grum*chum

america wouldn’t quite be america without [in my opinion] one of the best holidays:

Thanksgiving!

I made a[nother] video this morning. Click the pictures below to watch:

Though it may be impossible for some (namely, my mother and sister) to believe that I can cook anything without killing someone in the process - they have been proved wrong.

Look at what I made! It’s a pumpkin & cream cheese dessert. So yummy! I didn’t even try it until I had heard from my friends at re:fuel that it was good. I’m thankful that it went well. I’m a novice in the kitchen, so it was really a good boost of confidence.

First, my recipe was American so I had to convert everything into UK measurements. Second, I didn’t have the tools to measure it all out precisely according to the recipe, so a lot was just eye-balled, but hey it worked out! 

The Study Abroad office put on a Thanksgiving dinner for all of us study abroad students. They provided the turkey, ham, mashed potatoes + gravy and [oh my goodness, so wonderful] cranberry sauce. The rest was provided by the people at each table. I got to sit with some good (and some relatively new) friends and enjoyed the tastes of macaroni and cheese, bacon-wrapped asparagus, veggies, rolls + butter and some delicious desserts! 

The dinner was at 7pm and I had re:fuel at 8pm, so I stayed a while but rushed off after only an hour. I’m glad I got to see all these great people in one night, though. It was such a great Thanksgiving!

I have the best friends ever. Cue to my 22nd Birthday video.

But first click the picture above (see all that wonderfulness?) to see my reaction :)

Love you guys! You’re the absolute best friends a girl could dream of.

grumchum

understandable that this will probably not make sense to anyone but my dad (and the rest of the family).

I’m getting a sore throat, so I bought a carton of orange juice.

I hated orange juice up until a year ago. Growing up, my dad would always gently suggest that I have a glass of orange juice when I wasn’t feeling well, and it was torture. I complained (usually through horrified facial expressions) and slurped it down, pulp and all. Yuck! Then I went through a Sunny D phase…you know, that stuff that’s only 5% juice and 1000% sugar, as replacement. Nutrition fail.

Well, now I like orange juice (no pulp, though. gosh, what, are you trying to kill me?). They say taste buds change every 7 years, which would make sense because I turned 21 last year. 

Other things I now eat: actual oranges, yogurt and tomatoes.

Crazy stuff, really.

However - let. me. tell. you. - there are a few things I refuse to eat willingly (I have my exceptions): raisins and coconut. ewwwww. no can do.

I might like them in 6 years, but I sure don’t look forward to it. Until then, I’ll be drinking my orange juice, hoping to avoid any form of sickness over here.

Homework status: 4 essays and 1 exam remaining. 

I spent a good four hours working in the Uni library today, then I hit that state where everything looks fuzzy, so I closed it up for the day. Let’s get this done!

Miss Amanda skyped me in for the Beach House Thanksgiving!

Short and sweet, it was so great to see everyone. I am thankful for modern technology because often I don’t feel very far away, all with a few photos, messages and some good friends on the other side of the world.

Thank you, God, for great people who love me for me and give me the best blessings in life - love, friendship, trustworthiness, forgiveness, honesty, and so much more. 

Love you Beach House + Friends.

See you in a month!

Allea

looking forward to…

street signs on every corner

cheap mcdonalds

free public bathrooms

roommate bonding

goodwill - aka, bargain hunting

trash cans in public areas

going back to using the dollar

know I’ll miss…

reliable public transporation

my kitchen at my host parents’ house

markets going on all the time, every day

the gazillion types of british accents

the people

the routine

being “the american”

Click the lovely picture below for a peek into northern ireland.

2 November 2011

I’ve been gone from home now for nearly 12 weeks, but this is my 10th week in London.

Click on the picture above for the latest update - from me, my soup, and my “I <3 Nebraska” pin.

Don’t leave a girl hanging, what have you all been up to?

I went to check on my laundry, and look what was waiting on the kitchen table!

A letter from my brother Andrew!

Andrew,

Yes, I cried.

Love you too, bud. Miss you! 

I’ll be seeing you soon. Did you happen to save me any Reese’s Cups from Halloween? No worries, we can get some when I get home :)

Love you more than you know.

Allea

What I’ve found in London:

New friends

Able to travel anywhere

A certain familiarity - a new home for a while

I can successfully use the underground and train system in London (and now Paris!)

I can share what I’ve seen with my family and friends back home

I can lug groceries to a bus stop, then half a mile home (every week, mind you)

Make friends with strangers

Write quality papers for my classes - the expectations here seem much higher

I am a very flexible-schedule person

I can do it!

What I miss from home:

Nebraska kindness and warmth - being able to say Hi to anyone and not get weird stares

Thanksgiving

Football (GBR!)

My nieces growing up (four months is a long time in kiddo-years)

The taste of pop - Dr. Pepper, 7up, and Mt. Dew all taste different here

Being able to sleep in on a Saturday not feel like I need to be traveling or sightseeing

The day-after-Thanksgiving Odell craft fair

The simplicity of life when you have your own car

Knowing where everything is

A grocery store with alfredo sauce, pop tarts, and ramen

UNL - I miss being able to sit in the Union and do homework while people-watching and running into friends

Love Library - I never appreciated it until I came here. It’s beautiful with plenty of space to study, and couches just in case you get tired.

The Mopac Trail