demand_truth

Back Home

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 23:51:50 GMT

Well, this is a little overdue. I've been home for almost a month now. At the moment, I'm living in between Sandy's place and Grammy and Bob's. I'm applying for jobs half-heartedly, because I haven't quite graduated yet. I'm worried about it because the economy is so bad and not a lot of places are hiring, but we'll see what happens.

My pets are getting fixed soon. Audrey got a new puppy and won first place in her first horse show. Avery's playing flag football and his new Nintendo DS system. Some new games I ordered for him came in the mail today. My car failed inspection and so I'm currently auto-less, though I fell in LOVE with a '62 Cadillac I saw at a dealership the other day. I'd want to restore one, but that is my new official dream car. Oh, and I've had strep throat, which I got from Aiden. I've been playing my Xbox 360 to make up for lost time, been hanging with the family, and generally happy to get back to the old stress instead of dealing with new stress, lol.

I'm going to stop saying "It can't get any worse!"

Thu, 23 Apr 2009 23:38:52 GMT

Studying Abroad. It's been about forty percent good and sixty percent bad. On one hand, I've met some wonderful people. My classmates, Adam, Susan, Samantha and Julianne are really great people and I'm glad we met. I adore my roommates, and my land lady is a very kind, considerate woman.

My program was intense. It was way too much German, and I will never do such an intensive course again. Period.

Dresden was great, by the way. I'd go into more details, but on the roller coaster that is studying abroad, my high in Dresden was followed by the lowest low so far. Yep, I just got out of the hospital.

Here's the rundown. Headed to class on Wednesday morning, noted a strange cramping sensation in my left side, lower back. Just finished up with my time of the month, not to mention my lap band sometimes gives me grief, so I didn't think too much of it. By the time I made it to school, I knew it was not gas pain. Now, I don't know if I just have a high pain tolerance, or if I'm an idiot, or both (probably both) but I've had stones before. They passed on their own after some trips to the E.R. for pain medication. Did I learn my lesson? Did I research the condition and educate myself? No. I hardly ever drink water, pride myself on how long I can hold my stupid bladder, and pig out on chocolate.

So here I am in Germany, only two weeks away from the finish line, and I double over close to school and I know: Oh, yes, Bethany. It can get worse. It can always get worse! Quit telling yourself you've hit your low in Germany, because that it is truly a bottomless pit of pain and suffering, especially when you keep saying things like "Shit's not working out at home and I can't do anything about it - but hey! Can't get worse!" and then "Shit's still not working out at home, my animals are in trouble, but hey! Can't get worse!" and then..."Fighting with mom, shit's not working out at home, animals are causing problems, can't register for summer school, German 3 KICKS my ass, but hey! Can't get worse!"

When you have a stent put in to help you pass a large stone, and your first experience with it is simultaneously puking and pee spraying in like twelve directions, crying from the pain in a hospital where nobody speaks your language except your doctor, who acts like it personally offends him that I have a stone...you refrain from saying "Hey! Can't get any worse!" because if I say it, I'm pretty sure my flight home will be hijacked by terrorists, I'll survive the crash landing, only to be slowly devoured by sharks.

Joking aside (oh god, please let that scenario just be a joke) I think I'm pretty lucky. First of all, considering how badly I mistreat my body, I'm suprised it was over two years before I had another stone attack. Secondly, I'm adjusting very well to the stent, which doesn't seem to be the case for most people. Thirdly...I have to go pee. Thirdly, it doesn't really hurt when I pee now, which after doing some long overdue research on the internet, that doesn't seem to be the case for my people. I mean, I'm not saying the first night after the stent was fun. I was more sick to my stomach than in pain, though. Of course, my lap band didn't make things any easier. On top of not knowing whether to put my face or my butt to the toilet (Which end's gonna blow first? Oh, the suspense is literally killing me.) I was worried that all the puking would cause my band to dislodge and then I'd really have some problems.

But I don't think it did. I'm not eating so great - absolutely no appetite and I really wish I was home to have Snyder take the fluid out, but I'm managing okay. Trying to eat soft things like yogurt and rice pudding, drinking as much water as I can even though I'm pretty sure my stone is too big to pass, and planning to add a tall glass of orange juice to my breakfast meal.

Lessons learned?

