worst day of my life, man.

- all times are in Michigan time just to keep straight the hours -

Tuesday 25 December:
4am - woke up.
5am - left the house in Grand Rapids.
6.45am - boarded my first plane (after paying $25 for overweight luggage).
8.45am - arrived in Minneapolis
9am - found out my parents would be on my flight from Atlanta to Amsterdam because their first flight got delayed!
11.15am - boarded my next flight to Milwaukee (still no nap)
11.20am - I saw a suitcase like mine get left behind as we taxied out and I was certain they missed my luggage.
12.30pm - arrived in Milwaukee (15 min late) and picked up my luggage. :)
12.45pm - crossed the street and attempted to check into Delta airlines for the rest of my trip.

Here I found out my plane to Atlanta had been rescheduled for 4 hours sooner and I'd completely missed it. There were no planes that could get me to Atlanta in time to make my connection. My flight plan got completely rearranged. No more Atlanta. My parents made my flight and I didn't. Plus, it would cost another $50 for my overweight luggage. But the lady at the counter suggested since I only had one bag, I could run upstairs and buy another bag for $10. I did, and rearranged my luggage. :)

2.30pm - boarded my one-hour flight to Cincinnati.
7.30pm - boarded my 8+hr flight to Paris and realized I only had 40min from arriving there til my next plane departed!

Wednesday 26 December:
3.50am - arrived in Paris (where the time said 9.50am).
4.10am -finally got off the plane (they couldn't get the tunnel to work so they made us wait on the plane for stairs).
4.10am - realized I probably wouldn't make my plane.
4.11am - smiled.
4.30am - my plane took off... without me.
4.35am - got through the line to talk to someone to get me a new flight. Then I called Luuks sister to let them know what time I'd arrive.
6.30am - boarded my plane to Amsterdam (now officially been travelling for 24hrs).
8am - arrived in Amsterdam. At least my luggage made it.
What a long day! Didn't nap except a couple of hours on the plane to Paris.

One hour later... (but now in Netherlands time)
3pm - saw my parents and two youngest sisters for the first time in 1.5 years.

We hung out, played games, and when the rest of the relatives arrived, we ate supper. I saw Grandma and Grandpa Vanderploeg also for the first time in 1.5yrs and saw Uncle Leo and Aunt Sue and cousins for the first time in 5 years. :) Crazy!
Good to see everyone again!

I love fog. It's beautiful! Standing in a cloud where you can't see more than 20 feet in front of you. It's like you're the only person in the world. Nothing else exists. Only you and the snow under your feet and the trees in your little circle of existence. I wanna go there again.

It's exam week. I have one left, plus a take home and two papers. All due between now and the end of Wednesday, for Thursday I take off. And what do I do last night? Study? write papers? Nope. I go to docs, then to some friends' house and hang out until 6am, attempt to sleep on the couch and finally leave at 10am.

In 8 days I get to see my parents and two sisters for the first time in 1.5 years. And in 10 days I get to see Amanda get married and I get to have an official, not just "half", brother-in-law!
I have so much to do between now and then.

I'm a definite stuffer of emotions. I stuff until I'm full and then overflowing and when I overflow I can't always figure out what I'm so full of... Which is awful, cuz how can you fix whats wrong if you don't even know what it is?
But I think this week I realized that I do actually know, I just don't admit it, so I tell myself and others I don't know whats wrong because I'm still just trying to stuff it all back in!

Today I read some of David's psalms, the ones he wrote when he was being chased and was in despair, and for probably the first time in my life I actually could relate.

Finally God decided to bless us with snow to cover the ice. Somehow winter seems so much more tolerable, if not outright enjoyable, once there is snow on the ground. I am definitely not one for cold weather, especially not when wind is thrown in the equation. However, snow makes it all worthwhile! Now I can bundle up and smile on my way to class, even if my smiles are accompanied by tears from the wind blowing in my eyes. Next I wait for wet, packable snow so I can make a snowman, or snow fort, or snowballs... :)

ice ice baby

Just when I'm starting to feel more comfortable with ceramics, the class is about over. Oh well. That's how it is with so many things.

I have had a great time lately with some girls from my floor/room. Two rooms on my floor got together for "girls night" last Friday. We went to Sioux Falls and ate out, went to the mall, then Barnes and Noble, and then to some hick bar. :) Great times. One girl actually asked if she could bring her fiance. Silly goose. (Thats nice for "dumbass".)

I was supposed to get a winter bike tag by last Friday but forgot. We were threatened with having our bikes impounded at the cost of $10.00 to redeem if we didn't get tags. I didn't get a tag. But luckily Friday night (I think) there was this ice storm that saved my bike. :)

It woulda taken too much work for maintenance to steal these bikes so they just left them all be. Plus, they had other matters to attend to I'm sure. Like getting the ice off the sidewalks so people wouldn't die on their way to church on Sunday or something.

I've come to admire my little sister. Though I don't always agree with her ideas, I admire her ability to back up her ideas/thoughts with action! I don't know anyone else so near my age who has done so much. She sees problems and needs and doesn't just sit around talking about it, like me. She comes up with ways to help solve the problems or meet the needs and then does them. I guess I've always had this tendency to get stumped the problem, intimidated by it, and unable to see past it to find a solution. I let myself get defeated by issues and give up way too quickly! Not Yoli, though. I think she'll do great things.

The past two gen 300 classes have had potential for being good and have at least gotten me discussing things with friends... but when it really comes down to it, I walk away from class thinking, what were they trying to tell us? What was the point of that whole talk? And my conclusion is nothing. We spent a whole class period being informed about domestic abuse, talking about different kinds of it and discussing different scenarios and whether or not they are examples of abuse... But in the end what I got from that class was a sense of hopelessness - if you let it go too far, there's no way to get out of it. Today we discussed homosexuality and all I get from that is this feeling that we're making too big a deal out of something not that huge...
Maybe it's just senioritis.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm in Grand Rapids this holiday. Came to see my sister, brother, and grandparents. The rest of the relatives aren't coming to eat. They had other places to go I guess. So its just the five of us. Grams is the best! Not only is she cooking this whole Thanskgiving meal just for us, she's doing it with a broken foot!! She stepped in a pothole two days ago and fell, scratching her forehead, her glasses, cutting her hand, and breaking her foot. Poor Grams.
I gotta go baste the corn chickens. Have a blessed holiday, everyone!

The great/horrible story

Friday Morning and Afternoon: I had a VERY busy day! Got up at 8.15, went to class at 9, interpreted from 10-12, ate lunch, went to class at 1, babysat from 2.45 to 4, made a porcelain pot, took a nap at 5, and went to tool my other pots at 6.30.
I had asked my good friend Dave if he'd be around the ceramics room in case I needed help with tooling and adding handles. He said of course, and like the good friend he is, he was there right on time. In our conversation it came up that he had a class in LeMaars from 8am-8pm the next day and he needed a ride. He had a vehicle, just no one wanted to get up that early (7.15) to take him there. I said I'd take him.

Friday Night: I got invited to hang out with a bunch of cool people at a popular spot. We smoked hooka, ate chips, drank tequila, and some people played guitar. When the tequila was gone, we got rum and moved the party to The Brick House, which was warmer than our popular spot. Great times were had by all. Or at least by me. And we didn't bust up the party till 5am the next morning.

Saturday Morning: Since I had to be up in about two hours and was exhausted from the busy day and drunk from the hopping night, I thought there was a chance I might not wake up to my alarm. I rarely don't wake up (hadn't all year) but my alarm shuts itself off automatically after less than one minute of beeping, so to be safe I put my cellphone on loud and right next to my bed in case Dave called.

