Mercury in Retrograde

President of the Sad Girls Club

Things have been...weird lately. I've had two moods for the past week--sad or mad and it's made being at work very difficult since the majority of my job is me being a smiling face to greet everyone and help them with their problems. But what about Courtney's problems, huh? What about that? Thank the gods I have a handful of really good friends that I've been able to talk to about my moodiness this week or I wouldn't know what to do. As I've gotten older (and wiser) I've gotten to the point where it's easier to identify who my true friends are. I may have my down days but I love myself enough now to know when I'm not being treated right. I was talking to my friend at work and she was telling me that I'm way too smart of a lady to allow anyone to make me feel like I'm not good enough or successful enough to be their friend. And although I know this in my heart it's good to hear it from someone else, ya know? Once I turned 30 something inside me just clicked and I was just done with people's bullshit. I can't stomach phony people anymore. I only want to have people in my life who are real and who I can really share things with. I don't have time for "fair weather" friends who are only there when things are good. Life is hard and you need to have people in your life who you can count on and who can rely on you. I heard a quote once that said, "A good friend will help you move. A true friend will help you move a body." Now that's a little extreme, but you get the idea.

In other news, last weekend Michelle and I went on our first "new bf 2k15" mission and it was kind of a bust. Hanging out at her house and talking before we went out was awesome but then we went to The Duce. Normally we go in a group of 4 or more people but this time it was just the two of us and it was a totally different vibe. First we just sat down and chatted because we weren't feeling the song that was playing. While we were sitting there two guys approached us and I just got really weird and uncomfortable. Maybe it would've been different if they'd been cute but idk, as soon as they approached us all I wanted was for them to go away. That's when I realized that maybe this isn't the best route for me to take. Having one of my best friends witnessing how awkward and shy I get around boys was the WORST because I'm a totally different person with my friends than I am around strangers (especially male strangers). Eventually a song we liked was playing so we danced for a bit but then they played a lousy song and everyone dispersed from the dance floor. I did a quick scan of the place and didn't fancy any of the boys so we decided to check out Crescent Ballroom instead. There wasn't a DJ or any shows going on so everyone was hanging out on the patio. I got a bottle of Coke like a major dweeb and we found a spot to hang out and chat. Again, I just felt uncomfortable and out of place. Bars just aren't my scene and I felt like I wasn't able to give Michelle my full attention because I was trying to patrol for cuties at the same time. Michelle is one of my favorite people in the whole world and I started to resent this bar for taking my attention away from her and our conversation. Anyway, I got home around 1am and in a pretty discouraged mood.

I try to be in tune with the Universe and be conscious when it's trying to communicate something to me and I felt very strongly that night that bars and clubs aren't the place I'm going to find my match in. But where the heck is he? I was talking to Melissa about this quandary and she said that this dude needs to put in some bloody work too, that it shouldn't be 100% my responsibility to find him. I'm a very special girl and I shouldn't have to work so hard to find a decent man. However, then I think to myself, "Maybe the reason I keep running into dead ends with men here is because I'm looking in the wrong place. Maybe there's a reason I've developed such a wanderlust lately. Perhaps I'm meant to meet my person during my travels." (I can be a hopeless romantic at times).

So anyway, the moral of this story is that I've discovered bars aren't the way to go but not to lose hope entirely. I think for next month's outing we'll try joining a Meetup group or something.

Before I close, I'd 'd like to list 3 things that have happened recently that have made me happy since this happens to be Mental Health Awareness Week:

1.) It's a small victory but I beat my buddies at Mario Kart three times in a row last night. It made me feel really good after having such a poop day.
2.) I bought myself some super cute sandals that look just like a pair I had when I was little.
3.) A senior at work told me on Tuesday that I was one of the kindest people she knows

Well, that's all for now. I hope you are enjoying your Thursday and in case you're not, hang in there! We've almost made it to the weekend :)

Paris Part II and the Journey Home

Notre Dame

As I sit down to write this final travel post, I realize that we did not even come close to taking enough pictures of our trip. At the time we felt like we were taking mountains of photos but looking back on them I think I only took a total of 200 or maybe even less than that. From this experience I have learned that when it comes to vacations (and life in general) you can never take ENOUGH pictures.