1. I will drink 2 liters of water per day, no exceptions, every day for the rest of my life because that inconvenience is better than going through this crap again!
2. I will follow up with a urologist this time, and actually figure out what my specific problem is so I can alter my diet accordingly.
3. I'm not leaving my country for an extended period of time ever again. The German hospital was great, the nurses were wonderful, and it could have been SO much worse, but it's scary having things done to you that you don't really understand, and it's hard to be sick and unable to communicate simple things to your caretakers (i.e. "Please no more of that cherry-tasting crap. It's not doing jack shit and it makes me puke." What I manage to say in German? "No, please, I'm sorry" while I make puking pantomime motions.)
4. I have a new respect for mimes. Communicating without language is an incredibly impressive skill.

So, because I could go on and on when I have health problems to whine about, I'm going to find something else to do during my short break in between having to pee and coping with pain. Even though he didn't seem to like me very much, I send a big virtual thank-you to the German doctor that put my stent in, because he clearly knows his shit. Lots of people are miserable with there's, but it looks like I'm going to make it through the two weeks okay.

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!

Wed, 08 Apr 2009 14:58:37 GMT

I have a couple weeks left. I've officially finished German 3, in what I'm lovingly calling in my mind three weeks of pure hell. It was so fast paced and intense. I made it out with a B but those three weeks nearly killed me. I've just today finished my first week of German 4, and now I'm on Easter Break. Yes, I'm super excited. I'm going with the roomies to Dresden, so that should be cool. Today I went souvenier shopping. I found the perfect thing for Avery - a soccer hat and a miniature Hamburg soccer ball. I found a gift for my mom's birthday, and I have some shot glasses for people. So basically, I need a few more shotglasses, chocolate, a gift for Audrey and one for Aiden. I already found a shirt for Logan (so cute!). I want to get Audrey a stuffed animal of some sort, but I need to find one with a Germany T-shirt or something. I don't really know what to get for Aiden. The problem is that there aren't many touristy stores here.

I cleaned my room today. This is worth mentioning because it was filthy - like, the filthiest my room has EVER been. It was just the last three weeks were so freaking exhausting that I let everything else go. I think I actually wore the same outfit for like three days straight. It was intense, lol. But anyway, I'm done with it and moving onto bigger and better things.

I've pretty much got Germany figured out. I don't get confused over buses anymore, I can translate most things I see, and I communicate almost entirely in German with shopkeepers and my roomies. It's kind of cool. Today I had an ice cream cone and just sat in Am Sande watching people walk by. Germany is much prettier and more pleasant in spring. People seem to be a little more laidback here, more willing to stop and smell the roses. All in all, it was a nice day. :)

Saturday in Hamburg

Mon, 02 Mar 2009 11:59:07 GMT

Nearly at the two month mark, my German experience is beginning to change...

I'm still homesick, but I woke up on Saturday and felt like I could finally speak German, as if a German fairy came in the middle of the night and gave me magical language knowledge. I went all weekend and said pretty much everything I wanted to say in German. Yes, I mixed up my datives and accusatives, and probably butchered German grammar, but I COMMUNICATED. What's more...it was FUN. Crazy, right? I guess the culture shock finally wore off, because they couldn't shut me up all weekend. Everything seemed clear, and I felt like myself again - joking around in German, hanging out with my roomies, playing cards on the train, running around Hamburg, shopping and eating Pizza...I had a really great weekend. It totally recharched my batteries, and I'm ready to tackle German Three next week!!!

So here's some pics from Hamburg, for your viewing pleasure:

This one's me and Yung in one of the churches in Hamburg - St. Peteri or something.

This was the Rathaus.

This was hilarious. We saw this giant monument, and I was like "Oh! What's that?" (in German) and Min was like "Uh...a big rock." It cracked me up, so I made her take a picture with it.

How to explain this craziness? Well, we were trying to use the timer on my camera, and for some reason Yung and I thought we needed to squat do be in the frame, but Min was confused and she not only stood, but turned away because she thought it had already taken the picture. Classic.

So, yeah, my weekend was good. Saturday was spent in Hamburg (not Schwerin, because we missed the train) and on Friday I watched Finding Nemo entirely in German. Immer Schwimmen!

A Survey

Sun, 22 Feb 2009 12:39:59 GMT

Strange Survey...

