We're celebrating it tonight with Terry's work friends as it's easier
for everyone to prepare the food with a full free weekend. We've rented
out a cafe here in town and we're all bringing different dishes that are
traditional in our families so it should be good. There are also people
responsible for the decorations, games and above all drinks, including
Old Fashioneds which are also standard in my family so I can't wait!
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Carnival??
Oh dear...they're already practicing for Sunday...which is when the practicing starts?? Nov 11 in Holland is when Carnival officially starts. Or rather, it's when they begin preparing for Carnival; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnival_in_Germany,_Switzerland_and_Austria
Here's a link to last year, which was 11/11/11! http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/clowns-and-drunks-go-wild-1111
It's also St. Martin's Day: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Martin%27s_Day#Austria.2C_Belgium.2C_Germany_and_Netherlands
Obama!
My favorite quote about voters & Obama this time around was
something along the following lines: It's like a couple renewing their vows.
They may not be as giddy as they were on their honeymoon, but at the end
of the day they still love each other.
I woke up SO many times in the night, but I just checked the clock, not actually the results. I finally couldn't sleep after 5:30am and got the result I was hoping for! And yes, expected as well.
I woke up SO many times in the night, but I just checked the clock, not actually the results. I finally couldn't sleep after 5:30am and got the result I was hoping for! And yes, expected as well.
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
1 year!
This weekend is our first at home together since my bday! T was in the
States for 2 weekends, then his dad was staying with us, then we were in
Munich for Oktoberfest, then we were in Belgium for a wedding! All fun, but it's still nice to have some down time. Monday
is also 1 year from the day we moved here, which is cause for
celebration. Probably with this local pastry: http://www.bosschebollen.nl/ pages/start.php.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Email to my cousin Amy!
I'm doing well! T's in the States, but I've been having fun here. I went
to a bday party last night for 2 Portuguese girls, and it was one of
those absolutely perfect international experiences with people from
Holland, Germany, Belgium, France, Spain, India, Boston, Florida,
Paraguay, Chile, Brazil, Iran... it was awesome! And there was an
amazing jam session...it was just one of those moments that I can
pinpoint as the very reason we moved here. It was great!
Grant's wedding was perfect, and I'm gonna wear the same outfit to my friend's wedding in October. I gave her a couple choices of what I could wear and she said that what I wore to Grant's wedding is perfect and very me, so I'm please with the outfit.
It was AWESOME to see A, K, M & A! I'm SO glad I got a chance to see them before the girls had grown up much more. But Annie was a completely different person from when I saw her last (obviously, as it was last November that I saw her). I think that whole family is just awesome.
Good luck in the crunch time. I'd love to catch up once it's all over. I'd love to catch up before, but find that unrealistic. :) We don't have any travel plans between now and Xmas, but I'm getting super excited for our trip around the world and I'm still just so incredibly high from this engagement. :)
Grant's wedding was perfect, and I'm gonna wear the same outfit to my friend's wedding in October. I gave her a couple choices of what I could wear and she said that what I wore to Grant's wedding is perfect and very me, so I'm please with the outfit.
It was AWESOME to see A, K, M & A! I'm SO glad I got a chance to see them before the girls had grown up much more. But Annie was a completely different person from when I saw her last (obviously, as it was last November that I saw her). I think that whole family is just awesome.
Good luck in the crunch time. I'd love to catch up once it's all over. I'd love to catch up before, but find that unrealistic. :) We don't have any travel plans between now and Xmas, but I'm getting super excited for our trip around the world and I'm still just so incredibly high from this engagement. :)
Friday, August 31, 2012
Bday Plans!
Tonight I'm going out with friends after work, and tomorrow is Terry's work's annual anniversary party, so they're taking us to the Efteling: http://www.efteling.co.uk/eftelingen.net.
I'm also going to eat a delicious Bosche Bol on the way to the station beforehand: http://www.bosschebollen.nl/pages/start.php
Then I'm coming home and calling Grandma since she can't call me and would be very disappointed if she didn't get to talk to me on my bday, then going out. Then on Sunday Terry booked us the High Tea at Pilkington's in town: http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pilkingtons.nl%2Findex.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26view%3Darticle%26id%3D9%26Itemid%3D9&act=url
All I asked for for my bday was for him to make a reservation for us there. Maybe that's what Pat's bday $ to me will buy us!
I'm also going to eat a delicious Bosche Bol on the way to the station beforehand: http://www.bosschebollen.nl/pages/start.php
Then I'm coming home and calling Grandma since she can't call me and would be very disappointed if she didn't get to talk to me on my bday, then going out. Then on Sunday Terry booked us the High Tea at Pilkington's in town: http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pilkingtons.nl%2Findex.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26view%3Darticle%26id%3D9%26Itemid%3D9&act=url
All I asked for for my bday was for him to make a reservation for us there. Maybe that's what Pat's bday $ to me will buy us!
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Aunty Pat and Bday Greetings
Responding to Pat when she noted that she like to open bday cards as soon as she gets them in the mail so she can enjoy them for as long as possible, and how I am just like my dad and like to hoard them until the exact day:
That's funny. Terry is just like you! He opens cards as soon as he gets them. :) We don't really have big plans for my bday. We're going out with friends after work on Fri the 31st to celebrate, and then the 1st is actually the day of Terry's company's anniversary party, so they're taking us to the Efteling, which is this local amusement park we've been meaning to go to. So even though its for work I'm glad to be getting a chance to go when it will also be free entrance and free food! Then that evening we're going out with some Dutch friends because it's one of my friend's last night before moving to NYC for 3 months to work as a journalist covering the election. We'll probably invite some ppl from T's work too because it's going to be at this cool Irish Pub that serves Belgian beers that we were telling them about that they seemed really interested in.
