Spring Break?

I've been prompted to up-date, so here you have it.

After my return from Europe and touring domestically through the holidays, I decided it was time for a bit more structure and enrolled in several classes at JCCC.

I am enjoying my two acting classes and the way my Lifetime Fitness class is helping me to combat the effects of delicious French cheeses; assisting me to fit into my own clothes again!

I had been without work since I left the Fire Department in May, content to tighten my belt while searching through jobs, working on my genealogy project, and floating by on my savings.
I knew this was a limited option and was hoping that one of my applications would soon pay off.
Happily that is just what happened and I got the call to come in for a day of training in the middle of Spring Break. While this put a damper on travel plans I was considering, it was the better option financially. Since I'd given in to travel fairly consistently for the past six months, it was time to bring balance to the force and make the wise move monetarily.

Twelve hours of training and one St. Pat's Day sadly under celebrated, I am now an employee of the Federal Government! I worked my first full-day as a U.S. Census Bureau Representative on Friday, March 19th. It is a temporary position, only lasting a month. I have confidence however that other opportunities will open up after this one. A friend of mine, upon hearing the news laughed at the fact that I am again in a position to badger him about something.
It's my JOB people! Yeah, I get a kick out of it. Have YOU filled out your Census form yet???

All-in-all things are going well. I have work I feel good about doing and am getting paid for...though come to think of it, I never did confirm what I would be getting paid! I suppose this is another element of 'trust' in my gypsy lifestyle, that if I continue to apply myself , things will manifest in such a way that my needs are met.

I love that my Theatre classes give me an excuse to go see more live theatre, though I'd forgotten how much I tend to freely spend on 'the arts'. I will do my best to wait on that first paycheck...but I must admit to feeling that it is time to work my way back into the dance scene!
I have a couple friends who I'm eager to take on as dance partners, having married off my last one in February. Congrats Carl and Rachel!

Friday of next week I will be among students presenting English translations of the work of visiting Russian poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko. It will be in one of JCCC's theaters and I believe tickets are free, but you'd need to contact the box office in advance. This is a very exciting opportunity and I hope those of you who are in the area will attend!

Emerald Isle

Ireland was exactly what you think it would be.
Charming, mystical, musical, down-to-earth, green, windy, chilly, and in the particular bit that I visited, ready for a cup of tea! My TEFL friend Kate was the perfect person for me to travel with. I believe this may have been our second of four stops for tea on this particular leg of the cross-country road trip.
We took the scenic view from Dublin to Galway, stopping over in Kilkenny to picnic on the lawn of the castle before going inside to watch a puppet show put on by a story-teller friend of her sisters.

and there was MORE!

The Cliffs of Moher to be specific. (Ok, bad pun, I know. The bad pun police already have my on their top ten list, but there's no stopping me!) We took in spectacular natural views all throughout the trip, but the cliffs were a particular attraction.
Kate and I determined that there was a five second limit to how long you could be out-of-doors and still have your hair left in-tact by the wind on the day that we visited. We both managed to stand planted firmly enough to maintain our view from the top which I have sampled for you below.




There were also Extremely Dangerous cows there, per this sign, but that did not keep me from venturing closer for a view of the cliffs from the other side.

Besides, Kate tells me that the most dangerous creatures on the Island are bees, so I wasn't overly concerned.

We made the return trip from Galway to Dublin in just around 4 hours.

...

4 hours. Cross-country.
We may have consumed more tea on the trip than the car consumed fuel on the journey.
I'll have to check with Kate on that one. I don't quite have my conversions down yet! ;)

All-in-all it was a very satisfying addition to my European excursions.

Jolly Good!

I've arrived in England and am already having a jolly good time!
My accommodations are with Michael, a friend from the fire department, who is set up nicely in a place right around the corner from Windsor Castle. The food is hearty and the weather unpredictable, a little taste of home!

I have done lots of exploring, a fair bit of relaxing, and even made some new friends!

Paris, Versailles, Paris

This was a whirlwind trip!
I had one whim to spend coming into/ through Paris on the way to Versailles and I spent it on Notre Dame. Verdict = Whim well-spent!





Wednesday I went to dinner with Virginie and met her friend Mary. Pizza and ice cream and a lot of smiles!




Thursday was another travel day for me, but Mary was amazing and took time over her lunch hour to show me some of the big sights I'd wanted to fit in while in the city.

There are a few other pics that I will have to add from this amazing adventure, stay tuned!

Thanks again Virginie and Mary for your hospitality!

Southern France

It really doesn't do it justice to try an fit all of my time in the South of France into one blog post, but at the pace I'm going, I'll be home before you hear about it otherwise!
I have been able to visit with all of the student visitors from Bordeaux University that came during my time with the Overland Park Fire Department.

Emilie (2008) did a wonderful job of coordinating everyone on somewhat short notice for my arrival and accommodation for much of my stay. A big thank-you and hugs to her, as well as congratulations for finishing her University program and passing her test!
Here she is on the day we spent together taking in the sights of Bordeaux; setting an example of enjoying the French aire!

My next stop was a visit with Aurelie (Olathe 2008) to stay with her family in La Teste France near the sea. Here we are pictured preparing to hike up the famous 'Dune du Pyla', Europe's largest sand dune! We were able to bike to the Dune in 20 minutes from her house and just on the other side is a breathtaking view of the Atlantic ocean to the South and to the North, the bay of Arcachon. Another congrats is in order to Aurelie and her family on the marriage of her brother Michael as well as an early Happy Birthday to Aurelie!

I had a short stop-over with Manon (2009) and her family at their home in Merignac near Brodeaux. We went into the city center to observe the Bastille Day festivities and watch some fireworks!


I enjoyed a lovely drive through French pine forests with Elodie. There is still much evidence of the huge storm that came through earlier this year and took down many of the pine trees that are a large part of the economy here. She explained to me that there is now a great fear of fire with all of the downed trees drying out and in fact since I have been here there were fires set in the forest and already 6 Spanish fire fighters have died in the battle. Please keep them in your prayers.

We drove on to Julien's (2007) home for a celebration very similar to what takes place in Pamplona Spain surrounding the running of the bulls. I walked into this somewhat blindly, but everyone was great to get me up to speed quickly! Elodie's parents lived very nearby so we went there one afternoon and evening to celebrate her birthday! Everyone was in a spirited mood and I had great fun as well as some really good conversation as everyone was eager to practice their English with me and I was happy to try to improve my French!

Elodie was kind enough to host me the day of our return and then for the following week I stayed at the Jansens home with Manon and her family.

I had a lot of fun going on bike rides with her sisters, meeting with friends of the family over home-made French meals, visiting her fire station, meeting Remy, the English teacher for the students of the Bordeaux program, touring wine country and learning about St. Emilion, taking a trip to the other side of the Bay for an afternoon at the beach, climbing and swinging through the tree tops at an adventure course with Manon and her youngest sister Clemence, and going to a special show depicting the Battle of Castillion.

I am so greatful to all of my host families for their incredible hospitality, for introducing me to new and wonderful things, for being so patient with my limited ability to speak French, and for sharing their homes and their lives with me, making memories I will always cherish. Bisous!