too much trouble. As we were carrying the longer piece in, one of my neighbors spotted us and came over to give us a hand. But when we tried to maneuver it through the entryway, we saw that it simply wasn't going to fit. So we thought maybe we could pass them through the windows. No such luck. We discovered that although the smaller panes were removable, the larger ones were riveted in place. That left one option: the balcony. I have large sliding glass doors in my living room that lead to my balcony/deck. That would seem like the obvious choice, huh? Why didn't we do that in the first place? The problem is, there is no outside exit from the balcony and it's on the second floor. But since that was our only alternative, we loaded the section back in the guy's blazer and he drove around to the back of the building. He and my neighbor turned the section up on its end and my neighbor called one of his friends (who was two doors down) to come and help. Then the friend came to my apartment and out on the balcony. As the two guys down below lifted the section up, we grabbed it and pulled it over the rail. From there it was a piece of cake. I felt bad that they all went to so much trouble, but it was a bit funny. Anyway, the couch is quite comfortable and I've really been enjoying it.

Politics

The topic of my blog today is political. Surprising? It's true I tend to avoid political discussion, but not because I'm not interested. One of the main reasons is that I don't enjoy being attacked and that has been the typical result whenever I have shared my political views in Seattle or Madrid. The other reason is that a lot of crooked junk goes on in the political realm and it makes me sick. Talking about it puts me in a bad mood and depresses me. But I'm breaking the mold today, mainly because I have some funny stuff to share - it's not all depressing.

For Washingtonians, the electoral debacle of 2004 is doubtless one of the first things that comes to mind when discussing local elections. For those not familiar with the situation, the contest for governor between Christine Gregoire and Dino Rossi had much in common with what happened in Florida during the 2004 presidential elections. After the original count, Dino Rossi(R) had just 261 more votes than Christine Gregoire(D). From an approximate 2.5 million votes, this comes to a percentage difference of less than 0.01%. Because the margin was so small, an automatic recount was done. The results were for Rossi again, but this time by just 42 votes. So then there was a manual recount, and the outcome was that Gregoire won by 129 votes. Throughout the process, ballots magically materialized and disappeared. Deceased voters miraculously made their way to the polls, convicted criminals managed to sneak out of prison just long enough to vote, and a bunch of other sketchy junk happened. I'm not going to go into a lot of detail here, but the final results hinged on the recount done in King County. At the final recount in King County, ballots which had been previously rejected were added into the count. But this was NOT done in other counties. King County is strongly democratic, so this played a large role in the final results. I now live in King County.

The reason I brought up the whole embarrassing, disturbing, disgusting story (I can come up with more adjectives if you like), is that I received an official local voter's pamphlet in the mail. Inside it says, "King County is working hard to fix problems and make sure your vote counts." Then there is a list of FAQ and answers. I found a couple of them particularly amusing and I wanted to share them with you, so I felt that I should provide a little background. Anyway, here they are:

"Q:What are you doing to ensure felons and deceased voters don't vote?

A:A top priority has been cleaning our voter rolls. We've cancelled more than 850 felons and 6,500 deceased voters from our official rolls since last year's election.

Q:May I vote for another family member if that person is away, or sick, or just recently passed away?

A:Absolutely not. It is against the law and a punishable offense to vote for anyone other than yourself."

It is really comforting to me to know that if any dead people show up at the polls, they will be turned away. As far as the question about voting for someone else, I sincerely hope that is not really frequently-asked. It is my feeling that everyone who asks that question should be automatically relieved of their right to vote because THEY ARE IDIOTS.

What's wrong with this picture?

When my alarm went off this morning, I woke up feeling that something wasn't right. Then I realized what that feeling was: It was 2:30 in the morning and I was getting up. Well, technically I was pressing the snooze bar- but, hey. Today I worked the opening shift at Starbucks and I had to be there at 4:00 am. The Starbucks where I work opens at 4:30 am. I informed my coworkers this morning that that's too early, and we're going to change it to 8 am. Yeah right. Actually, I open again tomorrow. But on the bright side, it means I get to put in a full day and still be off work by 12:30. Still, taking a lunch break at 8:00 am does feel weird.

Today was my first full day actually training on the floor. As with any new job, it seems like there is an overwhelming amount of information that will take about 12 years (or sometimes as much as eleventy billion years - depending on the person) to learn. But most of the customers have been patient and my coworkers have been helpful and I know as time goes by I'll improve. I am enjoying the job and definitely taking advantage of the free beverages. Today, for example, I had two Iced Caramel Macchiatos, a Strawberries and Cream Frappucino, and an Iced Mocha Valencia. Yeah, it sounds like a lot, but it's really just one drink each break and one after work. If it weren't for the fact that I opened, I probably would have had another one before I started work. So in conclusion, it's not that much. Okay, I lied, it's a ton and I'm wigging. Okay, I lied, I'm not really wigging, my body is used to caffeine overload; I'm just weird. I gotta go, though. I went home for a couple days and brought a ton of stuff back with me (I know that seems hard to believe- 2,000 lbs is a lot. But somehow it all fit in my brother's Jeep Cherokee). Because of my work schedule, I haven't had time to put everything away and clean up since I got back. So I think I'm going to go take advantage of the next couple of hours to clean, before I need to go to bed again!

