So the last couple of weeks have been pretty exciting, if not enjoyable. Our long-time friends Amy and Max came to pay us a visit at the end of their month-long whirlwind European tour. Since the weather has finally turned nice, we had a great time showing them around the city and in general just hanging out and relaxing. For my part, I was able to get my term papers done early so that I could take a little vacation while they were here, and likewise Ryan was able to get off work. It was a little strange at first to have our 'old' and 'new' lives colliding (old friends in a new place) but it was really a great time and a comforting bit of home so far away.
In other news, I have begun to work seriously on my dissertation, doing secondary research, scoping out primary source materials and starting to write up the first chapter. I just got a new copy of Office 2004, which will work with my citation management software. Hoping it will be more stable than the old copy of word 2000 I had which would randomly shut down and cause me to lose my work every hour or so. Unlike my last thesis, I am trying to get started this time around all organised and set up properly from the start so that I can hopefully be more efficient and avoid headaches. I will let you know how that goes!
Some sad news, Ryan's grandmother (Petrich) who has cancer has been doing very poorly. With the help of his parents he will be traveling back to the USA for the last week of May (5-24 to 6-4) to spend time with his family, especially Marcelle, while he has the chance. He hopes that he will also have time to catch up with friends too, so keep an ear out and your schedules open because you will likely hear from him.
This next weekend we are embarking on our first real bike tour of Scotland, exploring the East Lothian reigon on our way to visit Ms. Graisbery (still not sure if she changed her name and if so what it is) and her new husband in Dunbar, on the eastern coast (30 to 50 miles each way depending on route). We will be passing through a lot of fantastic scenic areas so lots of pictures are sure to follow. If this little trip goes well, will we definitely be doing more, perhaps along the Scottish coast from Berwick Upon Tweed back up to Edinburgh, and from Glasgow up to Inverness. We figure its best we get a real taste of Scotland while we can, and considering that we've hardly been out of Edinburgh so far, we can't wait.
Finally, for those of you who have any interest in our newfound athletic exploits--- although health problems have considerably stemmed our running ambitions for the season, we are still planning on running on a relay team at the Belfast Maraton (5 to 10 miles each), and then doing as much as we can at the Edinburgh marathon at the end of May, with a goal of 15 miles. For a first attempt, I think it has been a great experience and we are definately going to try again next year, maybe in the London Marathon. We will probably continue running a bit during the summer, but as soon as May is over we are planning to do more cycling instead. No matter what, we are certainly feeling more fit than ever and in a country where obesity and its related illnesses are just as rampant as in the USA, feeling pretty good about our lifespans.
Ok then, signing off for now. We love you all, and hopefully next week will have much more to share!
Alletta (and Ryan too)
Monday, April 23, 2007
Sunday, April 15, 2007
My name is Ryan, and I am a bad Blogger.
Okay, so as many may know I do not post that frequently. So now I am going to give all of you a update on the goings on of Ryan.
Where to start. Well, I will spend a short time complaining about work. Why? Well its quite simple you see, work sucks. As of April 2nd night racing started in the UK and because of that Bookies are know open till 9:30 pm. This means that I have to work from 10:00 to 21:45, about 11 hours and 45 minutes. These are very long days, but our shop is very slow so they are not very busy days either. On the up side I get plenty of time to read now. Another problem is that working in gambling is beginning to wear on me. It's not exactly the best way for me to make the world a better place. In fact its quite clear to me that it does the exact opposite. I use to tell my self that the people that come in to my shop and gamble are doing it by there own choice. That they need to be responsible for themselves. For most of my customers that is true. However there are a few who don't fit into that argument. Some people are addicted to gambling just the same as someone is addicted to Booze or drugs. At the end of the day I may have given some people lots of money in winnings, but generally I've taken more from other people. In some cases one person will blow £600 or even £900 pounds in one day!! I don't care what kinda of position they are in financially, you just shouldn't gamble that much money.
