Well..

I think this has died. But good luck on finals, everyone!

oktober(fest)

So now that someone else has posted I feel like I can write something again (this is actually a good way to remember what I'm doing I think). Since whenever ago that was, I've been to Nice, Monaco, Cannes, Munich/Oktoberfest, and Paris. Some highlights:

-Going to the beach in Nice/watching Somerset's walk of shame home from the beach at 2 am after he decided to strip and go swimming

-Running away from scary 30 year old guys who kept jumping in our pictures and trying to give us Russian business cards

-Seeing how ridiculously beautiful the Cote d'Azur is (it's really really...blue)

-Spending 10 hours on a bus from hell that stopped for 1/2 hour break every 45 mins and took way too long for the 4 1/2 hour drive to Munich

-Almost getting trampled trying to get a table at Oktoberfest when one of the halls opened

-General drunk-people watching

-Getting stopped by German police on the way back because the bus driver didn't actually have the right papers to drive in Germany

-Paris is gorgeous. Just...gorgeous. Everyone go, NOW. Actually if you go Thursday night, I'll be there again.

-Seeing my friend Helen, who I've known since I was 4 and who's studying in London

-Walking up the Eiffel Tower for the 3rd time, always a good workout and totally worth it

-General rugby world cup madness

And I have trips booked to Rome, Venice, Florence, and Barcelona

But for something that Georgetown should definitely start (but would never start), my school had it's annual Trophée de la Bière on Thursday night...and it was hilarious and awesome. Basically, the students association starts advertising for it two weeks before, and the idea is you get 5 people together to make a team. Then they bus you to some random undisclosed location (I think we stayed in France this time) and put most of the IECS in a sketchy warehouse. The competition itself consists of boat races/chugging races, and if you win, your team ends up going 4 times. So I wasn't on a team, but everyone went anyhow to go watch what was inevitably a shitshow. The team I was supporting had been in "training" for a week, and decided wearing bikinis would be a good shock factor (all guys). Not sure if they made it to the semis or finals, but it was still ridiculously amusing. In between rounds they put on European dance music (ie techno) and turned it basically into a club. Then they bus you back to school at 3-4 in the morning and expect you to be completely fine giving your presentation in your 8 am.

Anyhow no clue how it would be possible to do that at Georgetown...but it would be reaaallly entertaining.

Up next week: Rome/Venice/Florence for Toussaint, our week-long break

Hope everyone survived midterms!

Since when is me procrastinating management readings new?

Well if no one else is going to write, you are just going to all be very well educated about France. Or at least my activities in France.

Fun things that have happened since two weeks ago:

I went to Basel, Switzerland with two of my friends. First reason why this is awesome: I took a day trip to another country. Second reason why this is awesome: It was German Switzerland so I had NO clue what was going on most of the time. But it's ok, if I've learned anything about Europe, it's that everyone knows at least enough English to order food. It was a surprisingly gorgeous day, so we spent the whole day taking walking tours and sitting by the Rhine...and because swimming in the Rhine (or letting the current float you along) is one of the big things to do in Basel, we went wading...which resulted in me slipping and falling in the Rhine. Fun times!

Unfortunately, the day after involved getting a little too drunk and dropping/breaking my camera. So that was fun. I'd send it home to get it replaced for free, but the one box we've tried to send here so far is lost and/or stolen. So this is now my sign from God to stop drinking as much. Until next weekend.

Because my school, the IECS, has a tendency to sponsor giant parties on Thursday nights that they literally bus you across the border into Germany for, and then don't give you any way to come back until after 2 am. We had a giant party Thursday and it was the best night here so far...crazy German Discotheks. The problem being...we all had class on Friday, and most people got back in between 4 and 5:30 that morning and stumbled into class between 8 and 10. No one really got anything done in class...but everyone knew exactly why, which was hilarious. But now everyone is sick. Oops.

So this weekend we touristed, we planned trips, and I went on a picnic with my family, an American family they're friends with, their two cute little girls, and their 3 month old puppy that was completely adorable...we hiked around a park for hours and generally had a fun time in a mix of French and English. The husband of the American family is a GM expat who knows almost no French, but he was the only one who didn't speak it, so it made for lots of stopping and translating and whatnot. In any case, the girls love me and it is always nice to be loved.