Saturday Morninger: The room phone rang. I woke up and thought I bet it's Dave. Looked over at the clock and - "SHIT! It's 10.15?!!!" Phone wasn't Dave. I jumped out of bed. "Did I sleep through my alarm?" Angry roommate still in bed says "Yes, and many phone calls!" Checked my cell - 5 missed calls. "And a room call", says the roommie. I'm a horrible friend... AND A WRETCHED BABYSITTER!! I was supposed to babysit from 10 to 12. Shit! Threw on some clothes, grabbed my coat and keys, ran out the door (not too quietly).. roommates more pissed off, me hating myself. Got to Henderson's around 10. 25! Note on the floor said "Carmela, come on in. Ruben's inside." I feel like the most horrible person ever. Not only do I let my friend down, I am late for babysitting and instead of feeling bad because he was home alone for 25 minutes, I am relieved because his parents don't even know!

They do now, though. I told them. Vaguely... :S

I currently have 4 jobs. Sounds like a lot, but really I only work an average of about 10 - 15hrs a week. Hehee.
My little sister, Kayla, called me today. I think she likes to call when she's bored or something. Sometimes I get random voicemails from her. They go something like this...

"Hey Carmela. This is me, Kayla. I'm just calling to say hi and I miss you and I hope you call back. Bye. Adios"

And two minutes later...

"phoooophoooophohphph" (blowing into the phone) *giggle* "Hey Carmela, this is me, Kayla. And I don't know where you could be and what time to call you so could you please call me back? Bye. Adios. phphphphphphphooophphphpohophphohoooohphp *gasp for air* phphoooophphphooooophphoo *giggle* phphoo--" and thank God for voicemail time limits!


I miss that girl!

fucking people over

I went to see Modest Mouse in Des Moines last night. They were amazing, their opening band Man Man was amazing, but the crowd was amazingly terrible! I thought it was just me being irritable because of the crowds and people getting pushing and pushing into my space... but some good sources claim that was the WORST crowd they've ever been in and they've been in a LOT. Anyway, at least that didn't ruin the show. What a show! What a night!



p.s. I hate unthoughtful people!!

highs

I convinced Van Wyk to let me do just wheel-thrown stuff in ceramics and skip all the hand-built assignments. I have to make up for it by doing a bit more wheel-thrown things but I don't care because I LOVE the wheel and I have NO ideas for hand-building things... Now the only problem is I'm not very good at either. Last week I threw about four things or so? But today I had troubles and only threw one kinda crappy pot. I can't seem to get them tall enough fast enough. So I've got some practicing to do, but I don't mind too much, except I don't have much time for it.
My Gen paper was probably the fastest paper I've written yet. Now I have two papers to write for my field experience.
I found out today I can walk in May though I won't graduate until December 2008. :)
The sunset was gorgeous tonight! I even stayed out in the cold a bit longer than I had to just to sit and watch it.
We have three goldfish! Fanny, Bubba Jean, and Shark bait.
I get to work in the Humble Bean tonight.

Today's been nothing but great weather and yet I can't help but think rainy and cold would be more fitting at the moment.

I need to write some lame-ass paper about my calling and what not for Gen 3-stupid (as Kramer likes to call it). Hooray.

really now

Sometimes I just don't understand the Gen 300 profs. They keep telling us how we need to stop being idle and actually do something about the issues in the world. They tell us how one way to do that is through advocacy and through electing the right leadership... Then they get mad at us when we skip class to go hear John McCain speak. Granted, we had a guest speaker in class that day on environmental issues and possible solutions, but that's something we hear about all the time. It's just not every day that a senator running for president comes to your own school to speak, allowing you to ask questions! They didn't even tell us he was coming. Seems a bit contradictory, no?

necesito un abraso.

This weekend is parents weekend and every one of my five roommates' families are here. I don't remember ever seeing so many parents and families around here before, even in past parents weekends. Everywhere I look I see family reunions... Such a brutal reminder that I haven't seen half of my family in over a year. :( It's a bit depressing.
I can't wait until December.

the mysterious glob

It's been drizzly/rainy since about Saturday afternoon or so. I like it and I don't at the same time. I like the water, I just don't like the cold. At least today it's supposed to get to about 60 though. :)
I went to my biopsyc class today. I was sitting with my legs crossed boy style. I had to cough a bit, but then I settled into my chair and rested my hand on my foot... and all of a sudden I realized there was something very slimy and nasty looking on my hand!! So I shook it off onto the floor and thought "GOOD GANDY, what did I cough up? And I really hope no one saw that!!" Then I forgot about it for a while, but every so often I'd think about it again. What the hell was that? Well, finally I had a light bulb moment - Duh! It's an earthworm. I must have stepped on it on my way to class, got it stuck on my shoe or pant-leg, and then put my hand in it... but by then it just didn't look like a worm anymore cuz it was squished.

If I was a poet...

The day I went roller blading at the lake front in Milwaukee was abnormally hot for a day in October. On the way to the lake I rolled down my window and stuck my arm out. All of a sudden I realized at some point that my arm was freezing. It was as though we hit a wall separating the cool lake-front air from the rest of the world. One moment I was hot and the next I was cold, just like that. Then the closer we got to the lake and the longer we stayed once we got there, the foggier it got, to the point where by the time we left I couldn't see clearly more than maybe 25 feet in front of me and couldn't see at all more than, I don't know, 40 feet in front or so? Doesn't matter really. The point is it was beautiful! Seeing sailboats cutting through the fog, the sound of their slow steady movement over the calm water. I heard fish jumping everywhere. The air felt fresh and I could see wisps of foggy air moving all around me. I felt like I was standing in a cloud and well, I guess I was and it was the most beautiful thing I've experience in a long time! If I was a musician I'd write a song about it. But I'm not. Not really. And that's okay by me. I'll just close my eyes and dream about it instead. Beautiful! I hope I never forget it.

Disclaimer: hanging out with Eric = cramming lots of stuff into little time!!!!

I had the craziest weekend of my life! It all kind of blurs together, but it went something like this:

Thursday

• helped move stuff at church
  
• shoe shopping
• walked around the mall
• ate at Culvers
  
• did all my homework for the rest of the semester for one class
• played pool
  
• visited friends
• swam...
• watched CSI

Friday

• Ate at pancake house
• went frisbee golfing
• went roller blading by the Milwaukee lake front
• colored
• kicked Eric's butt at pool
• got my butt kicked by Eric at pinball
• took a nap
  
• went out to eat with the Smicks
• bowled the worst game of my life
• swam again
• star-gazed
• watched little rascals

Saturday

• Ate at Perkins
• frisbee golfing
• out for coffee by the lake in downtown Milwaukee
• beat Eric up ;)
• watched a movie
  
• Ate at Outback
• mini-golfed
• watched another movie

Sunday

• went to church
• ate at Smicks
• drove back to Dordt... :(

CRAZY!!

It's heartland break time, so I've come to the Milwaukee region for the weekend. But right now Eric is in class so I've been doing homework that is due Monday. I finished it though, so I started homework due way later. And now I've got almost all my bio psych homework done for the semester. Minus the paper due next Friday and the little mini assignments he gives us once in a while... It feels great. And it only took me two and a half hours. Nice. Perhaps too easy. The tests make up for it though. Maybe I should start my paper. Naaaw...

Good ol' G3.

Today I had a take home exam due for gen 300. I stayed up until 5am doing it. But since it was the first homework I did since last Tuesday, I guess I had it coming. :) Anyway, so I'm in class today and they start lecturing us about poverty and asking us what we think it is and what we think could be some solutions. Most people say stuff like "take preventative measures" or "relocate people to places where they can find jobs" or "stop just throwing money at the poor and try to get to the heart of the matter"... and then there's this one guy who actually has the nerve to say, and I quote, "Capitalism is the solution to the problem" because competition creates low prices which creates consumerism which creates jobs... At this point everyone's cringing, but we're not allowed to debate because this is supposed to be just a three minute brainstorming session at the very end of class. But of course Walhof saves the day with a witty sarcastic remark - "I think marxism is the solution to the problem because it creates jobs". Gotta love that guy. Can't wait for Thursdays class. Not. Maybe I'll have to carry on the tradition and bring my good friend Jose along.

