You. Me. Everyone In Between.

Swedish Banks Accounts vs Me

2012-02-02T05:19:00.006-08:00

It has almost been one month since I have officially called Sweden my home. If any one knows me, they know that I am a very persistent person, and nothing stands between me and finding a way how to get something.

But Sweden might be winning at this point in the game. This article is about my dilemma with Swedish banks, but let me walk you through how this "living abroad" process works.

When one acquires a work and resident visa for Sweden, they are allowed to obviously work and live until their visa expires or they are allowed to renew. My visa is for two years and is renewable. Like moving anywhere in America or wherever your country of origin may be, you are required to register with the tax offices in your area, have an driver's license or identification, or even switch banks to fit your needs. It is the same when moving to another country, only you have to go through procedures a local may never experience.

First of all, you get a tax number, referred to as a "personnumber." This is easy if you have already been accepted for the visa. You just go to the tax office (Skatteverket) and register yourself where you live (if you have an apartment by then..) and then they tell you 4-6 weeks processing time, which usually ends up being 7 days until you receive your tax number.

Next step, Swedish Identity card. Like I mentioned in my previous blog post, "Mug Shot Swedish ID Cards," you must have this to do anything here in Sweden. To get this, you pay $60 (400 SEK) and then go to a different tax office with your paid receipt and apply for the ID. This comes in 2-4 weeks. When you get this, you can finally open a bank account, which brings me to my next topic...

How to get a freaking bank account. I have the apartment, I have the job to pay for the apartment, but I am not allowed to open a bank account to get the money from my job to pay for my apartment. It has been almost one month since I moved here, 25 days since I found a job, 11 days since I found an apartment and 24 days since I applied for my ID card. What's the hold up? Oh, they are processing my card through GREECE since that is where I picked up my visa.

Swedbank, SEB, Nordea, and Handselbank will not give me a bank account until I have my credit card sized ID card in my hand. I have the paperwork with my picture to show them now, I have a job certificate and a passport with my work visa, but obviously that is not good enough for them to open an account that I still have to pay $40 bucks for them to open!!

So now it is just a waiting game...and if the waiting time is in "Greek time," let's just hope my 2-year visa does not expire.

Mug Shot Swedish ID Cards

2012-01-22T09:53:00.006-08:00

What is the difference between these pictures? Well, two of them are obviously Swedish ID cards...but the other three are mug shots. Enough said.

I experienced going to the Skatteverket (Tax office), last week to apply for my Swedish Identity card. This card is very important as it allows you to open a bank account, use your credit card, take free Swedish lessons, rent a movie, go to the doctor, and ditch your passport as a form of ID. So what I am saying is, you basically need to show your Swedish ID card to pet a dog on the street.

I took a number when I got to the office (of course) and waited roughly a half hour before my number came up. I then went into a little room with a little woman who spoke broken English, but English the same. She imputed all my information from my passport very slowly...then wanted to take my picture. Being an American, I asked if I could smile. She paused and stared at me. "No, you must have a natural expression." I smiled at her and said," but...this IS my natural expression!" She didn't crack, just told me to look at the blinking red light.

My picture turned out looking like I just died on the last level of Frogger and I had no extra lives. So apparently, my natural face looks like anger mixed with a "REALLY?!"

They said I can pick up my ID in 4 weeks.

For more information on this process: go to Swedish Tax Agency (click the link) or Skatteverket
Make sure you have payed your 400 SEK before applying. You can go to any bank here in Sweden and do it...the banks do charge like 30 SEK to do this...but I found out if you go to a LOTTO stand where they sell also candy and stuff, they can do it for 15 SEK...

Just Call Me Helga!

2012-01-10T10:05:00.008-08:00

Being legal in Sweden is like being a Royal Jester to the Queen: You're excepted at the castle, but laughed at to your face.

I always thought things would be so much easier once I got the golden star in my passport that allowed me to pass go (ie: the visa), but I have come to realize in my short time here that although Sweden welcomes immigrants, they make it nearly impossible for them to equally succeed.

The following blogs are just some ideas of the challenges I, a 20-something year old American girl, is facing in Sweden.

#1 Problemo: Housing.

You have got to be KIDDING ME! Try and follow me on this one.
First of all, you must WAIT in neighborhood lines to get a chance to rent. You join these lines by paying a small fee to an online site, and each day you "stand" in these cyber space lines, you get a point to further your ranking in line.

IE: www.Sollentunahem.se (FREE line to stand in! yay!)
This is a nice neighborhood 15 minutes up the train line from Stockholm Central station. Good enough priced housing...not to far from the city...On this website, I get to pick apartments in this neighborhood that fit my needs. I also get to see what place in line I stand. I currently have 38 points.

Person #1? 3,428 points. What a freaking asshole.

You basically have to be in these lines for THREE years to even knick the top ten. And that is RENTING!

Now let's move on to the 2nd hand contract. This is basically sub-leasing from those assholes with the 3,428 points of pure loserness. Here you go on sites like www.Blocket.se, and read their greedy little ads.

IE: Once I read a guy was renting his place for 6,500 SEK (or $950 USD), for 6 months. But you had to agree to let him crash there a couple Saturdays a month after he hits the bars. WHAT? Do I have to make him waffles in the morning out of my new Belgian Waffle maker and let him critique my DVD collection too?

Another man was renting his one bedroom apartment for 6000 SEK (or $871 USD)....but only to Russians. Need I say more?

I'm just waiting for someone to say "Renters wanted: Only persons with A positive blood type need apply." Then I'll straight up give UP!

But for those of you just reading this to get info on where the hell to begin:
Look at a map and the surrounding suburbs of Stockholm. Sometimes it's easier to get a flat farther away from the city...

Blocket.se (free site to browse and e-mail, similar to GumTree and Craigslist
Sollentunahem.se (Free, but you need a personnumber from the tax office)
Bostaddirekt.com (expensive, and you can only be browsing for 45 days.)
Thelocal.se (a website for English speakers...they also have job listings and expat forums)

To be honest, other than these sites, you have to pick a neighborhood and search for their waiting line website.

Just know in Sweden:

Property managers do not exist. There is only a middle man.
Do not take a 2nd hand contract without actually signing anything.
Be persistent. Once someone puts an ad up, call the moment you see it, or someone else more persistent than you will get it.

Good luck!

To be continued...

..I Can Feel Your Heartbeat..

2011-11-13T03:21:00.006-08:00

Mykonos, the place I have called my home away from home since 2008, has a heartbeat.

I hear it whistle through the brown, treeless hills. The sea pulses through the rocks as it makes its way to crash on the empty beach, longing for summer. I feel it in the electricity that explodes from my fingertips as I drag them across the cold, white cement that hugs the buildings in town.

The beat drums in my soul when I walk through the empty, narrow, cobblestone pathways. Each alleyway harbouring a shadow, a ghost of my past calling out to me to remember the memories we have. It is like I am an immortal that watches loved ones vanish and I stay, only to be left with a smile of our adventures.

It's dark now. Quiet. I look up beyond the flat tops of the buildings and every time I see Rembrandt's Starry Night gazing back at me.
I will never forget the characters that make up the story of my island. We are the red cell army that marches through the veins of Mykonos. It doesn't matter where we come from, what we have done in our lives or where we are going. The beat calls for us every summer and every winter we dance to the laughter, the memories, to the heartbeat of Mykonos, until someday we meet again.

Leonidas, I don't think we're in Sparta anymore!

2011-11-02T08:22:00.009-07:00

In between Greece's morning coffee and early afternoon coffee and just before their middle-afternoon glass of Ouzo, the people of Greece find time to protest. Of course, this would never be in the summer months of the year, when Greece focus's on their main purpose...tourism.

You see, summers in Greece are full of excitement. Everyone has to be the perfect golden shade to flaunt around in their fake-Gucci swim suits (that you buy off the African immigrants on the beach), drink the best Mojito (going for $14 American dollars a pop), and do absolutely nothing but drink and smoke and talk about the old days and how they can make money. Famous DJs put a high priority on making their way to play at Mykonos clubs like Paradise or Cavo Paradiso, and of course, everyone works in the summer months 8-16 hours a day. Then in the winter...everyone jumps on unemployment and hardly works at all. This is when time stops and everyone remembers...there is a problem in this country.

I may just be a visitor living in this land, but I have noticed a few things that are very frustrating. I may be wrong and maybe it's because I grew up American.

Everyone thinks they can get away with things by sneaking a bribe. Can't pass your driving test? Here's a couple hundred to the bitter teacher. Can't get your university degree after 7 years because the professor doesn't need a passing quota? Here's a couple thousand so I can be passed. Get pulled over because you thought you were in England after a bottle of whiskey? Tell the police man to shove it and hand him a 50. Your mother having a really important operation? Why not slip the anesthesiologist a couple hundred or thousand so he takes extra good care of her for you...

Taxes are a guideline. You know...building restrictions are put on a person's property so they don't build more than they are allowed...or than what is legal. To Greeks, that's the stupidest idea ever! If they have so much land...why not build onto their house and make another seperate house so they can rent it out to someone without making them sign a lease!...or better yet..build a couple extra rooms and make a small hotel..but still pay taxes for their original building they built! How about when you fill out your occupation at tax time, but lie about how much you make..so you don't have to pay more taxes on your income! Or how about not giving every person who buys something from your store, or bar a reciept after they pay...so you can pretend like that money you got never happened!

Nobody knows their government job. You know how everyone says, "you have to know someone to get a job these days.." Well, Greece is way ahead of us on that note. If there is the Head Chief of Economic Trade within Internal Associations of the Blind position available, some guy in the company, named Kosta, has a brother named Dimitri who's dog once had a play date with a dog who was owned by a Georgos who really needs a job.

Papers, papers, papers...anyone heard of keeping files on computers and keeping in contact with other companies who might also need the same papers in order for something to get done? Stop losing the papers and then saying you never had them in the first place!

"I'll do it tomorrow," or the next day...or next month...wait..what am I supposed to do again? Oh yea...don't worry, I'll do it tomorrow. Honestly now, I don't want to wait until you finish you morning cup of whiskey for you to come over and do your job. Aren't I the one paying YOU?

Laws are just there to be broken. Really now, stop passing on the right...stop driving drunk...stop bribing people...stop being lazy government workers, start paying correct taxes...and do things when they are meant to be done.

Don't get me wrong, Greece is a beautiful country, but they are full of bad habits. If your great, great grandparents taught your grandparents to cheat the government and they taught your parents to bribe people and your parents taught you that time stands still when you want it to...then it is going to be hard to make people change their ways.

That is going to be the difficult problem in Greece. Change. It is such an old civilization and they are full of so much pride for their history, that they think everyone else should change and do things for them (ie: give them 138 Billion dollars to get them out of debt.) But if Greece does not change their bad habits, they will just be playing everyone for a fool as the politicians pocket the money and lower the people's salaries and social security to almost unlivable.

But hey, when in Greece, do like the Greeks do...sit back and enjoy your coffee and let someone else do the dirty work when you don't have time!

Immi-GREAT-tion

2011-10-23T06:13:00.000-07:00

Greece is known as a beautiful destination for honeymooners, photographers and old people who's life goal was to see the Acropolis.

But for immigrants, it's the fountain of youth for a new beginning. Athens, the capitol city in Greece, is littered with pan-handlers and Africans that somehow got an amazing deal from Prada to sell the designer bags for under $20...or two for $20, depending on your bargaining skills.

Escaping, as I'd like to dramatically call my adventure, to Greece has been a whirlwind of Rainbows and unicorns with some sticks and stones thrown in there...but three and a half years later, I'm thirsty for more.

This recession has made it very difficult on my generation in means of finding work and not worrying about expenses. Old people won't give it up and retire, and businesses are expecting 3 years experience as a project manager + 4 years experience in sales + 10 years experience in social media marketing (which has not even been AROUND 10 years!). Let's face it...no one gets a chance like our folks did. So we have to make our own experience.

That's why I am immigrating to Sweden...and I am damn excited about a new country, a new culture and a new jump start to life. I know it sounds random and even scary, but me acquiring a work visa for Sweden might just be the second best things that's happened to me.

What's the first? That's another story!

Family Globalization

2011-08-14T10:12:00.000-07:00

The saying goes as follows: "Home is where the heart is."

Usually home is where you grew up, your family resides or just where your "roots" are. My family, however, is global.

My parents are retired teachers reaping the benefits of senior citizen discounts and holding down the fort in rainy old Seattle, Washington USA.

My brother, Scott (Age 32), moved to Japan four years ago to be an English teacher and is now engaged to a cute, bubbly Japanese woman that I have yet to meet...(update: I have now met her, planned and followed through with their American wedding, and will soon be an aunt to a baby girl!)

And I, the nomadic baby of the family, ran away to a small island in Greece and have spent the last three years serving flaming bottles of Moet Chandon to annoying Italians.

As I grow older, my need for family grows and grows...my bonds become stronger with my parents, and my brother and I talk more often about the silly cultural differences we encounter in our countries of choice.

To tell the truth, I my family has gone trough some difficult times in the past...some have left our hearts looking for voids to fill, others have brought us together through laughter and pure entertainment.

I have to admit, I wouldn't give up my global family for anything.

Sweden, I'm Legally Yours!

2011-06-12T08:30:00.000-07:00

If anyone read my last posting, locate just below this one, you would know that I had been denied a work/residence permit from Sweden. This was devastating for me and my boyfriend, because we thought this was our true option of staying together LEGALLY in the same country. To work...to live...to have a normal life and let our relationship progress naturally.

But I am stubborn. And I hand-wrote an appeal to the Swedish Embassy, challenging their decision, which was merely based off Michael and I not moving "soon enough." Obviously the month of July did not mean immediate for me to move my whole WORLD from SEATTLE.

So I came to Mykonos, like I normally do to work and have summer of fun and play with Michael and everyone...and one night I got an email on my iPod: "your residence and work visa has been approved." I stopped in my tracks and ran through the winding streets of Mykonos...up the stairs of the bar and jumped on Michael and whispered "we got it!!! We got the visa!"

Infact, I had to physically go GET the visa the next day because the sticker in the passport expired and a new law took place the next day. After closing work at 6am, I jumped on a 25 minute plane ride into Athens at 10am so I could be at the embassy before it closed at 1:30pm! ( you following the disaster of this time line?)

But when the woman handed me back my passport with that sticker and my picture...the feeling of accomplishment and victory overwhelmed me. Finally, I can stay in Europe. Finally, Michael and I can live somewhere normal and have jobs we like! Finally, I can get a kitten!

I jumped back on a 5pm ferry to be in Mykonos by 11pm and work at midnight.

With all the strength in the world, the things you want may come slowly, but eventually they come!

We are planning to move January!

.Access Denied.

2011-03-30T14:00:00.003-07:00

Devastation. That is the world that comes to mind.

This past Monday, Michael and I received a letter from the Swedish Migration Board denying my residence permit to Sweden. Their decision was based on the fact that Michael left Sweden in 1990, at the age of 6, and our plans of moving back this "summer," was not immediate enough.

However, we are allowed to appeal.

