double exposure baby

Today is a good day. Oh and I've eaten 6 meals out in the past five days.

Now I'm off to eat pizza!

<3

Ni xi huan ma? Excuse me. Do you like them?

Love, a

in the dark

Last night my little sister and I went outside and took pictures. It was dark and we sat on a trashcan, posed with one of our neighborhood guards and stood in the light of the street lamps. I had on my brothers big hoodie and no shoes. It was pretty perfectly warm and the sky had a bit of color left in it. Fun? I think definitely. 

Earlier that day I ate lunch with my best friends, shopped and enjoyed the amazing sun. It was da' bomb. Oh and as we were leaving there was this big screen next to the shopping center and it was playing this really cool song... Lydia and I danced to it and rapped just a little. I wanted to see who the song was by so I waited and it was "One day" by Matisyahu and I was like "I know this guy!!". It made me happy. :) You should definitely listen to it. Anyway, yet another lovely day. I'm blessed with such good family and friends and a fantastic city to live in.

Here is six or seven pictures that I put all together to make one weird picture... I guess I was kinda lazy.
You can see I have several feet and a few heads and then you can see the trash can and there's some bokeh thrown in there too! 

Pictures by Elisabeth Jones.

Love, a

p.s. I just drank a Coco (pearl milk tea) and I wished that Mikayla was beside me. Yeah that would've been fun. :)

現在

Right now I'm successfully finishing my algebra and listening to this brilliant, Chinese artist. She's new to me and I'm taking to her quite well. Thank you to some of my best friends for sharing this music with me!

My tomorrow holds more school (as you all know), hanging out, pizza with friends and then a sleep over with the same friends. I'm looking forward to it because they're the best.

Yesterday held some excitement too... after church I went with my brother Andrew to a small, Chinese service where we met up with some of his Chinese friends. After the service we went to KTV (karaoke) which was super fun. It's pretty common here and the Chinese seem to love it. We all sang for a couple of hours and then we went out to dinner. We had north-eastern Chinese food. Pretty delicious! At about 8:00 pm Andrew and I headed home on the bus. I really enjoyed hanging out with them and am excited about getting to know them better.

10:00 pm: I'm sitting in the dark, finishing my math, listening to "Scream."

Oh, and Suzhou is warming up :) Hurray!

What have your past few days looked like? Did you eat any Chinese food? hehe.

The post title means something like "now" or "right now" in good old mandarin.

Goodnight.

Love, a

a happy tuesday to you too

Today I ventured around Suzhou's "college town" by myself. It was so darn warm and it made my time incredibly enjoyable. I had my jacket off the whole time and it was just plain peachy. My Dad and I jumped on the 2 express bus and when we got there we went our separate ways. I think he had a nice day too. 

First, I walked into 85° Cafe and ordered a cappuccino, then I walked around and shopped for my sister's upcoming birthday. I did buy something for her and maybe she'll reveal what it is when she opens it on the 10th... who knows.

I bought myself some red/orange nail polish. It's really great. I think it'll match the outfit I wore today: my new jeans, dark gray sweater, brown belt and white converse. The cashiers saw the writing on my hand (I had to remind myself to get my Mom a coffee) and they told me "Hen Piao Liang!" or "Very beautiful!" Hah. I like living in the midst of Chinese people.

Oh and this morning my sister and I rode bikes down to our market. Also a great addition to my day.

In about an hour I'll leave again... this time for pizza. 

Happy Tuesday!

Love, a

p.s. The college town I'm talking about is basically five colleges very near to each other and right in the middle of them are coffee places and a shopping area and all sorts of other stuff. There are also tons of students there (naturally) which makes it really fun. <3

p.p.s. Did you notice the new picture/category things on my sidebar? Just go ahead and click on 'em!

big jackets and rain

Sitting here with a cup of frothed milk in my hand and sweet music cheering me on, I realize that you probably aren't getting the same feeling as I am while writing this. Everything kind of mixes together and it all makes me happy and relaxed. The music (currently this mix) the warm room and the fond thoughts are some of the things I'm talking about. Today I was thinking about a time when my brothers were here. My oldest brother Matt and I were in Shanghai together and one morning for breakfast we went to a cafe where we sat across from each other at a big, wooden table and shared a coffee. My brothers are simply the best and I miss 'em all. I really do. 

