BLAH

 Dear Someone,

            Today it snowed. It was really quite magical. I woke up and looked out my window to find snowflakes loftily dancing about Palace Court. It was as if my lovely place of residence was enclosed in a snow globe. I am partial to snow.

            Today was a blah day. I have spent the two past days inside preparing for finals. Staying inside the center that long could possibly cause an acute case of insanity. I know I am on edge. My ability to be patient has been greatly depleted. The time crunch in this beautiful city, along with the impending finals puts everyone on edge. Little things set me off. When I get home I will have so much alone time I won’t know what to do with myself. When I think about it I really am not to thrilled to go back to being a basement dweller by myself. Though I am thoroughly annoyed at this moment. I have grown accustom to sharing a room with 14 girls. It gives me a false sense of security knowing someone else is in the room. Not to mention it means that I have 14 wardrobes to pick from each morning. It really is very ideal. I should be more patient. It is an extremely taxing process. What a blah day.

            Wish me luck! I have digressed from my studies for long enough.

Cheers!

Miss Fin

Thanksgiving Thoughts

 Dear Someone,

            Oh happy day! Isn’t it a wonderful feeling just to be alive? You will have to pardon my cliché statement. Though I was not home with you to enjoy the Thanksgiving festivities I still took the time to contemplate what I am grateful for. I am so pleased that as an American each year I have opportunity to ponder. Ponder the many beautiful, and marvelous things in my life. How different would the world be if we were a more gracious people?

             I wish I could eloquently organize my thoughts. The words seem to be a jumble on the page. I am so grateful for this opportunity I have had to study abroad. I am grateful for this experience because the introspection it has given me. It seems to me that in life it is all too easy to become complacent. This opportunity has put me in situations that have been uncomfortable, challenging, and new. Yet I am grateful for them. I have needed this time to get to know myself a little bit better. Learning about things that are challenging for me, and learning areas in my life where I flourish.  This opportunity has challenged me to analyze how I think about the world. To question my thought process, and look for new ways to view a situation or problem.  I have learned that sometimes it’s better to be a follower than a leader. I am grateful for the opportunity to learn. Through attaining knowledge I find that I consistently come to the realization of my nothingness. Being teachable is a humbling experience. 

            I am grateful to live with 36 women. Girls fight. Who would have thought? Despite the fact that we live in a strange Zion like community, we are far from perfect. Some aspects about living with 36 women are less than ideal. I find it a miracle that there isn’t a brawl on the landing each evening. Considering 37 strong women with an array of vibrant personalities get along is astonishing. I find my biggest pet peeve being that no one finds the common decency to flush the toilet. It boggles my mind. Lucky for them my love is not contingent on a flushed toilet. I have learned that it’s okay to have bad days. It’s okay to not like everyone. It’s even okay to not be perfectly content all the time. The point I am trying to make is that it’s okay to have arguments. It’s okay to not always get along. Having different opinions has only opened the door for late night conversations. I have learned countless valuable lessons about friendship by living with these incredible women. I initially was blinded by my prejudice. I have loved getting to know these women in the wee hours of the morning. In a variety of ways they have taught me how a healthy friendship should be. They truly are kindred spirits. I will forever be grateful for the positive impact they have had in my life.  Who knows maybe someday I will bleed blue.

            I love my dear family. I have developed a greater appreciation for my family. I genuinely missed sipping chilled water from ruby goblets in the company of my dear cousins, aunts, and uncles. I have been immensely blessed to have strong binding relationships with my extended family. It is bitter sweet to think that we won’t all be together again for four years. I am proud of my cousins and their desire to serve the Lord. Mr. Hales surly will make a marvelous missionary. Luckily with their absence the beloved rolls from family parties will be left in a greater abundance for the rest of us to enjoy. I needed to remove myself from the situation to gain a deeper love and appreciation for my family. They are wonderful people. I am so proud to be apart of there family.

            Being away from home has also given me the opportunity to recognize the many conveniences of home that I enjoy daily. For example, having a sink that has one-faucet two knobs, the satisfaction of good customer service, and normal peanut butter. I have gained a deeper pride, and adoration for my nation. I am grateful for the freedoms I enjoy.

            I am overwhelmed with gratitude. To simply put it, life is beautiful. This next week will be an interesting one in London town. I am not particularly thrilled about the prospects of Finals. This week will need to be embraced one day at a time. Nine brilliant days left in this charming city. I’ll write when I have time. You will have to forgive me if my correspondence is delayed. I hope all is well!

Cheers!