In 3 weeks time, we must draft and send a hand written letter challenging their decision. So far, this is my letter:

Embassy of Sweden,

Based on your decision to deny my application case number, your reason of your decision states the following:

“You stated that you got to know Michail in 2008. You were on vacation in Mykonos and Michail worked there. You have since then seen each other regularly. Your intentions are to move to Sweden sometime in late summer or late fall of 2011.

The extract from the Swedish population records, turned in with your application, shows that Michail emigrated April 2, 1990.

The Migration Board does not consider your intended move date as being in the near future. The Board can therefore not grant you residency pursuant to the Aliens Act Ch. 5, sec 3, para. 1.

Your application has therefore been denied.”

The motive behind Michail and I deciding to submit a date of summer/fall, is because on the Embassy of Sweden website, under “Residence based on personal connection,” the information states the application process is an estimated time of 6-8 months. In our defense of the application denial, our move time to Sweden of summer/fall, was based on the 6-8 month information given. It was to our understanding that we could not plan to move until after the decision from the Migration Board had been made. Originally, Michail and I planned to move to Sweden May of 2011, but we pushed our move date to the latest we could possible based on the 6-8 estimated processing time for the visa.

However, our plans to move to Sweden have always been immediately, we just assumed immediately had to be after we received our co-habitation visa.

Knowing this information, our appeal concludes that we plan to move immediately to Sweden May of 2011.

This is obviously a rough draft, but you can see the obvious reason why we are upset at their decision. It is so heartbreaking because I cannot continue my lifestyle in Greece forever, and moving back and forth is getting very expensive and I seriously just want a place and life to call my own. I want to be successful and for others to view me that way. My success cannot be found in America, because Michael cannot follow, and it won't be in Greece since no one takes attractive women seriously in business. So our only option was Sweden. If we must, we will re-apply next winter and Michael will have to move to Sweden to set things up.

Searching for Sweden

2011-02-11T01:37:00.007-08:00

The winter months are long over as we quickly leave any trace of 2010 behind. With the early months of 2011 already in progress, my life is about to drastically change.

I am moving, once again, to another country: SWEDEN.

Why may you ask? Because I am in an international relationship with a Greek-Swedish, wonderful man. If you have not read about him, try you luck with this blog entitled "Love Is Lust But When Does Lust Become Love?"

Also, because I am an American citizen, it is very difficult to get a proper working visa anywhere else in the whole wide world. That's right, if you are an American with no duel passport, no job sponsorship then you have no hope of every moving to another country legally. Trust me. I've tried.

If you have visited my blog before, you know I have had battles with the Schengen Zone and living in Greece for nearly 3 years!

But how can you move to Sweden if you said Americans can't move anywhere else? Because Sweden, has a co-habitation visa!! Lucky me that Sweden is so hard-assed that everyone is to stubborn to officially get married. So to make things fair, they have a co-habitation visa which allows anyone from any country to come reside and work in Sweden if they are in a legit and established relationship with a Swedish citizen!

Bingo. That's my man! I had to go through a lot of paperwork and had documents sent from Sweden to prove Michael is a citizen. I met with the Swedish consulate in Seattle and went over all my paperwork...and we sent it! The only downfall is the application process can take anywhere from 6-8 months...and technically, I am leaving for Greece in 3 months! But if approved, I can pick up my visa at any Swedish Embassy in the world! So, I will try to keep everyone updated on this process!

I Love you Mr. Olive

2010-11-30T09:13:00.006-08:00

Give me an olive when I was five, I would spit it out.
Give me an olive when I was 10, I would put them on my fingers, play, then throw them out.
Give me an olive when I was 18, i would look at you like "why didn't you learn the first times?"
Give me an olive when I'm 25...I will eat it and take another.

It has taken me quite a while to realize my love for olives, and it took Greece and a few episodes of Sex and the City to change my mind.

Not just any olive is my fancy. Greek, or Kalamata olives are nice in Greek salads. Black olives are nice (still) to put on your fingers and pretend they are booties. The king olive is the green ones, often found in martinis. Whenever I see a bar scene in a movie, the classy woman is always drinking a dry martini, and cleverly takes the toothpick with olive and munches on it.

I tried this, some years ago, and almost threw up when I realized how salty the olive was. I hated them. But a few episodes of Sex and the City and I was ready to try the dry martini and chomp on that green olive, just like Samantha. And I loved it!

Olives has many benefits:

Help reduce the severity of asthma, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis
Help prevent heart disease
Help prevent colon cancer
Helps lubricate your joints!

Why do you think olive oil is so good for you?
So now, whenever I want to feel classy, I pour a glass of wine and put my juicy, green olives on little toothpicks and enjoy!

Chris Columbus was an A-Hole

2010-11-25T03:04:00.010-08:00

This being my third year away from home during the Thanksgiving period, I find myself realizing how much America has for this holiday that other countries just don't give a damn.

In 2008, I was living in Dublin, Ireland. My room mate was strictly Irish and no idea about Thanksgiving and probably honestly thought it was a stupid holiday since Chris Columbus (Link Rated R due to language) was an a-hole. Never the less, I ran around Graffton Street, Dame Street and all the little streets in between until I found a little market with beautiful dutch apple pies on display. That was my Irish Thanksgiving. The whole night, I ate the Dutch Apple Pie.

In 2009, I was living in Mykonos, Greece with my current boyfriend. Of course, Greece does not celebrate our day of thanks either, because Greeks are only thankful they can remind everyone that THEY are the oldest civilization...and because Chris Columbus was an a-hole. However, I did manage to find a chicken and look up a recipe for mashed potatoes. Keep in mind, I had never cooked or been anywhere near the kitchen during Thanksgiving. I was the one off in the corner sneaking the sparkling apple cider and playing video games.

Now in 2010, I am once again in Mykonos, Greece. I am going more all out this time...as in decorating the table with pinecones I found in the yard and paper towel turkeys. Here are the things I couldn't find to make my idea turkey day.

Turkey: Rare in Greece, but I found one that weighed 5 lbs and cost 30 EURO. So I went with the chicken instead. the turkey had been frozen since last year anyway..
Cornbread: To make stuffing...so I have to use old bread from the day before...
Black Olives: If they're not Greek, they're not sold! They have bitter Kalamata olives! But those only go in greek salads in my opinion...
Sparkling Apple Cider: It's ok, I'll go with the wine anyway by age 25...
Pumpkin or apple-spice scented candle: Nope, just orange, strawberry, vanilla flavors here. The cinnamon doesn't count because it smells like old sand of something. Boring.
Rolls: Everyone loves fluffy, melt in your mouth dinner rolls. I get fresh baked bread from the bakery here...but it doesn't replace those buttery rolls.
Gravy: I know you can make it from the neck of the turkey (which is repulsive by the way) but for other options, you have to make it from flour and boullion cubes. Not. the. same.
Canned pumpkin: Forget the pumkin pie, I am a master at the Dutch Apple pie now!

This Thanksgiving, I am thankful for my relationship to still be strong and that I have a nice roof over my head. The sea sits between the valley hills in the distance and I can hear newborn sheep baa-ing in the green fields below. The sun is radient today, which I am very thankful for since I hear Seattle weather is cold, snowy with a sparkle of ice.

Wherever you are in the world, I hope you treat this day with whoever you are with better than Chris Columbus treated the Indians!

Angry Goat!

2010-11-22T13:29:00.000-08:00

Catching 22

2010-11-18T03:40:00.006-08:00

I have never understood the phrase "Catch 22," and where it came from...at least until Wikipedia.com came into my life.

Catch-22 means a no-win situation, which is sometimes what people ironically describe my Wiki-website of choice. Apparently, the phrase came from a military novel by Joseph Heller.

Well, I am happy someone put a name to this no-win situation, because I have beef to pick with Catch 22.
Situation A Folks, we live in a recession. As you are reading this, the United State's unemployment rate is hovering just below 10%, and I believe most of this 10% to be college graduates with "not enough experience to get a job." If any job employers are reading this...I want to know what that is suppost to mean. For those of us who paid the 60 g's or more to attend a university, and learn how to study economics while being peer pressured into doing a 10-second keg stand...we are often devestated when we graduate and employers say "Our company decided to go with a more experienced candidate." What about my degree? My internships? My planting-trees-instead-of-getting-paid community service? Listen employers: We need a chance. In order for us to GET experience, someone needs to GIVE us experience.

Situation B If situation A relates to you, then you have probably considered this route; "If American companies won't give me experience, I'm going overseas!" That is exactly what I did. Even though I did some freelance work in my travels, which you can read about all over this blog, I was always running around trying to catch 22.

In order to legally work overseas, you must somehow get your hands on a work visa. This of course if you are not having duel-citizenship with any country you are looking to relocate in. I am saying that companies who are willing to hire you already want you to have a work visa. HOWEVER, the government always says you must have a WORK VISA to apply for WORK in their country! So they are saying, in order to apply for a company, I need to have a work visa, but in order to have the government issue me a work visa, I must already have an offer from the company.

Has anyone else found any discoveries to this situation? Or will Catch-22 never be caught?

Source:
Unemployment Rate: {www.tradingeconomics.com/Economics/Unemployment-Rate.aspx?Symbol=USD}

Seasonal Depression

2010-11-10T07:39:00.008-08:00

Coming from Seattle, I grew up hearing about seasonal depression as soon as school hits, work begins, August stops and summer ends.

Living in Greece unconsequently since 2008, spending 7 or more month at a time in Mykonos, Greece, I have been cured of seasonal depression! Sure, on my little island of 11,000 people lacks 10-screen movie theatrea, two (or one for that matter) story shopping malls, a plethera of bars or restaraunts. However, I have the sea and a view that can give all of those materialistic things a run for their money.

Here are some of the pictures I have taken since the tourist season
stopped.

Eyebrow Raising Tag-Lines

2010-10-30T11:47:00.003-07:00

Movies have become one of global societies favorite past times. There is nothing better than renting your film genre of choice, ordering a savvory, pipeing hot pizza delivered to your door, and snuggling up with your honey in your pajamas.

No matter how funny, politically empowering or nail-biting-ly thrilling your film may be, the "tag line" accustomed to your film may leave you chuckling and doubting the intellectual intellegence of film writers everywhere.

Here are a few tag lines I couldn't help but crack a smile for...
"Two agents. One city. No merci." From Paris With Love
"Find out who you are...and do it on purpose." A Walk to Remember
"It's closer than you think!" Armageddon
"What happened to Emily?" The Exorcism of Emily Rose
"Sit. Stay. Play dad!"Old Dogs
"There are two sides to the American dream" American Gangster
"Who knew it was so much fun to be a hooker?" Pretty Woman
"Revenge is a meal best served cold." Man On Fire
"Based on a true story...you think we could make this all up?"Charlie Wilson's War
"Love with the safety off" The Mexican
"Real spies, only smaller.." Spy Kids

Wow. Makes me think some of these classic are excelling in the cheese department.
If you find anymore to add, please comment below!

Globalizing Love

2010-10-29T03:27:00.015-07:00

L-O-V-E is the word the infamous Frank Sinatra sang when describing his passionate feelings for his soulmate. True love is not easy to find, but when a person finds their love, a courtship begins. A simple date, then a kiss, intimacy, a possible move to live together, and hopefully marriage. This is how it should go. Sinatra nailed it on the head for international relationships when he said "love is more than just a game for two." International relationships everywhere are fighting for the chance to play the "game" legally or not, in order to be together.

In 1930, the Oxford English Dictionary printed a word that would change how the world viewed each other; Globalization. When a country spreads an idea throughout the world, that is considered Globalization. We globalize economically, technologically, socioculturally, politically, through languages and pop culture. However, the one thing we do not spread through Globalization is love.

To look at the situation in a metaphorical way, the international couple are playing a re-run of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Except, European country A are the Montegues and non-European country B are the Capulets. Each country has their immigration and touristic laws set in order to secure their country's economy. However, Person from European Country A loves person from non-European Country B, but because of length-of-stay restrictions, residential/working/touristic visa restrictions, person A and person B are forced to bend the rules and dodge all these restrictions countries put on immigration.

In Europe, there is a special area called The Schengen Zone. This zone consists 25 European countries. Although each country is their own, they run borderless, making travelling without showing or receiving an entry/exit stamp more suitable for travellers. Unless researched, the typical traveller has no idea of the horrible reality of this borderless zones. By the law of the Schengen Agreement of 1985, a traveller can stay in all these countries combined for 90 days (3 months) in an 180 day (6 month) period. This means forget your 7-month spiritual conquest around Europe and that "special someone" you met in Greece, because by law, you can not "border hop" to renew your European stamp. This is the law. This is the way it is.

The question of the century is, if people are internationally and romantically linked, what is the solution? If the couple is not ready for marriage, and there is no option for residential or working visas in either country, then they are forced to bend the rules. Our great, great grandparents did it, our great uncles and even our own international parents might have gone against the code for love.

The point is, who is to tell human beings that they must marry within their own country or culture? We cannot choose who to fall in love with. If an international couple is legit, there should be easier options for love. Besides, if Sinatra's words,"two in love can make it," then it is worth a shot, legal or not.

Sources: "The Schengen area and cooperation," www.europa.eu" http://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/justice_freedom_security/free_movement_of_persons_asylum_immigration/l33020_en.htm

The Art of Everything

2010-10-18T10:27:00.004-07:00

In the art of everything, we sing, we dance, laugh and cry, and hope that one day we can finally see life the way it was meant to see us.

This is the first day that I opened my eyes and saw the world for what it was. Everything and nothing. But eventually, you must choose. You are either fighting for everything or nothing. In these experiences, we have all fought for something. With some, it was finding the freedom and beauty in the places and people they thought they never would. But we went out and did it. We discovered something inside us that we never thought we had. And to me, that is worth everything.

So what I what was I looking or running from? I was never running from anything, I am running to something. I dream a dream that cannot be...I had a dream my life would be something...but life won't kill the dream in me.

Everything and nothing. Isn't that what life comes down to? All our lives what are we running from? What are we trying to find? We chase our angels and hunt down our demons and in the end are never fulfilled. I say the fact that there is something out there that can give us hope that we will make our hearts true. True to the fact we know who we are.

Like an adventure, we seek the treasure that the world gives to us; the piece of mind that someday, somehow we will be content with the life path we have choose. To be treated not as the uneducated but as the strength that we can prevail beyond the stereotype and understand that destiny has more ability and importance than we give. it. Because in the end, it's the fact that we have conquered something that is completly ours. We are all searching for something within ourselves, but there are very few of us out there that have the power to hunt, discover and claim that "thing" for ourselves.
Lindsey LaMont "You. Me. And Everyone In Between." 2008

Blogging Is Not Just For Babies.

2010-10-13T04:04:00.006-07:00

Have you ever noticed that cyber space is slowly being eaten up by bloggers blogging about nothing but their newborn bundle of baby, rambuntious 3-year olds or how perfect their hubby is.

Sorry Steward family of 5, we don't want to hear about how Jennifer (age 3) peed her bed and how cute she looked in her pee-stained clothes.

Blog, or rather web-log, has only been around since 1997, believe it or not. And this fine service called Blogger, in which you are reading now, is one of the earliest free blogging products out there.

