adventures in england land

wow. the last time i posted, i was telling about the thanksgiving banquet. a lot has happened since then. my apologies. at some point there was a somewhat comical incidence in which the water in the conference hall ran out & i was stuck with fully shampooed hair, forced to shower hop... & faucet hop. not enjoyable, but thoroughly humourous. it was the middle of the night too. that's all i really remember... & i decided one night to take out my nose ring for some reason. getting it back in was painful & bloody... yeah. gross. but i managed to get it back it with helpful coaching from courtney. it snowed/slushed/hailed & everyone freaked out. i passed a test & an assignment & turned in a paper before break. go me. we had our christmas banquet & it was wonderful. afterwards, we sang carols on the big staircase in the main hall. beautiful. my family got a phone card so i was able to have actual conversations with them! i received a package from my grandparents & another one from my family.  they're all the best. the friday before term ended, we had roomie night & ordered pizza. i love that room. we're the coolest. again, everyone ended up piled on my bed. we had to move completely our of our rooms since we're changing rooms when we get back. i have A LOT of stuff. i'm definitely sending some home with the parents.
so, term ended & jamie & i went to phil & audrey's to stay the night. i brought all of my stuff so that was heavy... jamie bought these really awful rollers that she wanted to try out. when we tried to take them out in the morning, they were completely tangled up & it took half the morning to get them out. we made it to the train station on time & got on the train. we changed trains in manchester. we almost missed our stop. we realized that we were at our stop, quickly gathered our things & made it off the train right as the doors were closing. my purse got knocked off my shoulder & onto the platform. fortunately there was a group of people waiting for their train to witness this embarrassing moment. we eventually found our way out of the train station & realized that we didn't know exactly where our hotel was. we asked someone & got some vague directions. we asked a taxi driver & were even more confused. we made it to the road & decided that a taxi would be a good idea since our bags are heavy. we got to the hotel & were early for check in. the lady let us leave our bags & we went to the kfc for lunch & to the grocery store for food. we have mostly been living off dry cereal, bread, peanut butter, bread, & apples. we finally were able to check in & i soon discovered that the internet costs but it was so worth it. we slept the day away then coloured jamie's hair. there was dye left so i coloured a streak of mine on the underside. i can hardly see it, but i know it's there. haha. the next day we slept in way late then went in search of the church in town that has a crooked spire. we ended up going the wrong way & wandered around lost forever. we didn't find it & returned to the hotel. we ate dinner at the hotel's restaurant. we then watched movies & relaxed. the next day, we actually got up & got a taxi to the bus station & almost got on the wrong bus to go to chatsworth house. i asked a kind lady & she pointed us to the right bus stop. we bought bad coffee while we were waiting & had to toss it to get on the bus anyway. the bus took us to the road to chatsworth house. we had to walk this long country lane & there was a lot of ice &i fell once & almost fell a hundred times. we finally made it to the house & part of it was under construction... lame. but we walked the ground for a while. it was gorgeous. {side note, for those who don't know the significance of this place. chatsworth house was used as mr. darcy's house in the latest pride & prejudice movie. & belongs to the duke & duchess of devonshire, for those who have seen the movie 'the duchess'} we froze our buns off outside & i slid around on the ice plenty. we were hungry so we got some bad hotdogs. so classy. when we were sufficiently cold, we made it into the house. it was amazing. our favourite part was the statue room, as seen in p&p. the whole house was decorated for christmas so it was kind of weird though. we took pictures with all the statues that we remembered from the movie. EXCITEMENT. right outside of the statue room was the gift shop. we didn't realize that once you go there, there's no going back. we couldn't re-enter. i think we missed part of the house. we're telling ourselves that we saw it all. we did see the parts that were in the movie. :) we then had to make the walk back, but this time it was even colder & dark. bad news. we made it back to the bus stop as swiftly as we could for fear of losing our feet to frostbite. we almost missed our bus because of a bathroom break in the sketchy bathroom. we got dropped off in the middle of chesterfield & wanted to find our way to the train station to get a taxi. it took a lot of wandering & searching before we could find it. exhausted & freezing, we made it back to our hotel & collapsed into our beds. this morning, we slept in way late, even though we were rudely awoken by something that sounded like a fire alarm but wasn't...  we slowly got ready & went to the grocery store again. after dropping our stuff off at our room, we took a taxi to the church. we only could look around the chruch because tours of the tower were not happening at that time... we shopped a bit & i turned down a lot of lovely clothes {except for one dress...}. we got coffee & had a good talk. then we went back to the train station again to buy our tickets back to manchester & took a cab back to the hotel. we've been chilling ever since. tomorrow, we fly to paris!
i tried skyping my home & those within it but skype is awful & it failed. :( homesickness is an actual feeling of sickness. who knew?
that's all for now. i hope this is sufficient. & i'm sorry if there are grammar or spelling errors. i don't feel like proof reading this all.
i love you all. :)
the end.

merry sinterklaas!

i should really post more often. i feel like i'm forgetting a lot of stuff. whoops. time seriously flies here.

so, we had another project due last week. we had to make a gospel tract. mine wasn't very creative but i'm sure it was fine...  also, homework means no exercise. i'm legitimately more tired when i don't work out. who knew?

anyway, i believe saturday was where i left off....