I'm seriously considering quitting my job at Hope Haven. I'm tired of it. I don't enjoy it anymore. And there's just way too much documenting. I heard of a job available at People's bank. They are looking for more Spanish speakers, so I'm taking advantage of my Spanish speaking ability for once.
The Humble Bean is still my favorite job ever.
My roommies and I want to be in TX this year, so we're scheming up a sweet ass plan!
I'm so stinkin busy already! I still haven't put up my wall decs. I should cuz our walls look so bare.
I'm reading Brave New World for Gen 300 right now. I actually think it's very interesting. Odd, but interesting.

I miss a lot of people!

oops! I did it again.

I probably shouldn't write this here for all to see and know just how confused I get with directions... but I will. For your entertainment and enjoyment.
After my last post I went to class. When I came back I climbed the three and a half flights of stairs up to my floor and went into my room. As I walked towards my bedroom I thought to myself, "man, those girls sure cleaned up in here. . . and what did they do with Erica's couch? I thought we wanted it! And - oh no!!" I actually did walk in this time and it really did take me a while to figure out what had happened. Luckily enough either no one was there or they were in the back and I got out before they noticed. That woulda been awkward...

and back again.

It's been a while so here's a bit of an update.

A week ago I booked a ferry ride to Milwaukee to see Eric and the suegros before heading back to Dordt. A few hours before I left to go there, I got a phone call saying the ferry was canceled (boat needed working on) so I got a full refund AND there was a bus available to take me to Milwaukee for free! Oh happy day!

In Milwaukee I went to an art museum, went roller blading, went to the cheesecake factory, and saw the Bourne Ultimatum. I also found a ride to take me to Dordt (finally). So Sunday I set out for Dordt and 12hours and 4 cars later I made it to Sioux center! I had to get Eric to take me to highway 80 where I met up with Lisa who was going to take me the rest of the way. About two hours from Sioux Center her car quit working properly. Transmission? So we were stuck on an off-ramp. Luckily a very very nice couple of people our age saw our hazards and offered help. After pushing us into the gas station parking lot and tinkering around for over an hour to see what the problem was, they arranged for one of them to drive us north an hour where we hooked up with a Dordt friend, moved our stuff again!! and finally made it back to Dordt at 3am!

Now I'm settled into the fourth floor of southview and I keep getting lost. Every time I come up the west stairs I think I'm on the east side and vice versa. I just now almost walked into the wrong apartment by accident. I like to think I'm getting better with directions but...

I'm sick of work... Sometimes I think the guys there have never seen a girl before. The temps creep me out, the hired workers are full of drama, and the supervisors won't give overtime.
I just got my Dordt bill. All I have to say about that is "uh oh!"

But lifes not all bad. This weekend I'm going to the cabin with my aunt and uncle and Eric is coming too. And there's a canoe/kayak trip planned for that weekend. Then Clayton, my lil brother, comes the following week so I'll get to see him before I go back to school. Then I have another weekend in GR before I head to Milwaukee before I head back to Dordt. :) Busy. And hopefully I can visit Grand Valley State University before I leave. And also Marquette University in Milwaukee.

Oh, and I found the BESTEST place EVER in Grand Rapids. It's called the B.O.B. and it is a restaurant bar by day I think and a pub/club/bar? by night. It has four floors and every floor has a different atmosphere. It's great! Check it out if you're ever in the area.

I hate stupid lawsuits. Like the ones where burglers lock themselves in someone's garage for a week after breaking in and sue the family because they had to survive on dog food for that time. Or the ones where people trip on their own children in a store and sue the store as if it's their fault. Or the ones where kids trip over themselves while putting a pile of dog poop on an old womans front porch and the parents sue the old woman because the kid gets a concussion... People who injure themselves on other people's property when they were there uninvited in the first place should not be able to sue for their injuries! And people who's significant other is injured should not be able to sue because their other was "unable to please them" while injured! So rediculous. I don't know how the law is written, but maybe it needs some rewriting if its allowing shit like this to happen. There should be limits and rules. There should be a law that if a lawsuit goes against all reason it should be thrown out. There should be a limit to the amount people are allowed to sue for. A reasonable limit.

Dear friends who read my blog,

Once again I had another good weekend. I never reallized why people made such a big deal about weekends until I started working a regular houred day job and suddenly weekends where I could get away because absolutely precious! I love them!
Today in church I saw a couple friends of mine who were some of my best friends/mentors until they got married and moved to the Dominican Republic to do youth ministry... Anyway, I hadn't seen them in at least a year or two and then suddenly they were in church today!! So exciting. I hope I can hang out with them before they leave again.
I got stung by a something on my way home today though. The car I was driving has no air so I had the windows down and the roof window open and in from somewhere flew something big and landed on my cheek and definitely stung me! I flung it off and lost it so I don't know what it was, but my face is half numb now. Better numb than sore though.
It's hot. I'm going swimming.

Love,
Carmela

I get so frustrated when I see old friends that I haven't seen in several years... I guess I keep making expectations of what they'll be like, or what they should be like, based on what they were like before. Or expectations of how we'll get along based on how we did before... and then when I actually see them and things are awkward, weird, or just plain different, or when they've changed into someone I don't like anymore I get very frustrated and disappointed. But it's even worse when I get the feeling they're just as weirded out, annoyed, bored, or disappointed with me! At least one of my two reunions this weekend was a good one.

I've been in the mood for eggnog and gingerbread house-making all week, so Friday I got some eggnog recipe's online and a friend of mine and I made eggnog. It was delicious! I think the Humble Bean should make and sell this stuff, minus the whiskey and rum... :)

I know our country's economy relies on consumerism, and I understand that a great part of making it work is marketing and advertisements. So when I watch TV or listen to the radio I put up with the ads and commercials... but when these ads and shit start showing up and filling my inbox, mailbox, and phone, they've gone too far! Advertisers and marketers have crossed the line from providing info to bashing you over the head with it! If they want to buy time on the air, that's their right I suppose, cuz the tv shows need support so it works both ways. But when I get a text on my cell phone advertising penis enlargement products, my personal space is being invaded and it pisses me off! There should be a law against that!!

I had a bit of an eventful weekend. About wednesday I decided to go to Milwaukee this weekend to visit Eric. Thursday I booked my ferry tickets - they were mostly sold out so I had to take the 4.45pm ferry to Milwaukee on Friday and the 6am ferry back on Sunday leaving not much time to actually be in Milwaukee. At work the guys kept reminding me that I was leaving on friday the thirteenth and asking if that made me nervous. In truth I was, but not because of the date at all. I was a little worried about making the ferry in time because I get out of work at 3, but still had to get home to pick up aunt Pam's car to drive there with, plus I had to be there no later than 4.30 or probably even before that... But uncle Dave assured me from home it only takes half an hour to get there, so Friday he even ran some errands before going home. I left home by ten to four - plenty of time. or so I thought. But turns out theres tons of construction on the highway and even at 4pm it was backed up to a stop. Eventually it was moving again, but not far after that there was a car getting hooked up to a tow truck, so again traffic was at a slow crawl! By this time I was getting frustrated and hoping for better luck. Instead after I got off the highway I got nothing but red lights and getting stuck behind slow drivers. So I get to the ferry at 4.40, run in, and ask if there's any way I can still get on.
- Negative.
- But its still there!
- The passenger part is closed up.
- But cars are still getting on. Can't I walk through there?
- No, its secured.
- (Secured? from what?) So absolutely no way?
- No, sorry.
- Can I get on the 11pm one?
- Yes. With a $10 change fee...

So I paid, sat in the car and watched the ferry sit there another 15minutes before completely closing up. Then I left and went to the beach for the next 5 hours. When I got to the beach I walked out onto the dock and just as I got there, the ferry went past. Like a punch to the stomache... The beach was nice at least, but it woulda been nicer with some company or something. I waded on a sandbar, read, ate subway, ate ice cream, waded more, walked on the dock again, watched the sunset, and finally caught a ferry to Milwaukee. Long day.

p.s. Saturday Eric and I went to the zoo and I rode a camel!!!!!

I got the hiccups five times today. I counted. It hurts.