I know I haven't answered fully and would love to write more but it's bed time! Thanks again for the card! You like to enjoy it for as long as possible on the mantle, but by saving it I get to look forward to it for as long as possible. :)
That's funny. Terry is just like you! He opens cards as soon as he gets them. :) We don't really have big plans for my bday. We're going out with friends after work on Fri the 31st to celebrate, and then the 1st is actually the day of Terry's company's anniversary party, so they're taking us to the Efteling, which is this local amusement park we've been meaning to go to. So even though its for work I'm glad to be getting a chance to go when it will also be free entrance and free food! Then that evening we're going out with some Dutch friends because it's one of my friend's last night before moving to NYC for 3 months to work as a journalist covering the election. We'll probably invite some ppl from T's work too because it's going to be at this cool Irish Pub that serves Belgian beers that we were telling them about that they seemed really interested in.
I know I haven't answered fully and would love to write more but it's bed time! Thanks again for the card! You like to enjoy it for as long as possible on the mantle, but by saving it I get to look forward to it for as long as possible. :)
Monday, August 6, 2012
We're engaged!
Was I surprised?
I was SO surprised. I thought he was going to wait until after our travels next year! He said there were 3 reasons he proposed now instead of waiting. First, he didn't want to keep a secret from me. (The secret being that he was ready and was 100% sure...he wanted to make it official!). Second, it makes finances for our trip much easier...instead of having a per person budget, we have a combined budget. Lastly, he wants us to be able to look forward to the wedding, and be able to openly plan, talk about ideas and be full of anticipation during the trip. Good decision!!
I'm in Boston now for my cousin's wedding (Terry didn't make this trip as he's going home in Sept and is coming home with me for xmas), but I'm having fun being able to celebrate with family. So I'll be Emily McDonnell! The wedding won't be until 2014 after we're back from our travels in 2013.
Here's an email T sent around about it:
Emily and I are engaged! J
A little backstory - Emily and I went to Paris to celebrate my birthday, but I had some other plans too.
We arrived in Paris on Thursday morning. I had the ring burning a hole in my pocket the whole trip, though I thought it was probably safer there (with a lower chance of discovery) than anywhere in our suitcases. We arrived at our hotel, one of the 5-star places downtown. I made Emily go find directions to our “next hotel,” since she thought we were staying at a cheap AirBnB place outside of the city after the first night, and I needed time to check in without her overhearing anything. We arrived quite early, and the room wasn’t ready yet, so we decided to go on a walk. We had a quick bite to eat, then strolled down the Champs Elysées from the Arc d’Triomphe to the Louvre. As we arrived outside the Louvre we saw that there was a small fair set up outside, including a large Ferris wheel!
This prompted me with a big game-time decision. I had picked out a spot under the Pont Neuf bridge, but this was a new opportunity. And I still had the ring in my pocket! The Ferris wheel would certainly be logistically easier, since we'd be going to Pont Neuf on the pretense of meeting my mom for dinner, so I'd have to come up with a good reason for us to go exactly where I wanted. I also still had to arrange with the concierge for transport from the proposal location to dinner, which was close to our hotel. However, the biggest factor was that the cabin on the Ferris wheel would be private – and I had no guarantee that the original place would be "right" at any given moment. All it would take is one drunk homeless guy to make it a completely forgettable experience. So I called an audible and went with the Ferris wheel.
We got on, and I decided to wait until we got to the top. The wheel stopped at the 90-degree point for f*cking forever (it might have been fifteen seconds or two minutes, I have no idea, but it felt like a lifetime). When we got up to the top I got down on one knee and popped the question. Emily was completely surprised – in a good way. Neither of us remember that much else about the rest of the ride. We’ll have to go back some time and actually see the sights.
We then returned to the hotel, where some champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries were waiting. We took a nap, then got ready for dinner. Our reservation was for an 8-course meal at one of the best restaurants in Paris, which we made full use of over 4+ hours.
Someone we talked to (I forget who) mentioned that an engagement is just the start of something new and amazing. Considering that we had the rest of the week in Paris to see the Louvre, Versailles, Notre Dame, Montmartre, etc. (and stay in our nice hotel), we certainly had a good start. J
I was SO surprised. I thought he was going to wait until after our travels next year! He said there were 3 reasons he proposed now instead of waiting. First, he didn't want to keep a secret from me. (The secret being that he was ready and was 100% sure...he wanted to make it official!). Second, it makes finances for our trip much easier...instead of having a per person budget, we have a combined budget. Lastly, he wants us to be able to look forward to the wedding, and be able to openly plan, talk about ideas and be full of anticipation during the trip. Good decision!!
I'm in Boston now for my cousin's wedding (Terry didn't make this trip as he's going home in Sept and is coming home with me for xmas), but I'm having fun being able to celebrate with family. So I'll be Emily McDonnell! The wedding won't be until 2014 after we're back from our travels in 2013.
Here's an email T sent around about it:
Emily and I are engaged! J
A little backstory - Emily and I went to Paris to celebrate my birthday, but I had some other plans too.
We arrived in Paris on Thursday morning. I had the ring burning a hole in my pocket the whole trip, though I thought it was probably safer there (with a lower chance of discovery) than anywhere in our suitcases. We arrived at our hotel, one of the 5-star places downtown. I made Emily go find directions to our “next hotel,” since she thought we were staying at a cheap AirBnB place outside of the city after the first night, and I needed time to check in without her overhearing anything. We arrived quite early, and the room wasn’t ready yet, so we decided to go on a walk. We had a quick bite to eat, then strolled down the Champs Elysées from the Arc d’Triomphe to the Louvre. As we arrived outside the Louvre we saw that there was a small fair set up outside, including a large Ferris wheel!