Worse is when something goes wrong with a bet. Its taken late, or the price (i.e. the odds, 1/2, 5/1, 15/2 ect.) is wrong or late. Then when the customer comes back they are all upset with me for not giving them the amount of money they want. They are often not that polite and see me as the whipping post for their frustration. Arg! I know I can't do this much longer. Its time I found some other way to make a living. Okay enough of that.
On the 25th of March I took a much needed holiday.
My friend Hamza and I went to Amsterdam. I spent four days wondering the streets of Amsterdam. It was Amazing! The firstly the weather was great. I had just spent all winter in Edinburgh and the sun was not a frequent visitor. Rain, wind, and grey clouds often overstayed their welcome. From the moment I landed in Amsterdam the weather was sunny and beautiful. It only got warmer every day until Thursday morning when Hamza and I just got breakfast and then went to the airport. It felt so nice to be outside and not have to wear a coat.
Hamza is the kind of guy that likes to plan out the activities of a holiday to great detail. I am more of a random encounter kind of person. So to resolve this ideological difference I just followed Hamza around, let him be my guide, and then we had a great holiday. We walked all over that city, miles and miles of streets passed by.
There were all kinds of people staying at our hostel. Austrians, French Canadians, Americans from S.Carolina, Italians, Spanish. This made the lobby of the hostel very active and dynamic place. Lots of fun for all.
Among the many places I saw in Amsterdam was the Heineken Experience. It was basically a over-extended commercial for the Heineken Corp. that I payed 10 euro to see. But in the other hand I did get three glasses of beer.
(Other people in the tour gave me some their unwanted beer tokens) So all in all it was worth it, for the beer I mean.
Another noteworthy place I visited was the Ann Frank House. It was a bit of a let down. There was a distinct lack of artifacts and even furniture. Some rooms only had one thing to look at, a quote from someone painted on the wall. And often the quotes were not exactly that interesting or relevant. At one point a quote from Nelson Mandela is written on the wall, nice to here from a world leader like Mandela, but not exactly that enlightening of Ann's experience.
At the end of the museum is a video presentation about tension between free and hate speech. That was interesting but the presentation was a bit childish. At the end of each segment, there were several different free speech segments, the audience was polled,then the results of the poll are shown and compared to the results of all visitors of the museum ever. I don't regret going to the museum but I would just warn future visitors not to expect too much.
Alletta and I had another exciting experience recently in April. Amy Sample and Max Ward, our good friends from High School, came to visit us at the end of their European holiday. I have been missing all of my friends back in Oregon, and those that have left Oregon as well, very much. So needless to say it was very nice to see someone from my home.
Another crazy experience just as Amy and Max arrived here in Edinburgh is a dinner that happened. Those that were at this strange dinner were Eden Graisbe(not sure if she changed her name, and if so what it is), Mike and Mary Fitzgibbons, Amy Sample, Max Ward, and Alletta and I. Wow! seeing them was a flash from the past. Craziness, Eden is living in Edinburgh, she has married a Scot and is now starting a family. Mike and Mary (even though they are still Mr. and Mrs. Fitz in my head) have family living in Germany and have been coming across the water several times. The dinner was good. Manly the company, the restaurant was too small for a party our size, and the food was nice but not everybody could really enjoy it. We did talk and swap stories about teachers and students. It was all very strange. None of us had changed that much, but we did get to see a side of each other that was very different. We were meeting as equals, not as teachers and students.
After that we had the pleasurable company of Amy and Max for another couple of days. Much fun was had by all.
Well thats me. Other than that not too much different. I am looking forward to summer and fairer weather. Further, I am excited about trips that are coming up. Alletta and I are planing to start traveling all over the UK via Train and Cycle. I also want to try and get out doors and do some rock climbing. Alletta and I are still working out and training for the marathons. Although I should note that we are only going to do half marathons and relays. I am not really that upset at the fact that we aren't gonna do a full one, that was kind of a scary idea that I had not really wrapped my head around. Ok, so I am gonna leave you at that. I hope that I can amend my bad posting ways and give a update sooner.
Take care all you.