Have you ever licked the back of a CD to try to get it to work?:	Yes, lol
What	Um...a few years? Don\'t really know.
Ever been in a car wreck?:	Yep. I totalled an Astro Van trying to spring someone from prison. It\'s a funny story. Really.
Were you popular in high school?:	Not really. I knew a lot of people, though.
Have you ever been on a blind date?:	Yep, but the movie isn\'t nearly as fun when you can\'t see the screen.
Are looks important?:	When you\'re twenty, yeah, when you\'re eighty, not so much.
Do you have any friends that you	Yeah
By what age would you like to be married?:	I don\'t really have an expiration date.
Does the number of people a person	Sometimes.
Have you ever made a mistake?:	No. Never. Not even a typo.
Are you a good tipper?:	Yeah, my friend\'s an ex-waitress, so you gotta take care of your wait staff. :)
What	Like, 90 bucks. Ridiculous. I cut it myself now.
Have you ever had a crush on a teacher?:	Professor Snape makes me hot.
Have you ever peed in public?:	lol, no.
What song do you want played at your funeral?:	Volcano, by Jimmy Buffett
Would you tell your parents if you were gay?:	Yeah
What would your last meal be before getting executed?:	Pizza, sweet and sour chicken, with gummi bears for dessert
Beatles or Stones?:	Beatles
If you had to pick one person on earth to die, who?:	Stacy
Beer, wine or hard liquor?:	Hard Liquor. Do it right if you\'re gonna do it.
Do you have any phobias?:	Contortionists and sharks. A contortionist riding a shark would probably make me laugh, though.
What are your plans for the future?:	First my homework, then world domination around five or so. If I feel like it.
Do you walk around the house naked?:	Sometimes I forget my clothes when I go to shower, so it\'s happened before.
If you were an animal what would you be?:	lol, someone asked me this recently, and I was like \'A Giraffe would be cool\' and Eric was like, \"It would suck when you got a sore throat, though.\" That cracked me up. I guess I\'d have to pick a sea turtle. Long life span, not a lot of natural predators, and they live in the tropics.
Hair color you like on someone you	Black
Would you rather be blind or deaf?:	Deaf
Do you have any special talents?:	I\'m a pretty good writer, I can play an instrument, I\'m pretty good at talking to people.
What do you do as soon as you walk in the house?:	Turn on the lights
Do you like horror or comedy?:	Horror!
Are you missing anyone?:	Oh, god yes. Everyone.
If you weren	lol, funny question. I don\'t have a girl crush at the moment, but Pink is very sexy.
Where do you want to live when you are old?:	Somewhere warm, near the people I love
Who is the person you can count on the most?:	Erin. She\'d probably take a bullet for me. Not one shot out of a gun, but if someone handed it to her, she\'d take it for me.
If you could date any celebrity past or present, who would it be?:	Hmm...Glenn Jacobs, a young Alan Rickman
What did you dream last night?:	Nothing
What is your favorite sport to watch?:	Wrestling and Tennis
Are you named after anyone?:	My grandmother
What is your favorite alcoholic drink?:	Rum and Coke/ Pina Colada
Non alcoholic drink?:	Diet Coke
Have you ever been in love?:	Yeah
Do you sing in the shower?:	Yep
Have you ever been arrested?:	Nope
What is your favorite Holiday?:	Halloween!
Would you ever get plastic surgery?:	If I had gobs and gobs of extra money, and it if would make me a happier person.
Have you ever caught a fish?:	Yeah, catfish.

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Valentine's Day in Hannover

Sat, 14 Feb 2009 20:36:53 GMT

So I officially had a very cool Valentine's Day, for once. I slept in as late as I wanted and then smiled at the funny cards my siblings packed in my things for me. Very cute. I then opened my door to see my roommate, Saki, had left me some of her special made-in-the-microwave Valentine's cookies, lol, which was very sweet of her. I lounged around for awhile, sending people Valentines and writing a special e-mail to my Valentine, and then I had a leisurely walk to the train station. It's been snowing, so the trees are coated and the paths are fluffy and white.

I reached the train station and met up with my group, Samantha, Susan, Kasey, Eric and Cole. We hopped on the train to Hannover and spent the day seeing the sights and taking funny pictures. My favorite was the bombed church, but the Rathaus was also pretty impressive. Dinner was at Pizza Hut in the train station (yum!) and then we rode home, just in time to catch the bus. Made it home around seven, read my return message from my Valentine (it was very sweet!) and played around on the internet till bedtime, when my other roommate, Min, gave me this gorgeous wallet from Korea with a white chocolate candy bar inside and a Korean bookmark - very sweet of her, and the chocolate was really tasty!

So now I'm about to head to bed a little early, because my Valentine's Day wore me out! It was a lot of fun though - best one ever!