One more thing, I'm going to use my brother's technique for getting feedback. The question of the day is: What is the earliest you have gotten up in the morning for work or some other commitment? The alternative question (I'm listing 2 questions to improve the odds of getting feedback) of the day is: Would you rather work early or late? Why?

I don't feel like coming up with a title today - deal with it.

The past week has definitely been interesting, if nothing else. Saturday I moved up to Renton with the help of my family and a couple of friends. After we had everything unloaded, we got some dinner and then everyone but Jessica and I headed home. Our cousin Jennifer, who lives in California, was in the area for a conference and we were planning on getting together. So Jess and I had about half an hour to get ready before we left. Needless to say, nothing was really unpacked. Well, Jen was in Everett. I knew that was north of Seattle, but I didn't realize how far north it was. Renton is just south of Seattle and it ended up taking us 40 minutes to drive to where the conference was. Ugh. We finally got there, though, and it was really fun to see Jen again. She and her husband were leading worship at the conference, so I got to hold their 3-month-old daughter during the whole service. Yay! After the service was over, Jess and I went to a Denny's nearby with Jen, her husband, their baby, and their band. We hung out there for a little over an hour, then we had to leave to go pick Laura up at the airport. Her plane had been delayed, so she was supposed to be getting in around midnight. The original plan was for us to stay at my place that night and drive to Centralia in the morning. However, since we didn't have time to settle in at all, and I had forgotten a few key items (a shower curtain, for one), we decided it would be better to drive back that night. So after picking up Laura, we went back to my place to grab our stuff, and headed for Centralia. We got there around 2 am. So lots of sleep was had by all. Not.

After church on Sunday, I rushed home to throw my things into the Jeep (I'm driving my brother's Jeep right now) and head to Seattle. I had an interview at Starbucks at 3 and I wanted to make sure I had plenty of time to get up there. It was a good thing I did, too. There was a surprising amount of traffic for a Sunday, especially going through Tacoma - it took me about 20 minutes to go 3 miles. Yuck. Unfortunately, the A/C in Jonny's Jeep needs recharged, i.e. it doesn't work. As it was a hot day, the almost-2-hr-ride was therefore Not Fun Times. I got to Starbucks at about 2:45. They gave me a free drink, the interview went well, and I was asked to come back for a second interview on Tuesday. My mom came up later that afternoon with a bunch of stuff that I greatly needed (the aforementioned shower curtain). Then we bought some groceries and came back and watched a movie. She stayed the night with me then left the next morning. Tuesday morning I went in for my interview and got the job! Then I had cable and internet installed that afternoon. The rest of the week has been extremely uneventful. One might even say boring. Yes, that seems to be the appropriate term, boring. I can't wait to start working. Then I will at least have people to talk to. During the last few days, I don't think I've spent more than 10-15 min per day talking to another human being. It's such a weird feeling. I did start talking to myself yesterday, though. That didn't take long. I go in tonight to fill out my new hire paperwork, then I start work tomorrow. And not a moment too soon. You know those people you sometimes see talking to themselves? The ones who sound like they're having a conversation with someone, but as you look around to see who it is, you realize there isn't anyone? Yeah, I know who you mean. I saw one at the mall yesterday. Really? What a coincidence.

Just a little note..

I thought it would be fun to put up a link to the ad for my new apartment. It has pictures of the model apartment. Aside from the furniture, it is exactly what my new flat will look like!

All I can say is, "Wow."

God is amazing. I know that and have known that for a long time now, but I still never cease to be amazed at the things He does in my life. I think it has to do with the fact that although I know God loves me personally, it overwhelms me to think of the things He does specifically for me. God overwhelmed me yesterday. Halfway through the day, I found myself saying over and over again, "I can't believe it. I'm so happy." I couldn't stop smiling. But I'm getting ahead of myself, I'll start from the beginning...

Last week, my friend Laura asked me if I could take her to Sea-Tac airport on the 9th (yesterday). As I don't have a job right now, I told her that shouldn't be a problem. Thinking about it later, I decided it would be a great opportunity for me to look at apartments and apply for jobs in Seattle. My attempts to find a summer job in C-town had been unsuccessful and I was beginning to feel like it was time for me to move up to Seattle anyway, so I figured I should take advantage of the fact that I was going to be in Seattle. Once I decided on that, I realized that I would also need to pick a date to move up there. Any companies to which I applied would doubtless want to know when I would be available to start work; also, if I found an apartment, I would need to tell them when I would be moving in. Not only that, but if I was applying for jobs, I would (hopefully)be called in for interviews. So I thought, "Why wait? I might as well move up on the 13th and set my availability date as the 15th." However, that would mean that I only had one week to get a car, an apartment, and a job.

I spent quite a bit of time looking at ads for apartments and jobs. In the end, I chose 10 apartments to look at and 8 jobs to apply for. I printed off directions to everything as well as 10 copies of my resume, and left with Laura and Julianna at around 6:30 am yesterday (stopping at Starbucks on the way to the freeway, of course). Shortly after 8, we dropped Laura off at the airport and headed for the first apartment on my list. When I was researching apartments, this one had caught my eye. From the pictures, it looked like it was a really nice, really big apartment. It was a 2-bedroom, but it was only $700. The 1-bedrooms I was looking at were $550-650 per month, so I thought that if I could get a 2 bedroom for a little more, it would be worth it. Then I'd have an extra room if Jess decided to move up there, or I could find a roommate and split the rent. Anyway, I called the day before and the guy I spoke with told me that they probably wouldn't have an apartment available until the 22nd at the earliest - annoying. But I was still hopeful, so we went to this place first. It's beautiful, not to mention really big. It's 1,150 square feet! The apartment complex also offers free parking, an olympic-size swimming pool, a fitness center, and pool tables with equipment. Not bad, huh? We found out that to move in, they only require first month's rent (prorated) and a deposit (which is significantly less than one month's rent). Not only that, but they are currently running a special - $400 off the first month's rent. In the words of Ricky Gervais (or David Brent, whichever you prefer) - that's mental!

