Embers to Ashes

In my house I notice the slight cracking of the leather couches, and the fading of the Oriental rug. Even my dog seems older since the last time I saw her two months ago. You forget that time doesn’t stop once you leave a place.

I feel empty and all I want is bacon. As if the sound of crackling meat can drown out the weighted thoughts in my brain. As if a greasy bite can coat the uneasiness I feel in my stomach.

The clock on the wall is so loud I feel my heart trying to match its rhythm.

I am tired, but want to stay awake because I am finally alone. I feel this house and its residents sucking the vividness I have built up over the past month. Brutal normality is what this place makes me feel. It's suffocating.

My parents think it’s weird that I make bacon at 12am because I like how it sounds. I think it’s weird that they watch five straight hours of primetime television, half of which they are snoring along to.

They are wonderful, caring people, but I can't help but think; is this where they thought their life would be when they were my age? I want excitement, desire, and creativity until the day that I die. Is this a flame that will eventually dwindle down to embers, or even worse ashes? What happens if the dreams you once had, become past hopes that no longer have any relevance in your life?

"To-day is not yesterday.-- We ourselves change.-- How then, can our works and thoughts, if they are always to be the fittest, continue always the same.--Change, indeed, is painful, yet ever needful; and if memory have its force and worth, so also has hope." *Carlyle

The Bicycle Thief

Have you ever half joked about something unfortunate happening, while really hoping that it doesn't, but in all truth never expecting that it will?

Well my friends, that is exactly what has happened to me. My glorious, uber cool, had since I was 11, purple Schwinn mountain bike has been kidnapped, hijacked, fucking shanghaied. I am not sure what is worse: the fact that it was purloined outside of one of my favorite social gathering venues, that I just purchased a rockin' new helmet and bike lights, or that I thought it would be okay to leave it locked up overnight on the Founder's porch as I accepted a car ride home instead.

My buoyancy and naivete have been plundered, and left is a sad hopeless version of my former self. I expect this feeling of low morale to last only until the end of the week, but am afraid my trust in those around me will never be the same. No longer will I leave a door unlocked, or a window open. No longer will I trust a bike lock to do its job! CURSES you Schwinn stealing, morale blowing, panic evoking THEIF! I hope that as you ride my beloved bike down the streets of Grand Rapids, you go too fast down a brick paved street, hit a bump just right, and go flying- knocking your front teeth out as a result.

The Never Aired Scenes of My Last Month in London

At the end of my stay in Kingston Upon Thames, things got extremely busy and I lost all initiative to update this blog.

In honor of my stay in England, I will now tell of my epic last adventures in the country that I have come to love in pictures (mostly because there is too much to write, and I am too lazy to write it)

So here it is, ENJOY!

The Queen's Head Pub <3

Best housemates a gal could ask for

and the last week of my stay, my mum and dad came to visit!

It snowed like CRAZY.

My Birthday Cupcakes!

So many words to describe my semester abroad, but none of them can truly explain what I took away from the experience.

"Our object in travelling should be, not to gratify curiosity, ad seek mere temporary amusement, but to learn, and to venerate, to improve the understanding and the heart." -Gresley

"The joys I have possessed are ever mine; out of thy reach, behind eternity, hid in the sacred treasure of the past, but blest remembrance brings them hourly back."

-Dreyden

Thanksgiving

So the day started out like any other day. I went through the general morning day routines, but my day began to differ as I packed my suitcase full of casserole dishes and roasting pans. When I threw in a couple mini-looking pitch forks, I knew things were getting serious. With my supplies neatly packed up, I headed out into the frosty english morning to fetch myself a turkey.

It is a bit sad to be without one's family on a celebrated holiday like today. It's even sadder to realize that your mom won't be there to run the kitchen and man the recipes as you watch, your mind alluding to a conductor directing his symphony. Feeling like a kid who dreams of standing up in front of a crowd with only his or her underwear on, exposed and overwhelmed, I stressed that this meal had to be one for the books. Luckily I had my best bud Claire by my side, and we...