Blogging is a freedom, some people might say. A way to write your inner most feelings about the world around you, politics, pop culture, hobbies, and yes, even little Jennifer peeing her bed.

For some reason, human beings have a desire to know what others think even though they pretend they do not. If bloggers really did not care what others think, or want people's opinion, there would not be blogging. Personal information or thoughts would be kept lock and key in a diary behind the book case, only to be brought out when needed.

So, baby blogging families everywhere, just because I do not enjoy reading about your perfect American Dream family, blogging makes you entitled to share to the world about your past, present and future.

Dream Job

2010-10-13T03:26:00.003-07:00

Everyone has a so called "dream job" that they see themselves conquering life with. I think the typical job people picture is something in a beautiful environment where you are respected by your co-workers and have little responsibility in order to earn a sufficient amount of money.

Typical.

My dream job, however, is chaotic. A crazy whirlwind of traveling with deadlines and pressure put on me to create the best blog, newspaper/magazine article or tourism hot spot review. I want to be in charge of being sent off to foreign lands once...twice a month and review touristic destinations, analyze them and send reports back to company "X." Oh, and get paid well enough to be comfortable. Is this idea of mine a job? Or even a possibility?

Ladies and gentlemen of cyber space, I want to walk the world. But I am worn out of doing it with everyone nagging at me to get a real job. I understand I cannot run off the Greece anytime I want and eventually, I will become 30 and wake up without all the things I eventually desire. If anyone out there reads this and can put me in contact with a company or someone who can point me in the right direction...then I will be at your mercy.

Please help me and have someone contact me. I will send full reseme, cover letter and a camel made out of gold if they desire.
Also, share this blog with as many people as you can, there are even new buttons to share on facebook!

No Speaka Italiano.

2010-08-25T08:24:00.008-07:00

Working in Skandinavian Bar on Mykonos has been a rollar coaster ride this summer. With the recession wiping out the world's bank accounts and the prides of potential tourists, tourism has taken a fall...or a plummet.
Greece thrives on tourism. It is where history was born and olive oil sells faster than iPods. However, on my little island in the Cyclades, the freaks are coming out, and when I say freaks, I mean arrogant, primal, uneducated Italians with one thing on their brain: Getting my telephono number.

So I am taking it apon myself to write Italy a letter with my concerns of their people.

Dear Italians Everywhere,
I work in this bar you are standing in. I am wearing a sexy dress because I have to. I am not looking at you staring at me for a reason, even though you are standing 2 feet away from me. I walked through the dancefloor holding my blonde hair in my hand so you won't pull it, and covering my ass with my hand so you won't touch it. But...you do anyway. Why is it when you go for a cheap shot and smack my ass when I am not looking, you turn away and pretend as though you had nothing to do with the disrespectful act? Or what about when I catch you doing it and scream at you, you become offended that I am calling you out.

Three things you should know, Italiano.

I won't tell you where I'm from.
I won't give you my name.
And I absolutly will not give you my telephone number...even if I did, you wouldn't understand the English numbers, because none of you speak English.

The reason I don't understand Italian is because I am American, from a place called Seattle...yes, where the Super Sonics and Shawn Kemp used to live. Brava. Italy is approximetly 5,670 miles...9,124 kilometers..or nove-mila, cento-ventiquattro away from Seattle, Washington. Capice?

So please, for me and all woman in this bar who quite possibly think you dress gay anyway, take your femine eyebrows, speedos, high-pitched voices, non-tipping, groping hands, and uneventful conversations back to Italy where you belong.

Thanks.

PS- I doubt you understand this anyway. Because you don't speak English.

Pipe Bombs and Frappes

2010-06-28T10:54:00.001-07:00

Greece has been a whirlwind this time around!

I landed in the land of the gods on March 26, after a circus of flights across Europe, and came straight to the Greek islands via ferry boat. The months of March and April were quiet and not warm enough to beach it up. However, after a quick trip to Athens for my American friend's birthday, I was content with filling my nights with back to back American films on the local t.v station.

We have officially opened the Skandinavian Bar and Disco, where I have been working the past three summers! Luckily for me, the island is filled with eager and adventurous Americans and Canadians! I have met a few couples from Seattle, and one from Woodinville! Vancouver, BC is representing itself very well here as well! Small world...

As for the chaos in Athens that you all might have heard about, it has been very sad for the Greek economy and the people as well. Three people suffocated to death in a bank after a rioter threw in a pipe bomb. However, it is not all of Athens that is in turmoil, just a small district near one of the government buildings. Despite what American media is telling you, no one is getting shot and its not dangerous to be in Greece. Yes, the citizens are angry at the government and are expressing their freedom of speech a little to harsh...but I am perfectly fine on Mykonos drinking my iced coffees and soaking up the sun.

I hope the weather is becoming enjoyable wherever you are in the country or world, and if anyone is thinking of a vacation this summer, please come visit me in Greece! This may be your last opportunity!

You Son of a Beach!

2010-05-19T07:15:00.001-07:00

I cannot believe it is almost June! It seems like just yesterday I was covered head to toe in jeans, thick jacket, scarf and Ugg boots in Seattle. Now the sun has come out to play and I've swapped my Seattle spring clothes for Mykonos mayhem flip flops, shorts, tank tops and..well, let's face it, it is only April so I still wear my Uggs.

All around me the harsh sounds of Greek language are rapidly turning to soft laughter and English! The Americans and Australians are quickly making their way down to Greece to enjoy the beginnings of the tourist season!

Half of me is excited to get the ball rolling here on the island, but the other is just wishing I could spend my days in peace, enjoying my surrounings. I know that once work starts, the everyday luxuries (watching late night movies, NOT being tired at noon, making/going out to dinner, going to bed at a normal time) will all disappear and my day time will not exist!! But hey, this is my third summer and if I did nit love it more than I hated it, I would not be here!

The picture above is of my friend's hotel. If you are planning on coming, stay there! Bellissimo Mykonos

Skandilicious Mykonos Begins!

2010-05-08T11:11:00.000-07:00

Tonight we officially open Skandinavian Bars and Disco!!

Every year, thousands of people flock to the glitz and glamour that is all off Mykonos.

Skandinavian bar is one of four big clubs on the island, and the most famous tourist bar as well as for cheap drinks (ranging from 7-12€). We specialize in wacky shot and drink names like "kinky witch," "backwards cowgirl," and "mind eraser." I do not recommend the last one for the children...

I am very excited to get super glammed and burn my feet off in the disco, as well as pop a few champagne corks!

And of course, work next to the love of my life where we first met!

Let The Sun Shine In

2010-05-04T04:53:00.000-07:00

Sunny days are upon us here on the beautiful Greek island of Mykonos. I have finally had to take out my aloe Vera and sooth my sun happy skin before bed time.

The most popular beach on Mykonos is called Paradise Beach, for obvious reasons. In a protected inlet, surrounded by barren rock cliff sides, lies a coarse sand beach. The multiple shades of blue sprinkle the waters and add a tropical exotic feel to Paradise.

Youth from all over the globe travel to this beach that is infamous for their afternoon beach parties. Spraying of €100 bottles of champagne and the consumption of way to much alcohol mixed with half naked tourists makes Paradise Beach the only place to be in the summer!

One Month and Counting

2010-04-24T10:25:00.001-07:00

So what have I been up too? As of now, I am making fresh meatballs and unforchunatly and awesomely watching UK legand Bear Grylls tear a zebra carcus open with his teeth. Glad I have meatballs...

Life on the island has been quiet and peaceful. Cruise ships of Americans trickle in and have kept me laughing at some of the silly questions I have been over hearing.
"So..like..do you have regulars here?"
Ι heard a girl ask the Albanian posing as a Greek at the local souvlaki shop. He gave her a slimy hug and giggled a high pitched laugh. Girl, it's not Cheers nor is it the local Dunkin Donuts...no regulars come to a dirty souvlaki bar unless the have to.

The season is about to start picking up, and due to the Icelandic volcano that decided to reap havoc on Europe...no people have made it down to Greece in the past week. Which has been a blessing to me, but bad business for store owners.

Γεια σας!

Greekness Comes in All Flavors

2010-04-19T05:40:00.000-07:00

It is hard being a blonde haired blue eyed woman on a Greek island. Straight up.

Not because I look drastically different from the brown hair and dark eyes, but how the youth go about treating me.

To tourists that come to the island, and hear the "hello my sexy," or "so very beautiful," may be quite flattering. However, when a woman hears those comments and a handful of crude ones, it becomes annoying and almost disrespectful.

Why can I not live my day here without awkward remarks and propositions from dirty men? And why do they even think those comments work?

Italians are the worst with comments, but at least their comments are mostly innocent. It's the compulsive touching and grabbing and then denying they touched you part that is to much. Yes, they will obviously grab you somewhere then when you show you didn't like it, they will act like YOU are crazy for thinking THEY touched you!

I am always so impressed by Italian or Greek women because thy completly ignore the comments, no matter what is being said. Me being American, I was conditioned not to tolerate offensive comments. So instead of ignoring the remarks, I yell back just as horrible comments. But it works the opposite!! They LIKE that they got a reaction out of you!

It's like having an annoying big brother all over again!

Mykonos Mornings

2010-04-16T09:28:00.000-07:00

This entry is a bit late, but I thought I'd post it anyway!

I hardly ever see 8:00 in the morning. However, with my recent and ridiculous travelling, jet lag is blessing me with the music of the A.M!

I have become victorious with my never ending battle of gloomy Seattle weather, and am now sitting in the sunshine and light breeze of Mykonos, Greece. I am at my boyfriend's house on a hill side that overlooks a valley of wildflowers, a resevoir and in the distance, the soft waves of the Aegean.

Since it is the week of Greek Easter, and my birthday, I hear many farm animals mooing, cooing, clucking and baaing. Maybe they are getting ready for the feast this upcoming Sunday!

In Greek culture, a Greek orthodox is suppost to fast for 40 days from all meat, olive oil and anything else that is in a normal diet. But this Sunday, it has been told many Greeks will eat half their body weight in LAMB!!

Safety Over Water

2010-03-28T06:08:00.001-07:00

My parents made a trip to Australia and new Zealand in 2005. Personally, I have never been to the southern hemisphere, but my mother brounght me back a very important gift.

A necklace with a white, bone hook that was known as mauri jewlery. The mauri tribes of new Zealand, like the native Americans of the united states, were the first inhabitants of new Zealand. The hook design represented "safety over water." I have worn that necklace almost religously for the past three years of my travels.

And today, I accidently left it behind at a Best Western hotel in Milan, Italy. It is sitting on the desk, by the tv.

I reached for it around my beck when there was turbulance on my plane heading to Athens, and a sadness cane over me when I felt it was not there.

Now I just need to plan a trip to New Zealand to find a new one.

Prepare for take off

2010-03-24T15:13:00.000-07:00

I am currently sitting in the Sea-tac airport waiting to board my gate to Vancouver canada. My good bye to my parents was emotional 6 on a scale from 1-10. But I am a 25 year old adult that is making traveling back forth between Europe her mid-20's life. Although i do not agree it is the best type of lifestyle, it is one that fits me like a glove.

It's always hard to leave your home, friends and family. Yet with all the adventure ahead of me, I cannot be to sad that I am being a jet setter. I would be more upset if I was not able the jump on a plane every once in awhile and live by the seat of my pants.

I am listening to my favorite Greek music on my iPod touch as I type this, and I have the most beautiful thoughts of he sun shining of the white washed buildings of Mykonos. With the old fishermen yelling "ELAAAA!" which means "come" to the seaguls who await the fish innerds.

And of course who could forget the Aegean sea, so salty, refreshing, and completly againt my fear of the sea! But it's nice to look at!

Stars and Tabby Cats

2010-03-23T23:24:00.003-07:00

The wind blew hard, lashing my blonde hair around my face. I was in my usual spot under the Mykonian windmills. The sea pounded against the shore, exhausted and in a never ending battle with the wind. The stars above shown like white embers at the end of a fire.

My thoughts of old friends, goals, love, trust, and life filled my head. This was my thinking place where I was alone and felt so put together.

I felt something graze my back. An old tabby cat with one eye missing had nestled against my polar fleece, using me as a sheild, and possibly, a comfort friend. Sometimes I feel like things can get so crazy and I never really know where a person like me can belong. Or where I'll end up. My friends and loves can come and go, but I have always had myself and my back.

But tonight, was just me and the tabby against the world. I lay against his back, and he lay against mine.

Queen of Mykonos

2010-03-21T23:30:00.005-07:00

It is now 2 days until I depart to my home away from home. I have quite the adventure, as I do almost every year when I travel to the homeland of the ancients.

It will take a total of 32 hours to get from one side of the globe (Seattle) to the other (Athens). Of course this is with a few layovers and one unwanted night of slumber in Milan.

According to Australia, I am a superstar. Well...that term obviously to heavy for what it's worth, but the trailers for the movie that I participated in this past fall is hitting the internet kingdom and soon theaters all over Australia, Greece and..probably not America.

"The Kings of Mykonos," or Wog Boy 2, if you are Australian or just want to make the movie sound less than it is. For those of you Americans reading this, Wog Boy is Australia's cult movie version of Kevin Smith's Clerks.

I am excited for this video because A) this is my home. B) The extras in the movie are my family. I can be seen as the blonde at 15 seconds and as I like to say "the camera is literally sitting on my stomach" shot at 22 seconds. The teaser trailer goes a little something like this:

The experience working on the film was very interesting. Many of my friends were still left on the island, therefore we had nothing else to do but participate. Although, after a long, stressful and exhausting summer, it was like another job for all of us. For those of us not from Australia, this movie looked like an utter joke. "What is this shit we are in?" My highly sarcastic friend said with her stuffy English accent.

In the end, it was a very fun experience for all of us. I met some foreign celebs like Nick Giannopolous and Vince Colosimo..but most importantly, I met my d hero...
HERCULES! I played one of Kevin Sorbo's 5 girlfriends, and it was so exciting because well...I was the only one that spoke English and I was American.

Although I was not an official movie star, I have many close up scenes that will make my theatre major from Washington State University proud, but I was happy to be apart of something that documents my life and the people I have met over the past three years.
Here is the official full length trailer! I hope it makes you all want to come visit me this time! Yamas!

Written On A Paper Towel

2010-03-19T01:37:00.005-07:00

I found this note crumbled in a crevice in an old backpack I used to use to go backpacking. I often write on odd things like wood, old book pages and most of all, napkins and paper towels. I found this from the beginning of summer 2009.

As I sat in the Skandinavian Bar, the place I dreamed of for so many months, a song echoed off the walls, "Mr. Brightside," by The Killers. I began to have flashbacks of the ghosts of people I have met along my journey this past year.

From a little island in Greece, to Italy, London and onward to Boston, Mass, where I can still remember that snowy night at a crappy bar called Crossroads.

Me, in my fake Uggs I bought in Ireland for 5 pounds, my American roomate from Mykonos, Alison, her [now ex] Australian boyfriend Jacko, her sister Brittany and my other English room mate from Greece, Holly. Just a bunch of kids looking for their acceptance, their place in this world. We all came from different patches of the Earth, and found each other on a rock in the middle of the Aegean Sea.

