Well, I finally did it! I've finished my thesis and it is sitting in Scotland to be handed in by my friend in the morning. Thank god I'm finished! And I'm actually packed and ready for our move!
I can't believe how quickly this year has gone by! This summer has especially flown by, Steve and I fly out in roughly 45 hours! I'm excited for our adventure in Australia but sad to leave my second home here, and well, lets be honest, I'm not over enthused about the 28+ hour journey. But I think its really going to be amazing.
Overall, this summer has been pretty great (minus the thesis) and I'll be really sad to go. I know this may sound silly, but I'm really going to miss Suzy's dog Flo! ha ha She is such a great dog it and it was so nice to have her around all the time. I'll miss Steve's family as well, they were so wonderful all summer, with his mum washing and cooking and such, his dad driving us everywhere and Suzy for the trips to the park and all around good times. I won't miss Birmingham really, I'm excited to live someplace less city like. (though I must say, the park we go to with the dog is particularly great with cows and horses roaming wild)
Oooh, speaking of England and Australia... England won the Ashes!! (that would be the really important Cricket series) Hopefully Steve and I will be able to see it when it takes place in Australia.
Well, I guess thats it really, until we get to Australia at least!
Cheers!
Tori
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
One Last Oomph
Well, I have just about one week left to finish my bloody thesis. Its going okay, but as I've said before, it has been a really rough time trying to complete it. I've got just about 13,000 right now and that's without a conclusion and part of a chapter written so only about 2,000 more to go! The topic is really interesting to me, but at this point I just want to hand it in and get my degree.
Other updates... I'm getting glasses! For months now I've had trouble reading things, not seeing objects, but mostly trying to understand what things say. The letters seem to go all fuzzy. So I went for a free, yes free, eye exam and they gave me a prescription that helps with concentration. I could not believe the difference they made. I only had them for about 2 days though, when I realized that although yes my eyes needed to adjust, I still could not see mid to long range and well seeing as I should be able to wear them driving... it wasn't good. So sadly I was re-tested yesterday and my glasses went back to be fixed. I have to wait a week now to get them back. Perfect, the one week where I could really use some clarity in sight is the one week I don't have my glasses now. So yeah, glasses are exciting, I guess I didn't realize just how fuzzy things were until wearing them, I'm so excited that things really come into sharp focus now, especially letters!
I'm also pretty much ready for the move. I've set up a bank account so hopefully by tomorrow I'll have money in Australia and won't have to carry crazy amounts of cash. Also, had to buy a new case as one of mine was a bit small, but it was 5pound and its bright pink. :) No mistaking that on the conveyor! To get all of my clothes and such to Australia, given Emirates doesn't allow more than one bag, I'm shipping a bag weighing almost 70pounds. It is a door to door service which takes out so much hassle, and its actually the cheapest option. Its costing me quite a lot of money, but in the end its worth it because I'd spend way more on clothes there, and to be honest it would be such a waste to just leave things here. So I'm pretty much packed, save my carry-on and a few items that I'm wearing. We leave in 13 days! (note the spiffy countdown clock) I can't believe how fast this year, and especially this summer has flown by!
Well, that's it for now, time to get back to work...
I think I can, I think I can, I think I can....
Cheers!
Tori
Other updates... I'm getting glasses! For months now I've had trouble reading things, not seeing objects, but mostly trying to understand what things say. The letters seem to go all fuzzy. So I went for a free, yes free, eye exam and they gave me a prescription that helps with concentration. I could not believe the difference they made. I only had them for about 2 days though, when I realized that although yes my eyes needed to adjust, I still could not see mid to long range and well seeing as I should be able to wear them driving... it wasn't good. So sadly I was re-tested yesterday and my glasses went back to be fixed. I have to wait a week now to get them back. Perfect, the one week where I could really use some clarity in sight is the one week I don't have my glasses now. So yeah, glasses are exciting, I guess I didn't realize just how fuzzy things were until wearing them, I'm so excited that things really come into sharp focus now, especially letters!
I'm also pretty much ready for the move. I've set up a bank account so hopefully by tomorrow I'll have money in Australia and won't have to carry crazy amounts of cash. Also, had to buy a new case as one of mine was a bit small, but it was 5pound and its bright pink. :) No mistaking that on the conveyor! To get all of my clothes and such to Australia, given Emirates doesn't allow more than one bag, I'm shipping a bag weighing almost 70pounds. It is a door to door service which takes out so much hassle, and its actually the cheapest option. Its costing me quite a lot of money, but in the end its worth it because I'd spend way more on clothes there, and to be honest it would be such a waste to just leave things here. So I'm pretty much packed, save my carry-on and a few items that I'm wearing. We leave in 13 days! (note the spiffy countdown clock) I can't believe how fast this year, and especially this summer has flown by!
Well, that's it for now, time to get back to work...
I think I can, I think I can, I think I can....
Cheers!
Tori
Friday, August 7, 2009
Holiday to Yorkshire!
Hello Everyone!
