A Dose of 'D'!

A B-eautiful day and the freedom to enjoy it!
After class this morning I gathered with a few friends to enjoy an event taking place on campus. There was karaoke and a good number of my new friends are the type who willingly partake in such things so we stuck around and enjoyed the show!
I also got in a bit of dancing, which makes any day better, in my opinion.

I even managed to spend a few productive hours following the event, getting some info. from the student center, working out at the fitness center, shopping for healthful foods, and tending to my little garden plots. Now it is time to study!

Reflecting

I am coming up on a year since departing on my European Adventure!

Classes are going well, Census job round II kicked off this afternoon, and I am enjoying life in general.
School is a great place to make new friends and one of mine has inspired me to pick back up with my blog. A photo a day and a caption, to help me focus on all the good in life and to share the highlights with those near and dear to me. (Also with those who are not-as-near and who are not all necessarily on Facebook!)
This first pic is not from today, but it is a good one to get caught-up-to-speed with, as it includes my new friend Jessica (left), our friend Sarah, and myself sharing a moment at Improv. rehearsal. I just hope Jessica doesn't mind that I 'borrowed' it from her!

Last Day of Spring Break 2010

I tried Korean food for the first time today. Curried rice with...what I think was beef, and some vegetables. I eagerly scooped it up with my long silver spoon. Very tasty! There was also a white, firm vegetable in the center, paired with spinach? both coated in a spicy red sauce. Diners shared these plates, taking bites with chop sticks to be eaten over their plates. I am prompted to explore Korean restaurants in our area. Let me know if you already have a favorite!

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.