Days 22-28

Sat, 07 Feb 2009 10:42:40 GMT

Day 28/124. I've officially finished German 1...again. I'm pretty sure we covered everything I learned the first time, and actually a little more. I think I did very well on our end of semester exam, which was good cuz I still don't know if my grade is transferring back or not. Nothing really new is happening as of this week. I might catch a train later today and go see Bremen if I feel like it. I'd have to go to the bank first, though, and that's a deterrent. I went skateboarding yesterday, so today I kinda feel like just chillin' and napping. I might write some fanfiction later. I'm also hoping that The Wrestler finishes downloading today so I can check it out. I love the work Micky Rourke did in Sin City, so I expect great things of this movie.

I also joined a forum for single gamers/anime fans today. I've decided I want to start dating again when I get back home, but I'm worried I won't meet someone with the same interests as me. This forum seems like the perfect solution, but it doesn't seem to have a whole lot of activity and I don't know if people actually message each other or not. I guess I'll find out. Valentine's Day is coming up, and the curse remains in effect. I honestly don't think I'm ever going to be dating someone, or even crushing on someone, on Valentines. This holiday does not like me. It's such a potentially fun day, too. My timing just sucks.

I'm really wishing right now that I'd brought a portable game system with me. I have a lot of free time and I'm worried I'm going to run out of internet soon.

14/124

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 18:22:41 GMT

Today, I travelled to Lubeck with my two roommates and my friend, Sam. Brian and Oskar were supposed to come, too, but I guess they had something else to do. Sucks for them, because I think we had a really fun time. ^.^

We left around 10:30 and arrived about an hour later. The first thing we did was walk through the giant gates called Holstentor. Above the gates was the latin quote, "CONCORDIA DOMI FORIS PAX" (which means, "Harmony within, peace without"). Beautiful, huh? There were some cannons in front of the gate, and we made Sam pretend like he'd just been shot out. It was pretty funny. After the gates, we headed to Petrikirche, which was a big church with strange interior decorating. lol, there were these giant arms coming out of the walls holding up candelbras. It was...strange. It also featured an alcove with a giant ship in it, which I suppose was a nod to the city's closeness to the sea. We also went to a puppet museum, which was both boring and creepy at the same time. There was a very cool display of the puppet version of Hansel and Gretel, though. It was kind of like the artistic version of It's a Small World at Disney. You basically walked through rooms with puppets from all over the world and saw some little movie clips of puppet shows being performed. It was okay.

After the church and the museum, we headed to a thirteenth century hospital called the Heiligen-Geist-Hospital. We couldn't go inside, but it was pretty to look at.

We took a break around this time for pizza and ice cream. Well, Min and Saki had ice cream, which turned out to be a poor choice because it made them freezing once we went back outside, lol. There was a giant mall in Lubeck, but we didn't really look around much. It was just boring clothes.

My favorite part of the city, hands down, was the Gunter Grass Haus. Upstairs used to be the place Gunter Grass lived (I think) and the lower story is now a collection of his artwork, sculptures, and manuscripts. It was wonderful, because I'd been reading The Tin Drum, his first novel, right before I came to Germany and I had no idea he once lived in Lubeck. I bought two of his other novels there, along with a Tin Drum poster and some postcards. He was a true Renaissance man - his paintings and etchings were beautiful, and his sculptures were neat, too. I learned a lot more about his life and his work, and absolutely loved the surprise of finding something so wonderful completely out of the blue.

After all that walking, we were pretty tired so we went to look at the last church, the Dom, Lubeck's oldest church. It's foundation stone was laid in 1173. It was situated right by the river, which we enjoyed walking down on our way back to the train station. The whole city is spread out by the river, making for a gorgeous view.

Min and Saki and I stopped by the grocery store and now we're home. I'm going to sleep really well tonight, and YAY!, I dont' have to set an alarm tonight! I'm sleepin' in tomorrow!

Germany, 4/124

Mon, 12 Jan 2009 20:03:58 GMT

This morning started off just great. I lost my bus pass, so I had to walk to the train station, which is about two miles away. Then I had to pay for a taxi because I wasn't going to make it to my first day of classes on time. Taxis are expensive here. I was seriously pissed.

Class went okay. A little boring and I had other things I wanted to do, but my teacher seems cool. During break I tried to get my pass replaced (won't be until tomorrow). I bought some of my books, which are way cheaper here in Europe.

After class, I headed to the Cafeteria where I had one of the most disgusting meals of my life, and I paid nearly six bucks for it. Stupid cafeteria. What also sucks is that I loaded a lot of money on my card. The good thing, though, is that they did have some salads that looked really good. Tomorrow I'm going to get one of those instead.

