Finding a Purpose March 6, 2008
Posted by smartblondece in Missing England, Oregon, Pacific NW, writing.1 comment so far
For a new blog. I have plenty of fun with this. It is filled with my random rantings and whining. And works quite well as a public journal (and occasionally private, you don’t know my passwords!) . But I want to start a second blog. A blog with a purpose. Here’s the problem: I have no purpose. As anyone can tell from my tag cloud I have quite a … cloud… a blurry yet puffy cloud of tags and interests. These are my current ideas:
Coffee (could get expensive, and being stuck in Corvallis limits variation)
Oregon
College
Pacific Northwest
Study Abroad (although would have been much more effective while I was on study abroad… if you are interested check out my early posts)
Books (Time to read books… v. little)
Something utterly fictional (because fiction is fun… )
Trying to figure out what I want to write about. There are plenty of things that I enjoy, but would never write about. So going to think about this in the next few days, and I am open for suggestions.
Missing England February 27, 2008
Posted by smartblondece in Animals, Friends, Missing England, Oregon, family.add a comment
In fact I miss it so much right now that it is actually painful. I miss everything there. I had a great group of friends (don’t get me wrong I love my friends here to death), I loved the land, the culture, and I think I loved the freedom I had living in Brighton. If I wanted to do something public transport was easy, or I could get into any club or bar without having to worry about being of age. I miss walking through the South Lanes just staring at old jewelery, clothes I couldn’t afford, and just people watching. I miss sitting on the beach listening to the waves, as pitifully small as they were, running over the rocks. I miss having London, easily one of the worlds coolest cities, so near, and so accessible. I miss the feeling that everything has been so well established. Here something is old if it was around during WWII. I miss how WWII was just The War. I miss the accents, their great variety and color. I miss the sense of humour, and the spelling, and the television (Oh, Doctor Who how I miss thee). I miss the trains. I would sit on a train, on my way somewhere new and I would stare out the windows at this absolutely beautiful country going by, inspiring me. I miss the creativity I felt there. I was inspired, and for what I write the land, the travel and the culture just continued to constantly feed me with ideas. And strangely enough, and my flatmates would agree this is strange, I even miss the tweeting midnight birds. At night in Oregon it is quiet. You open you window and you hear no tweeting birds. But in the South Downs they chirp back and forth to each other all night long. Like teenage girls gossiping at a sleep over. I miss jogging in the country, over bridle paths where I am all alone, and simply with me, nature, and God. That was pretty awesome. Here my town I am pretty much limited to the town itself. It’s not far out to remote places, but I have no car, and it is hard to get there with public transportation or a bike that really isn’t meant for anymore than city riding.
I’m not saying life in England was perfect. I missed my friends and family, I missed Oregon. I missed the remoteness you could get so easily, the ability to feel you were in an area so natural, very little is natural in England, sure there is the Peak District or the Lake District, but here in Oregon you can get amazing natural beauty that has been so unaltered, undeveloped, so readily. I missed big waves pounding into real stone (not chalk, as cool as those are) cliffs. And I missed the fog and clouds lingering in fir trees.
But I’m not sure I ached as much for Oregon as I do for Sussex. Maybe it was because I saw a definite end to my self imposed exile, or maybe Sussex will always be special to me. All I know is I miss it terribly.
The South Laines

I might just disappear… November 8, 2007
Posted by smartblondece in God, Missing England, Technology, What?!, family, school.1 comment so far
Been thinking a bit lately. To be honest I’m not really happy right now. There are a few things I am identifying as reverse culture shock (it’s been 4 1/2 months but it is still happening) and a few things that are nothing to do with that. One of my little weights on my shoulder, is something I’ve dealt with a lot before. I have slightly addictive tendencies. Thankfully this has not brought itself out in anything nasty such as drugs or alcohol or sex or gambling or anything else you might go to an anon meeting for. No this seems to come out in tv, the internet, The Sims and other things where I have a tendency to turn off my brain. Frankly, this is NOT good given my current amazing profession as a STUDENT. I need my brain to stay on. And to actually focus. I have not been focusing lately. I have been doing very little focusing. This is something I struggle with and probably always will. Not ADD. I know what I need to do, I just generally avoid doing those things in favor of the addictions listed above.