Now let me wrap up our final day in Paris. Since it was our last day we wanted more of a leisurely day where we could just walk around and enjoy the city without a huge itinerary to follow. We decided to begin with Notre Dame. When we arrived there was already a sizeable queue but having survived the queue at Versailles the day before this one pretty small potatoes. It started sprinkling a bit while we were waiting outside but the line moved pretty quickly and we were inside in no time.



Mon chatton and the Seine

 
As many of you know, I'm not a religious person (though I was baptized Catholic) but upon walking into this church I felt strangely calm. My tummy had been a little weird since I had woken up (probably anticipation anxiety about this being our last day) but I felt fine as soon as I walked in the doors...Pretty weird! Also, I had been looking for a souvenir for my mother the whole trip and hadn't found anything yet but as we were walking out of Notre Dame I saw a gift shop. I thought it was a little blasphemous that they had a gift shop right inside the church but whatever. I had to shove my way through a mob of people but I managed to snag a beautiful azure blue rosary for my mum. Supposedly, all of the rosaries had been blessed and I knew my mom would love that.

I'd been waiting to shop in Paris since we arrived and when Melissa told me there was a Forever21 a few blocks away from Notre Dame I knew my time had come. On our walk over we got to see lots of adorable flower shops and I saw another pug! When we got to F21 we both separated for a bit while we perused the goods. We met up at the line to the fitting room and could not believe that we had picked the same romper but in slightly different cuts! We truly are soul sisters!

Shopping built up our appetites so we went in search of lunch. We stumbled upon a little café where a cute boy was making Nutella crepes outside. After we sat down Melissa went to the restroom so I was left alone at the table. I knew the waitress was going to come while I was there by myself and sure as sugar she did. She spoke in rapid French as I sat there with a blank look on my face like O__O She then asked if I spoke French and when I said "no" she made a face and put the menus on the table and walked away. That was my one and only taste of the French being snooty. Once Melissa came back she ordered for us while I sat there being a mute once again. I got a vegetable soup and bread which was just okay but I was pretty starving so I would've eaten just about anything. I remember Melissa getting this bright green minty soda that I thought tasted like mouthwash. ;)



Spooky art at the Louvre

After lunch we headed over to the Louvre since you can't visit Paris without seeing the Louvre (those are the rules). When we were waiting in line for tickets these two super cute girls asked us if we wanted their tickets and we scooped them up! Thanks, strangers! I'm all about random acts of kindness. Since we hadn't actually paid for our tickets we weren't given a map so we just picked a wing at random. This was not the best decision since we ended up in the medieval section. It was nothing but religious paintings and they all bummed us out. You can only see so many crucifixion paintings before you start to feel cruddy. To be honest, I only think we spent an hour and half in the museum. We quickly realized that you needed to set an entire day aside to really appreciate this museum and we just didn't have that kind of time so we bailed. It was also easier to bail early since we hadn't spent any money getting in. Boop!



I'm a huge Amelie fan and had been dying to see Montmartre so we got on the metro and headed over. On our walk around Montmartre we got to see the Moulin Rouge but didn't go in. When we got to "Les Deux Moulins" I totally geeked out. I could not believe that I was actually standing right outside the café that my favorite fictional heroine worked at. It was pretty packed inside but we went in anyway. They sat us down in the back by a mirror with a huge poster from the movie on it. It was so cool to get to have a pineapple juice in The Two Windmills. I even used their toilets, which I might add, were UNISEX! I'd never been in a unisex toilet before so that's something to mark off the list.

After our little break we walked over to the park where the Sacré-Cœur is since that's one of my favorite scenes from the movie. It started to rain as soon as we got there and we were pretty beat so we took a few pics then headed back to the metro. I don't think we even had dinner that night since we were so exhausted.