After the leasing agent gave us a tour of the apartment and the apartment complex (she took us around in a golf cart - fun times), she asked me if I was interested. I told her I was, and if they could have the apartment ready by the 15th, I would be very interested. So, she said she would see what they could do and let me know. On the way back to the office, I asked her how much they rented the 1-bedrooms for. If they were much cheaper, I could always move into one of them and then move to a 2-bedroom later if Jess moved up. She told me they were $650 per month, but if I wanted a 2-bedroom, she could rent one to me for $650! Obviously, I didn't have a problem with that. When we got back to the office, she gave me a leasing application to fill out. While I filled it out, she spoke with one of her coworkers. Then when I gave her the completed application, she told me that they could have the apartment ready by the 15th. I was ecstatic. I did my best to maintain my composure while she took care of some paperwork. She told me that she would let me know in the next day or two if my application had been accepted or if they needed more information. I didn't even bother to look at any other apartments. I was sure I had found the right one.

As we drove away, we decided that it would be a good idea to drop off some resumes at some local businesses. It would be nice to have a job near my apartment. There was a shooping center about 5 minutes from the apartment complex, so we drove into the parking lot. Julianna saw a Seattle's Best Coffee and suggested I apply there. I declined, telling her that I'd feel a bit like a hypocrite since I go to Starbucks several times a week and firmly believe that it is Seattle's best coffee. Then we spotted a gym and thought that would be a good place to start since I have relevant experience. As I was sitting in the reception area filling out an application, however, I could feel guys looking at me and I remembered what it was like working at a gym. A free membership would be nice, but I decided that the place wasn't at the top of my list of places I'd like to work. After I went back to the car, we started driving around the parking lot to see what other businesses were located there. Lo and behold, Julianna noticed a Starbucks! Coincidence? I didn't think so. I had been considering applying at a Starbucks somewhere in Seattle, and just that morning Laura had encouraged me to do so, saying that the benefits were great and it was a good job to have. Excitedly, I grabbed one of my resumes and quickly headed into Starbucks. I asked one of the employees if they were hiring. He replied that he wasn't sure, but I was welcome to fill out an application. So I sat down and filled one out. When I handed in my application and resume to the manager a few moments later, he asked me if I could come in for an interview at 3:00 on Sunday. Seriously. I'm not kidding. Trust me, I was a lot more shocked than you are. He hadn't even looked at my application! I agreed, of course, and in a daze, I groped my way to the door and managed to find the right car in the parking lot. There I tried to relay my tale to my sister, but I mostly just grinned.

Oh, I forgot to mention the car. My mom told me last week about a website that was advertising a '99 VW Jetta (that's a VW Bora to the Brits) for just under $5,000. Blue book price is around $9,000. I called and found out that it was a theft recovery with some vandalism done to it. The seller is having Volkswagen build him a new motor for the car; he's also replacing the interior and painting it. It will be done in 3 to 4 weeks. I spoke with him Monday night and I'm going to buy it! In the meantime, I'm going to drive my brother's Jeep (which will help sell it, since I'll be in the Seattle area - I may even be able to get him a better price than what he was asking). If I end up selling it before my car is ready, I can probably just walk everywhere. I don't think it's more than a mile from my apartment to Starbucks, so there you have it!

It may seem like I'm jumping the gun a bit. After all, I haven't been approved for the apartment yet. Not to mention the fact that I haven't been interviewed at Starbucks yet, let alone hired! That doesn't matter to me, though. The moment my sister said that she saw a Starbucks, I had a feeling that was the place I would get a job. Then when I was asked on the spot to return for an interview, it only confirmed it for me. I felt the same way about the apartment. I thought it might be difficult to do all three things in a week, but essentially, God made it happen in 2days. So now I guess I just need to pack, because I'm moving on Saturday!

Another victim of The Mullet

It is with much chagrin that I blog today. Nay, more than chagrin. I come before you in dismay, shock, yes- even horror. It is with deep regret that I confess to you all that one of my greatest nightmares has come true. My brother has acquired a mullet. Sadly, it took him just one month of living in Spain to succumb to the pressure and become just another statistic. To all of my fellow sojourners who have suffered through the past mullet-filled year living in Spain: Only you can truly understand my pain. My prayer is that he would recognize the error of his ways and shave his head. I can only hope that he does not continue on this path which will inevitably lead to multiple facial piercings, tight clothing, and an addiction to cigarettes. I regretfully submit to you the evidence and ask for your support in my time of need:

That is all. In the wake of such a terrifying sight, words escape me. It is all I can do to post this blog.

Oops, you bwoke it.

