Day 112

Today I met a slightly crazed lady on the bus. She ran into me several times in her haste to get somewhere. Where? I had no idea given the way she was dressed. He wild bright red hair was pin-straight and hardly seemed real. Her makeup was about the same and she had a small Marilyn Monroe piercing, more appropriate for someone my age than her fifty years or so. She had on a white coat with a sort of fur vest/poncho thing over it and high heels. Her purse was gaudy, much like the Juicy Couture pieces of crap I see rich sixteen-year-old girls carrying around, and in her other hand was a fancy pink shopping bag. Out of pure curiosity and boredom, I peeked into her bags while I was standing behind her. Her purse contained a roll of toilet paper for certain and other trinkets I couldn't recognize. The shopping bag had nothing more than a few white ceramic cups rolling around. It was weird and by the looks of everyone else as she exited the bus, they thought so too.

Day 111

Today I met an adorable girl who found me my dream dress. It's my last day in Paris and I was off to go shopping but not without some serious reservations. I had heard horror stories of Americans not being helped in shops and the smartly decorated windows and fine clothes made me feel a bit out of place. But, I was determined to find something and told myself, it's like Pretty Woman, you've got the money. If they don't want to help, they just lost a sale. I walked in one store and found nothing. The second store I walked in a tiny sales associate with gorgeous bushbaby eyes greeted me and thankfully, spoke English. I told her what I wanted and she went around the store grabbing me pretty much anything that wasn't black. The second dress she grabbed was beautiful. I was in love with it the moment I saw it. I tried on three different dresses and each time I came out of the dressing room she greeted me and accessorised the dress appropriately. But, we both knew the dress I saw was the one. It was the second one I tried on in Paris and it was a done deal. Perfectly easy and an enjoyable experience rolled into one. What more could a shopping lover want on the last day in Paris?

Day 110

Today I met Audiele (totally guessing on the spelling). She was a perfect example of "don't judge a book by it's cover." I was sitting on the Metro when this lady jumped on with her husband. The man was sophisticated with his turtle neck, navy blazer and smart glasses and the woman seemed to enjoy being his arm candy. However, this piece of candy was a bit of a mess. He bleach-blonde hair was teased to the point of a rat's nest which was complimented by a bright turquoise sparkly eyeliner and hot pink lipstick that looked like a two-year-old had drawn on her face with no attempt to stay in the lines. I was appalled. She seemed to be completely in her own world and with the way she looked, I can't say I expected much intelligence out of her especially after she strangely smiled at us with gray coloured teeth. Of course, I had to make a comment to Shannon and not 30 seconds after, the woman asked where we were from with a sincere smile. For six or so more stops we talked about what we did and what they did and surprisingly enough, she was French and fluent in eight languages and was teaching Russian and French in the States. Her husband was American and owned a software company in California. Needless to say, I was shocked at this discovery and she even loved America. Like, really loved it. After they said goodbye over and over and disappeared off the Metro I felt the need to slap myself on the wrist. She ended up being one of the nicest ladies and I was about to write her off. Shame on me. However, if for some reason I did get to know her better, you can be sure I would be taking her on a trip to Sephora for some new makeup and serious lessons on application.

Day 109

Today I met Mark, and guess what? He's Australian. It's Christmas and what else is there to do but drink when you don't have family or guests to entertain? Well, I guess you drink then too. Point is, we spent the night at Shannon's hostel bar for a night of Australians and creeps. After a few glasses of champagne we met Mark, a 29 year old guy who was taking a break from managing his own company. He was a loud party animal and would surely be a frat guy with his muscles and tight t-shirt had he been American. It was hard to believe he was twenty nine but he seems to be a freak of nature anyways. He claims himself to get younger every year and I had to agree once I saw his passport picture from a few years ago. I'm telling you, this "Mark" in the picture looked like a dorky teacher I had in seventh grade with glasses, combed hair and looked to be in his late thirties. Craziest thing I've ever seen and now I wish I had a copy of it or something. In our drunken state we got to talking about my devastating fallout with my best friend after witnessing two "BFFs" make out in the corner. Nice. But he did protect me from the actual creepy, late thirties, dorky guys with bad teeth so I was happy.

