A New Year!

I've been quite busy in the freezing north. I found a background that will take me through various months so I don't have to keep feeling the pressure of updating it. I don't even know if anyone reads this, I guess there are better ways to keep in touch these days, which is fine. Besides looking for jobs and working a lot at Walgreens since I've been home, I haven't had anything to exciting. And now that I finally was offered a full time job that will pay decently (Assistant Manager at Walgreens, somewhere in the S/SW Suburbs of the TC) I can focus on other things. Like....honing my skills (or learning) how to keep up with media stuff. I hope to self teach website creation and maintenance. I have to apartment search. Lots of things. oh, and planning a wedding!! :) Just waiting for USCIS to get off their butts and approve my petition and give Marin a date for an interview! What the heck. Why is it taking so long?! My pobrecito guapo fiance is sad and wants to be with me! That's it for now.

End of 2010.

I haven't been keeping up on my blog recently because I guess I've just been busy and there isn't a whole lot of exciting stuff to blog about. I've just been home, working at Walgreens (again) but this time a new store. My old manager took me back and it's been great because I really need the income and I've worked almost full time hours every week since I've been home. Christmas was great, chillin with the fam and eating yummy food. I really wish Marin could be here though. I think about how great it will be when he is here, experiencing the Roehl Family traditions and getting a taste of MN living. I don't feel settled because I won't be until I get a full time job I want to do for awhile and until I marry Marin, I'll be living with family and not in a place with myself, which is fine because I need to save money by not paying rent until needed. I hope in the next months I'll land a job that is decent pay, something that utilizes my skills/experience/degree and that I at least somewhat enjoy. Is there a job out there for me...we'll see. Saturday starts 2011. Maybe then I'll write about great things that happened in 2010 and great things that are yet to come next year!

Home. MN. Cold. Winter. Sick. Family. Friends. Marin.

Those are a few words that describe my life these days. I'm back at home in MN, enjoying my family and seeing some friends. My 24 hours of travel got me sick with a cold. Jet lag with the cold makes me tired all day long. I can't stop thinking about Marin and wish he could just be here with me or that we could talk more easily/cheaper. He needs to get internet so we can Skype. It's actually hard to believe I'm back. Doesn't really seem real quite yet. It's going to take months to get in a normal feeling mode. I look forward to Thanksgiving with all the great food and company and playing games. Why can't we just have the best of both worlds. Maybe I can once Marin gets his sexy booty over here!

2 weeks...and counting!

Who can believe that in exactly 2 weeks I'll be somewhere in the sky, flying over the Atlantic, on my way back to the land of the free and home of the brave!

It's hard to believe this chapter of my life at IMM is coming to an end. I know "once an IMMer, always on IMMer" will be a part of me, but I won't actually be here doing the IMM stuff. I'll be...doing something else. In the near future, planning a wedding and trying to land a job I enjoy and that pays the bills!

However, as this chapter ends, yet another one opens! And one that is sure to be exciting, adventurous, a learning experience, lovely, happy, stressful and fun! Of course, you all know that I'm talking about.

Until my next post...have a great day!

PORTUGAL=AMAZING

When Christina and I decided to venture our way on over to my neighboring country of Portugal, we mostly wanted to go because "it's another country to add to our list" and "we've never been there" and the beach! We did not expect it to be as great as it was. Really, almost everything was great. Everywhere we went-stores, restaurants, hostel--everyone spoke English! Portuguese is a Latin language, but somethings are quite different from Español and we may have not understood if they didn't speak the great international, business language of English.

The beach--best part. Thanks God for giving us PERFECT weather! The forecast said it would rain Saturday, but it didn't! Good memories made on the sand. Relaxing time. People watching. Picture taking. Taking in the sun!

This cute beach city was easy to navigate. We found our way to the beach/city centre from the bus stop-without a map, without directions, just following another couple, reading signs and using our great sense to find our way!

Many great photo ops here. Loved it!

Albufeira, Portugal, I don't know if we'll meet again in this life, but know that you were the perfect last hoorah with Christina as we bring our European travels to an end.

I'll miss....

this guy and the beauty of España! Olive and sunflower oil. The warm weather. But I'll mostly miss Marin while we are apart.

2 Años en España!

August 1 was my 2 year anniversary in Spain. Whoohooo!! I'm late blogging about this but that's cause I have more important and real life things to do. It's good when real life has more things for me so I'm not wasting my time doing internet/blog/fb things. But of course those still take up hours of my life every week.

A few things I WILL NOT miss about Spain when I leave:

1. everything is so SMALL here....roads, parking spaces, elevators...

2. the non-customer service you get when at stores

3. the euro stealing 26-50% of my money!!

4. how things/people work and think in Spain. I won't be saying "this is Spain" much when I'm in the US.

A few things I WILL MISS about Spain:

1. MARIN until he gets to MN!!

2.the awesome fruit and veggies, and Friday market to buy these

3. working at a job that I love (mostly cause it's ministry and going to touch lots if lives, but the whole editing for 8 hours a day thing--I won't miss that too much for a while)

4. diversity

5. my great co-workers

6. my sweet and short commute to work...I'm going to miss this A LOT!