I'd like to apologize for the lack of new photos on my photo page. I realize that I am now more than 2 months behind. The problem is, the program that I use is on my laptop. So, while I was traveling, I was unable to post pictures. Now that I am home, I've discovered that my laptop won't connect to the internet. Annoying. I'm not sure what is wrong with it. My aunt took a look at it for me and removed a couple of trojans (yeah, my bad), but it still won't connect. I bought it last summer at Best Buy and I got the service plan to go with it. So, I took it in today. Did I mention that my keyboard is broken? Yeah, due to liquid spillage a couple of months ago, the keyboard went on strike. So, I brought in a wireless keyboard which is doing some temp work for me. It's kind of a pain, but better than nothing. Unfortunately, my service plan doesn't cover liquid spills. I was hoping that the guy at the service desk wouldn't ask me what happened, but of course, he did. He sent it in anyway, though. He told me that they may or may not fix it; they'll call me if they decide not to. I don't know how long my lappy will be in the shop, but I miss the little guy already. Hopefully he'll come back as good as new and forgive me for everything I put him through.

In conclusion, I have the following words of advice: Use a good anti-virus; don't download Kazaa, anyone who tells you it is safe is lying through his teeth; and no matter how thirsty your computer says he is - DON'T GIVE HIM A DRINK!

It's good to be home

Well, maybe I should say it's good to be at my sister's home. While I was in Spain last year, my parent's cleverly seized the opportunity to sell our family home, so I don't actually have a home right now. Much to my relief, my sister has taken me in. I don't really know how long she'll put up with me before I'm back on the streets, but for now I'll just enjoy having a bed to sleep in and not think about the inevitable.

My plane flew in to Seattle night before last at about midnight. So by the time I got to my sister's place, it had been 25 1/2 hours since I left my brother's place in Spain. That may seem like a long time to be traveling, but my bags had it even worse. They just got in about half an hour ago.

I love traveling. There's nothing like that thrill of excitement that you get when you first enter a new country. It's strange, but I forget about that rush until I'm actually entering the country. Then it just kind of hits me. This past month was the first time I had ever been to Morocco or Ireland, and in Morocco I had the added thrill of being in a new continent. I think I'm addicted to travel. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to go anywhere right now. I'm perfectly content to be back in C-town relaxing and getting some rest (oddly enough, though, I've only slept a total of about 10 hours in the last two nights- go figure). However, I know that in a couple of months, all I'll be thinking about is that next hit..er..trip. While I was coming home, I had a layover at JFK in New York. At the airport I popped into a Starbucks to get my usual Iced Caramel Machiatto and a pamphlet caught my eye. It was about some contest that Starbucks was running where the winners get a free trip to the country of their choosing which has a Starbucks in it. The brochure was old; the contest ended a few years ago. I looked over the list of countries, though, and I started getting excited thinking of all of the places on the list that I wanted to visit. I definitely have an addiction. I'm planning on going to England over spring break, but that's not for another 8 months or so. I could be a wreck by then. I'm hoping to get a car in the next few weeks, though. If I get it off of Ebay, it will probably involve flying somewhere and driving it home. Maybe that will help stave off the cravings. Oh well, for now maybe I'll just go unpack my bags. After wearing the same clothes for the last month and a half, I'm pretty excited to rediscover my clothing.

Driving on the wrong..er..left side of the road

I arrived in Dublin two days ago and met up with Hannah, Roman, Robert, and Daniel. It was late by the time Hannah got there, so we basically just had dinner and called it a night. The next day we decided to hire a car so we could travel around Ireland and see some of the countryside. As I still don't know how to drive a manual, Roman was going to drive. But when we went to hire the car, we found out it would be a lot cheaper if the driver was 25. Roman turned 25 today, so we decided to stay one more day in Dublin and rent the car today. But when we got to the car rental agency, we discovered that Roman's driver's license expired today. This meant that I was the only one who could drive. It also meant that we had to rent an automatic, which was much more expensive. How many times have I wished I had learned how to drive a manual? More than a few.

Once we rented the car, we had to go back to the hostel to get our luggage and find out where to leave part of it. It doesn't sound that complicated, does it? But we managed to make it extremely complicated. I'm not going to go into all of it now, but 3 hours later, we were finally out of Dublin.

Let me just say that driving here was and is a lot harder than I thought it would be. It's not that big of a deal driving on the opposite side of the road, but having the steering wheel on the opposite side of the car is extremely weird. Getting a sense of the distance I have on each side of the car and parking are the main problems I have, but I'm getting better.

We're staying in Kilkenny tonight. It is a lovely little town with a river running through it and a castle nearby. Everything is a lot cheaper than in Dublin, as well. If we had more time, we'd probably stay here longer. But we don't, so we won't, so I need to leave now and go enjoy the city!

Terrorist attack in London

I'm so sick and tired of the terrorism. It makes me so angry. Why do those cowards have to attack innocent people just to get their political viewpoints across? It's disgusting. I know I'm not saying anything that everyone else hasn't already said, but I feel like I have to say it anyway.

Why? Why do they do it? How can we make it stop? If the troops are all pulled out of Iraq, will that help or will it just make things worse by reinforcing to Al-Qaeda that their tactics work? I don't know, but I'm sick of it. I'm sick of the threat of terrorism looming overhead. Most of the time I don't think about it that much, but it's always there. Living in Madrid, I would occasionally hear about bombs or bomb threats locally which the ETA (Euskadi Ta Ataskuna- a Basque separatist group) was usually responsible for. Just hearing about bomb threats reminds me of all of the attacks over the last few years and the possibility that another will occur.

