missing the fam

i know, i know! i didn't post yesterday! i didn't think it would have been an issue, but have received many complaints! come on, give a girl a break! i'm just kidding- i don't want to get in the habit of not posting already. i love keeping all the loves of my life updated. the problem last night was that the printer wasn't working. no, the electricity went off. no, ben spilled water all over my bag. just kidding, those are excuses i use at school. honestly, i had the late shift last night, and got home just before midnight. i then had to wake up before five a.m to go with all the other international interns to apply for social security numbers, and everyone knows i need a little sleep to keep from turning completely sour and miserable. last night was my first official day without a trainer for any point. i was so nervous! luckily, i had one of the leaders close by who helped me when i wasn't too sure. i'm sure i made a couple mistakes, but guests were forgiving because i'm still "earning my ears." after we closed the shops up, i was still scheduled to work for another hour. so one of my leaders found me the VERY glamorous job of sweeping under shelves to find stock/merchandise. you would be surprised at what i found - pins, pens, toys, rings, watches, all that jazz. i really felt like i was working in luxury. i'm kidding, i'm kidding! anyways, after i got home, i just crashed. i felt like i only slept for three seconds when i heard my alarm go off not-so-bright and early.

so we had to take a bus to the social security office. it was really quite a chore, but seeing the sunrise was really beautiful. it wasn't really a sunrise as such, more of altocumulus and stratus clouds (no, of course i didn't google that!) stretched across the fuscia sky. it was really pretty. not as pretty as some of the select few stunning sunrises in barbados that i have witnessed thanks to the ever-faithful harbor lights - many peoples second home in summer and christmas vacations! i was at the front of the line in social security, so i was one of the first people to go in, thank god. there were about ten other windows where people from my group were applying. i heard officers asking them questions upon questions. my guy didn't ask me a single thing. i sat down, he said "woah, you have nice eyes," fumbled on the computer for about twenty minutes, and then ended our "question process" with "have a great day." i was thankful he didn't ask me anything though, i didn't even know what questions he would ask or how i should answer them!

everyone fell asleep on the way home. when we got home, again, i crashed and slept for a good few hours, which would have totalled nearly eight hours i slept - just right!

after chilling with the roommates at home for a little bit, we all went our separate ways, some to lime with friends, some to work and some just stayed in. i was one that went to work. another late shift. but it's ok, i won't even complain because it's what i came here to do. my first job was 'hatter 1,' whereby i embroidered peoples names onto the ear hats. i had a lot of familiar names to sew, such as 'brianna,' 'sydney,' 'liam,' 'maddy,' 'megan,' 'jacob,' 'josh,' 'jeremy' and many others. it's surprising how many of our family members names are so popular. i even had some names of my friends, but there were too many to list them all. i love embroidering the hats, but sometimes if the machines give trouble it can get very frustrating, but i never lose my cool... simply because it's against the rules! work flew by, but it also took forever to come to an end.

when my shift did come to an end, i was just standing in the confectionery waiting for the closing meeting to start. i was standing by a window, just watching the empty main street glow. again, i was in awe. i still cannot wrap my head around how magical it really is. yes, it may have been missing the background music and the buzz of the thousands of people wandering about, experiencing magic and beauty, but when it was absolutely empty, without a sound, it was even more beautiful and more magical, with the light bulbs iluminating all the shops and everything looking perfect, like a postcard. while i was watching nothing (which really was everything,) out of nowhere they rehersing for the lighted parade! music started playing and these creatures and objects made out of lights started dancing in the street. up main street they went, spinning in front my eyes, and vanishing by the time they got to the next window, too far out of my sight. it was short and quick, but so touching. i wish that all of you could experience all these things when it's quiet and peaceful, and no rush of a thousand people. it is so amazing.

at the bus stop waiting to head home, i overheard a girl talking to this guy. they were talking about home and their programs and what not, and she, obviously trying to sound cool said, "yeah i'm not really homesick, but i miss my bed. my family? psh. i've been with them twenty one years of my life. i can go fine six months without them. like if someone from my family calls, i'm like "ok i'm really busy i'll talk to you later," it's so annoying." now. clearly i couldn't say anything, but i was in absolute shock. i mean, i know my family is one from stories, but how can one person really not love their family that much enough to miss them?! i miss mine every second of every day. and i don't just mean mum, dad and ben. i mean every single member of my family i think about all the time. to all my family reading this, know that right this second, i am thinking about you and wishing you were here with me. there's something special you bring into my life and i'm missing it right now.

i just got back home and am in bed. i have a relatively early shift tomorrow so i'm gunna need my sleep! happy february everyone! have a magical day;)