World Cup & Other Excitement

Guys! I'm getting so into "the football" (as they say here in England). I've never really watched it before, and now that I am, the World Cup is really getting to me. Today's match had me stressing, & I was so excited when we SCOOOORED! In the 91st minute! Ahhh!

So excited for:
* Jonty's graduation tomorrow & our afternoon out with his parents
* Our trip down to Portsmouth
* Denise & James' wedding
* World Cup games this weekend
* Jack Johnson concert in Cardiff, Wales
* Cocktail party in my flat next Friday
* A visit from my Aussie friend Sarah next weekend

This evening, Jonty & I made rice krispie treats! Yum! It reminded me of summer camp when we used to eat rice krispie concoction warm out of the pan with spoons (or cleaned sticks) around the campfire. I haven't made them in a long time & couldn't believe how easy/fast they were to make! I'll have to keep the ingredients on hand in case I ever need a to make a quick dessert for something.

This evening, we'll be watching episode five of The Wire. We're really getting into it.

<3

The world is our oyster... but the f***er won't open!

This is our angry face. At the world.

Lately, I've been a bit distracted. I've started working on my dissertation, but not as much as I'd like to. I've had lots of fun time with friends, too. But really, I always come back to thinking about the near future. I try not to be a person that lives in the future, but I can't help but be dissolved in it at the moment. Jonty & I, being from different countries, are having quite a difficult time figuring out our next step. But, at least we know that whatever we decide to do, we're doing it together.

Here are the options & a very quick summary of the pros & cons of each:

* Stay in the UK. If I can get a job with a organization that is willing to sponsor a work permit, we can easily stay here. But finding a job like that is very difficult, unless you're very highly experienced. Otherwise, I can get a post-study work visa after my degree is conferred, but I would have to go home first, & in the end it would probably mean four or more months not working plus some time away from Jonty.

* Move to the US. We can only do this if Jonty finds a job there, which again is difficult at our age, especially when he's not in the country to interview. He might be able to work as my mom's boyfriend's marketer for his new CD, which he is very qualified for, but we're not sure if the government will approve. {He has a BA in Business Marketing & Communications with First Honours & several years' experience in the music industry (producing, recording, etc). And he has great customer service skills (of course, my guy is charming!). If any of you have suggestions, please tell me!}

* Live in New Zealand for a year. They practically give away visas in Kiwi Land. But we're a bit worried that we won't be able to get a proper job, & my dad probably wouldn't be too happy if I called him up & told him I'll be living far away for another year so I can be a barista... Plus, if we did that, I may not be able to go to my graduation in February.

* Teach English somewhere in Europe (or maybe even Asia). This is slightly back burner because Jonty isn't too keen on teaching English. And TEFL courses are expensive. But it would be a good option.

So, yeah, it has taken us months to get this far. And I'm finding it very disconcerting that we're still only at the point we're at. A standstill. Limbo. We're applying/e-mailing/looking into things, but we're not getting much closer to having an answer.

I'm a planner. I like to have things organized. It's cool to fly by the seat of your pants for a while, but I think we're further in down the rabbit hole than that. If we had some extra cash & a CONTINENT picked, I'd be happy to be a little unsure. But this is not the sitch. And it's frustrating me.

It really shouldn't bother me as much as it does. Something will work out. It may not be our number one plan, but we've got options, which is more than a lot of people. In the meantime, though, it's consuming a lot of my thoughts & energy, & I'm finding it hard to roll with the punches.

Jonty has so much faith that we'll be together, that we'll find a way. I really admire that, & I'm trying to let his attitude rub off a bit!

If you're still reading, you must be (a) a lovely, diligent reader, & I thank you!; (b) realllly bored, in which case I apologize for this long, unexciting, negative post; and/or (c) full of ideas, which I'm so very willing to hear! I am sorry for this obnoxious post, but I really needed to get it out. And it helps so much to put what Jonty & I have been researching & discussing in writing. (This is, believe it or not, actually very condensed.)

Anyway, other than visa/job/moving troubles, life is busy & good. This next couple of weeks are going to be so much fun! Jonty's graduation, a trip to Portsmouth for Denise & James' wedding, a trip to Cardiff to see Jack Johnson, a cocktail party at our flat, & my Australian mate Sarah (who I lived with in Oxford a couple of years ago) coming to visit me in Bristol! Very exciting!

What is the start of summer bringing you guys?

<3

Winner Winner, Chicken Dinner

Drumroll please!

And the winner of the CSN Stores Giveaway is... Bored@ Work!

Thanks to everyone who participated!

<3

Denise's Surprise Hen Party

My good friend Denise, now lives in the UK with her husband. (Remember, we went on a trip to London a few months ago?) We joined our sorority in the same semester, & have known each other for about three & a half years now. Last spring, she met one of the British exchange students (James--not Jonty, duh) at a barbeque Jonty & I threw. They hit it off so well that by the end of the summer, they were married. They had to start out with an early courthouse wedding in the August (maybe early September?) because Denise couldn't get a visa to live the UK (where James still had another year of university) unless they got married within a few months of her arrival in the UK.

Not having had a traditional wedding, they didn't do all the usual things, except a semi-honeymoon trip to Edinburgh. They still planned to have a proper wedding this June. It's all arranged now, & they will have a ceremony in a couple of weeks. But the vicar at the location they decided on won't do an actual wedding ceremony, since they're already married, so they're just having a blessing/commitment ceremony type thing. It will still be a lovely ceremony, but this change has led them to disregard some of the traditions of a wedding, like bridesmaids/groomsmen and bachelor/bachelorette parties (called a hen party/stag night in England).