A guy at work said that on saturday, which was july seven (as in 7/7/07) his car mileage just turned to 77,777. If that's not a WEIRD coincidence, I don't know what is. I mean, really there is only one day a year, nine years a century something like this is even possible. But the likelihood of having your mileage come out all the same digits on the same date month and year... thats just insane!

Swimming was great today. Wrestling is weird. Guys rolling around hunging each other in weird positions wearing only underwear-like shorts... queer!

I love long weekends! - I took today off. I mentioned that before I think. So I've been spending the weekend with my lovely sister Yoli and my good friend Eric. Yoli's former roommate moved out. Finally. A while ago this chic had a spat with her mother and asked to spend the night at Yolanda's and somehow that "night" spending turned into moving in... I'm not sure how that works out, but anyway, she's gone now and Yoli wasted no time in cleaning and rearranging her room.

Saturday morning was my cousins bridal shower. Yippee. I don't much like bridal showers. All girl parties are bad enough, but throw wedding into the equation and things get. . . high pitched?
After that Yoli and I shopped for probably 4 hours or more for a bathing suit. I hate shopping! Bathing suits are especially a pain in the ass. I gotta try on a million before I'll find one that fits! But I eventually found something - half at one store and half at another.

I hate cats! - There's this cat here that normally stays away from people because it gets all its lovin from the lady of the house, but lady is gone for the weekend and cat is feeling neglected or something. So every morning cat comes into the bedroom and walks all over me waking me up and getting cat hair everywhere!!

Oooh, low battery, must hurry!

trixy

I'm at Yolanda's place now. Last night we both slept on a double bed or queen sized... whatever... Then sometime this morning Yoli asked what time it was, so I checked and looked back at her to tell her, and when I turned around again to go back to sleep my heart almost jumped into my throat! - The household cat had jumped up onto the bed and was litterally inches from my face! Shoot, I've never been so startled in my life! okay, that may be an overstatement, but to be startled like that at 6.30 in the morning will get your blood flowing fo sho.

Blogging gets harder and harder these days because every day is about the same. Get up at 5.30, go to work, get out of work at quarter to 3, get home around 3.30. Check mail. Go swimming. Shower. Nap. Eat. Read. Go to bed between 9.30 and 10.

I have wednesday off for independence day. I was going to ask for Monday and Tuesday off as well and just have a LOOONG weekend, but was informed that to get paid for the holiday I have to work the day before and the day after, so I just took Monday off instead.

See, not much going on really. Oh, I'm almost done reading The DaVinci Code. When Eric found out I was reading it he was a bit upset. Apparently there's a prequel, which I haven't read yet, and Eric was a bit perturbed that I not only haven't ready the first book, but haven't even heard of it. So when I went to Wisconsin last weekend he gave me his copy of Angels and Demons (I think that's what it's called).

Speaking of Wisconsin, I went there by ferry for Eric's sister's wedding. Nice wedding, but a little too much pink for my taste. Anyway, I had a pretty good time going to the rehersal dinner, the wedding, staying with a friend's parents whom I'd never met before, and their HUGE dog!! I've never in my life seen a dog that big! If he had jumped on me, his front paws would have reached over my head, I'm sure! Anyway, I didn't get to see much of Milwaukee because of how busy everyone was with everything, but I did go to Barnes and Nobels and bought three books, including a T.S. Eliot poetry book and Pride and Prejudice, so Amanda, if you ever find my other copy, its yours now.

WE'RE ON THE BRINK OF BLUE BERRY SEASON!! Hooray for living in a house surrounded by blueberry fields!!! So if anyone has any good ideas/recipes involving blueberry's, do tell!

Rumor has it...

At work yesterday the guys fought over gatorade. Unbelievable! These are 30+ year old men fighting over gatorade! The supervisors even had to get involved to resolve the issue.

I went shopping with my aunt yesterday for a dress to wear to all these summer weddings coming up. I felt like I was shopping with my mother. Have I mentioned she reminds me of my mom? Anyway, it was weird. Like my mom, she hasn't exactly the same sense of style as I have. Also like my mom, she has in mind an idea of of what my "style" is and, like my mom's, it doesn't quite coincide with mine. I did manage to find two dresses - one that I kinda liked but wasn't sure if it was dressy enough and another that I really liked but wasn't sure if it was modest enough. So (following Aunt Pam's advice) I bought them both and took them home to show Uncle Dave. He liked the one I liked, so that settled it. For some reason I trust his judgement better on the issue. :) Come to think of it, I always trusted Dad's sense of style better than Mom's. Or maybe it was just the honesty, I don't know.

It has recently been suggested that some people think I'm naive. I know people used to think that about me, but didn't know they still did. I guess if I was naive, I wouldn't know it myself, but I really don't know if I agree. I may be idealistic about some things. Maybe I'm uninformed at times. Perhaps I'm even slightly airheaded? But naive? I guess its possible.

happy friday!!!

The pool is done. We finished it yesterday and it finally has enough water to filter now too, so the water is getting treated and cleaned and by Monday it should be fit for a swim. I would swim in it now, but we (and by we I mean Uncle Dave, Aunt Pam, and I) are possibly heading to the cabin for the weekend so I need to pack up and stuff. But Monday I shall return for a dive. :) Or even Sunday night.

I stayed up past my bed time (which now is around 21:45) last night making music mixes to take to work so I won't have to listen to crappy radio music. Every day the guys I work with listen to the same station - 97.9 GRD. And every morning there's this show on called Free Beer and Hot Wings. Took me about three days to figure out that those are the nicknames of two guys on the show and not a promotion to win beer and hot wings. Bummer. Anyway, I used to be annoyed by the show. From 6.30 when my shift starts till about 10.30 there's no music, just four guys talking or playing games. But after a while I started realizing how entertaining they are. Somehow they manage to spend four hours straight every morning just making fun of stupid people - kids, celebrities, polititions, foreigners, their listeners, each other, and themselves. They never fail to amuse me, if not with their hilarity then with their stupidity! But once the music starts, thats when I start to get annoyed again. They play the same songs EVERY DAY! No joke. And they play songs from the same artists over and over in one day... So I'm bringing some CD's and hoping the guys let me play them. :)

I got paid yesterday and found out I'm making a dollar less per hour than expected and paying more tax than I expected. Welcome to the real world.

money in account, 3 cents. game of mini golf, $4. Dinner and movie rental, $20. Being a girl and not having to pay for anything, PRICELESS!

I spent this past weekend mostly with Yolanda and Eric and it was one of the best weekends ever. Events consisted of going out to eat twice, watching a movie, mini golfing, coloring pictures, roller blading, seeing Scott Geurink, a beer at a bon fire, the Rockford festival, cooking, Eric missing his ferry, and spending an evening at the beach!

I am currently the poorest I've ever been since I started getting an allowence. I have .03 dollars in my bank right now and nothing in cash. Good news is I get paid on thursday.
I always wondered why everyone always writes about work, but now that I work 8 hours a day I've realized there's nothing else much going on during the week to write about. But all I want to say about my job is that it's not that bad. I get up at 5.30 am every morning and am done working at 2.45pm. I keep my mind busy by trying to break previous output records. And as long as I work hard the day goes by fast and I get exercise and I get paid for it. :) Plus, the people I work with are really fun and seem to like me since I'm one of only a small handfull of women working there, and one of the youngest of those. And yes, I totally take advantage of that!!
Tomorrow after work I'm helping my uncle finish fixing the pool. Then hopefully I can swim in it at least by next week!

I miss my music. I even dreamed (dreamt?) of it last night.

In other news...

People always say girls are full of drama, but the truth is boys are just as full of it. At work I'm pretty much the only girl in my area and the guys are always bitching about some supervisor who doesn't supervise, or some non-supervisor who's bossy, or some guys on third shift who don't work... (while of course in the meantime as they bitch they aren't working either.) And though said bitchings may have truth to them, I'm just pointing out that a flair for the dramatic is not necessarily only a female trait.

