22 July 2011

I had no idea where I was when I woke up this morning. I took me a minute to realize that the movement I made should have caused me to kick a wall or hit the ceiling. It wasn't until I opened my eyes and oriented myself ten or fifteen minutes later that I remembered that I was not longer in Galilee, that I wouldn't be able to walk out to the beach to greet the morning, that I wouldn't be spending the day in the Sea of Galilee. It wasn't a pleasant feeling. I begrudgingly got up and wandered upstairs to the gym with the idea of working out. All was well for about 25 minutes...until the stationary bike was nudged by my knee in a rough manner and my brand new iPod went crashing the ground. I should just stop using electronics all together. The damage isn't irreparable, but it was rather upsetting. It didn't add to my already pleasant mood, but there wasn't anything more I could do. So, I hopped down from the bike, pulled on a pair of sweat pants, and went into the Oasis to grab something to eat. I settled with yogurt, hoping not to upset my stomach after working out. It was a rather pleasant yogurt. Once finished, I slipped downstairs for a quick shower before heading up to my favorite study room to meet up with Kymberly.

Unfortunately, we had a New Testament midterm scheduled for today - that's right, the day after we returned from Galilee! Whoever made this schedule was crazy...everyone was falling asleep, including myself. I managed to read through my notes once before deciding that studying would do nothing but waste time so I spent the time writing a letter to Mike, writing a couple of blogposts on Galilee, looking through pictures, and listening to music. It was rather productive, if I do say so myself. The test began promptly at one o'clock in the afternoon. After singing a hymn and saying a prayer, Brother Judd handed out the 100 question (or so) test. After breezing through the first two pages, I was in high-spirits. The test wasn't anything that I needed to worry about. I didn't know some of the finer details, but because I had read through my notes once and paid attention in class, I was able to manage well enough. I ended up getting an 87 which I am more than happy about!

The rest of the afternoon went by without complaint. I was actually in really high spirits. I played the piano for a good part of the afternoon. I miss playing the piano. I wish I hadn't dropped it at the beginning of my sophomore year. I was busy with tennis and other things, but I could have made time for it at some time during the week, even if on a Saturday. I can still play the piano well, but I am not as great as I could have been. Oh well, I guess that just gives me more reason to practice my little heart out and continue loving to make music. That will be difficult once I get back to Provo and don't have a piano any longer, but my parents live close enough that I will still be able to play on a regular basis. In addition to playing the piano, I was able to get all of my laundry done. When we got back from Galilee yesterday, there was a mad dash for the laundry room. I chose to wait in order to avoid getting stressed out over nothing; it was a good choice. I was in and out of the laundry room without having to wait for a washer or a dryer to use. And now I won't be naked the rest of the week, so everyone will benefit from my doing laundry! Hahaha :)

At dinner, I was able to sit and talk with the Chadwicks a little bit. I have seriously missed them. Brother Chadwick has been at an archaeological dig he is in charge of for the past two weeks, and Mama Kim went with him. It was weird not having them around; I really enjoyed catching up with them and hearing all about the dirt...lol. I guess when they got out of the car, Sister Chadwick jumped and a cloud of dust came off of her. Haha I can't even imagine! It is good to have them back...for the weekend. They still have one more week left at the dig!

The Jerusalem Center Friday Night Movie Night was possibly my favorite movie night since coming to the Jerusalem Center. Brother Judd, the movie coordinator, gave the students that chance to vote on the movie for the evening. Some of the choices included Enchanted, Mary Poppins, Aladdin, and other family-friendly movies. Aladdin won by a landslide! That is one of my all time favorite movies. I sat by Kymberly, Josh, and Megan Judd; I am sure they regretted sitting next to me, though, because I was constantly singing along and quoting the movie (Josh was doing the same thing so I am sure he didn't mind too much). The last time I watched that movie was in November of last year with Brad McKeen. I don't remember singing much when we watched it...I think I have spent a lot of time listening to Disney music this summer! It has definitely paid off! I know the songs word for word.

When the movie was over, I went straight to my room to get ready for bed. I was exhausted and ready to get some sleep. I ended up watching part of a movie and writing a bit before going to bed. It was a fairly decent day...the morning may not have been perfect, but the afternoon made up for any problems I faced during the morning. I am happy to be back in Jerusalem. I have seriously missed being here. I can't believe there are only three weeks left; I am going to be at the Tel Aviv International Airport before I know it!