Greeting from the airport

The day finally arrived an I'm off, headed to the thriving European metropolis. I cannot believe that I'm finally on my way. The airport is a funny place, full of normal people off to experience new things or headed hope from their adventures, just waiting. You watch a gentleman walk rapidly down the fast walk, each step traveling him seven feet down the walk way instead of three or four. There is a guy sprawled across a whole row of waiting chairs, snoring quietly, perhaps he should have caught a few more winks last night. . . or perhaps not. The potted trees growing towards the sky lights look odd in their sterile environment, people passing them without giving them a glance; there is a constant whir of machinery running the escalators and fast walks. Every so often a voice from the loud speaker calls out a name or flight number, reminding every of flight times and gate numbers, eventually those announcements will be for me. Periodically, a plane alighst on the runway out my window, a reminder that the people around me are not here to stay, we really are all going somewhere, we will sit next to each other in a crowded plane for several hours and then each go on our own separate ways, nodding to the stewardesses as they welcome us to our arrival city, perhaps pausing to readjust our carry on luggage to rest more comfortably against our shoulders and backs. The in-between moments are good, a little pause to gather our wits about us before we dash off to our connecting flight or consult a city map to find out where we're going. Soon I will be on the other side of the big pond, exploring a new place, meeting new people, reconnecting with friends who have been gone for months. I can't wait.

A Recipe for Adrielle

Easy Chocolate Truffles
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese
3 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 packages (12 ounces) baker's semi-sweet chocolate, melted chocolate chips may be used but I prefer the bars of chocolate, it mostly depends on what you have handy at the time and how much you want to make.
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
ground nuts, unsweetened cocoa or coconut, toasted

BEAT cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add sugar, beating until well blended. Add melted chocolate and vanila; mix well. Refrigerate about 1 hour. Shape into 1-inch balls. Roll in nuts, cocoa or coconut. Store in refrigerator.

PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES
CHILL TIME: 1 HOUR

Variation: to flavor truffles with liqueurs, omit vanilla. Divided truffle mixture into thirds. Add 1 tablespoon liqueur (almond, coffee or orange) to each third mixture; mix well. You can also use mint extract but you will only need about 1/2 teaspoon for each third that you flavor this way.

Aufwiedersehen- 'till we meet again

Dear friend, your presence these last months has been a pleasure. Our friendship started at the library when I was assigned the task of waiting for my sister's German friend whom I had never seen before. A little bit anxious I pondered two questions all through work, "How will I know who I'm looking for, and I don't know and German how will I talk to her?" I got off work and headed for the east entrance; there you were, bicycle in tow. We were pretty quiet then, neither of us exactly sure what to say to the stranger sitting next to us. But everything changes when you spend a day biking over gravel logging roads that weave their way through coastal mountain ranges; the stranger transforms into a friend. Though beaten by the sun and the hard climb, we gained each others trust and respect.

In the last 11 months I've had the pleasure of laughing with you frequently, and sharing the many joys that have found their ways into both of our lives. I am so excited to see what brings you to the states next and look forward to enjoying much more of your company in person and from a distance. From bike rides over coastal mountains to evenings watching movies or chatting late into the night, you have been a great addition to the wonderful individuals I call family and I will cherish your friendship always.

Love, Bethany

Contemplating Vacation

I said I was taking a vacation this afternoon that infact I thought the rest of my life should be a vacation. She said "no it shouldn't, you would get board." And she was right, I would get board, I can barely handle an afternoon of vacation, to envision the rest of my life a vacation from study is quite frightening. Those masses of empty hours to fill billowing up in front and behind me void of the rigorous studies that currently guide my life. I never thought I would want to claim the life of study for my own, and yet some how I've found myself in this place, caught up in the glamorous toil of learning, the hours spent practicing piano, straining to comprehend theoretical concepts bigger than my brain, reading, reading, occasionally writing papers frequently writing journals. It's something I'm not keen on giving up. An afternoon of vacation is nice, even a couple of weeks to refresh the mind give it space to catch it's breath before diving into the studies again, but there's always a little piece of me that will want to come back to the book, that pushes me to pull out the Beethoven and hammer away at those couple of measures tumbling around in the back of my mind. It's a pleasurable life, not always, and in the midst of projects and classes it often seems impossible to get to the end, but there is a certain amount of satisfaction when one comes to the end of a term and begins to anticipate the next that is quite satisfactory.