I've been back two weeks now. My whole trip to the Netherlands feels a bit surreal now, while at the same time I can't get it out of my head (not that I want to). I keep remembering good times there and I miss it. Now I can't wait for summer to be over and for school to start so I can move into my own place again, buy my own groceries, get my bike back and with it some freedom. I can't wait to be able to buy and drink beer again or invite friends over and stuff without feeling like I have to have someone's permission. But mostly I can't wait to be surrounded by people. People my age, and among them many personal friends. I even can't wait to have homework again so I have something to do on evenings when there's nothing else to do. Though that problem here could be fixed once my aunt and uncle's pool gets going again.

There is NOTHING worse than being woke up at 1am by menstrual cramps!! Sometimes I wish I didn't have ovaries.

same ol'

I've been back for over a week now. Today I realized I forgot how fat American's are becoming! seriously!
Anyway, I've got a new job. I'm working in a factory making panels for the chevy avalanche. It's not very fun, but its also not too hard or too fast paced, so I'm pretty happy with it. I get paid decently and maybe by the end of the summer I'll have some muscles to show off. :)
I'm living with an aunt and uncle (my favorite from my moms side). I've been noticing how much my aunt is like my mother!! They kinda look alike, laugh alike, talk alike, and have very similar manerisms. It's almost scary. Anyway, free room and board and no car (which means no expenses) = hopefully a very productive summer. On the down side, no car also = not going out much... So I'll just have to make it count when I do. :)
It's hot.

Don't you just love those weekends that are super exceptionally good? This weekend was one of them. I went to Eric's parents lake house with Yolanda to hang out a bit. Saturday we washed a boat and earned enough money each to go to the movies and watch Pirates III. I loved it!
Sunday we went again and met several extended family members of Eric's and Yolanda's high school teacher, who happens to be Eric's sister. They had a three-person ski-doo there. The weather was slightly on the chilly side, but the water was warm, so after being reassured that three-person ski-doo's never flip and don't splash much, we decided to take it for a spin - in our clothing. We went out to the other side of the lake and all was well. Then Yoli said, "Just don't do anything stupid, Eric." Eric said, "what? do something stupid?" and he proceeded to spin the ski-doo in tight circles. We thought we were in for it, but then he stopped and coasted and we were still dry. Yoli (in the back) leaned over to say something witty to Eric. Eric leaned over to hear. I leaned over to get out of the way. And somehow all of us leaning on a stopped three-person ski-doo made the untippable beast tip over! Oh shock and disbelief! But we tipped it back up, got back on, and after realizing the only casualty was Yoli's sunglasses, we had a good laugh and made a cold journey back to the dock. Good times!
Later I went back out for a tube ride on a three person tube (not unflippable) that was slowly losing air and becoming harder and harder to keep upright. Eventually a cousin fell off the right side, so Eric bailed off the back, and I inevitably flipped right over doing weird sideways summersaults over the water. More good times! :)
Monday I ate out at Perkins, had coffee at Starbucks, and played a VERY rushed game of mini-golf before rushing Eric home to "meet his curfew".
Great weekend!

time does not exist

It would seem I have this inability to not finish something I started even if it takes weeks or years... Take the book I just read, for instance. No matter how often I had to stop reading just to scoff at the stupidity of the book with its typical plot line and cheesy writing, I still couldn't bring myself to just stop reading it. But now it's over and I can leave that beastly thing on the desk of my sister (sorry Amanda).
Two more days here before I cross the big blue sea and return "home", leaving one sister 
behind for another (sorry Amanda). Thanks to my thoughtful family, I've got my own 
living quarters in my aunt and uncle's basement ready for me and a job as well! But as for tonight I'll be spending the evening with Amanda and Dane drinking beer and possibly smoking some good ol' hooka. Then tomorrow Amanda has to babysit so we'll stick around here and watch a movie - American Beauty.
I'd love to say more but, apart from having not much more to say, I've left my lovely sister to drink her tea alone (sorry Amanda), so I am going to go spend what little time I have left enjoying her company. 
Toodles.

Goodbye boredom, hello fun! I hope.

I love spur-of-the-moment decisions. Amanda and I just decided to go to Groningen right now. 
Apparently Camiel has no school for the next few days, which means she has no work. So instead of bumming around here, we'll be bumming around Luuk's place until Friday. But at least there it's more fun. Then we'll be stopping by Zwolle to say goodbye to my hosts on our way to Zoetermeer where we'll spend the weekend. I love surprises. :) 
I watched Being John Malcovich last night. Was aweful! I didn't like it at all.

closing time

 Not to defeat the purpose of Amanda's last post, but seriously, every time I come to Amanda's place I am more and more surprised at how she manages to stay so sane while living here! These kids are cute and fun, but take so much energy and time! But what gets me the most is
how since they are not her kids, she can't really discipline them and verbal reprimand only goes so far...
I really have no news. I've been staying with Amanda since Friday. I went first to her future-in-laws place for the weekend. Sunday Fritz decided he needed to take me sight seeing to make sure I didn't leave here without seeing the tulip fields. So we got in his car and drove through Den Haag to the fields... which instead of being full of colorful flowers were just green from stalks of had-beens. I think Fritz was more disappointed than I. He kept commenting on how summer came early this year and we just weren't lucky that day, etc. I just enjoyed the ride so much, I didn't really care.
Now we've been at Amanda's place for only two days and I think I'm going to go mad! I get so bored and restles, now that I have no school and the group I hung out with all semester is gone... Last night we hung out with Dane at their usual pub and drank Casteel or Kasteel? At first I wasn't sure I liked the beer, but after the second one I enjoyed it much more.
This morning I had promised to watch the two youngest kids while Amanda took the oldest to school. She said she'd wake me at 8.15 but I woke up around 7 thinking she would be coming soon so at 7.20 I just got up and went downstairs thinking she maybe forgot to wake me, but of course found out I was an hour early, so I groggily went back upstairs. I am a smart one.

the good times are killing me

I kind of regret changing my blogger url now... I think some of my ol' friends haven't found me back. oops!

NSPICE is now officially over. We had our goodbye party tonight, which was much more fun than I expected, but it made me realize how sad I'm going to be when our group isn't together anymore. But life goes on, and I'll see most everyone at Dordt next fall. :) Tomorrow I am bringing back my books and bike to hopefully get some money back. Friday I leave my host family and am going to spend my last two weeks with Amanda. I went past the calendar in the kitchen and realized just how much they are going to miss me. ;)

the hell with it

I finally got my tax return. All - ready for this? - thirty two dollars of it. I'm a little bummed.

Had my last day of class today. I actually was complimented on my Dutch pronunciation. I'm a little psyched.

Got my first C in a class ever, with no explanation. I'm a little frustrated.

Get to spend the next two weeks with my sister. I'm a little excited.

Going "home" after that. I'm a little torn.

Ik ben naar Italië geweest

Italy's been on my travel hit-list for quite some time now and I've finally been! There's so much to tell, I fear if I try you'll get bored before reading the end of it, so here's my attempt at a brief recap of events.

Tuesday 1 May - Rome

• First lesson learned in Rome - don't ask the cab drivers where to catch a train...
• Managed after some hassle to find the stop for the bus to my campground, where I was to meet 7 girls/travel companions.
• Knew the bus, but had no idea where to get off.
• Overheard some travelers talking about the campsite, told them of my predicament, and they (particularly Craig the amiable traveler) took care to announce our stopping place.
• Couldn't check in because the girls, including the one under who's name we were booked, weren't there yet.
• Thanks to the attentive traveler, I found four other nspicers (3 boys and one's gf). Not the ones I needed, but company which was incredibly welcome.
  
• Waited... went to try one more time for a tent before resorting to making room in one of the other four's tents... found the girls instead. Hooray!

Wednesday 2 May.

