Today I would like to Blog about... exams! I’m not particularly fond of exams, revision or work of any description, but I have found that Exam Season has some perks. You might disagree, but humour me and I’ll explain why Exam Season can be a beautiful thing...
1. When the exams begin, lectures and tutorials stop. This means that I can happily sleep in until 1.00pm every day and not feel guilty about missing anything (other than the beauty of the morning and attractive post men)
2. As soon as you have an exam (or an essay deadline for the Sociology dossers) the sun decides that it wants to come out and play. Surely this is a bad thing? I don’t think so but then again I might be biased – I believe that sunbathing is infinitely more important than revision. I also think that when you absolutely have to revise, it’s much nicer to do it outside, perhaps on a picnic table, sun lounger or on the freshly cut grass. I can see that there may be objections to this, namely by people who don’t have a garden to revise in or by people who think that revision and doing well is more important than being tanned. I see your point, it’s quite sensible really, but what do you think of this – I’m not going to be the next Einstein, if I’m going to be mediocre I might as well do it with a suntan.
3. In an attempt to avoid the revision that comes along with Exam Season I procrastinate in various ways, each more rewarding and time consuming than the one before. In fact, the Art of Procrastination deserves more than one point...
4. I usually begin the procrastination process by tidying my room. It has been said (usually by my mother) that a tidy bedroom means a tidy mind. So when the exams roll around, the duster rolls out. I do an aesthetic tidy of my room – making sure everything is in its proper place. Then come the windows, mirrors and work surfaces. Once they are sparkling I move onto the floor, a good hoover is essential for good revision. This is followed by the sleeping area because we all know that smart people need fresh sheets. Once the room looks nice and clean it’s important to move onto the drawers and wardrobes – a good clean out is needed – clutter isn’t good for the mind you see.
5. Now that I have a nice tidy bedroom I like to reward myself, usually with a good book. Reading is an excellent for of procrastination; you should be reading about the Expressive Cultures of Brazilians, but reading a book about the junk in your food is much more interesting. Did I revise for my A-level Religious Studies exam? No, I read Prince Caspian and the rest of the Narnia books soon followed. Do I regret this? Not at all! The things that I learnt from my procrastination books are far superior to anything I could ever learn about art in Aboriginal Australia.
6. An excellent way to waste time is... Television! Now, I don’t go down the traditional route of watching television in the living room - that leads to being told off for not doing revision. Instead I watch it in the comfort of my bed on my laptop. My only memory of AS and A-levels are the following T.V shows (all of which I watched in their entirely – as in from start to finish) 1. Gossip Girl 2. Grey’s Anatomy 3. Chuck 4. House 5. Pushing Daisies and 6. Bones. That might not seem impressive, but think about this, in 2008 when I started watching Grey’s Anatomy there were four seasons. With roughly 22 episodes in each series that’s around 3696 minutes of uninterrupted television and that’s only for one show. Just thinking about that much television is quite disgusting... But, I have yet to see any devastatingly negative side effects (other than becoming slightly obsessed with characters like McDreamy and McSteamy)
7. Another brilliant way to procrastinate during Exam Season is to listen to some new music – I initially started this Blog to say all the great music that I was listening to, but it became a bit of a monster... I’ve been listening to – KISS, Barenaked Ladies, Simon and Garfunkel, Tupac, The Fugees, TLC, Billy Joel, all things Glee, Ingrid Michaelson, The Beatles, The Mamas and Papas and and a lot of Classical, particularly Tchaikovsky.
8. Exam Season is also a time when vast amounts of food will be consumed – this can be directly linked to procrastination and while it’s probably not a good thing in the long term, it’s definitely fun at the time. It was totally a good decision to eat that entire jar of Nutella, right?
9. I save a ridiculous amount of money because I no longer spend £20+ a day at Uni!
10. You might start to get Cabin Fever (or is it Stockholm Syndrome?) but you become real tight with your family and pets – spending time with real friends and real people takes too much effort.
11. The exploration of Social Networking Sites and of course Wikipedia become exciting and can last for hours.
12. You become a master Blogger. Well, you don’t actually become good at the art of Blogging, but you spend most of your evening in a state of Blogging Procrastination (the best of all) where you write twelve bullet points of complete rubbish. You also get to read several Blogs written by your nearest and dearest. You discover new things about them and your friendship grows stronger – now surely that makes Exam Season worthwhile?
So, you see that Exam Season can be a beautiful thing. Yes, at times you may despair. When you’re sitting in the exam you might start wishing that you had spend some of that sunbathing time reading lecture notes. When you’re forty and still unemployed because nobody wants to hire someone who failed a degree in Anthropology, you can look back and think, “at least I had fun during Exam Season”. Life is far too short to be stressed out – the next time you start to dread Exam Season, just think about all the exciting things that come along with these hellish exams :)
xx
P.S If that doens't convince you, think about this - the END of exams means a 4 month long summer :) :) :)
It feels like an absolute age since I last Blogged, but it’s only been a few days – the problem is, I have all this stuff in my head. It’s buzzing around and I’d quite like to get it all out by writing about it, but it’s impossible. I’m actually lost for words, even though my head is crammed full of junk!
One thing that I did want to say was... I think I might be a vegetarian. Actually, I’m pretty sure that it’s something I want to do. The only problem is that I actually love meat. I love Cow and Pig and Chicken and I eat meat at least once a day. I dream of Kebabs and Crispy Chicken Strips. I was raised on medium rare steaks and nothing beats a Chilli Chicken Pita from The Jamaica Inn. I literally live for Sunday dinners and a life without a Boojum Chicken Burrito just doesn’t seem right.
But (there it is, the word that is ruining my meat related happiness) I have started to read a really great book and it is totally changing my opinions about food. The book is called Skinny Bitch but it’s not about becoming skinny, because that’s disgusting. It’s about eating foods that are good for you and it talks a lot about what is actually in the food we eat every day. The authors are trying to promote a healthy lifestyle – they do have a bit of a Vegan agenda, but what you should take from this book is that you need to READ what’s in your food. There’s a lot of stuff in there that I don’t want anywhere near me, let alone my body, which while it isn’t rocking, is still quite useful and I’d like it to be around for a few more years. They say ignorance is bliss and if you want to be kept in the dark (the happy, tasty dark) then I wouldn’t suggest reading it, but I’m one of those people who love learning. I like to know everything about, well, everything. I think that before you can make a choice, you need to be informed and that’s what I’m trying to become – informed and aware.
