It’s been a busy weekend so far! I’ve been catching up on schoolwork (it’s unbelievable how much work they have us doing), so I haven’t had a lot of time to just relax.

But this morning, I forced myself to relax. I got up well before noon (which is a feat after the week I’ve had) and fixed myself some grits to go with my morning coffee, and then I just sat at the table and ate. Ben is out of town, and Matt is still asleep, so I was all by myself, just sitting and enjoying the moment. How long has it been since I did that?

Then after about 10 minutes I had to get up and get my computer. This shows me that I’ve got something to work on. If I can’t sit for 10 minutes and do nothing, then I’ve got a problem. Do any of you experience this? How have you taught yourselves to just enjoy the moment?

Oh, and everyone should go an visit my tenant! Meredith was featured this week at the Thursday Thirteen Hub, so make sure you congratulate her!!

Thirteen Things about LINDSEY

1. My days are getting all mixed up, LOL! I think it was last Thursday that we went to Ephesus. The cruise ship docked in Kusadasi, Turkey, and then we took a bus out to Ancient Ephesus. These ruins weren’t in as good condition as the ruins at Pompeii, but it was still really cool, especially when the guide pointed out the huge amphitheatre where Paul preached. Then we drove back into Kusadasi and looked at really nice Turkish carpets, haha! It was fun.

2. On Friday we went to Athens. The first stop was the Acropolis - it was HUGE! I had no idea how big those buildings were. We saw temples and things, and we also saw the Theatre of Dionysus (which was really cool because I’ve studied it for so long in theatre classes). Then we took a bus to Corinth where we traveled on a boat through the Corinth Canal (which is reeeeeeally narrow). It was a nice change from the boiling hot ruins.

3. The next day was a day at sea, which I promptly spent all day in my pajamas reading. Yay relaxation!

4. The next day was the last stop - Venice. I have decided that I am moving to Venice. I was sooooo in love, and I’m not even really sure why. I just had a feeling about it. I’m not even joking - when I get home I’m going to research living in Venice and the opportunities MagicMouth might have there.

5. In Venice we went to a neat house that has been converted into a museum, then St. Mark’s church (which we didn’t spend nearly enough time in), and finally the Doge’s Palace, which was huge. It was really neat. And of course, that night, we had a gondola ride. Cheesy, yes. But you can’t go to Venice and not go on a gondola ride, LOL!

6. The next morning we had to leave the ship at 4:30AM in order to get to the airport in time! We were in Paris by lunchtime. How’s that for fast travel? LOL!

7. We spent the day in Paris going on a driving tour through the city, just so we could get our bearings. Then that evening we went to the Arc de Triomphe and walked along the Champs Elysees (stopping at both Haagen Daas and Louis Vuitton, of course ;)).

8. The next day we went out the palace at Versailles, which was massive. Then we met up with a friend at Notre Dame (a co-pilot for Air France who lives in Paris), which was nice. Then we headed back to the hotel, changed clothes, and went to a show at the Moulin Rouge! That was fun, though it was nothing like what it looked like in the movie, haha.

9. On Wednesday (yesterday) we went to the Lourve first thing in the morning and spent the morning there. It was soooo huge, but I saw a lot more than I thought I would. I felt very productive, haha. Then we walked along the Seine River down to the Eiffel Tower, but we didn’t go up. The line was long, and we were tired of walking, haha. Then we went back to the hotel.

10. Yesterday night was the France vs. Portugal game for futbol, and since France won, we had a hard time falling asleep because of all the cars honking all night long, haha. But it was really cool to be there for that game.

11. This morning we woke up at the crack of dawn AGAIN to go to the airport . . . and right now I’m sitting in the Atlanta airport waiting for our connecting flight to Jacksonville. It will be good to sleep in my own bed tonight, hahaha! Thus ends the European vacation . . . pictures to follow at some point this weekend.

12. Heard from Ben - things are good with his mother. Thank you for your prayers.

13. And of course, a quiz:

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. . . so here are some quizzes for you! I was really surprised at the accuracy of all of these . . .

Since I’ve been sick I’ve been reading a lot and watching a lot of movies - yay for relaxation and recuperation! I’ve written up my reviews of all these, but since I’m using a loaner computer until next week, I can’t upload the pictures to my server until then, so I will post the reviews in a few days.

Until then, I will be away for a couple of days. Living Parables is going on our fall retreat, and we’re leaving early tomorrow morning. Let’s hope I don’t get too exhausted!!! Back in a few!