Just Call Me Fancypants.

Made it safely to Boston! Now I'm sitting in the extra-exclusive (haha) American Airlines Admirals Club amongst hordes of older business people who think I'm a lost ragamuffin. I feel so faaaaaaancy! :-P

Also, sat next to a nice Boston University medical professor on the plane who gave me advice on traveling between Boston and London, and also gave me his card just in case Im ever in Boston. That's the first new person I've met on my trip! Yay for traveling!

Packing, Reading, and Time Traveling

In less than an hour I will be heading to the airport to fly to Boston, then on to London. I will get to London at 8am today, which involves a touch of time traveling and some sorcery. (PS - I wish I had a TARDIS. :-/) 

I am waiting for two packages to arrive--one containing a foldable keyboard for blogging while I'm gone and one containing a mysterious gift that I need. I usually have stalwart faith in UPS, but they are failing me today. Unless they come in the next half hour, all hope is lost. 

But at least all my packing is done! And there's not too much of it, either. That's the beauty of long trips--you actually need less than a shorter trip, because you are resigned to doing laundry out of necessity. I could pack 35 pairs of clothes if I wanted to (if I even have thirty-five pairs of clothes), or I could pack ten and some laundry soap. 

Ever the minimalist, I chose the latter and fit all my clothes in a duffle bag. Booyah. 

After this, all my blogging/internet usage will be done from my phone (thanks for that, Steve Jobs). I just hope I don't blow a hole through my 300MB/month limit and rack up a scary bill. That's one thing I hate about technology (there is a long list) - the cost to use it. I understand it, but I'm an ignoramus and hardly know what "data roaming" means, so the risk is great. Ick. 

Now, I am going to be traveling for a month, and who can travel without a book? So here are the books that will travel with me:

                                                         

                 

Miss Peregrine's is a book I have been wanting to read for a long time, and though it is hardback and rather heavy, I decided to bring it just for the heck of it. Hopefully it will be worth the weight and space. If it's not, it will be staying in Europe! To Catch a Pirate, on the other hand, is my go-to travel book because it is a quick read (2 hours max), tiny and light, and a genuinely good adventure story. And of course, everyone needs a good travel guide! 

Instaframe!

Thanks to the darling Anna, I have discovered Instagram's frame app, which I will be using on my trip if this goes well. This is me testing it.

I made this!

Dallas Arboretum

Just went to the Dallas Arboretum avec ma famille and got some cool shots on my phone's instagram, something I've never really done much before.

These two are my favorite:

But I also like these:

However, I am not pleased that they look blurry on here. I hope not all of the pictures I upload from my phone will look like that when they are large, because that's the only way I will be able to upload photos from my trip! 

6 Days...

Only six days left until I leave! A month-long trip is a lot to prepare for. Here is my itinerary:

JUN 12

Leave Dallas 1:10pm

JUN 13 - 14

            Arrive in London 7:45am

            Stay in White Hall Hotel, London

JUN 15 - 16

            London to Brussels

            Stay in Crowne Plaza Hotel, Brussels

JUN 17 - 18

            Drive to Amsterdam

            Stay in Holiday Inn, Amsterdam (southern ring)

JUN 19 - 21

            Drive to Berlin

            Stay in Holiday Inn Express, Berlin City Centre

JUN 22 - 23

            Drive to Prague

            Stay in Crowne Plaza Hotel, Prague

JUN 24 - 25

            Drive to Vienna

            Stay in Holiday Inn City, Vienna

JUN 26

            Drive to Kitzbuhel, Switzerland

            Stay in Tiefenbrunner Hotel, Kitzbuhel

JUN 27

            OPEN, probably near Basle

JUN 28

            Drive to Brussels

            Stay in Holiday Inn Express, near Brussels Airport

JUN 29 - JUL 1

            Brussels to London

            Start traveling alone!

            London to Stratford-upon-Avon

            Stay in Stratford-upon-Avon Youth Hostel

                      International Shakespeare Festival, Shakespeare's birthplace and heritage sites

JUL 2 - 5

            Stratford-upon-Avon to Liverpool

            Stay in Liverpool Youth Hostel
                        The Beatles' birthplace and heritage sites

                       

JUL 6 - 14

            Liverpool to London

            London to Maenporth

            Stay in Maenporth

JUL 15

            Maenporth to London

            Stay in London

JUL 16

            London to Washington D.C. 12:00pm

            Arrive in Washington D.C. 3:07pm

            Washington D.C. to Dallas 5:50pm

            Arrive in Dallas 8:00pm

All the things I said and didn't say...

Eventually one day I will link to my valedictorian speech here. Yeah.

I feel like my speech was eh. Sure I said what I wanted to say, about not wasting what you've done in high school and being an asset to your community, but there was so much I wanted to say that didn't make it into the speech. Like all of these things:

To all of my friends who are leaving town: I would like to extend a standing invitation to you: Anytime you come back to Denton (ANY TIME), call me or something and we will go to lunch. Seriously. I will miss you! :)

To my (extended) family: It means so much to me that you guys came to support me in this accomplishment, and I so much appreciate all you do for me--more than just the gifts and the cards, but the love and attention and support I've felt from all of you my entire life. I am so lucky to have so many awesome aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents, and I love all of you!

To my parents: Wow. I owe you guys so much for all the things you've taught me and done for me my entire life. I can't even express how much it means to me, though you know I probably don't show it like I should all the time. Without you, I would not be where I am now, and the things I have planned for would not be possible. A million bajillion thanks to both of you, and I love you so much, Mom and Dad!

To my brother: (reference letter from last year) :) But seriously, you've been an inspiration, a wonderful friend, and seriously the best brother in the world. I've come to realize that this year more than ever; what a difference it makes to have such a smart, fun, and tolerable brother! I am truly lucky to have you, and it makes me happy to know that no matter what happens, I will always be your sister! :)

To my friends: You guys are awesome, and I only hope that I can find people as cool and close as you again in college. Even if sometimes all we end up doing on a "night out" is sit at home and watch a movie, you have truly made my high school experience bearable and I'm sure had some influence on the way I turned out. :) All of you will do wonderfully in life, I know it. And do not, on pain of me hunting you down and punching you in the face, lose touch. Hahaha, you think I'm kidding!

To Jackson:  Thank you for dealing with my stress and insanity this last year; you are amazing and wonderful and awesome. I know you will kick ass as president next year. I love you. :)

That's It, Then.

Well, I have graduated. Many thanks to all the wonderful people who came, and also a thousand congratulations to my peers who graduated today!

Here I am all decked out and ready to go with all my cords and medals and stoles! 

Walking up to the stage. 

Graduating today was a strange experience. On one hand, I was nervous that I would speak too quickly, trip on the stairs, or fall because my gown belonged to my brother and was waaaaay too long for me. But on the other hand, it didn't feel like a big deal. It felt like a bigger deal when my brother graduated, but actually being down there made it seem somehow less momentous. I still have yet to realize that I will never go to Denton High School again as a student, that I may never see most of these people again, that I will never again go to Mr. Milne's class (aaah!) or Madame Webb's class or Mrs. Seeley's class or theatre. There are things, and people, I will miss, but this is definitely a step forward in my life, although excitement is something I'm not really getting right now either. 

But that will come, I suppose. Right now I just want to enjoy my friends as much as possible before we split off forever (which is turning out to be a lot harder than anticipated) and prepare myself for the future. UNT here I come! Whooo!