Ryan
Where to start. Well, I will spend a short time complaining about work. Why? Well its quite simple you see, work sucks. As of April 2nd night racing started in the UK and because of that Bookies are know open till 9:30 pm. This means that I have to work from 10:00 to 21:45, about 11 hours and 45 minutes. These are very long days, but our shop is very slow so they are not very busy days either. On the up side I get plenty of time to read now. Another problem is that working in gambling is beginning to wear on me. It's not exactly the best way for me to make the world a better place. In fact its quite clear to me that it does the exact opposite. I use to tell my self that the people that come in to my shop and gamble are doing it by there own choice. That they need to be responsible for themselves. For most of my customers that is true. However there are a few who don't fit into that argument. Some people are addicted to gambling just the same as someone is addicted to Booze or drugs. At the end of the day I may have given some people lots of money in winnings, but generally I've taken more from other people. In some cases one person will blow £600 or even £900 pounds in one day!! I don't care what kinda of position they are in financially, you just shouldn't gamble that much money.
Worse is when something goes wrong with a bet. Its taken late, or the price (i.e. the odds, 1/2, 5/1, 15/2 ect.) is wrong or late. Then when the customer comes back they are all upset with me for not giving them the amount of money they want. They are often not that polite and see me as the whipping post for their frustration. Arg! I know I can't do this much longer. Its time I found some other way to make a living. Okay enough of that.
On the 25th of March I took a much needed holiday.
My friend Hamza and I went to Amsterdam. I spent four days wondering the streets of Amsterdam. It was Amazing! The firstly the weather was great. I had just spent all winter in Edinburgh and the sun was not a frequent visitor. Rain, wind, and grey clouds often overstayed their welcome. From the moment I landed in Amsterdam the weather was sunny and beautiful. It only got warmer every day until Thursday morning when Hamza and I just got breakfast and then went to the airport. It felt so nice to be outside and not have to wear a coat.
Hamza is the kind of guy that likes to plan out the activities of a holiday to great detail. I am more of a random encounter kind of person. So to resolve this ideological difference I just followed Hamza around, let him be my guide, and then we had a great holiday. We walked all over that city, miles and miles of streets passed by.
There were all kinds of people staying at our hostel. Austrians, French Canadians, Americans from S.Carolina, Italians, Spanish. This made the lobby of the hostel very active and dynamic place. Lots of fun for all.
Among the many places I saw in Amsterdam was the Heineken Experience. It was basically a over-extended commercial for the Heineken Corp. that I payed 10 euro to see. But in the other hand I did get three glasses of beer.
(Other people in the tour gave me some their unwanted beer tokens) So all in all it was worth it, for the beer I mean.Another noteworthy place I visited was the Ann Frank House. It was a bit of a let down. There was a distinct lack of artifacts and even furniture. Some rooms only had one thing to look at, a quote from someone painted on the wall. And often the quotes were not exactly that interesting or relevant. At one point a quote from Nelson Mandela is written on the wall, nice to here from a world leader like Mandela, but not exactly that enlightening of Ann's experience.
At the end of the museum is a video presentation about tension between free and hate speech. That was interesting but the presentation was a bit childish. At the end of each segment, there were several different free speech segments, the audience was polled,then the results of the poll are shown and compared to the results of all visitors of the museum ever. I don't regret going to the museum but I would just warn future visitors not to expect too much. Alletta and I had another exciting experience recently in April. Amy Sample and Max Ward, our good friends from High School, came to visit us at the end of their European holiday. I have been missing all of my friends back in Oregon, and those that have left Oregon as well, very much. So needless to say it was very nice to see someone from my home.
Another crazy experience just as Amy and Max arrived here in Edinburgh is a dinner that happened. Those that were at this strange dinner were Eden Graisbe(not sure if she changed her name, and if so what it is), Mike and Mary Fitzgibbons, Amy Sample, Max Ward, and Alletta and I. Wow! seeing them was a flash from the past. Craziness, Eden is living in Edinburgh, she has married a Scot and is now starting a family. Mike and Mary (even though they are still Mr. and Mrs. Fitz in my head) have family living in Germany and have been coming across the water several times. The dinner was good. Manly the company, the restaurant was too small for a party our size, and the food was nice but not everybody could really enjoy it. We did talk and swap stories about teachers and students. It was all very strange. None of us had changed that much, but we did get to see a side of each other that was very different. We were meeting as equals, not as teachers and students.