Day 108

Today I met, well, again this is going to be rough one so I'll call him Bob. Not very original but it's early and that's all I could come up with on my tired mind. So I met Bob at breakfast, another Australian of course and after talking for a few I realised he was looking for something to do. He had just gotten in from Australia and was frankly too tired to plan anything himself. So, being the hospitable person that I am, I invited him along so that he didn't have to sit there until he passed out from exhaustion. After we had talked on the train we realised we had a lot in common. Both of us are a quarter Polish, have one younger sibling, other rather trivial things but he seemed to find the similarities fascinating. I started noticing things getting weird when he mentioned that he "loves" a polish girl and that I had all the typical features. I had to disagree considering my cheekbones are almost nonexistent under my baby fat cheeks. Anyways, Bob was very enthusiastic about travel and at 25 years old had traveled most of Europe and Asia. His curly hair peeking out of his obnoxious Russian fur hat and his need to take pictures of himself jumping in front of monuments (you know, like High School Musical or something?) proved him to be a tourist for the rest of his days. Despite this, he was a good companion for an afternoon, however I did not know that he must have saw that afternoon as something magical. The days following I have been chased, interrupted and tracked down in order for Bob to speak to me again. His puppy dog eyes make me feel bad for not spending every waking moment with him but, quite simply, I don't want to sit for another hour listening to his love for Poland and his other travels. I don't mean to be mean but I feel a bit sorry for him. Traveling is a wonderful thing and I envy him for all the places he has been but at what point do you isolate yourself completely? It was as if he hadn't seen another pretty girl in ages and to me, what's the point in traveling if you never are able to build a relationship with someone enough to share it with them? I wish him all the best but for right now I'm creeped out and hope I can sneak out today without another awkward encounter.

Day 107

Today I met Matt from Maryland. A relatively quiet guy but he decided to join our group on a trip to Versailles. He was a little reserved on the half hour train ride there but once he joined the conversation he was a cool guy to talk to. Nothing odd whatsoever. Boy, were we wrong. It all started to get weird when Matt wasn't sure if he wanted to pay for a ticket to the palace. Very strange considering we just spent a large chunk of the day and five euro getting out there. He ended up buying one after a few complaints and we continued on. After getting inside it was pee time before we embarked on our tour of room after room after room. When Shannon and I came back out of the bathroom, Matt was gone. I had just told him that we would meet him right back where we were in the courtyard but he was nowhere in sight. We waited. We waited some more. No Matt. I'm not sure if he didn't like us, if he was abducted by aliens momentarily or if he tried to refund his ticket but that kid was long gone. I'm really not a scary person. At least me and a few other people don't think so.

Day 106

Today I met Kat and Shayne, two of the many many Australians I would meet on, what else but a trip to Paris? Seriously. Anyways the girls and I spent most of the trip with the small hostel room to ourselves with which became strewn with clothes from the three of us. It was a great hostel experience probably because it felt like our own little flat. The girls are both nurses living in Oxford and have spent years traveling around the world to places I only wish I had the chance to see. They honestly spend all the money they earn on traveling and the experiences they have in each country. Shayne, god love her, lived in Galway for six months, a new dream of mine since I was there a few months ago. She even used to work at the club I ended up at the end of my one crazy night in Galway. Such a small world. Their easy morning routine and quick pace walking through the streets of Paris just goes to show how comfortable they are in a life of travel and waking up on another bottom bunk. I know my neck sure can't handle it.

