Random thoughts...

*Dog poo is all over the place, and you are almost guaranteed to step in it with some frequency. Old toothbrushes (you are suppose to get a new toothbrush every 6 weeks) are good for cleaning the poo off your trainers.

*Being in the church alone is freaky, and I am convinced there is a ghost (even though I don't know that I really believe in them).

*I finally took a train here, just a wee trip from Dunmurry to Lisburn, but it was pretty exciting. The trains are new and pretty dang swanky!

*Belfast smells like old cheddar cheese. It is Thomson Feed Plant that stinks so much. The wind makes the smell go away- the only advantage to the wind. I walk extra fast on smelly days.

*The metric system means you must convert recipes to grams. The McCormick family does not own measuring cups, meaning my peach cake recipe or wanna be King Cake was a total disaster and now they think I can not cook for anything (there is some truth to their opinion, but I am not as completely hopeless as they think)

*The bum of old jeans will rip massively when attempting flips on a trampoline : )

*Butchers here hook you up if they know you... like 5 free sausages and 3 big stuffed pork chops for 2.20!

*I am the proud owner of leggings. And funny enough they are little girls (well 13 years size..haha) Yes, they are bringing back the early 90s over here! I even saw some with stir ups!

*We often chat more in the office than work. It is great.

*I can't ever do the peace corp if my recruiter doesn't ever email me back to set up an interview. How many emails a week is appropriate for me to send?

*I am crap at badminton. They love it here- um and they are good, especially the ladies at church. But I like to play.

*Dad sent me a picture of my car this week. He is a cruel cruel man.

*Chess is a great way to get youth talking. Especially when they have never before had anything to say to you other than to tell you how much you suck.

*St. Patrick's day is celebrate more in the states than in Ireland. Don't worry, we will change that this year...

*My kids make fun of me for being so American. But when I talk like them they laugh too. Its a lose-lose situation.

*There are 20 days until Red Nose Day! and 31 until I go to Egypt!

amazing views and fresh air...

The early part of the week, I went with my housemates and Doug on our second retreat of the year to County Donegal in the Republic. We spent a relaxing three days out in the middle of no where, in a cute little cottage on Roy Island. (I think it was named for the amazing Roy Williams... and was happy to stay there!) We stopped at a few spots on the way including the round tower of Antrim, where they would climb and be safe from attack and a holy well. The rags in the tree are from the well, where legend has it if you dip a cloth in the well and wash an infected area, then tie the rag in the trees over the well, as the rag disintegrates, so will the sickness. I was super surprised to see so many rags still hanging. It was a pretty cool site. We hiked up to amazing views and walked along sandy beaches. And we froze a little. But, we had pretty sunny weather or at least decently dry weather which was lovely.

We learned that Doug is a master of words when we played lingo and he kicked our butts. Well, actually, I won the first round : ) But it was a good just chill time to fully get over being sick! On our way home Wednesday we stopped in Derry for a nice Valentines lunch at a pretty posh restaurant. Minus the tons of couples around it, the day could have easily passed with little notice of the holiday- which was nice. I got home to find a tape of the Carolina dook game and a valentine from mom. What more could a girl want on valentines? A huge rivalry game where you already know that your team comes out on top!

Actually, watching the game was pretty painful and made me realize I am glad I didn't see it live, Carolina played AWFULLY until the last 5 minutes or so. Thankfully for my roommates sake, I already knew the ending, so they didn't get to experience what its really like to be in the same house as me during a game. I kept my exasperation in my head because I knew, in the end, we would pull it out. But wow, there would have been much to shout about.

Yesterday, we celebrated Joyce's last day working with PCT. She has a new job that she will start Monday and while I will miss her terribly, I am glad she has found something else to move on to. She was always the one to chat with me in the office about anything and everything and was always so helpful if I needed anything. It will be different without her around! But, mom, you would be proud, I tried both smoked salmon and scrambles eggs - I haven't eaten them since I was little. And surprisingly they both weren't terrible. I don't know that I would crave them, but they were nice.

I have my interview next week for the Peace Corp... should be good. It is hard to think about that when I am still here. As well, my flights are booked home, although I still have to mail my paper tickets back to get them officially changed. I will be home at 9pm 15 August. What a crazy feeling that is. And I leave Belfast at 9am, and it will feel like 2am when I arrive. WORST! But I still wanna drive home from the airport... hopefully in my love, Plumy, who I have missed terribly! Mom and dad are treating her well though : ) Oh to drive.... gahhhh.

Alright, I'm not terribly feeling this post, so I am going to end here.
xoxo

Put on a Happy Face...

and a RED NOSE!
This week I learned about what I am thinking has and will continue to become my favorite biennial holiday (that means it happens every other year....) Red Nose Day is a UK-wide fundraising event organised by Comic Relief which culminates in a night of extraordinary comedy and moving documentary films. Comic Relief is a charity set up by comedians that uses comedy and laughter to get a serious messages across, while making sure that everyone who gets involved can have fun at the same time. Over the years, more than 2 thousand celebrities have given their time and talent to Comic Relief, and Red Nose Day is the biggest TV fundraising event in the UK calendar. On Red Nose Day everyone in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland is encouraged to cast inhibitions aside, put on a red nose, and do something a little bit silly to raise money. It is an event that unites the entire nation in trying to make a difference to the lives of thousands of individuals facing terrible injustice or living in abject poverty.