After that we had the pleasurable company of Amy and Max for another couple of days. Much fun was had by all.
Well thats me. Other than that not too much different. I am looking forward to summer and fairer weather. Further, I am excited about trips that are coming up. Alletta and I are planing to start traveling all over the UK via Train and Cycle. I also want to try and get out doors and do some rock climbing. Alletta and I are still working out and training for the marathons. Although I should note that we are only going to do half marathons and relays. I am not really that upset at the fact that we aren't gonna do a full one, that was kind of a scary idea that I had not really wrapped my head around. Ok, so I am gonna leave you at that. I hope that I can amend my bad posting ways and give a update sooner.
Take care all you.
Ryan
Monday, April 09, 2007
Happy BeLated Easter!
Hello my dears:
Though neither Ryan nor I celebrate easter we did recieve lots of nice easter greetings and certainly always appreciate a chance to say hello and wish our loved ones well! So, hope you all had a happy easter! On our side of the pond, the weather is finally giving indications of summer to come, with the occassional bright and sunny day and finally a bit of warmth! We are trying to take full advantage of this by getting outside as much as possible! Since I have been finally feeling better we have been running a lot, and on friday we went for a 18 mile bike ride out of the city. To our delight, we discovered that there is a really neat old canal just a few blocks from our place that flows through several aquaducts right out of town, along side it is lots of vegetation and yes, a fairly new bike path. Feeling inspired we are now discovering a number of hidden bike routes throughout the city and so hopefully we can start riding instead of taking the bus anymore.
Other than the outdoor adventures, the last few weeks have been somewhat eventful. Ryan went on holiday to Amsterdam (a posting with pictures is promised to follow), and I went to London to meet Queen Elizabeth II and some of her family (no, her grandsons were NOT there). On both counts, we had a very good time. For my part, the reception with the queen was extremely interesting (no I do not have pictures, cameras were not allowed so you will have to take my word for it). I have to say I felt pretty dang special passing through all the tourists mobbed at the palace gate to stroll right inside! The palace was very beautiful, with a whole lot of guilded mouldings and some very old furniture. There were about 400 Americans there, some a real variety of fields, some of whom were famous, though most of us just happened to be in the UK and somewhat well-connect ed to the right people (turns out one of the main guys in charge of the guest list was a formal Marshall Scholar!). A highlight for me was the photographer Annie Leibowitz. Apparently a few real famous people, like Gweneth Paltrow and Madonna were invited but they didn't show (I did see Paltrow's nametag on the table!). Anyway, I did get to spend lots of time chatting with some Fulbrights and members of the Oxford rowing team, as well as a few American-born footballers. I did meet the Queen and shook her hand (she wore a black glove). What I can say is that she is a very pleasant and interesting lady. She looked very nice in a yellow tweed suit, though I was surprised how short she is! I guess famous people really do seem larger than life to us.. Anyhow, she is a keen feminist in her own way and was very interested in us students. I think that if I would have had the chance, I could have really enjoyed a long chat with her. Unfortunately I just missed out on that because I had drifted away from my friends and just as I returned they told me the Queen had just been there for several minutes chatting! Oh well. I did get to have several prolonged chats with the Duke of Edinburgh (her husband), who I must say was a rather funny guy (and not in the ha, ha way). There were also lots of really old, rich royals, and all together (with exception to the queen) they struck me as pretty snooty blue-bloods. Incredibly old-fashioned and not very keen on anything too intellectual. One of the highlights, was talking with members of the royal houshold, most of whom were former military men, who had become the personal secretaries, etc of different royals. The queen had about six or seven staff, while other members of the houshold had a few each. It was really interesting to hear how carefully orchestrated everything was, especially with regard to the queen, as while the staff made it a point to blend in with all the guests, they at the same time were constantly watching her, and monitoring who got close to her and how many people were around her at a given time so that she didn't stay too long in one place but didn't get mobbed either. I especially enjoyed the waiters, who would silently use their giant silver trays to manage the crowd, and politely urge us from one room to the other! Overall, the whole thing was a lot of fun and makes a great story to tell!