After eating (alone) in the cafeteria, I got my copies and then caught the bus to Am Sande. Once there, I ran around to a couple banks until I got some money. I wanted to buy a bike, but couldn't find anything cheap so I decided it wasn't meant to be. I visited St. Nickolai again, because I'm in love with that church. I bought a poster of all the churches in Germany, and some post cards at another little store. I also bought a scale, and was dissapointed to see that I haven't lost a whole lot of weight like I expected. I think I need to eat more food. Whether I like it or not, I'm going to eat in the cafeteria tomorrow - a whole salad and some meat. I'm also going to go to the grocery store tomorrow to get some bacon, milk, and eggs. I wanted to buy a frying pan but they were way too pricey. I'll just have to hard boil the eggs. I'm not going to lie. Right now, I really wish I was home.

It's not because Germany isn't amazing, because it is, it's just all the little changes. Culture shock, I guess. I miss my car. I don't like relying on busses and having to keep up with a stupid pass. I don't like that taxis are so expensive, and that food is kind of difficult to get what I want before stores close. I'm also not fond of my bathroom drain stopper, which doesn't work so I ended up taking a luke-warm bath in a frozen bathroom in roughtly four inches of water. I want a hot shower, a warm house, my car, and my pets. My mom also told me my grandfather was sick today, which now has me worried sick. If something were to happen to him while I'm over here, what in the hell am I going to do?

I guess I shouldn't worry until something actually happens. I think I'm just afraid that things will change while I'm gone, and I don't want them to. Well, some changes would be good - I can think of one person I could do without - but right now I'm just struggling to get used to all the differences and trying to stay optimistic, but kind of failing horribly. Thank god for Jimmy Buffett, because he's getting me through the days.

I also finally got to chat with Erin today, which was a dose of normality I desperately needed. Tomorrow, I'm going to quit being so aggitated by everything and just have some fun. I'm skateboarding to school despite the ice and cold, and after class I'm coming straight home, picking up some groceries near the house, and then I'm just gonna chill. I might download a movie or something. I've been way too stressed these last few days. Only 120 days left. I hope I start really enjoying this at some point and get out of whatever funk I'm in. USAC warned us feeling like this was normal, but that doesn't make it any easier to manage. That's it for now. I'm gonna turn in soon.

Germany, Day 3/124

Sun, 11 Jan 2009 20:33:45 GMT

So today was much better. I think yesterday I was just really feeling lonely. Orientation still was stupid, sucky and boring, and they let us out so late that I missed the bus and had to take a taxi, which was really freakin' expensive. Tomorrow is going to be amazing though. I'll go to class early in the morning, and then I'll have all afternoon to explore Luneburg. I might try to find someone who wants to go with me, so they can take pictures, lol. To be fair, I'd be happy to do the same for them. I want to see the churches again and buy some more post cards, plus mail the ones I've already got. I also need to make copies of my passport for USAC. Lots to do and see tomorrow!

Today I didn't do much. I woke up really late (still jet lagged) dragged my cold butt down to the bus stop only to realize I forgot my bus pass and had to go back home to get it. Finally made it to orientation, which I never dreamed would be another five hours. The only good thing about it was that my scavenger hunt team won second place, so we got some pre-stamped post cards and a pen as a prize. That was actually pretty cool. :)

We got out late, I got confused on the busses, and ended up just having to pay for a taxi. I'm not staying out late again unless I have taxi money and don't mind spending the Euros on it. I got invited to go to someone's apartment and eat dinner with her and her German buddy, but I declined because it was late and I wanted to come home. Looking back on it, I probably should have gone since I ended up having to pay for a taxi anyway. Oh well. Maybe when I get better at cooking (more likely when I learn how to order pizza), I'll invite her over and we can watch a movie on my lap top or something. I don't want her to think I'm unfriendly or whatever. My excuse of "I have to write e-mails" sounded lame even to me.

I talked more with my roommates here. They both watch anime! Friggin' sweet, huh? Yay for common ground.

Last but not least, I decided today that I want to go to Scottland, Ireland, and London. I picked these places because people speak English. German's okay, because I speak a little of it, but to just go off on my own somewhere like Italy or Amsterdam would suck. I'd be lost in no time at all. Plus, I want to see the Harry Potter castle, the Guiness brewery, and all the London attractions. It'll be fun. I really can't wait. Okay, gotta sleep now or else I'm never gonna want to wake-up for class.

Germany, First Impressions

Sat, 10 Jan 2009 23:00:45 GMT

Click below for all the (many) updates...

We made it back from the Disney trip just in time for Christmas, which was really nice this year. Aiden asked for popcorn for Christmas, which I thought was really cute. The kids liked their gifts, and I got some really nice things for Europe. I also got a tea set from Erin that I absolutely loved. I wish I had it here now, because a hot cup of tea would make me feel lots better, I think.