This prompted me with a big game-time decision. I had picked out a spot under the Pont Neuf bridge, but this was a new opportunity. And I still had the ring in my pocket! The Ferris wheel would certainly be logistically easier, since we'd be going to Pont Neuf on the pretense of meeting my mom for dinner, so I'd have to come up with a good reason for us to go exactly where I wanted. I also still had to arrange with the concierge for transport from the proposal location to dinner, which was close to our hotel. However, the biggest factor was that the cabin on the Ferris wheel would be private – and I had no guarantee that the original place would be "right" at any given moment. All it would take is one drunk homeless guy to make it a completely forgettable experience. So I called an audible and went with the Ferris wheel.
We got on, and I decided to wait until we got to the top. The wheel stopped at the 90-degree point for f*cking forever (it might have been fifteen seconds or two minutes, I have no idea, but it felt like a lifetime). When we got up to the top I got down on one knee and popped the question. Emily was completely surprised – in a good way. Neither of us remember that much else about the rest of the ride. We’ll have to go back some time and actually see the sights.
We then returned to the hotel, where some champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries were waiting. We took a nap, then got ready for dinner. Our reservation was for an 8-course meal at one of the best restaurants in Paris, which we made full use of over 4+ hours.
Someone we talked to (I forget who) mentioned that an engagement is just the start of something new and amazing. Considering that we had the rest of the week in Paris to see the Louvre, Versailles, Notre Dame, Montmartre, etc. (and stay in our nice hotel), we certainly had a good start. J
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Pics!
Of Emma's visit with us to Delft, Den Bosch & Budapest!!
Of Emma's visit with us to Delft, Den Bosch & Budapest!!
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.837542266554.2205793.13306003&type=1&l=22b91d0e24
Poland!
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.837547246574.2205794.13306003&type=1&l=de65e99b22
And please, don't look at the following pictures of my trip to Auschwitz Birkenau unless you have an appropriate amount of time to be able to respectfully reflect on their gravity.
http://kvisit.com/amsAZ
Monday, April 23, 2012
Upcoming Fun Stuff!
It's getting close to bed time here, and I've got a full week ahead of
me! Tomorrow I'm going to dinner at my friend's house and we'll watch
BBC documentaries, usually about space and planets. We mostly do that
every other Tuesday when her boyfriend has late meetings. It's super
cool. We usually order pizza, but she's cooking pesto pasta w/ chicken,
feta and sundried tomatoes for a change. YUMMY!! :) Wednesday is
someone's last day at work so 18 of us are going out for dinner at an
Afghan restaurant that is supposed to be really good. Not sure if I've
ever had Afghan food! I'm looking forward to it!! Thursday I'm going to
try a new Body Pump class with a friend, and on Friday with the same
friend I'll do Zumba, and then we have a women's club we'll go out to
drinks with, and then Terry comes home on Saturday!! Then Sunday is
Queen's Night (lots of wearing orange and partying), Sunday is Queen's
Day (more of the same, with live music and whatnot), the Mom and Dad fly
in on Tuesday! We won't see them until that weekend when we meet in
Brugge, but it feels like they're almost here! I hope they have good
weather for their hiking trip!! And the Thurs before Brugge I'm going
paintballing with work! Buzzy bee! What do you have coming up?
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Response to pics.
I'm glad you liked the pics! That number of tulips is definitely not natural. A lot of them have names that are just letters and numbers which I think means they've been "bred in captivity" if you will. Basically just created. But they're BEAUTIFUL! How creative of people to be able to MAKE a species! Or a sub-species. :)
I'm also really glad to hear that gma is looking forward to skyping with me! That's nice that she's spending the night so she can do that. Too bad I'll be asleep when you're all there for dinner. It would be such fun to be able to call while you're all there! 9 hours is a pretty big time difference though...
I also hope they find something wrong with grandma's knee, because, as you said, then they can fix it! The worst is going to the doctor and not being given a diagnosis. When I would get sick while working at the preschool I would go to the doctor hoping that a test like for strep throat, for example, would come back positive so I could just get on the right meds and start feeling better! Doctors are a little useless here because they tell you to go to bed, have tea and take time off work and come back in 2 wks-1 month if you're not feeling better. Trouble is, I always go to the doctor only as a last result, so by the time I'm at a doctor's office I already will have done all those things and waited that long and just want to be fixed!! Another interesting thing here is that if you call in sick to work it's the government that pays your sick leave (but only starting on the 3rd day...you get no compensation if you're sick only 1 or 2 days in a row...), but because the government is paying they send inspectors to your house to make sure you're actually where you say you are and are actually sick. Crazy, huh?? I don't really like that, even though I don't think people should use sick time as vacation time, because I do believe that some people might need a mental health day now and then when they should be allowed to stay home even if they're not conventionally "sick" ya know? Maybe they have something else going on that demands they take some time off. I think that should be allowed.
I'm super excited for my parents to come. We've been looking forward to this for a while now! I'll only partly be a tour guide because they're doing Amsterdam on their own and then we're going to Brugge where I don't know my way around either! It will certainly be fun for all of us, though! You can bet there will be a lot of pics after that trip!!
We had to avoid the large groups at the Jewish museum. It just ruins the experience when there's this massive group that can hardly fit in a room and the guide is holding up their brightly colored umbrella and shouting, "AND THIS ROOM IS BOUT THIS OTHER HORRIBLE THING THAT HAPPENED DURING THE HOLOCAUST BLAH BLAH BLAH LET'S KEEP MOVING ON TO THE NEXT ROOM NOW." It was kind of insensitive too and seemed hardly worth it. I like to do museums at my own pace and visit the exhibits that interest me, and actually be able to see some of the displays, believe it or not! :)
I'm also really glad to hear that gma is looking forward to skyping with me! That's nice that she's spending the night so she can do that. Too bad I'll be asleep when you're all there for dinner. It would be such fun to be able to call while you're all there! 9 hours is a pretty big time difference though...