I know there's no point in living in fear, though. All we can do is try to continue living our lives as usual.

Roughing it in Brit-land

It's my last night in London; tomorrow I bid farewell to good ol' Blighty. I have had one tough week- lying on the couch, watching TV, eating lots of good food (yes, folks, there is good food in England). Seriously, though, it was a much-needed break. On the way back from Morocco, I started getting sick. Being Sick + 8-Hour Bus = No Fun. I'm sure it was a result of a month of travelling- my body was just rebelling. I only felt really ill for the first day or two, now I just have a cold. At any rate, it was high time I took a break, and besides being a Whole Lot of Fun, I think I will enjoy Dublin now a lot more than I would have otherwise.

I had hoped that Lina, Matt 2, and Matt 3 would all be able to get together with Emily and I while I was here. Although we couldn't meet up all at the same time because of their individual schedules, we were able to meet Matt 3 for tea on Thursday, Lina for a curry on Saturday night, and Matt 2 for lunch today. It was a lot of fun to see all of them, but bittersweet as I won't be seeing any of them again for a long time.

So we spent the afternoon in London today - a bit ironic. I spent Independence Day in the capital of the country from which the US declared independence. My Brit friends enjoyed that, as you might imagine. We had a good time, though. After lunch we went to the National Art Gallery, then hung out in a coffee shop for a little while. We might have done more, but we were blessed with typical London weather: It rained.

Well, I'd love to write more, but as I said, this is my last night in London. I need to go lie on the couch and watch some more TV.

Marrakech

As I approach the end of my time in Morocco, a feeling of sadness sweeps over me and a single tear rolls down my cheek. Oh wait, no. That was sweat. It is ridiculously hot here. I am a little sad to leave, though. I have just 2 days left here in Marrakech before heading back to Madrid and then on to London and Dublin.

Marrakech is a Fun Times city. All kinds of craziness goes on in Djemaa El Fna (the main square) at night. Craziness such as snake charmers...with their snakes...um...charming them; performing monkeys; storytellers; musicians; other random crazy people; there are also guys who walk around wearing hats with tassels on them and carrying a set of cymbals. One of these guys will walk up to a tourist and start rolling his head around to get the tassel spinning while simultaneously singing and crashing his cymbals together. After a few moments of this he will pull off his hat and hold it before the tourist, asking for money. Right. Last night I also observed one guy walking around with a chicken on his head. He didn't appear to be doing anything other than just walking around with this chicken contentedly stationed on top of his head. Weird.

Besides the great entertainment, there are many tantalizing food options which are cooked in open-air food stalls. Each food stall is encircled by picnic-style tables and benches for the convenience of the happy diners. These are lit by bare light bulbs strung over the tables. For any of my readers who are planning to check them out, I have one piece of advice: Don't sit near the lightbulbs unless you wish to share your meal with the local insect population. Regarding the typical fare at these food stalls, a couple of good options are sheep's head and snails. Although I have not tried those specific dishes myself, I have had some lovely couscous, tajine, and brochettes. Maybe I'll try the sheep's head tonight. And maybe not. Ok...not.

Not everything about Marrakech is Fun Times, though. As we were eating our dinner last night, countless children approached us begging for money or attempting to sell small packs of tissue and souvenirs. At one point I reflected that when I was that age, by that time of night I would have already eaten my dinner and gone to bed- but these children were running around in the streets and who knows when the last time was that they had eaten?

Another sad thing here is the general treatment of animals. As I was sitting outside a café drinking mint tea yesterday, a couple of horses pulling a cart went down the street in front of me. They were so painfully skinny that their ribs were sticking out. For the most part, it seems that horses and donkey are overworked and beaten all day long, and they aren't even fed properly. I have also seen quite a few cats, but they are all very skinny and most of the cats I've seen have been kittens, so I assume that not many make it into adulthood. I suppose that animals being malnourished should not be surprising in a country where many people struggle just to feed themselves and their families. Still, it's sad to see and the abuse is even harder to observe.

The souks in Marrakech are pretty impressive. Most large cities in Morocco have souks, they are a labyrinth of shops which sell everything from chess sets, to rugs, to caftans, to tea sets, etc. I bought a pretty cool chess set this morning. I haggled with the guy and got it for half his original asking price. Very fun. Then Matt and I played chess this afternoon and I lost. Not as much fun. Oh well. Next time I'll beat him up first so he lets me win.

We're planning on going back to the souks and doing some more shopping. So if you want a souvenir, post a comment on here with your requests/suggestions. I guess it pays to check my blog...heh heh heh(devilish laugh) But I think I hear the call to prayer (which we loosely translate as the call to mint tea), so I'm off to do my duty and drink some mint tea. Mmmmm....mint tea.

Morocco

I'm in Morocco. I can hardly believe it. I've been so excited about coming for so long. Now I'm finally here, but it seems totally surreal. We took an overnight bus from Madrid to Algeciras last night, then we took a ferry from Algeciras to Tangiers, then a train from Tangiers to Fès. So by the time we got to Fès, it was 6 pm(4 pm after the time change). We left Madrid at 10:30 pm last night. Yeah, that's a lot of travelling. Lucky for me, I can sleep just about anywhere, and after eleven days hiking, it was even easier than usual.