I’ve always eaten meat and I do have some intelligence, so I’ve always known that at some point that steak was a cow, but when I’m in the middle of a BBQ I don’t think about that. I don’t think about what that animal went through in order to end up on my plate. I envisaged a cow, frolicking in the fields, living a happy life until he magically dies a pain free, quick and humane death. Now that the content cow is dead, there’s no point in throwing it out, so Mr Farmer sells it to my mother who, in honour of the cows long and happy life, marinates it and chucks it in the oven. Well, that’s not what happens. In fact, that is so far from the truth. I like meat and because I like meat I’m willing to overlook what happens to the animals that end up as my dinner. It’s perfectly natural – we like something, we want to keep doing what we’re doing, so we don’t think about it too much. Well, this book has definitely got me thinking.
I haven’t finished the book yet. When I do I’m going to re-read it and then decide what I can and can’t eat. Then I’m going to write a bit more about it, sort of like a little book review. Reading the first few chapters has been such a wakeup call and not just in relation to the meat and dairy industry. There are things that I always presumed were good for me, Diet Drinks for example. I had heard that they weren’t actually that good for you, but I never knew why. Now I do and I will NEVER be touching a caffeine free Diet Coke. Ever. Just in case you’re wondering why Diet drinks are so bad, it’s because they contain aspartame. Look it up, you’ll be horrified – it was denied FDA approval eight times as it wasn’t safe for human consumption, but wait, why are we drinking it then? Because when a rich man wants something, that rich man gets it. How? By starting a few lawsuits, bribing some people, hiring the competition and tampering with evidence. Voila – it’s magically safe and not only that, thanks to advertising, Diet Coke is “better” for you than regular Coke. Even the National Soft Drink Association didn’t want aspartame to be approved! Did you know that when aspartame breaks down it become formaldehyde? It’s pretty freaking bad for you, like cancer causing bad. There are over 92 FDA recognised side effects of aspartame and here I was, thinking it was better for me to drink Diet!
I’m actually so shocked – I have been so ignorant for so long. Obviously not everyone will want to read this book, but I need to know and hopefully I’m becoming informed and aware – I never really cared but now I NEED to know what I’m putting in my tummy :)
I don’t know if you found that interesting or if you think I’m preaching or whatever, but that’s so not the case. I eat the worst food in the world. The amount of junk that I consume is actually disgusting, I stick to the four food groups – meat, chocolate, milk and ice-cream. I hate those people who stand on their soap box telling everyone else that they’re wrong, especially if you know they eat like a little piggy. I might not kick vegetarianisms ass, but I reckon I’ll give it a go. When I have time I’d really love to go into why I’m making this decision – it’s so interesting and I knew so little about it before. Until then, I suggest you give the book a read, you don’t have to live by what it says, but it’s still good to find out – making an informed decision and all that jazz!
How do you know you’re becoming addicted to Blogging? Well, I can answer that question with a simple, “when it becomes the highlight of your day” :) It’s very sad, but I’ve been dying to write this Blog all day, not because it’s particularly interesting, but because it’s a food related Blog. Now why is that exciting? It’s exciting because in order to write this Blog, I actually had to do the baking and the thought of getting my bake-on has made this day of curly hair and history exams completely worth it!
I came across this recipe a few days ago and I’ve been dying to try it, so today after my History exam (more on that later, maybe) I bought a few ingredients and began the very slow process of making Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes – what a name, eh? If you’d like the original recipe I can send it to you, but I just did my own thing (I think it’s called improvising/being lazy) and they turned out really well :)
For the Cupcake part of the Cupcakes I just used a packet of Betty Crocker Devil’s Food Cake – they haven’t got the dense consistency of an actual Cupcake (or myself), they’re much lighter but they’re easy to make and the batter tastes really yummy – if you have a recipe for Chocolate Cupcakes I would say give that a go instead, but anyway...
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes
Make up the Betty Crocker Devil’s Food Cake – this part is ridiculously easy, you literally add water, oil and 3 eggs – voila, a calorie riddle cake with very little effort
Spoon one tablespoon of batter into a cupcake case
Place a Reeses Cup on top of the batter
Top with another spoonful of batter and place in the oven
The original recipe says to bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes, but I baked them at 150C for 14 minutes – oddly specific I know – I really recommend putting one batch in, seeing how they come out and then putting the second set in – that way you won’t ruin them all, or maybe you’re not as challenged as I am, in that case, let’s move on...
When the cupcakes are done, leave them to completely cool before frosting
Now here comes the fun part... Peanut Butter Frosting :)
1 Cup of Peanut Butter (for us regular people that’s 260g – you can use chunky or smooth, I stuck to smooth and it worked out really well)
½ Cup of Butter at room temperature (again, that’s 115g)
2 Cups of Powdered Sugar (also known as Icing Sugar – 220g)
3-4 Tablespoons of milk or cream
1 Teaspoon of Vanilla extract/flavouring
Clearly the best part of this recipe is the mixing – remember to use one of those electric whisk thingys, I’m pretty sure it would be physically impossible without one, but anyway... Combine the peanut butter and butter in a large bowl, mixing together until they’re light and fluffy.
Stop the mixer and then take it out – trying to do this without turning it off will result in a messy kitchen and an unhappy mother :) Add the icing sugar, 3 tablespoons of milk/cream and the vanilla extract/flavouring. Start the mixing slowly (brrrrrrrrr – that’s the sound of the whisk) and gradually increase the speed until the mixture is smooth and creamy. If the frosting is too thick you can add a tablespoon of milk/cream – make sure you thoroughly test this mixture. Just to check. Ya know?