Miss Fin

Norway

November 23, 2010

Dear Someone,

            I am amazed by how convenient it is to travel in Europe. It is not uncommon for my peers to take off for the weekend to new and exotic places. I look forward to when I come back to Europe. There simply is too much to see. I look forward to the adventures that await me in years to come. I am heading to Spain today for our Thanks Giving break. The warmer climate will be a lovely change from the bitter cold gray streets of London. The city is covered in a blanket of thick fog. Day light fades swiftly. Light escapes the city, almost as quickly as time slips away. Time seems to have an interesting way of presenting it’s self. My heart is heavy as I contemplate limited time.

We spent the last weekend in Norway. We found a cheap flight, and decided to go. We arrived in Oslo in the late evening. We walked off the plane into 18-degree weather. We trudged through the snow in the early hours of the morning searching for our hostile. It was thrilling and terrifying to not have a plan. The streets were still, sweet stillness accompanied the gentle fall of snow. Though we were disoriented the snow brought about a familiar calmness. We walked to the top of the hill and found our lodgings.

 

 

I loved exploring the city. My favorite site was the National Gallery. Oslo houses the Scream painting by Edvard Munch. The Scream actually was not my favorite Munch painting. He has equally compelling works of art. The Oslo museum has a fantastic collection of Impressionists artwork work. I have come to have a deep love, and appreciation for impressionist art work. It was a treat to see this gallery. I was even more pleased that I could identify which period the paintings were from. Perhaps I am now reaping the benefits of studying for humanities.

The Royal Palace

My Nobel Peace Prize!

On the Dock

According to Rick Steve’s Oslo is ranked the most expensive city in Europe. We were budget savvy and found activities that we could do for free. We visited the Houses of Parliament, The Opera House, Nobel Peace Prize Center, The Palace, and a castle that over looks the city near the coast. The sun set at three in the afternoon. Once it was dark we set out to find novelty souvenirs to bring home. After the sun had set a new arctic chill set in. We were pleased to find a rustic tepee refuge in the middle of the city with a roaring fire. It was the best souvenir place we stumbled on. Various antlers, and skins lined the walls. I can think of a rustic Man who would have been particularly pleased with the venue. Strange troll dolls were meticulously arranged. The tepee of wonders had wonderful knitted socks, scarves, and sweaters. The prices were too high for my fancy. I was perfectly content to experience the ambiance. 

Trolls...

 Norway was a fabulous adventure. I am grateful to my friends for dragging me along to situations that I wouldn’t necessarily sign up for on my own. Our navigating skills were highly entertaining. I am so blessed to have these wonderful women in my life. There is no one else I would rather get lost in Europe with. I look forward to traveling with these ladies throughout rest of my life.

Cheers!

Miss Fin

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dear Someone,

         I have little time to write because I have to plane to catch in thirty minuets. I'm off to Spain for the weekend. I love you. I have so many things to inform you of once I return. I have been so very  busy preparing for finals. I love you!

Cheers!

Miss Fin  

OOPS!

Dear Someone,

            I am just going to preface this letter acknowledging the fact I am being irrational. I can only imagine what you would say. Today was just an interesting day... an interesting day full of embarrassment.  Out of all of the emotions embarrassment is the worst. I will admit that is an emotion I deal with rather poorly. I internalize the embarrassment, and let it fester in to a wretched stomach ace. I would much rather feel sad, scared, or lonely.

            I remember one time in particular I was caught kissing. I was so horrified that I vowed not to kiss him for a lengthy time. I was so terribly embarrassed. He was able to laugh about the awkward encounter within minuets. I on the other hand had every intention of curling up into ball. This would allow me to disappear in to the abyss. Now I recognize worse things in life can happen than your special someone’s sister unexpectedly walking in on you. I am happy to report that I am almost to the point where I can laugh about that story. Perhaps I am too easily embarrassed. I’m sure that my fear of embarrassment has to do with one of my personality flaws. Something about being an ENFP would explain my fear of embarrassment. I will have to inquire Miss K. Fin about it. 

            Today I had the opportunity to talk in church. I went over the time that was given. My seven minuet talk quickly developed to be thirteen minuets. It was irresponsible to not watch the time more carefully. Above being irresponsible it was inconsiderate of my peers. I was extremely embarrassed. Irrational, yes. I can justify going over my time allowance by allowing myself to think that the message I was sharing needed to be heard. Next time I am given the opportunity to speak I will be more time conscious. Nevertheless I was tremendously embarrassed. I need to be less egocentric. Guaranteed no one else is slightly concerned about the lack of my time conservation. 

            Did I mention I hate being embarrassed? It most definitely was bad day to not wear my lovely green watch. 