There are so many things I could talk about right now. I'm so excited to be here and I don't really know where to start. After we got settled in at a hotel, we went for a bite to eat. The food was amazing and really cheap. I had my first mint tea and it was really good. Then we walked down some streets crowded with all kinds of different shops selling everything from pottery, to musical instruments, to rugs, to spices. The shops seemed to go on forever. We didn't really stop to look at anything, partly because we didn't want to initiate the whole haggling process and partly because there was just so much, it was a bit overwhelming.

Tomorrow we're going to explore the city some more and find out where the nearest bathhouse (called a hammam) is. They usually have part of the day for men only and part of the day for women only. With all of the knots my back and shoulders have acquired from doing the Camino de Santiago, I am really looking forward to a massage.

If I haven't made it clear already, just being here is amazing. I'm really at a loss for words. There is so much that I haven't even mentioned. As I was telling Matt earlier today, I feel like I'm in the movie, "The Man Who Knew Too Much" (an Alfred Hitchcock film set in Marrakech). I can't describe it. And so, I think I will stop for now and maybe in a few days I'll do a better job.

I´m tired

Well, we did it. We arrived in Santiago de Compostela just before noon today, and I am completely exhausted. We´re taking an overnight train tonight at about 10:30 pm. That will be a bit strange for two reasons: 1) The only mode of transportation we´ve used for almost two weeks is our own feet. 2) We´re always in bed before 10:00. It should be good fun, though.

After eating lunch and showering, we took our packs to the train station to store them in luggage lockers. I briefly contemplated staying at the train station for 5 hours to avoid the 10 minute walk back into town. That´s how tired I am. A bit ironic when you consider the hours upon hours I´ve spent walking during the last two weeks, huh? But in the end I managed to drag myself into town. Hopefully I´ll be able to get some good rest on the train tonight and maybe take a nap tomorrow, because tomorrow night I´ll be on an overnight bus. Not relaxing. But despite my exhausted state, I can´t wait for Morocco.

I am a member of the Hardcore Crew

Yes, it´s true. I am hardcore. I´m not bragging- just stating facts. For the last week or so, the other five members of my hiking group and myself have been affirming to each other several times a day that we are, in fact, hardcore. Our hardcoreness, if you will, is demonstrated constantly in a variety of ways. Examples? 1) The blisters, burns, and other injuries that we bear on our bodies- which do not stop us from hiking. Every morning before we venture out, blisters are drained, feet are bandaged, ibuprofen is administered, etc. But we keep on. 2) The route we have chosen is the primitive route. This means that the route is...well... primitive. It is much less popular and the trail is harder to navigate than some of the others. We all came to the conclusion today that the Camino de Santiago would make a good video game. There are many near-deadly perils along the way, such as stinging nettles which jump out suddenly from the bushes, thorns that spring out from inconspicuous shrubbery, dirt that instantly turns into mud and sucks you in when you step on it, R.O.U.S.´s (rodents of unusual size), etc. I may be exaggerating slightly there, but a few of us were chased by a horse a couple days ago, we were nearly stampeded by a herd of cows once, and there have been more than a few dogs that have done their best to get at us. Not to mention a bull that we cautiously passed on the path the other day. Our taking the primitive route also means that we have fewer options regarding places to stop. The French route has an albergue (pilgrim´s lodging place) every 5 k or so. If a pilgrim on that route gets tired, he has many different options for places to stay. Not us. We have a set hike each day and there generally aren´t other options for us. We hike until we get there. 3) We often complete our hikes significantly under the time alotment. This is because we hike quickly, we don´t take breaks often, and the breaks are short. 4) We just are. Take my word for it. We´re hardcore. That´s my story and I´m sticking to it.

We only have 53 k left of our hike. It´s amazing to me to think that I have hiked over 200 k in the last 9 days. Today´s hike was about 32 k. We´re pretty tired, but it wasn´t hot for most of the hike and that helped a great deal. We actually had a bit of a thunderstorm, which was pretty cool. We were sort of hoping to get poured on, but that didn´t happen. Also, we´re hiking in Galicia now, which is not nearly as mountainous as Asturias was. But probably the main reason the hike wasn´t as difficult as we expected it to be is that we grow more hardcore by the day. Tomorrow we have another 33 k, then 20 k on Sunday and we´re in Santiago!

Although this hike has left me completely thrashed, I have enjoyed it. Thinking that it will be over in just a couple of days is almost sad. Almost. I´m definitely looking forward to sleeping in (we´ve been getting up around 5 most days) and letting my body heal. I´m also really looking forward to going to Morocco and the other travel that I have planned for the next month. But for now I think I´ll just go put some aloe vera on my sunburns.

Pain

I´m writing this on day 5 of 11 on the Camino de Santiago. It has been a lot more than I bargained for, to say the least. When it´s all said and done, we will have hiked 270 km. Not bad. When I decided to come along for the hike, I thought, "A little over 167 miles, that would be an average of about 15 miles per day. No big deal, I can walk 4 miles/hour easily..." However, hiking over hills with a backpack on is completely different from walking on a treadmill at the gym.