sunday was the usual. monday, tuesday, wednesday were spent trying to be a good student & working on my project. i got it turned in on time. jill & stuart briscoe were our lecturers all week. if you don't know who they are, google them or something. they're amazing. thursday was spent doing nothing & then getting ready for 'special night'. i'm sure you've seen the pictures by now. if not, go look.... cute, hey? well, that was fun. it was technically not for american thanksgiving, but it totally was. turkey & potatoes & green beans. {the green beans didn't have those french-fried onions on them though... } we took a ton of pictures after. then, we had a dance in the gym. people here have been doing ballroom & swing & latin dancing, so that was happening...someone else started a better dance party in the basement of the castle. it was fun. we danced 'til lockup. on friday, we had a seminar about personal finance. i seriously hate money & i'm terrible at managing it, so i wasn't a fan. friday night, we helped this organization called radio bible class do a huge mailing. they distribute gospel tracts & devotionals & such. on saturday, we went to a premier football game in bolton. we got cheaper tickets for promising to cheer for the home team. our team lost... disappointing. it was fun though. legit. on sunday, my friend did the sermon. it was great. after church, we were all sitting around being boring in our room & then we decided to decorate our room. we raided the craft closet upstairs & made snowflakes & paper chains. a tree branch & some holly in a vase is our christmas tree. it's lovely.  last week, one of the staff here did a lecture series about the holy spirit. {i'm sorry, i really don't remember much about last week.} monday night, we all put our mattresses on the floor & had a slumber party & watched a movie. wednesday was my roommate brittany's birthday. & noodle night. what is noodle night? well, a bunch of the guys collected money & bought a ton of ramen noodles & cooked them all. yep. that's it. it was delicious. then, we had a dance party & treats in our room. dance parties are kind of the norm in here. on friday, i went to the town of kendal for some shopping. we bought this trip at the auction. did i tell about he auction? raising money for the kenya missions trip? i don't remember. well, it was just a few pounds & we got to go to kendal for a few hours. my roommate victoria needed a dress, so that's all we did. friday was family night. i can't remember if i've talked about family groups... well, we're all split up into groups here & there are a few members of staff for each group to be the parents. we have family nights where we all get together & do something. this time, we had a pyjama {proper british spelling} party & made gingerbread houses & watched home alone. i love my family. :) on saturday, our boys' football {soccer} team was playing a game in carnforth so jamie & briar & elyssa & i went after brunch to cheer for them. it was freezing & windy & we won. that night, we had a three-on-three basketball tournament. we made signs & screamed loudly. 

by the way, no-shave november is over. there are many mustaches & soul patches around here. too good. 

i got a christmas package from my family. it made me this happy :))))))))))))

this morning, we had church in the lounge. there was a fire going & the entire study body was packed in there.

{i meant to post on wednesday but the internet has been mostly off all week. it's actually not working as i'm typing this. so, frustating. nothing like missing multiple skype dates with my sister...}

today is dutch christmas. merry sinterklaas!

the end.

it's me again...

i am so sorry, my faithful readers {mom}, for not posting for so long. i didn't forget you, i just got distracted. for two weeks? wow. sorry. i feel like i'll be leaving a lot out because that's a serious amount of time in the world of blogs. i'll try my best...

so, after travel weekend, we got a new seating arrangement for lectures & i now sit by jamie. you know her, yeah? oh, no? go facebook stalk her or something. we had a lecture the day we got back from edinburgh. we were quite excited to be sitting together. we got a few looks from a member of staff. we quickly learned how to contain ourselves for fear of being moved apart. um... that week is kind of a blur. we, you know, had lectures. & ate meals. & stuff. our seminar on friday was entitled singleness & sexuality. yeah. that was a treat. all that really stuck was that not all of us will get married & that's okay. cool... on friday, we had a volleyball tournament. our team didn't win. & by 'our team', i mean the team for which we were cheering. i don't really do sports... you know. saturday, november fifth was guy fawkes day. click here for more information. emma picked me up in the afternoon & we went to sarah's house. i had told my family that i would skype them when i got there because the internet would be good & we could use video. emma was encouraging me to get online, so i did & enjoyed the spectacularly fast internet for a bit, then i closed my computer in an attempt to be more social.  my family wasn't online so i figured i'd catch them later. i got back on after a little bit for some reason & finally received their call. i got to see their faces & hear their voices & it was amazing. :) i even got to see my aunt denise! mom reminded of the rule that i'm not allowed to fall in love with anyone from a different country. not even canada. i assured her that she had literally nothing to worry about... we talked for a while about life & things & then they broke the most wonderful news in the whole world... they're coming to visit me!!! the day after christmas. for a week! i may or may not have cried. it was lovely. {jamie made the observation that i cry a lot... yes, i do...} we talked more & emma brought me chinese food. andy took the boys to wwe wrestling... yeah... & emma & sarah & i went to a bonfire. when i say 'bonfire', i mean BONFIRE. it was insane. then there were firworks. then we went back to the house & watched the movie something borrowed. i don't really recommend it. i took that time to upload my edinburgh pictures. {you're welcome.} i think i stayed up way too late that night using youtube. i just miss it so much. *tear* then, emma brought me home on sunday. it was a short getaway, but it was good. oh, & we've started exercising somewhat regularly. we do  P90x yoga & kenpo. kenpo is like kick-boxing. it's intense. my roommate has the dvds & we switch between the two. we had a paper due on tuesday so we didn't really do it from about friday... then not again 'til the next firday... we're awesome. we all got our papers in on time though. it was due on tuesday at four. i turned it in at 3:50. woooooooo. success. i had a little trouble typing it because the microsoft word trial had run out & it wouldn't let me type. that was great.... but my momma saved the day & got me the product code & i got it done. i passed my last essay so, fingers crossed for this one. i took a nap after i turned it in. we brain wanted to explode & my eyes wanted to fall out of my head. it was very dramatic. we were pretty lazy the rest of the week. we are planning to be more responsible & not procrastinate so much next time... yeah, that's what they all say... jamie & i have been working on our travel plans for break. she's flying home on the 24th so we have ten-ish days. we had an idea, then changed our minds. then changed our minds again... we are both OBSESSED with pride & prejudice so she came up with the brilliant plan of travelling to the filming locations. yep. we're thinking those places then meeting up with friends in paris. we're still working out the details but that's the basic plan. then, christmas with the talbots & a week with mom & dad. i'm so blessed. :) 

this week's lectures were interesting. one lecturer taught on the sermon on the mount & the other spoke about colossians. i liked the former, but the latter was pretty difficult to follow. i just took a bunch of notes & tried to focus. he had some strong opinions regarding tattoos & yoga. it was interesting. but those lectures are now over. 