Day 105

Today I met Boris and I will take him home with me if it is the last thing I do. He is a little on the pudgy side and his skin is spotted with gray and black spots. He doesn't have much hair to speak of but I found him handsome all the same when his big eyes looked up at me adoringly. The truth is, Boris is a sea cow, a sea lion, what have you and I am in love. I came up to the edge of the pier after lunch to peer down at the most adorable freakin thing I've ever seen in my life. Although he was in water, he seemed to sit up at the prospect of a fish being thrown his way. Of course, I didn't have any fish and I immediately felt terrible as he looked at me with the absolute epitome of puppy dog eyes. He lives in the water with six other of his friends and despite the fact that he may weigh as much as myself plus five others, I want him. Screw adopting a dog. I have found a sea cow that I have named Boris and he will be my everlasting love. I will warn you, I write this after half a bottle of wine but Shannon will vouch for me that my love is true and Boris may be one of the best people/animal/miscellaneous things I have ever met. Boris, I hope you don't hate me for leaving you fishless. I will be back for you.

Day 104

Today I met a lovely waitress who fed me some of the greatest fish I've had in a while. She worked at an adorable restaurant right off the pier in Howth. It didn't seat more than fifteen people. She was nice enough to give us a couple spots by the window that had previously been reserved and despite how cold it was in there, I enjoyed some amazing seafood for a close to impossible price of about nine euro (unheard of in Europe or anywhere near Dublin for that matter. Although it was too cold to walk around, the trip was worth the fantastic food, great service and well, my next entry.

Day 103

Today I met Roberta, a german girl I believe who was a friend of a friend. Nothing too special here though. She didn't seem to want to get to know many of us and kind of wandered off in her own little world after she threw me her coat, her friend's coat and her bag to stash. Sorry, not much to say about this one. She had brown hair.

Day 102

Today I met Francis, a ginger (yay). We started talking after a well-executed "Have you met..." by Elise. He was out DD for his brother and his friend having a drink before they went to...duh duh duh...Copper's. If I haven't mentioned Copper's before, or in case you smartly chose to forget, the saying goes, "If you can't score at Copper's, you can't score anywhere." The line is always packed two blocks long with horny guys and slutty girls freezing their you-know-whats off. I have been in Dublin for about 4 months now and have yet to go in. Somehow, maybe it was the Guinness running through my bloodstream, but Francis convinced me to go with them. They convinced me I wouldn't have to wait and they would watch out for me. So after a couple more drinks and a quick sing-a-long to "Fairytale of New York", off we went into the icy night as I cursed myself for ever agreeing to this. Low and behold, Francis's brother and his friend got in, but we were left out in the cold. Considering there were no other bars open, back to The Bleeding Horse we went and Francis and I had a great rest of the night. He was sweet and was apparently happy to have an "actual conversation" with someone. That's what you get for spending your nights at Copper's: a whole lot of leg but no brain.

Day 101

Today I met Timmy. I was a little nervous because my experience with "Timmy"s has not been a pleasant one. Case and point: roommate. Anyways, we were out for one of our last few hoorahs together and Elise had her camera. Of course, what happens when you mix a camera and a bar? Well, you get hundreds of random pictures with equally random strangers. Timmy was one of those strangers. I'm not sure what his deal was but he was dressed in a very undone tuxedo with suspenders but no tie and a pair of 3D glasses to top it off. Needless to say, I didn't really understand it. Some of the girls were taken by his staggering height, scruff and chin piercing (I guess you would call it?) but I wasn't. I just sat back and watched his sad attempt to be the suave Irishman us Americans are dying to sleep with. Not to worry though, we did get some great pictures out of the encounter, some of which involve licking I believe given that I remember hearing "Oh my god. My tongue totally touched his face."

Day 100

Can you believe it? Today I met Victoria, a freakin gorgeous girl that, not to my surprise, turned out to be a model. She was a friend of a friend and when she found out that I was thinking about going up north she graciously gave me her number in case I needed a local's help. I spent most of the bus ride we shared wishing I could rip her face off and put in on mine, you know, John Travolta and Nicholas Cage style. She had the most beautiful long dark hair, dark eyes and lips that made me want to stab myself. This all sounds very lesbian-esque but she was pretty. I guess that's all I can say. However, after I told a friend of mine about her, I found out she is not the sharpest tool in the shed. Can't be surprised I guess. You just can't have it all.