I also hope they find something wrong with grandma's knee, because, as you said, then they can fix it! The worst is going to the doctor and not being given a diagnosis. When I would get sick while working at the preschool I would go to the doctor hoping that a test like for strep throat, for example, would come back positive so I could just get on the right meds and start feeling better! Doctors are a little useless here because they tell you to go to bed, have tea and take time off work and come back in 2 wks-1 month if you're not feeling better. Trouble is, I always go to the doctor only as a last result, so by the time I'm at a doctor's office I already will have done all those things and waited that long and just want to be fixed!! Another interesting thing here is that if you call in sick to work it's the government that pays your sick leave (but only starting on the 3rd day...you get no compensation if you're sick only 1 or 2 days in a row...), but because the government is paying they send inspectors to your house to make sure you're actually where you say you are and are actually sick. Crazy, huh?? I don't really like that, even though I don't think people should use sick time as vacation time, because I do believe that some people might need a mental health day now and then when they should be allowed to stay home even if they're not conventionally "sick" ya know? Maybe they have something else going on that demands they take some time off. I think that should be allowed.
I'm super excited for my parents to come. We've been looking forward to this for a while now! I'll only partly be a tour guide because they're doing Amsterdam on their own and then we're going to Brugge where I don't know my way around either! It will certainly be fun for all of us, though! You can bet there will be a lot of pics after that trip!!
We had to avoid the large groups at the Jewish museum. It just ruins the experience when there's this massive group that can hardly fit in a room and the guide is holding up their brightly colored umbrella and shouting, "AND THIS ROOM IS BOUT THIS OTHER HORRIBLE THING THAT HAPPENED DURING THE HOLOCAUST BLAH BLAH BLAH LET'S KEEP MOVING ON TO THE NEXT ROOM NOW." It was kind of insensitive too and seemed hardly worth it. I like to do museums at my own pace and visit the exhibits that interest me, and actually be able to see some of the displays, believe it or not! :)
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Berlin and update
We're doing really well. Reinforcements from the US have finally arrived for Terry (1 actually moved and 1 is working remote from the US and coming once a month), but I find it crazy that he had 2 ADDITIONAL people's worth of work to give away. It was just WAY too much for way too long.
This weekend we spent a wonderful long weekend in Berlin with one of our best friends from college. It was SO good to see him again, and I LOVED Berlin. Have you been? It wasn't even really on my list before, but we went because we happened to have a long weekend when he would be there, and I totally fell in love with the city and VERY highly recommend a visit. It just has the most incredibly amount of history (duh) and diversity (cultural, political, and of course food & beer) and just seems to have (finally) gotten a lot of things right. (Pics coming soon).
I'm working at Newell Rubbermaid right now and it's the Shared Financial Service Center so of the 150 employees there there are about 40 nationalities represented because we have to have all European languages spoken in the office, and the average age there is 27, so that's obviously my kind of work environment.
I was hired for a transition to SAP which is a different work system (complete with a "go live" a la Epic) and my 6 month contract ends on July 30 and there's no possibility for it to be extended as the transition to the new system will be complete, and I don't know if there will be any other opportunities for me there or if I'll be looking for jobs again, which is one of my least favorite things to do in the whole entire world.
This weekend we spent a wonderful long weekend in Berlin with one of our best friends from college. It was SO good to see him again, and I LOVED Berlin. Have you been? It wasn't even really on my list before, but we went because we happened to have a long weekend when he would be there, and I totally fell in love with the city and VERY highly recommend a visit. It just has the most incredibly amount of history (duh) and diversity (cultural, political, and of course food & beer) and just seems to have (finally) gotten a lot of things right. (Pics coming soon).
I'm working at Newell Rubbermaid right now and it's the Shared Financial Service Center so of the 150 employees there there are about 40 nationalities represented because we have to have all European languages spoken in the office, and the average age there is 27, so that's obviously my kind of work environment.
I was hired for a transition to SAP which is a different work system (complete with a "go live" a la Epic) and my 6 month contract ends on July 30 and there's no possibility for it to be extended as the transition to the new system will be complete, and I don't know if there will be any other opportunities for me there or if I'll be looking for jobs again, which is one of my least favorite things to do in the whole entire world.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Travel plans!
Regarding a dream trip to Kenya:
We mostly want to go to get a taste, but plan to go back to Africa (sometime in the future) for Kili among other things. We're a long way off from figuring out big picture travel plans. We had planned and purchased round the world 1 yr tix that T's company then paid us back for when they convinced us to move here. It's been a little tough playing the "Today we would have left for our trip/would be in Argentina" game, but at least we get to look forward to it still! It was just SO much work to pin down dates and flights for an entire year on 5 continents, but I like the planning, so it's ok that we're basically starting from scratch. Some of what we decided on can still be used for planning round 2...
Regarding Paris:
I went on Spring break 2008 when I was studying in Spain and totally loved it. I waited in line 3 times to get up the Eiffel Tower, and they closed it each time I got to the ticket counter. But I sort of like that I left something undone so I have a reason to go back and also something special to do with Terry when we go. I've already been so many of the places we're going together that it's nice when we get the chance to do something together that's new for both of us! Tough life being so well traveled, isn't it?