Today I went out and sat on my front porch swallowed (I like that word) in my Dad's jacket. The rain had slowed somewhat and I just sat there and thought and listened to music. It was nice.

Today I'm thankful for...

Music.

Brothers.

New Jeans and a new belt.

Pictures.

New Chinese friends.

Rain.

Memories.

And facebook. hehe.

There are probably a million others but for now I'll leave you with that.

Can you read it? It's a quote from a really good book I just finished.

Love you guys!

Love, a

Oh hey, I'm back

Hey there wonderful people. So, I'm back from Shanghai. Of course we had a blast, and I'm so glad we had another opportunity to go. We always have so much fun. We just can't help it! We got home Tuesday morning and the rest of that day I was running around and I was just a bit busy. I took about 6 bus rides that day, most of them by myself. I don't mind though... it's actually really great.

A couple mornings ago we met up with friends at our favorite noodle place downtown and then we walked to this huge park and watched all the old, Chinese people dance and sing. An old man set up a little speaker and plugged in his music. Then an old lady started singing in the traditional Chinese way. Another man danced with big, red fans and lots more people just sat around, talking and watching. Sometimes huge groups of people gather and dance all together. Most of it is just they're way of exercising.
That sort of thing is very normal here by the way.

Today is Friday and I've got a bit more school to do and the giveaway to figure out. I will indeed be figuring that out soon and hopefully everything will be ready super quickly.

Oh and I'm still listening to Mat Kearney extensively. (Katie)

And with all that said, I'm just happy.
Aren't you happy it's the weekend?

Love you all.

Love, a

p.s. I'm working on my blog right now... I have several options for the header and I'm figuring out everything else as well. Also, notice my background? Pretty indiscreet. Fun, fun, fun!

I'm happy

You may ask what are some of the things that I am happy about. Maybe it's because I haven't told you in a while or maybe it is because it's good for me to think about all those things. I think there are quite a few.

1) This post. Maybe because I feel the same way and I'm not just saying that.

2) This song.

3) Wonderful friends. *Fēi cháng hǎo. 非常好.

4) An upcoming trip to Shanghai.

5) New, black backpacks and the fact that my friend has the same one. Oh yeah, we bargained for them together. :)

6) Fresh ginger + hot water.

7) Dates with Leah at McDonalds.

8) Burger King dates with Lydia.

9) The color gold.

10) The Chinese language!

And much more than that.

I'm going to elaborate on #4 a bit.

On Sunday night Lydia, Leah, Becca and I are jumping on a train and heading to Shanghai until Tuesday! We'll spend the whole time with my big sister Rachael and the five of us girls will do some more galavanting around humongous Shanghai. Can't wait.

What are you happy about?

With much love,

love, a

*The Chinese I used means "very good" or "very wonderful" and the characters mean the same thing. hehe.

eleven on the 22nd

My little sister Beth is turning 11 tomorrow. She is definitely happy and she might just be bouncing off the walls. Her mood is 100% and I for one, know I'm going to miss my ten year old sister. Love you Bethy! Try to sleep well.

Oh and here is a new song that I really like. Oh, oh man.

Oh and Mat Kearney's wife is named Annie. Really sweet eh?

She's a really good ballerina.

Love, a

just look

1) Excited to be doing this soon! Flying across the world to my "home" for a long visit.

2) Love this Ferris Wheel right across the canal from me. Suzhou rocks.

3) Looking forward to Spring. That's all.

4) Crazy hill covered in pink flowers. Really crazy huh?

Love you all! I hope you enjoy your Saturday like I'm mine.

Love, a

Camera.

Hey! Anybody want to win a FREE camera? Click here.

Thanks guys!

Love, a

delighted

Oh my goodness, thanks so much to all of my new (and faithful) followers. You guys are the best and I'm so thankful for each of you! I'm pretty darn happy.

If you haven't already seen my interview go here. Thanks a ton Katie.

This past Thursday and Friday I was in Shanghai with my older sister Rachael. A few of us went over on Thursday and then my little sister Becca and I spent the night in her apartment.