i had choir practice on friday. we're singing for some christmas event we'll be having here. it is so great to be singing again. i've missed choir. there was an open mic on friday night. there were some really great singers. no, i didn't sing. it's weird not having my brother here to accompany me...

on saturday, jamie, elyssa, james, david, kwan, & i went to manchester. there was really good shopping. my boots are goners so i got a new pair & some fancy shoes for our upcoming banquet. & a few other things. it was really good shopping. we left here at 10:30 & got back at 8:30. it's about an hour train ride away. it was a long day. jamie sat on my lap most of the way there. otherwise, we had to stand. it was just lovely. we went to starbucks to use the wi-fi. they were playing christmas music & i had the most amazing gingerbread latte. best ever. i'll be dreaming about it. don't judge me. the coffee at school is really awful.

 the end.

is this real life?

i wrote this on friday night then left without posting it. so here's this...
i'm in scotland, guys. you may wonder why in the world i'm sitting here at the computer instead exploring this wonderful city. well, it's dark. & the three of us girls split off from our group so it's a little sketch. we'll do better tomorrow. we left the capes at nine this morning. i skipped breakfast in favour of a shower... yeah. great plan. halfway, we stopped off at the place where people ran off to get married. i really don't know what it's called. courtney & i tried to take wedding photos but we got photo-bombed. jerks... so, we arrived in edinburgh around... the afternoon time... we successfully found our hostel. the castle rock. right next to... the castle. it's clean & not dodgy like i thought it would be. our room is star wars themed. we wandered around town for a while. we were starved so we got fish & chips from the food court at the mall. quality. we did some shopping & got some starbucks. we wandered some more. i am IN LOVE with the fact that there are bagpipers on almost every corner. we're all sitting in our little room now. kaylee bought a guitar. daniel is blasting danish rap. we're all enjoying good internet. surreal.

so, after i wrote that, we realized how lame we were & went out. & we did absolutely nothing. we just walked around. we got bored & went back to the hostel. on saturday morning, caitlyn & courtney & i went to meet a group of friends. we found them at mcdonald's & sat around trying to decide on a game plan. we all wanted to do different things so we soon split from them, got starbucks & went to edinburgh castle. it cost £14 & we had to wait in line for nearly an hour to buy our tickets. it was insanely windy & we were tired. it was great once we got in though. it was like a museum but in an amazingly beautiful castle. mind-blowing. we spent a few hours there. i'd say that was £14 worth. it was so windy, i almost fell over. & we were really hungry. we wanted to go to the hard rock cafe but the wait was far too long... in our search for another place to eat, we ran into the group of friends that we had been looking for the whole time but never saw. they were still shopping so we tagged along with them. we soon decided it was time for food. we walked all the way to this mexican place but they didn't have room for us... then we went to a place for cheap pizza but they were out of pizza... we finally ended up at a pub. it was crowded downstairs so we went upstairs, not realizing that it was fancier & more expensive restaurant up there. we got our menus & came to the conclusion that we would politely explain why we couldn't eat there & leave. the waiter was nice though & he let us order off the pub's menu instead. it was significantly more reasonable. after dinner, we hung out at our friends' hostel for a but then they all walked us across town to ours. 


on sunday morning... we didn't go to church... i didn't consider that fact that the churches there are ancient & gorgeous & would have amazing choirs... apparently we really missed out. we did however have a late breakfast & walked up to calton hill that pretty much overlooks the whole city. it was gorgeous. we got some good pictures. then we checked out some stores & paid £3 to hike up a spiral staircase of 287 stairs. & it was tight. like, i have random bouts of claustrophobia & this hit me big time. i was shaking & hyperventilating & laughing at how awful it was. there we multiple landings as we got further up. after the first couple, it got really narrow. as in, the people coming down had to go back up to make room for us. i wanted to die a little. we made it to the top & the fear of heights hit me. i wanted to fall over when we got back down. i was dizzy from going down all those stairs & exhausted from it all. it was quite the experience. it was fun though. :) we shopped some more & i bought a reasonably priced pair of shoes from urban outfitters. excitement. we were so worn out from everything & felt like poo so we went back to the hostel to freshen up. we met up with kaylee & arianna & went out to dinner. all of us were pretty worn out from all the activity & weird eating schedule. 


on monday morning, we got had breakfast & made our way to the buses. it was a grand trip. good memories. i hope to go again. :)


pictures to come sometime in the future. maybe. 



the end. :)

rock on

• we had a costume party last night. we were all assigned a theme. mine was nerd. but i wanted to wear a toga. so i wrapped myself up in my sheet & threw on nerd glasses. TO-GA! TO-GA! TO-GA! 
• friday night was social night. there were different options of what we could do. games or movies or whatever else. courtney & caitlyn & i did spa night. the dining hall was transformed into a spa. somehow it worked. it was put on by the kitchen girls who are so, so sweet. it was very relaxing. 
• last monday was victoria's birthday & tuesday was courtney's so we had a party in our room on monday night. we ordered pizza & jina & i bought a cake in town. it was a grand old time. we had party poppers & balloons. we party so hard. 
• nighttime walks are the best things in the world. i assure you they are quite safe & no one ever goes alone. they're good for serious talks & crazy times.
• this weekend was our month-iversary of being here. unbelievable. 
• edinburgh this weekend!!! i'm so excited. i can't even tell you.
• our seminar on friday was on time management. i swear rob whittaker was looking directly at me...
• on thursday we girls had a talk about beauty & fashion & modesty. it mostly good stuff. lots that i already knew. but still good.
• tonight during evening church, the korean students led the service. we learned about christianity in korea & how to do traditional greetings & the like. it was beyond great. we did korean style prayer {everyone praying at the same time} & we worshiped like crazy. it was amazing. at the end we all got together with our roommates & we all ended up in tears. so good. 
• we have our first paper due this week. gahhhhhhhh. joy.
• my roommate lost a friend recently so please keep her in your prayers. :(
• we have an extra bed in our room so we have friends sleep over. good times. 