:)
We're in Berlin for Easter, Mom and Dad are coming for the whole of May and we're spending time with them at the chalet and road tripping around France (not to Paris), my best friend Emma is coming for the week of June 18th and just the 2 of us are doing a girl's trip to Vienna, Budapest and Krakow, though T may come out for the weekends on either end, but he doesn't have enough vacay time to spend the week with us as he's going back to the States for a couple work trips and he's adding time in NYC on to both of them. We're hoping to visit one of his best friends in Moscow this summer, August I'm going to Boston for my cousin Lisa's wedding, and then home to CA for Xmas...it will have been 1.5yrs since being back in the Bay Area which is definitely a record for me, not that I'm proud of it!
:(
We mostly want to go to get a taste, but plan to go back to Africa (sometime in the future) for Kili among other things. We're a long way off from figuring out big picture travel plans. We had planned and purchased round the world 1 yr tix that T's company then paid us back for when they convinced us to move here. It's been a little tough playing the "Today we would have left for our trip/would be in Argentina" game, but at least we get to look forward to it still! It was just SO much work to pin down dates and flights for an entire year on 5 continents, but I like the planning, so it's ok that we're basically starting from scratch. Some of what we decided on can still be used for planning round 2...
Regarding Paris:
I went on Spring break 2008 when I was studying in Spain and totally loved it. I waited in line 3 times to get up the Eiffel Tower, and they closed it each time I got to the ticket counter. But I sort of like that I left something undone so I have a reason to go back and also something special to do with Terry when we go. I've already been so many of the places we're going together that it's nice when we get the chance to do something together that's new for both of us! Tough life being so well traveled, isn't it?

We're in Berlin for Easter, Mom and Dad are coming for the whole of May and we're spending time with them at the chalet and road tripping around France (not to Paris), my best friend Emma is coming for the week of June 18th and just the 2 of us are doing a girl's trip to Vienna, Budapest and Krakow, though T may come out for the weekends on either end, but he doesn't have enough vacay time to spend the week with us as he's going back to the States for a couple work trips and he's adding time in NYC on to both of them. We're hoping to visit one of his best friends in Moscow this summer, August I'm going to Boston for my cousin Lisa's wedding, and then home to CA for Xmas...it will have been 1.5yrs since being back in the Bay Area which is definitely a record for me, not that I'm proud of it!

Sunday, March 25, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
A visit!
Our friend Ian and his girlfriend Ramsay are here for the weekend visiting! Not sure what we'll do, but I think we'll head to the market and to a famous pastry shop today to get a chocolate pastry with cream on the inside. Yay! :) It's also BEAUTIFUL perfect weather here. Just a great day to be outside!! Great weekend! And last week was awesome and this coming week is supposed to be the same. We've been sitting outside at the picnic tables by the canal at lunchtime at work, and it has been so warm some people have gotten sun burned!!
We watched the artist last night, and I actually really liked it. We had sort of been putting off seeing it because it's a silent film, but I enjoyed it a lot. I was surprised by his voice at the end - I thought he would have an American accent, but I guess I knew he was French!
I'm not sure what we'll do tomorrow - we'll have to see what Ian and his girlfriend feel like doing, but maybe we'll explore another city.
We watched the artist last night, and I actually really liked it. We had sort of been putting off seeing it because it's a silent film, but I enjoyed it a lot. I was surprised by his voice at the end - I thought he would have an American accent, but I guess I knew he was French!
I'm not sure what we'll do tomorrow - we'll have to see what Ian and his girlfriend feel like doing, but maybe we'll explore another city.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
I went to a castle!
This morning I got a text from a friend asking if I wanted to go to a castle. The answer, of course, was yes! Terry, as usual, had too much to do and couldn't join. He probably could have come if he had been able to plan for it, but 75hr weeks don't leave much time for spontaneity. It's cramping our style!!
Here are some pics!
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.788469843084.2198298.13306003&type=3&l=39ecf21da1
Here are some pics!
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.788469843084.2198298.13306003&type=3&l=39ecf21da1
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Today, after a light dinner of garlic chicken (with bread crumbs and parmesan) and broccoli, we're headed to a friend's house for Irish snacks made with Guinness and then out to the only Irish Pub in town! Now to find some green to wear!! I'll be making sure that a man with such a name as Terry McDonnell will be out celebrating too! :)
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Here's a video of me trying to sleep during carnival. I had ear muffs on over my earplugs...turn the volume up and you'll get a sense of how loud the marching brass bands were outside at ALL hours of the night...and this wasn't an early bedtime either... :(
But what fun it was when we were out celebrating!! :)
But what fun it was when we were out celebrating!! :)
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Another email to Linda!
The custom tailoring in Hong Kong is a brilliant idea. As you know, I've never been there, but I had a dress tailored for me in Thailand, and they're pretty good at it too. So cheap...
Sounds like your summer plans are shaping up nicely! Have you been to Turkey before? I was there for 2 days and 1 night (which hardly counts) but in that short time I was incredibly impressed by the friendliness of the people there and their willingness to help (as in using their personal cell phone to calling a friend who speaks English to translate while we're trying to buy train tickets), and also very much by the delicious food and the HISTORY! We visited Ephesus, which I super highly recommend: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Ephesus. That was literally the place where I became interested in historical facts, and now I can't understand why I never paid attention when learning about all the dead guys in school. :)
Sounds like your summer plans are shaping up nicely! Have you been to Turkey before? I was there for 2 days and 1 night (which hardly counts) but in that short time I was incredibly impressed by the friendliness of the people there and their willingness to help (as in using their personal cell phone to calling a friend who speaks English to translate while we're trying to buy train tickets), and also very much by the delicious food and the HISTORY! We visited Ephesus, which I super highly recommend: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Monday, February 20, 2012
Email to Linda
Life here is good. T is stressed and working too much, but this weekend was Carnaval, so that was lots of fun. It's basically just Halloween in a colder month but without the candy and not so kid friendly. The costumes are also way better here. The point isn't to just wear as little as possible, it's really to have the BEST costume. Most people get very creative and make these incredibly elaborate costumes. It's definitely a good time.