...and there we were, friends about to part our separate ways, singing "Mr. Brightside," almost in tears and in wonder how we got to where we were and how we would never forget how we met.

Would we ever see each other again? Maybe. Would things change in our lives? Definitely. But no matter what happens, we always have our memories. And that is something that can never fade.

Hallelujah, Hallelujah

2010-03-18T01:31:00.008-07:00

I sit here in my bedroom at the house I grew up in. White Christmas lights softly illuminate the walls and border the British flag I have above my bed. My window faces in front of me, located behind the monitor of my computer. A star-light my boyfriend got for me hangs in the center of the window, guiding my mind and heart to a place of rest every night.

I am playing the song "Hallelujah," with the voice of Jeff Buckley. Many artists have covered this song, but it holds a special place in my heart, and I find it best to tell this story on the night of St. Patty's Day.

I lived in beautiful Dublin from the months of November 2008-January 2009. My room mate was the creator of a hit internet music website called Balcony TV, and we were always having bands come up into our penthouse apartment overlooking Dublin Castle on Dame Street. I worked at a small, trashy, but magnificent little bar/club called The Viperoom. The bar just received its liquor license back, and was determined to create a new reputation and bring back old and new customers.

It was located on Aston Quay {pronounced KEY}. The upstairs was very cozy, with a large mirror littered with red candles on the mantle. A strong, dark wooden bar with spickets for all different kinds of Draft beers lined the back wall. Downstairs was a "club" that sadly, I never saw become very club-like. Despite the recession just getting on a roll, the depression and lack of motivation for many Irishmen, there was one thing that sparkled about The Viperoom...

The performance stage.

It was small, only about the size for a piano, chair and microphone. I remember sitting outside in the freezing air that whips around Dublin like the ghosts of it's past, and hearing the ivory keys of that old, rickety baby Grand begin to play the opening notes of "Hallelujah." The sound that came from the piano and vocalist made people stop in their tracks on the sidewalk that lined the River Liffey just outside our bar. The song lifted a frown that had been placed on the people of Dublin, and filled them with warmth, and I could see an instant change as everyone poured in through the candle lit, intimate bar.

I thought to myself how proud I was for pioneering into this wonderful city and of all the interesting people I had met and helped me along the way. Happy St. Patrick's Day to everyone, and happy one week until I take off to Europe once again.

This is a video of Grafton Street, the main shopping area in Dublin. It was a five minute walk from my apartment. This was around Christmas time, but no matter the holiday, there are always street performers trying to make a coin or a smile.

Smells Like Breeding Frogs

2010-03-01T20:19:00.009-08:00

I love the time of year in the Pacific Northwest when you can start to smell the seasons change. Although I cannot describe the smell entirely, it's light and fresh, earthy and warm at the same time. When I step outside my house that's nestled in a 2 acre patch of land and woods, I can hear a low hum from our old mercury florescent light on our hay loft of the barn that has been coming on at night for 30 years. I can hear the neighbor's horses galloping softly into the night around the pastures. The faint smell of someone smoking a steak and a couple potatoes on their barbie q for a nice supper under a cloudless sky of stars. But what makes me feel the most at home are the millions of frogs chirping in the swamp and wetlands that lines my back yard. The sound of the frogs gives me a sense of home, mixed in with the comforting smell of the Douglas Fir and Evergreen trees that never seem to shed a leaf. Although, the maple trees make up for that perfection.

When I was a child, I always wanted to sneak up on the frogs, possibly even catch one! I would get on my old rubber boots and my father's rain jacket and be so brave i wouldn't even take a flashlight. But those amphibious creatures got the best of me every time. Whenever I would step one foot past the treeline, 100 feet away from the swamp, they would go silent like they were never even there in the first place. Gone in an instance. I'd go back to my room to whatever I was doing, and slowly, I would hear the chirping of the frogs. I always thought I would get them next time. And now, even at age 24, out in my Ugg boots and old snowboarding jacket, those frogs never have forgotten me, or their disappearing act.

I have lived in my house for 23 years of my life, and there is nothing that compares to a Pacific Northwest spring or summer. I have missed it for the past two years, and I will miss it again when I head off in 3 weeks to sunny/windy, no-visible-change-in-season Mykonos.

But my roots go as deep as the Evergreen that grows outside my bedroom window, straight, tall and loyal to where it has always stood.

One Month Until Take-Off

2010-02-24T01:29:00.009-08:00

The day has finally arrived! One month before I jet set back to Europe for another sun filled Greek summer!

Like all summers in Europe, my adventure starts off with a long, ridiculous number of cheap plane rides to countries I don't really have reason to go to! People ask me, "why do you go through London all the time?"

Because it's CHEAP! I don't mean venture out into the great British country side and mingle with the Brits, because that will drill holes in your pockets. England is the magical country that allows you to travel on such crap airlines such as Ryan Air and Easy Jet to destinations for as cheap as a penny (on specific discounts).

I am looking forward to once again throwing my responsibilities out the window and amercing myself in all that is Mykonos and Greece. The soul pounding beats of the famous DJ's, the crisp, alcoholic and icy goodness of pool bar Mojitos, the mouth watering morsels of Greek food, the hypnotic nightlife and the luxurious atmosphere that covers you from the top of your designer sunglassed head to the tip of your spa treated toes.

I will tan darker than before. Drink a shot of ouzo whenever I see fit. Engorge myself with as much Greek salad as I want. And damn it, I will learn those awkward Greek sounds in order to learn the language! And if life turns around and smacks me in the face when I don't expect it, I'll throw my hands in the air and laugh. Because that is what life and experiences, good or bad, are all about.

Just 25

2010-02-19T02:21:00.004-08:00

Since Michael left about one month ago, I have tried to occupy myself with babysitting and working out. I'm actually not be that disappointed that I never found a waitress job. Yes, I would have at least a couple more thousand, but I have personal time!! To me, that is very important because although I am very extroverted, I love my alone time...almost to much!

Plus, I have lost five pounds!

As my days in the U.S of A slowly close to an end, I find myself thinking about what I want to do in life. I think that is the question everyone asks themselves at this age. Yet, I find it so difficult because I am constantly in limbo with what I want to do.

I am 25, in great health and I get the experience of a lifetime to teeter-totter myself from Greece and Seattle. I get to have the best summers of my life spent on the beach, meeting people from all over the world, trying to learn a new language, being in love and having crazy adventures! But that doesn't mean I don't dream about what I am going to eventually do.

Something has to come out of this. But even at 25, three years since I graduated college, I am still confused. I love writing, creating websites, public relations, adventuring and getting people inspired.

So what do I do? Maybe the year 2010 will have something in store for me..

Standing At The Edge of The World

2010-02-13T18:38:00.009-08:00

When you are standing at the end of the world, what will you have to look back and say, "I did that?"

I know I have not been writing for a long time. But that doesn't mean my head isn't ticking or experiencing new things. It has been over 2 and a half months since I got back from my 2nd 8 months European adventure...and one month 10 days before I leave for my 3rd.

So many things have changed since I began this blog. I had a crazy summer of 2008, then I found love and was separated from it through his national military service. I took my adventures through Italy, Spain and dabbled in Ireland for a couple months.

I came home to friends I didn't know anymore. They were the familiarity I longed for, but their unexcepting ways lead me into a semi state of limbo. I got a job at a hotel I didn't care and was extremely overqualified for. I fantasized about my love I left in Greece and what is in store for me when I return. But was it the love of the lifestyle or the love for this man I had barely known? This man haunted my dreams, and sparkled in my future...yet there was an undertone of mystery that surrounded him and this "relationship" we had began. I wrote love letter after love letter giving him my heart and rolling the dice on that this was it, this was the one. But in my mind I was confused, and yet I pretended like I knew.

I returned to Greece for round 2 in early April. Embarrassed by my pale skin and my lack of Greek. The summer of 2009 was an eye opener because I realized how much I had grown inside as a woman and adult. Yes, I was still crazy blonde haired American VIP girl, but something inside me changed. My love for the island turned into a darkness and a path of distress. I separated myself from new comers to the island, probably girls that I needed most. The fights of me and my love skyrocketed with jealousy and stress and how we just wanted a normal life off this island. The summer eventually came to an end, curing the island of the sex, drugs and evil it inhabits during the summers. The sex thriving mouths and bodies of the tainted tourists slowly disappeared and the sin was being washed away by the elders of Mykonos.

The island transformed almost over night from a sick and twisted neverland jungle, into a place of angels and light. The Aegean sea spoke to me once again, loving me and allowing me to dance in the waves. I told it my stories of the summer and asked to teach me forgiveness, for I know not how to forgive the ones that have tortured my naive heart. I hurt from still not understanding where I belong, or if moving here for a love that defied my trust was worth what my life was meant to be. I swam for the first time in her waves, for I am afraid of the depths of the sea. She taught me confidence and gave me strength to fight my fears and follow my heart.

My love came to visit me in the United States. After living together for 9 months, we have been to the rock bottom and to the moon. Through rumors of cheating, to actual cheating, we have prevailed and are healing our wounds that Mykonos constantly supplied with salt.

As such as I try to let Mykonos rest for the winter, the whispers of Greek music echos in my head and creep into my dreams. 'Thelo na se ksanado,' i want to see you again...no matter where I turn the beautiful evil and eye of the storm that is Mykonos churns in my blood and forces me to surrender to its' lure.

+Winter in the Cyclades+

2009-10-26T04:38:00.003-07:00

Winter is apon us here in Mykonos. And I know what you all are thinking...winter doesn't exist in Greece! Well, it does, and fortunately for me it happens to feel like a nice, fresh, cool, sunny/overcast-at-the-drop-of-a-hat, Seattle summer! I understand that I have not been very up to date with updating everyone on the events this summer, so here I go..the past couple months in a nutshell...

July
The weather was warm and the Italians were even hotter! Mykonos is known for it's vast majority of club scenes, vespa driving, beach parties and water sports. It is also known for having half of Italy practically immigrate to Mykonos for 1-2 months out of the summer. So if you "no capito Italiano"....you're screwed, because they don't even know there is another language outside of Italian!

August
There I was, wandering the disco getting ready for my night of taking orders, heavily persuading strangers to buy VIP bottles and tables, trying to communicate in Italian, sign language, Greek and spanish and be charming at the same time, when a bartender from downstairs needs to talk to me.
"What's up?" I ask Kosta. He very quietly, and oddly professionally (since we don't work in the most elegant of bars), says to me:
"Uhhh Lindsey, we have a special guest down stairs, he was in some American singing group called Vansing..."
I think for a moment. Vansing...what the...
"I don't know, his name is like Jance or something..."
"Kosta..Vansing? Jance...I have never heard of..."
"Ok, ok, whatever, be cool though, just come down stairs and talk to him about getting a table.."
Cool, no problem, I think to myself. I meet a lot of famous producers from other countries and even America sometimes, I don't even know who this guy is, but maybe when I see...my thoughts were cut off the moment I hit the bottom of the stairs. Kosta has a big animated smile on his face, trying to introduce me to this blonde man with striking blue/green eyes and a scarf like an Italian.
"Hi Lindsey, I'm Lance.." BASS. BASS. BASS. YOUR LANCE BASS. LANCE BASS FROM NSYNC WHICH I USED TO GO TO YOUR CONCERTS AND HAD PICTURES ON MY WALLS WHEN I WAS 15. YOU WERE A SUPER STAR AND I KNOW YOU'RE SUPER GAY NOW, BUT THAT IS COMPLETLY COOL BECAUSE YOU WERE A TEEN IDOL. (I said this all in my head mind you, I was really chill when I talked to him).

So, he got a table with me and like ten of his friends. He was really cool and I became his best bud during the three hours he and his company were there. He wanted to know about me and Greece and I didn't need to ask much about him because...well...I've read Teen Bop in the past. I was very proud of myself, however, because not once did I even give the impression that I knew he was from Nsync or was famous at all. It was a good night, but I still wish I had my camera for those times he had to many Coronas and ended up dancing shirtless with three guys on the pole. TMZ would be writing me a fat check!

September
The clouds have rolled in, the winds have started to blow harder, and the scarves and Ugg boots now serve a purpose. September has been full of the most horrible part of spending a summer in Mykonos; the goodbyes. Imagine if all the people you have bonded with from all over the world suddenly just left. Will I ever see them again? Most of them, no. But we will always have our memories of the summer of 2009 when we cried from exhaustion, laughed at stupid jokes, and drank wine with each other as the sun set on our little piece of paradise, our little rock where we all found each other in the middle of a large sea.

I have stopped work as of a few days ago. The island has become quiet, the bars are closing their windows, the streets are being washed clean from the sins, romance and bliss of Mykonos. Soon there will be nothing left but a small Greek community where the echos of summer living will slowly fade away into simple winter sounds of the Backgammon dice.

But the sea still crashes on the beaches and the sun still calms my nerves and allows me to remember I am in Paradise. I fill my time now working on an upcoming movie starting Nick Giannopoulos and Kevin Sorbo, playing on the internet and whatever my heard feels to do. The summer may be over, and the friends I have made may be gone, but my happiness and joy still are forever captured by this island and the ones who inhabit it.

Hold On Life Gets Better Than You Know

2009-07-22T08:01:00.006-07:00

I woke up in my apartment with the sunlight shining on my face. The smell of fresh bread and pasta cooking was making it's way in through the crack in my shutter from the restaurant down the alleyway. The room was cozy and a soft breeze tickled my skin. It was house cleaning day. Something rare my family would think, but when you live in a studio apartment, it is nice to clean it and clear the clutter from your space and also your mind. So with the smell of fresh anti-antibacterial cleaning spray that is probably Windex (but since I can't read Greek...and they probably lie about what it is anyway on the bottle..), I opened my shutters and let my morning begin...at 4:30pm.

I have been lucky enough to find a lot of things that I miss from home. Like Maple Syrup and hot wing sauce. You have no idea how much you miss some of those things when you think they are not available. Even Pillsbury and Betty Crocker got a passport and made it over to the super markets here. I also found a super market larger than an AM PM. It says MEGA STORE on the front of it. That is the difference between stores here: Mini, Super and Mega. Genious. No one cares if the name is Top Foods, Albertsons or Walmart. Think Simple America! Mini..Super..and Mega is all you need to get the picture across.

My day continued with me deciding to come here to the internet cafe. I stepped out into my little alley way, now smelling of fresh Garlic bread and cheese, and was almost knocked off my feet by the wind that came whistling down the corridor. It was another Mykonos wind storm. Mykonos is often referred to as "the island of the wind," because of it's location and catching wind from all directions on a compass rose. When I emerged from the tangle of narrow alleyways that border my apartment, the town opened up to the harbor, which is often lined with yachts and cafes. The sky was the most magnificent blue, the birds were singing, tourists were laughing and eating ice cream. The sound of plates clanging and the waves crashing from the wind storm mixed with the soft babble of passersby created an ambiance of brilliant color and life.

