Sweet Summertime

AND about six weeks later...I'm baaaack!! Now, I am OFFICIALLY a COLLEGE GRADUATE!! As in, I have a bachelor of arts in English from Montana State University! Sounds so official. Somehow I survived my last class, despite an unfortunate professor, with flying colors, and even learned something and managed to have some fun! I did learn that it's definitely true: just because you speak a language doesn't mean you can teach it! Sure got me thinkin' about my possible career teaching English as a second language.

After a successful finish, I went off to Washington state for a fabulous, well-deserved vacation! It was truly incredible. One day, my boyfriend and I made a long trip to Victoria, Canada on Vancouver Island, and it was one of the best days of my life!! A little dramatic, but it still feels that way almost a month later. I flew over with my friend Hannah, who was visiting her boyfriend working for NAV-C in Seattle, and it was GREAT flying with someone!! I usually fly alone or with my dad, who mostly zones out to his music or sleeps, and isn't exactly as entertained or full of interesting gossip as my old friend Hannah T :).

Unfortunately before I left, I found out that I had a kidney infection--oodles and oodles of fun--so the first day or two was a little calmer than we had planned. But on Saturday, my boyfriend's dad had his 50th birthday party, and we wandered around Olympia, and spent Sunday with his family and just resting.

Mooonndddaaaaay it was off to oh CANADAAAA! Victoria was incredible, so beautiful, I loved it so much I'm considering going to graduate school there!

But before we even got there, an old dream of mine came true--we saw some orca whales on the ferry ride across the sound! I was so happy I literally cried.

Perfect beginning to a perfect day.

We landed, wandered around the little area, avoided the rain, and had a delectable English tea, complete with a silver tray!

After our delicious tea, we took a long bus ride up the island to visit...the Butchart Gardens!! They were incredible and I almost broke my camera taking pictures of practically every flower. Here are some of my favorites!! :) Also, just click on the photo for a larger view--especially the flower ones, as you can see every drop of rain! Not even rain could deter from these Gardens.

The rest of the day--including the drive back to Olympia through the Olympic National Park, which was surprisingly rural--was also so fun!!

So was the rest of the trip! We hung out on the Sound, and in Seattle visiting Hannah and her boyfriend, and our friends Lindsay, Gordon, Casey, Chris Sjoberg, and we even ran into my brother, who was visiting the area for a wedding. We also went to the BEACH, my main true love, and had Thai food and sushi and just a wonderful wonderful time!

It was the best vacation, completely worth the wait. Here a few more pictures:

Nowadays, I'm working at the Chronicle,studying for the GRE--October 1st!--and being a slave at the law office, and I just recently got hired for Express Professionals, a temp agency. I'm planning my trip to Thailand like a fiend, unlike Peru, I might actually be prepared, complete with the perfect, thoroughly researched travel sandals and my own mini-pharmacy. My shots are up-to-date, my travel book is dog-eared, my lists are made and keep getting longer...I am an expert planner.

I'm also beginning to apply to GRAD SCHOOOOooooL! I still have applied to both AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps, and I have a few leads on journalism jobs, so I have a million options and a million choices.

School started for pretty much everyone I know this week, which got me thinking about my future. Grad school is very exciting right now--I'm looking at the University of Victoria, Portland State, University of South Carolina, Missoula, Trinity College Dublin, and a gazillion more. Grad schools are intense!!!!!

BUT REALLY, this blog is about my exploration of the world and life, which is continuing in OCTOBER!! I'm so excited! The first few weeks, our friend in the Peace Corps, Liz, has time off, so we're landing and heading to the beach.

To prepare, my dad and I are taking long-awaited scuba lessons right here in Bozeman! So hopefully I'll get a chance to do that at one of the best places in the world for it...if I pass the class, that is!

It will be sooooo nice--especially after the cool summer Bozeman has had!!

I'm also looking at options for when I return. I'm still considering teaching English abroad, although I love writing more every day. Also, next summer, I'm looking at GeoVisions, a way to teach conversational English to a family in exchange for room and board. Always looking to the future and planning...

I hope all of you, my many many avid readers, are having a wonderful August! Happy SEPTEMBER, tomorrow! Eek

Resurrection

For the many, many out there keepin' up with my blog...my adventure to see the world will continue this fall as I visit Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam with my cousin Courtney and our friend Liz. Liz is living near Chiang Mai in the north of Thailand working with the Peace Corps, so it'll be great to visit and stay with someone who knows what is what in the country! We will fly into Bangkok on the 22 of October and out of Hanoi, Vietnam on the 22 of December, into LAX, where I'll spend a few days visitingfamily before heading to spend some time with my mom's side in San Antonio, Texas. It'll be seriously nice to be traveling with someone--it's cutting down on the terror quite a bit, let me tell you.

A lot has happened since I last wrote--I'm officially published, by writing for a local magazine, a local creative writing publication, and a local newspaper. I am also THREE WEEKS away from finishing my undergraduate degree in English! So excited. It was a long, tough year--I have truly never worked so hard in my life. Make sure to check out my other blog from my major capstone in English here. It was such a fun class and I still miss it! But I am

definitely enjoying summer, alright!! Although currently I'm taking a Spanish class...I hope to continue with that in my future. I also took an online class in linguistics. Otherwise, after my awesome graduation day with an insane party, I've been working at the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, and am still working for a local law office, Tarlow Stonecipher & Steele. My traveling has continued with a visit to California for my cousin's wedding, and in a few weeks, an awesome fun-filled vacation to Seattle to celebrate finishing my class AND my 23rd (eeks!) birthday. Also last August I went out to Seattle, but it ended up being a dramatic and not always fun trip (LOoooong story), as did my Christmastime and June trips to California (although still fun and great to see family!), so this is going to be a true VACATION. We're even going up to Victoria, Canada, for one day, my first time back to Canada since I was like, four months old. My parents had me baptized on Vancouver Island by an uncle around 23 years ago...I think that's the last time I was there.

My future is so open right now. I'm writing on the joy of that feeling right now...hello Asia!...and avoiding the inset of reality until next March when I have to start paying off my loans. I have so many ideas on what I want to do next--journalism school, a master's in creative writing, teaching English abroad, the AmeriCorps, the Peace Corps...it's kind of terrifying and awesome at the same time. Choices choices choices.

It's going to be a great year I think, stay tuned!

XOXO

p.s. I finally learned how to add pictures and links into the post! hooray!