Friday morning the three of us girls galavanted around Shanghai in the rain. We ate breakfast near Rachael's house at a place called Wagas, where we sat next to the window and people-watched. We ordered coffees and called the cashier "soldier boy" just because he couldn't understand. We stepped into malls just for the fun of it, we laughed a lot and enjoyed all being the same height. (Literally!). We then jumped on the subway and sped underneath the city until we popped up again and found a cafe. We sat at the cafe for hours while snow came down in smalls heaps. Snow! It was really lovely and the flakes were big. We ate, talked a lot, smiled at people and at three, it was time to go. My sister Rachael said after we left she thought "why aren't they staying for a week?" "I'm confused".

Notice the little gray building with the square cut out of the top of it in the background? That's the 4th tallest building in the world. Look at this picture of it. Pure craziness.

The whole day I wore my special red hat and we all had big hoods over our heads to keep warm. We got to the train station and Becca and I boarded the train to go home. We waved to Rachael, yelled several last inside jokes and then turned around and slid our tickets through the machine.

Kudos to Rachael for being the best, and Shanghai? You're pretty sweet.

You might just want to listen to...
This
this
this
this
this
and
this.
These songs kept me company on the twenty minute train ride back home to Suzhou. Outside it was misty and I think it was probably a mix of rain and pollution. It was lovely though.

With lots of love to you all,

love, a

p.s.

here I go

This was a long time ago. The view from where I sat, doing school was like this. The top of the wall that I deemed good for self-portraits stood like it always did, like this. The weather was rainy but obviously warm, because all I had on was my beloved cardigan. Ooo, I can't wait for days like those.

Yes, this is the view that I'm talking about. Only I took this when I was outside.

Oh man, ignore the socks.
Tan tank-top/Target
Gray shirt/Target
Jeans/Traded with my sister for them.
Cardigan/Shanghai street vendor. (Yes!)

While chatting with Katie, I told her my favorite Florence and the Machine songs. She then told me her favorites (which I hadn't really listened to yet) and now they've definitely topped mine. Here's number one and here's number two. Like 'em?

Today was full of slightly weird adventures. They were fun all the same and they add to the beauty of living in another country. Oh, but my cousin's basketball game wasn't all that weird... no, not really weird at all.

Now why don't you go drink a cup of hot water with a chunk of fresh ginger in it and watch Mrs. Potter like I just did.

Happy Saturday friends!
Love to you all.

Love, a

p.s. I'm having a bit of a hard time coming up with good titles for my posts. Especially when they don't have a specific topic.

just a little bit

Today is the first day in a long while that it has felt like Spring. The air this morning, as I walked out into our tiny, back yard smelled sweet and a little bit different. The light made me catch my breath because it was so perfect. I could sit on my front porch again and not freeze, but instead soak up the warmth. Not saying that this is it, that Spring has come, because I'm sure we'll have more cold days, but it is definitely sneaking closer and it makes me excited.

I'm working on some fun things with fun people... but you'll just have to see what I'm talking about.

What is it like where you live? Is it still cold or is Spring rounding the corner for you too?

Goodnight, I'm off to bed. Good morning, you who are just waking up.

Love to you all.

Love, a

thank you/black and white

Here are a couple black and white shots I've taken over the the months.

How are you?

I really haven't said thank you to you yet, so here goes.
Thanks so much for following me. It means a lot and I hope that the stuff that I write and the pictures I take or rather just this blog of mine, brings you some sort of
joy.

Love you all.
Love, a

oh man...

...is my new favorite expression. I don't know, it's kind of weird but it's fun to say. Try it. Oh man!

This blog (Fernweh) continues to be amazing and this post inspired me to do the following.

Buy:

Brown notebooks. Basically like the moleskine brand only I can get them at the huge market for less than a dollar.

Airmail envelopes. I really hope I can find them at the market as well but if not, I may just have to order some of those darn, cute things.

Chalkboard paint. Yes.

Other than that I think I'm set.

Recently I found one of the notebooks in my Mom's room, I asked if I could have it. Then I saw the post on notebooks and so I added a pocket onto mine. On the front I wrote "bird" and beneath that I drew a large set of teeth. I'm an avid doodler and whenever I doodle I find myself drawing the bird/teeth thing, so I decided it'd be a good idea if I put it on the front.