Then a wave hit me. No really...a wave hit me. Instead of getting angry because I was soaking wet on half of my body, I started laughing and stood there for a second, hoping it would happen again. I had been walking down a narrow street by the water, and the ocean decided to say hello up close and personal. In order to get to this internet cafe, which my parents might remember called Blu Blu, I have to walk down some steps that are half buried in the sand along the beach. Since it is so windy today, I played a little game of Red Light/Green Light with the sea. When the waves rolled in, I had to time my steps right so I wouldn't get my feet wet in the process of jumping off the cement onto the beach and running up to the road. I was successful.

So here I am, enjoying the view of the Aegean Sea, 2 hours since I woke up, and 3 more hours until I work at the bar. I hope everyone else is enjoying their summers at home and laughing at the little things their day brings them!

Being Independent on Independence Day

2009-07-05T08:22:00.005-07:00

Celebrating an American Holiday in Greece = carrying 6 Flaming bottles of Moet Chandon champagne through a crowd of 300 sweaty, dancing Europeans, then having them opened all at once by seven guys from L.A and screaming "Viva America!"

This morning I woke up at 2pm and opened my box of Special K with Strawberry cereal...and I smelled the box. My mind was flooded by memories of riding in my father's old plum colored Saturn with the windows (manually of course) rolled down. The Seattle summer breeze rolling in through the car as we passed by local AM PMs with high school cheerleaders wanting to wash our car. The skies of Seattle are the most beautiful blue in the summer, and it smells of freshly cut grass and bark for gardens. Then, as I smelled the box of cereal again, I got this image of Costco...the best place to shop for ANYTHING. My dad always wanting to get a Polish hotdog and a churro stick...and me trying to decide if I wanted a generous slice of pizza, dripping with hot cheese, or a hot dog loaded with onion wedges and ketchup.

I miss Seattle summers. Me and my Ford Focus driving on the 520 West into Seattle on my way to Gasworks Park or Golden Gardens for a BBQ with friends. My favorite image is driving on the 520 and right when you are about to hit the bridge, the trees part and you take your first view of Seattle; choppy water on one side of the floating bridge, calm on the other...Mt. Rainier to your left and sailboats for miles. The sun shines on Lake Washington and you could swear it was made of gold sparkles. The air is fresh, the trees are the greenest and there is no other place in the world I would rather be.

Except I am somewhere else. I am in a place that is equally as beautiful but holds a different value and attitude in my mind. The infamous American author L. Frank Baum was correct when he wrote the Wizard of Oz and had Dorothy say "There's no place like home."

In my eyes, home = Seattle = America...and no matter where I am in this world of ours, I will always light something on our day of independence...even if it has to be a flaming bottle of champagne.

Happy (late) 4th of July!

Living in a Tourism Crisis

2009-07-02T06:28:00.003-07:00

We have all heard about the economic crisis and have been experiencing it ourselves for the past year. Amongst the Grey Goose bottles and being showered in champagne at beach parties this past week, I have to admit I have seen a slight drop in tourism and people spending money.

Skandinavian Bar and Disco has two small, cozy bars downstairs, a big courtyard littered with small tables and a stairway leading to a medium sized disco. We have always been famous in tourism books for the cheapest place to buy a drink and the best club in town for bottle prices. Many people are coming to the bar, filling the dance floor and having a great time. However, when I look at the three bartenders in the disco, they are not taking orders, making drinks or taking money at a constant rate. They will make a drink, then stand for ten minutes until someone orders another. This really proves that people are getting their alcohol elsewhere, drinking it on the streets and possibly sneaking it into the bar.

Luckily, for me, the bottles service has been going quite well. Some of my customers have been showing up randomly and grabbing bottles left and right, unlike the average tourist.

Another thing that has shocked the Greek community here, other than the tourism crisis, is the fact that large bars and discos and smoke free. That's right ladies and gentlemen, you are no longer allowed to light up your cancer stick and infect the rest of the disco population with your filth! It makes me feel so powerful when I see someone light up a cigarette and I tap them on the shoulder and point to the no smoking sign. HA!

Other than that, everything is going well with me. The job has become rather stressful, more so than last year because we have a lot of pressure on us. But with a new season comes all sorts of new friends mixing with old ones and stories of last summer become myth and legend.

..Gonna Say I Did It My Way..

2009-06-25T07:24:00.002-07:00

Hello to everyone from sunny Mykonos! The weather is scortching, the Frappes are cold, and the pour time for alcohol in a cocktail is 14 seconds!

I have been busting my tail for the past month at work, for the second season! For those of you who need a reminder, I am the VIP head waitress in the disco. Everyone always says each summer is different, and now I can see why. My set of friends have changed, my living arrangements and even my outlook on Mykonos. I have seen Mykonos in all four seasons now, and it is such a 180 between summer and winter.

Winter in Mykonos: Quiet. I mean silent. You will be walking through the narrow streets of town and in the distance hear the faint clicking sounds of the heels of someone's boots. At night, only a few bars are open, and you must walk through the dark to find them. However, when you do, it is like discovering an oasis in a desert. Everyone is there, drinking, laughing, singing and dancing. It is very relaxed.

Summer in Mykonos: Out-of-control. Cruise ship horns every five minutes, people laughing, screaming and running around. The narrow alley ways of town are snaked with cruise ship tourists following leaders with numbered signs. The clanging of dishes and the smell of freshly seasoned sword fish echos off the buildings of Mykonos town. The roads to the beaches are like Nascar races, and the beaches themselves are half nudist colonies, circus acts, and happy hours.

But what can I say, I love it here. There is something about the island that has been calling me for the past two years...four years if you count the period when I first came here in 2006.

This is a typical day in the life of Lindsey:
3pm: Wake up
3:30: Catch a bus to one of the beaches to promote
5:15: Hop a bus back to town
6pm: Cook dinner or go out
7pm: Take a nap!
8pm: Get ready for work
9pm-5am: Party like a rock star and get paid to do it.
6am: Sleep!

So now my days are filled with promoting on the beaches, Gelato ice cream, and hanging out with my clients in the club. But as Bon Jovi says, "It's my life, it's now or never!"

To be brutally honest...

2009-04-28T11:32:00.000-07:00

Scotish people need to have English lessons.

I ordered a Starbucks coffee today, and the barista, being a fine young Scotsman, muttered something confidently and to me...absolute gibberish.

"Je wans te teek awee or een."
I stared at him, blinking quite a few times. "Huh?" I replied in a very American way.
"Uhh..take away or in a moog." He said very slowly.

It was cute, I must admitt.

So now I am on the beautiful island of Bute. I haven't explored much of the town, but it is very Victorian looking. My parents and I are at my brother's girlfriend's mother's house awaiting our supper. It is cold here, much like Seattle weather. We will be in Scotland until the end of the week on Sunday, then we fly back to England to explore the Dorsett region!

Greek Orthodox Easter

2009-04-18T06:55:00.006-07:00

Last night I found Jesus.

Little did I know he had been in Greece the whole time! It is Easter this coming Sunday, and the island of Mykonos is packed with families, tourists and locals. At 9:30pm, everyone on Mykonos gathered at a church by my house. The gypsy kids were passing out long candles and then the bells of the churches began to ring.

"What is going on?" I asked one of my friends from last summer.

"The priests are carrying a casket representing Jesus, because today he died. If you follow the casket all over town, your sins will be forgiven."

"Bingo." I said with a smile.

Now, I am not much of a sinner, but there is always room for forgiveness from Jesus!

So I followed Jesus around town for awhile, desperately trying to avoid being caught on fire by everyone's carelessness with their candles. It was a very beautiful ceremony. I have never experienced anything like it before. The Greek Orthodox priests carry flags of red and gold with Jesus and virgin mary. They sing songs of remorse and grieve for the deceased Jesus. Behind the flags, there is a large thrown like casket that is carried and covered with the most vibrant and beautiful flowers. That represents Jesus. Behind that, are the followers, the people singing songs and holding their lit candles. The followers snaked all throughout the streets of Mykonos and lined the walkways with candle light.

It was almost surreal walking with them because people were standing on the balconies above throwing flower pedals and lighting their candles. I took a side alley to get out of the parade, and wanted to catch the action by the port. While trying to bypass the commotion, I found another Jesus! This time he was accompanied by a marching band of 5 year olds and children priests! There were other assortments of flower caskets and flags.

The Easter celebration continues all weekend.

I woke up today and while walking through town to the beach, I encountered the most traumatizing thing. A whole lamb, skinned, head in tact, eye balls clouded over, tongue hanging from it's mouth and wrapped in plastic over an old Greek man's shoulder. Gross. Makes me want to set all the lambs free. Anyway, the island is filled with sunshine and every building is freshly painted white. Too white in fact, it blinds me. I am really liking my little house. Of course it is not the dream house I lived in last summer, but it is my own space and very close to where I will be working once again this year.

I am just so happy to be in the sun and loving life.

A Story From Within

2009-04-11T18:04:00.003-07:00

"No matter what you do, whether you are traveling the world, rich beyond your wildest dreams, the CEO of a corporation, or have your own TV show, you will still find times and reasons why you are sad about your life...and feel like you are missing something.

It is human nature, and completely natural to be confused about what direction you are headed. But it is those times you must stop time and think about what you do have."

I was fortunate to write that entry from a penthouse apartment overlooking Dame Street in Dublin, Ireland, while in the next room,an Irish band, Altan, was being filmed singing in Ireland's native tongue, Gaelic.

I had that. And that makes all the sadness in the world go away.

Just Dance

2009-04-07T16:57:00.005-07:00

I have one week until I depart to Greece. I have so much on my mind about what to bring! I am trying to remember the things I disliked about the clothes I brought or the things I could not find that I needed while traveling. Luckily, most of the items I can find somehow...depending if they have pictures on the labels of what they are, or have the same American products.

My feelings on leaving again: Nervous. When I left last May, I had no idea what I was getting into. But I was so tired of the routine life I had and not having the opportunity to get where I wanted to be..basically I was wasting my own potential. So the idea of going off somewhere outweighed the feeling of nervousness. Now I know I will be gone for half a year. I know what to expect. It is a different kind of nerves.

One thing I am sick of, however, is thinking ahead to much. In Europe, everyone is calm, chill; they go with the flow and enjoy life. When asked what is going to happen in 6 months time..no one cares. But coming back to America, I have fallen back into the pattern of trying to plan every little detail what I am going to do after 6 months abroad.

What, may you ask, is my final answer about what I am going to do?

Dance.

Dance.

I'm going to dance across the world again, hold hands with the oceans, hug the sun, skip whenever I can, smell the salty air, wave at people I don't know and remember that this is the life that is meant to be lived. Unplanned, unknown and unwritten.

Besides, who wants to know the end of a story or a movie before it even begun?

Press play and come dance with me.

Horoscopes and New Horizons

2009-04-03T12:14:00.004-07:00

I had a dream last night.

A dream full of adventure and old friends. I was walking in dense woods with a group of 15 friends, and a trail guide. We came to a large lake that was so reflective, even a local animal would be confused which way was up and which was down.Across the lake, there is an old, board rope-bridge that unrealistically stretches across the lake. It is raised about a mile off the lake, a swinging lightly in the breeze.

Our group decided to attempt to cross the bridge at dusk. I thought this was a bad idea. We set up our tents on one side of the bridge, making our beds ready for a night's rest. I, however, did not find it important to set up my bed.

Then, we began to cross the bridge. The bridge swang and groaned, trying it's best to hold itself together. Then, all of a sudden I was being lifted up, high above the bridge. I looked to my left and one of my childhood friends, who is currently down in Brazil, was to my side.
"Lisa! What are we doing?" I screamed as I realized if we fell, it was over.
"Just hold on Linds.." she said with a confident smile.

All of a sudden, whatever was holding us 1,000 or so feet above the bridge, let go and we swung from left to right at a high speed. We missed the bridge and somehow safely landed in the water. I was so angry that I crawled onto the shore, under the bridge. The bridge suddenly resembled that of what a freeway overpass would look like if you sat under it. I layed down on the small pebbled shore, gasping for breathe, rocks filling my mouth. I opened my eyes and found flashlights moving towards me. It was night time, and people were looking for me.

"Lindsey? Where have you been? Are you okay?"
"Did you not see me raise up off the bridge?" I asked, acting hurt and confused.
"No...you just disappeared.."

That is when I woke up.

I decided to go online and do a little bit of dream research. I went to the best website I knew, Dream Dictionary, and looked up bridge. Here is what I found:

"To dream that you are crossing a bridge, signifies an important decision or a critical junction in your life. This decision will prove to be a positive change filled with prosperity and wealth in the horizon. Bridges represent a transitional period in your life where you will be moving on to a new stage. Alternatively, the bridge may indicate that you are trying to "bridge" or connect two things together. To dream of a run-down bridge, indicates that you should not contemplate any major changes in your life at this time."

It is weird that this dream happened one week before I am to leave for Greece. I have made the decision to move there for 6 months to figure out what I want to do with my life, and to see how my relationship will blossom with my Greek boyfriend. So I am guessing the two things I am trying to connect is my life now and my future self. This is definitely still a transitional period in my life that I am very excited about.

I guess dreams really do come true.

April Fools Day

2009-04-01T14:37:00.005-07:00

A day of jokes, mischeif and...my birthday.

For the people who know me, they know that I am sarcastic, witty and a natural smart ass. So, I suppose this day suites me well. Infact, any person that I know to have been born on this special day, fits that description just the same.
I am very happy to be born in April, making me an Aries.
Aries:
"The young Aries is adventurous, ambitious, impulsive, enthusiastic and full of energy person. The Arian is a pioneer both in thought and action, very open to new ideas and a lover of freedom. They welcome challenges and will not be diverted from their purpose except by their own impatience, which will surface if they don't get quick results." Taken from a site a found searching the net.

I do not always believe in horoscopes, but I feel as though I have developed into this description perfectly! I have always been a believer in making your own freedom and valuing it. I enjoy challenges and doing what other's believe is not possible.

So Happy Birthday to me! I am 24 years old, going on 21!

Cheers to the Land of Eire!

2009-03-17T13:00:00.011-07:00

It was initially my goal to be still living in dearest Dublin, Ireland for today. Especially since I had been living right next to the infamous Temple Bar, which is crazy on St. Patrick's Day.
For those of you who have never experienced Ireland, I'll tell you a bit about the way of life that I experienced.
Ireland is exactly what you think it would be. Lush green meadows, thunderous cliffs, rainbows, little towns and the nicest people you will ever meet.
Dublin, which is the capitol of the Republic of Ireland, is located on the Eastern Coast. It has a population of roughly 1.1 million people, with a little over 500,000 living inside the city. That is approximately 40% of the Republic of Ireland's population that lives within 60 miles of Dublin. The city was originally founded as a Viking Settlement.

In the center of Dublin, runs the River Liffey, often referred by locals as "The Quays," pronounced phonetically "keys."
One of the oldest parts of Dublin is an area by the Quays called Temple Bar. This cobble stoned, medieval, traditional looking district is made up of novelty shops, traditional eateries and ye auld Irish pubs. It is very much a music scene, as street entertainers haul their instruments, sit on boxes and play to the crowds hoping to make a euro..or ten.

