The Wedding

What can I say? The wedding was amazing. It's been quite a build up over here. While most people pretended that they didn't care, pretty much everyone I know watched it. The British are funny that way. It's just not okay for them to actually admit that they're patriotic or that they care about anything, except football, and that's only every four years at the World Cup. It seems like the younger generation is just jaded toward the world, while the older generation still loves the royalty. I think this wedding may have changed things a bit. Everyone seems to genuinely hope that Kate and William will make it. They appear to be a happy couple and as Prince Charles said upon their engagement, "they've been practicing long enough." I can't imagine what it must be like for her to be thrust into this kind of life, but if yesterday was any indication, she'll acquit herself very well. She looked absolutely amazing. It was spectacular and a day that will spark dreams in the minds of little girls (and big girls) everywhere.

I was torn between going to London to be part of the celebrations held at Hyde Park and Trafalgar Square or stay here in Reading to watch it on TV with friends. In the end I opted to stay here, partly because the weather forecast had been for heavy rain and because I wouldn't have actually seen any of the wedding. I invited some friends over to Margit's house and we watched it with her and her family while eating a delicious brunch of crepes and scrambled eggs. It was pretty fun. Margit is unlike anyone I've ever known. She and I enjoyed the wedding probably more than anyone else. We exclaimed several times and gushed over every new part of the wedding. While I enjoyed myself, after watching the footage on TV, I did feel a little sad that I hadn't just gotten myself there. It looked like quite a party.

I don't think anything could have actually spoiled my enjoyment of the day. I began watching at about 9 while the people arrived at the Abbey. I think I inherited my love of watching people in amazing clothes and commenting on their choices from my grandma. I wish I could have watched it with her. I do love the English tradition of hat wearing for the women. There were some really odd selections, but I think it's fantastic. It seems that the more outrageous the hat, the better. I think I might just have to buy one. Anyway, back to the actual wedding. I absolutely loved the way they decorated the inside of Westminster Abbey. The Abbey is one of the most amazing places I've ever visited and the trees and flowers inside added to the grandeur of the surroundings. I loved watching all the royals arrive and especially enjoyed the fanfare for the Queen. The music throughout the wedding was spectacular. I have to admit that there is something about religious music, especially sung inside an amazing cathedral. Then Kate arrived. She was stunning. I loved her dress. I thought it was appropriately princess-y but also fashionable and classy. In a word, it was perfect. I also liked that she wore her hair down and curled instead of all fancy and piled on top of her head. The veil was perfect and the tiara was not too extravagant. Loved it, loved it, loved it. That is all I can say. Great Day!

Country Rambles

Last Friday was Good Friday and our stake organized a hike through the English countryside for the Young Single Adults. It was splendid. The weather was perfect and the company superb. It was the most glorious day I've spent in ages. We walked through fields and forests and enjoyed the beautiful scenery. We had a lovely lunch and then hiked back. After we returned to our cars, we sat and chatted and I can't remember an afternoon better spent in ages. It was a day that reminded me of just what an amazing experience it is for me to live in England.

I have developed a love affair with English post boxes. Not the column style standing solitary on the street, but the type that is built into walls, buildings, and posts. The initials at the top indicate which king or queen was on the throne when it was established. This one is from Queen Victoria's time. It's only the second one I've ever seen.

Here are a few pictures from the walk.

I love the trees here. I thought this one was particularly cool with all of the moss growing on it.

The Long Overdue Update

Life in England is going well. I haven’t been doing much, since I can’t seem to get any work, but we’ll get there in a minute. I don’t know if it’s just that last year I wasn’t sure what to expect or if I was used to more blue skies during the winter, but it seemed like it was miserable and rainy all the time. I guess I’m slowly becoming English because this winter hasn’t seemed that bad. It’s still rainy, cold, and generally grey, but it hasn’t bothered me as much this year. It might also be that it hasn’t rained as much. Who knows, but suffice it to say, I still really like it here.

So, work. Well, when I got back from the States in October, I hit the job search hard. I applied to every history teaching job I could find, but to no avail. I also applied to be a supply teacher. (In America, we call it substitute teaching.) Here in England, they don’t have school districts, so there’s no way to get hired by a district and be sent out to schools by them. Instead, they have temp agencies that are dedicated to finding subs for schools. Anyway, I got hired by an agency in Oxfordshire, which is the county just north of where I live. Then I got hired by another agency that serves schools in the surrounding area. I was pretty excited, but there was some paper work, etc. that needed doing before I could start. Well, the paper work came through, but not in time for me to actually work before Christmas. BLEH! Anyway, since I’ve been back, I still haven’t had any work. I did find another agency based here in Reading. I met with them on Wednesday and they signed me. Unfortunately now the problem is that I don’t have my visa to prove that I have permission to work here. I had to apply for the new visa before the 31^st of January and haven’t gotten it back yet. So there you go. Luckily I have faith that my decision to stay was the right one because there are plenty of reasons to doubt. I’m a little bit nervous to teach here, but also excited for the challenge. I’m sure there will be plenty of interesting experiences that will make it onto these pages. Stay tuned.