Anyway, so Christmas was great and it was followed by a short trip to Lousiana, where I re-connected with Amberly. I hadn't really seen her since we were kids, but we found a lot to talk about and I was really impressed with the work Kimberly has done on the house. I don't know that I would ever want to spend that much time renovating my home, but kudos to her for making something so beautiful and amazing on such a cheap budget.

After Lousiana, the weeks flew by and it was time to leave for Germany. I was nervous and numb all at the same time. On one hand, I was worried sick about last minute preparations and getting lost and all the uncertainties. On the other hand, I knew I really had absolutely no control over most of it, so it was this numb kind of 'just waiting' feeling. The plane ride went pretty well. I sat next to a girl named Laurie from Colorado who was going on to Moscow, where she was teaching first graders. I've thought about teaching overseas, so I was curious about her experience.

Customs and security is a bitch. They made all my luggage messed up and basically frustrated me as much as humanly possible. I finally made it to Hamburg, though, and thank my lucky stars, Susi was waiting for me at the airport. This was a godsend, because I would have NEVER found my apartment without her. I'm not even joking. Between juggling 100 + lbs of luggage, jumping on trains and buses, killing time in restaurants, etc., I was totally disoriented and sore. Susi and one of her friends helped me as much as possible, but in the end, it came down to me dragging my 100+ lbs of luggage up a huge frickin' hill to get to my house, because we took the wrong bus stop. I was in a really good mood at the time, though, delerium I think, and I hummed the Rocky training song, put my back into it, and somehow got it all up there despite stairs, snow, and ice.

I've never been so glad to reach a destination before, and lucky for me, my apartment is really wonderful. At first I was worried my roommates and my landlady would be all up in my space, but I think they've gotten the message that I'm not very social. I'm trying to be nice, I really am, but my roommates only speak German/Korean/Japanese and it's kind of frustrating trying to socialize. Besides, I still feel jetlagged I think, and I'm not in a very chatty mood. They backed off today, though, and I got a nice hot bath (after three days!) so I feel a little better. I also holed up in my room and watched One Tree Hill and Greek, which made me happy. :)

Ya know, it's kind of funny. I can't remember how many times five or six years ago that I looked at an airplane and wished more than anything to be on it. Then, when things are so much better with my family, and I've got friends that I'm missing so much, I find myself overseas. I guess I'm feeling a little homesick. I met all the other people in my group today and I just felt like I didn't really fit in. I'm probably not the only one that felt that way. It's just, I got along a lot better with Susi than I did with my group, but Susi has a lot to do this time of year and we probably won't see each other much. I want to really mesh well with them, but I dunno. It just didn't happen. Things might be better once I'm in my actual class on monday. Today was just orientation, and there were tons of people and lots of walking and information thrown at me really quickly, and I think it just wore me out and made me want to be home in familiar territory. Oh, and I didn't realize it, but I put the wrong contact in one eye so all day I had this horrible splitting headache and couldn't figure out why until I closed my right eye and realized my left was all blurry.

Overall, day two was exhuasting, painful, and awkward. I can't wait till Friday, when I'll have the weekend to get over my jet lag and just walk around Luneburg at my own pace. There are three magnificent churches in Luneburg. It's weird, I know, but I think I'm going to attend the services while I'm here. Don't get me wrong, I'm not converting or anything, but even after a hellish morning, when I was so tired and stressed out, sitting in that big, beautiful church just made me forget everything. I couldn't even really think there. It was like doing yoga and getting all spaced out. I really, really just wanted to sit and soak it all in, but my mini-group was bent on powerwalking through all Luneburg on some stupid scavenger hunt USAC organized as part of their 12 hour, hellish orientation.

*sigh* I think I'm just bummed because there aren't any cute guys, and I'm STILL not done with orientation. Honestly, they lost me seven hours ago and now they're just talking to an exhausted, grumpy person that only wants her Sunday to get some friggin' rest - not to drag my butt down to the University to sit in a freezing, dark room and listening to them drone on and on and on. :(

Okay. I'm over it. I'm going to bed and tomorrow is going to be better. I'll be done with orientation finally, and I can come home and watch wrestling and sleep.

Oh, one funny note: my Kasey Kahne sweatshirt translates to Cheese Boat in German. My Korean roommate was like, "huh? Cheese Boat?" That amused me a great deal.

Almost Home!

