Adventure Is Out There!

I went to bed Friday night with a feeling that Saturday was gonna be one interesting adventure.
...I was alive right. (The opposite of "dead wrong").

First of all, I was taking the PSAT that morning at 7:30. Okay. But I was taking it on the Asia side. Okay, so what does that mean? It means waking up at 5:30 on a Saturday morning, that's what it means. Yay!
So that part of the day I have very little recollection of becuase...well I wasn't actually awake. So I'm just gonna skip to after the test.

So after the test, my dad and I had to go back to the European side cuz I had an audition for the Wizard of Oz ensemble. But we had an hour to get there...and it takes just about an hour to make the trip. So we had no extra time. So of course we were gonna be late! But umm...there's uh two campuses for the school where the audition was. And of course neither of us remembered to ask anyone which one the audition was at. And of course we went to the wrong one first. And of course the one we were SUPPOSED to be at was about a 30 second walk from our apartment.
...I'm not actually why the location of the campus makes it any more of a dumb situation, but for some reason...it just did.
So we ended up gettig to the audition late to say the least, but it was okay, everything still went fine. And I would tell you how it went...but that's another story for another time.
Oh! But I will say that I met someone I'll never forget.
She's a 66 year-old woman.
Her name is Christian.
She had never met another Christian before.
Of course, leave it up to God to have ME be the first Christian she had ever met =P. Haha, a great representative I am =P. But no, I'm so glad I had the chance to meet her. And she was British! So that just made it that much better!

But anyway! Back to the story. So then after the audition we were going to head BACK to the Asia side for a carnical at the school where I had taken the PSAT earlier that morning. So we tried to catch the same bus we had taken to get back to Europe. Makes sense. Of course it does. Don't worry, it DID eventually come. After a long long time. So we hop on, and get going at last, and we're about to get on the bridge when BAM! This random truck hits the bus! =O Gasp! Oh no! Yeees. So the bus and the truck stop. Just stop. In the middle of twenty lanes. Well, twenty lanes going ONE WAY. There were another twenty on the other side going the opposite direction. And there we were just stopped there in the middle. Woohoo! It was practically a party! So we were sitting there for at least 20 minutes, it felt more like a half hour though. But finally the bus starts moving again, and crosses the bridge, and then stops again, and everyone gets out, and I'm so confused, and everyone just stands there on the side of the road I guess waiting for another bus to come pick them up.
My dad and I are those kinds of people who would prefer to be going the wrong direction than not moving at all. Of course we weren't going to just stand there. So magically we got a taxi...in the middle of the highway...and were on our way again.

But then.

We were ALMOST there, and BAM! No, not another accident, silly you! Traffic. Everything was completely stopped as far as we could see. Cars at the end of the line were literally turning around on the highway and driving back the way they came. (If you aren't following, that would be back towards oncoming traffic). So we sorta kinda decided to walk =P
So we get out of the taxi and are just kinda walking around in the middle of a highway.
Yeah.
Now THAT was a party.
So anyway, we eventually walked off the highway and started walking towards the school. And yes, we eventually did get there. And then, the rest of the day was pretty normal after that =P.
You know, reading this over...it was a lot more fun and exciting in the moment...just letting you know =P But oh well!

Welcome to Istanbul! =D

Christian

Don't Let The Pigeon Drive The Bus!

The big shipment of our things arrived a few days ago, so there's still boxes everywhere! (We bring some things with us in our suitcases when we move, then there's a small shipment of things that arrives just a few weeks after we do, and then there's a really big shipment that usually takes a few months after we get to our new post to arrive). I'll admit, it's rather exciting unpacking everything since these are the things we haven't seen in about 14 months. Yes, I know you're thinking "Oh, it's just like Christmas! =D", but it's not. Christmas gifts are just that...gifts. These things are our lives. You can find our family's whole story in them. They're the one thing besides us ourselves that remains constant post after post. For me, it gets me a bit down having all these memories come flooding back just by looking at some old toys, or a certain shirt, or especially letters and cards from great friends who, by now, I can't say for sure where they are, or how they're doing, or if we would even recognize each other if we did meet again. But sure, at the same time it is rather exciting. We always use the arrival of this shipment as a sort or marker to announce that we are officially in our new home. Haha, it almost feels like the point of no return! So once we get everything in order, this should feel very much like home for the next two years. Wow, seems like such a long time to be in one place, haha.

On a bit of a happier note, I have met the Cheshire Cat! No, really, it's actually him. Except his name is Alex. =P But seriously! The first time I met him, he was in a neighbors living room, and all I could see was his eyes. Yeah, not even a silhouette or anything, just eyes. And they're about as icy blue as eyes can get. And then as the lights came on slowly, the rest of him started to appear. And no joke, he smiles sometime. Actually smiles. It's a bit unnerving, sure, but SO AWESOME! And yeah, he disappears and reappears randomly. And he's identical to the Dinah/Cheshire Cat in Alice (SyFy).
So yeah...he's my favorite.

On Friday I visited one of the International schools here because there were several seminars concering college applications, and how to choose which colleges to apply to, and the college essay, etc. So my mom made me go. Anywho, the seminars for juniors were only at the beginning and end of the day, so for the middle of the day I just shadowed one of the girls that goes to the school. And so the first class I went to I remembered: I'm in a school...I should probably turn off my phone
...
Smart.
Of course it was only AFTER I started turning it off that I remembered the 30 second long song that the stupid thing plays whenever it turns on and off.
...
Dumb.
At least I didn't trip and fall on my face at any point during the day. Even though that would've been so hilarious and awesome.
So yeah, it was an eventful day =P But actually it wasn't all that bad. I met at least 7 people that were just Turkish versions of people I already knew, which was kinda weird and cool. I hope I'll get a chance to see some of them again, they were all pretty cool.

I'm taking my PSAT on Saturday. That's really all I can say about it, though. I'm about as unprepared as you can get, but I'm still not really worried about it =P What I AM worried about, is that on the same day I'm going to be auditiong for the Wizard Of Oz (yes, the same one that was SUPPOSED to be in September...then October...then November...and now in December =P). They're going to be using the same cast as the last time they did the show, so I don't actually have a chance of getting into the main cast, but hopefully I can make the ensemble. I just really need to do a show. I'm getting restless not doing anything.

Oh, and there's a new student in our modern class. She's a very quick learner, and she's also in one of my ballet classes, but I'm not sure if she'll stay in that class or if she'll take a different one. Speaking of dance class...
I've been constantly sore for the past month.
Yes, I say this in total sincerity.
Ha. Kinda sad, but oh well =P

...oh, were you waiting to find out what the title of this post had anything to do with anything? I'm sorry, I really don't know. Have YOU any idea why a raven is like a writing desk though? Yes, I think I just made my point.

Christian