Its August now and the time left to finish my thesis is becoming quite short... yikes. I'm working hard on that despite all the set backs. As I think I mentioned before, Steve and I are officially going to Australia, flying out on the 1st of September! I'm getting really excited about that. New hobbies I've picked up is cross stitch, I'm loving it, its like paint by number except with thread. Steve and I just got back from St. Andrews, where we both had meetings with advisers and such, it was nice to see friends, but so nice to be back home in a real bed with clean bathrooms and good food. I guess thats it for totally random updates, other than Steve's sister and I went to see Harry Potter which was amazing. AAAmazing. :)
Anyway, on to what we most recently did! For a week, we went away with Steve's family to Yorkshire on the coast where we did all sorts of relaxing and fun things. We stayed in a cottage in a little village right near the sea where we could easily drive to the beach. We went on a steam train one of the days which took us to different towns on the route. It was really pretty, and although she was nervous at first, Steve's sister Suzy's dog Flo ended up being perfectly fine on the train. She was hilarious though, it pulled into one of the stations and she was barking like crazy at it baring her teeth and everything haha big dog I guess! We stopped at a station where they filmed Harry Potter, the first movie where they get on and off the train! So I've officially been to Hogsmeade station! Anyway, we went to a few beaches which was nice, explored a few towns too. The whole coast there is known for its fossils and holy moly, you could find them so easily! Lots of shells and things, but also amonites which are really cool too. We found loads of interesting things. It was really so much fun spending hours on the beach looking for fossils, or just playing with Flo who was only just experiencing the sea for the first time. She was such a character playing in the waves, half scared half excited. It was so beautiful on the coast. I had to stay in two days though to do work, but that was okay. The region is also known for the semi pressious gem Jet, which is black and suprisingly light, I think its an organic material that fossilized or something. Anyway, it was beautiful, and the industry for Jet jewlery is spectacular. Looking at some broches in a shop I realized that this was the area the poets go to in the movie/book Possession. (love that film). There were lots of sheep and ponies to be seen as well in the countryside. We also went to Scarborough where Steve Suzy the Dog and I went on a short boat ride up the coast and back looking at the wonderful cliffs and coastline. It was nice to drive to little towns to explore. Whitby was nice and it had a neat old abbey that was in ruin. The streets were small and it had an old feel to it, really neat. We went to a few other towns which I totally can't remember the names of now. In one of the towns though I went into a church with a few wall paintings from the 1400s. They were neat, and there was a hell scene too. It was a lovely time. I'll post pictures when I have a bit more time.
Guess thats really it for now, i'll update again when I think of something!! :)
cheers!
Tori
Its August now and the time left to finish my thesis is becoming quite short... yikes. I'm working hard on that despite all the set backs. As I think I mentioned before, Steve and I are officially going to Australia, flying out on the 1st of September! I'm getting really excited about that. New hobbies I've picked up is cross stitch, I'm loving it, its like paint by number except with thread. Steve and I just got back from St. Andrews, where we both had meetings with advisers and such, it was nice to see friends, but so nice to be back home in a real bed with clean bathrooms and good food. I guess thats it for totally random updates, other than Steve's sister and I went to see Harry Potter which was amazing. AAAmazing. :)
Anyway, on to what we most recently did! For a week, we went away with Steve's family to Yorkshire on the coast where we did all sorts of relaxing and fun things. We stayed in a cottage in a little village right near the sea where we could easily drive to the beach. We went on a steam train one of the days which took us to different towns on the route. It was really pretty, and although she was nervous at first, Steve's sister Suzy's dog Flo ended up being perfectly fine on the train. She was hilarious though, it pulled into one of the stations and she was barking like crazy at it baring her teeth and everything haha big dog I guess! We stopped at a station where they filmed Harry Potter, the first movie where they get on and off the train! So I've officially been to Hogsmeade station! Anyway, we went to a few beaches which was nice, explored a few towns too. The whole coast there is known for its fossils and holy moly, you could find them so easily! Lots of shells and things, but also amonites which are really cool too. We found loads of interesting things. It was really so much fun spending hours on the beach looking for fossils, or just playing with Flo who was only just experiencing the sea for the first time. She was such a character playing in the waves, half scared half excited. It was so beautiful on the coast. I had to stay in two days though to do work, but that was okay. The region is also known for the semi pressious gem Jet, which is black and suprisingly light, I think its an organic material that fossilized or something. Anyway, it was beautiful, and the industry for Jet jewlery is spectacular. Looking at some broches in a shop I realized that this was the area the poets go to in the movie/book Possession. (love that film). There were lots of sheep and ponies to be seen as well in the countryside. We also went to Scarborough where Steve Suzy the Dog and I went on a short boat ride up the coast and back looking at the wonderful cliffs and coastline. It was nice to drive to little towns to explore. Whitby was nice and it had a neat old abbey that was in ruin. The streets were small and it had an old feel to it, really neat. We went to a few other towns which I totally can't remember the names of now. In one of the towns though I went into a church with a few wall paintings from the 1400s. They were neat, and there was a hell scene too. It was a lovely time. I'll post pictures when I have a bit more time.
Guess thats really it for now, i'll update again when I think of something!! :)
cheers!
Tori
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