the end.

home away from home.

ahhhhhh, i had such a lovely weekend. caitlyn & courtney & i went to phil & audrey's house on friday afternoon. i gave them a tour of ribchester & showed them my favourite place-- the graveyard. then we went back to the house for tea {dinner}. when i told phil that i hurt my ankle climbing through the window, he decided it must have been a boy's window... you know me... anyway, we stayed up quite late. i skyped cece for two hours. with video! it was wonderful. we slept in saturday morning. then we went to the hospital to get my ankle looked at. we waited. & waited. & waited. three hours & an x-ray later, they concluded that i had a torn ligament. i have to rest & ice it. no more walking the loop. i'm so sad. :( they said no sports or high heels. i can deal with that. after the hospital, we went shopping in preston. lots of walking. pretty much exactly what i'm not supposed to do. but i was determined. we ran into a lot of capernwrayers. including roomies victoria & brittany with our friends david & matt. we shopped for a few hours then phil picked us up. we three girls went to dinner at a pub in ribchester while phil & audrey went to some festival. it was delicious. we had burgers. it's been too long. then we spent the rest of the evening online. the internet is just so fast there. & we could use youtube. we went to church this morning & there was a baby dedication. & food afterwards. quite a few people remembered me. it was nice. :)  we got back to school around three. we're exhausted but it was fun.

other random things.

• nighttime walks around the loop are my & courtney's new favourite thing. the first time, we took david with us. but there are usually other people out there, so we're safe.
• after the last one, courtney & i tried stargazing but there were clouds so it was more of a 'lay-in-the-grass-&-watch-the-clouds'. but it was nice. we had girl talk. we slept late the next day.
• caitlyn's booking our hostel for travel weekend now!
• as good as lectures are, i feel like God is teaching me more outside of lectures. i'm just learning a lot about myself. it's crazy. crazy cool.
• i had my first outreach last wednesday. me & three other girls sang & gave our testimonies at a ladies meeting at a church. it was actually fun. & we had tea with them afterwards.
• i got a package from my momma right before we left for said outreach. i saw the package on the table & yelped when i saw it was for me. man, that castle is echo-y.
• audrey did our laundry this weekend. she's amazing. :)
• i need to come up with a good story of how i hurt my ankle. the true story is lame. & embarrassing.
• people were playing touch rugby the other day. in the field. it was muddy. & so were they. it was entertaining.
• i forgot my phone charger at audrey's. but she gave me rain boots!

the end.

happy alternative thanksgiving! er, canadian thanksgiving!

• having roommates that i love is terrific but bedtime is virtually non-existent. so much laughter. so much crazy. the other night, we were in bed around eleven. then jina started bumpin' some korean dance music. first we were all dancing in our beds. then we got up & were dancing in the dark. then courtney remembered that she has a strobe light. it got wild up in here. then courtney & i jumped out the window & ran laps around the building in the rain, barefoot. good times.
• we took our first test last week. woot.
• we always end up piled in my bed before 'bedtime'. roomie snuggle time love.
• we ordered pizza the other night. roomie pizza party? check.
• we had a bonfire a few nights ago. it was not close to the castle. & it was dark. everyone was just singing. as in, belting out random songs until no one know the rest of the words. then starting up another one. it was amusing. there's a guy here who does fire-dancing. it's intense.
• the roommates & caitlyn & michael, our protector, went to lancaster on saturday. i know you don't know who these people are. but i do. anyway, we shopped & all i bought was necessities. no clothes for me. so proud. & we took the train! yay first england train ride!
• last night, we were so going to be in bed at a decent hour... then everyone ended up on my bed again & we played truth or dare. middle school all over again. i had to get into the shower fully clothed for five seconds. courtney can't stand spit so her dare was for me to spit on her hand... jina is korean. her dare was to run up to our good friend david this morning & yell at him in korean then walk away. it was good stuff. we're awesome.
• we had a dodgeball tournament on saturday night. there were eight teams? i don't really know. two of my roomiees were on a team. they less than won. it was intense. people were super into it. 
• i know you all want pictures but i just haven't been taking a lot. we're mostly just around school & i don't like carrying my camera everywhere. & the internet is really slow so uploading pictures takes FOREVER. 
• i'm pretty sure i sprained my ankle the other day. okay, sprain might be a little dramatic. i was climbing through the window like we always do & my ankle somehow gave out & there was a snapping noise & a fall. it was ever so graceful. it was sore the rest of the day & walking around lancaster on saturday made it swell like crazy. i iced it. i'm seriously considering amputation.
• braveheart was playing in the conference hall yesterday. my, that's a heck-ton of violence. like, whoa, bro.
• everyone asked me if i'd get a british accent coming here... i'm actually starting to sound like a canadian. i'm surrounded.
•  i'm sorry i don't post much anymore. internet time is limited & slow. & i'm busy learning about Jesus & just not blogging

loves.

the end.