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 04:05:16 GMT

The trip is almost over. I'm really excited to be home, because all day in the car drives me batty. I think my internal clock is messed up now, too, because everyone else is sleepy and I'm hyper. Really really hyper. And bored. Mostly hyper. *sigh*

Anyways, so Vegas was way fun. We saw the Phantom of the Opera, which was awesome. We had our seats upgraded to like, 300 dollar seats. The actors were phenomenal, and I loved hearing the music performed live. We also had our run of bad luck at the casinos in almost all the big hotels. Hotel hopping (and buying shot glasses) was also a highlight of the trip.

Man. I really want to go somewhere right now. Not out to eat, because I'm still stuffed from On the Border, but to a movie or the mall or somewhere. I'm really not liking hotel rooms at the moment! It's only 8:00. -_-'

After Vegas we went to Disneyland and I gotta say, the original park sucks balls. It was cramped, the people (employees and other guests) were down right rude, the lines were horrendous, and I was in a bad mood all morning. Things got better that night, after the crowd died down some and we rode rides while everyone else watched the shows and fireworks. I managed to find really cute souveniers for the kids, even though shopping was stressful as well (which is saying something, because I usually love to shop).

Day two was in California Adventure Park, which was finally up to the Disney standard I expect. I love Disney, and it's bad enough that I now have negative memories associated with it, so I was extremely relieved that the second park was worth the money, not crowded, and with much more pleasant employees - not to mention, it was way more handicap accessible. Oh, and the live show of Alladin was amazing! Not to mention, we got pictures with characters without waiting for an hour, and rode iconic rides without leaving Bob to sit in the cold because he couldn't wind through the tight bars. Big stamp of approval for CA Park. Big thumbs down for Disneyland.

That brings us to the ride home, which, as I said, is definetly welcome. It was fun, and I have some great memories - (Erin: THAT HURTS...HAHAHAHAHO/ Bethany: We need a diamond in the rough! was my favorite, oh, and "Shh - we're inSULTAN him") ^.^

Well, I'm all vacationed out. I'm ready for my own bed, clean clothes, and Christmas! Oh, and there aren't any pictures in this post 'cuz I haven't uploaded them from my camera. I don't know where my camera is, actually. Fun.

Disney Land Trip Day 3

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 02:51:39 GMT

So, back to San Antonio! The River Walk was as beautiful as I remember, but it was much more difficult to navigate with a handi-capped person. Also, I don't think we went to the main part, because we didn't see hardly any restaurants or shops. We finally found a place called Mexican Manhattan, which sucked. Royally. Especially because I was looking forward to the texmex in San Antonio, because of how much my parents have hyped it up. Oh well. It was still beautiful and we got some great photos. :)

After the River Walk, we drove all day to get to Carlsbad. This morning we checked out the caverns. They were pretty magnificent, but it was a little tiring/cold trekking through the caverns. The highlight of the tour was when Bob noticed a...erm...boob shaped formation and called it the "Dolly Parton".

After the Caverns, we headed to Roswell, New Mexico, where some poor, adorable little aliens landed in the 40's and had a really bad accident. They died. It was very, very sad. They were little (3 ft) and the military covered it all up...but the important thing is that we should have a moment of silence for the poor little dears. R.I.P. cute little aliens. You will be missed.

Okay, so it was also about the gift shop. Despite the tragic death of the aliens...I really liked the little antennas. They were cute, too. ^.^

After checking out the Roswell aliens, we found the best pizza place in the entire world. Peter Piper Pizza. Oh yeah. The one I grew up with closed down, so this was the first time I'd had their pizza in years, and I missed it SO much. They also had a stackers, so it was double the wonderfulness! Now we're just in the hotel. The girls are watching wrestling (yes, you heard me, wrestling.) While some of the guys are adorable and hunky, other than watching for eye candy I'm not sure I understand the attraction, lol.

Tomorrow is a long drive to Las Vegas, which should be one of the huge highlights of the trip. Erin and I are going to ride a roller coaster drunk! It'll be a hoOt!

Disney Trip '08 - Day 1

Sun, 14 Dec 2008 15:28:43 GMT

I took my test at midnight and (luckily) did okay. All that was left to do was fall asleep and wake up early - very early. We set off at 7:30 or so for San Antonio.

The drive was pretty easy. It didn't seem like that long at all. We had some trouble finding a McDonalds, and in the process drove trough a very quaint little country town, but that was about it. Finally, after passing the Budweiser factory, we reached Sea World!

The first thing we saw were the Clydesdale, Budweiser horses. They were pretty much what you'd expect - big, drunk horses. No, lol, that would have been funny, but no. Just normal horses.