***unfortunately I never finished this post, and now it is more than seven months later, and my memory is not quite sharp enough to finish the description of this epic past day. What I can tell you is that my friends and I made a glorious and delicious Thanksgiving dinner while in Kingston. I am now completely able to cook my own turkey, and will never again be frightened (which is an understatement) when the turkey is so fresh that it still has it's ankles attached (which we initially thought horrifically was its head).

Happy Thanksgiving (seven+ months late :x )

busy,busy,busy

Hello everyone!

Sorry I haven't updated lately, I have been super busy since Rome.

Let's see... classes are going well, I have a number of papers due soon so it's a bit stressful. Today I went to look at the space where I will be putting on my expo of artwork that I've done while here. It's nothing spectacular, but will do its job.

Last week in Kingston there was an event where they decorate the town center and dramatically turn on the lights. My friend Patricia and her band performed as well as some other great groups. After hearing Patricia rock it out, we went to check out the market place where they had different kinds of food stands up. The lot of us got a bratwurst, and then moved on to desert. I ordered some freshly made donuts and boy were they tasty!



On the way home I stopped by a pub to meet some other mates and watched a game of football. It ended up being a really exciting match because the team we were rooting for scored a goal within the last 30 seconds to tie the game, and then in overtime they scored the winning goal within the last minute. It was dramatic to say the least.

Friday was my housemates birthday, so in the evening we went down to this great pub called "The Boaters" right along the Thames. It was really fun. The next day we continued the celebration and went to a pub down the road to watch a game of football and rugby. That was my first time seeing a rugby game and it was quite frightening. The players are HUGE, with no necks, and can barely walk because of all of their muscles. It did give me the urge to go and tackle somebody, but I refrained.

That evening Claire and her roommate Synne hosted a housewarming party in the new apartment! It was great fun. This Thursday some of us are gathering again at their place to cook a Thanksgiving feast! I'm going to buy a turkey tomorrow, and hopefully it turns out okay. None of us have ever cooked a turkey so it should be interesting.

Friends and I bought tickets for the Vampire Weekend concert in December, I am stoked!

“Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.”

sorry for the vague post, hopefully next week I will have more to share!

Splendor

Boun Giorno!

So I got back from my four day trip to Rome, and I can hardly express what a wonderful time I had!

I left on Sunday evening from London, and arrived late at night (around 9pm) to Rome. I took a bus from the airport to the hostel I was staying at with Claire and Greg.

On Monday we decided to visit St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. On the way there we walked past the Pantheon and Trevi Fountain. We stopped for lunch and I got my first authentic Italian meal in Roma in five years. So to say I was excited is an understatement. I ordered lasagna and it was amazing! As we were dining, the weather went from a slight drizzle to an all out downpour. Although we were not happy about the rain, we set off for the Vatican. Monday was a holiday so the museum and chapel were not open. The good part was there was hardly any line, the bad part- it poured. By the time we got into the basilica our shoes were flooded with water.

St. Peter's Basilica houses Michelangelo's 'Pieta'. The Pieta was the artist's only work that he ever signed and has the most interesting of histories. The work was done in 1499, taking less than two years to create. It has received many casualties, the most horrific being in 1972 when a crazy man who stormed at the marble statue with a hammer yelling "I am Jesus Christ" while showering fatal blows that took off Mary's nose, arm, and chipped off numerous other sections. The Pieta was restored, but now resides behind a bullet-proof piece of glass.



The basilica is absolutely stunning, with floor to ceiling marble and epic works of art.







With wet feet and soggy spirits we headed back to the hostel for a change of clothes. For dinner we went to a pizza place that Claire and Greg had been to the day before. When we got there, a line had already formed before the restaurant had even opened! I took this as a good sign and was not disappointed. The pizza was delicious and more than made up for the bad weather that day.

The next morning we left early to visit one of the markets in Rome. In these markets are various types of items such as clothing, jewelry, leather goods, and really bad knock off purses. As you walk through you get bombarded by annoying sales people trying to get you to look at their things. It was fun to look through the sections that had rows of old clothing- many from the 80's that I no one should ever wear again. I am pretty sure that I picked up a fur coat that was made from shaved dog hair- it was really gross ha!



After rummaging through the market, I was in desperate need of real shopping so we popped in a department store near by. It was a gorgeous morning that day so we walked around until we found something to eat. We sat down in a small park area to eat our pizza (can never have too much). It was yummy and pleasant except for the single killer bee with a taste for ham pizza and the swarms of pigeons.