"studying about that good old way"

hey-o!

i dig bullets because then i can post random thoughts & they look orderly.

i was under the impression that our outing to the lake district on saturday was going to be a short walk from one town to the other. no. no. it was a hike. hardcore people could call it a walk. but i, as you well know, am not hardcore. it was a few hours & the scenery was lovely but it was hot out & we were all sweaty & gross & yuck. we took some lovely {& creepy} photos. it was good exercise. i felt like dying half the time. after all of that sweaty goodness & a few falls {not me, fortunately}, we made it to the town of ambleside. it was small. we were tired & thirsty. courtney & david & luke & i sat in a cafe. then it was time to walk back to the buses. it was a long day. almost everyone went. i think the enthusiasm for these trips will decrease rapidly but it was a good first round. 

saturday night, however, was wonderful. we had a ceilidh. pronounced "kay-lee". {i definitely looked up the spelling of that one.} we learned how to scottish dance. from a scottish man named dougie. {i start singing teach me how to dougie when i see him} it was great. courtney was my first partner. we're a little short on men. story of my life... haha... joke... so, yeah. that was good. we ended up doing the macarena & the cha-cha slide somewhere in there. it all ended in a dance party. that slowly died down. people are funny though. we were in a big circle & people were hopping in the middle & dancing around. oh, bible school dance parties in the courtyard...

last night, the roomies & i were in a strange mood. we were practicing our frown smiles. you frown then smile with just your mouth. that turned into horse-face pictures. then neck-face pictures. then a combination. if you don't know what these things are, ask a friend. the pictures are so unattractive. i don't think i could ever post them. & we did some random exercises sometime in there. we used a shoe as a medicine ball to toss back & forth. i don't remember what else we were doing but i almost wet myself from laughing. after a quick bathroom trip, i came back to find all four roommates in my bed. they're a delight. i piled on then we watched new girl on my laptop. it was another late night.

our lecture this morning was a walk through the bible. we're learning hand motions remember the stories from the old testament. i love it.

everyone's getting sick. i think i'm next.

that's all for now folks.

friends creep on friends through bus windows.

there was a lake. in the lake district.

& a cave.

so LOTR

friends also have spoon wars.

"do the creep, ah!"

i don't feel much like writing out full paragraphs right now. i'm going with bullets.

• school is going really great. i like it a lot.
• my roomies & i are really getting to know each other. they're great. i started crying earlier & they all ran over & we talked it out.
• i am meeting some of THE best people. of course not as close to my heart as you are, but there's room.
• yesterday, courtney {roomie} & i went to the top of the tower & took creeper photos of everyone outside. she creeps like me. we're good friends. :) we told someone at dinner what we had been up to & her response was, "wow, you guys are really creepy." we converted some non-believers. our friend david thought it was weird until he tried it. people were soon posing for us in the library. it was good fun. i don't want to post them all because that would be weird...
• we have a coffeeeeeee break in the middle of morning lectures so i'm fully caffeinated all day!
• today was cleaning day. LOTS OF CLEANING. castle- spotless. my arms- sore. 
• it's hot here. like HOT. everyone's eating it up but i'm not a big fan. not that i mind a little sweat... wait. i really hate sweat. yeah. it's that hot. i didn't pack for this... toast-alicious.
• the other day at dinner, we were sitting with some guys who were telling us about how their friend made some disgusting concoction of food. they ate it & the friend had to clear the table for them. we thought that sounded great. so, they made a combination of bread {soaked in water} & mustard & jam & salt & pepper & marinara sauce & courtney ate it. they had to clean up our dishes the whole next day. we enjoyed that very much so we went for a second round. this time it was caitlyn & me. tomato soup with bread chunks & chicken & mustard & jam & i don't remember what else. apparently we didn't clarify the terms of the agreement, so they only cleaned up our dishes for that meal. it was still worth it. that was a long bullet point...
• there are 120 girls & 50 guys here. literally. lucky guys? poor guys? you can decide for yourself.
• i got to skype my family yesterday! i burst into tears when i heard my sweet daddy's voice. & then when i heard my momma's. it was so good to talk to them. :)
• our room is under the conference hall. we use our window as a door. 
• the roommates are going to start doing push-ups & sit-ups & taking walks together. every girl here is afraid of gaining a ton of weight. we've heard horror stories...
• i'm still accepting mail. & will be for the remainder of my time here. i don't think you know how exciting mail is.
• tonight was family group time. we just have a group of people that we meet with every week & hang out & play games. we had waffles.
• we're going to the lake district tomorrow. more creeping to follow.
• i need to go read my bible.

our home, the conference hall

creeping courtney

justin was looking at my pictures & exclaimed, "hey, it's me!"

david totally posed for this.

the duck face.

caitlyn :)

david & court :)

the end.

"what's your name & where are you from?"

that's still happening. we all had a chance to introduce ourselves to everyone the other night but we all forgot... we'll get this down eventually.

lectures started yesterday & they're really great. we're learning about prayer & the transforming friendship with Jesus. we have five 45 minute lectures a day. i sit in the back. which was cool. until i realized they leave the doors open for fresh air & i am barraged with a constant flow of cold. it keeps me awake.

so, yeah. making friends. talking to people. it's nice having roommates because we go to meals together & all that. built-in friends. you know. there are some really great people here. 

the internet is only on here & there & it's really slow when it is. i get really impatient so blog posts may be few & far between. sorry. just know that i'm doing well. & i love you all very, very much. if anyone can scrape the money together, i'd welcome any visitors. i won't hold my breath, but know that you're always welcome. :) & i'm still in need of your prayers. seven months is quite daunting from where i stand. something that one of the staff said today was that we are all in the center of God's will. God would not have provided the funds or allowed us to be accepted if He didn't want us here. that was comforting to hear. we were asked to share with the people around us what we want God to do in our lives whilst we're here. i said i want to gain a passion & direction for my life. but also to be patient & wait on His timing. so, there's that. have a wonderful tuesday, dearests. 

the end.