• Went to see the sights with the boys and the easy-going traveler.
• Made our way to the State of Vatican City where the experienced traveler parted ways with us for the day. Also here the boys got groped by some frisky Polish ladies and we got rained on - partly from the sky and partly from a man's umbrella, which Marcus proceeded to "accidentally" break. p.s. we also saw Pope Benedict XVI from less than ten feet away.
• With some help from Dane's map (many thanks, man!) we walked from one side of town to the other, seeing on the way the Colosseum, some ruins, the place where Caesar was stabbed, and a couple churches. San Giovanni was our final destination, which we realized only after we got to it that it was not the building with the beautiful fountain on the cover of the map.
• Went to the camp pub after having perhaps a bit too much to drink.
  
• Played some pool (courtesy of the generous traveler) while apparently being extremely loud. My apologies to any witnesses.
  

Thursday 3 May.

• Said goodbye to the adventurous traveler who's last name I don't know.
• Went once again with the boys (and Kelsi) and once again from one side of Rome to the other to see more ruins, San Giovanni again (for Kelsi's sake), outer Vatican City again (for Kelsi's sake), pope tombs, the Pantheon, St. Peter's Basilica, Fontana di Trevi (the place with the fountain we tried to see earlier), and the Spagna stairs whose function remains a mystery.

Friday 4 May.

• Rained steadily for the last half of the night and first half of the morning.
  
• When it let up a bit, I went with the 7 girls to book our train to Milan and then to San Giovanni AGAIN!
• Didn't feel too well so while the girls went to the Catacombs, I headed back to camp for a nap on my half soaked mattress. (Felt better afterwards.)
  
• FINALLY finished The Odyssey! Somehow it became especially interesting since being in Rome.
• Went on a pub crawl involving jumping pictures with drunk Italian men, "free" t-shirts, lots of terrible tasting beer and wine, pizza, a drinking game with beer cans and mens jeans (some of which were at the ankles...), "free" shots, lots of dancing, new people to meet, lots of walking and a grumpy guide.
• To bed at 4am?

Saturday 5 May.

• Was left behind at 7.20am by some all-too-eager-to-leave ladies who left ten minutes before we could even buy metro tickets.
• Caught the 247 bus to Cipro, where I caught the metro. And who do you think was on that very same metro, but the all-too-eager-to-leave ladies. Silly meisjes.
• Went to Florence where Hannah, Heidi and I walked around for a few hours through a market and past the Duomo of Florence not knowing what it was but admiring its beauty.
• Went to Milan, met up with the others, had no time to walk around, caught a shuttle to the Linate airport at 21.05 after being well-stocked by the girls with a blanket, alarm clock, and tons of food!
• Spent the night attempting sleep on the airport chairs. Flew out the next morning at 7.25.
  

What a week! Busy but enjoyable. Interestingly though, the highlights where people I met and conversations I had.

Konninginnedag

Just had May break. I got to ride in host papa Arie's truck after all. He gave me a lift to Utrecht, where I spent Queen's day's eve with Amanda, her future husband, friends, and friends of the friends. Got all decked out in my self-moderated orange t-shirt and went to a student union bar to spend the whole night/morning dancing and drinking beer, for which I paid not a single dime (gotta love Dutch boys!)
Queens day (or should I say afternoon) we went downtown and walked through streets full of people sporting orange clothes, hats, and even beards.

Little stands lined the streets where new and used junk was being sold for very cheap. After six sales were forbidden, so many people just abandoned what was left to be ravaged by the crowds.

When we got tired of walking, we sat by the canal drinking cold beer in the warm sun, watching the rise and fall of the canal to allow the passage of boats such as this.


On a nearby bridge a little stage was set up where several live bands played. One guy had the courage or better said the stupidity to wear tight leather pants in the heat.

All the beer made Amanda and I jealous of boys who get to pee in public urinals while we have to wait in line half an hour to pay half a euro to use a toilet for half a minute! Though someone did recently bring to my attention the fact that in the end it evens out because we ladies don't usually have to buy our own beer. :) True that.
Good times!

(this computer sucks, Amanda)

Guess who doesn't have to take HPER 10! ME!! Wuahahahahaaa!!

lkjsajjsfdknjfn

Sometimes I can be very easy going about changes and what not, but sometimes I just hate when plans get made and then don't happen. If I am with friends, I don't care what we do as long as its together, but when I'm supposed to meet up with friends, but they say "I'll call you" and don't call, then I get so frustrated waiting, and eventually disappointed when all the waiting is for nothing! I shoulda just gone out tonight.

Anyway... Tomorrow I must pack for a whole weeks worth of clothing. I am going to Utrecht to hang out with Amanda and some friends for queens day! Then spending the night in Zoetermeer probably, and then spending Monday with Amanda at her place? And Tuesday I fly out (hopefully) to Rome. I say hopefully because I thought my ticket was supposed to come in the mail, but it hasn't so now I'm hoping if I just show up at the airport with my confirmation email printed it will be enough. If not I'll be pissed out of my mind!!!

Only half a week of class left after Italy, then the program is over and then I've got until the 23rd to try to figure out what to do with the rest of my summer. Crap.

I went swimming yesterday.

and then I said, "Feck it. I'm in Ireland!"

So I went to Dublin this weekend with the whole class. I fear it is my new favorite city! (sorry Berlin.) Thursday we flew there, found our hostel, ate out for supper, and went to Temple bar. In case like me you never heard of it, its not only the most well known bar in all of Dublin, but is also the name of the whole area in which most of the bars/pubs are. Temple bar was hopping and reminded me of Zwolle's vliegende paard - lots of different rooms with different atmospheres. Here's a picture of me in front of it, with some random drunk-before-1pm Irish guy who thought he needed to be in the photo...


I told the bar tender "I'll have a Guinness" and he gave me half a Guinness. I hate Guinness, but of course you gotta have the Irish experience, right? Turns out Irish Guinness is actually good. Who knew?


Temple bar turned out to be mostly a tourist bar and also the most pricey, so the next night we searched for a real Irish pub... and were somewhat unsuccessful... but the third night we found one! The guys didn't go for fear of intruding on the Irishmens space and getting their asses kicked, so a bunch of us girls went. Downstairs there was a trio-band playing Irish music - VERY GOOD!! We stayed there till closing and then stood outside talking to some newly made friends. One guy tried to impress us by doing pushups and in the process got the biggest wedgy of his life!! If course it was also his first wedgy, which I might add he "never imagined would be so public!" But it was so big he decided to try to tear off his undies. Didn't work as well as he expected, but then his muscles must have been worn out from all those push-ups, so he proceeded to burn the ends and eventually succeeded in removing his underwear while keeping his jeans on. What a night!

This is me and my Irish coffee! Yummy! (but not worth 6 euros!)

And this was some random chic giving out hugs to any random person who so desired one. I like hugs. But definitely don't understand this "free hugs" movement or whatever it is.

Now I'm back in Zwolle and had a nice big theology test and a dutch quiz here to greet me when I came home. Next tuesday I have my Dutch final exam and a ten page single space theology paper to write - with a partner! however that works... So though we only have a month left here, I think this will be my busiest month yet!

not as expected

Went to Brussels this weekend. Came back with an increased appreciation for the atmosphere in the Netherlands. People here are nice, friendly, and approachable, but not sleazy or friendly in an unwelcome way. In Brussels the men/guys reminded me of some men/guys in Mexico - if a girl so much as makes eye contact with them they start getting ideas... and even without, they aren't afraid to call out or whistle or approach a girl and blatantly hit on her. I had forgotten how annoying that is, but what was worse was that in Mexico I at least could understand what they guys were saying, but in Brussels they all spoke French. I don't know ANY French!
The city, however, had some cool buildings I guess, but didn't seem much different from other Dutch cities I've been in, except that Brussels had no canals and lots of hills! It was nice enough, I had fun, but it didn't exactly make my favorites list. Their chocolate was good though!


And Belgium waffles are to die for!!


Manneken Pis wasn't at all what it's made out to be...


But the Grand Place I hadn't even heard of turned out to be VERY VERY COOL!

(and this is only part of it...)

to anyone who cares to answer

why do people/parties running for president have to raise soooo much money? 
What do they do with it all, and how much does more money effect their chance of being elected? 

