Yorkshire, how we love thee!

Here's some pictures from our weekend in Yorkshire county. We stayed at a huge house where our friend, Sophie, grew up. It's in the cute little town of Ilkley. 11 of us from the school went up north in Sophie's van and then a few of us went home on a train. We had a great time hiking around the moors, playing pub games, and eating Annabelle's yummy food (Sophie's mom).
Hope all is well in your corners of the world.
Peace,
Mandy

Tagged

We've just been tagged by my friend Jenn who lives in Memphis. I don't know how entertaining my answers will be, but let's see...

A- Available or married? Married for 2.5 years
B- Best Friend? It's a tie between my twin and my husband, together, they are my super-friends!
C- Cake or Pie? Both, please. I like fruit and vanilla and sometimes chocolate
D- Drink of Choice? Most days water, but the English have been getting me hooked on tea
E- Essential Item? My blue barret, won't leave home without it
F- Favorite Color? Purple
G- Gummi Bears or Worms? Either, as long as they are the sour kind
H- Hometown? Born in Eveleth, but will always have a place in my heart for Hastings, MN
I- Indulgence? Dancing, every girl's gotta do it every once and a while
J- January or February? January, my birthday is that month
K- Kids & names? none yet, but I could only marry Andy if I agreed our first girl would be named Claire
L- Life is incomplete without? God, family, friends, and balance
M- Marriage Date? September 10, 2004
N- Number of Siblings? 3, all women, all older
O- Oranges or apples? do clementines count?
P- Phobias/Fears? snorkeling/scuba diving, I know it sounds silly, but I just can't help but freak out...still a little bit of fear of bicycling after our accident, and if you want me to be really honest, I am afraid that people might not like me, but that's just a part of life, so I'm learning to accept that
Q- Favorite Quote? "If you want peace, work for justice." - Pope john Paul II
R- Reason to Smile? Lots of little things each day...somedays it's Andy's ridiculously loud laugh
S- Season? I'm longing for summer now, but I do always love the fall
T- Tag three people! my three sisters (for some reason, I had the urge to type that one fast)
U- Unknown fact about me: I want to become a Reiki Master (or a world-touring musician, but I think the reiki thing might actually happen)
W- Worst habit? forgetfulness
Y- Your favorite food? fresh picked strawberrieds, Grandma Sylvia's lasagna, Thai coconut curry with rice, and vanilla bean ice cream
Z- Zodiac? Capricorn

Language Lesson #2

Hello Everyone!

Just a little update before the language lesson...It SNOWED! We were so happy to wake up one morning to everything covered in white. I know many of you are probably sick of the snow in Minnesota, but we miss it somedays. We live near a school, so here's some photos of the cute little kids playing and slipping and sliding all over the place. The report said it was 2 inches of snow, but it was all melted by noon.
The other pictures are of our friends Alissa and Abby when they came for a quick weekend visit to see some of their old hang-out places from when they spent a semester here. They went to school in the same neighborhood as we live, so they told us about some great restaurants in our area. Also, there are some pictures of some friends from our job at the opera house. Two of the women we work with play guitar, so we spent a whole Sunday just playing and eating, and playing some more. It was a lot of fun.

So, you ready for another language lesson?
Here's a few more things I've been picking up....
courgette = zuccini
aubergine = eggplant
tomato = tomato (but you have to put an accent on the "ah" sound)
innit = aint it (this is a slang term that's used quite alot by young people)
bloke = a guy
mad = crazy

OK, so that's all I can think of right now, I'll find some more words and phrases for next time.

Hope all is well for you!

Peace and Blessings,
Mandy

You Come And Visit Us Now

I love how international this city is. On any given bus or tube, I regularly hear at least 3 different languages being spoken. Just last night we got together with friends that were from Italy, Spain, and France. We're both trying to learn more Spanish since we know so many Spanish-speakers here.
We've learned a lot about the English language from other immigrants here. For example, some of our friends from the Middle East and India have this wonderful ability to use language to do Jedi-like mind tricks. For example, if you say "It's hot in here." They will reply, "Yes, but you like hot, hot is good." And in your mind, you are now thinking, "Yeah, maybe." Then they ask, "What, you want to be cold?! Of course not, hot is good. You like hot." You can't argue with that kind of logic, so now you decide that you like hot. It's great! So....you come and visit us now. What? You want to just stay at home and be bored? Of course not. Visiting us is good. You come. You will like it.
All joking aside, I do admire all the inspiring people that I have met from all over the world. Most of them speak 2 or 3 languages and have worked hard to get here build a life. It's strange to consider myself as an immigrant. Over the past few months, we've had to fill out a lot of paperwork and go through all the complex motions for simple things like a bank account or health insurance, or even having to apply for a number that would allow us to pay taxes here. I really feel like an outsider (especially with an accent different from everyone else's) in many ways, but so is everyone else. So, I guess we're in it together.
Anywho, I thought it would be good to post some of Andy's breaks from school. If you are interested in visiting, you can at any time, but you'll most likely have a tour guide if you come when he has a break.
He's off on these dates: Feb. 24 - March 11, April 28 - May 13 (and we'll be back home for part of that time), and then summer vacation is from July 21 - late October. His school will have performances on June 12 - 15.
Well, that's it for now. Life is progressing as usual. Andy is glad to be back in the swing of things at school. I'm plugging away at my job and I just found out that I'll be at my current location a month longer than expected, so I need prayers for patience. I've also posted some pictures from our recent adventures over the holidays and with my family. Enjoy.
Hope you are all in good spirits and good health.