Day 99

Today I met Killian at yet another lock-in. How proud am I? Well, actually his name is John but Killian is more interesting so I don't blame him. Nevertheless, I see a trend of "Well my name's not really..." happening. Killian was a scrawny guy who kept a beanie on his head to warm his bald spot. He is a chef in Dublin and, not surprisingly, has created his own drink, the "Sour Killian." Of course, it's a whiskey sour with a crushed cherry and egg-white twist. What else would an Irishman drink? I tried it...it was definitely sour. Killian is also a former musician, reminded me of my days playing guitar in a rock band thinking I was real cool. He proved to be good company and brought along some more wannabe rocker chefs with him. Unfortunately, I didn't have much more to contribute to the conversation other than the fact that I like his name. Equally unfortunate, Killian is not a fan of Cillian Murphy. Not cool.

Day 98

Today I met a lovely couple from Norfolk and a couple from Southern Scotland over a mug of mulled wine that was simply to die for (not to mention, it included a hefty shot of amaretto as well). What a way to warm up. If I closed my eyes I could have sworn that Colin Firth was on speaking in one ear and Craig Ferguson was speaking in the other. They were nice, asked me about my travels, studying and whatnot, but to my surprise the English were actually wonderful people, nicer than the Scottish couple. Yes, this may be a statement based on stereotypes but after spending time in the three countries that loath the English more than any other, I was pleasantly surprised. It was one of those nights that was simple. There was no crazy party or an attractive guy or a life changing experience but I'll remember it forever. To me, there's nothing better than sharing stories over a hot mug of wine. surrounded by trees covered in lights for the Christmas season. I never got the couple's names but they left a fantastic impression, nonetheless.

Day 97

Today I met Graeme, the birthday boy. As I mentioned, I ran into him after the failure of the pub crawl, but I couldn't have asked for a better addition to our group. Graeme (or Graham for those non-gaelic speakers) works for the Scottish government and was the spitting image of a dashing Scottsman in his leather jacket, sweater and shirt and tie decorated with Christmas coloured Scottish plaid. Adorable, I must say. As my personal Tin Man, he led me down the cobbled brick road to The Scottsman Lounge where we listened to some traditional music as well as the random "Galway Girl" thrown in giving me a little sense of my Irish home. It turned out, that morning kicked of Graeme's 33rd birthday which I felt terrible for not knowing and being able to do something about it. However, he seemed happy to spend the night with me despite my thoughts of how boring I truly am. It's amazing. I love Ireland but I never thought I would find another place that felt so right as well. The Scottish were some of the greatest people I've met and, not to sound vain, but after all of these encounters and new relationships, I feel like I may be a little more interesting than I ever thought I was. Still not like, the absolute life of the party or anything, but I am proud to say...wait for it...I am becoming more like my mother every day. These stories I've gathered remind me of hers and I thank her profusely for helping me loosen the hell up and get myself out there.

Day 96

Today I met Pat and Kathy also known as the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion but I'll get to that. We were supposed to go on a Literary Pub Tour, one of the most raved about tours in the city, but guess what? It never happened. The tour guides never showed up and they had even already paid for it. Luckily, I hadn't but I was still incredibly surprised. I mean, how does that happen? But, like many of my other unexpected meetings and overall bunch of craic, it turned out to be a great night. The two women were co-workers for years and were celebrating a Christmas night out. So, since the tour was a no-go we decided to create our own and there I was partying it up with two middle-aged women. We had a great night and I even managed to convince them to stay later and catch another train. We talked about everything under the sun including their kids, their love lives, my love life, and advice on all of the above. It actually made me miss mom. At one of the pubs we picked up a third accomplice, Graeme/Hank, depending on what type of mood he was in I guess. And then walked in a dog. Suddenly, in our drunken stupor we had realised that we were the characters from The Wizard of Oz. Of course, it all started with me being from Kansas City. To them, that screams Dorothy and nothing else. And what would Dorothy be without her three companions and a seeing-eye dog named Toto?