So yes, cupcake mix + Reeses Peanut Butter Cup+ more cupcake mix + oven + frosting = yummy! Obviously this recipe contains nuts, so don’t make it if that will, well, kill you. Also, they are really yummy, but they are soooooo sweet and I wouldn’t recommend them unless you really, really like peanut butter. Thankfully I enjoy ridiculously sweet things that contain vast amounts of peanut butter :)
These, along with Liam Neeson in Taken, were the perfect end to an otherwise rubbish day. The day started well, my hair was b-e-a-utiful and then I walked to the train station. Quickly. This was a bad move – I was all hot and my hair went all wavy. Bad times. I eventually made it to the Library, only to find that there were no seats. Seriously QUB, what’s that all about? Also, would it kill you to crack a windy? The third FLO was ridiculously warm – made even hotter when Mr. Rory Kelleher came up for a visit, or two ;) The lovely Becca Patterson was also in the vicinity, with her excellent work ethic and texts that never fail to brighten my day :) I actually love the library – it is the place to be during exams, literally all the cool people are in the library, pretending to revise! After chillin’ in the library I bought some pens (they usually come in handy during exams) and headed over to take the exam. Well. What an epic fail that was. I can’t even think about that exam without feeling sick, it was just so terrible. My structure was appalling and it was as if I knew nothing about the subject, which is so far from the truth – I literally memorised everything that happened in America from 1861 to 1949... That’s a lot of stuff. Unfortunately knowing a bunch of dates isn’t much use when you don’t know anything about what happened on these dates. Ahh well, it’s just an exam :) After a sneaky Boojum with the Surf Clubbers I headed back to Bangor and began baking. My mum was cooking/baking a whole bunch of stuff for school tomorrow, so we were just chillin’ in the kitchen, listening to some Bob Dylan! For now life is good, or should I say sweet, in reference to the cupcakes? Nah, I think I’ll stick with good :)
Recently I’ve been on a bit of a Crusade – to get people to join Blogger :) And I must say that it’s worked pretty well thus far :)
I’ve managed to recruit some of my lovely friends from Surf Club and now, from Anthropology –they’re even convincing their friends to join! This is actually making me so so so happy :) Now I can not only avoid revision by writing a Blog, but I can read about what all my chums are getting up to! I remember back in the day when I only read Morgan and Kelsey’s Blogs and now look at me – following and being followed! If there is anyone reading this who hasn’t been initiated into the Blogosphere – sort it out! There’s nothing better than being able to get all the stuff that's buzzing about in your brain out and on paper (or should I say screen?) Blogger will come in really handy this summer when we all go our separate ways/the Anthropologist go back to England... It’s also like, permission to be nosey and who doesn’t love that?
Anyway, I just wanted to say how happy I am that everyone’s getting into this little Blogging craze! If you all fail your exams because you spend all your time creeping on Blogger, it’s not my fault - I’ll be right there with you :)
Xx
P.S I must admit that I’m a little bit worried... These Blogs are all really good – it’s been a day and you’re already better than me! Stop being so good :)
P.P.S I nicked that title from Miss Lucy Proudlock – who I hope will be joining us Bloggers very soon!
When my sister moved out she left a whole bunch of books behind – I’m a huge book worm so I looked through them and (if she lets me) I plan on keeping a couple/all of them :) There are a few novels, a few fashion books, a few classics and a few Anne Geddes books. Most people know who Anne Geddes is – if not, she’s a photographer known for her “stylized depictions of babies and motherhood”. Know who she is yet? No? Ok, she takes pictures of cute babies dressed as bunnies and bears and flowers. I challenge you to look at some of her pictures without smiling :)
Anyway, this particular book “Thoughts with Love” is a collection of photographs which are put alongside famous quotes. The book is full of beautiful quotes, but one in particular really stood out to me...
“Each second we live is a new and unique moment of the universe, a moment that will never be again... And what do we teach our children? We teach them that two and two make four, and that Paris is the capital of France. When will we also teach them what they are? We should say to each of them; Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child like you. Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move. You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven... You have the capacity for anything. Yes, you are a marvel. And when you grow up, can you then harm another who is, like you, a marvel? You must work – we all must work – to make the world worthy of its children.” Pablo Casals (1876-1973)
I really love this because it’s so true. Children are a marvel. Everything about them is absolutely amazing – from their tiny fingers and toes to their little (or should I say big) personalities. They are remarkable and they need to be told just how special they are. Grownups aren’t that bad either – we were once those children and we’re just as extraordinary, even if we sometimes forget. I particularly like when Casals talks about harming others – everything he says is completely true. If we truly believed that we are marvels, if we truly understood our worth and the worth of others, then we couldn’t (or at least wouldn’t) seek to harm others. We must behave as if we are marvellous. We must understand our potential and be at our very best. If only people truly understood this then the world would be a much greater place. I’ve been thinking about war a lot recently and this quotation has really got me thinking. Imagine if all the dictators and warmongers believed this. Imagine if they actually understood the value of each person. The world could be so different. Casals said that “the love of one’s country is a splendid thing. But why should love stop at the border?” – I know that the idea of world peace is idealistic and naive; it will probably never happen but there is always possibility. We really do need to work to make the world worthy of its children. I suppose I’ll start by working on myself. I’ll let you know how that goes, but until then, have another Casals quote...
Each person has inside a basic decency and goodness. If he listens to it and acts on it, he is giving a great deal of what it is the world needs most. It is not complicated but it takes courage. It takes courage for a person to listen to his own goodness and act on it. Pablo Casals (1876-1973)
Today Esther told me that I need to start learning to cook and clean “because you never know what might happen.” What she really meant was, “hopefully someone will marry you and you can’t be this useless when you’re married.” Obviously I explained that I won’t be getting married anytime soon and that when I do, I will employ someone to do these menial tasks for me. If employing scores of servants/having a live-in mother are not a possibility, my husband will cook and clean and do all the un-fun married chores. He will also wear suits and be good at everything. If that doesn’t work out then I can always live at home for the rest of my life, sponging of my parents and never paying back my student loan. I haven’t yet decided which path my life is going to take...
Anyway, I digress. Instead of learning how to cook, I decided to bake cookies. Ok, so they’re not “real food” but who cares? I know how to boil pasta. Chicken is fairly easy to cook and Betty Crocker Chocolate cake comes with idiot proof instructions. One day I will attempt to make a Sunday Dinner, but apparently your mother’s Sunday Dinners are always the best, so why even try? The one thing that I can actually do is make Snickerdoodles – and they’re actually really yummy! They taste like Christmas and happiness and all the good things in the world (which really isn’t a surprise given the amount of butter and sugar in the recipe). I fist tried these bad boys when I was living in America, Steve and Trish, the people I lived with had a really good recipe (which is probably better than mine) and when they made them I would eat the entire batch. I’m sure they loved having me as a guest! Anyway, this is the recipe that I used – it was from an American website, so I worked out the equivalent measurements/ingredients.
Snickerdoodles
1 Cup of Butter (225g) 1 ½ Cups of Caster Sugar (337.5g – don’t worry about being exact, that .5 of a gram won’t make a difference) 2 Large Eggs 2 ¾ Cups of Flour (412.5g – again, it’s not a life or death measurement) 2 Teaspoons of Cream of Tartar 1 Teaspoon of Baking Soda (In the U.K this is called Sodium Bicarbonate) ¼ Teaspoon of Salt 3 Tablespoons of Sugar 3 Teaspoons of Cinnamon
• Preheat oven to 350°F. (In the U.K this is gas mark 4 or else 180°C.)
• Mix butter, 1 1/2 cups sugar and eggs thoroughly in a large bowl. You can use an electric mixer for this, I’m hard core and do it by hand (but really that’s just because I don’t know how to use the mixer.) It also helps if the butter is softer – try microwaving it for a few seconds!