Next weekend we're going to Nice, Cannes, Monaco, and more Cote d'Azur locales, courtesy of Georgetown...SO excited.

You know, the whole posting thing goes for all you people still at Georgetown too...because I'm kind of in withdrawal, I'm not going to lie.

yo shawties, move it or lose it

So while I may be on campus doing nothing of particular interest, I DO want to know what you abroaders are up to. So follow Kim's lead and let those of us stranded back at Georgetown know about your crazy international hijinks. Let us (me) live vicariously through you.

I love Georgetown, but...France is pretty awesome too.

So...It's been a few days since I got here and I figured I'd let everyone know what's going on. I'm living with a family right in the middle of Strasbourg, about 2 minutes from the big cathedral that's in Centre Ville. It's called Notre Dame de Strasbourg...very original. But also gorgeous. It's about a 1/2 hour walk from where I have classes though...so I've been doing a lot of walking. The family is very nice, although I'm pretty shy around them because of the language difference. I can understand things they ask me and answer them decently, but I can't keep up with everyday conversation yet with all the slang...hopefully that'll change. The mom's a Spanish professor, the dad's a musician, and there are three kids: Cléa, who I think is 16 (our coordinator told me the kids were between 10 and 15 though, I think she lied), Pablo is almost 15, and Clara is 12. Oh, and Néo the cat, who likes to jump on my bed at 1 am and scare the crap out of me, hide in my closet, and chew through my microphone cords and such.

Anyhow, the city is really pretty small. You can walk anywhere within an hour, I'd say. There are a couple rivers that run through the whole thing, so there are always tourist boats going back and forth. We found people with canoes and decided to rent some today, but apparently they're from either a private boathouse or somewhere outside of the city about 4 miles away. Because mostly everyone was out til 4 apparently (I gave up at 2ish), we're going to wait for another day to try to find them. We've been spending most of our time either with the 11 Georgetown kids, a group of people from BC, and a few other internationals. I feel like I should be using more French, but that will definitely start tomorrow, when classes start. We don't register until Wednesday, and the way it works out, I have to take 10 classes to get 5 Georgetown equivalents. But if I don't get all my classes I want...I'm kind of screwed. Oh well. Everything will work out hopefully. And if not...eh. I'll travel, take what I can, and be screwed when I get back to school. 6 classes again anyone?

In any case, I'm having a good time. We might go to Paris this weekend, which should be fun. We're also talking about going to Egypt, which is random, but awesome sounding.

Hope everyone's doing well!

i loooooooooooveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee georgetown!

Summer travels

So after an awesome week chasing after high schoolers in new south, I came back home for about a week and then left for some west coast adventures. Highlights:
At camp:
-Spending most of the night in the er w/ a girl who got a concussion from playing red rover
-Going to watch the filibuster in the middle of hte night
-the dance---its amazing how fun it can be to dance like an idiot (sober)
At home
-Went back to dc w/ work and had lunch in the congressional dining room
-my parents left me alone for liek the first time ever (so of course I had people over and am now hiding the remaining natty in a jcrew bag in my closet)
In Seattle:
-Making buttons!
-disovering the other georgetown
-going to kelseys restaurant
In San Francisco
-Freezing
-bonfire on the beach
-crazy gay bookstores

Anyways now I am home for the last 2 weeks, enjoying doing nothing, trying to have a few more adventures, and getting ready for school. Hope everyones enjoying the end of summer/begnning of study abroad if you've already left!

When do people go back to school? I'm moving in on the 22nd

so in a bit of a change of plans due to the obnoxious bureaucracy of the french visa system, i'm going to be down in ocean city by myself (plus whoever drops by) next monday-wednesday (13-15) before i have to go back down to dc on thursday to get this visa figured out. anyone who wants to stop by for part/all of that is welcome, just let me know when you'll be stopping by and i'll give you the address/directions and such. it might end up an interesting mix of people from home and school, just a heads up.

Daft Punk Concert

Last night I went to the Daft Punk concert with my friend who got free tickets from a DJ she flirted with (yay for being a girl!). If none of you are familiar with this band - I wasn't until I went - they're an electronic music duo from France who like to perform dressed as robots. Here are some reflections and observations:

1. I'm not very concert saavy - didn't realize that there was only one opener and that the headliner was playing until halfway through their set.