"just a closer walk with thee"

whoa, buddy. yesterday was insane. i wasn't too nervous... until we drove up. but i just sucked it up & marched in there. with audrey at my side. i found my room & met a roommate right away. we aren’t in the castle. we’re in the conference hall. yeah. it’s… livable. we unpacked then went for a wander & one of the staff was giving a tour. we just met people along the way. everyone was so friendly {aka desperate for friendship}. everyone was showing up at different times & i just kept meeting people. i don’t remember half of their names. if i had a nickel for every time i said or heard, “what’s your name & where are you from?” i could pay for the tuition myself. canada is kind of dominating right now. there are so many from saskatchewan. i've met one person from washington. the day was mostly just getting to know people. my roommates are nice. it’s really nice that pretty much everyone is in need of friends. & no one seems to be put off by my sense of humour. so that’s good. i got back to my room at 10:20ish & had a few minutes of facebook time then the internet connection was turned off… bummer. isn't nighttime best for facebooking? we’ve all done our socializing & such. don’t we deserve some internet time? it's now two & the internet is on. went for a walk after lunch then rushed back. we're all sitting around facebooking together & friending each other. youtube is blocked on this network. no more songs to go with the posts. & the connection is slow. better than nothing? sure... being here just feels like a youth retreat or summer camp. the coffee is drinkable. i'm really excited to get started with classes & learn more about my Jesus. it'll be grand. :)

so, that's mostly it. i'm alive & well. i've made friends. i'm quite proud. 

address is- 

Capernwray Hall
Carnforth
Lancashire
LA6 1AG
UK

& don't forget to put my name on it.

send me things. especially pictures. my cork board is empty. :(

the end.

no time to put thought into this post title.

it's today! it's today! it's today!
school starts today. i managed to get everything into my three suitcases. i should get a medal.

yesterday, audrey was at the hospital with her dad so i went with & hung out in town. garstang is a lovely town & has multiple thrift stores. i bought a shirt. for 1.50. pounds that is. but i also took a walk by the canal & down a trail, which fortunately led back into town. thinking back, it was a little sketch... but it was lovely. after that, i sat down by the river & read. it was a surprisingly nice day. when audrey was done at the hospital, we went out to dinner at th'owd tithebarn. it's literally a barn from the 1700s that is now a restaurant. so great. i had fish & chips. no, i don't really like seafood, but this is an exception. & heavily coated in tartar sauce. yum. i did more packing when we got home. it was so nice to live here but i'm off to a new adventure. in approximately forty-five minutes. they said to arrive sometime after two. i didn't want to get there too late to find that everyone had already made friends, you know? i know i'm a dork for over-thinking this, but that's just how i am.

oh, yeah. pictures from yesterday...

time for school now. the end.

"all i do is dream of you"

i wasn't going to do a post but i felt like sharing some random things...

now, when i get hungry, i crave foods that are not readily available to me. the worst is mexican food. they don't really have it here. & teriyaki. snohomish teriyaki, specifically. but right now, i could really go for a hotdog. being that it is the middle of the night, i'll just wait 'til breakfast. audrey's sister said that she'll bring me froyo somehow when that place opens up in her town, so i have that to look forward to. this household isn't full of snacky-snacks, which is good. when i'd usually eat chips & salsa, my best option here is an apple or something. my lack of activity helps balance out any healthy eating i accomplish though... this evening, we had delicious chinese take-away for dinner. which, brings me to my next point. here, dinner is lunch & tea is dinner. you get me? audrey called our evening meal 'dinner' for my sake all this time, but i eventually caught on. i understand not why it is this way. our meal does not include tea. at all. we had pizza for tea last night? that doesn't even sound right...

{insert segue here}

school starts on saturday. i'm getting pumped. i packed most of my clothes tonight. like, really. i pity the poor sucker who has to carry that thing. oh, i do? that's rough... i'm actually obsessing over my first-day-of-school outfit. jeans? cardigan? blouse? dress? boots? oxfords? toms?  should i advertise my love for vintage dresses up front even though i'll end up feeling awkward & over-dressed? yeah. now that i think of it, i'll go with jeans... maybe i'll have audrey take first day of school pictures. black jeans in case i wet myself? i think, yes. i'm also {over}thinking how to introduce myself. "hi, i'm julia. sorry if my lack of social skills makes you uncomfortable but i need friends." first impressions are so important... can we just skip the awkwardness? let's all wear poster boards that spell out our basic information then i can pass on asking you about it so we can talk about boys & my love of folk music & we'll become bffs for life. yeah? no? awkwardness is mandatory? oh, okay... i guess that'll work too... 

{segue}

i'm dying right now. the civil wars have been playing shows all over the uk this past week or so. they were all sold out & i really had no way to get there. but still. oh, did i mention they're playing with adele? because they are. heaven in the form of a concert? yes. comparable to the avett brothers show? possibly. 

{segue}

we went shopping yesterday. well, i did while audrey was at an appointment. i resisted buying anything at next... then i went to topshop... how could i go to topshop & not buy anything? i mean really. it was practical though. i bought a gray hoodie. my green sweatshirt recently acquired a large bleach stain so i needed one i could wear in public. justified. rationalized. vindicated. but then, when audrey & i were eating lunch {dinner?} in a cafe, i kept seeing people with h&m bags. i was intrigued. we went to h&m. i only bought a black cardigan{&abrowndressbuti'sversatile&cheap&don'tjudgeme}. suffice it to say, it was a good day. {rhyme}

{need i say it?}

lately, i've been having a lot of dreams in which i'm with my friends. when i wake up, i kind of feel like i was just with them. even if what happened in my dream was outlandish & weird, it makes me happy. then sad because i wasn't actually with them & they're really far away. but mostly happy. last night, i dreamt that i was married & i think i had a child. cool. i should really lay off the midnight snacks. heh-heh... maybe God is telling me that my fears of actually being a crazy, old cat lady are silly. i haven't attained old maid status juuust yet.

