CHEERS TO THE FREAKIN' WEEKEND

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For starters, I am going to apologize for the lack of pictures in this post. I was just too busy having a good time to remember a camera.

Some details that I think are extremely funny but I left out unfortunately from last Thursday (February 9). My group, that I had went to Edinburgh with, took the night bus home after bar close. It was a double decker; so of course we all had to climb up the stairs and go to the upper level (I believe this need stems from the lack of luxury of public transportation in rural Wisconsin and Minnesota). Anyways, we met a couple of chaps upstairs who were definitely a little tipsy but seemed friendly and harmless enough. Erin and I had the pleasure of sitting right in front of them and they immediately struck up conversation asking where we were from and such. It did not take them long to invite us to a house party that they were going to but of course we declined. Suddenly the conversation switched directions and they began to question Erin and I if we had ever smoked weed or tried any drugs. We answered honestly that we had not; one of the blokes proceeded to pull a sandwich bag full of little whie pills out of his jacket. I immediately thought they were prescription pills illegally obtained but he informed us that it was ecstasy and asked if we wanted any. Almost simoultaneously we quickly replied with a traditional and polite Midwestern reply, "No, thank you" (I cannot help it, it is just a natural instinct). This guy and his buddy then made of fun of us the rest of the way to our bus stop. Be proud mom and dad I said no to drugs! After our safety presentation with some of the local police today, lets just say that the upper level will no longer be an option at night. The constables informed us that most muggings in the Midlothian area take place on the upper levels of busses late at night. Why did we not get this during orientation?

February 11

Saturday, I finally was able to meet my host family, or at least part of it. Lorna Simpson and her partner John McRitchie, who are both only a few years older than me, will be my host "parents" for the semester. Lorna is a cop and John works at the local Tesco and also plays in a band. I will be sharing them with one of my roommates, Shanna. John was unable to attend the host family tea that the house put on but after chatting with Lorna for a while I really believe they will be great! Lorna has already invited us to one of John's gigs in Glasgow, another major Scottish city about an hour from Edinburgh, and I cannot pass up live music! Hopefully Lorna will also be joining me on a few of my morning runs, fingers crossed!

That night, Erin and I were invited out to a house party in Edinburgh by Kris, one of the guys that we met at Finnegan's Wake. Now when I think of house parties, I picture the typical basement parties in any American college town. This was definitely more sophisticated and actually Erin and I were the youngest ones in attendance; everyone else there was either going for their Master's or working at a full-time job. At first I really did not contribute to the conversations around me but listened. It was a total eye-opener at how sheltered I was not only in my hometown but also from being from the Midwest in general. After a few drinks of liquid courage, I was able to talk to people from Africa, Mexico, Canada, Japan, Ireland, and Scotland! It is definitely a night (and morning since we did not get to bed until 4:00am) I will never forget! Tiredness was hard to fight the next day but the experience was well worth it.

February 14

The last couple days have been low key and filled with exercising, working on homework, and catching up on sleep. I stayed up late with Jackelyn the other night baking and frosting heart-shaped sugar cookies for the whole house (50+ cookies). We also enjoyed a few chic flicks (My Big Fat Greek Wedding and Shakespeare in Love) before passing out on the couches in one of the lounges. Happy Valentine's Day everyone!!! Besides classes we now have the next few days to figure out what we want to do and see during our London house trip. Friday through Monday is going to be awesome!

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