I had cocktails in this room!!
Other than that, I have been plugging away at my schoolwork and looking forward to the visit of Amy and Max this next week! I am sure that by next monday I will have much more to tell you all.
Much love from Scotland
Alletta
Though neither Ryan nor I celebrate easter we did recieve lots of nice easter greetings and certainly always appreciate a chance to say hello and wish our loved ones well! So, hope you all had a happy easter! On our side of the pond, the weather is finally giving indications of summer to come, with the occassional bright and sunny day and finally a bit of warmth! We are trying to take full advantage of this by getting outside as much as possible! Since I have been finally feeling better we have been running a lot, and on friday we went for a 18 mile bike ride out of the city. To our delight, we discovered that there is a really neat old canal just a few blocks from our place that flows through several aquaducts right out of town, along side it is lots of vegetation and yes, a fairly new bike path. Feeling inspired we are now discovering a number of hidden bike routes throughout the city and so hopefully we can start riding instead of taking the bus anymore.
Other than the outdoor adventures, the last few weeks have been somewhat eventful. Ryan went on holiday to Amsterdam (a posting with pictures is promised to follow), and I went to London to meet Queen Elizabeth II and some of her family (no, her grandsons were NOT there). On both counts, we had a very good time. For my part, the reception with the queen was extremely interesting (no I do not have pictures, cameras were not allowed so you will have to take my word for it). I have to say I felt pretty dang special passing through all the tourists mobbed at the palace gate to stroll right inside! The palace was very beautiful, with a whole lot of guilded mouldings and some very old furniture. There were about 400 Americans there, some a real variety of fields, some of whom were famous, though most of us just happened to be in the UK and somewhat well-connect ed to the right people (turns out one of the main guys in charge of the guest list was a formal Marshall Scholar!). A highlight for me was the photographer Annie Leibowitz. Apparently a few real famous people, like Gweneth Paltrow and Madonna were invited but they didn't show (I did see Paltrow's nametag on the table!). Anyway, I did get to spend lots of time chatting with some Fulbrights and members of the Oxford rowing team, as well as a few American-born footballers. I did meet the Queen and shook her hand (she wore a black glove). What I can say is that she is a very pleasant and interesting lady. She looked very nice in a yellow tweed suit, though I was surprised how short she is! I guess famous people really do seem larger than life to us.. Anyhow, she is a keen feminist in her own way and was very interested in us students. I think that if I would have had the chance, I could have really enjoyed a long chat with her. Unfortunately I just missed out on that because I had drifted away from my friends and just as I returned they told me the Queen had just been there for several minutes chatting! Oh well. I did get to have several prolonged chats with the Duke of Edinburgh (her husband), who I must say was a rather funny guy (and not in the ha, ha way). There were also lots of really old, rich royals, and all together (with exception to the queen) they struck me as pretty snooty blue-bloods. Incredibly old-fashioned and not very keen on anything too intellectual. One of the highlights, was talking with members of the royal houshold, most of whom were former military men, who had become the personal secretaries, etc of different royals. The queen had about six or seven staff, while other members of the houshold had a few each. It was really interesting to hear how carefully orchestrated everything was, especially with regard to the queen, as while the staff made it a point to blend in with all the guests, they at the same time were constantly watching her, and monitoring who got close to her and how many people were around her at a given time so that she didn't stay too long in one place but didn't get mobbed either. I especially enjoyed the waiters, who would silently use their giant silver trays to manage the crowd, and politely urge us from one room to the other! Overall, the whole thing was a lot of fun and makes a great story to tell!
I had cocktails in this room!!
Other than that, I have been plugging away at my schoolwork and looking forward to the visit of Amy and Max this next week! I am sure that by next monday I will have much more to tell you all.
Much love from Scotland
Alletta
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