FIRSTLY, let me apologize for the severe lack of posts. I came to quickly realize that whilst I am willing to have the whole world walk the path of life's little idiosyncrasies with me, I couldn't easily write about my summer job without breaching confidentiality...and so, we are at the end of the Summer and I have to 'begin' again as it were...

However, my journey through life's unknown continues....I am headed back to College this week and it is all kinds of amazing awfulness. I am excited to get to know a new city and build up a new circle of contacts and friends (here's hoping)...however, as I reflect on a most wonderful summer in Asheville, I can't even pretend I'm happy to say goodbye.

Summer's are funny things. Growing up they are full of seaside, mountainside, camp-side fun....as you grow up, they are full of seaside, mountainside, camp-side, Adventure and on the edge of grown up....they are sweet stress.
My summer could've been turned into a whole series of movies - one in each genre. I definitely embraced several Disney moments this summer working with the kids, attempting to reintroduce them to childhood innocence. Moments of horror included anything and everything from the dreaded camel crickets, freak spider bites on my legs, to watching my parents meet Chris's parents....of course, looking back, these really have their comedy elements too...(sort of...) Oh - and of course I WAS a movie character to the kids...and how I loved that....not because I got renamed Princess Fiona, but because Chris was called Shrek all summer...and there were many great one liners to accompany that ;) I could go on but I've decided the all-flavours-of-cheese-style-analysis is terrible...


*Sigh*

So - TODAY, I cleared out my psycho apartment and am in the process of repacking what I just did, so that when Chris's Mom takes me to College I arrive with a reasonably respectable bundle of belongings. Bailey is currently barking at the bags I brought in because they are terribly exciting, or scary....I can't decide which. I have discovered a few ice cubes are a great way of getting 5 minutes to do what I need to do....without puppy interruptions.

It is now 4:31 and before I took this new paragraph I smelt burning coming from the kitchen....Anybody know how to solve a leaking, smoky-smelling laundry machine???? Alternatively....is it a good idea to put another load on?

Sensibility tells me no...
??

basements and camel crickets :(

Hello all!

Well, apologies for the lateness of this first post from the States. I have finally moved into my own place and sorted out most key essentials for living here. It has certainly been one of those weeks which has been less than straightforward. From Bank accounts to setting up a phone to my apartment its been an adventure to say the least! Anyways, It’s 930am on Sunday and I’m just about recovered from the first night in my apartment….you see, it’s got a character of its own. It was all sweet and cosy during the day, helping me feel like I could call it home for the summer, despite its small size. However, on return at night time to go to bed, it had a personality change. I was going to write this in the form of the song “on the first day of Christmas” and change all the lyrics to the bugs that came to visit me “on the first night in the apartment”…but I didn’t want to be melodramatic …especially since I can’t complain at it’s features such as closeness to work, homey decoration and shops etc near by. Still, here are a few of the highlights:

- 4 tunnel crickets – if you don’t know what those are flippin google them! My eyes were opened!...

- 2 HUGE spiders, one which had the cheek to crawl under the gap in my front door and stare me in the face, like I was going to welcome it to stay for the night! (all God’s creatures I know, but I was severely home sick and in my exhaustion I was having visions of things jumping on me in the night….or worse…)

- Ants in my bed…I got rid of what I could but alas, the morning shows signs of a midnight feast…at my expense…

Anyways, as I said, I should be thankful for what this apartment does mean – convenience being the main word…I just hope I can find some good bug sprays and politely, of course, ask the bugs to stay in their own living quarters elsewhere!

In other news, those of you who’ve been on my facebook will have seen photos of Bailey – the beautiful little pup that Chris and I picked up on Thursday night. She’s quite the character! It really is like having a baby…lots of love and attention and tough love needed! We are enjoying it though.

Ok – enough for now…I’m SURE I will have many adventures to tell…as a side note I am finishing this post a day after I started it and sticky traps DO NOT WORK for camel crickets….we’re back to square one…ready for the exterminators now L

Hope this finds you all well…missing home and all my family and friends there lots

Love and peace

not just words on a page

So, a wise person recently set me the task of having a reading list for the summer. Clearly they knew I had fallen into the bad student trap of reading but not reading....doing what I had to do and never reading "just because," out of passion, or thirst for knowledge. However, it went further, they also challenged me to see that doing ministry requires having a firm foundation on which you stand before you allow yourself to be a rock to others....If I am not challenging myself in all sorts of thinking and perception, I will be practically working with a dead mind.

Anyways, I went a little crazy on amazon and 6 books later, have a reading list and today, I actually took time to sit in a quiet, uninterrupted space and read! However, I am a little scared that I have reawoken my inner nerd..... Very un-PC...labels should not be used, sorry...

THE POINT is...I have a great list but I know it won't last me long. The more I get into it, the faster the pages are turned. Soo....if anyone has a suggestion for a book, regardless of the subject or genre, I will gladly take it. I intend to expand my horizons so please feel free to challenge me!

The beginning of a big adventure

Hey!  Thanks for dropping by my brand new blog.  My name is Fiona and I currently live in Belfast, Northern Ireland.  This has been on my 'to do' list for a while.   So,  encouraged and inspired by others, I have decided that there is no time like the present to get started... and here's why:

I believe life is an adventure from sunrise to sunset every day (and if you're me, dreams can be far from relaxing too)....... However, I am about to move - from the beautiful Northern Ireland, all the way to North Carolina, USA.  Here begins a new chapter in my life and I intend to keep a record, whether solely for my benefit or for others to read too.  I hope you will bare with me as I undoubtedly grow in this experience.  I want to keep track of my day to day activities, thoughts, lessons learned and take note of life and its very essence because time passes so quickly.  Above and beyond all of this, I wish to see how God moulds and shapes me, moves me and holds me, sends me to the tops of mountains and catches me when I fall.  I am a child of God and I live to worship Him...

For those of you who know me well this is all old info but I want to lay the foundation on which this blog will be built.   Therefore I'll describe my life as it is now:  I am the middle child in an extraordinary family... sandwiched by 2 great brothers Niall, a hot-shot who is finishing a Masters in Manchester, England, and getting ready to move to London for his first big job....and Stephen - my big gentle giant of a little brother, fantastic musician and known for his comedy. I am so thankful for my family and wonderful parents who have given me everything I could ever have needed and more in raising me...

I am also in a relationship with a handsome gentleman called Chris, who currently works in Asheville, NC.  I don't really think anyone could've written the story of how we met and it still amazes me to this day.....anyways, obviously I think the world of him and I can't wait to share many more years by his side....   The current battle against that big pond the Atlantic, is becoming a little tiresome!

Right - enough's enough! Tis getting on in the evening and I have a million little things to do... thanks for reading down to this point, especially if you know me well and this was therefore a little lacking colour..I promise to make this as readable as possible in future!

Have a glorious afternoon or evening, depending on your time zone.  Oh - and stop by my poll for boxer puppy names... explanation alongside it!

Till next time...