Cheers

Miss Fin

Cambridge

 Dear Someone,

            I don’t think I’ve ever written more in my life than I have this semester. My life seems to be a vast jumble of papers, logs, journals, emails, and letters. Word is consistently open on my desktop. The only problem is I am more inclined to write you to than to write my papers. I am starting to develop a love, hate relationship with writing. Nothing is more rewarding than finding a way to craft my thoughts into words. Yet writing is intimidating. I need write four looming essays and a talk. Procrastination certainly will be the cause of my demise.

            I reluctantly signed up for my classes at the University. It was quite an accomplishment. Preparing for the new semester is a bittersweet experience. I have loved my time here and I have been unenthusiastic about my return to the States.  Yesterday was our last day trip. It is surreal that my semester abroad is coming to a close. Our last day trip was spent in Cambridge. Which if I may say so was simply delightful. It is a charming college town.

             Journeying to England in the early twenties is a passage for the Fin sisters. Though by different means, and for different purposes we have each walked on English sod. As a result learning lessons just as unique and varied as our personalities. Cambridge was the perfect place for Miss K. Fin. We went punting later in the afternoon. The guide explained each college and the students who were typical residence of each. I was so proud to exclaim where my dear sister studied. In my heart she will always be amongst the elite. I am extremely proud of her. It was delightful to walk in her footsteps on perhaps the same cobblestone her green converse trod. 

Cheers!

Miss Fin

Pembroke

Punting

Indigo Coffee House

Sporting our new sweatshirts in our very messy dorm.

 P.S. That is not my side of the dormitory. :) 

Harry Potter

 

Dear Someone,

            Thursday I was a homeless woman. I was bundled within eight layers of clothing three of which were coats. With my cardboard box for a mattress I slept on the streets of London. Yes I legitimately looked homeless. Why you may ask? I have one response for you; I am a devout Harry Potter fan. At 2:45 am twenty of my peers left the center. We set out to claim our spot for the Harry Potter World Premiere. 

 Homeless. Very Attractive, I know

               As a general rule of thumb I do not retain heat very well. It was beyond cold. I found it quite hysterical that I was wearing more layers than I wore snowmobiling up at Bear Lake last year. My body was shaking from the cold. I am sure I looked as if I was convulsing. It was rather ridiculous. After sitting through three torrential down pores I was not only a homeless woman. I was a cold, soggy, tired, homeless woman. I then began to think about the consequences for sitting in the rain. Taking my luck into consideration my meager immune system would leave me defenseless enabling me to catch pneumonia, that or the black plague for that matter. However two glorious star struck hours of my eighteen-hour adventure made the cold worth it.

Our plan was to make a statement. We would be seen by the cameras and loved by the reporters. To gain the attention of the cameras we would have to be obnoxious American fans. We decided that we would dress as Dementors. Our chant was, “Were here to Kiss Potter.” In the kitchen the previous night we imagined how ominous a crowd of women dresses in black hoods would look. Most of our posters were centered on this theme of kissing potter. 

Garbage bag cloaks

               We were actually quite fortunate to be situated right next to the red carpet. More importantly we were next to the interviewing stage. Edith Bowan was the interviewer on our side. She was very helpful. Once she knew who was coming on to her stage she would give us a hint so that we could be positioned with our camera’s. She gave her American girls three shout outs through out the interviews. It was serial to be feet away from the stars. We had everyone except J.K. interviewed on our side. Daniel Radcliffe thanked the American girls for braving the tedious weather conditions. If you follow this link you can see my moment of fame. (Around 1:08 on the clip.)  It is the one time I can honestly say I am so grateful for my height. Normally being an Amazon woman impedes with just about everything. I would like you to try being taller than 80 percent of your dates. At any rate my height was certainly to my advantage. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrUQBWzoabY&feature=player_embedded

           
             It was thrilling to see the cast. Not to down play my excitement. Realistically these actors can never take prescience over the characters conjured in my imagination.  My heart skipped a beat when the announcers proclaimed the arrival of J.K. Rowling. More than anyone else on the red carpet, I was grateful for that woman. For whatever it’s worth Harry Potter opened my imagination. It enabled me to engage in reading. I remember starting the books with my mom. I had the flu. So to pass the time away my mother dear decided she would read out loud to me. I love the connection that we share with this series. 

Delightful. It truly was simply delightful to see the woman I have dreamed of meeting for more than half of my life. As a young girl I would write draft letters to her. I wanted nothing more than to meet the woman who helped me to become a reader. I dreamed  that my story of falling in love with her novels would soften her heart, and would enable me a pass to meet her. Though my letters were never sent, I can say I am thoroughly satisfied.  It was delightful just to see her. J.K. Rowling set the foundation for the other wonderful books I would read. I am grateful for reading and the impact it has had in my life, and the impact it continues to have. Nothing is more magical than the impact of an excellent book.

Cheers!

Miss Fin