• Combine flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl.
• Blend dry ingredients into butter mixture. Again you can use an electric mixer for this.
• Chill dough, and chill an ungreased cookie sheet (a flat baking tray for all the Brits out there) for about 10-15 minutes in the fridge. Meanwhile, mix 3 tablespoons sugar, and 3 teaspoons cinnamon in a small bowl.
• Scoop into 1 inch globs of dough.
• Coat by gently rolling balls of dough in the sugar mixture. I roll the dough into little balls in the palm of my hand and then add them to the sugar/cinnamon mixture – it makes them much easier to work with.
• Place on chilled ungreased cookie sheet (baking tray), and bake for 10 minutes. When I put the balls on the tray I slightly flatten them with the palm of my hand – you don’t need to crush them, but if they’re a little flatter they come out better.
• Remove from pan immediately and place on cooling rack.
If you follow this recipe you shouldn’t go too wrong. I make mine quite small/thin but the occasional fat one is also good! I cook them at just below 160°C as my oven is really hot and I only cook them for 7-8 minutes. I guess it’s trial and error and different people like different things – some people say to wait until the cookies are golden brown but when they cool they’re quite hard. I prefer it when they’re soft and chewy so that’s why I cook them for a shorter period of time. I wait until they start to firm up but before they’re golden brown – you can check if they’re cooked by poking them in the middle (with a cocktail stick, not your fingers) and if it comes out clean (i.e not gloopy) then they’re done! After the first tray you should know if you’re on the right track and if you’re not, then hopefully you’ll know what’s gone wrong and you can correct yourself!
These really are the nicest cookies I’ve ever tasted –the only cookies that come close are Trish’s Chocolate Chip Cookies – one day I’ll master them too :)
Good Luck! And one last thing, try one when they’re right out of the oven with a glass of milk – I’m actually really excited for some other people to try these. Your life will be changed forever :)
Xx
P.S Crilly had nothing to do with baking these cookies, I just thought I'd include her to show you all how fun it is to drink milk!
You may or may not have noticed that I’ve changed my Blog about a bit. I got really fed up of having the same boring background and every Blog I read is always so fancy and they really put mine to shame :( So I did a little Google search for free Blogger backgrounds and I found a few good sites. My last background was from The Cutest Blog on the Block and I really loved it, but like I said, time for a change. I quite like Hot Bliggity Blog but I ended up going with a background from Shabby Blogs – I was in Blog Heaven! Their designs are really lovely and there are so many! They also have “buttons” and all sorts of extras, but I don’t know if I’m that adventurous...yet! Anyway, you’re probably lightyears ahead of me on the Blogging front, but if not, give those sites a wee visit, they’re idiot proof, which always helps me :)
In relation to the Blog below – I DID NOT realise it was that long when I was writing it. Like actually, it’s a complete monster – I can’t even read to the end and I wrote it - so please feel free to skip it! I promise I’ll try to keep all other Blogs to a readable length :) I'd also like for them to be interesting - is there anything you would like me to write about? My daily activities aren't actually that interesting and as it's exams time they're just going to be full of information like "today I realised that I only have four days worth of lecture notes, for the entire semester" and "today I went to have a revision snack, a Rachel's Rice Pudding that I bought for an occasion like this, but it was gone because my little jerk of a brother ate it"... So yeah, suggestions are very welcome :) Also, you might have noticed I deleted and reposted a few Blogs – I’m a bit of a neat freak and I needed to get Mr. Blogger organised :)
I’m not really sure how I should start. This Blog is a little bit different; instead of telling you about a specific adventure or event, I just felt like writing about a song I’ve been listening to recently. The song is Casimir Pulsaki Day and it’s by a really amazing artist, Sufjan Stephens.
Casimir Pulsaki Day is a sad song, in fact, it’s heartbreaking but that’s what makes it so special. It’s painfully honest and it deals with a difficult situation beautifully, truthfully and with a great deal of grace. I’m not a particularly emotional person, I don’t enjoy talking about my feelings and I’m having difficulty with this Blog – I can’t seem to find the words to adequately describe this song. I think it’s one of those songs that you just have to listen to. So please do. Try to think about the words and what they mean. I apologise if you don’t like it – you might think it’s too sad, which is fine, but maybe someone will get it. It’s really quite complex for something so simple.
Golden rod and the 4-H stone The things I brought you When I found out you had cancer of the bone
Your father cried on the telephone And he drove his car to the Navy yard Just to prove that he was sorry
In the morning through the window shade When the light pressed up against your shoulder blade I could see what you were reading
Oh the glory that the lord has made And the complications you could do without When I kissed you on the mouth
Tuesday night at the bible study We lift our hands and pray over your body But nothing ever happens
I remember at Michael's house In the living room when you kissed my neck And I almost touched your blouse
In the morning at the top of the stairs When your father found out what we did that night And you told me you were scared
Oh the glory when you ran outside With your shirt tucked in and your shoes untied And you told me not to follow you
Sunday night when I cleaned the house I find the card where you wrote it out With the pictures of your mother
On the floor at the great divide With my shirt tucked in and my shoes untied I am crying in the bathroom
In the morning when you finally go And the nurse runs in with her head hung low And the cardinal hits the window
In the morning in the winter shade On the first of March on the holiday I thought I saw you breathing
Oh the glory that the lord has made And the complications when I see his face In the morning in the window
Oh the glory when he took our place But he took my shoulders and he shook my face And he takes and he takes and he takes
(Please stop reading... I got a little bit carried away and wrote a few thousands words about, well, nothing really. I can't bring myself to delete them, yet... You've been warned - read at your own risk!)