In my days, I often walked around the bustling city, trying to avoid being hit by double-decker yellow buses. I walked along Grafton Street, which is the main shopping street. I hung out in The Oak, which was the pub located on Dame Street, directly below my apartment. My friends were a group of Dubliners, which founded a hit Internet music program called Balcony TV. They are very outgoing, hilarious, U2 fanatics, who are layed back pub dwellers. We often met across the 5-foot alleyway at our friend's Korean restaurant that was surviving off the business we provided them. Although, it was truly the best.

This is a video from the apartment I used to live in Dublin. This is where Balcony TV is filmed. As you can see, it is a great view for the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Dublin. They say a quick hello to me at the end of the clip!

Ireland is amazing. I suggest everyone visits this country sometime in their life. People are friendly, the Guinness is quality and the atmosphere is something you will not experience anywhere else.

I raise my green glass you you Land of Eire!

Give Me an Article, I'll Give You an Answer

2009-03-13T19:57:00.006-07:00

First of all, I wanted to thank the Seattle Times, and Erik Lacitis, for featuring a part of my story to my hometown! Second of all, we are only scratching the surface of what this story is about.

For some of you who want to dive into my past blogs from Europe, I encourage you. They are located in the months of May 2008-January 2009. Infact, start here. For those of you who are looking for tips or ideas how you can have your own adventure, I am down to answer those questions too.

For the others of you who want to be negative about my degree from WSU or about the Seattle Times article , I do not even want to hear your snotty-nosed, immature, ignorant, can't-do-anyting-better-with-their-time-except-comment-negativly-on-online-newspaper-article remarks. Get it? Got it? Leave it. Go Cougs.

Please bookmark my blog or webpage to follow my next adventure as I live another summer in Greece. After that, who knows who I will meet or where I will end up!

Don't Let Yourself Forget

2009-03-10T23:45:00.004-07:00

In order to hold one down, the person must be willing to let go of everything they could possibly experience or witness in this short time we have. So why not cut loose the hands of time and watch the seconds move freely?

Say Goodbye to the old and hello to the unwritten.

This is a picture I took in Ios, Greece. I was on the highest point of the island, and I decided to ring the bell to let the world know I was alive. Instead of walking to the beat of the "American Dream" drum, I choose to dance across the world. These are the things I have learned that are of importance:

Love might be a mistake, but it's worth taking.
The Aegean is the most beautiful thing in the world...next to the David, the Duomo, the Acropolis, the Venis de Milo, Santorini caldera, the grand canyon, Tuscany, Perugia dungeons, and French catacombs.
Don't carry a 20 pound (10 kilo) suitcase and call it "backpacking."
Shoes made in Greece withstand the apocalypse.
Bargain like hell.
Take Regional trains when traveling, it will save you money.
When alone, your camera, a book, and iPod are your three best friends.
Never settle for the path of least resistance.

Economic Crisis Can't Hold Me Down

2009-02-26T09:01:00.010-08:00

I did it.

I took $600 and bought a plane ticket back to Greece.

I know, I'm crazy. But I do what I want, when I feel the time is right to do it.

Once again, I have no job lined. But I want this one last time.
Want what, may you ask? The chance to live and breathe once again and find the life that I felt the most free and comfortable living. This is abroad, in Greece. Throughout all my travels, even when I was 20 years old, the one place that always kept a permanent picture in my mind was Mykonos. A place where the locals began to know me, the mazes in town became familiar, and I met the love of my life. This small island in the middle of the Aegean sea has haunted me in my dreams and whispered in my ear, calling me back each day for some reason.

In the times of economic crisis, I will be the first to admit that I am nervous of leaving my job. However, I would not be believing in what I preach to others if I did not follow my heart and keep taking those leaps and bounds.

I have done what I accomplished in these past few months of being in Seattle. I came home, got a job very fast, made some money back, saw my family and friends, and realized that Seattle is not necessarily the place anymore for Lindsey LaMont. I always felt like Seattle was my comfort zone, when in fact, I have grown familiar with somewhere different.

My best friends have moved away or moved on, ex boyfriends have come and gone, jobs are scarce, and images of the rolling waves, sunshine, sand and laughter are echoing in my dreams.

I am very proud to say that I have the opportunity once again to see when life is knocking at my door, I take it's hand and follow it down the path to happiness.

As of April 14th, 2009, I will be on a plane bound for Athens, Greece. I plan to stay until December.

Love is Lust but when Does Lust Become Love?

2009-02-21T09:39:00.003-08:00

"Why don't my Greek customers order the bottles of alcohol off of me?" I asked my bartender, in reference to my frustration to my V.I.P tables not ordering from me.

"Because I am Mykonian, and you are just a blonde bitch," he said with a smile and a drag off his Marlboro Reds.

I was officially offended. Who did this tall, brown-eyed, sarcastic, boring,cousin-of-my-boss, half-swedish,raised-on-Mykonos, chain smoking, sorry excuse for a Greek man think he was? My future boyfriend, that's who.

I have omitted speaking about him, because I was not sure what to say. But I want you to introduce you to the love of my life, the man who I will never leave behind, Michael.

It sounds like a dream. Tall dark and handsome. Met on the island he was raised on. He is charming, sweet, thoughtful, silly, stubborn, witty, encouraging,loyal and totally everything I was not expecting to find.

He was my right hand man for most of the summer, and I hated him 70% of the time. He was the one who wasn't working to make friends, and really did not care about anyone else. He helped me learn the ropes of the bar and being a waitress, and when I asked him how to say simple stuff in Greek, he'd say "Why? I speak English." And walk away leaving me feeling dumb. He wouldn't let me take pictures of him until one day, he said, "Lindsey, I think we are friends now." That changed everything.

We began talking more and I started to find him very interesting. He had odd quirks that matched mine, and he transformed from someone I found rather boring, into a goofy, flirty and sweet man that I admired.

One night after work, we met up by mistake at a local Greek bar called Agyra (meaning Anchor). I was with my girlfriends dancing on the bar, and I looked down and saw him at my feet, smoking and drinking a rum and coke. I was so excited and surprised that he was at the bar that I knelt down and asked if he wanted to leave with me.

And that was a bit over 6 months ago. Michael and I have become very close and serious about each other. When I was living in Ireland, I flew down to Greece, and he risked being jailed to see me for New Years.

I am back in America now, and he is in the Greek army on Mykonos. I cannot imagine my life without such an amazing man. He has taught me so much and I cannot wait to see the man of my dreams in only a few more months.

STRESSE*D

2009-02-17T16:31:00.003-08:00

Stress.

I feel it in my shoulders, my fingers, my eyes and my toe bones.

What am i stressed about?
Well, I am leaving for Greece on April 15. Have I booked my ticket yet? No. Do i talk about the date I am leaving like it is going out of style? Yes.

I am also stressed because I have someone very special waiting for me in Greece. If anyone has read my last entry, about the Schengen Treaty
. short story boring: I want to be proactive about staying in Greece as long as I can legally. So I have been talking to the Greek Embassy in America, my boyfriend will be talking to the American Embassy in Greece...and we will be seeing how this all work out. I can apply for a visa extension...what is my reason for staying longer according to the Greek government? Rescuing Sea Turtles in Crete. Oh yeah!

I am also stressed about my right hand index finger. It hurts in the middle knuckle. I could have jammed it while I was sleeping, or the mere fact I over-click on the computer and type to much. OR it could be arthritus or carpel tunnel. Awesome.

As for everything else, it is just excitment of going to live with my man, getting enough money, trying to secure a job in Greece, and figuring out my life plans for the next 6 months.

Schengen Treaty and Overstaying Visas

2009-02-15T14:32:00.012-08:00

Europe is an amazing place. Millions of people travel to Europe each year, whether it be on business, curiosity, adventure, rebellion or leisure, we all make it there at one point in our lives.
However, there are a few rules I have come across as a solo backpacker that just plain piss me off. I have found many threads on the internet showing that many people are also concerned about some of these laws as travelers.

The Shengen Treaty (Please click for more detailed info).
Now, being an American citizen, I am rather lucky because I get a free waiver visa throughout basically any country in Europe. I also have the right to stay legally as a tourist for 90 days (3 months) in any country in Europe. UNLESS, you happen to be some countries named Austria, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Netherlands, Slovakia, Belgium, Finland, Hungary, Lithuania, Norway,Slovenia, Czech Republic, France, Iceland, Luxembourg, Poland, Spain, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Malta, Potugal and Sweden. SHIT!!!

Here is what the Shengen Treaty states:
-You must apply for a "Schengen Visa," if you are not specific countries (not including EU citizens, Americans, Australians or Canadians).
-You may stay 90 days on a tourist visa in an 180 period. This means that out of 180 days, you can only be there 90 unconsequative days.
-You DO NOT get 90 days in each of those countries.
-Those countries are borderless, and once you enter any one of those countries, you have 90 days in all the combined countries.
-Therefore, if you spend 1 month in Italy, 3 weeks in Spain, 1 month in Germany, and 2 weeks in Greece...you have suddenly overstayed your tourist visa and are able to become fined 300-1200 euro.
What. The. Hell.

SO. Many people I have realized are concerned about this "law." And growing up in a law abiding civilization, ie: America...we forget to realize that all those countries...Do not stamp you and do not follow the law. Sometimes they do, and sometimes they do not.

I am aware of the Schengan Treaty, My father, who is a huge traveler, laughed at me and said if he was ever stopped and was discipled for the treaty, he would be very confused. Many people do not know about it...

Anyway, the truth of the matter is...you could be anywhere in Europe. You could have traveled by car and no one stamped your passport. It is actually hard to track your journey through Europe, unlike the U.S.

You can apply for long-term visas if you know you will stay extra time. I suggest it, but if you wanna rough it, it is totally possible and hundreds have and are doing it right now!

.Path to Happiness and destiny.

2009-01-29T11:47:00.007-08:00

I found a good quote today by one of my favorite writer's, Mark Twain. He is a very inspirational man that has written many novels about adventure. Adventure seems to be the main topic in my life at the moment, so this quote really means a lot to me:

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." Mark Twain

Another book that I find is worth picking up and reading is "The Alchemist," by Paulo Coelho. Whenever I would tell someone I met along the backpacking trail about my philosophy of life, they would ask me if I had ever read the book. If you do not know the story, a quick synopsis:A young Shepard boy dreams of traveling the world for treasure. Not knowing what the treasure is, he is told by an old king to follow the "omens," or signs, and his heart will lead his life to his ultimate destiny.

"Tell your heart that the fear and suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second's encounter with God and with eternity." pg. 124-125 of The Alchemist

So basically, I have always trusted how I feel about a situation. If you listen to everything around you...you will be led in the right direction.

For example, when I was living in Dublin, I was ready to go home December 20th because I could not find a job and my money was quickly running out. I did not want to go home, but I was almost forced too. The day I was about to book my ticket, a local club called me regarding my resume and wanted to hire me. Therefore, I stayed, got to have an Irish Christmas at a beautiful home in Dublin with my room mates family. Then, my boyfriend came up from Greece and spent New Years with me. And of course, I got to spend more time with all the new friends I had made in Dublin. I had two amazing things happen, and if I had not followed the signs, and refused the job in Dublin and went home, I would not have had those two extra experiences happen to me.

The motto of this is to just let things happen, and follow all the paths that your heart guides you down your trail.

"When I have been truly searching for my treasure, every day has been luminous, because I've known that I would find it. When I have been truly searching for my treasure, I've discovered things along the way that I never would have seen had I not had the courage to try things that seemed impossible for a Shepard to achieve." pg. 125 of The Alchemist.

~Saying Goodbye to the Sky~

2009-01-17T19:18:00.003-08:00

I was about to land in Seattle.
After 8 months of traveling and living around the world.
It was all dark and I was in this peaceful plane sitting by the window.
The sky was very black and all I could see out my window was the Orion constellation and a very big, bright moon shining over what seemed like a sea of clouds beneath me. All i could do was think about standing at a house In Mykonos, Greece staring at the same two things and how happy I was to be independent.
And then, very slowly, the plane started to sink beneath the sea of clouds, and the moon, and stars began to fade away.
Suddenly there were the bright lights of Seattle flooding my eyes like a million miles of fire, and I could see everything that I thought I knew, but discovered I don't know it at all anymore.

-The Art of Traveling-

2009-01-12T10:10:00.003-08:00

To all my friends, my family and the ones I have met on the way. Just read this.

I can't tell you the story of who I am. I can only tell you the story of who I've become.
I came to Europe on May 30, 2008 with $4,ooo to my name and no one where I was going to KNOW my name. I found a job, an amazing place to live and friends I will know for the rest of my life.

In the past 7 months, I have been so happy I cried and been so insane that I went numb. I have been put in cultures where I didn't know the language, people tried to trick me, pick me up, follow me, steal my money...But then I have been in cultures where they hug me, teach me customs, give me discounts because they want to help, talk about life, find me jobs and help me network.

I have something to admit. I started this expecting to go in a different direction. But I deleted it. I wanted to tell you something, all of you.
I'm proud of you. Each and every one of you that I have chosen to send this too.
I'm proud of you, and I mean it.
I have been country jumping and suddenly, I realized something. This so called "Living the Dream," I speak of, is a dream that is mine.
But when I write about living up to the dream, I mean to tell you that your dream is whatever makes your heart keep pounding in your chest. Whether it is being accepted into a Grad school, working towards a promotion, making your son or daughter laugh, moving and living in L.A, serving your country, loving your family, or traveling the world. We all share this similar "dream" I often speak of.
It's the dream of Life.
You don't have to do what I do to find what makes you happy. You just do it to keep you going towards an ultimate goal you have, whatever that is.

I am proof that if you have motivation, if you have a drive and enough passion in your heart and soul, you are unbeatable. That is when you become something I call a "travel warrior." You have an idea in your head and no matter how many people tell you "isn't it time to get a real job?" "shouldn't you settle down?" "everyone else is ahead of you in life." That is when you smile and say "not today."

But I have learned, that you dont have to come all the way to Europe to achieve what makes you happy. I came looking for something that in a way, I had all along. The three F's.. friends, family and familiarity. It is not that I see myself as a superior because I have been to all these places. As long as you enjoy the world you live in and the life you lead, then you are in the right direction and no one should treat you otherwise. If you are truthful with yourself, then life is a simpler place.

Now enough of the life stuff. Here is the down and dirty points in a semi-sarcastic nutshell of each country:
Greece:

Men will think you are easy if you give them the time of day

In supermarkets they only have carbs, carbs, oddly packaged unknown meat, and olive oil

Everywhere is an amazing view

Laws are bendable

If there is a party, chances are it is happening in Greece.

Italy:

They expect you to know Italian, and if you don't, they have no idea why.

The ancient structures are more jaw-dropping then anything I have seen (David, Tuscany, Duomo, Roman ruins)

Italians will have one gin and tonic and will be on the floor laughing in a fit of drunkeness

Their clothes are amazing and any of them can be a personal stylist

No matter how attractive the man is...he still is inexperienced when picking up women

Spain:

It smells like chips and salsa, but there is none to be found

I dislike their traditional food Paella (yellow rice and seafood in a frying pan) and Tapas (bite sized meals you get with Sangria).

