Just Another Friday

Casey!! I'm glad to hear you're alright! I've got to admit, I was getting worried there. It's good to have you back. :) Also, I've heard lots about My Little Pony from Kristina Horner and my interest is increasing. I'm afraid of what may happen if I check it out though...

Alexandra: Sounds like it was a good wedding! A handful of people I know (from school, college, etc) got married this past week- it was a good week for weddings, apparently.

Carlyn: It makes me happy to read about how happy you are with your girlfriend! How did you two meet? (There's a nagging thought in my head that you may have already told us and I'm just drawing a huge blank at the moment.)

Cassie: We sound very similar in the whole planning out trips thing. I've never gone on a impromptu trip (I agree that three weeks' notice is impromptu), but it sounds like it was a great experience! Especially Niagara Falls, it sounds beautiful.

Also! Before I get onto my week, I want to let you all know that I have not forgotten about my challenge! I moved out of my apartment last week and all my things were in disarray. I'm now home with my parents for a month before I move to France so things have calmed down and I'll be able to watch a horrible movie now. :) I'll check the challenge done for next Friday, okay? Okay! (I hope.)

So, JAB: This week has been very low key. I had to drive back to Ann Arbor to work Monday and Tuesday. My advisor/boss is having difficulty letting me go. I'm one of the few people in the lab who knows how to do everything- running studies, paperwork, IRB, etc. so she was not so happy when she found out that my lease was up in mid-August and I had to move. So, I'm driving in two days a week for the last two weeks of August. Next week I have two more days and then I'm done! I really like the lab, don't get me wrong, but I'm excited to move onto something else. I've been there for two years now, which really isn't that long, but given the large amounts of work we do there, it feels like longer! And also, I'm moving to France, how could I not be looking forward to that?

Speaking of which, I've started working more on the whole moving-to-France process. I have my plane ticket now (leaving September 25, coming back in December for Christmas/Hanukah, and heading back in January). I also know where I'm staying when I get to Lille and before I have an apartment! This is very exciting because up until a few days ago I was essentially homeless in France. I met some other girls on the program's facebook group and we're going to couchsurf together with a (seemingly) very cool French guy. I've exchanged messages with him for the past few days and I feel confident that he's a very nice, legitimate guy who will not harvest our organs upon our arrival.

Another part of getting ready for France is getting my work visa, which I will be accomplishing next Tuesday. I'm driving over to Chicago with my mom for my appointment at the consulate (it requires an in-person appointment) and besides procuring my visa we'll also be hitting up some museums and generally enjoying Chicago for a day. Chicago really is a great city and given its proximity (about 3-4 hours away), I've been there a surprisingly small amount of times (3... in 22 years *hangs head in shame*).

That's what I've been up to this past week! Oh, and watching more Buffy. I don't think I mentioned that before: I'm working my way through Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I started Season 5 today and my goal is to be done before I leave for France (also, I'm borrowing my old roommate's dvds, so I need to be done before then). My mom and I are going to Eastern Market tomorrow, which is this old farmers' market in downtown Detroit. It's full of fruits, vegetables, flowers, food carts... it's very nice, to sum it up. I'm excited!

Have a good weekend everyone!