2. Even if you're not really into watching guys dressed as robots rock out in a giant pyramid that lights up and changes colors, you can still have fun if you just let yourself relax and pretend to be a giant techno nerd.

3. I don't sweat as much as a lot of people.

4. I don't smell as bad as a lot of people.

5. I dance better than a lot of people.

6. I don't do as many drugs as a lot of people.

7. I will never pay $30 for a concert t-shirt.

8. I think I might just like techno an eensy, weensy bit.

Dixie Liquors

So good news for all you people who are interested in drinking, partying, and the glue that hold parties together: kegs. Dixie Liquors has been bought and is set to reopen, albeit after a bit of renovations. The interior of the store will be reorganized and there are plans for a well designed website and possible delivery service. This is a tremendous win for us party-goers/hosters who no longer have to worry about carrying a keg back from Resevoir, where the next closest liquor store to sell kegs is (as far as I know). Anyway, here's the link for the article if you're interested in hearing the whole story.

http://www.thehoya.com/news/071907/news2.cfm

beach part 2

so in another random beach outing attempt, i'm taking my shorehouse for a week and basically opening the doors to whoever feels like coming. when's everyone around/who actually feels like driving to south jersey for some sun?

Harry Potter

So after 2 long nights of reading (I was only able to get my hands on the book Sunday night) I finally completed the 7th and final episode to the Harry Potter series. It only took me until 6 o'clock this morning to finish and, yes, I am at work running on 2 hours of sleep. But I must say, it is definately worth it. I thought the book was absolutely amazing. If you have any interest in the series and have not started reading, shame on you because you are really missing out. Anyone who wants to talk about it, leave comments. So if you haven't read it, don't look at what is being said so as not to ruin the ending for you.

Hotlanta (the ATL)

So I'm supposed to be eating seafood and drinking box wine in Chile right now; but Delta whored me out to a budget airline that made me miss my connecting flight. I explored the ATL a bit today, but did not see TI or any spinnas. Sorry Monica.
Nuts. I'm still going though, I leave tonight (if they have a seat for me!). If I'm fortunate enough to leave tonight, I'll be in Santiago by 7:30 tomorrow morning (It's hovering around 44 degrees there).
Anywho, more when I'm down there. Hope everybody's well.
Ben

On the hilltop!

So I'm sitting in my nice (huge) new south bedroom that I have for summer IR camp (I'm a counselor). We got here yesterday, and since camp didn't start until today, we had some time to enjoy, lets say, college activities, before we had to go pg today. The campus is full of high schoolers, it is so weird. Its nice to be here though, even if its really hot. And, for anyone who cares, they are renovating village b! YAY! It made me happy at least.

Not much other news here, my life is pretty uneventful. This week is my one money-making venture for the summer. Home is boring, and this is fun, even if somewhat tamer than normal georgetown. Though I learned a new drinking game last night- baseball is a combo of beirut and flip cup. Ok hope things are good for others, I'm going to go do room checks. Adios!

First, Dale, glad your moral issues have been solved. But, Nicolae Ceauşescu? New role model?

My summer has been rather uneventful. I wake up too early and drive into Boston with my sister, who recently started working at Children's Hospital in the city after graduating. I work at John Hancock in Boston, which sounds really patriotic and American loving, until you realize that they're owned by a Canadian company. On the plus side, the Canadians love having food in the office, so I'm constantly eating wraps and cookies.

My family went to Nantucket for a little under a week for July4. For those of you who haven't been, Nantucket is pretty similiar to Georgetown - cobblestone, rich people, John Kerry lurking around - only on an island with sweet beaches. It's also really small, so we rented bikes and pretty much saw the entire island without ever needing a car.

One question for you fall abroaders - when do you all leave?

Hi everyone! I'll try to cram the past two months into a few paragraphs as well.

I started my break with a two-week family vacation to Turkey. We checked out the markets and mosques in Istanbul, the historical sites and memorials in Gallipoli, the valleys and rock formations in Kapadokya, and the sun and sand on the Mediterranean coast before flying home. (If you haven't seen it already, I have a Facebook album with an assortment of pictures I took along the way.) I enjoyed driving around the country, since we really got a sense of the varied landscape of Turkey's western half. The food was incredible...I took a much-needed break from being a vegetarian and had lots of kebaps and kofte, not to mention hummus and dolma and lots of great flatbread. I'll start learning Turkish at G-town in the fall, so I'm excited to go back and explore the eastern half of the country.