I should probably finish on that, because I can’t really follow it. But there are certain parts that really stand out for me. A part of the song that I really thought about was how they prayed over her body and nothing happened. How often does that happen to us? I would say that this is far more common than the miraculous healings that we all hope for. What does it mean? Does it mean that there isn’t a God? Does it mean that if there is, he doesn’t care? I can’t answer all these questions, but personally, I think that these things are out of Gods control. I choose to believe in an all just God, as opposed to an all powerful God who simply stands by while his children suffer. We are conditioned to believe that if we do good we will be rewarded and if we do bad, if we sin or slip up, then we will be punished. Essentially, we are taught that we will get exactly what we deserve. This theory is all well and good, until we consider the tragedies that affect even the best people. Of course we can stand back and say that God knows what he’s doing and that we shouldn’t worry, but what about when it happens to us? What happens when your life is affected? You’re a good person so this stuff shouldn’t be happening to you, right? The misfortunes of good people are difficult because they call into question what we know and believe, they call into question the existence and intentions of God. The only conclusion that I can come to is that we do not live in a fair world. By propagating the idea of God as a righteous judge, we give people a reason to be good, to be on their best behaviour and we make God and the world comprehendible. This is all very well and good when things are going well; we believe that God is all powerful, all loving and totally in control – but when things go badly, we blame ourselves. Sometimes the bad things that happen to us will be our fault. If I got ridiculously drunk and then drove my car, I would probably crash and that would be entirely my own fault. We must take responsibility for our actions, but what about when there is no apparent cause? What happens if I’m driving home and someone else crashes into me? Am I being punished and if so, what for? Is it because I forgot to read my scriptures last night? Some people prescribe to this view – it’s not hard to blame ourselves, we are imperfect and there will always be something we did or didn’t do, but personally, I cannot think like this. I cannot think, as some others do, that the earthquake in Haiti was because they worship the Devil and practice Voodoo. For every “bad” person who died in Haiti, a child died. In fact, I have no time for people who think like this. It’s ignorant and unfeeling and an insult to the God that I believe in.
We are taught not to question. We are told that God has his reasons and this is easy enough to say to someone else, it’s not as easy to listen to when you’re the one whose life is falling apart because of some divine reason. I know all the divine reasons – God is testing you, he’s making you a better person, everything happens for a reason, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, God is teaching you a lesson, he wants you to learn from this, God wanted you to depend more fully upon him... These reasons make perfect sense when you are sitting beside the hospital bed, comforting a friend, but what about when you are in it? I’ve also heard it said that God only sends us what we can deal with. He knows our strength and so gives us only what we can cope with – we should feel blessed that he has singled us out, we should feel honoured and privileged. We “should” but the reality is that we don’t. In my opinion, you can believe in a “good God who is not totally powerful, or a powerful God who is not totally good” (Kushner; 1981. 45). I choose to believe in Gods goodness.
The laws of nature make no exception for good people – if a righteous man and a wicked man fall from a building, the laws of gravity ensure that they both hit the ground. A cancerous tumour doesn’t care if you go to church every week. Sometimes there is no reason or logic. Sometimes bad things happen to good people but that doesn’t mean God caused it, it doesn’t mean God can stop it either, most of the time it means that life is really unfair. Pain and Death – two very unfair things. (Or are they? Without pain we would surely die. We need to be able to feel pain to know that our body is injured. Dying ensures that our lives are lived to the full – immortality is not something that anyone could truly want, more time perhaps, but not infinite time). Being a human is so much harder than being an animal. Animals lives are ruled by instinct and our lives are ruled by morals, which sometimes involve the suppression of instinct. By entering a world of good and evil, life is automatically more difficult – we develop emotional connections, our feelings are easily hurt. In fact, while all animals will die, humans are the only ones who know and comprehend this. We are also free to make our own decisions. We can decide to be good or bad and God does not intervene – he has to watch as we make these decisions, in the same way our actual (biological or social) parents do. I think that God would love to reach out and help us. He would love to stop us from making that bad decision or from getting into an ill fated car, but sometimes he can’t – he just has to watch. Another example of this is the Holocaust. If God is all powerful then why didn’t he zap Hitler into oblivion? Why did he let millions of innocent people die? Sometimes it’s easy to attribute natural disasters to the “Hand of God”, but what about something like this? One evil man and thousands of passive people enabled the Holocaust to occur, but where was God during all this? If you were in Auschwitz, would you blame God for not saving you? Would you thank him for teaching you a valuable lesson or would you understand that God knows what he’s doing, even if you don’t? I don’t know how I would feel – I would probably be angry. But I would find great comfort in an all just God who hadn’t abandoned me, but who was simply not able to help me in the way I wanted.
When something bad does happen, it’s tempting to try and minimize the mourner’s pain. You can offer the explanations that “they’re in a better place” or that “it’s what God wanted” – in fact, this is something I would have done. But this is the last thing that a person should do. In tragic times people need compassion, not superficial explanations. The idea of an all just but not all powerful God is the only thing that makes sense to me. It’s the only way I can make sense of senseless situations. I also have to think that God understands what I’m going through. I believe that he has felt every pain and every emotion that I have ever had. I don’t know if this is legit, but I’ve always thought that when Jesus was on the cross, he literally felt the pain and suffering of every person. He knows how it feels to have your heart broken, to lose someone you love and because he has experienced this, it makes him more real to me. If he cared enough about me to feel that pain, then he wouldn’t willingly let me experience it, this idea I suppose supports the claim that God is all just as opposed to all powerful – he would take away all that pain, if he could, but he can’t.
Do I believe that you can lift your hands and pray over someone’s body? Do I really think that prayer can save a person’s life? If prayer worked the way we wanted it to, then nobody would ever die. If our prayers don’t work, then how do we feel about God? Do we feel angry and disappointed? Do we lose any faith we might have had? If you have prayed and received a problematic answer, or no answer at all, you may attribute it to one of the following – you didn’t deserve what you prayed for, you didn’t pray hard enough, God knows what’s best for you and it wasn’t what you were praying for, someone else’s opposing prayer was stronger, God doesn’t hear prayers or even there is no God. If you don’t believe in these explanations and still have faith in prayer, it helps to rethink our ideas of prayer. Prayer shouldn’t be overly specific – you can’t pray for a baby boy or a baby girl, God can’t change what is already determined (no matter how much you want that essay to be an A). God doesn’t answer some prayers and not others – God doesn’t save one person in a plane crash because their prayer was better than the persons beside them. God can’t be invoked to change the course of nature; you can’t expect that flood to leave your house untouched while destroying your neighbours. You cannot pray for harm to come of someone else and you cannot pray for God to do something that is within your power – God can’t make you thin when you could achieve the desired result by going for a run. God can help but you cannot expect him to do anything and everything. I think that miracles come from something more than prayer – if miracles were purely a result of earnest prayer, then nobody would die and it would work every time. One of the most powerful things about prayer is that is brings people together and it can bring you closer to God, sometimes just talking is enough, even if he can’t zap you skinny. Prayer helps you find God and it helps you find people. It can comfort you and the belief in prayer can be strong enough to give people the strength to persevere. People who pray for miracles very rarely get them. People who pray for strength and courage and grace are far more likely to be successful. God does not send the problem – he gives us strength to deal with the problem.