Valencian oranges are the best oranges I have ever had in my life!

Spain is unlike anything I have ever experienced in my life

Flamenco dancing makes me want to cry

Republic of Ireland:

When you are in Ireland, you wish you were Irish

Ireland honestly has a national drinking problem (they had to change the bar laws because people were going to work drunk still..)

Crossing the cross walks in Dublin are like pushing a button to your possible death...no one is positive anyone will stop..

Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland are two separate countries...with different accents...and different currencies.

Ireland is as amazing and beautiful as you imagine it would be, with the nicest and generous people.

So here is what I have truly discovered about what I miss from America:
-Chips and salsa
-Just add water, 1 cup of vegetable oil and one egg cooking products like cookies, cakes, pies...
-Pharmacies being INSIDE grocery stores
-Knowing when I take cash out of my debit account, it won't charge me or screw me over with the exchange rate ie: 100 euro is 160 USD in disguise..
-The TV shows: Cops, Lost, Grey's Anatomy
-My A-Squad and family
-Using a cell phone to talk as long as I want and not having to spend hundreds on phone CREDIT
-Using a debit card and not expecting a foreign fee
-Driving my Ford Focus
-Putting money in my bank account...legally.
-Being familiar with cities, freeways, street signs, languages, events, parties, clubs and whatever else you can imagine.

After everything is said and done in the life I lead, all I am left with is my will to try. Try to be successful, try to be a better woman than yesterday, and try to hold onto what I value. I am rare in the fact that I do what I speak of and I always will try no matter how impossible. Because to me, if you want something with every inch of your soul, nothing is impossible.

Thank you for listening to my adventure and being there for me when no one else was,
I now close my travel itinerary, and head back to familiarity

How I Met U2's Bono: In Poem Form

2008-12-27T15:24:00.006-08:00

Before Christmas, I had a wonderful experience. I met the world famous rock-and-roll/God-in-human-form...Bono from U2. For those of you who are unaware who he is, you can check out his video on youtube here.

He is unmistakably one of the most famous and sought after singer in the world. People lavish over his insightful lyrics and find inspiration through his statements. He reaches out to those in third-world countries by donating to charities and getting people involved in our wo

rld's problems. Many like to think of him as perfect and everyone knows him to have some very powerful political people, actors, and entrepreneurs treat him as a superior...even though he is just a singer from little old Dublin, Ireland. Instead of telling you in detail what went on in our meeting...I thought I would tell you exactly how it happened in a festive poem I wrote:

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the bar,
Not an Irishman was drinking, from near nor from far;
The Guinness mugs were raised by sausage hands with care,
That hopes of dear Bono from U2 would be there;
The young lads were nestled on high-chairs throughout,
While drinking small bottles of Jameson and Murphy's Irish Stout;
And my roommate in his Celtic's scarf, and I in my leggings,
Had just sat down and avoided all the homeless beggings;
When out on Temple Bar, there arose such a clatter,
I leaped from the stool to see

what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew as fast as I could,
Knocked over an old man, who knocked over some wood.
The haze of the night gave an eerie glow,
Which made tourists stop to look at the show;
When, what to my drunken eyes should go on,
But a miniture sports car, and eight tiny lephraucan.
With a little middle aged driver so cool and sunglasses so blue,
I knew it that second it must be Bono from U2.
More rapid than seagulls his minions they came,
He whispered and sang and called them by name.
"Now, Obama! Bill Gates! now, Clinton One and two!
On, Jesus! On, Castro! On, Powell and Bush..yes, you'll do!
On top of the keg barrels! Jump over the wall!
Now spread the joy of the world, spread the love to all!
As the songs that were sung by fans from before,
Came the whispers of political power straight from the door.
So in from the threshould the minions they flew,
With pockets full of petitions, and the other guys from U2.
And then, in an instant, I heard in the room,
The laughter and double-speak of the minions of doom.
As I drew in my Guinness, weary of what else lurks,
Down the chimney Bono came with fireworks!
He was dressed in Armani black, with burnt umber shoes for the masses,

And the glint of God's eyes behind his blue-colored sunglasses.
A bundle of presents he had brought from his abode,
He looked like his Irish ancestors when they build the railroad.
His eyes, how they sparkled! His earring, how it gleamed,
His hair was cut short, almost going bald it seemed.
The smile on his face was almost like magic,
And the scruff on his chin was intergalactic.
Smoking cigars of gold and the smoke it did seem,
Were only fluttering fairies from out of a dream.
He had a heavenly face and fingers of power,
That made world peace decisions in every world peacing hour.
He was thin and short, a typical Irishman,

And I laughed when I saw him, which wasn't the plan.
A point of his finger and a clearing of his throat,
Soon let me know there was a song to be wrote.
But he spoke not a lyric, just reached in his pocket,
And pulled out a cross, with a B in the socket.
And laying a finger aside of his nose,
And giving a huff, up the chimney he rose.
He dashed in his sports car, and gave to his minions a whistle,
And away they all flew like Mighty Mouse, like a missile.
But I heard him exclaim in that soft, God-like voice of his,
"It's a Beautiful Day, and that's all it is!"

Can you BELIEVE that? Let me tell you...it was WEIRD. Totally unexpected.

But hey, this is the typical magical stuff the happens in the Land of the Ire. Should have gotten a picture.

HELP

2008-12-18T16:05:00.002-08:00

Just when I think I have everything figured out and that I am going to go home, a good opportunity strikes me. I get a call tonight saying the bar I work at wants to train me as a bartender...if I stay a few more months. So let me break it down.

Plan A: Quit my job in two weeks. Keep in mind I average about €300 a week. Enjoy New Years and maybe see some of the lush green Ireland. Then, on January 10th, take a cheap flight to Boston, stay for 5 days and see some friends. On January 15th, fly home to Seattle where I will be warmly greeted by my parents and friends. In the midst of the American financial crisis, I will then look for a job. This could be a waitressing job a bartending job or anything I could do for three months to make around $2000. In the middle of April, I will then come back to Europe. I would fly into Heathrow or Athens and go back to Mykonos to start my summer again working.

Plan B: Get upgraded to a bartender, probably earning more that $300 a week. Still enjoy New Years, either working or not. Stay in Ireland until Feb. 27th and get a round trip flight to Seattle and back to Dublin (return on April 25th.) Be warmly greeted by my parents and friends. In the midst of the American financial crisis, I won't be in a crisis because I will have enough euros saved where I can exchange them and put them safly in my American bank account. Then, I will do a few working shifts for a promotional agency I am apart of to earn some side cash. Then, after staying for my father's birthday and my birthday, I will head back to Europe in mid April. Fly into Dublin and go straight to Athens and to Mykonos to start my summer working again.

.Four Planes. Two Boats. One Amazing Week.

2008-12-17T09:42:00.005-08:00

It is hard to find words to say about my life right now. Well, I am almost 7 months deep into my European adventure. This means I am exactly to the day 4 months over my expected time of departure from Europe. Within these four months, I have traveled to 14 cities in 5 different countries. I currently am illegally employed by a bar getting €50 a night (5 hours) and paying €100 a week for a beautiful penthouse in the center of Dublin, Ireland. I recently took a free plane ride to London, England to hang out with some friends from the Greek Isles. Then, with two days of being there, I hopped a 4 hour plane ride to Athens, Greece for a one week "holiday," to visit my Greek friends I made over the summer. Little did I know I would be caught in the middle of the Greek riots!

The weather was nothing short of amazing! Not only was it 30 degrees warmer than Ireland, but when I went to the islands, I couldn't help but run out onto the deck of the ferry boat, throw my hands in the air and feel utterly and completely alive. Nothing but blue skies, soft, white clouds, the shadows of islands in the distance and a sea that would give any painter inspiration. Once again on Mykonos, I found the island to be more real than I ever experienced in the summer. It was empty. However, with the few bars still open, I walked into my favorite one called "Agyra," which means anchor in Greek. Right when I walked into the small bar flooded with multi-colored disco lights and playing nothing but Greek music, I heard voices saying "LINDSEY?" I looked to my left and to my right seeing some old friends from the summer. I felt at home and the happiest I have been in months. I spent roughly a week on Mykonos, enjoying the empty beaches, the sunsets, the small bands of new kittens, and of course the amazing food and hospitality.

After Greece, I flew back to London, only to have a nightmare of a time getting to my friend Holly's house. Let's just say having an Irish number with no credit in London is like having no phone at all. But like everything I do, it always works out and I am always okay. I found her £33 later at 3am. The next night we went to a club called Rehab in London and had a fantastic time! It was sad to leave Holly, her being one of my closest friends from Greece, but I know in time our paths will meet again.

So now I am back in Ireland getting ready for my first holidays away from home. I am sorry I can not be home at this moment, mostly I apologize to my family. But this is the first time in my life I feel like I am not waiting around for others to tell me what to do next. I have blossomed into an adult and I have created a life over seas that will probably give me culture shock when I come back to the US.

.Listen.

2008-11-27T15:30:00.003-08:00

What are you listening in those little head phones person I pass by everyday? What music is making your blood pump through your veins, memories flash in and out of your mind like a yellow yield light.

Are you happy, or sad or even listening to when I say hi? Do you hear the banging of plates from the Kebab place on the corner? How about the whispered rumors from the two middle aged Irish women you just passed. They were talking about the bloke that spilled his coffee on Mrs. Jamer's cat last Christmas, I guess he was attractive. I hear a haunting sound coming from the Dublin Castle on Dame Street, I saw in the paper they were having a medieval fair on Tuesday, children in for free. I wonder if you know that seven taxi cabs just honked at the same time...because they almost just hit you on the cross walk. That guy over by the post box is playing a heavy beat on an Irish bodhran, his seven year old son is rattling a Starbucks cup full of pennies and a few euros. Shhh, a baby is crying from an apartment building above. Another cross walk, this time the button is pushed. Don't you think the sound of the button sounds like a sprinkler? Reminds me of summer when I was 11, my dad put it out in the side yard as me and my friends ran through it laughing. I miss my dad. Hey, are you listening?

Sometimes it would be nice to take those earbuds out of your ears, and listen to the music life is playing around you.

! Whatever !

2008-10-31T13:09:00.003-07:00

I sit here in a hostel called Mambo Tango in the heart of Barcelona, Spain. The basement smells of 'that guys' basement. You know, the one who is friends with your friends friend but they aren't really friends, they just get their weed from him. It is all brick and has memorabilia from Bob Marley and sarongs that probably can't pass an STD test to save it's life. There is a large map of Catalunya, which is the area Barcelona is part of and strings of different color lights that make the ambiance of the place dim and surreal. The place has a 'whatever I fuckin trust you man,' feel to it, and they offer 'whatever' sodas, 'whatever' internet, 'whatever' tea and 'whatever' storage space, which means absolutly free.

A majority of the travelers consists of Americans around the age of 23, that are looking for a new experience. Whether that be teaching in England, working, on a round the world trip, or being a famous VJ from India. I heard a rumor I am sharing a couch with him tonight...but not a 'whatever' couch, a 20 euro couch because there are no more beds available. Whatever.

The basement is filled with the smell of wine, laughter, applause, politics, impressions of famous actors and stories of adventure. A chess board sits to my right with half the pieces knocked over, I think white is winning.

It is Halloween night, and the Pizza Hut next door seems to be the only one who got the memo. They seem to be having a haunted house...I say the people who choose to work at Pizza Hut are enough for me to be scared of.

But hey, whatever!

Worldy Love

2008-10-04T06:12:00.004-07:00

Wow, it has been quite the adventure in the past couple of weeks! After two weeks of vacationing in Mykonos and deciding what to do with my life, I got up enough courage to book a ticket to...SANTORINI! It was very very hard to leave all the friends I made with the Skandinavian Bar boys, the shop keepers and my room mates. But in the end, I waved goodbye to my beautiful house...I lived the dream as I often say. But I realized it is the SADDEST thing when you are on that ferry boat and you look back and you see your dream slowly disappear in the horizon.

But I landed in the infamous Santorini!! I stayed in a town called Perissa aka the ghetto. It was a one donkey town guys...one road with 2 hostels, a 24-hour bakery and a hand full of cheap restaurants and 3 euro (5 dollar) cocktails..I shared my room in my hostel with 3 Aussie boys, a chick from Vancouver Island and an Aussie girl, one mouse and two cockroach carcasses. Was it worth it? Paying on 6 euro (10-ish dollars) a night says it was! Everyone in our dorm (We had a kitchenette and a bathroom) playing drinking games that consisted of blowing cards off a beer bottle..and watching Superbad. We also rented quad bikes...I was lucky enough to get the one that went about 20 MPH on a good day...and we went to Fira (Thira) which is the famous town on the cliff. WOW. It was cool. We rode some donkeys (of COURSE) and made a lot of "Ass jokes," which I am sure my father would have gotten a kick out of.....We also went to the famous "black beach" where all the sand was black.

So I stayed there for 3 nights, then decided to go to Ios! That is the party island. So I arrived in beautiful Ios only to find out....it was...Siesta? What the...Everything was either closed, boarded up, or shut down for winter. I had heard so much about how crazy this island was....and I couldn't even find a market open for me to get something to eat. I found my hostel and some people...and they told me everything opened at 6pm! I discovered the coolest group of girls and bunked with a guy from SEATTLE!!!! He walked into my room wearing a UW t-shirt and I burst into laughter and showed him my WSU patch on my backpack. Everyone in the hostel was from the Pacific Northwest (Seattle, Vancouver) or Australia! We went out to some awesome bars and had some crazy nights.

I am now off to Paros, an island that is famous for it's marble, which is Venus de Milo was carved out of. After that....I don't know, any suggestions? So now I just spend my time figuring out a few things. A) Where am I going. B) Who am I going with C) How am I getting out of Greece without getting deported (I stayed longer than my visa)...My suggestions for idea C are as follows...Take a caravan through Macedonia. Play it American and blonde. Take a 22 hour ferry to Italy. Fake my own death.

Much love to all around the globe

Everything and nothing.

2008-09-30T11:16:00.008-07:00

Everything and nothing. Isn't that what this is all about? "Hi Lindsey, how was your experience living in a foreign country for 4 months..." That is when I will stare at you...but I'm not staring AT you, I am staring past you, trying to remember who I was when I came here and who I have become when I finally leave Greece. So here we go..."Hi Lindsey, how was your experience living in a foreign country for 4 months?"

I lived in an 8 million dollar house. My back yard was the Aegean Sea. I fished off my balcony and waved at tourists that were taking pictures of my famous house. I lived with 11 people at one time...sometimes I thought we would start World War 3...two Americans, one English, four Italians, two fugitives from Cypress, Three Australians..the Cypress guys got arrested and one very Greek man moved into their room. We were all around the same age and we come from all walks of the Earth...but we were living the dream. I worked with the most amazing people that were also all my age. We worked 70 hours a week, no days off and were treated basically like slaves. I did V.I.P tables up in the disco. People thought I was blonde and stupid and all the stereotypes that came with American...until they got over it and talked to me. I met kings, princes and lords...went on a F1 racer's yacht and had Crystal on an oil tycoon's yacht...which happened to be named "Awesome."