After taking four flights home (ugh) to Illinois, I started working as a waitress on the Northwestern University campus. It's a great deal: nice managers, cool coworkers, not that much work to do, significantly more money than I deserve. Air conditioned. Free, delicious food. All in all, a sweet place to hang out this summer whilst making money. After a jaunt to Long Beach Island (to visit the BF, check out the beach and restaurants, travel to NYC to see Ms. Munn and other fun New York things), I came back and started guitar lessons. At this point, I can play 8 or 9 chords and am starting to read tabs. Basically, I'm horrible, but having insane amounts of fun being able to play something resembling music. On a less fun note, I started summer school (public speaking at Northwestern)—actually, though, it's perversely enjoyable and definitely helpful.

In my free time, I've been doing a lot of reading and a lot of going out/catching up with good friends. Basically, I can't complain! Everything seems very well-balanced and fun right now...exactly how I think summer should be. :)

Scary scary shit

Some kid from my high school was murdered. Ok he actually died last year and I don't know how I missed that he died, but there was an article in the paper about how they still dont know if it was accident or murder. How freaky is that? Heres the link if you're interested http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/carroll/bal-md.ca.co.miranda11jul11,0,3059734.story?coll=bal-local-carroll. Agh I'm just really freaked out now, I've never known someone to be murdered, or even possibly, and as much as I love mysteries, I think i like them in book form better

Highlights of NYC Misadventures

After a rainy/beautiful week in Paris following finals, I returned to NOVA to bask in the warmth of home cooked meals and 1pm wake ups for two weeks. Luckily I wasn't there for much longer, being home made me stir crazy. I moseyed up to NYC in the beginning of June, and since then I have been having a BALLIN time in Manhattan. Also in the mix was a brief weekend trip to Boston for a giant family reunion. I'm enjoying the un-paid intern life at the UN Association of the USA where I work in solitary confinement while writing a guide on how to plan a Model UN conference. I know, it could not be anymore nerdy. Real talk though, New York is amazing. I have never met so many diverse, crazy, intelligent people and it's so sad to think I'll only be here for another 3 weeks.

I'm actually at work au currant so I'm going to keep this to a minimum. Below are some abbreviated vignettes from my time in NYC which I hope are at least somewhat amusing for you. I'll be in DC starting Saturday for a week to counsel high school students at the IR camp. Aka engage in much needed Georgetown/IRC redonkulousness. Everyone who's on the Hilltop hit me up - I'd love to see y'all. After that, it's back to NYC for two more weeks for more intershipping and John Mayer/Ben Folds concert (!!) and then home for wisdom teeth pullings and other unpleasantness.

Here are some of the illustrious (or not) highlights from my summer in the Big Apple:

• Walking the Brooklyn Bridge to Crooklyn and chilling in NYC's Adams Morgan equivalent
  
• Leaking money faster than Enron
  
• Having an middle-aged man hand me a "Free Paris" button while walking along the Hudson
• Meeting up with Maddie and Ryan E. for a tasty BBQ dinner in Times Square following lunch at Grand Central with Anupam and Jasdeep
  
• The Brown-Town Odyssey with Ry to visit Anupam and other IRCers in NJ
  
• Waking up in Harlem at 6am on the floor of an unknown apartment after a night of dangerous debauchery and cabbing 140 blocks back to my apartment only to be locked out by the night guard
  
• Sunbathing in Central Park/Governor's Island/Battery Park
  
• Going for long runs along the South Street Seaport
  
• Getting sloshy in the UN bar with other UNA interns/smoking at the UN/attending UNSC meetings/strutting around with my UN id
  
• Partaking in essential NYC activities - Gray's Papaya, Hookah on 1st and 1st, Pick a Bagel, $3 lunches at the Halal cart, mojitos at Sushi Samba, 4th of July fireworks, Century 21, the Met, Little Italy, etc.
• Hanging with the hipsters in the East Village/Greenwich Village/Chelsea/SoHo
  