Email to Mom
This weekend was SUPER fun! Fri we just went out to dinner and to bed,
Sat we went out for Carnaval from 2-midnight and again yesterday from
2-9. There should be some pics on fb you can see. It was great! T is
stressed (as usual), and my hair still smells like smoke from the
parking garage party yesterday, but other than that, it's just another
Monday morning.
Sat we went out for Carnaval from 2-midnight and again yesterday from
2-9. There should be some pics on fb you can see. It was great! T is
stressed (as usual), and my hair still smells like smoke from the
parking garage party yesterday, but other than that, it's just another
Monday morning.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Email to Aunty Pat about the Valentine's Day package she sent us!
Hi Pat! The package came! Thanks so much!! As I mentioned we were going to do, we went out and bought each other some yummy goodies to fill the plate with, so that was perfect - thanks! Also, the shower gel is ideal because we don't have a bathtub, and I've been using Terry's manly Sport shower gel because I'm too cheap to buy some of my own. :) So now I'll smell much nicer. You're so thoughtful!!
Today was really nice - it was a beautiful day, but it was only 12 degrees!! We didn't have any food in the house, so we went out to get paninis at a shop called The Sandwich - yep, that's their specialty! I had one with brie, bacon, onion and tomato, and Terry had salami, aged cheese, onion and paprika. Yum!! Then we went and bought ourselves dark chocolate covered marzipan, chocolate tea, and some really yummy jelly candies. Then we came home and took a nap! :)
This evening we're going to cook lemon grass salmon for dinner and watch The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. That's a great idea to watch the academy award nominees! Which ones have you seen so far? It's legal to download movies here in the Netherlands, so we've already downloaded The Descendants, but haven't had a chance to watch that yet. I saw The Help, Harry Potter, Drive, Transformers (I think) and Rango back in Madison, and we downloaded and watched Moneyball here, and we watched Hugo last night! I HATED Drive - WAY too violent for me. I just didn't like it at all.
We also downloaded and watched Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, but neither of us enjoyed it. It was way too confusing and hard to follow. What have you thought of the ones you've seen? There, now I've been through the whole list of nominations! :) Will you watch the Oscars? Do you ever guess which ones will win?
I've attached a few pics for you. The first three are of our town after it snowed! The first two are looking up and down the street that our street comes off of. The third is looking down our street. The fourth is of this yummy icing/cream/pastry frog that I ordered and brought home on Thursday, because Carnaval is coming up here and the frog is the mascot of the event, and the pastry shop is making these to be festive. I couldn't resist! The last picture is of course the dish you gave us with (what was left of) our Valentine's Day goodies on it!
Thanks again for the package. That was so sweet of you! Have a wonderful Valentine's Day, and give my mom and dad and Grandma big hugs from me!!
xx
Today was really nice - it was a beautiful day, but it was only 12 degrees!! We didn't have any food in the house, so we went out to get paninis at a shop called The Sandwich - yep, that's their specialty! I had one with brie, bacon, onion and tomato, and Terry had salami, aged cheese, onion and paprika. Yum!! Then we went and bought ourselves dark chocolate covered marzipan, chocolate tea, and some really yummy jelly candies. Then we came home and took a nap! :)
This evening we're going to cook lemon grass salmon for dinner and watch The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. That's a great idea to watch the academy award nominees! Which ones have you seen so far? It's legal to download movies here in the Netherlands, so we've already downloaded The Descendants, but haven't had a chance to watch that yet. I saw The Help, Harry Potter, Drive, Transformers (I think) and Rango back in Madison, and we downloaded and watched Moneyball here, and we watched Hugo last night! I HATED Drive - WAY too violent for me. I just didn't like it at all.
We also downloaded and watched Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, but neither of us enjoyed it. It was way too confusing and hard to follow. What have you thought of the ones you've seen? There, now I've been through the whole list of nominations! :) Will you watch the Oscars? Do you ever guess which ones will win?
I've attached a few pics for you. The first three are of our town after it snowed! The first two are looking up and down the street that our street comes off of. The third is looking down our street. The fourth is of this yummy icing/cream/pastry frog that I ordered and brought home on Thursday, because Carnaval is coming up here and the frog is the mascot of the event, and the pastry shop is making these to be festive. I couldn't resist! The last picture is of course the dish you gave us with (what was left of) our Valentine's Day goodies on it!
Thanks again for the package. That was so sweet of you! Have a wonderful Valentine's Day, and give my mom and dad and Grandma big hugs from me!!
xx
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Email to Aunty Pat about upcoming plans!
Its been like FIVE degrees here. But it's warming up a bit!
Yep, we're really excited about Prague. We also just booked flights to Berlin for Easter! We have a friend from the US who is going to be there at that time, so it will be perfect!! Have you been to Germany?
We're finally planned our Valentine's Day! We bought a groupon for a really nice restaurant in town that we can't usually afford, and we each get a 5 course meal! We're going this Sunday, and we're really looking forward to it!
Work is still going well, but i'm more tired now at the end of the week than I was at my last job! More thinking required at this one. I think we'll just stay in and watch a movie tomorrow night. The last movie we watched was Sherlock Holmes, and that was pretty good.
Yep, we're really excited about Prague. We also just booked flights to Berlin for Easter! We have a friend from the US who is going to be there at that time, so it will be perfect!! Have you been to Germany?