Other than that, life is good. I have amazing friends and my housemates are great. I feel blessed to have so many fabulous people in my life. I have made some life-long friends here and I can’t ever think about leaving them without getting a bit misty. It’s been a long time since I’ve had to make new friends and it has been a good experience for me to be here and have to step out of my comfort zone and meet new people. It also makes me feel pretty good about myself that I’ve made so many friends who think I’m cool. Yep, still got it. In all seriousness though, I love the people here and they are extremely good to me. I love that I’ll always have friends in England. I’ve also invited all of them to stay at Mom and Dad’s anytime they’re in town. Hope that’s okay.

Spring has sprung?

I realize it's been ages since I've posted anything and I'm planning to be better. I guess I just forget sometimes how different things are here because it's become my life. Nothing is new anymore. That's not to say that I've gotten bored of it, just used to it. I'll try to be better.

Today I just wanted to post something that made my day. I was recently walking somewhere (since I walk everywhere now, I can't exactly remember where I was going) and I saw a tree in bloom. I'm not sure what kind of tree it is or what it's typical blossoming time is, but it's the first hint of Spring that I've seen. Suffice it to say, it the cold and rain of an English winter, it was a welcome breath of fresh air. I also saw a few daffodils peeking out of someone's flower patch. I'm so excited. Spring in England is a wonder to behold.

Cheeky Monkeys

I think I’ve mentioned previously that I moved into a new house back in July. What I haven’t mentioned previously is that the house has a tendency to be invaded by creatures from time to time, especially the kitchen. Now, I’m accustomed to meeting the occasional spider in the basements of houses I’ve lived in, but this is just out of control. There are literally spiders everywhere. I’ve killed several on the walls of my bedroom, leaving their remains as a warning to others, but the kitchen is a different story. My housemate placed horse chestnuts throughout the house to ward off the dirty beasts. I hate to say that despite her belief in their magic spider repellant properties, the konkers haven’t eliminated the scourge. This has made for a number of run-ins. Unfortunately, there are several different styles of spider disposal in the house, which has caused some mild contention. Catherine refuses to deal with them at all. As stated earlier, I prefer to smash them with a shoe and leave the carcass where it sticks. Charlie prefers to put a cup over it, slide a paper underneath it, and carry the spider outside. (I’ve wondered sometimes how many times Charlie has escorted the same spider outside.) Contributing to the problem is the fact that it now gets dark at about 4:30 in the afternoon, so there is plenty of nightly darkness in which the spiders can emerge. The bad news is that the bathroom is through the kitchen, so an appointment with death (for the spider) is not always avoidable.

Which bring me to the even worse news. As much as I dislike spiders, I prefer them to the other frequent invader we get in the kitchen: slugs. I blame my mother for my hatred of all things slug and snail. Her loathing of the slimy monsters boarders on the pathological. Being raised in this environment, naturally I have a warped opinion of the disgusting invertebrates. As horrible as the slugs and snails have been to my mother’s plants, at least they stayed outside. I cannot say the same about the English slugs. I have had several evening encounters with them in the kitchen. I can’t for the life of me figure out how they’re getting in the house. It just shouldn’t happen; I don’t care how moist the environment. The first time it happened I thought it was a fluke. The next time, I was perplexed. The last time, I was completely disgusted. The problem that time was that I stepped on it, in the dark, in the middle of the night, in bare feet. I was on my way to the bathroom and I had decided not to turn the light on or wear my slippers. Rookie mistake. (I thought I’d learned my lesson in Hong Kong when I didn’t wear my shoes to the bathroom one night and stepped on a cockroach, but I guess I allowed complacency to dull my instincts.) I knew the moment I felt the squishy sliminess just what had happened, even in my dazed awake-in-the-middle-of-the-night semi-consciousness. Wiping the slime from my foot, I tried to work out whether or not I’d stepped on it completely enough to kill it. I finished my bathroom business and re-entered the kitchen to assess the carnage. In the harsh light of the fluorescent bulb, it was revealed that I had indeed crushed the life from the nasty creature. As I scraped the flattened body from the kitchen floor, I decided that I would never again use the bathroom in the middle of the night.

London Fog

While I realize this is hardly sufficient to make up for the last few months without any posts, I promise to get caught up soon.

I just had to quickly write something while it was still fresh on my mind. It's starting to get cold here and while that in and of itself is not good news, it does have its benefits. The one I want to address is the fog. Tonight is a perfectly foggy English night. I have to say, I love it. It fits so perfectly into the preconceived notion I had of what England would be like. There's something deliciously mysterious about fog, as if it is an ally concealing one's escapades from prying eyes. As I walked through the fog tonight in the orange glow cast by the street lamps, I pictured myself in a different time and a different place, dressed in a party gown and wrapped in a warm fur coat with the memory of the night's adventures bringing a smile to my face, wandering the early morning London streets after a night of pure indulgence. Oh, what might have been...

The Photo Version

These are in backwards order for some reason and I can't be bothered to switch them all around.

My friends and I at Kim's wedding.

These are some of the girls at camp serving up lunch.

This is me after returning from our hike. We got caught in a terrible downpour.

I don't remember ever having been so wet while wearing clothes.

This is what the camp site looked like. They are old Army tents.

At the 4th of July picnic with other Americans in Oxford.

Beach day! Sure it looks nice, but don't be fooled.