I believe in God but I recognise that he is limited. I believe that he is bound by the laws of nature and I do not think that he sends illness or misfortune to anyone, good or bad. “I can worship a God who hates suffering but cannot eliminate it” (Kushner; 1981. 159). Kushner states that God does not cause our misfortunes, instead they are caused by bad luck or bad people or even the bad decisions we make, the natural and imperfect world we live in is a key contributor. If I believe this then I don’t need to feel anger towards God when I see someone I love suffer, instead I can turn to him, knowing that he only ever wants to help me. Instead of thinking about “why” something happens, I would rather think about “what” I’m going to do. If God neither kills nor cures, then what use is he? The only way to answer that is, God inspires people. He inspires people to help each other, to be there for each other – people are Gods hands on this earth and he inspires people to act. We are God’s hands and God’s language. What are you going to do about that? Can you forgive and love an imperfect world full of imperfect people? Can you forgive and love God, even though he has limitations? Do you understand that it is this ability to love and forgive, to be courageous, even when it’s difficult and you are faced with sorrow, that God has given you to make this life bearable?
This is something that I barely understand. I’m sure there are holes and contradictions in my theology. There is so much more that I need to learn, but I get closer every day. I would love to live in a perfect world where everyone was rewarded accordingly. I would love if all my prayers were answered, the way I wanted, every single time. I would love for the world to be in a perfect state where we didn’t have to worry about natural disasters destroying millions of lives. I would love it if God could zap all the bad things away, but that’s just not possible and my belief in a limited but all just God as opposed to an all powerful God who sits and watches while his children suffer is the only thing that makes sense to me. I know that rationally, God can’t exist – there are aspects of religion that make no sense at all and sometimes I think life would be easier if I didn’t believe in anything. But then I think that we all need something to believe in, my life needs a purpose and I suppose religion gives it that. Even if it turns out that there is no God and that all religion is fabrication, then I really wouldn’t mind – I live a good life and there isn’t anything I would change about it, even if there was no God to care about how I was living. Religion and religious institutions are not perfect, but the Gospel and the messages are, so I choose to believe in that. I believe in myself. I’ve been called a Cafeteria Mormon/Christian, taking the bits I like and living by those, but that’s ok. Religious beliefs are highly personal and I don’t see anything wrong in incorporating teachings of the various religions if they’re going to make you a better person. If you managed to get through all that then congratulations! I really don’t like talking about religion – I don’t want to give off the impression that I’m preaching or getting at anyone who is or isn’t religious, but I suppose I just got a little bit carried away. It’s very late and I really shouldn’t be allowed near a computer at this time of night because I tend to talk an awful lot of rubbish. I just needed to vent and now that I have, I think I might sleep for a week! I also really recommend the book “When Bad Things Happen to Good People” by Harold Kushner, a Jewish Rabbi. It’s an amazing book and he is such a wise man, he’s made sense of a lot of the things that I never really understood and while you may not totally agree, it’s still an interesting read. Again, sorry for going way off track – I just wanted to tell everyone how great a song was and I ended up talking about, well, I’m not really sure! I promise that my next Blog will be full of fun adventures :)
Today I had my first hang over! Now before everyone starts freaking out, it wasn’t an alcohol related hangover, it was a Kebab related hangover! I didn’t even know that this was possible, but it’s the morning after the QUB Dance Showcase and I feel beyond rough! It was a miracle that I made it out of my bed and onto the train – I managed to miss my lecture but I just about made it to tutorial... It was touch and go when I was on the train, I truly thought that I was going to CHUNDER EVERYWHERE.YAH. (I hope everyone got the Gap Yah reference there, if no then please Youtube it so you can fully appreciate what I’m talking about)
After my tutorial I really should have went home, crawled into bed and slept off the mother of all Kebab Hangovers, but instead I paid 71C a wee visit. The occupants of 71C are my good chums Rachael Crilly and Rachel Davis, two vital members of Surf Club, who are collectively known as Cravis. Unfortunately Rachel “hardcore” Davis was at the library so I was chillin’ with Rachael “hung-over” Crilly and what a day we had! Crilly very kindly introduced me to an American style restaurant called Springsteen’s (goodbye student loan, hello gigantic potions of yummy food) where we spent a considerable period of time. When we rolled out of Springsteen’s, we decided that a trip to the cinema would be an excellent idea – sitting in a dark room, nursing my Kebab Hangover and Crilly’s Double Vodka and Redbull Hangover may not be an effective cure, but it sure is fun! We saw The Joneses, which was actually quite good – it was different and quirky, subtly funny and it had a very interesting message about consumerism. It’s one of those movies that you’ll think about for days to come, you might even re-evaluate some of your personal opinions/views/goals... or... you might forget about it as soon as it finished. Each to their own!
Today was one of those lovely one off days... or was it? Clearly it wasn’t. In fact, the next day I gave Crilly a ring and we went back to Springsteen’s, ate some yummy food and then we came back to Bangor to meet Davis and watch Iron Man. Cravis had never seen the movie (which had to be paused a few times in order to explain what was happening) but I think they enjoyed it. Actually, I know they enjoyed it. They’re a very vocal team and they managed to express every emotion/thought that they had during the movie. When Iron Man finished we headed over to Bangor Omniplex (not to be confused with a Multiplex) to see Iron Man 2 – yes, that’s right, two helpings of Robert Downey Jr. in one day. His face was literally sculpted by the angels and sent to us women as a gift from God. Well, perhaps that’s exactly accurate, but I think you get the picture; Robert Downey Jr. is a complete Babe! I actually really enjoyed the movie and I obviously enjoyed Cravis. They’re top notch girls and I’m actually quite glad I met them, even if they Fraped me in my own home ;)
But really, did that actually just happen? Did I just purchase a Belfast Giant? Are you confused yet? Let me explain... The QUB Dance Society put on a showcase that a few Surf Clubbers attended and part of the night was an auction. Yes that’s right, a slave auction where you objectify people by placing bids on them. My dear brother, the Captain of the QUB Surf Club and his right hand man/Co-Captain Stephen Friel were the first ones to be auctioned off and they achieved a grand total of £65 – well done boys; you sold your “surf expertise” for a very respectable sum! In fact, they were only beaten by the Belfast Giant that Crilly and myself purchased for the bargain price of *cough*£80*cough*... Dad, don’t have a heart attack , that’s only £40 each and it includes a lesson on the ice, a chance to meet the team and four tickets to an actual match. Like I said, bargain. I truly see this as an investment as does Crilly, who wrote in her fantastic Blog that “once those giants see me and are instantaneously blown away by my charm and natural flair on the ice, I figure at least one of them are bound to fall in love with me! It will be no time before I become Mrs Belfast Giant and that £40 will seem like pocket change.” Genius? I think so...