Today I had coffee with my friend again which was lovely, then a cute, young asian guy waved at me twice and I said hi to him and smiled... and waved.

I painted my nails gold!

Now I'm about to go hold our sweet baby.

How are you?

Love, a

p.s. I redid my daily reads page and I'm working on a couple of other things. My header is going through stages too. hehe.

ring 'er on in

As I write this there are huge fireworks booming in my ear. Literally booming. My eye catches little sparks of light as they explode, ringing in a new year. 

The Chinese new year arrives later than ours, so as you now know, starting today, it is 2012 for them.

All this noise makes me happy. Just the thought of it; all of these Chinese people that I've been living with and growing to know, are celebrating their country... it makes me proud. Like on fourth of July when we're celebrating our country; watching my little town light off fireworks and everybody cheering, it makes me feel so thankful. Thankful and proud.

So as I'm still hearing fireworks a little ways in the distance, I want to wish you friends a Xin Nian Kuai Le, and maybe, just maybe, your celebrating too, far across the ocean.

I'll write again soon.

Love, a

p.s. Side note... the past few days have been a bit busy, we're fostering a baby girl and I'm pretty sure she's too cute to be alive. More on it all soon!

p.p.s. New design... again. I love it though. What do you think?

a Giveaway

No, not mine but a friends! It's lovely. Head on over here and check it out!

Love, a

at three

Today's sounding sweet. It's 1:40 pm and I'm heading to coffee with my dear friend Lydia at three. I love coffee. The smell is most irresistible, and probably one of my favorites ever. Starbucks will be cozy, what with rain dripping down the windows and a big, comfy chair to sit in and a friend to talk to. I think it'll be lovely. I'll pop on my jacket and gloves (and I might just throw on my new, red hat) grab an umbrella, and head out into the grey.

Oh Suzhou

Listened to this amazing song as well as this one while writing.

I find this picture rather hard for my eyes to look at. Hope YOU like it though. It's the view from our living room window.

This song has been my constant companion for the past few days; I'm kind of in love with it. What do you think about it?

Oh man... this post :)

And this is happening in our little home town New Castle!

I love you all.

Love, a

us girls

Yesterday was wonderful. Actually yesterday and on into today. I spent both days with Lydia and Leah!

Yesterday I hopped on the bus at about 3:00 p.m.--a common start to every trip--and soon found myself at the Wirgau home.

We decided to have dinner at one of their favorite little restaurants, so we bundled up in a million and one different garments and left. I sat on the back of Lydia's bike and she rode me all the way there: through the darkness and the city streets, until we got to the tiny, Chinese restaurant. We all enjoyed the food a lot, and the company and warmth of the place was also lovely. After that the six of us (the three Wirgau boys came too) rode home. 

That night we worked on making a video. It was really fun and hilarious, and I'm pretty sure you'd want to see it, so I'm going to have to put it up sometime :)

We watched a Doctor Who episode (love!) and drank tea and coffee and laughed and talked. 

Today we hung out at their house some more then Lydia, Leah and I headed over to our house. On the way over we stopped at Coco and bought pearl milk teas (you should know by now that we kind of love them) and then got back on the bus to go to my house. We edited our video a bunch, ate dinner, laughed some more and then the girls left, ending the 25 some hours I'd been with the two of them.

I love them and I'm so thankful for them! God has really blessed our family with the Wirgaus.

While waiting for the bus we realized that we all had rolled-up jeans on and converse! Picture taken by Leah Wirgau with her camera. I'm in the white ones, Lydia's in the grey and Leah's in the purple :)

Love, a

sweetness

I realized I never posted these pictures that I took one cold, autumn day. Beth snatched up several hats and a checked* red blanket and we headed out into the perfect weather.

She is such a beautiful little sister and she looks so sweet in these photos. 

How do you like them? Any favorites?

Love, a

*I wrote "checked red blanket" in the post and both of my brothers said that "checkered" would be more understandable. Do you think "checked" sounds weird? I thought it sounded much lovelier.