I have no idea, so I'll start here.
Guy Fawkes Day, November 5 is a little like the 4th of July in the states...well, there are fireworks... and... ok, other than that they're really nothing alike... (Don't know what I'm talking about? Go watch V for Vendetta. It's more entertaining than me describing Guy Fawkes to you, and there are pretty masks.) I had lots of homework to do and had to work, so I didn't get the best view of the fireworks, but some of them looked pretty sweet from my bedroom window.side note: The Smashing Pumpkins' Bullet with Butterfly Wings (Rat in a Cage) just came on randomly for the second time today, and that makes me super-happy... (oh, go on - click the link and watch the video - you're just checking your e-mail at work anyway...) ;)
...Now I'm stuck in the youtube music video pit of unproductiveness... well, here - watch this one too... and this one (see - my constantly changing hair could be much worse)
Allen and I realized that our Britrail passes were about to expire, so we decided to go back to Ediburgh, because we love that place. (Have I mentioned that?) We took an overnight train to Glasgow (with a layover in Birmingham from 2 to 5 am...that was fun) and spent a day there before moving on to Edinburgh. Our original plan was to make a stop at Birmingham on the way back to see the Cadbury chocolate factory, but their website made it look much more like a weird children's attraction with purple cows and talking easter candy than an actual factory tour, so we opted out of that (plus, it cost £10 to get in...£10 for cow costumes and screaming children? really?) We did another ghost tour in Edinburgh, this time going down into the vaults under the city. It was pretty neat, and actually pretty spooky. 
We also returned to the Elephant House, where JK Rowling wrote much of Harry Potter, for a few hours of writing and scheming, and went back to one of my favorite builidings of all time, the Scottish Parliament Building (left.) In Glasgow, we went to The Lighthouse, a museum of architecture and design in Scotland and the Gallery of Modern Art ...a gallery of...modern art. They were both pretty fantastic and made me want even more to drop out of school to become an installation artist. Don't worry, mom - I'm not really going to ;)
We also returned to the Elephant House, where JK Rowling wrote much of Harry Potter, for a few hours of writing and scheming, and went back to one of my favorite builidings of all time, the Scottish Parliament Building (left.) In Glasgow, we went to The Lighthouse, a museum of architecture and design in Scotland and the Gallery of Modern Art ...a gallery of...modern art. They were both pretty fantastic and made me want even more to drop out of school to become an installation artist. Don't worry, mom - I'm not really going to ;)We got back from Scotland on Wednesday night and left Thursday afternoon for Dublin. It was kind of a lengthy little holiday, but I have had a pretty hellish past couple weeks (I'll spare you the details - call me if you really want to know) so it couldn't have come at a better time. I needed a break. 
The timing was perfect, because the Two Gallants played at the Koko in Camden on Wednesday night, so we caught that before we left. That was such a good show. I just love watching them perform - they bring a kind of passion and emotion to their music that is unfortunately becoming rather rare I think. And they are really nice people, too. We got to hang out with them a little after we saw them with Against Me! in Omaha in August. The best part by far was the last song - Waves of Grain from their What the Toll Tells album. I LOVE that song sooo much. I found a video on youtube someone made using the song, and while I don;t think it communicates everything the song is really about, it does explore one aspect of it, and it gives you all a chance to hear it. Here it is. The lyrics are so amazing. One of the support bands was from Portland - Blitzen Trapper, and they were quite good as well.
The timing was perfect, because the Two Gallants played at the Koko in Camden on Wednesday night, so we caught that before we left. That was such a good show. I just love watching them perform - they bring a kind of passion and emotion to their music that is unfortunately becoming rather rare I think. And they are really nice people, too. We got to hang out with them a little after we saw them with Against Me! in Omaha in August. The best part by far was the last song - Waves of Grain from their What the Toll Tells album. I LOVE that song sooo much. I found a video on youtube someone made using the song, and while I don;t think it communicates everything the song is really about, it does explore one aspect of it, and it gives you all a chance to hear it. Here it is. The lyrics are so amazing. One of the support bands was from Portland - Blitzen Trapper, and they were quite good as well.Ok, moving on - Dublin. 
We went to a pub the first night with Gavin and Stu (because really, what is better to do on your first night in Dublin?) I had the best pint(s) of Guinness I have EVER had at that place. SOOOO good... The next day we went to the Guinness factory(also very good) and the Irish National Gallery, which was ok, but not nearly as good as the English or Scottish National Galleries. We tried to go St. Patrick's Cathedral, but it was closed for a graduation ceremony. Lame, I know.
We went to a pub the first night with Gavin and Stu (because really, what is better to do on your first night in Dublin?) I had the best pint(s) of Guinness I have EVER had at that place. SOOOO good... The next day we went to the Guinness factory(also very good) and the Irish National Gallery, which was ok, but not nearly as good as the English or Scottish National Galleries. We tried to go St. Patrick's Cathedral, but it was closed for a graduation ceremony. Lame, I know.So, you may remember me mentioning in an earlier blog that we went to see Katie's friends' band The Satin Peaches at the Astoria in London? Well, their tour manager, Gavin happened to take a liking to miss Katie, and she happened to like him back, and he happened to be from just outside of Dublin, so we happened to stay with him and his roommates for a couple nights while we were there. 
It was great - they made us amazing food, and we walked out in the Irish rain and played with their cat, and their house had fantastic carpet.
It was great - they made us amazing food, and we walked out in the Irish rain and played with their cat, and their house had fantastic carpet. 
Oh, Sinead O'Connor's from Dublin - here's a video from her too. She has such a pretty head.
And now we're back in London. And it's raining here too. A lot.
We went to see Andrew in a play, Angels in America, at Royal Holloway, the school he goes to in Egham, just South of London. He played Roy Cohn, and did a phenomenal job. It was quite amusing to hear everyone else in the play trying to do an American accent.
...Whish brings us to today - Thanksgiving. I had an especially tasty peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch today to celebrate (or peanut butter and jam, as they say in the UK - "jelly" is jell-o here.) We intended to have some kind of Thanksgiving dinner at Katie's flat last night, but everyone was busy, so we ended up with plain rice, mashed potatoes, and my pumpkin pie. I doubt I'll get a proper Thanksgiving meal this year, but that's ok. I can miss one out of 23, don't you think?
In honor of the 2 1/2 hours it has taken me to right this because of my useless youtube adventures, here's one of my favorite videos ever. It's not a music video, but trust me - it is HILARIOUS.
Ok. Some people need to go get an ice cream sandwich. Stacy needs to go get an ice cream sandwich.
(...that would have been funny if you had watched the video...)
-stacy
We went on a boat cruiseon the Thames for Halloween with our school, and it was a lot of fun. It was a lot of American fun, but fun nonetheless. I didn't get to carve a pumpkin, though. Sad.