Claire, Greg and I traveled back to Vatican city to visit the museum and Sistine Chapel. I had seen both the last time I was in Rome, but it is sad how much you forget!



It was wonderful and beautiful and was just as surreal as the first time- especially seeing the chapel.



From there we went to the area of the Trevi Fountain for dinner. We picked a random restaurant down a random alley way to eat at. We lucked out for it was yummy. This time I got pasta in a buttery sauce with clams! Afterwards we went and got some gelato at this place that I had been hearing about from Claire since I arrived in Rome. It really was all the rage, and this place had much more unique flavors than any of the other gelaterias. I had honey and ricotta gelato which was divine. We took our desserts to the Trevi Fountain to enjoy.



It is so much fun to people watch in Rome, for there are travelers from all over. It's also fun to laugh about the stupid things that people buy from the locals who walk around forcing their items upon you. On the walk home we came across a guy who was enjoying his gelato almost as much as we did...



He literally had it all over his face and in his beard!

The next morning we visited one of the grandest churches in Rome, the St. Maria Maggiore. It was gorgeous both inside and out.



It had the most amazing marble decor!



It was another beautiful day out so as we headed towards the Colosseum, I took some pictures of the general loveliness of the city.



The Colosseum was just as breathtaking as I remembered...





There is so much in the one area, so we also passed the Arch of Constantine and the Roman Forum...







Next we went off to find the Bocca Della Veritå aka The Mouth of Truth. Legend says that if one tells a lie with their hand in the mouth of the sculpture, it will be bitten off! If you have seen the Audrey Hepburn Movie "Roman Holiday" you will most definitely recognize this!



Clearly I lied...



Next we walked across the River in search of the perfect pizza. Luckily it stayed sunny.



We had lunch at a pizza place listed as one of the best, and it surely was! I had the superformaggio pizza and Claire and Greg got the Buffata and Superbuffata pizzas. I love Italy because everyone gets their own pizza! For dessert we shared a nutella and ricotta calzone. Be jealous.



From there we walked, talked, shopped, and squeezed the very last drop out of our trip to Roma.



As you can see, we ate a lot- nothing compares to gelato, crepes, pasta, and pizza in Rome!

“Listen to the Exhortation of the Dawn! Look to this Day! For it is Life, the very Life of Life. In its brief course lie all the Verities and Realities of your Existence. The Bliss of Growth, The Glory of Action, The Splendor of Beauty; For Yesterday is but a Dream, And To-morrow is only a Vision; But To-day well lived makes Every Yesterday a Dream of Happiness, And every Tomorrow a Vision of Hope. Look well therefore to this Day! Such is the Salutation of the Dawn!”

Bouna Notte!

Ghostly

So this past weekend was Halloween! I did not initially plan on dressing up or doing anything special for the day, but in London Halloween is actually really popular.

My weekend began on Friday evening with a get together at a friend's house. We didn't do anything in particular, just jammed to some great music- Beatles, Rolling Stones- which passed into a long night of being merry and having sing a longs. My friend Vincent is very good on the guitar, and friend Patricia is a wonderful singer. It was a very relaxing and fun night!

On Saturday night a group of friends and I went out to London to celebrate Halloween. I ended up dressing up as an peacock sort of bird, while most everyone else was something scary! It was hilarious painting the faces of the guys, and honestly none of us did a very good job, but it did the trick.



The train ride into London was really humorous because while you are in costumes, most other people are not. So sitting next to an old couple with fake blood all over you and smiling, may not get you a smile in return. We ventured off into the night to find a club that Patricia had heard of, but when we got there it was packed. We went in anyway since there was no cover just to check it out, but it was really stinky and sweaty so we left shortly after. Walking down the street on Halloween weekend in London is really a sight! There are people everywhere in some really creative costumes. The group of us ended up just popping in a bar/club that we came across. It was pretty fun, and we just danced the night away.



Anytime one goes into London for the night, the most annoying part is getting home. It takes forever and you are exhausted, so I was very excited to finally fall into bed and pass out.

"At first cock-crow the ghosts must go
Back to their quiet graves below."

And now off to Rome...