I am happiest when I am productive, close to God (I’m a Christian, I don’t talk about it much. Don’t really feel I need to. But I may more sometime not so soon… yes there is a point to this rambling) and when I feel in control of my life. But right now I don’t feel like I do. In fact I don’t feel like any of those things. I do not feel on top of anything and here is my big reason. I am spending too much time on this computer, on my bed, watching TV. I am not happy. I’m NOT happy! So why does that feel so friggin’ good to type? I don’t want this to be my life. And here’s the thing. This, how I am living right now isn’t what I want.
And I don’t need Doctor Phil, any life coach, self help book, or Pastor to tell me what to do. I wish I could say God told me. But no, my mom told me. And not anytime recently. No, she told me everyday as I grew up and never directly (or at least never as it sunk in with verbal enforcement). If I want to change it only I can. I need to get up off my arse and actually do something. My mother gave me that common sense. And if I learned anything while I was in England it was this: My mom is generally right. OK, not always but when it comes to a lot of things it’s generally a good idea to listen to my mom, to look at what she does, or at what she would want me to do. My parents have raised me, offered me every opportunity, and not so this would be my life. No, they wanted better for me. And here’s the thing. I want better for me.
This isn’t working. What I’m doing now. It’s just not. So here it is. A radical idea this day in age, among people in our age group. I’m turning off the computer. Granted, I am also a college student so perhaps I need to qualify this statement. I need the computer, the internet ect… for my school work. I need it to communicate with my classmates and my profs. So, tonight I turn it off and I only turn it back on to do homework, and check e-mails. I’ll work something out with iTunes, since it’s kinda my version of the radio. Maybe have it on but not allow iTunes store shopping. I just know I need a radical change right now.
Why stop there. Justin recently told me I watch too much telly. And after all he’s right. No more. I get wrapped up in stories. Thankfully with novels you have to wait a while if it’s a series in progress, or it just ends. No these shows that I get addicted to, they go on and on. Each week a new installment. I’m breaking these addictions. I don’t need them. And I am better than this. I am better than this life I am in right now. And here’s the thing. The life I should have, the life I have worked hard to get is right here. So close that I kinda float through it each day. I am sick of this. And here’s another thing. I miss God. And He hasn’t really gone anywhere. I just haven’t talked to Him in a really long time. So here it goes, heres the plunge. And if you don’t see me for a while, if I disappear… it’s because I’m out living my life.
Rain and ID October 18, 2007
Posted by smartblondece in Friends, Missing England, Rain.add a comment
So I went over to Kristin’s where we watched some Grey’s and then headed to McMinamins. It was pouring down rain when we got there and 10:30… kinda forgot what time it was. We went in and sat down. Then the guy comes over and asks what we want. I ordered a diet coke and Kristin went to pull out her ID for the beer she was going to order. Well, she never got to order because he asked me for my ID. At which point we did this, “You forgot your id?” “Yeah.” “But we drove here!” “I know I just realized I left it at home” The waiter then asked if I had a passport or anything. “No, I don’t carry my passport with me.” Stupid place that has to become a bar at half friggin ten. So we had to leave. Because like it or not, I am 20 years 5 months and 20 days old. And that is too young to be coming back to the states after a year in England.
Other than that it is raining. We’re in the middle 3 storms. The first was a windy and earlier today. It missed us for the most part and hit Puget Sound. The second is here and is making very pretty rain to listen to. The third is right behind it. So I doubt I’ll see much of a break. My pretty plants are out getting water. I need to bring them back in before I go to bed.
two months passed August 7, 2007
Posted by smartblondece in Missing England, WW.add a comment
Back in OR. With the mess that was finishing Exams and moving back to Oregon I never did get back on track, but I also never gained back all I lost.
I weighed in this morning just to see where I was at. On my mom’s scale I was at 150.5 lbs. Nothing to be ashamed of considering. I think I may have lost a few pounds in the last couple weeks. I worked at the Washington and Benton County Fairs for a food vendor. You’d think that being around curly fries and elephant ears would be a curse. Quite the opposite. I did eat some but in tiny portions and I was constantly moving around. I did get on the scale a few weeks ago… I was at like 153. Anyways, off to life. Gonna try to get back on WW. Adios all.