i considered sharing the fact that i've been watching 16 & pregnant & each time, i'm reminded why abstinence is such a valid option, but i didn't know if that was a weird thing to talk about, so... i've been enjoying extreme makeover lately...

audrey & i had girl talk last night. which basically consisted of, "audreyyyyy, why are boys so stuuuupid? they just don't know anythiiiiing at all." {sorry, boys} "it's okay. phil was the same way." she always knows what to say.

yeahhhhh. so.... that's about it. i really enjoy talking about myself. is that bad? {no way!} keep on prayin', loves. i'm almost there. now, it's only seven months 'til i'm home! can you believe it? wow, that sounds like an insanely long amount of time. but i can do it. this'll be great. {these are the things i tell myself in the mirror every morning... but not really. i should.} 

i forgot to put my memory card back in my camera when we went out yesterday. just imagine me gaping, wide-eyed, at a lot of clothes i can't afford. then sipping coffee & eating a panini. then marveling at how gorgeous every church is here. got that? i'm cute, yeah? i should hope you have a good mental image of me... 

i did manage to catch the sunset a few days ago.

it's okay if you don't get it.
it's just the funniest thing i've ever seen.

the end.

"bind my wandering heart to thee"

i'm sitting here wearing my granny sweater {& pants, of course}, watching titanic & singing {well, rapping} the fresh prince theme song. now that you've been reminded just how cool i am, i'll tell you about my cool life... my... life.  & i keep going on facebook, checking words with friends in hopes that one of my opponents has taken their turn. i get distracted easily... what was i saying? oh, yeah. my day.  so, last night, the dog chewed up audrey's phone. like a lot. this morning she had to go get a new one. whilst she was doing her thing, i went into next {my new favourite store} & tested my ability to resist temptation. i successfully didn't buy a pair of brown cords & a pair of black oxfords. i almost justified both of these. i mean really. pants are always practical. & i don't have any black shoes. but alas, no. it's amazing what not having an income does to you. i left that store in a hurry. then we got starbucks & drove to knutsford to visit audrey's sister, linda. she was babysitting her little grandson, harry. we all took a stroll into town. it is a lovely town. i'll show you.

  

so, that happened. linda's other grandson asked me why i didn't take any pictures of a toy store. maybe next time. & there will be a next time. i saw a frozen yogurt place that will be opening soon. oh, & there's tatton park. one of the uk's most complete historic estates. but we didn't have time to go today. 

i have a lot of time on my hands so i've been doing a lot of braiding lately.
here we have the fishtail braid & whatever those braids up top are called.

i'm doing a little bit of this !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! right now. that means nerves & excitement. school begins on saturday. where has the time gone? i seriously CANNOT believe it's nearly a month that i've been here. i'm excited. about what i will learn & who i will meet & what God will do in my life. then, i'm nervous. about now knowing anyone & not being liked & feeling alone. prayer would be cool. 'kay thanks, guys.

i will now watch the titanic go down. i'll put money on there being copious amounts of tears. from me. of course... here i go. the music from 'my heart will go on'... i was this close to naming this post after a lyric from that song....

the end.

"the world spins madly on"

audrey & i went to dinner at white bull this evening. it's within walking distance {as is everything in ribchester} of the house.  the food was delicious. my meal included chicken & bacon & barbecue sauce. what more could a girl want? we were sitting there conversing{she was actually telling me something serious & emotional} when a drunk man came & chatted us up. he was a charmer. he was going out for a fag. yeah, you heard me. that's what they call cigarettes. i just can't get over it... but british accent+slurred speech=maximum confusion on my part. apparently, he had been there for six & a half hours. i could tell... poor man. nothing beats the locals. 

we came home in time to watch the x factor. the judges were quite testy tonight. 

now i'm watching this masterpiece:

colin firth at his best? no, of course not. but it's still great.

what movie could be more appropriate? a young girl going to england in search of her father who is an english diplomat? okay, so only the part about the young girl going to england applies. but now i want to go to london & shock them all with my sassy quirkiness. audrey just asked me if i want a coming out party whilst i'm here. {joke, obvi} i think i would make a ravishing debutante, yeah?

so, it occurred to me today that as much as i miss home beyond words, i'll really miss it here when i go back. even if i just spent the next seven months hanging out here in ribchester, i think i'd still miss it. c'est la vie. {"la vie"}
c'est la fin.

enjoy this picture of marcus mumford & laura marling,

& this one. yeah. i google imaged them

"nothing is as it has been & i miss your face like [heck]"

sometimes {like this week} i don't post for a couple of days so i have more for one post. maybe that's a lie. i just haven't felt like it. but really, are you ready for this post? well, audrey's dad has been in the hospital for a few days, so i've been on my own a bit. i've become quite independent. i made myself dinner the night before last. nobody boils noodles like i do. proud? yes. i don't really remember what i did. i learned how to do a fishtail braid. i would post a picture but i didn't take one. today was a really gorgeous day & audrey had to be at the hospital again, so i took a wander around town. i told someone that i gave myself a  three hour tour of richester & he asked how i made it last that long. yes, it is a small village but it's so quaint & beautiful. i walked down by the river & sat for a while, basking in the sunlight.

there was a cat.

if you look to the side, you can see all the elderly folks enjoying the sun with me.

after that, i walked back up to that lovely church from before.

this time there was no wedding. it was silent. call me weird but i spent a significant amount of time walking around the cemetery, reading gravestones. the ones closest to the church date back to to the 1800s. the inscriptions were beautiful & detailed, listing who they were, when they passed & how old they were when they did. i saw far too many that had died before the age of six. i'm sure you've already made the assumption, but i cried. shocking, yeah? i didn't really take any pictures because it felt irreverent, you know? 