Everyday I woke up at 3pm and had to go to the beach, dance on tables, eat strawberries and drink champagne. Every night I started work at 9:30, and promoted around Mykonos town until all the locals knew exactly who I was so I would get discounts everywhere I went. I listened to the same music every night at the club in the same order...thank you Beyonce, Justin Timberlake, David Guetta, Leona Lewis, Michael Jackson and John Cougar Meloncamp...and screw you Will Smith for making "Gettin Jiggy Wit It" and "Welcome to Miami." I stopped work at 7am...ate at one of 4 places...Gyro place, Caesar salad place, the bakery or soup kitchen..funny how we never called the restaurants the right names...I would go to sleep when the sun was coming up, but the loud thumping of House music would echo off the ocean and into my room from the bar kitty corner to my house..it was called Caprice and they threw white napkins in the air all the time.

I rode quad bikes 3 people deep to Cavo Paradiso, which was a after party club on the cliff. The most famous DJ's would spin and it felt like me and 5,000 other people were waking up the world and welcoming them to a new day. Planes would often fly over head and I always wondered what passengers thought as they looked a few hundred feet down and saw people jumping in a pool shaped like the island, dancing on podiums, popping 1,000 euro bottles of champagne and showering anyone in their sight.

I got in a moto accident, had my ears pierced, almost got a tattoo, jumped off a cliff, drove a jet ski, almost threw my passport into the ocean, learned Italian, Greek, French and German, gained 10 pounds, lost 15 and gained 8 back, left my morals at the airport, and made friends with people I never would have given the time of day to.

I went to Paradise Club, which was a club on the beach and befriended an army of Australian boys who worked for the club. We drank a lot, talked a lot of crap, laughed, cried because we were tired and underpaid, laughed more at how stupid the Greeks and tourists are, and then cried when we had to say good bye.

Goodbye...goodbye to Alison, who was the first to go. She was my friend from Boston...she will be at my wedding, meet my children, and someday have a drink with me somewhere in the world again. Goodbye Jacko...he was my Australian buddy who lived for everything and had the soul of a lion. He and Ali met here and I think fell pretty hard for each other. Goodbye Holly...she was my 19 year old room mate from London that was going on 26 who taught me more than anyone ever could have. Goodbye to Roberta and Georgia...Roberta doesn't know English, but we played a wicked game of charades this summer. Goodbye Stavros, you were my boss...you have a lot to learn about people and life. Goodbye Angelo, there is a better man inside you (please find him and keep him)..and Christos, your my favorite. Michalis...i miss you already, Theo, thank you, Niko, you are a pervert. Jack, you were my drinking buddy at 7am...Thanassis..you still don't know my name you crazy man..Anestis..your welcome for me taking one for the team and getting people to buy me shots and then me getting hammered. These are the characters that make my story a story. You will forever hear me talk about them, see them in my photos and maybe one day meet them.

I can't tell you much more because there isn't anything else to explain. It's not just a memory, this experience, it's a feeling. It starts when you breathe in really deep and you can feel the air expand in your lungs..the excitment of the disco, the sound of the waves, the clanging of plates, the babble of a million different languages that all turn into a loud hum. the smell of the salt, the touch of the wind coming off the ocean and wrapping you in it's strength and freedom. the warmth of the sun on your face...then it all flows into your veins and spreads to your finger tips and down to your toes and it feels like a million butterflies are the only things keeping you going...the vibrations from the music pounding in your chest like a giant drum...and for a second it all goes silent...and you realize that the only sound you can hear or feel is your own heart beating and you know you are alive...and just in that second when you think you've figured everything out, you realize it's nothing at the same time...and all the emotions and feelings and memories rush into your head at the same time, only they play backwards and you smile and laugh and start crying at all the things you thought you forgot and you remember. But I tell you now, that you don't have to understand. Because for the first time, I understand. I opened my eyes and I met the world for the first time. And I don't have to try to love life, because life already loves me.

Summer is over and yet I still dream a dream that is not finished. I had a dream my life would be something...but life won't kill the dream in me.

And the beat goes on somewhere else..

Intro:Ch. 1

2008-08-17T06:46:00.002-07:00

Let Go. Jump In. There is Beauty Within. What Are you waiting for?
Because in the end, it's the fact that we have conquered something that others can't. What is a dream to them is a way of life for us. We are all looking for something within ourselves, but there are very few of us out there that have the power to hunt, discover and claim that "thing" for ourselves.

We search in the dark, but eventually find the light within our hearts to guide us through a tangled path. A path we must weed through in order to shine out the clearer.

In life you say everything matters but nothing matters at all. Here I sit at my favorite gyros place. and I know someday this will end and I will hate it. I will hate the fact that I took advantage of nothing but I lived the life everyone wanted too.

I live on a dream island in the middle of the Aegean Sea in Greece. Mykonos; also known as mind-fucking Mykonos. I eat, sleep, work 70 hours a week, never have a day off, complain about drinking to much free Grey Goose, get told I am beautiful 200 times a night and respond with "Fuck off." I live in a multi-million Euro house that is incredibly famous, yet I still call it a shit hole. I look for love in all the wrong places, my mornings are nights and my nights are mornings. I live in a place where love is lust and lust is stupid. I live where dreams are made, relationships are broken, hearts are torn, and every day there is a new problem to laugh at.

Life Is A Dream

2008-08-05T05:48:00.001-07:00

What is life? a tale that is told;
What is life? a frenzy extreme,
A shadow of things that seem;
And the greatest good is but small,
That all life is a dream to all,
And that dreams themselves are a dream.

:I've Got So Much Love To Give:

2008-07-31T07:23:00.004-07:00

3pm in the afternoon.
I just woke up.

And I have so much love to give। To you, to the people of Mykonos, to the travelers I have met. And most importantly, to this world.

This has definitly been the adventure of a lifetime. I have met the most wonderful people and I am apart of the most amazing bar. Every night me, Michalis, Angelo, Jack, Nik and Angelo #2 (haha), and the DJ Valsilis (check him out on myspace as DJ Brouss) start off the night by having a laugh or two, me being the only girl, they pretty much just make fun of me. But this is only when the club is empty, eventually we see people come up the stairs the techno music volume raises and I can feel the beat pounding in my chest and we all take our positions and get ready for a night of crazy chaos and endless entertainment.

I also live with two girls that have become my sisters. Alison and Holly. One from Boston, the other from London. I don't know what I would do without them.

This island is very confusing at times. We are in such a bubble and all we do it work, eat, sleep, cry from frustration, and every day off our balcony 'We are on a DREAM island!!' just to remind us that we are truly living the life so many people dream of. I feel like this summer is going by so quickly. I have been here 2 months now and I still have a month or two left...but what do I do after this? I am completely a free bird and it is the scariest thing I have ever felt in my life. I was listening to my iPod the other day on shuffle, and this song came on...and it just explained everything I felt...

'Trying hard to reach out
But when I'd try to speak out
Felt like no one could hear me
Wanted to belong here
But something felt so wrong here
So I'd pray
I could breakaway

Wanna feel the warm breeze
Sleep under a palm tree
Feel the rush of the ocean
Get onboard a fast train
Travel on an airplane, far away and breakaway

Buildings with a hundred floors, swinging with revolving doors
Maybe I don't know where they'll take me but
Gotta keep moving on, moving on
Fly away, breakaway

I'll spread my wings
And I'll learn how to fly
Though it's not easy to tell you goodbye
I gotta take a risk
Take a chance
Make a change
And breakaway
Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget the place I come from
I gotta take a risk
Take a chance, Make a change, And breakaway'

Today was the first day that I opened my eyes and saw the world for the first time. I saw myself as not someone who I wanted to be, but finally the person I am. After everything is said and done, we live we love we laugh and cry and are angry and frustrated at the things we can't have...but in the end, we are all fighting for one thing. That there is good and love in this world and it's worth fighting for. So here I am. Living the dream not everyone can live. I fight for you, for me and everyone in between.

.My Crazy Life.

2008-07-02T08:40:00.001-07:00

Such As Life.
Plain and simple and imprinted on a drunk Australian's back. And I will always remember him as being drunk. Drunk at the beach, drunk in my VIP section in the club, and passed out drunk on the sidewalk by the bus station.

Good Morning. Because every day here is a morning and every morning is a night. When something utterly ridiculous happens all of us workers at the bar just laugh in disbelief and say "Good Morning." Our life schedules are to ridiculous and not normal here that if you don't laugh, you'll go literally insane. I rarely ever see the night, or I never notice it because the sun is always just on the horizon. But the other night, I pushed my way through the gaggles of drunken people from all walks of the Earth, bust through the double doors of the upstairs club and rested my hands on the balcony. I just took a deep breathe and stopped for a second. And for the first time, I looked up at the sky and saw the brightest stars you would ever see. Isn't it amazing when you are in such a roller coaster of a situation, you can always look up and see the calm.

I met a guy who is a bartender at another bar, his name is Marcus and he often hangs out with us. He is Australian and very nice. He was standing by my VIP section last night, and he noticed how stressed out I was over creepy Italians grabbing me or drunk VIP trying to dance with me and what not...and he whispered to me.."You know Linds, this is such a hard place to live. All of us have to look out for each other." It was so simple to say, yet it really struck a chord inside me. In the end, I am only a memory maker. People will remember me and the time they had at the bar, or on the beach...but the people I work with or live with have my back no matter what.

I have discovered that I am probably going on a very big adventure after Mykonos. I have been offered many jobs throughout the world, and I just might hop on the journey-of-life train I so often speak of, then come back for another summer here in Mykonos. This might mean I will not come back to Seattle for awhile, but I am making the memories that count.

I have been through it all you guys. Chased home by 6 Greeks, pushed in a pool during sunrise, had long talks on the beach, seen an elephant thong, considered 2:30pm my morning and 8am my bed time, had my fair share of Grey Goose/Belvedere/Moet, driven an ATV and almost hit a by a bus, swam in the Aegean, drove a jet ski with an F-1 race car driver, drank Champagne on a private yacht bigger than my house, officially had my name changed to Barbie by the locals...and yes, held many stray kittens. It has been one month and 3 weeks since I made the decision to quit my job and take a leap of faith. It has been one month since I left Seattle. And one month since I made the best decision of my life. Many people look at me and say "you have the best job in the world. Do you know how many people wish they could do what you are doing?" Yes. I understand, but my reply back is always "then why don't they." That is when I see the biggest smile on their faces and it is my favorite when they stop for one second and realize I am right. This has been a crazy summer ladies and gentlemen, but hey, such as life.

Good Morning.

2008-06-19T13:23:00.002-07:00

Hello from halfway around the world!

I am currently exhausted, sunburnt, dry-eyed and loving every minute of it. This summer is all about adventures for me. Would you like to here adventure #1? Lets see if you can see it from my point of view...

Not being packed the day before I left, I got one hour of sleep before I had to leave my house for the airport at 4:30ish in the morning. I boarded my plane in Seattle at 6:25am and was soon leaving a face print on the airplane seat window...why you ask? Well, lets just say McDonalds and Burger King spokespeople #1 and 2 sat next to me. Bound for New Jersey I was in awe of the beauty I saw from the air. Mt. Rainier was bursting out of the clouds, which looked like a sea of cotton balls. New Jersey was crap, so we can skip that part. After an hour and a half layover in that hell hole, I boarded my plane bound for Athens, Greece! I actually got a whole row to myself for the 10 hour flight! After seeing a sunset and a sunrise, I arrived at the Athens airport only to wait to board another flight to my home away from home, Mykonos.

Now this is where the fun begins.
Trip to Greece: $1500. Food bought throughout my 16 hrs of traveling: $10. Arriving at the Mykonos airport only to have no one show up to pick you up, no one answering their phones, and having no idea where you are suppost to be: Priceless. What. The. Hell.

I waited in line for a taxi for about 30 minutes since there are only like....3 taxis on this whole island. I went to the only place I knew where to go...my friend Theo's restaurant! He let me hang out until I could meet up with my new roomies Holly (from UK) and Alison (from Boston). We also live with a Italian named Georgia and soon 3 boys that will be arriving in a week.

Now guys...my apartment...it is the BIGGEST house in the town. It is BEAUTIFUL. My room is about 4 rooms but together with extremely high ceilings and windows that look out to the sea. As in...the waves crash about 10 feet below onto my apartment. I have a ladder that leads up to bay windows which I can open and close and go out onto the deck...which I happily share with a family of pigeons.

We have an upstairs with rooms just as large and the a third floor that goes to the roof. Even though this is a very expensive and awesome location...it is like a frat house that is in desperate needs to repair. Ceilings leak when upstairs shows are taken, plaster is falling off the walls, the bathrooms are weird, no hot water...but hey, the view is unbelievable.

So onto my job. Every day, us 3 girls get on a bus at 2pm and drive 15 minutes to a popular beach/hostel called "Paradise Beach." We "promote" aka...sit in lawn chairs and tan.Then we come back for about a 4 hour break (which i am on now) then around 9ish we walk around the corner from our apartment to the most famous club on the island. We then pass out stuff to tourists and hang out at the bar until 4:30am listening to top 40, 80's and house music. It is awesome. We get treated like princesses all over this island because of the bar reputation. We get discounts on EVERYTHING.

Anyway। I was a bit homesick the first day since nothing went right. But now I realize...oh my gosh॥I am in Greece. I am in an apartment literally built into the ocean floor and every night I go to sleep with the sound of the waves knocking on my window. And every morning I hear birds chirping, the sun on my face, the breeze on my skin and the ocean at my finger tips.

It's You. It's Me. It's Everyone In Between.

2008-05-10T22:23:00.000-07:00

When you think about your life, what do you want to accomplish?

When you are old and gray and sitting in a rocking chair, what is it that you can think back on and make you smile?

For me...it is all the people in this world that I would never have met if I did not take a jump; a leap of faith, hoping that the wind will always catch me and give me wings to fly and dream as big as I want.

I have made my decision to let the wind take me to a small island in the middle of the Aegean Sea. Mykonos. I have always had a fascination with Greek history and the romance that comes with Greece. I feel that life is a puzzle of opportunities and we all have to figure out which pieces fit together at the right times to make our "puzzle," our life, a masterpiece.

So I quit my job at Starbucks and I am tipping my hat to my friends and life in Seattle, Washington for a 3 month adventure that will hopefully change my outlook on life. It is my goal to always better myself and believe that no matter how good or bad, everything happens for a reason. If you look at every situation and think "this is the best thing that could ever happen to me," then every morning you will wake up happy. I want to be happy and never look back and think "I should of."

As people, we NEED to look back and smile and move forward. We have families and boyfriends and girlfriends and responsibilities in our lives, YES...but you cannot forget that you are an individual and that your wants come before anything else, even if you think you are giving something up...you are doing it for a reason, and that reason is that everything HAPPENS for a specific reason that will essentially come out as the most amazing, beautiful and life changing THING in the word.

With that, I introduce you to my website where you can keep track of my adventures and hopefully it will inspire you to have some of your own this summer.

So I thank you for meeting me and hopefully we can meet everyone in between us.