We're finally planned our Valentine's Day! We bought a groupon for a really nice restaurant in town that we can't usually afford, and we each get a 5 course meal! We're going this Sunday, and we're really looking forward to it!
Work is still going well, but i'm more tired now at the end of the week than I was at my last job! More thinking required at this one. I think we'll just stay in and watch a movie tomorrow night. The last movie we watched was Sherlock Holmes, and that was pretty good.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Email to Aunty Pat about my new Job and some plans!
I actually really really like my job! In addition to the people and the environment, I like the work as well, which I was not expecting! It's a lot of problem solving, so you really have to understand what's going on and why you need to do everything you do, and for each case you have to think hard to decipher what happened, so it's not just memorization and repetition, it's like solving puzzles all day, which I really enjoy!
Our next trip is booked for the weekend of March 3rd. We're going to Prague! We're leaving after work on the Fri and flying back Mon evening (taking Monday off work), so T will be able to knock Prague off his list!
We don't really have any plans for V day, but we will probably go out to dinner one evening next weekend because weekday nights are tough for us since I have to be up at 6:15! We're not going to get each other much - I've been craving marzipan and T of course loves chocolate, so we'll go to a shop here in town together and buy each other some goodies.
Our next trip is booked for the weekend of March 3rd. We're going to Prague! We're leaving after work on the Fri and flying back Mon evening (taking Monday off work), so T will be able to knock Prague off his list!
We don't really have any plans for V day, but we will probably go out to dinner one evening next weekend because weekday nights are tough for us since I have to be up at 6:15! We're not going to get each other much - I've been craving marzipan and T of course loves chocolate, so we'll go to a shop here in town together and buy each other some goodies.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Email to T's mom
Thanks for asking about my job - I actually really like it! It's going great! I'm looking forward to starting some "real" work, tomorrow I think, as it's been mostly (essential) training these first two days. It is indeed a bit like Epic, in that we have a lovely view from our (not nearly as spectacular) canteen. We're definitely in the middle of nowhere. :) I think the work will indeed be interesting and engaging (though still not quite ideal), and I definitely like my "colleagues."
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Email to my friend Stacy!
I found a yummy sandwich place! And I even sampled it. :) It's called...The Sandwich! They don't seem to have a website, but basically you can choose between a sandwich (regular sandwich bread, white or brown), a broodje (which I thought was a sandwich by definition, but whatevs). The broodje comes on a mini baguette sort of thing, and you can also get the broodje as a panini (which I thought was more square but whatevs), and the panini comes on the same mini baguette, but it's smushed in the panini maker. I had a panini and it was actually really good! the baguette had herbs in it, and I had brie, "bacon" (canadian bacon at best, but ham if you ask me, although very tasty nonetheless), onions and tomato. I also saw some really nice looking bread that was dark and had seeds on top and was triangular.
Email to a volunteer coordinator in Eindhoven
Hey Tami! I'll let you know if any of my friends are interested, but I wouldn't be surprised if we don't get much of a response from people here in Den Bosch. It's no big deal how long it would last each week. I was just curious. It actually might work out well because trivia is in Eindhoven on Thursdays! :)
We came over here for my partner's work - he works for an American company that has a subsidiary office here so they transferred us, but I had to quit my job to be able to come too. My new job is going to be with Newell Rubbermaid in Goirle, near Tilburg doing Customer Claims. I found them through Unique Multilingual, based in Eindhoven, and they're a fabulous placement agency, especially if you speak any other language besides English, but also just as a native English speaker. I also had a job working at Tele-Sales Direct here in Den Bosch, and I found them through TiP Personnel. I guess I was lucky to find two jobs so quickly - we only moved here on Oct 15, but a couple months felt like a long time to be just searching for a job!
I've adjusted ok, but my partner is averaging 85 hours a week which is totally unsustainable. :( I've joined the International Women's Club here and the North American Women's Club in Eindhoven. You should check them out if you're interested! There are also lots of wonderful MeetUp groups.
We came over here for my partner's work - he works for an American company that has a subsidiary office here so they transferred us, but I had to quit my job to be able to come too. My new job is going to be with Newell Rubbermaid in Goirle, near Tilburg doing Customer Claims. I found them through Unique Multilingual, based in Eindhoven, and they're a fabulous placement agency, especially if you speak any other language besides English, but also just as a native English speaker. I also had a job working at Tele-Sales Direct here in Den Bosch, and I found them through TiP Personnel. I guess I was lucky to find two jobs so quickly - we only moved here on Oct 15, but a couple months felt like a long time to be just searching for a job!
I've adjusted ok, but my partner is averaging 85 hours a week which is totally unsustainable. :( I've joined the International Women's Club here and the North American Women's Club in Eindhoven. You should check them out if you're interested! There are also lots of wonderful MeetUp groups.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Email to Pat and Sandy
Thanks for the congrats! It's not my ideal company or position, but I really like my boss (we spent the interview talking about my experience trekking to Everest Base Camp, and she ended up asking for a guide recommendation, which I gave her), and of the 150 employees in the office, 35 nationalities are represented, and the average age is 27! I think it's going to be an awesome work environment!
Monday, January 23, 2012
Email to my friend Elena!
Yep, I accepted the Newell Rubbermaid offer. It's supposed to be for only 6 months without the possibility of extension, but the woman who hired me did say they "have lots of other opportunities within the company" so we'll see where it goes!
Life here is good - I'm enjoying my last week off before starting work on Monday. This is the first week since Sept that I've just had time to myself and didn't need to be moving or looking for apartments/jobs! I've been running errands, working out and seeing friends! Life is good for me!
