Home for the Holidays

Hello! I'm home!! YAY!!!

My agenda since I've been home...Hugged my parents, slept, talked at church with my mom, slept, died my hair blond, slept, went to the RFKC camp Christmas party, drove to Moscow, slept, saw all my friends at Theta, slept, slept, applied for jobs, slept, and applied for my new visa (everyone pray). So let's just say I slept a lot :) When I finally went to bed after I got home it was 8:30 am on my body clock so it's taken some getting changed over :).

Leaving London was an adventure from having to clean my roommates three week old fungus infested dishes, to taking out their 20 bags of trash they so graciously left me, to running (literally) with Jita to Primark to buy a zebra print suitcase so she could bring everything home that I couldn't fit. It was quite the sight...Jita and I sprinting down the road with this suitcase catching air behind us. But it was all worth it b/c we ran into the Vitamin Water van and Jita ran up and asked if he had inside what was printed on the outside...he ended up giving us each one of every flavor for free :). So we energized ourselves and ran up and finished packing Jita with all the stuff that wouldn't fit in my suitcase. :) We then proceeded to take the tube to Heathrow, Emelie and Jita were so sweet and came with me. Only the problem was that we had by now drank at least 5 of the vitamin water between the three of us and were stuck on the tube for 40 mins....with no Loo... So we realize we are on the tube to the wrong terminal and jump off and have to wait for 20 mins while these two adorable old men entertained themselves by watching us chuck all our belongings off onto the platform and fling ourselves out as the doors shut behind us. So we finally get to Heathrow and Jita finds a loo at the platform. So we go to check in and I'm pretty sure my bags are over...so Jita walks up with me and does her little charming act of telling the man about how she just loves this new terminal b/c it has a loo and is going on and on about the loo in terminal 5. Meanwhile he is weighing my bags, putting on the tags, and shipping them off with out a second glance...This girl really works magic lol. Only Jita could keep the ticket counter distracted by talking about the Loo! :) So then once again Jita worked her magic and helped me sneak an extra carry-on on the plane by hiding my backpack from the lady checking my ticket. :) So I said my farewells and was off. I took a bus to my plane and lugged my stuff up the steps and snuggled into my AISLE seat, watched the Duchess, and was off to America. But of course it didn't go that smoothly...look at who we are talking about. Of course I was the only person on the plane whose dinner was forgotten. And when they apologized and asked if their was anything they could do...I froze and didn't have the guts to ask to be upgraded...I needed Jita. lol So then we touch down and I go to recheck in my bags at Southwest. Of course I don't have Jita to distract them...I find I still need to have a few courses of the act of distraction. She asked me to place my first bag which I think is heaviest. So I but my big blue duffel. It's 6lbs under! So off it goes, my next one is 7 lbs over...so I ask her to bring the other bag back. She tells me no it was at full weight I argue and say it was only 46 lbs. so annoyed she brings it back I start moving stuff into it when I realize I must have grabbed Jita's trainers instead of mine b/c these shoes are too big to be mine and then I see all this hiking gear...OMG not my bag...I have some smelly boys bag! Thanks goodness I made her bring that bag back... So then I run to British Airways and try to explain to this rude Korean lady what has happened. She gives me this lecture that makes me feel really stupid, and calls about my bag. It turns out that the bag I picked up (which is identical to mine) happened to be a bag that was shipped w/o a passenger so luckily no one else had picked up my bag...what a God thing. So then I was back up to southwest and weighing my bag that was 9 lbs over...so here I am with three carry-ons and 16 lbs extra...and a mean ticket lady that won't go for the "I'm a student moving home from college and this is my entire life in two bags...will you give me a little break?" And then she didn't get why I wouldn't just pay the extra $20 to get extra weight. I was determined to show my dad that I could get home with in my luggage allowance. So I took one of the clear bags filled with compressed clothes, emptied it, filled it with heavy stuff and strapped another 16 lbs to my carry-ons. I snuck through security, boarded the plane, had them put my one of my carry-ons below in the belly of the plane, and I'm proud to say I got off the plane hugged my parents, went to baggage claim and for the price of two normal weight bags...I picked up three! :) It was great. So I am official a flight con artist :) lol. But even though it was a bit bumpy I made it home in one piece and was sooooooooo excited to see my family. So now I have to find job...uggg

Well I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and I will look forward to posting new adventures next year about London part 2! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

XX (they don't have O's in the UK b/c they don't hug....only kisses)

-KL

(Look I'm blonde!) :)