big decision day

after several months of not updating, i think today is significant enough to update you on. after a couple months of deliberation and one meeting with my future boss, i've decided to stay in the UK!

for the past couple weeks, i've been working at the manchester museum as a visitor service assistant (see 'don't touch that', 'bathrooms are that way', 'would you like a map'). it's been an absolutely fantastic experience with my aching feet as the only downside. i work with great people in a great building with a great collection and hope to continue the experience. i think (and hope and pray) that i will be able to continue in the same role after the restructure. all i need is my visa.

unfortunately, that's also the hang-up. in order to get said visa, i will need two things: first, i need to have £1200 in a bank account for a period of three months (this does not need to be my money, it only needs to be in a bank account with my name on it for that period), second, to have the £395 for the visa application. so, here's a thought for anyone who wants: 1- ideas for (christmas, birthday, graduation) 2- to keep me out of the US for a longer period or 3- dibs on naming my firstborn child.... i could really use a hand in pursuing this visa.

in other news, i had a fantastic summer! both mumma and peter visited, and it was lovely beyond words to see them. i also moved into a new house (same flatmates, minus F and plus L). the leasing agent (not even a landlord) is completely horrendous... we haven't had hot water since mumma left, the washer regurgitated foul water into a wash load, and etc... but the rest of the living situation is phenomenal! L and i cook dins almost every night, i knit while S plays zelda, the house watches movies together, and generally we all enjoy eachother's company. in all, i can't think of a better job to leave for and house to come home to.

my dissertation went well, but perhaps more importantly, it's DONE. i got to travel to london and oxford for my research, which was loads of fun. i also got speak with a few different curators about stradivarius violins and learned a lot more about the subject than i could ever summarize into a coherent dissertation. i ended on something like 14,500 words, most of which are not gibberish. i can't wait to get my results back in november. that being said, i'm also very, very nervous about it... but i would be happy to send you the file if you'd like to read it.

i'm about to run out of battery on the computer, so i'll be short about the rest of this. i'll post more about the rest of the summer, books i've read, music i've listened to, and films i've watched (one major recommendation: winter's bone. so, so good). i hope to be posting more often as well, and as always, please please write/call/text/skype!! i miss home lots and lots, so hearing from you would be very much appreciated.

much, much love from the UK (it's been more than a year now)!!