Saturday, January 31, 2009

The Beach, Sweet Baby Ray, and A Lot of Hummus...

I spent the majority of the last week bumming around San Diego (Point Loma University) with my cousin Courtney...hanging out on the gorgeous campus, watching the ocean pretty much whenever possible, driving her roommates crazy with my mini-explosions of stuff and by gawking at their drama, and pretty much becoming my cousin's other half. It was such an awesome week kicking it true California style (I swear it really seemed like all the movies...the ones at the beach that is) that it's much harder to head off on my next adventure than I thought! Point Loma is probably the prettiest campus I've ever been to, and I spent lots of time wandering around, tripping over my own feet after being mesmerized by the ocean. The weather was fairly chilly at first, including on the night we decided to try sleeping on the cliffs over the waves...good idea, but next time I'd definitely take a sleeping pad!! Brrr. I spent quite some time down at Ocean Beach, the hippiest part of S.D. and therefore my cousin's favorite, exploring the shops and tide pools and the farmer's market. On Wednesday I had my first memorable surfing experience...I came out a little bloody and battered but still alive! I even managed to enjoy the sunset while flailing around on my board, and am pretty convinced I need to become a surf bum when I come back from S.A. Although I may want to practice more...I stood up for all of one second before somehow coming painfully face-to-face with my lovely foam board!
After a beautiful sunrise over the bay (Mission? San Diego? Harbor?) from a cemetery, on Wednesday night I went with Loma's Homeless Outreach Program, which I was kind of dreading but turned out to be really fun. My favorite guy was Ray (yes, Sweet Baby Ray!) who is absolutely adorable and completely infatuated with my cousin. My other cousin came down from Orange County the next night for some dueling piano bar fun in Downtown San Diego, and we managed to have a good, inexpensive time, even though the pianists were pretty painful to listen to! Invest in some decent singers Shouthouse!!!
I'm back in Temecula, already missing the beach, and cramming all of my stuff--including a mini pharmacy and about five hundred t-shirts--into just two bags. I'm pretty sure my cousin's roommates were cheering when I finally stopped sleeping on their floor, and I swear I will be on one's blacklist forever for eating her hummus (I swear I didn't!!!) I left Loma amid some drama--I probably won't be welcome back again thanks to my big mouth--but it was an awesome time anyway!! Who knew a Christian school could be so fun?? (Just kidding!!)
I fly out of L.A. tomorrow (eeee!) at around 9 A.M. Pacific time. I'm pretty freakin' nervous right now, worried about money and my Spanish. I made the discovery when sitting in Hannah's Spanish class this week that if I were thrown into prison for accidentally transporting drugs or happen to get sold into white slavery, I can confidently ask what I'm being charged for and where they're taking me...but will I understand the answer?? Chances are slim at this point...so keep your fingers crossed that I make it to my first class so I can remedy this issue!
I hope all of you many, many avid readers of my blog out there (haha) are doing wonderfully--and I hope you all keep reading and keep in touch :) I'm so glad to have been here in SoCal and I'll miss everyone here (even the hummus-hater) so much! But one must go onward.......

Sunday, January 25, 2009

On my way!

I left Bozeman with a great send-off, a giant backpack, a carry-on completely stuffed, and an extremely bulky wedding present that caused me much trouble and many an annoyed look from fellow passengers (especially the older man whom I wacked in the face with it--thankfully, they're just sheets in the box so not too heavy--as I was attempting to cram it in one of the godforsaken overhead bins). My first flight was fairly smooth, although breaking through the clouds and leaving Bozeman below was a surprisingly emotional moment. We landed in Denver successfully, and I loafed around the airport while they fixed our plane. The next flight was okay--I promptly passed out on my (cute) neighbor and drooled all over his shoulder...charming I know. It was incidentally a conversation starter, and we were getting on famously until we hit some turbulence and he proceeded to upchuck for the next hour! Despite this unfortunate (and gross!) issue, we made it safely into John Wayne airport, and from there I headed to Ralph and Annie's rehearsal dinner. The next day was filled with wedding details and lots of family members, with the usual confusion, drama and some laughs thrown in there. My little cousin Luke is adorable, Annie and Ralph were happy and gorgeous, and I had a lot of fun! I'm hanging out in SoCal in balmy 60 degree weather with various family members for the next week or so, and I fly out next weekend to...drumroll please...beautiful Cuzco, Peru, smack dab in the middle of the Andes! That is if I ever get my flight confirmation email! I'm already getting homesick for all my family and friends back in Bozeman, but so far it's great to be in Cali mooching off family! I still have a few details to figure out before I head down to South America, but hopefully all will go smoothly and then ALL of you can come visit! Hope you find my blog entertaining or at least something to read when you need a break from school or work--and keep in touch! I love sending emails and letters and postcards, so just get me your address and you won't be disappointed :) Love!