A Tuesday Post

Sunday, I gave blood for the first time ever. I got kind of lightheaded, but I think I'll do it again some day. It was a good experience.

Monday, I opened and closed a bank account in the same day. Fortunately, it wasn't as awkward as it could have been, and the end result was ideal. (I got to keep my old bank account and ATM card, but get free checking.)

Today, I'm writing this blog post. But I'm also packing today. I'm trying to fit everything I need for ten months in Europe in one 44 lb suitcase and a backpack. (That could use a spare prayer or two). I'm leaving on Saturday morning at 8 am from LAX, flying through Dulles and Copenhagen, and arriving in Madrid Sunday at 12:30 pm. I will be sure to blog about the flight. (I kind of enjoy traveling.)

Today, I'm also posting the contact information for my host family in Madrid.

c/o Conchi Rodriquez Barahona
C/ Valderribas n°48, Escalera 1, 2°C
28007 Madrid, Spain

phone: 011 + 34 + 914 33 82 67

I hope to hear from you by letter, phone call, or email (or just by lowly blog comment) sometime this semester. Remember, if you write me, chances are better that I'll send you a postcard! :)
Also, don't forget that I'm on skype!

Until later, faithful reader,
-Rebekah

Windows Vista

I ran across The Mojave Experiment earlier today. The premise here is that people actually like using Windows Vista if they don't know that it's Windows Vista. I thought it was kind of interesting. And it made me feel better about not hating Vista myself. I wouldn't say that I love it, but I've been using it for a year and I haven't found anything that breaks the deal for me. In fact, I'm writing this from the family laptop which runs XP, and I find myself amazed at how slow it is.
So, just a few thoughts. Oh, and I'm not trying to pick a com-box fight here. This is all about personal preference.
-Rebekah

Skype excitement

Yep! I'm on skype now. (Well, as of earlier this week.)
So if you have skype (and maybe a microphone and webcam?) you can add me as a friend/buddy/whatever. My username is--you'll never guess--crochetgrl.
I look forward to videoconferencing with you over the next year.
-Rebekah

Visas!

Yesterday was my appointment with the visa section of the French consulate. Emily came with me up to LA fr moral support and carpool eligibility. But once we got to the visa section, she wasn't allowed inside. Rules, bah. There was a security guard and a metal detector--these people are so much more uptight than the Spanish consulate. But anyway, I thought you might like to see what Schengen visas look like.

Spain:France:

I happened to take these with my new Logitech QuickCam IM Plus.
More on that in the next post.
-Rebekah

Brand new ways to keep up

Attention all faithful blog readers!
There is now a new way to subscribe to my blog.
If you want to be made aware of new updates to my blog, but don't want to, or don't know how to, go through all that business of feedreaders, then there is hope for you!
Simply enter your email address in the convenient box at the top of the left-hand column and my blog updates will automatically be sent to your email inbox as soon as they are published!

Please let me know how this works for you and if you encounter any problems. I hope you enjoy this convenient new feature, brought to you by feedburner.

-Rebekah