• Getting a little taste of LA with Ryan at Pinkberry
  
• Enjoying the break dancers on the A train
• Making friends with the guy at Pret a Manger who gives me free iced coffees during rush hour
• Barhopping with Vik, my UNA supervisor
  
• Cooling off in the World Financial Center every day on the way home from work
  
• Writing a 150 page book
• Petitioning for a Wee Britain in Greenwich Village a la Arrested Development
  
• Not getting carded (BALLIN)
• Many, many, many rando IRC/Gtown run-ins
  
• Developing a homeboy lexicon
  

SOOOO busy

Except SO not, which is why I'm writing this while currently at work. After a short lived job that actually paid me money, which I quit because it sucked, I am just interning for the local congressman at his district office twice a week. Even though its incredible dull and they dont have much for me to do (like right now), theres a couple good things. Its only 8 hours a week, so manageable and it gets my mom off my back. Its good for a resume. And now I know I dont want to work in a district office because its very boring.

Other than that I havent been doing much at all. Havent flown half way across the work, havent even spent my summer in a drunken haze. It makes me miss you all terribly. Went to the beach for the week of the 4th. Highlight of the week was getting my bike stolen. We never lock anything up bc its this tiny town in delaware, but it seems the thiefs didnt think to lock them up either bc the next morning we saw them lying on the side of the road and stole them right back. Sat I'm going down to DC to be a counselor for IR camp for a week, which should be fun. And I'm gonna try to go to Kenner League games while I'm there to get my basketball fix. Last sat I was sitting w/ a bunch of friends, one from unc, uva, md, and me and we sat there just talking about basketball in the first week in July. Sad? probably, but I'm ok w/ that. Not like baseballs something to talk about.

Anyone who's going to dc or close enough to visit totally should. Otherwise, everyone have fun and keep telling me about your exciting lives so I can live vicariously through you!

Crazy Adventures

Well, I have a great story which involves me getting very drunk and waking up in a strange place, but will inform everyone in person.
I am down in our nation's capital doing the whole unpaid intern thing, working for a lobby group run by a few nuns. They are really funny and I have an amazing time at it. Whenever there is a cool meeting, they will take me along, like during that immigration broohaha. Why does America have to kick so much ass that everyone wants to come in? They have me working on green affordable housing, researching bills and calling up congressman. We all eat lunch together and it's very communal.
To make money, you know some change in my pocket, I've been mentoring in the ASK program. I believe that I have endeared myself to them for they have already given me a nickname. In all my years ballin at Rucker Park and at Grand & Warren, I had never been given a nickname, well maybe one if you count John Stockton. The boys seem to call me Clumsy and Doofus, although I find it hard to understand their primative language. Gestures and pointing acount for most of our communication. I am notsure what these two words mean in their language, but it must be something good because the words are always followed by smiles and such raucus laughter. I hope to one day completely learn their language and write a dictionary.
By the way, we have caught either 5 or 6 mice so far in our house. Please feel free to stop by if you are in the neighborhood 3513 O Street NW

oh ps

by the way, i'm gonna be at georgetown for the first weekend before i go to france and all, provided i find somewhere to stay for a while. it's one of those ostensibly to declare my major, realistically to see everyone before i'm gone type things. i'm pretty excited, i definitely miss the place.

Unlike the rest of these postings, my summer has been fairly uneventful so far. I spend 8 hours a day, 5 days a week in a building shaped like a person. Strange, I know. And you'll never guess where the main entrance is. Well my cubicle is located in the right armpit, and that pretty much describes my summer so far.

However, the next few weeks are going to bring with it some excitement and change to this monotonous life I've been living. The next few weekends involve me, the sun, and the infamous Jersey shore. I have decided to reward myself with a 5 day weekend this weekend and a 3 day weekend next weekend. Hopefully this will bring out the "red skin" native american in me and I can stop looking like I'm wearing a t-shirt to the beach. Though I must say it's gotten better over the fast 2 weekends, both involving major sunburns.

For those interested, probably no one except Tim and Mike, only 2 months and 13 days until yours-truely is 21. Big party in Kober 7. ;) (That probably interests more than just Tim and Mike.) And to everyone else, keep enjoying your summers.

Hong Kong, Thailand, North Jersey, etc.