Terry, on the other hand, is super stressed. :( I'm trying to give him as many things as I can to look forward to. We had massages this weekend, and have a Groupon for a 3 course dinner this Saturday, so I'm trying to take care of him as best I can! Hopefully carnival will do him some good. :)
What was your fav part about NYC? He'll love to hear anything nice you have to say about his city. :) Not sure if you were aware of American football at all while you were there, but the NY Giants just made it into the Superbowl, which is a pretty big deal. To do that they had to beat the San Francisco 49ers! Boo! :( But I'm happy for Terry!
Life here is good - I'm enjoying my last week off before starting work on Monday. This is the first week since Sept that I've just had time to myself and didn't need to be moving or looking for apartments/jobs! I've been running errands, working out and seeing friends! Life is good for me!
Terry, on the other hand, is super stressed. :( I'm trying to give him as many things as I can to look forward to. We had massages this weekend, and have a Groupon for a 3 course dinner this Saturday, so I'm trying to take care of him as best I can! Hopefully carnival will do him some good. :)
What was your fav part about NYC? He'll love to hear anything nice you have to say about his city. :) Not sure if you were aware of American football at all while you were there, but the NY Giants just made it into the Superbowl, which is a pretty big deal. To do that they had to beat the San Francisco 49ers! Boo! :( But I'm happy for Terry!
Email to my Aunty Pat about my new job!
I am very much enjoying my last week before work! I have social engagements every evening!
The commute is going to be easy - it's only a 15min train ride, which is paid for by work, and then they pick me up there and shuttle me to work for free, twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon. The downside is that I'm on the 7:30 shuttle so I have to leave the house before T would usually have to wake up, but I think he's going to get up with me and go to work earlier and hopefully come home earlier, and then we'll go to bed earlier!
I'm going to dealing with invoices from our business customers. That's about all I know! It's nice that this place has a cafeteria, so I can get food if I want or if I forget my lunch, but I think I'll bring lunch the first day and then figure out what my options are.
The commute is going to be easy - it's only a 15min train ride, which is paid for by work, and then they pick me up there and shuttle me to work for free, twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon. The downside is that I'm on the 7:30 shuttle so I have to leave the house before T would usually have to wake up, but I think he's going to get up with me and go to work earlier and hopefully come home earlier, and then we'll go to bed earlier!
I'm going to dealing with invoices from our business customers. That's about all I know! It's nice that this place has a cafeteria, so I can get food if I want or if I forget my lunch, but I think I'll bring lunch the first day and then figure out what my options are.
Email to Terry's mom
I'm very much enjoying my last week off before starting full time work! This is the first week off I've had since Sept when I haven't been actively needing to move or look for a job/apartment, etc. Even last week I was still stressed about interviews and which jobs to take and whatnot. I'm still running errands and the like this week, but it's mostly just guilt free time at home to work out, nap, etc! :)
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Shopping for 1 dress for 2 weddings!
I'm going shopping tomorrow with a friend of mine because I am going to 2 weddings in august and don't have a dress for either of them and they're on back to back weekends! Since it's sale season, I thought I would take advantage of mid-day mid-week Zara and H&M shopping to see if I can find a cheap dress that's appropriate for the cocktail dress code for the evening wedding on the top floor of a Boston hotel, but also for a Saturday am church wedding in Surrey, UK! Yikes!
Email to my Aunty Pat!
Hi Pat! Good to hear from you! The New Year is treating me well as I just finished up the boring telemarketing job, and got another offer for a position with Newell Rubbermaid! I also had a different interview to be the Personal Assistant for the CEO of Triodos Bank, a green, ethical and sustainable bank, but if I get a second round interview it wouldn't take place until after I'm supposed to commit to the Rubbermaid job! We'll see how it goes. If I take the Rubbermaid job, I'll bike 4 min to the train station, take a 15 min train to a different town, and then a free company shuttle pics us up two times in the morning and drops us back off two times after work, and they pay for my train journey as well! That will be SO much nicer than having to bike in all weather! If it's really horrible out, I could always walk 10 min to the train station instead and keep myself dryer by being able to hold an umbrella!
Terry is still working wayyy to much, and isn't happy about it. Hopefully things will turn around soon! He's stressed and unhappy and I'm doing all I can to keep him afloat!
Your trip to Mendecino sounds magical. I really wish I were living closer to you guys because those trips are the things I'm really missing right now! Though I am really looking forward to my parents' visit here in May!
After 3 weeks of telemarketing I have 2 weeks off before the Rubbermaid job starts on Jan 30. It's 2 weeks less of pay, but I'm really looking forward to lots of time to be productive! Also, given that T has so little time, it's nice that at least one of us will be feeling like we're in a good place, and will be well rested and have lots of time for doing dishes/laundry/shopping. If we were both feeling as down as he is and neither of us could get anything done we would be in rough shape! But I don't really mind doing all the chores because being is support system is probably the thing that makes me happiest in the whole wide world! :)
Happy New Year!
xx
Terry is still working wayyy to much, and isn't happy about it. Hopefully things will turn around soon! He's stressed and unhappy and I'm doing all I can to keep him afloat!
Your trip to Mendecino sounds magical. I really wish I were living closer to you guys because those trips are the things I'm really missing right now! Though I am really looking forward to my parents' visit here in May!
After 3 weeks of telemarketing I have 2 weeks off before the Rubbermaid job starts on Jan 30. It's 2 weeks less of pay, but I'm really looking forward to lots of time to be productive! Also, given that T has so little time, it's nice that at least one of us will be feeling like we're in a good place, and will be well rested and have lots of time for doing dishes/laundry/shopping. If we were both feeling as down as he is and neither of us could get anything done we would be in rough shape! But I don't really mind doing all the chores because being is support system is probably the thing that makes me happiest in the whole wide world! :)
Happy New Year!
xx
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
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