maps of the mindset/mindsets of the map

Relaxing is so much more enjoyable when you feel that you deserve it.

I'm bored, which is something I hate being. I doubt anyone really enjoys being bored, but I hate even admitting that I am. Being bored means you're not being creative with your time, or you're just being lazy. OR you're a child and just want to disagree with all of the suggestions your parents give you. Ah. Those were the days.
Of course, these days the suggestions coming from my parents are great. Mom tried to convince me to join my friends for a cruise on the Medierranean, but that's when Lizzy's here. And Dad was going on about southern France. I am trying to figure out my travel plans but it's getting very confusing. I have no idea where Lizzy and I will end up next week, so we'll discuss it when she's here. She says she absolutely doesn't care, but I don't believe her. At this point I'm thinking a night or two in Munich, but who knows. Then after that, tentatively Budapest, Brasov, Bucharest, and Istanbul, but this all needs to be discussed once Natalie gets back from wherever she is in Europe. And then, a weekend in Spain to do nothing but sit on the beach and read about 4 books. And then...Norway? Morocco? Here is my list of places I would still really, really like to see while here. Have fun with it.
1) Berlin 2) Amsterdam 3) southern France 4) Stavanger 5) Barcelona 6) Florence
This are kind of in order...well, not really. We'll see where I end up. No matter what, I am still seeing a lot more of the world than I probably deserve to.
That's the future. It would sound a lot more cheery if I weren't in such a crap mood. The highlight of today was the super cute guy Stephanie and I saw at the T-Mobile store. That or the whole grapefruit I ate. I'm telling you, things are really exciting around here.
I met up with Steph for lunch to hear all about her travels. First, she went to Russia with Erica which I guess ended up being a grand adventure. No one spoke English and they all hated tourists, so she said it taught her a lot about being a good traveler. They also couldn't pronounce anything and it took them 2 hours to find their hostel in St. Petersburg. After that I guess they literally had to write things on their hands and hold it up so that they could get tickets on the right trains and such. And she learned to avoid the police, since they harass tourists and charge them for anything they feel like.
Oddly enough, I was wildly jealous. What an adventure! I can't wait to get into Eastern Europe and be completely out of my element and be dressed like a completely hobo. That's what being young is for. Questionably hygiene and doing things in a foreign country that your parents probably wouldn't approve of. Feel free to quote me on that.
But, alas, Russia is not in the works. At least not this year. I would love to go there someday, but not now. It also takes such a long time to get Visas and such. For like a week in February all my friends were talking about was paperwork to get into Russia. I almost felt left out because I didn't have any formidable looking Cryillic documents. Maryia was getting ready to go storm down the Belarussian embassy in Berlin because they almost didn't let her go home to see her mom. It was all very dramatic around here for awhile.

As for my OWN travels...
I have no idea when the last time I wrote was. Probably about 4 months ago, as my father told me. But, anyway, I'll do my best to recap.

FATHER - The weirdest part of having my dad around was paying attention to his mannerisms, because I figure that's kind of like seeing what I'll be like when I'm in my 40s. And that whole bit about your parents becoming your friends the older you get is starting to make sense. Terrifying. Another weird thing I'm realizing is that I do look up to my parents about a lot of things and I very much value their advice, but I am simply going to disagree with them on others. And when I was little that always seemed to be a bad thing, I guess. But now I am older and establishing my place in the world, so it's ok to disagree and have my own opinions. They have mature justifications now and aren't just products of teenage spite. I'm not fighting with anyone about it. Actually, I'm learning the art of biting my tongue. I think that's the magical thing, no? Me? Biting my tongue?
For my curious parents reading this, I am not referring to one specific thing. In fact, I can't even think of an example. So stop wondering. I am growing into my own person. It's nice.
So, yes, it was wonderful seeing my dad, but iit was also very surprising. I honestly thought I would get upset with him and that there was no way we'd peacefully coexist for a week. But I didn't give the ol' guy enough credit, I suppose. Or myself. And my dad got a ton of father-daughter time, which I know is something he's wanted for years.
I choose to thank the Atlantic Ocean.

EX-BOYFRIEND - John and I are an old married couple in a lot of ways. I guess a lot of that is because he's the only guy I've dated who started out as a really good friend. We also were especially close my freshman year at U of M, which was...tremulous.
Wow. What a good word for 2005.
John also surprised me a lot, which was nice. We only bickered with each other once, and that was when we were in Rome, decided to take a walk after dinner, and I figured a map wasn't necessary. Needless to say, 4 hours later we returned to our hotel after exploring in depth corners of Rome that I really didn't care to see. But I did get to see all of Rome that day and the weather could not have possibly been better. I also got to see all of it with a boy who watched out for me, which meant giving the death stare to any man in the Metro who was getting a bit too close. And John really does give a great death stare. Even I was afraid.
Italy is great, but every time I venture out of my Germany bubble, I feel it. I have some very American ways which will probably stay with me forever, but I've noticed little changes in my mindset. For instance, my cleanliness, taste in desserts, and even how often I smile at strangers has all changed. Oh and my raging addiction to coffee. But Italy is obviously violently different. I whined a few times about the streets being dirty, men staring blatantly at me, and how loud people were being. John just told me to be quiet.
I'm horrified to think of what's going to bother me when I come home. Ok. Avoiding that thought.
Seeing John was wonderful and I tried to kidnap him so he couldn't go. Shucks.
My only regret is that they closed the SISTINE CHAPEL. That was #1 of my list. I gave some Swiss Guards serious attitude until John yanked me away.

AUNT, UNCLE, & COUSINS (oh my!) - The Baldwins absolutely met expectations. It was glorious. We got lost several dozen times, got the cops called on us in Salzburg, had a bloody accident on a luge in the Schwarzwald, and did our best to find suitable food for Dylan. I had a marvelous time with my family and it was nice having some intense bonding time.
The only sad part was when Aunt Kathy would suddenly look a lot like my own Ma. And then made me miss her a lot. Don't get me wrong, it was great having a Mom-figure for a week, even though she wasn't my favorite person at 8:30 in the morning. Victoria was groaning too, so I didn't feel too bad. But in Salzburg she woke me up with coffee, so she made up for it...kinda.
We got to see all kinds of great tourist sites in Bavaria, Austria, and the Schwarzwald. And we did so in an Audi A4 hatchback, where I was smushed in the backseat with Victoria and Dylan. It reminded me so much of when Jimmy was young, since Dylan is 8 and that was a mere 5 years ago. We had to get on Dylan to blow his nose, not get his feet all over the seats, stop repeating phrases just to drive his sisters crazy, etc.
I really did get awesome little brother training. And in return, Jimmy is going to be such a pro when one of his girlfriends starts crying over nothing and melts down into a blubbery mess. You're welcome, Bub.

So, as you can see, my personal connections and I have been all over the map...literally.

Now, I am not traveling, and haven't been doing much in the past week. I accidentally volunteered to clean out the oven. I also went to go see 'The Departed' in German, and I had NO idea what was going on. I understood about 90%, so I think even in English I would have been lost. But, Leonardo Dicaprio was very enjoyable to look at. Despite the thug boy look he had goin' on. I've also started running more, which is great. I love running. I just hope my shins continue to agree with the idea.
And now, I go make the dinner. Lizzy gets here on Saturday. I don't know how she's going to handle having Europe in the palm of her hand, but it'll give her a taste of my life.