Day 95

Today I met Alan, an incredibly enthusiastic tour guide who looks slightly like a pirate (talks like one too). It was a three and a half hour free walking tour through Edinburgh in an unfortunately cold and foggy morning. Well, cold is a bit of an understatement considering my extra-hot Starbucks only stayed hot for the first five minutes and it took me an hour to warm up when I finally got back. And if you would believe it, Alan was wearing nothing more than a pair of cargos, a t-shirt and a fleece zip-up. While his long stringy hair and bushy beard may have kept him slightly warmer, I still don't know how he did it and with such fervor at that. Alan was extremely knowledgeable and equally hilarious. His spastic re-enactments of millions of years of Scottish history not only kept us entertained but the other tourists riding by in their double-decker tour buses. I almost felt sorry for the driver as he continued on with his commentary which seemed to pass by everyone's ears. Alan had a ghost tour later on that night that I would have loved to go to but his creepy stories he had already told were enough to make me think twice about going home by myself at the end of the night. I only wish I had that kind of "spunk" all day everyday.

Day 94

Today I met my B&B keeper. Sadly, she was not the most pleasant woman I've ever met with her staunch, quiet accent and quick instructions before she left me to my room. I would guess she's in her early 50's and she owns an adorable house tucked away in a back alley on the south side of Edinburgh. She really has all the tools for a wonderful B&B but for some reason it felt incredibly un-homey. Since coming to Europe, I have a new dream of opening a bed and breakfast in the country complete with my kids, my dashing husband and of course the pig. But the ones I've visited haven't exactly lived up to my expectations (probably because I'm poor but what can I say?) Nevertheless, I still feel the need to not only do it now, but make it better than any other. Because, honestly, a thing like that can't be about money, it has to be because you love it and you love people and who loves people more than me? I will give her some credit though. She did save me this morning by being kind enough to give me some painkillers for my hangover. Blame it on the Scottish.

Day 93

Today I met the Canadians. Hooray for uniting North America at last. They were both from Ottawa, one with a thick Canadian accent I found myself missing and one with thick curly hair and a passion for Lord of the Rings. In fact, that's what they did their presentation on in our mythology class and, man, was it a wonderful break from boring stories being told in a butchered form of English. Of course, the rest of the time we bonded over how horrible the class was, how arrogant our teacher and "scarf boy" are, you know, the usual stuff. Actually we even decided to try to get our teacher to burn alive but slowly closing the windows in the back of the classroom. This may sound like we're mean, demented children burning ants with a magnifying glass but if you knew the professor and his utter rudeness, you would be climbing for a magnifying glass too. Overall, it was just wonderful to find a couple more guys who share an affinity for geeky fantasies and ragging on rude eastern europeans. All in all, a good night.

Day 92

Today I'm proud to say, I met the owner of Feile and Kate's Cottage as well as baby brother of my friend John. His name is Robert. After revamping Feile, Robert strolled into Kate's, said hello, poured a pint of Heineken, lit a cigarette and sat down to talk as the cash was being counted. He had sort of a Glen Hansard look to him with short curls on top of his head, a rough start a beard and light coloured eyes. Doesn't look a smidge like his brother though. Apparently the two oldest look alike and Robbie is left at the bottom. Really cool guy all around and I can see why all the guys get along so well. He kept my glass full for me and kept my money in my pocket even though I set up his tree a little crooked. Oh well, without Robbie my nights in Dublin wouldn't have been the same. It's definitely going to be a sad day when I have to leave my bar behind and attempt to find anything in America that can hold a candle to it.

