A spontaneous purchase

Yesterday I went into town to go to the post office, and came home with a sewing machine. As you may have guessed, I did not obtain this sewing machine at the post office, but at a cute charity shop in town. Because I think it's so cute, I like to go in on a regular basis to check things out. The women that work in the shop are Gaelic speakers, so sometimes I like to buy things just so I can talk to them and practice :)

So, after checking out the entire store again yesterday I was lamenting the idea of leaving the shop without finding anything to buy when I came across this baby:

It was 5 pounds and something inside me said, "BUY IT!" So I did. Now I've just got to get my hands on some fabric...hmmm...

Summertime and the living is easy...

The revelation came as both good and bad news. I was chatting with the Postman (whose name is Ronnie), and he asked me how I was getting on. I told him that I really liked it here and thought that everyone seemed to be very friendly. At that he laughed and said something to the effect of..."That's because it's so nice out! What until winter comes..."

The good news was that the summer season on the Isle of Lewis means that everyone is in a good mood ALL the time! Yes, it's true. Strangers smile at each other as they pass. Drivers watch out for those poor few with the Learner plates on their car so that they can help them out. Shopkeepers are chatty and everyone is always ready to help others in any way they can. All of this means that for the rest of the summer I can look forward to feeling like the sweetheart of this community as people are quick to forgive my cultural ignorance and are ready to smile at my accent.

The bad news is that because I came here at the beginning of April, I thought that this was just the way people were here. I thought that I really was the sweetheart of the community because everywhere I go people are smiling at me and seem to genuinely care about how I am getting on. Oh well, at least I was made privy to this phenomenon before I bumped into it come winter.

In other news, I've been working on my art journal a bit! See for yourself :)

I have joined a ceilidh dancing class...it's a bit like square dancing slowed down...

The second picture was drawn in a cafe in Amsterdam...
the wall was much cooler, but that's part of what it said.

We spent an afternoon at Luskentyre Beach on the Isle of Harris (which is technically attached to Lewis).
It was warm and beautiful!

Finally settled in...

So, I guess it's been almost 2 months since I arrived in Scotland, and I believe now I finally feel settled in. Until now we've been working on getting bank accounts, meeting neighbors, and making this house look a little less...well...I won't get into that. Another item of business that we've been working on and waiting for is our phone and internet service, this being in my mind the highest on the list of "things I need to feel at home." It may sound trivial to some of you, but after more thought, I'm sure most would agree that having internet (aka communication with the outside world) on an island far far away from home is very close to a necessity.

All that to say that this week, we got our internet installed! Yay!!! There was much rejoicing, and then silence as we spent the next hour on our computers... So hopefully, now I will be posting a bit more often.

And since I enjoy posting pictures on this blog, here's the view from my window...


In other news...I have been spending a significant amount of time behind the wheel of our MANUAL Ford Fiesta...and I'm doing alright if I do say so myself. I have yet to kick it into 5th gear, but it may be a long time before that is necessary...these island roads make 50 mph feel reckless!

It's about time!

Yes, I am aware that it's been awhile, but let's not dwell on the past...it's time to embrace the present!

Here's the present:

That's right, I am in a new house! I like to call it the Newmarket House, it has a very nice to ring to it I think. The middle window belongs to my bedroom, and every morning when I wake up, I can look out that window and see the sea! My house is right outside a town called Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis. So far I have not experienced much culture shock, but it is still looming in the distance. The only real disappointments have been the absence of Miracle Whip at the local store (which was lately remedied by a sweet Texan family), and of REAL Pepsi. The Pepsi here tastes like Coke...yuck. However, these two problems seem rather insignificant when I walk across my room and see this...


But what am I saying? This is already the past! I'm actually now in Amsterdam and have been for about a week now. I'm here for training, and am loving almost every minute of it. I'm not so excited about my kitchen duty everyday, but hey, it's worth it!

Here's some pics from my current location...






So far I love Amsterdam and I'm so happy to be here! It's definitely a new experience, but I still can't believe that I'm here. Training is pretty intense and very time consuming, but everything I'm learning is so useful. Obviously I've had some time to get around. On Sunday I went with some new and wonderful friends to the Keukenhof Gardens outside the city, and it was the perfect day! I've never seen so many tulips in one place in my life!



Yes, life is sweet at the moment. Especially now, as I take a sip of the Pepsi that I just bought from the grocery store down the way...it actually tastes like REAL Pepsi! Hallelujah!

Watch out! Here I come!

Amazing news! My departure date is a week away, and I was getting pretty excited about it, but not nearly as excited as I am now that I knew my partner L has her visa! Yay!!!! It came incredibly fast, and is a definite answer to prayer!

I guess it's time to start packing now... I've been saying that for awhile, but today (with renewed enthusiam) I made up a real packing list and went shopping for my favorite supplies. My oh my does stuff add up, but I just know that when I'm over there and overwhelmed with culture shock, I'll be happy I've got my trusty favorites. I've still got to get my electronics all outfitted for overseas plug ins, etc. and I have a sneaking suspicion that those things will add up as well. Good thing I had that job for the past month and a half!

Scotland here I come!

Man alive do I have long fingers!

Say what?

My first day at my new job, I had been given instructions to take the company's only elevator to the fourth floor. Lucky for me, I didn't notice this sign right away and didn't finish it until I had made it safely.


Thanks to my trusty coworker for inconspicuously snapping this photo the other day! Hint hint...if you can't read it (if you can you must have a very large computer screen), click the pic and it will be big enough to read.

Me, a girly girl?

So, I've had these flowers for almost a week now, and every time I see them I smile! I've never been one of those girls that wants flowers, but I do believe I've been converted. Just look at these lovely flowers!


It's like my one personal spring in February! This afternoon, I re-trimmed the stems, changed the water AND used the second package of plant food! I've never actually used that stuff before...