After our exciting auction we hit up the after party, which was a 90s themed discotheque. The Backstreet Boys + Five + the Macarena + the original Gina G + some Surf Club legends = A very good night! When we eventually left we stopped by Gucci Chip, which might be lovely during the day, but at 2.00 a.m it is a bad choice. That “kebab chillin’ in my tummy” feeling will haunt you for days, causing a “food hangover” that cannot be cured. Ever. All in all, a very eventful night – Dance Club, you did well, you might be the second coolest club, right after Surf Club; the funnest club in Queens!
Don’t you just love it when the banks take a wee holiday? Yes the economy is in ruins, which may or may not be your fault, but hey, everyone needs a holiday so I’m not complaining! I decided to make the most of this extended weekend and I decided to get my outdoor pursuit on by going wakeboarding and camping! Last week I gave wakeboarding a go and I wasn’t very good, in fact, I was rubbish – my mind couldn’t grasp the concept of letting the boat pull you out of the water, so I was trying to pull myself up too early, which resulted in a few graceful face-plants. However, it was a week on and I was determined to master the art of wakeboarding – I’m not a pro (yet) but I kicked the learning bar’s ass and then I proceeded to destroy the rope by standing on my first go. Like I said, I’m not a pro but I can stand and move about and there were far fewer face-plants, so I’m very happy. So happy that I’ll finish this paragraph with a smiley face :)
While the wakeboarding on Lake Muckno was really great, it was the “camping” that made the trip! We had planned to sleep in tents, but that plan lasted for about five minutes and we decided to sleep in the club house. As a true camper I only brought a sleepingbag – thankfully there were some sensible people who brought blow up beds. Now the Surf Clubbers enjoy the art of spooning, in fact, it’s not a Surf Club weekend until some spooning (forget about Surfing) occurs – this trip was no different. Our numbers may have been fewer, but we still managed to have five in a bed, spooning/suffocating each other. We had tickle fights, raspberries on tummies and pile-ons :) A vast amount of alcohol was consumed (apparently the young’uns like shots of Sainsbury’s own brand Cider) and very little sleep was had! The next day the boys rose nice and early, with Mikel resembling a child on Christmas morning, so eager to open presents/wakeboard that he wakes everyone up. Crilly and I decided that our time was much better spent in bed, so that’s where we stayed, until we were actually asked to leave at about 2.00 p.m :)
Surf Club weekends are the best – we visited a nice local pub, had a lovely sleep over which included spooning, a day of wakeboarding, a beautiful Sunday Dinner and far too much fun :) I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – Surf Club is my absolute favourite!
After my very eventful weekend with the Surf Clubbers I spent my Monday chillin’ with the YSA on the North Coast! Obvioulsy JJ and I were late, but we met everyone at the Giant’s Causeway, had a little chat, walked around a bit, caught some rays, had some lunch and then spent the rest of the day on the beach around a campfire! Sunny days on the beach with good people and good music are why I love summer... It was lovely to see all my chums and it was lovely to see the Sun – Hello Mr. Tan, I’ve been expecting you!
Do you like the title? I thought of it all by myself. Not really. Emma Joanne Wood actually told me about this phrase, but before you give her a little round of applause, I feel that you should know that she didn’t come up with it either. A friend of hers used this as their team name during a pub quiz - she passed this information on to me and I chose to make use of it. I think it’s particularly fitting given my love of babes. But I’ll get back to that later!
Today began as a fairly lazy day, involving a lovely lie-in and the wearing of pyjamas. When I finally dragged myself out of bed I gave the British Embassy a ring to see what the craic was – apparently all the cool kids were paying 200 Euros to get a bus from Geneva to London Gatwick... Did I mention that this bus was leaving in less than three hours and I was still in my pyjamas? After a quick phone call home we decided to go for the ridiculously expensive bus and we got packing! We made it to the airport on time, only to discover that our bus wouldn’t leave until 6.00 p.m – the driver was probably a Frenchy, thus explaining the three hour delay. Our little group managed to commandeer the back row, so we were all close to each other, which really helps when you’re on a 16 hour bus journey through three countries! What also helps is a friend with a Macbook full of Disney movies and Glee episodes – I ran the risk of contracting Ginger-itis, but watching Glee and The Little Mermaid made that a risk I was willing to take. (Please note that Eric from The Little Mermaid is my new favourite Disney character – Prince Eric, giving women unrealistic expectations since 1989).
The bus journey actually went quite quickly and we were chillin’ in London Gatwick by 9.00a.m on Wednesday morning! As we’d just missed the next bus to Belfast we went to the easyjet desk and asked about the possibility of getting a flight from Gatwick to Belfast. Thanks to the lovely lady at the desk we managed to get on the 9.00p.m flight to Belfast (and it was totally free – easyjet, if you’re reading this, you’re pure beaut and I will never doubt you again/the next time I’ll just wait in Geneva for a few extra hours, saving myself 200 Euros and two days of travel time). Eventually we were allowed to board and soon we were on our way back to Belfast. Obviously I made it back alive and that’s all you need to know really!
Now, on to the interesting stuff – the Attractive Man Count! Before our bus had even left Geneva the count had reached 99, proving that Geneva is full of hotties and that airports are the places to be! When we were on the bus the count couldn’t increase, but it went through the roof when we hit Gatwick – I actually had to stop counting! I’m seriously considering investing in one of those little Lynx clicker thingys! So anyway, this is my theory – airports are full of men that are travelling for business or leisure purposes. If they are on their own and travelling for business then they must have plenty of money and “it is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife”. The single men who are travelling for leisure purposes must have the resources to do this and even if they don’t, well travelled people are super interesting. Did I ever tell you about that time on my Gap Yah? Anyway, I digress – what I’m trying to say is that airports are the place to be! They’re full of attractive men (and probably women, but I wasn’t looking for them) and even if you actually have a life and don’t spend all your time counting attractive men, airports are still great for people watching, which is something that everyone loves :) Jack Johnson even wrote a song about it – it’s called People Watching (duh) and it’s really great, so give that a wee listen!
I feel that I should probably have some sort of conclusion to this Genevan Adventure... I don’t really know what to say, other than I had a really amazing time! Switzerland is a really beautiful country – it’s neat and tidy, everything is on time, the people are attractive, the weather is lovely and even though they all speak French, I would definitely go back! The volcano was a little set back, but we managed to get through it without too much stress (well, for me anyway, I was loving being stuck in Switzerland). We survived a good nine days without anyone throwing a punch or pulling hair, which is quite an achievement given the sharing of a bathroom and hairdryer! There was plenty of bonding time and I think that we all grew a lot closer - now I’m back it feels strange waking up and not having them around! I’m really glad we went on this little adventure – mucho thanks to Emma Joanne Wood for having us (you’re the only Frenchy I will ever love) and a big thanks to all the girls for making it so much fun! I only have one question – where to next?