Peace,
Mandy

Happy January 4th!

OK, so I'm a little late with Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Hope all was well over the holiday season for each of you. (:
So, life has been good here in London. Andy's school finished it's first term a couple of weeks before Christmas. I got to finally see him perform. Afterwards, the school threw a party for everyone at a club on the East side of town. It was so much fun to go dancing with all my new friends. In the weeks just before Christmas, the two of us spent a lot of time working and getting ready for Christmas.
On Christmas Eve, my Mom and Dad and my sister, Abby, came to visit! They stayed for 9 days, and it was so wonderful having them here. Some highlights of the their visit....
- Christmas Eve Lessons and Carols at Westminster Abbey
- Presents and things from back home (our favorites were the mac'n'cheese, toothpaste, and sox)
- Seeing Larry David (creator of Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm) in our tour group at the Globe Theater
- Going to a "proper pub" with our friend Michael
- Minced pies and mulled wine (followed by drunken karoke and much laughter)
- Dancing to swing and rockabilly music at a club with Abby
- Seeing the most amazing fireworks display on New Year's Eve
- Going to visit our cousins that we've been reunited with- I love their family!
- Spending time with family, however tired, cramped for space, hungry, or cranky we were, it was still wonderful
Well, now everyone is back in the swing of things, which is just how I like it. The whole city felt different since many things were closed more than usual. In fact, there is no public transportation on Christmas Day, so the whole city just shuts down. It was so quiet, it was great!
Now that my family is gone, I'm once again reminded of how much I miss everyone. Hope all is well, and please keep in touch!
Peace, Mandy

Language Lesson #1

I've decided to share a little about what I've learned here when it comes to language. So, if anyone happens to visit, just practice these phrases and translations....and don't be surprised if I masacre the spelling.
bathroom = loo or toilet (no one says restroom either)
sour cream = creme frache
that's awesome! = brilliant!
right away = straight away
six thirty = half six (can be applied to other times as well)
would you like a pop? = fancy a cup of tea?
chips = crips
fries = chips
crisps = ?
unreliable, strange, kooky = dodgey
TJ Maxx = TK Maxx
Starbucks = Starbucks
Just keep practicing, there will be more to come in Lesson #2.
-Mandy (:

Work, life, and related things...

Here's a picture of some of my friends here in London. The picture below of the fountain was also taken in the same area: Trafalgar Square. It's this great place in Central London where there are several museums and monuments all together. The night the three of us went out, we visited the National Portrait Gallery. Many of the museums here are free, which is great for people like us who are trying to live off the American Dollar (which doesn't have much worth here, unfortunately).
The good news is that we're finally earning pounds. And pence (that's the UK version of cents). I've been at my job about three weeks now and it continues to go well. My co-workers are nice and all the customers are nice as well. I am only there temporarily, but still they have all welcomed me and been so helpful in teaching me the ropes. I think it's a perfect transition to my permanent location because now I can see how one of the best salons in London is run and I can learn how they do it. Most days I switch between retail and massage therpy. I'm learning a lot about myself and that my true gifts are best used in massage therapy, but it is good to learn about retail and appreciate that I don't have to do it forever. One pro: I work in Central London and I'm close to lots of cool shops, cafes, etc. One con: with the hour commute each day, it makes for an 11 hour day and I'm completely wiped out at the end. Another pro: I have an ipod to get me through the bus ride/tube ride.
As we approach the Christmas season, Andy and I have been thinking about our winter routines that we have done over the past few years. Most of them revolved around our jobs with young people, concerts, events, etc. There are days when I really miss our life in Minnesota because I feel so distant from all of our friends there. Something about 3,000 miles and an ocean has really made me appreciate the friendships and support that I had back home.
We're so excited for Christmas because part of my family is coming to visit. There's just two weeks to go before they're here and I'm counting down each day!
Oh, and I almost forgot - I got to see Prince Charles and Camilla! Andy and I worked at the Royal Variety show which is a big charity event with different entertainment acts. I also got to see some bands like "Sugababes," :Take That, and James Morrison. In the back stage areas I'm sure that I passed lots of famous people, but I don't know any of the British stars so I was completely ignorant. All in all, it was an adventurous night and it was the first time in my life that I've ever had a back stage pass for anything (even if it was for the purpose of serving drinks).
More pictures and stories to come....Hope all of you are well and blessed.
Peace,
Mandy

PS The dog is my sister's. He's not here in London, but he's cute, so he deserves to be seen and adored. And I miss him. So there.