At this point you may be thinking, "Duh." Understand, though, I didn´t really know what to expect. In my mind, I sort of pictured a trail that meandered through quaint little towns in northern Spain- not a sometimes muddy, sometimes rocky, sometimes barely visible trail that darts back and forth over rugged hills. Almost every time we stop for a water break, my water bottle hisses when I open it because of the change in elevation. Today we hiked 27.6 km in just over 7 hours (the book said it would take 8, but we were seriously hauling). According to my earlier calculations, that should have taken just over 4 hours. Ha.

I think I´m enjoying it, though. I´m too tired and in too much pain to really be sure, but the scenery has been amazing and it has been great to get away from the smog and cigarette smoke of Madrid. It has also been a great opportunity to hang out with friends and get to know them better. We talk a lot while we hike in order to focus on something other than the pain and how far we have left to go. Also, there is nothing like wearing yourself out to make you appreciate relaxing.

At the end of the day, it´s an extremely satisfying feeling to know you´ve pushed yourself to the limit and accomplished your goal. We all have battle scars to prove it, too. My personal claim to fame is the wounds I got on the second day of our hike. Apparently, I did not sufficiently break in my hiking boots before the trip. I noticed that morning before commencing the hike that I was starting to get blisters on the back of my heels. So, I thought I would prevent them by putting on some Compede bandages. I also tied my shoes a little tighter than I had the day before because I thought that was why I was getting the blisters. BAD IDEA. I was actually getting the blisters because the shoes were too small, so I really only compounded the problem. The longer we hiked, the more my feet hurt. But I consoled myself with the knowledge that I had properly bandaged my feet and that the bandages just needed time to work in before the pain would subside. Finally, we stopped for a break and the extreme pain that I was experiencing with every step motivated me to take off my shoes and look at my feet. The bandages were still in place, but as I took off my sock I noticed that there was blood in it. Apparently, my toes were crowded together too much and one of my toenails was cutting into one of my toes. That should have been my clue that the shoes were too tight, huh? But no. After hiking 28 km, we finally arrived at our destination for the day. After enjoying a wonderful meal in a very nice hotel, we were told that we could shower there before going to the albergue. Peregrinos get special treatment!

As I took of my boots, I saw that the bandage had come mostly off of my right foot. Not only that, it had taken the skin with it- a patch approximately 2" square. Not fun. Later that night, the bandage came off of my other foot with a slightly smaller patch of skin. So, that has added all kinds of excitement to hiking. I´m hiking in my running shoes now, which are much more comfortable. However, they´ve been my running shoes for a while and they are getting pretty worn out. So, I think I have about 4-5 blisters on my feet now. I noticed 3 last night, but I was too tired to even bandage them or anything. I think my toenails have been cutting in to my toes, as well. I´ll check all that out tonight. Oh well.

It has most certainly been an adventure thus far. Pictures will be forthcoming, but I currently do not have any way to post them and I´m not sure how long it will be before I do. With all of this said, I´m going to close now. I´ve got a couple more kilometers to hike out to the albergue where we´re staying tonight before I can shower and doctor up my blisters and sunburn. So long!

A bit of seriosity for a change

Wasn't quite sure how to spell seriosity, as I just invented the word. I'm pretty sure I'm going to start using it, though. Seriousness just has too many s's in it- unless, of course, you're a snake. Cobra- feel free to use the word. I did imply that this was going to be a serious blog, though, didn't I? Back to that, then.

Oh, how the time does fly. It's hard to believe that I have now been living in Madrid for nearly 7 months. And I don't want to move back to the States. I'd like to go back for the summer to visit, but then return to Madrid in the fall. Unless something drastic happens, though, this is not going to happen. (Raul- that's a subtle hint for you: Go ahead and propose already) I have one year left at the UW, and I don't think I would be able to graduate next spring if I came back here in the fall. That's okay, though. I like Seattle, too. Once I get over the reverse culture shock, I'm sure I'll be glad to be back.

So, I have just over a month left in Madrid and over two months before I return to the States. I know it's going to go by ridiculously fast. Especially because of how busy I'm going to be: This weekend (April 21-23) I go to Granada. Next weekend (April 28) I go to Berlin, then to London (May 4) to meet my family. We'll all be there together for 2 days, then they come back with me to Madrid (May 6) and they're here until the 11th. The following weekend my roomate moves out and it is my last free weekend before finals. I was thinking about going to St. Petersburg, Russia that weekend, but that might have been the last straw in the coffin..er..the nail that broke the camel's back? Then I have 2 weeks of finals (May 20-30...yuck). At some point in the two days after my last final is over, I move out of my flat. On June 1st I go on a hike called the Camino de Santiago. It is a pilgrimage to the city of Santiago de Compostela, which is believed to be the burial place of James the apostle. For more information, click on the link above. The section of the hike that I will be doing covers a total of 170 miles. After which, I come back to Madrid for 3 days (May 13-15), go to the farewell dinner for my study abroad program, and get a little rest before going to Morocco for about 12 days. I'll return to Madrid on or around the 28th and head back to the States. However, on the way back, I may or may not be stopping in Munich to visit Hannah and I may or may not be stopping in New Jersey to visit Christin and my other friends out there. Right, so, that should keep me busy.

When I get back to the States I get to figure out where I'm going to live for the summer- Centralia or Seattle (not to mention with my parents or my sister). At some point during the summer I need to find a place to live in Seattle, get a job, and buy a car, not necessarily in that order. Hang on, I'll also need to take care of the bureaucracy end of studying abroad (getting all of my credits transferred and such) and register for classes for autumn quarter. So, yes. I am looking at the months ahead with a little bit of trepidation. I'm going to be going on a Transition Rampage.