Een April (een betje laat)

I went to the longest birthday party of my life this weekend. It was of my host sister Jeanine's boyfriend. Saturday all his friends were over at his place sitting around drinking beer, doing shots, etc... I didn't drink much, but around 2.30am they found out I like Gold Strike - that 50%, cinnamon flavored, clear with gold flecks alcohol. So I had a shot with Jeanine. But since she is not particularly a fan of Gold Strike, I had to take a shot of Drop Shot with her to even the score. I hate droppies and anything black liquorish related. I agreed to take a shot only if I had a glass of water handy. So one of the guys got up, went to the kitchen and came back with a glass with some water. I had no choice now, so down with the Drop Shot and I immediately stuffed my mouth full of chips. They all laughed at me and said, "here, have your water," so I just took the glass and threw that back too. It didn't look like much, so I just took a big mouthful - a big mouth FULL of GOLD STRIKE!!! "Een April!" I was so surprised and was laughing so hard I couldn't even swallow it at first so I just stared back at everyone with my eyes round as marbles, and tearing up. That stuff is good, when you're expecting it, and when you have a regular shot, not a whole freakin mouthful!

isn't it ironic?

I went last night and didn't buy a single drink, yet somehow I managed to wake up today with my first ever hang-over! Hooray for Dutch boys who buy the girls' drinks.
I'm going back to bed.

I just heard Bright Eyes' four winds and I LOVE IT!!

Top 10 things I've done with my sunny days

1. Went shopping for skirts.
2. Wore my new skirts.
3. Sat outside drinking orange juice.
4. Painted Jeanine's nails outside while drinking orange juice.
5. Wore a sleeveless shirt all day.
6. Went for a bike ride.
7. Wore flip flops.
8. Did homework outside.
9. Made a sunny day music mix.
10. Blasted the sunny day music mix inside, with the door open so I could hear it outside.

Terror on the streets.

It was raining this morning when I left the house, so I put on my rain jacket. I had to bike into the wind the whole way to school, the rain being blown into my face, so I put my hood up. Then a few minutes after I left school the rain turned to ice, still being blown into my face, which was unpleasant to say the least. I held my hood down in front of my face. This meant I could not see more than two feet in front of me, but this did not appear to be a problem since the nearest person to me was a a woman a ways ahead of me yet and there were no streets/paths crossing mine for a while so I was good to go, right? But suddenly there was a woman right in front of my bike! The woman who was a ways ahead of me had stopped to put on her rain jacket... Hit the break - not quick enough - ran into the woman! Luckily the wind kept me from going fast, so I really just bumped into her... really. I felt like such a terd, or more like a stupid tourist! After several apologies in broken dutch and making sure she was fine and all was okay I continued on my way to school.

Glass half full

Rained off an on today. I left school at on off, so I wore no rain jacket. About halfway home pellets of snow started coming from the sky. My initial reaction was self-pity and whispered curses. But after a few minutes I realized life could be worse. Instead of snow pellets that bounce off my coat, it could have been rain drops coming form the sky, soaking into my clothes. I smiled the rest of the way home.

url change

I've decided keeping my full name off my blog is pointless when it is written right in the link. So I'm changing my link. To anyone who wants to keep reading my blog, I'm gonna use my dordt user name crmlvndr dot blogspot dot com or whatever for my link as of next week sometime. I know this is not the most anonymous, but I'm not exactly paranoid, just trying to get a little bit more anonymous than my whole name....
okay...
bye.

<--multiply:no_crosspost-->

nothings gonna drag me down

I've just rediscovered Elliot Smith's XO album. I love it.
Sometimes I worry too much about what I have to do instead of just doing it.
Sometimes I worry too much about why I feel so down and end up making it worse when I could just not worry about it and enjoy the day. Seriously, I've been thinking lately about those times when I get "depressed" and I'm starting to believe that if I just don't worry about it and I stop focusing on it, I feel a lot better and it actually goes away. I hope this isn't a form of stuffing that will later come back to haunt me...
I called someone in the US for the first time since I've been here. It was great. And then I decided I should probably call my mother too. When I'm in Iowa she calls almost every week, so two months is a long time to go without more than emails. (oops) Plus, I think she really misses us. and by us I mean the three of us older kids who aren't at home anymore. There's a weird thought... I remember when I was still at home thinking that some time far in the future us kids would leave the house and mom and dad would get old... Now half of us have left and it just seems so quick.

This whole week has been sunny. Apparently unusually sunny. A full week with no rain, hardly any clouds, mostly sun! I have loved every minute of it. I even bought an ice cream cone or two. I love how the sun seems to cause everything to come to life here. Kids go outside to play and laugh, more people bike, more bikers look happy, more couples are affectionate, more dogs are out playing. It's wonderful!

lekker warm

Exciting news - I'm going to Italy!!!! I booked my flight today, so it is final. I leave the 1st of may so I'm still here for Queens day.
Exciting as well was waking up this morning to a bright sunny day!! First thing I did was open my window. Then I went downstairs, fixed up a cup of koffie and sat outside in the sun watching the cats play around. Gezellig!! I was so warm I didn't even wear a jacket!
Later I went roller-blading with my host sister to pick up the cheese we made. Haven't tasted it yet. I hope it is good. I miss roller-blading.
That's all for now.

Estoy llorando en mi habitacion

A few more pictures for your viewing pleasure. Or displeasure. Whichever.






These are some weird rectangular pillars of different heights that make up some kind of monument type thing for the Jews who died during WWII.











This is me in front of the Reichstag after we toured the inside.







And this is a few girls and I straddling a brick line that marks where the Berlin wall used to be.




Again I have no class tomorrow or Friday. What can I possibly do with all this free time? Watch CSI, do homework, watch Boondock Saints, and possibly go to Groningen again this weekend. Twas the future-brother-in-law's birthday yesterday and this weekend is his birthday party. Can't miss out on that.
Sometimes I get bored here and actually miss Dordt life. At least there I don't feel like I'm always trapped in my room. If I get bored there, I can wander until I find something to do and someone to do it with. Maybe I just need to branch out more; meet more locals to hang out with when the nspicers are gone on their many trips.
I'm going to go plan a trip of my own now though. I WILL make it to Italy if it's the last thing I do! Even if I have to use up the last of my money to do so!!!

no comprendo

Most of the time language barriers do not bother me. In fact, they can make for some good times and fun stories. Take our trip to Prague, for instance. If we had known what the photo-nazis in the museums had been screaming at us we might have been less amused and more afraid. But as it was, we had no idea what “XAIHFDN FXVNEKJD YAAKAKYAKA!!!” meant in English, so we could just stare blankly at the women screaming at us shaking their fingers at our cameras and feign ignorance. “What was that? I’m too close and the picture will be blurry? Okay, I’ll try again…” “SKXLHE WOIDHG DSHFF SHNIW!!!” “I’m sorry. I’m not sure I understand? Did you say you wanted to be in the picture? I’ll get you in the next one…”

Then there was Berlin. If any of my nine companions had understood German we may have had an easier time figuring out the transportation system, but would we have an awesome story about our great reunion? No. But since none of us did speak German, when we tried to get to the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche, we first all started at the subway map for about ten minutes trying to figure out which line to take. When a sub arrived, we spent another two minutes debating whether or not this was the sub we wanted to take. After being told by a German man standing near us that the train would get to our destination, we immediately tried to jump on the sub, whose doors at this point were closing. About half our group (myself included) made it in, fighting the closing doors, but then it was too difficult for the rest, so we shouted through the doors that we would meet them there. At the next stop one of my companions asked if we should maybe get out and wait for the rest. We decided we should just stay on the sub and stick to our plan of meeting them “there”. At the next stop (still two stops away from our destination) we were a bit bewildered when everyone but us got off the sub and a bunch of different people got on. However, we just gave each other weird glances, shrugged and stayed on the sub. Then we started moving again… but in the wrong direction! More weird glances and shrugs… ‘maybe the sub just needed to get out in that direction but was taking a different track later?’ But what do you know! – a couple minutes and two stops later we were right back where we came from and our friends we had just left behind were still there, equally bewildered at what had just happened.