but i had to take this one. i love the inscription.
"farewell vain world, i've seen enough of thee.
i value not thy sentiments of me.
they smiles i did not count nor frowns did fear.
blessed hope i rest till Christ appear."

i was there for approximately an hour. then i made my way to yet another historical church. but of course, i stopped off at the catholic church & explored their cemetery.

this church is old. i don't know how old. just really old. there's no electricity.

it was so quiet & peaceful. i sat in stunned silence for a while.
then, i sang hymns. echo-y, old churches do wonders with rusty vocal chords.

so, that was my afternoon. this evening i went to a bible study for the youth in our church here. the leaders had asked me to share my testimony, so i was nervous about not knowing anyone & talking in front of people i don't know. it turned out to be a small group & they were quite nice. i shared, no problem & the lesson happened to be about trusting God, just like my testimony. crazy, no? well, God is good & i'm really glad i went. can i get a 'holla' for stepping out of my comfort zone? the worst part was that it was one of the guy's birthday & there was chocolate cake at the beginning but i was too nervous to eat. but now i'm fine & i want cake... better luck next time. 

so, there's my day{s} for you.  this post was slightly less substantial than i thought it would be. the only thing i didn't tell you is that i've been watching a lot of rom-coms. & jane austen movies. & romantic dramas {rom-drams?}. but that would be embarrassing so, that's about it. love lots. 

p.s. keep audrey's dad in your prayers. he's not doing great.

p.p.s. i really miss you all. i watched that adorable video that randall made me on facebook for the fiftieth time last night & bawled my eyes out. have you seen it? it's perfection. :)

the end.

"suddenly, i can see blue skies again"

yesterday was a lovely, long day. after church, i went to my friend abi's house for lunch. {it was her family that we had over for lunch the sunday i was here} then we went to her friend's house w & i met a group of her friends. then we & her friend lydia went to a place called the barn for coffee. we sat there talking & trying to speak like each other. my british accent is really improving... {i'm really tired of the word 'then'} so THEN, we went back to abi's house. it was good times.  it's nice to have at least a few friends to keep me busy here. her mom told me that i can call them if i ever need a weekend away from school. such kindness these people are showing me. :)

so, that whole day wiped me out. i feel shattered, jiggered, &/or knackered, i think? my vocabulary is ever-expanding. i've done all of nothing today. i watched a few movies & managed a shower. outside is crazy windy. like, CRAY-ZEE. i saw some blue skies! but the wind just brought a new batch of clouds. terrific. my toes are cold.

audrey told me today that there's a youth event at church on thursday & the leader people would like me to share my testimony. whoa-wahhh! i think i'll maybe do it maybe. i really hate speaking in front of people. i'll pray about it.

the sun came out for a second.

short post today. all of this sleeping late & doing nothing is making me sleepy.

love lots. :)

the end.

"life has given me obstacles. still i bite my tongue, say 'it's wonderful"

i hope you high schooler kiddos have had a wonderful start to the school year. i won't be starting for two more weeks but i'm a little anxious all ready. i hope they won't make us play get-to-know-you games like in high school,  why is it important that if a movie was made of my life, i'd want meryl streep to play me? yes. that was always my answer.

first of all, i realized that maybe i speak of people on this blog & a few of you don't know who they are. clarification time. 

i'm staying with audrey. her daughter is emma. her other daughter is sarah. sarah's husband is andy. their kids are ewan & aiden.

yesterday we went to sarah's house. audrey took ewan to football training {known to you as soccer practice} & i stayed to play with aiden while andy & sarah went out. those kids are seriously so cute. we watched the toothfairy. you know that ridiculous movie with dwayne "the rock" johnson? his career is really going places, you see. this morning, we went to aiden's football match. let's just say they didn't win. but it was good character building.

then this afternoon, audrey & i went to the town of clitheroe. 

home of clitheroe castle, built in 1186/ 

& now,  assorted pictures from the day, because i know you like pictures.

in the castle, they had this really eerie music playing. it was terrific. the view was absolutely amazing. from the castle, the whole town & surrounding countryside was visible. & audrey bought me a coffee. 

the end. 

actually not the end yet.

i must share with you some vocabulary.

trolley: shopping cart

brolly: umbrella

handbag: purse

fringe: bangs

car park: parking lot

bonnet: hood {of a car}

boot: trunk

that's  all i can think of now. i'm learning so much. i told audrey that my accent makes me feel like a black sheep & sometimes i get self-conscious when i'm talking to people. but apparently she loves it. american accents are a novelty over here because being american is cool & exotic. who knew? 

andy refers to me as 'america' or 'the yank'. yep, that's me. sometimes is think people can tell that i'm a foreigner. then i realize, they're only staring at me because i'm staring at them. speaking of which, camera straps are so helpful in taking creep photos. it just happens to be hanging around your neck & your finger happens to be on the shutter button...

that's how i got a picture of this ginger. this is really cropped.
he's not really looking at me. i was being really casual...

these guys looked like mormons. it made me miss my mormon friends.

now the end. 

no. not.

i didn't write any emotional stuff. & i know you like that even better than pictures. 

but really. one thing. i don't know where she got this but audrey read me something earlier that really got me thinking. it was something like, "praise instead of panic, & worship instead of worry & some other words..." whoa, buddy. it's not even a bad situation that i'm in, just a difficult one. i should thank God for the blessing of this adventure instead of allowing myself to continue to constantly question why i ever came here. okay, that wasn't so emotional. thanks for sticking with me. i'll go cry myself to sleep now... just kidding. maybe.
the end. for real.

except for this picture of me & my creeping camera.