When I realized that Denise wasn't getting these things, I snapped into action. I contacted her husband & the one female friend of hers that was still in Oxford (where she lives) & planned a small surprise hen party. I showed up at her house (on a night her husband was away visiting his family) with a bottle of gin, a cake, some frosting, a few small decorations, & plenty of ideas.

First, we had a couple of gin & tonics & watched Clueless.

Then, we decorated the cake together. I may have taken over a bit, but Denise put on the finishing touches. (Hint: She used the white.)

Sorry for the vulgarity, but considering the usual bachelorette/hen party obsession with genitalia, I think this is relatively tame. And it was amusing to boot.

Next, we headed out on the town where we (surprise!) met Denise's friend Elli (who she didn't even know I had talked to, since I'd never met her before--thanks James) & hit a cocktail bar/hookah bar/dance club.

We worked on a scavenger hunt...

...but we didn't end up finishing it. This is mostly because there was a guy sitting near us outside who happened to be a stripper, & he offered to give the bride a lap dance. She tried to resist at first, but with a little prodding from Elli & me, she accepted.

She was a bit weirded out, but mostly I think she was amused. It was definitely entertaining!

We finished off the night with (amazing!) late-night burgers. The next day, we went to an Affordable Vintage Fair, lunch & wine at Cafe Rouge, & a street party in Jericho. The street party was a fun community affair.

We only wished we hadn't already eaten, because there was so much cheap, delicious-looking food around!

Overall, I really think the Bride had a nice time. She was actually surprised (which surprised me), & we had a lot of fun. I can't wait to go to their wedding, & be a part of their union.

On another note (F sharp, in particular): Guys! What's with no one entering my giveaway?! I promise, it costs nothing. Except, I guess, for the two minutes it takes to comment and think of an answer to the question. But, for a £40 gift certificate, isn't it worth it? The site has several great things to buy with that amount. Good for yourself or for a gift. I'm really confused about why nobody wants free stuff... Maybe there's some confusion? I'll try to clear up any that might have come up: You don't have to live in the UK (despite the gift certificate being in ££s). You don't have to re-blog the giveaway; that's only if you want an extra entry.

All you need to do is leave a comment, answering the fun little question, by the end of Tuesday (which I suppose, as of two minutes ago, is today). The winner will be announced on Wednesday. What are you waiting for?? Go enter the giveaway right now!

(Please? I'm a bit sad that so few have entered. I love you guys! Did you know, I had the option to review a product but instead I wanted you guys to get something?)

Did you guys do anything fun this weekend? What did you think of the USA v. England (World Cup) match?

<3

Simple Happiness Tip #6

Grow your own herbs. Having greenery in your kitchen or elsewhere in your house will brighten your kitchen & make it feel more comfortable. Helping anything grow can be rewarding, & using fresh basil in your pasta, fresh mint in your mojitos, & fresh alfalfa sprouts in your salads can really brighten your mood! Plus, you'll know it's pesticide free. Yum!

Travel Thursday: Kenya {Nairobi}

Kenyan Parliament Building

Nairobi is Kenya's capital & one of Africa's major cities. People in Nairobi are not very comfortable with technology, except for cell phones. You can top up your mobile minutes from pretty much everywhere! We even saw some mobile top up stalls from the train in the middle of nowhere. I guess that's a good way of providing phones to people, since it's much more complicated to set up landlines all over. So, because technology is a bit foreign in the city, I didn't take many pictures. It just felt weird.

But most of the city just looked like this:

Syano took Jonty & me to the site of the 1998 American embassy bombing. The event is a huge one in the lives of Kenyans, & Syano said he new of schoolmates or schoolmates' family members that had been injured or killed in the bombing. Since then, the embassy has moved outside of the city in a walled building to protect Nairobi's inhabitants, and on the site there is a lovely memorial park.

Mostly, we just wandered around in the city. It's relatively big, but you can walk from one end to the other if you want to. I think its suburbs are quite expansive; we stayed in Karen, which is about half an hour's drive away. The city itself was, well, a city. It sort of reminded me of the less picturesque parts of San Francisco. There were lots of business, banks, & mobile phone stores. Not all that much shopping, really, expect for some indoor shopping areas that mostly had independent clothing stores. And Nakumatt, which is basically the African Wal-Mart (and is quite possibly owned by Wal-Mart).

It was pretty darn difficult to find some sunscreen, & actually impossible to find cheap sunglasses. (Yes, somehow Jonty & I managed to leave our sunglasses at home when we went to AFRICA.) As a result, my skin got very burnt (in a square neckline shape too, ugh), & my eyes were not too happy. That equatorial sun is damn strong. Oh, & it was 25 degrees C (77 degrees F), & everyone was wearing suits with jackets & closed-toed shoes. I was sweating in jeans, a tank top, & sandals!

I didn't get a chance to go into any of the slum areas because Syano pressed that it is a bad idea, especially for an American, since two of the Islamic fundamentalists that carried out the 1998 bombing were found in that area. But I do have some pictures I took when I went through on the train, which I'll show when I talk about our train ride to Mombasa.

 Next Thursday, I'll say a bit about transportation (& the massive culture surrounding it) in Nairobi. With lots of pictures!

<3

Giveaway!

Guess what! CSN Stores has offered to give a £40 gift certificate for their online shops to one of my wonderful readers in the UK, US, or Canada!

CSN has several sites offering great deals on home ware, from lighting

to kitchen ware

to furniture.

To enter the giveaway for the £40 gift certificate, check out the above links & then answer the following question in the comments section below:

If you were stranded on a deserted island, what person, food item, and object would you most want with you?

For a second entry, post about this giveaway somewhere on your blog and leave the link in your comment (under your answer to the question).

The giveaway will be open until Tuesday (15 June) at midnight, & I'll announce the winner on Wednesday. Good luck!

<3