Xx
P.S Attractive Man Count has stopped now that I’m back in the homeland – but Gatwick really helped boost the numbers into the hundreds! Ahh, Babes, you really stepped up your game this week! I look forward to my next European adventure!
No, because that would cause a great deal of confusion. What I was trying to imply was that today was a lovely sunny day. We had a fairly laid back day (do you see a pattern emerging?) that consisted of packing (just in case) and sunbathing (because we can). I was truly in my element and I even managed to take a little jaunt to the shop to buy niceys. I have developed a real fondness for grape juice, the un-fermented type that is. It’s fast becoming my new favourite – pure orange juice (without the bits) should really watch out. I also bought foreign crisps because they’re just nicer, vast quantities of Swiss chocolate, because it’s just nicer and some crusty bread, because... it’s just nicer. It’s also a super cool European/holiday thing to do – eating crusty bread while you walk home. Maybe it’s not super cool, but it’s one of those things that you just have to do.
So basically I spent the entire day sunbathing/packing/eating food. We did spent a good bit of time on the BBC website, getting updates about the volcano and the various airlines, but it would take too much effort to write everything down, including the emotions. It was quite exciting really – getting all the updates, finding out we couldn’t fly, hearing rumours that the flights would be cancelled for weeks to come. It was like I was in Taken, except I hadn’t been taken and Liam Neeson wasn’t my ex-C.I.A father with a particular set of skills he had acquired over a very long career, who was coming to rescue me from sex traffickers. In fact, it was nothing like Taken. It was more like, “This one time I went to Geneva with some friends from Anthropology and our flights were cancelled, leaving us stuck in Geneva for a few extra days, which was actually really pleasant as the weather was perfect, the accommodation was free and the people were lovely and also attractive”. One day I will elaborate on the experience or maybe I’ll wait until they make a movie about it. Now that’s a movie I would pay to see. Over and out!
Xx
P.S The Attractive Man count did not increase today, mainly because I spent the day in a semi-conscious state while sunbathing. But that’s ok. You can’t have everything in life and today I chose to sacrifice my viewing pleasure in order to work on my tan, which will, in turn, improve the viewing please of others when the look at me. It’s the circle of life really. In fact, I’m pretty sure that’s what Mufasa was talking about.
Ah, Sunday. The day of rest. Or in my case, the day of rising early in order to take a 40CHF taxi to an English speaking church somewhere in Geneva. I feel that I’ve described my entire day in that one short sentence - I got up early and then I took a taxi to church. Feel free to stop reading right now. If you have decided to continue reading, you will discover that... going to new churches is one of my favourite things to do. When I say “new churches” I don’t mean a different religious organisation, I just mean a Mormon church, but in a different country. The big things are the same – the churches look fairly similar and each week, no matter what country you are in, the Sunday school lessons are the same. Buuuuut there are still some big differences. Each church tends to have something unique, its own character I suppose. The people are the same, but different (if that makes any sense) but they’re usually very kind. The people in New Zealand amazed me with how welcoming they are, which is really nice when you are away from home and completely alone. The Americans, not so much. No offence to my lovely friends (that’s for all you Orem residents) but American people usually express a great interest at first, but with little follow through – I suppose you could say they are superficial, at least in the welcoming and fellowshipping sense. I don’t know if that’s unique to my church, or if it’s just one of those things. Any thoughts? I feel that I should also say that while there are a great deal of “superficial” people, there are some really lovely people who would truly go out of their way for you – that is one of the things I really love about my church, that the people can be so genuine and caring – it makes me want to be a nicer, more approachable person! I suppose there is always a mix of good and bad, but overall my experience has been a good one (not including Singles Wards – do not even get me started on those bad boys, they’re quite the experience!) and again, you Orem-ites (?) are lovely :)
Just another really strange thing that I always notice is how the hymn selection changes in each country – in Northern Ireland we sing songs that are hardly ever sung in America or New Zealand (and now I can add Geneva to that list). Obviously this isn’t always the case, some songs will always be sung, regardless of the country you are in, but I just find it interesting that each place has their own favourite hymns. But that’s enough about that.
After church I got the bus home – what an adventure! Emma very kindly gave me instructions. In fact, she planned my entire journey; she even drew me a map with a picture of me getting off the bus, just in case I forgot. She also included some French phrases, some helpful and some not so helpful! I’m sure that at some point we looked at our various options for getting home, but all I remember is good food and good company! I could definitely get used to being stranded in Geneva!
Xx
P.S Attractive man count reached 94 today – I’m sure there were a great deal more roaming the streets of Geneva and normally I would have spotted them through the bus windows, however, I was so petrified that I would miss the bus stop and end up in Poland (or heaven forbid, France) that I was focused entirely on the task of finding the right bus stop!
P.P.S Miracles can happen is a reference to the fact that I was in church before it actually started. Yes, I can be in church early – I just need to be in an entirely different country.
Well, today was supposed to be our last day in Switzerland! You’ve probably picked up on the use of “supposed to be” – that’s because we didn’t actually leave! If you’ve been keeping up with the news (and I presume you have been, because this news has been pretty hard to miss), you’ll know that a big old volcano in Iceland went bang. I would go into detail, but that requires far too much effort – all you need to know is that all flights to and from the U.K were suspended. Google Eyjafjallajökul for more information. Or use Bing. Or any other search engine. I must admit that I’m still a Googler (Google-er?) at heart, but this choice is entirely your own.
So yes. Volcano. Suspended flights and all that jazz. We basically spent our Saturday trying to find a way home – I however, thought that my time would be better spent sunbathing. So that’s exactly what I did. I’m really getting quite good at – in fairness I’ve been training for a good few years. I think I’m ready to go pro. If you don’t believe me then ask Emma’s neighbours – I bet they didn’t expect to find a sunbather in the communal garden, but what a lovely surprise they had :)
I’m sure that I’ve left a lot out – mostly details about delayed flights and alternative methods of transport, but that’s all really quite boring. All you need to know is that the day involved sunshine, sunbathing, yummy food, the collective viewing of Over the Rainbow, vast amounts of chocolate and at some point, sleep.
Xx
P.S – I have, for some reason recorded that the Attractive Man Count was at 90 by the end of Saturday. As I didn’t actually leave the house I find this hard to believe. The anthropology girls are good looking, but I’m pretty sure that they don’t equate to 23 attractive men. What I think has happened is that I’ve recorded the hotness in the wrong day. Let’s not argue about semantics – all you need to know is that Switzerland is full of babes and they keep getting better every day!