The next morning we tidied up the apartment and then headed back to the airport. It was rainy and cold when we got back to Scotland but Melissa didn't care. She was just super happy to be back home (it was way cute). We watched "Our Idiot Brother" when we got back to her place (one of my faves) then her mum took us out for Chinese food for dinner. That night her mum told us all about her childhood growing up in Glasgow and I loved hearing all of her stories. I always get along great with people's mothers since I'm sweet and polite :)

My flight back to the states came earlier than I'd hoped. Melissa and I both wore our matching rompers and her mum took this adorable photo of us. As I was expecting there would be, there were some tears as we said goodbye to each other. I felt like I was leaving one of my limbs behind. We got so used to each other's company after spending 17 days together. Even now, three months later I get super emotional thinking about it and I miss her everyday. Sigh...



Matchy Matchy

My flight to the UK was nothing compared to the journey home. I had a layover in Heathrow for FOUR HOURS. Since I had run out of pounds ages ago I decided to wait until my flight back to the states to eat so I finished off my last protein bar and washed it down with water. The time didn't go by fast but it didn't go by as slow as I thought it was going to. When we boarded our plane I thought I was going to luck out again and get the row to myself but at the last minute a little old lady sat in the aisle seat. This is when I learned that on a long flight NEVER EVER TAKE THE WINDOW SEAT. This woman decided to sleep the whole flight so I was essentially trapped for 13 HOURS. I think I woke her up to go pee maybe 3 times since I hate waking people up so I was severely dehydrated when I got home and felt horrible. I tried watching some movies on the plane but they all sucked so I just read Game of Thrones most of the time. I got the urge to look out the window a few times and I'm glad I did because I got to see the tips of Greenland and Iceland and they were unlike anything I'd ever seen. Just massive chunks of ice in the ocean. It was UNREAL. When I wasn't looking out the window I was looking at this very cute boy sitting across the aisle from me and stared at him for hours and hours (and hours). I was hoping he might be from Phoenix too but when we landed I heard him speaking a language that I couldn't even identify. Bummer. That would've been such a "meet-cute" if I met my future boyfriend on my flight home from Europe.

My dad picked me up from the airport and I was sooooo happy to see him. He told me how awful it was having me an ocean away and not knowing where I was at all times. I tried telling him that I was officially a grown up now but he told me he'd always worry about me.

It only took about a week for Melissa and I to start planning our next meeting, haha! We've decided to do another Europe trip in 2016 but this time we'll visit Italy, Greece and possibly Switzerland. I'd like to dedicate an entire week to Italy and we've decided to go in June next time so we can swim in the Mediterranean. This trip was definitely missing swimming. I'm not in a huge hurry to be 32 but I can't wait to see my baby girl and Europe again. I'm so happy to have found my travelling soul mate.

Thank you so much for sharing this journey with me and reading up to the end. After this I'll be back to art blogging so stay tuned because Mama has been VERY busy.

Cheers!

Amsterdam: Part I and II

Our journey to Holland started before the dawn. Since our flight was at 7am (again) we had to be awake at 4:30am (yuck). We called a taxi and it took us to the train station that would get us to Stanton airport. Stanton turned out to be in the buttcrack of nowhere so by the time we got there we were already late as heck. It was a nightmare! We had to run through the entire airport with our luggage in tow (my suitcase weighed about 30 lbs and there were stairs EVERYHWERE). I honestly thought my lungs were going to burst I was running so hard. And we weren't the only ones. Everyone else who had been on our same train was booking it through the airport as if the place was on fire. Luckily, the flight had been delayed so we got there with plenty of time but we vowed to be super early next time (unfortunately, this would happen to us again in Denmark).

Once we actually got to Amsterdam everything was fine, though. The flat we rented was an absolute dream and our host was super nice (her boyfriend was a dreamboat btw). When we arrived she still had some cleaning up to do so we went out for some breakfast. We found a cute spot down the road called Dave's Coffee and Nuts and we even made friends with a dog, Petyr, who lived there. I had the most amazing smoothie of my life and cheese on toast. After brekkie we walked down to the most gorgeous park. Since the weather was so perfect (another beautiful sunny day) everyone was out enjoying the park with their doggies. I even got to see some parrots there that I wasn't expecting to see in Holland. I think we took a little nap after our stroll in the park and later we went to a street market across the road from our flat and bought things for dinner. It was a quiet and peaceful evening, which we needed after our stressful morning.