I learned about Red Nose Day through two TV adverts, one for toilet paper and the other for red noses at a grocery store. So I checked it out. Since Red Nose Day's launch in 1985 Comic Relief has raised over £425 million. That cash is helping to change countless lives for the better, both in the UK and internationally. 60% of the money raised helps to give people living in grinding poverty across Africa a better chance in life. 40% helps disadvantaged people and communities across the UK turn their lives around. Money in Africa goes to projects in aid of street children, HIV & AIDS care, urban slums, women and girls empowerment, trade, and areas affected by conflict. Money in the UK is spent on youth work, pensioners clubs, mental health, refugees, domestic violence, and disadvantaged communities. For more information, including which organizations have received grants and the details (pretty informative!) see www.rednoseday.com. Seems like they are doing some pretty great work!

This year Red Nose Day is on 16 March and I am stoked! The whole idea is pretty crazy, just do something wild, anything to raise money and complete it with a red nose! Pretty SWEET! So I decided to get involved and to get my youth at church involved as well. I still have to get the churches approval.. but there are big plans in the works! We are going to be doing a spare change drive and provide members of the congregation with cool cups to pile their coins into. We are also planning a dance marathon for 9 March, where we will remain on our feet from 8pm to 8am with sponsors supporting us. And for the big goal/dream, I am even hoping to get a local restaurant to donate 10% of its profits for the day on Red Nose Day to Comic Relief! But we will see if that works out!!

AND if you want to donate money there is a very easy way! I have started a fundraising page for my youth, it can be access at www.myrednoseday.com/thepoint and you can easily donate a few bucks- which will be turned into a few quid! I am excited to take on this challenge with my youth and to encourage them to make a difference and show them we can have fun doing it. This Sunday they will each get a foam red nose of their own to be worn during our time of fundraising! I am sure there will be fun pictures to share soon. I can't wait to see how much money our wee group can raise!

Your prayers for the success of our fundraising as well of the whole event are much appreciated. I am sure I will keep you posted, as I was up til 3am last night too excited about all this to fall asleep! (maybe it was the Sudafed? I am still not feeling 100%)

sniff, cough, HI

I apologize for the gap in Blogs. Generally this means I have been busy or travelling. Sadly, this gap is due only to one nasty flu virus that has settled into my life. Today is day 5 of the illness and I am beginning to go SUPER stir crazy as I haven't left the house, or even my PJs, since Saturday. On a brighter note, I am feeling better and am hoping that today is my gift day (meaning my gift to myself) on last day to relax so that flu doesn't come back again in a day or two. I am desperate to get life going again and to remember what it feels like to breath outta my nose!

Before I knew that I would be cooped up in bed for a few days, I went to see a pretty good film. I love the cinema, the big screen, the smell (and lets be honest, the greasy buttery taste) of theater popcorn that no matter what, you can't achieve at home. After the walk down, the burning in my chest finally wore off by the end of the previews, and I felt like I would fall asleep. Determined to get my £3.50 worth, I struggled to stay awake. We went to see 'The Pursuit of Happiness' with Will Smith. I think it has come and gone in cinemas there, probably with little praise. My roommate said she was disappointed in it, and while there were times where it was slow, overall I am grateful that I saw it. The film is based on the true story of a man who is faced with poverty. It shows the struggles and small triumphs as he goes from his own home to a line around the block each night for a bed at a shelter. As I watched, I thought of my friend Emma in Tanzania telling me that her friends there don't believe that there are poor people in America. This film gives one a face, a name, and a story. And I liked that.

Alison just told me there is talk of a blizzard. Now, I am sure a blizzard these days in Belfast means an inch or two, but it has been the coldest week since we have been here (Luckily, I haven't been outside since Saturday...) But it would be nice to see some snow!

As for being sick, I have had so many offers to bring me anything I could ever need, from tons of people including a woman I was to meet with about a new volunteer placement whom I have never met. I have been so grateful and so wonderfully surprised by how nice everyone has been. So momma, don't worry I am in good hands...

Now, for some more sad news. Today, is one of my most favorite days in the world. One of two each winter. A day that I am very sad to say that I no longer live in North Carolina. Today is Carolina Dook match-up #1 of the season. I am still filled with that nervous/excited feeling, despite being forever miles away and the game doesn't come on til 2am here. (Maybe its just flu symptoms?!?) Even though it doesn't need to be said... GOOO HEELS.

alright, really I don't have much to say after hangin out sick for the past few days. so I will leave you be.

My Heart is in another place...

It has been a while and yet I still can't satisfy your longing for a big update on my life just now. However, I wanted to pass on this article from allafrica.com. Look for the parts about the US. I am still working out my opinion on it all, but my first instinct was to be mad. The US needs to do whatever it takes to continue the peace talks, not continue stalling them.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200702020955.html

more soon, i promise!