Day 91

Today I met Barney. I'm sorry for another "How I Met Your Mother" reference but it has to be done. Barney was, well, an Irish pathetic version of Barney Stinson. Tall, suave, and an MMA fighter at that, he proclaimed himself as "never having trouble with women." On a Saturday night, all he thinks about is women no matter what. I swear, these are his words not mine. I was just surprised that he wasn't "suited up." He continued to tell me about his successful job, this absolutely gorgeous blonde girl he met, and his approaching three month trip to Brazil to learn fighting techniques. Oh, how impressed I was (that's written sarcasm by the way). And the strange thing is, even though he knew I was there on somewhat of a date, he never left. After saying he needed to go home a few times due to a seven a.m. start at work, he got dressed but never actually walked out the door. In fact, after closing I was supposed to put up the Christmas tree while the place was being cleaned up and before I knew it Barney and an old creepy man named John were next to me helping. Finally, after the tree and few lights were up Barney and John got ready to leave. Barney gave me an extremely awkward hug and walked out the door. Strangest self-proclaimed "ladies man" I've ever met. Better luck next time Barney.

Day 90

Today I met an extremely cheap Englishman. We were out for yet another birthday party celebration and were intent on playing the "have you met" game and hopefully, get some free drinks out of it. We came across a group of guys who had all met one year in Australia. There were a few English, a few Irish and a random very hobbit-like Scotsman. Shannon, Elise and I all managed to find someone to talk to. Mine, well I can't remember his name now, but he was rather cute and good to talk to. The problem came when my glass was low (that's where all problems begin over here). He asked me if I wanted a drink and of course I said said considering we were currently at a rather expensive bar. He asked what I was drinking and when I said "Bulmers" he asked, "Is that expensive?" I was a little shocked, I mean it's not like I asked for Don Perignon or something. He got me my drink anyways, we finished talking after watching a high school makeout session between a couple people I won't mention. Hilarious though, really. So, we were off to the Bleeding Horse and the chap said he would meet me there and that I would buy the next drink. Sorry, I don't know anyone who goes Dutch in this situation. I ended up not making it to the Bleeding Horse that night, but apparently they never showed. Guess the cheap idgit didn't want to pay for an extra beer.

Day 89

Today I met Gerben, the second time I've come across him in costume. This was no ordinary costume, it was the most incredible euro-mullet wig you have ever seen and you would swear it was real. Gerben is a friend of a friend from the Netherlands and a hilarious guy to talk to. He participated in our Dublin Thanksgiving and round 2 was the wig party. Honestly, I couldn't stop laughing at the sight of him all night but he rocked that wig to no end. He's an incredibly sweet guy and seems like he could easily fit in with any group he came across. I think I remember making him my party husband at one point because he smelled nice and was "suited up." Not to mention, once you take away the pilgrim hat, fake ginger beard, sunglasses, and mullet, he is completely striking. He's one of those people you love to hate with the most gorgeous ice blue eyes you've ever seen, you almost want to rip the nonexistent coloured contacts out. Like a short Cillian Murphy with a Netherlands twist. If only God worked that hard on my eye colour...

Day 88

Today I met Cathal, a pretty cheeky bastard for being engaged. So I was at friend's wig/accessory party (wonderful theme by the way) and was chatting with some locals. Of course, my approaching-tipsy friend was enamoured with one of them. Cathal was impressed we knew how to pronounce his name and seemed like a cool guy. He was handsomely dressed in jeans, a shirt and pinstriped fedora and could hand out the sarcasm as much as the next irishman. I'm telling you this though, he was definitely flirting with a few of us. Like, not just being nice, but flirting, and it turns out he's engaged. I wouldn't even expected it before he started talking. He's young and, well frankly, looks like he's broken a few girl's hearts or just egos. Later on more news breaks that apparently the fiance was there the whole time. They have been engaged for over a year, saving up for a house, the whole she-bang. They must be awfully comfortable with each other but the girls and I are in agreement, it we were her, after that night, the ring would probably be coming off.