I'm not really worried, though. Mildly apprehensive, maybe, but not worried. I know that God will take care of me; He always does.

The people have spoken

In response to an influx of requests for conversation-encouraging posts, I submit the following picture: Black hairy tongue 

Well, to be honest, the "influx of requests" was actually one request from my brother. But I guess that just proves how sensitive I am to the desires of my public (which is likely comprised of about 4 people). At any rate, I have enjoyed this picture immensely from the first time I saw it- that is, once I stopped gagging. It is for this reason that I took it upon myself to share this wondrous image with all 4 of you. I hope you and yours enjoy it as much as I have.

You're probably wondering what exactly causes black hairy tongue. The answer is simple. It is one of the lesser-known initial stages of transformation into a werewolf. Generally only a temporary occurrence, this often takes place when the subject is bald. The reason for this is that with the onset of baldness, hair follicles in the head close up. As I'm sure you are already aware, when a person turns into a werewolf, the amount of hair on his/her body multiplies exponentially. Because it is such a struggle for this newly-grown hair to sprout out of a bald person's head, some hair is often rerouted to the tongue. This usually only happens on the first full moon. After that, the follicles have been forcibly reopened and the way is cleared for emerging werewolf hair. So there you have it. If you ever look in the mirror and discover that you have a black hairy tongue, you'll know that you're in the first stages of becoming a werewolf.

Hannah is here!

Hooray! She's finally here! After we met up at the airport yesterday, we decided to take public transport back to my flat. As we maneuvered her bags through turnstiles, on and off escalators, on and off trains, etc., we were taken back to the Great Europe Trek of '04. Ahh, those were the days...sleeping on trains, eating gelato for dinner, taking an overnight ferry from Italy to Greece, hiking 6 miles with our backpacks in search of our hostal- it was quite the adventure. But back to the story at hand!

Once we dropped things off at my place and Hannah had a couple cups of coffee (a vital part of the process), we were ready to go out again. We went with some of my friends to Mesón de la Guitarra to hear some flamenco music and eat some tapas, then on to Mesón del Champiñon for more tapas, and much to our dismay, more music. You see, the flamenco music at the first place was awesome. It always is. At the second place, however, they were playing what sounded like bad mexican country music. To make matters worse, it was karaoke. Fortunately, only one lady actually sang, but she was completely lashed and after she finished singing she continued dancing around for a while. Oh well. We still had a lot of fun.

By the time we got home and went to bed, it was around 3 am. That's not particularly late for Spain, but Hannah had been up all day after flying here from Seattle the day before! So, she slept until about 1 pm today. She's getting ready right now, then we're off to- well, I don't know where. We'll figure that out as we go, I suppose. We're going to Casa Mingo tonight (famous for rotisserie chicken and cider), followed by Populart (live jazz). Then tomorrow, we're going to Segovia. For now, though, it looks like we're off!

Visitation or infestation?

Two days ago, I found what I thought was a large beetle in my bedroom. Now, insects are not generally something that I enjoy, but they don't cause me to run screaming from the room either. On this occasion, I decided to capture it and set it free on my balcony. But before you start to think that I 'm one of those really humane people that couldn't stand to hurt a fly, I'm not. I would kill a fly. I had two reasons for not stomping this particular bug. First of all, it was quite large- I don't mind squishing bugs, but I'm not particularly fond of hearing them crunch. Second of all, it was lying on its back unable to go anywhere, so the old glass & paper trick was a cinch (You know the one, you put a glass on top of the bug and then gradually slide the glass sideways until it and the bug are on top of a piece of paper, and presto - your bug is contained!

Once I had the little bugger trapped, I took pictures. I'm sure this does not come as a surprise to anyone, as that is typically my reaction in any situation. A few examples? I hit my head quite hard, it was bleeding and I had a mild concussion, so I felt that the logical course of action was- to take pictures. The bus doors closed on my friend Kelly's backpack and she couldn't get it free, so being the helpful friend that I am- I took pictures. At a fondue party, the fondue pot caught on fire- you guessed it- I took pictures. But I digress. Back to the story at hand.

Yet again, my fetish for taking pictures has come in handy. The next day, I showed my friend Kelly the picture of this "beetle" that I found. She told me it was a cockroach. I fainted. No not really, but the hair on the back of my neck stood up and I felt a little queasy. I realized that the chances of that being the only roach in the flat were slim to none. We don't have cockroaches where I grew up, which is why I was unable to identify it. Last summer, however, I had ants in my flat- little red ants. I had them for about a month and a half. When my landlords started receiving reports of ants on the premises, they decided to spray the perimeter- that only made things worse. Instead of being repelled from the building, they swarmed inside in an effort to get away from the sprayed area. Not fun. So then we were given ant traps. This helped a little, but they never totally went away.

At any rate, the concept of a roach infestation does not exactly warm my heart. My roommate, Elida, is convinced that it was one of our neighbor's roaches that sneaked in the front door. I hope she's right. This was the first time we'd seen a roach and it was full-grown. We're not taking any chances, though. We bought roach traps today and set them up in our flat. Hopefully we won't see any more of them.