After the Clydesdales, we caught the Clyde and Seamore show, which was cute. The highlight was when "Santa" came out, and did some crunches (he ate too many Christmas fishies).

Next was the big show - Shamu! It was amazing. They were magical to watch. It was a beautiful Christmas show about miracles, and the whales did not fail to impress. They did jumps, pushed their trainers around the pool, and hyped up the crowd by clapping their flippers and splashing their fins. It was easily my favorite part of the day.

After Shamu, we saw Viva!, the show that Erin's friend is a trainer for. It was funny and very impressive. The Belugas and dolphins were cute, and the human acrobats were impressive. After Viva!, we rode the Steel Eel, saw the penguins, watched the manta rays get fed by a diver, and fed the dolphins. That was also very, very cool.

I'll have to finish up the river walk stuff at the next hotel - they're about to leave without me!

Day Before Trip! Snow! Excitement!

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 20:22:57 GMT

Random Stuff/Snow in Houston/Christmas

We'll do this in order of occurance. First, I got to give some friends their Christmas presents, which was oodles of fun, as you can see below. The books were a big hit, and Mary and Andrea liked their stuff, too (at least I hope!).

I'm currently waiting on the girls to arrive from College Station. We leave on the trip in the morning! I have a final to take tonight, though, so I really should be studying. *sigh*

Before I go, one more extremely cool thing. Snow. In Houston, TX. Since my old best friend has gone M.I.A. with her Twilight books, I made a new best friend. I named him Mr. Snowmaloo.

There's a Party at the End of the World!

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 19:47:18 GMT

I'm addicted to the new JB CD. It's made this week totally bearable. Tomorrow should be payday, but not for me cause I got my time sheet in late. I'm going to a concert on Sunday (yay!) and then I'm going to freak out about finals.

I'm also monster dieting, which, ironically, turns me into a MONSTER!!! RAWR!!! Reminds me of the Chris Farley SNL skit where he snatches up the fries while dressed like a preppy girl. Teehee.

Basically, I just wanted to post to show this awesomeness:

Which Final Fantasy Character Are You?

Final Fantasy VII

And I didn't even try to get Rikku, I just did!

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 19:12:31 GMT

I previously journaled on myspace, but that sucked so now I'm here. Yay. I stole this off Erin's page, because every journal needs one, right?

Where were you born?:	Mission Viejo, Cali
In what year?:	1987
What color is your hair?:	Brown
What color are your eyes?:	Hazel
How tall are you?:	5'4"
What size are your feet?:	9
Are they ticklish?:	Yes
What's your favorite movie?:	Sense and Sensibility
Whats your favorite TV show?:	The Office
Who's your favorite actor?:	Alan Rickman
Actress?:	Kate Winslet
Type of music?:	Country, Punk
Artist/band?:	Jimmy Buffett and Blue October
Color?:	Red and Green
Sport?:	Soccer
Food?:	Pizza
Season:	Summer
School Subject?:	English
Do you have a best friend?:	Yes
Do you have a boyfriend/girlfriend?:	No
How many close friends do you have?:	Five
Do you prefer Coke or Pepsi?:	Coke
Dogs or cats?:	Dogs and Cats
Desparate Housewives or Gray's Anatomy?:	Gray's Anatomy
Where were you when you first heard about the hijackings on 9/11?:	In AP Biology, freshman year of high school
Whats the furthest from home you've been?:	Either Washington or the Carribean...not sure which.
If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would it be?:	China
Who was the last person who said hi to you?:	Random people I work with
Made you mad?:	Katie Sanderline grrr
Helped you fix something?:	Bob
Drove you somewhere?:	Erin
Bought you something?:	Erin
You called?:	Erin...lol, I'm sensing a pattern.
You Messaged?:	I can't text message. I'm text illiterate.
Sang to you?:	I have no idea.
Read to you?:	Probably my little brother.
Have you ever laughed so much milk came out of your nose?:	Yes. It was Erin's fault. (I'll just sit here rocking going, "I'm so bored")
Got gum caught in your hair?:	Nada
Ate dog food?:	Yes, once
Kissed a dog?:	Yep, pretty regularly.
Aced a test?:	Last semester.
Stayed up all night?:	Last night
Gone a day without eating?:	Ha! No.
Gone 2 days without brushing your teeth?:	Nope.
Can you pat your stomach and rub your head in a circle at the same time?:	Yes
Stand on your hands?:	No
Wiggle your ears?:	No
Speak another language?:	Kind of sort of no.
Make a wine glass hum with your fingers?:	Yes
Whistle?:	Yes, badly