Happy Thanksgiving!

Today is Thanksgiving Day, and so far I have single-handedly put a turkey in the oven! Ok so that sounds like nothing, but there has been a lot of work to get to this point. First, I had to walk 20 minutes in the rain each day to the store this entire week in order to get prepared, walking from store to store to store to find the right things (you wouldn’t believe the confused looks I got when I asked for fried onion bits – cross green-bean casserole off the list!) My greatest trip was the one that required me to walk back home with a 10 kilo sack of potatoes on my back! So I really have a great “back when I was your age...” story to tell when I’m 80.

So what am I thankful for? Well one thing for sure: today is my last day of classes! Although I am glad not have to sit through boring lectures, the ending of class simply signifies that exams will be coming up – and in the Irish school system, the most critical part of any class. One of my classes, 100% of the grade comes straight from the final. In all of them, it is certainly needed in order to pass the class. So instead of being able to enjoy the rest of my days free and careless, I’m about to become a slave to my textbooks. In fact, I plan on getting up early to go to the library starting tomorrow! My roommate Julia will be there at 9am – I think I might need a little time to recover from my soon-to-be amazing holiday feast! I’ve got it all: the turkey, the mashed potatoes (which BETTER be good!), stuffing, gravy, green beans, I even made my own cranberry sauce! However, my favourite part of all is missing: the pumpkin pie! They have no canned pumpkin here – I guess you just can’t have it all can you? HOWEVER, I did buy whipped cream for dessert – now that I am surely thankful for J

Here are some other things I am thankful for:

1. Wellies
2. My new athletics team sweatshirt – I got it on Tuesday, and it’s the only thing I wear now (mainly because all my other clothes are dirty!!)
3. Sex and the City girl’s nights: friends, sex, wine, and chocolate – what more could you want? (to mom and dad and other family members: I’m just joking!)
4. Digestive cookies – name sounds like something grandmas and constipated people would eat – but they are so not that – and even if they were I would still love them!
5. Crappy instant coffee (makes me appreciate espresso SO much more)
6. The castle along the ol’ corrib river, and the Salthill cceanside – two best places to go on a run – best views I think I have ever witnessed
7. The Saturday market – where I get the best apples and hummus EVER (oh yeah, and super good doughnuts too!)
8. Sunday morning runs with Annelies, my little therapist here in Ireland (maybe its those awesome views – but man I can get emotional when I run!)
9. SKYPE! A bit hard to explain, but all you need to know is that you need to have it
10. NUI Galway – its lovely charm thus giving it the ability to attract old but rad celebrities. It just sounds so cool to say “I go to school with Martin Sheen”

But most importantly I am thankful for you who is reading this (unless you are some creepy internet stalker – then go away I am really not thankful for you). Whenever I hear that people are reading my blog and wanting to know how I am doing, or sending me a message (or skyping me – you get extra points!) - it truly makes my day! I know that I would not have survived this experience without the support of my friends and family – both back in the US and here in Ireland.

Although wine, chocolate, and sex does help (again family: joking!)

Off to baste the bird!

Until next time

xoxoxoxoxoxo


the result: look at my wonderful turkey! yum!!!