So here's my short little update which will never actually be able to fit everything that's happened this summer so far:

I went to Hong Kong with the MSB/Ronkainen program for 5 weeks, kind of like Klancie with the 2 classes bit, but decidedly not like Klancie with the being in China bit. Even though it was a bit odd not being able to understand anything that was being said on the subway ever, Hong Kong's not all that different than a western city, but pretty kickass, in my opinion. Our professors basically told us to enjoy being in Asia rather than do our work, and so I ended up in Thailand for one hell of a weekend--the place is GORGEOUS. Got my fix of tropical paradise and came back to HK, then went to Macau (think Vegas, but Asian and not quite developed yet) and the mainland (but only to Shenzhen, Dongguan, and Guangzhou, which are all manufacturing centers and aren't all that interesting). I was glad to see Newark when it was time to get back to the States, which is saying something. But the whole trip was pretty amazing.

Now I'm in North Jersey at Ramapo College being an RTA for NJ Gov school of int'l studies, something I did in high school--basically I just supervise research for a country team of 10 kids (Brazil) and spark/facilitate debate between lots of the smartest high schoolers in Jersey. That and run a MUNish thing/muck around the UN headquarters and get awesome food in the delegate dining hall.

Not much else going on...looking forward to Harry Potter and finally being 20, oh, and seeing the Decemberists next week in MD.

Er, that's it, hope everyone's having fun!

A boring summer gets exciting - fast.

Hey guys,

I'm spending my summer at home (Seattle!) and working at the restaurant where I've worked for the past two summers. Everything has been pretty chill, aside from the fact that I got a little angsty about not having anything to do/ a bunch of my friends aren't here/ wtf why did I decide to go to Russia in the fall? However, I had the great luck to have a mid-summer jolt of excitment. Here it is:

So, I'm house-sitting for these family friends and they have a pretty nice house and are letting me drive their swanky Mercedes. Cool, right? Uh huh, until I went and ran that Mercedes into a fence on Saturday evening. I was driving to work from the Johnson's (the peeps whose house I'm taking care of) and right when I'm almost to St. Clouds (the restaurant where I work), I have to pull over to let a fire truck go in front of me. So, I'm following the fire truck up the hill when I start thinking that it might be going to the restaurant, I get closer and I realize it looks like its going to the elementary school a block away. Anyway, these types of thoughts are meandering through my head as I'm parking the car in a lot across the street from the restaurant. I suddenly realize that I'm going a little fast and should brake. I start pushing my foot down, but - gasp! - it's not on the brake, it's on the gas. I get the car about halfway through the fence and about a foot away from a house before I get it stopped. At this point I am crying and yelling profanities, so a guy who was walking by runs over to help me because it sounds like I'm dying. I kind of blubber to him and then he tells me that his wife is across the street and she called the police. At the time, I kind of wanted to be like, "She did WHAT?!?!?!" Because I did not want the po-pos there getting me in all kinds of trouble. But they were all nice and I called my dad and then went to St. Clouds (still crying) to tell them that I was going to be late because I crashed the car. Fast forward, and everyone - my dad and sis, people from St. Clouds, rando neighbors - is helping me get the car out of the fence. Oh, and it also got jammed on the top of a small parking barrier, so I couldn't just back out. At one point we had people sitting on the back of the hood, pushing backwards and holding the fence up (it was chain link and pretty bendy). In the end, we had to call a tow truck to get it out, but it turns out that all of the damage is just cosmetic. A relief, but cosmetic damage to a Mercedes is still pretty pricey.

So, you would think that with that kind of major fuck up, I would be in a really bad mood - but I'm totally not! I'm actually feeling a lot better about, well, everything. It's almost a relief to have a real problem to take care of, a purpose or something. Also, I realized that if I can mess something up so cosmically in about two seconds, I can likely make things better too. I've also realized that all the stuff that I've been fixating on is minor in comparison and I should just chill the fuck out. Maybe it was my mid-summer wake up call. Not to mention the fact that everyone is being super nice to me and my faith in humanity has been completely restored.

The family doesn't get back until Saturday, and I've been getting estimates on the repair work. It will be expensive, but I'm just glad to be making some concrete steps toward remedying the situation. I'm sure that sitting down with Doug (the owner) and telling him what I did will be anything but pleasant, but I'll just have to suck it up.

Other than that, it's just life as usual.

Happy posting!