Had we understood German we would have heard the announcement on the loud speaker saying that the line we were on was under construction and thus the sub would only go halfway and then turn around and go back. Had we not had this language barrier, we would have known to get off where everyone else did and switch lines… But would we have had the fun of being completely confused and beffudled? Would our group have gotten back together after our little separation? More importantly, would those of us who left the others behind have been able to pretend we were just so nice that we came back for them?

Language barriers make boring days more fun. Like today in the library of the GH where I study. I was bullshitting around on a computer when a woman sat next to me for five minutes before saying something in Dutch which I did not understand.
"In Engels?" said I.
"How long?" said she, pointing to the computer.
"not long" said I.
Then "blah blah blah" in dutch to another woman, said she.
"Wie spreek Engels?" said other woman.
I understood that, and pointed to myself - I speak English. So other woman explained that the computer I had been using to browse the internet for the past half hour was only supposed to be used as a library catalog to search for books in the library.
"OH! Sorry!" said I, "I didn't know."
"The librarian announced it and asked those not using the catalog to go to the computers downstairs" said other woman, "but of course you didn't understand her." Then we all had a good laugh at the convenience to me of my oblivion.

P.S. My favorite thing about language barriers is watching people try to overcome them with charade-like facial expressions, hand signs, and even full body motions.

humpty dumpty sat on a wall. watch the wall fall. humpty and all.. ... . ?

I just got back this morning at 7.30 from our class trip to Prague, Terezin, and Berlin. I could tell all about it, but that will just get so long no one will read it. So instead, I'll just name some high and lowlights.

lowlights:

• Staying at what Peter called a five star hotel that just lost four of its stars.
• the rain we had almost all week
• our monotonous over-informational Prague tour guide who did have an umbrella and thus didn't shorten her speeches for the sake of those who didn't, making us stand in the rain looking at buildings and bridges while she explained things in her thick accent we could hardly understand.
• this clock tower our tour guide hyped up saying it did something special at 3... then after waiting in anticipation, finding out nobody comes out of the clock with a hammer smashing something coming from the other side. Instead some little figures of the apostles or saints or something spin slowly past two little windows at the top of the clock. They don't even come out!
• The photo-nazi women who wouldn't let us take pictures in the castle we visited.
• The castle itself, which was pretty unimpressive.
• someone taking a shit in the bus bathroom and stinking the whole bus up!
  

highlights:

• our awesome bus driver named Peter.
• the hotel rooms with balconies (which we could only get onto through the window because they sealed the doors) that were close to the balcony of the room next door so you could climb from balcony to balcony if you dared.
• The "love room".
  
• the palace guards in Prague who stood absolutely still. We took our pictures next to them and when two of our girls posed like they were going to kiss one of them, the guard slammed his long gun on the ground, scaring the crap out of them!

• 
  
• The wine tasting at 10am in the castle basement.
• The Theatre Image in Prague - I don't care if no one else liked it. It was trippy in a fun way.
• visiting a former concentration camp in Terezin... or perhaps this is a gutter?
• BERLIN!! I loved it!
• Seeing the difference between East and West Berlin.
  
• Seeing the small remaining portion of the Berlin wall with all the colors and paintings - now called the East Side Gallery.

• eating a crepe with nuttella and baileys in front of the TV Tower.
• getting on a train at the last minute while half our group didn't make it. Then being accidentally reunited because the train line was under construction so the train only went halfway to our destination and then went back where it came from - all the while we had no idea what was going on.
• Seeing Marcus eat it in front of the Reichstag building and later hear him try to explain his muddy clothes with some crazy story about saving a baby...

• The long 'lekker' nap I took when I got home!
  

THE END

a few pictures

Here are some more photos for your viewing pleasure.

This is the bunch of our group who went to Pieterburen for the weekend for Carnaval. We're on a dike and behind us is the North Sea that was disappointingly very far away.

Bikes everywhere! These are at the Groningen train station. And is way smaller than the bike parking-garage I saw in Amsterdam.

This is the red light district. Or part of it.

Amanda and I in Zoetermeer

But before I go...

Okay, so what I thought was Buffalo, was actually Baflo. But they say it so similar... Anyway, carnaval was fun. It was actually in Pieterburen. Eleven from our group went and we slept in a barn on Joel Prins' aunt and uncle's farm. It was pretty nice. Very warm. Sunday the more ambitious went to church while the rest of us stayed home to "watch church on tv" with our eyes half shut... Then we went to see the north sea. We had to climb a dike and for some dumb reason we all expected the water to be right on the other side splashing against the dike, but as it turns out, it was so far away we couldn't even see waves at all. We also went to see some seals and a windmill.
I went back to Groningen for the rest of the weekend. I played settlers of catan again and though Amanda and Dane left halfway through the game, I stayed back to keep playing. It was kind of nice to be able to stay and play with Luuk and his friends without Amanda needing to be there. At 9.40pm Luuk brought me to the train station on his bike so I wouldn't miss the 10pm train. I forgot to call my host mom to tell her I was coming and I had no cell phone, so my poor Mama-Lita had no idea where I was. I got to Zwolle at 11pm and since I had been driven downtown by my hosts when I went to Groningen on Friday, I had no bike waiting for me, so I walked home. Got home at midnight and knocked on Mama-lita's door to let her know I was back. She mumbled some kind of "okay". Next morning I sure heard it from her though! "Carmela, you should have called me, I was worried, how'd you get home? you walked? Why didn't you go to Gerjan's? Or take a bus or a taxi home?..." After apologies on my part and explaining that I love walking, it was nice out when I got home anyway, and I now finally have my phone chip for my cell so she can get a hold of me, she is happy again. She wasn't really that upset, just worried and I think a bit annoyed. And I really am terrible at calling people!

Random: In theology we keep talking about Luther and Calvin and the church, and today it just struck me that this church we're talking about is the Catholic church. As rediculous as it is, I tend to group Catholics with others like Mormans, Jehova's witnesses, Muslims, etc... only more Christian... However today I was reminded that the Reformed church actually came out of the Catholic church. The church body or denomination that I grew up in, that I come from, was once upon a time Catholic.

Nap time.

slowly going the way of the buffalo

Word of advice - don't ever make bets, no matter how sure you are that you are right. You might not be. Especially if you've had 7 beers and 2 shots... And then you might lose ten euros over it. (don't ask)

Today we went to a high school to learn about the different education system here. I liked what I saw. The strange thing, however, was I saw seventh graders operating huge drills and such. In the US teachers freak out when kids run with scissors, but here they've got the kids making tables and chairs in carpentry class, messing with electric wires and stuff for an electrician class, and learning how to use big heavy factory machines with knives, drills, presses and such. Anyway, I thought it looked like fun though! And these kids graduate from the high school trade section at the age of 16 with a full diploma of their trade. They can be hired straight from school then to be electricians or carpenters or whatever.
Tomorrow and Friday I have no class. Hooray! I'm going to Groningen again this weekend, but saturday I'm going even further to Buffalo to celebrate carnival with several other nspicers.
I feel like I'm always hungry.
I have some pictures I will try to post. It didn't work just now, but maybe later it will.

lot of people walking around out there

The street signs here only face one way, so if you come from the opposite direction they're facing, you cannot see what street is which until after you're past it. This is slightly troublesome to those of use who are not from here and do not know where every street is.
One more week finished. This weekend I'm going to Utrecht to see Liesbeth, finally, and from there I'm going with Amanda and Luuk to Zoetemeer (?) to stay at Luuk's family's house for the weekend.
I have to exchange more money because I've completely run out!! My bank card expired on my this month and I still have not gotten the new one. The bank wouldn't send the new one until the old expired, but since it is coming from the US, I have to wait extra long to get it... So for now I have to rely on the bit of cash I have left. That shouldn't be too much of a problem, but I'm just a bit nervous about the whole situation.
It snowed last night, but this morning it was mostly gone, and now it is entirely gone.
Time to go.