Our next day in Amsterdam would turn out to be the best day of my life so far. It was something out of a fairy tale. Just a perfect day. We slept in a bit and took the bus into town so we could rent bicycles. We found a bike rental called Mac Bike and the man who helped us was so nice! For the entire day it was 14.75 euros to rent a bike; it was the best 14.75 I've ever spent. I never imagined that something so simple as riding a bike around town could be so wonderful. These bikes rode like a dream and as soon as I got on mine I was overwhelmed with happiness. I kept shouting over to Melissa, "I'M HAVING SO MUCH FUN!!!" We rode over to the Nemo Science Center and climbed up to the roof and got an awesome view of the city. While we were taking photos up there a bird pooped on Melissa's phone and I just about died from laughing my guts out. We had talked earlier in the trip about how we'd never been pooped on by a bird so I couldn't handle it when it actually happened.

We rode our bikes all over town and it was so amazing getting to ride next to all of the lovely canals and boats. Our bikes had the cutest little bells too and it was so much fun getting to ring them anytime you needed someone to move out of your way. People kept walking into the bike lane so you'd have to ring your bell at them to wake them up. I wish I had a bell to ring in everyday life to signal folks to get the H outta my way! Amsterdam is super bike friendly but I'm still amazed that neither of us ate it or got hit by a car all day. I'm a pretty good cyclist but I was still impressed by ability to not die all day since people kept stopping in front of us.

The first thing on our list of things to see that day was the Vincent van Gogh Museum. Thanks to Melissa we didn't have much trouble finding it and when we did the line wasn't as bad as I had thought it was going to be. I think we waited less than an hour and tickets to get in weren't that expensive. I think it was about 15 euros. If we had had more time I easily could've spent all day in this museum. Vincent and his art are very special to me. I've always felt an affinity with him that I've never felt with any other artist. His work just moves me so much and has been such an inspiration to me.

We did manage to get in trouble at the museum so that was kinda lame. They only had a no photography sign on the first floor of the museum so once we got to the second floor we thought photos without a flash would be okay. WRONG. I was able to snap a few photos before I had a scary Dutch lady in my face. She was like, "I just told you to put that away. NO PHOTOS! Let me see you put it away!" while I'm like, "Just told me??" It was weird and super scary but at least she didn't insist that I delete them. My favorite painting we saw was "Almond Blossoms" and mostly because we got to learn that the painting was made for Vincent's new baby nephew and that he chose to paint almond blossoms for the baby since they symbolized new life and new beginnings. We were just so touched since we never knew the paintings backstory. The whole museum really touched my heart and I had to try realllly hard not to cry the whole time. His work just inspires so many feels in me (and the rest of humanity).

We only stayed in the museum about 2 hours because we were about to drop dead from hunger. However, the tomato and pesto sandwich I got for lunch didn't settle that well so I had a mini freakout. I got to experience my first pay toilet, though, which was really weird. It was 50 pence to use the bathrooms and Melissa came with me. When I walked into the stall I could totally see her and she could see me! I was like, "NO! How come the door is see-through?! I can't go if everyone can see me!!!" but when I closed the door the door instantly fogged up! It was totally bananas! After that bit of drama we kind of just rode around aimlessly and wound up at another beautiful park. Even though we had the bikes all day we thought it would be best to return them while the shop was open so we could make sure we didn't get charged any late fees or anything. It was rough letting the bikes go and having to walk again, haha.

We found a super cute ice cream shop in town and Melissa and I both got pistachio because we're awesome. While we were sitting there eating our ice cream a little fat pigeon scored a waffle cone that someone had dropped on the ground. He was so cute as he gobbled it all down :) It was really nice to just sit and relax after riding our bikes all day. After our little ice cream break we walked down to the Red Light District since it was almost dusk and we didn't want to be there after dark. It was pretty gross, which we were expecting but at least we can say that we saw it. We took the train back to our flat around 6 or 7pm and Melissa made another very tasty dinner. It was just such a lovely day and I'll never forget how exhilarating it was to ride bikes down the streets of Amsterdam on that beautiful spring day with my favorite girl.

Next stop was Berlin where things went a little...sour! Thanks for reading!