Day 87

Today I met Tara, my tattoo artist. She looked the part of a chilled out artist with her skin decorated in ink and silver hoops and her hair tossed up into a hat. She seemed a bit "too cool" for me at first outnumbering me in tattoos and piercings by a long shot, but later she turned out to be a very nice person despite her jabbing a needle into my side continuously. The tattoo was far more painful than I expected as it cut into my rib cage, but Tara kept up the conversation and I was able to keep my mind off of the pain at least for a few moments at time. We talked about everything possibly in the 45 minutes we had on the table and I was ecstatic to hear that her sister lives in Edinburgh. Tara loves the city and gave me awesome recommendations for cafes and underground tours. Gotta love when you can get a tattoo, words of wisdom, and travel tips all in one sitting. I'll probably go back to have her check for a touch up and hopefully be able to share my stories from Scotland.

Day 86

Today I met Liam, a wonderful guy who saved me from having my name printed wrong in the paper again...at least I hope. It just went to print today and I haven't seen it yet. Who knows, it could say "Alice Wickens" for all I know. Nevertheless, he was kind enough to inform me that he fixed the spelling again. Liam also seems to be the only one willing to help anyone in the class. Poor Shaw was left to layout two pages by himself not having a clue of what to do. I felt horrible as I watched him aimlessly create boxes on the screen. Liam came to help a couple of times, but only between stops to the rest of the needy class. I guess we'll find out next week just how much of a lifesaver Liam is based on my name and Shaw's layout. Honestly, I'm the writer, not a random person in the paper. If they can spell Eimear and O'Cinnseala right, surely they can handle Alix...surely.

Day 85

Today I met Eimear (took me forever just to figure out how to spell it). A bit of a crazed girl with her hair in shambles and mascara and lip gloss tossed on her face everyday, but nice enough. She was my editor this time around, yet somehow I ended up editing her story. She constantly dashes around the newsroom and if she isn't, she's sitting at a computer seeming to be in her own little world. I can't ever really have a conversation with her. I always feel the need to look behind me to see if she's talking to someone else or to check my teeth in case there is something stuck between them. Maybe I should be more like that? More caught up in my work? I don't know. On second thought, no. I'm heading to Scotland next weekend despite the fact I have a test the following Monday and a paper due. But hey, I'm not here to get caught up in work. I'm here to have the time of my life and pass...just pass. That's all I have to do. Eimear on the other hand, well I guess she has to do more than just pass. Still I hope she can find a way to relax for just a few.

Day 84

Today I met Alex, yeah, first one I've met since I've been here. Alex is a very quiet girl and it didn't help that I was stuck at the other end of the table. I strained my ears as best I could for the other end's conversation but I couldn't gather much other than she was slightly awkward and plain but had a sweet smile at the same time. I feel horrible because I didn't even get to find out where she was from. Holland, maybe. I don't know. Oh well, I may run into her again at the next group get together which may either be a "Wig Party" or a pub crawl for yet another birthday.

Day 83

Today I met possibly the coolest Scottish waiter you could ever ask for. It was my friend Elise's birthday who has recently become a die-hard Scotland fan since her two trips to Glasgow and Edinburgh. So, needless to say, when she found out her birthday waiter was Edinburgh born and bread, she flipped and ordered a cocktail to celebrate. He was a burly man with a thick beard who loved meat and beer, Elise and my kinda guy to say the least. He was fun, made jokes, offered to take our picture (without making us feel like awkward tourists at all) and of course it helped that the food and drinks were great as well. It made for a great night, a sort of round 2 from our Thanksgiving get together. Nights like that: great food, great wine, great conversation with a table full of friends is exactly what I hoped to have when I got here. Although it may not seem like much now, I know I'll look back on these moments and wish I had them back.