Pre-course readings

The reading list has begun.  Emily and I have gotten some pdf's and ordered some books to begin reading for school.  I share with you a new found quote from "How Musical is Man?" by John Blacking.

"The very existence of a professional performer (musician)... depends on listeners who in one important respect must be no less musically proficient than he is.  They must be able to distinguish and interrelate different patterns of sound." 

Thus we are all musicians and we are all musically talented, just not all in western style music. 

Packing and Parties

This past month's theme in the Stover house has been: packing.  Every few days we drive to Bloomington with another car load full of stuff, to store at Brandon's parent's house.  They are being generous enough to allow us to leave all of our things there for the year, rather than paying for a storage unit.  I find it ironic that for the past five years Brandon has been trying to get all of his stuff out of his parent's house and now we are just taking it right back!

I have also been planning on what items to bring with me to London.  I am trying to limit myself to one checked bag and one carry-on size suitcase.  I have a plan for clothes, hoping I can fit them all in my suitcase, based on this website: http://www.academichic.com/2009/05/27/how-to-pack-for-a-research-year-abroad/  I am trying to base my wardrobe on her great suggestions, but I probably still have too many items picked out.  Check out later in the month for my final packing list and pictures of what I end up taking.

In the midst of all this packing, I get to celebrate the upcoming marriage of my closest friend Kathryn.  This weekend we had a great time at her bachelorette party, keeping it real classy by painting pottery and tasting wines at August Hill in Utica.  Thanks to the generosity of a couple from our church we were able to stay in a really beautiful cabin for the night.  We then hiked the Matthiessen State Park trails in the morning.  It was a wonderful way to celebrate with friends and the blushing bride-to-be!

Painting Pottery

Wine Tasting with the Bride-to-Be

Hiking in the Morning

Our first day, not back

Today would have been our first day back to school. Instead we slept in and will be packing and cleaning up the house. We've been spending these last weeks saying goodbye to friends at work and church. We had dinner with friends last night and have dinner again tonight and it is a good thing because there is next to nothing at our house!

Three weeks from tomorrow we leave Illinois. 

Final hurdles

Today our visa's arrived in the mail and we can officially go to London. We now have a short list of things to tidy up around Illinois, say our goodbyes to friends and family, and fly off to the UK. 

One thing is missing, after 6 nights in the UK, we will be homeless. Our first tasks in the UK will be to get a mobil and flat. After that we can be tourists for a week and then school starts!  It's hard to imagine that almost 6 years after graduating from Millikin (4 for Emily) We will finally be going back to school. 

We are really glad we got approved for our visas as it was a long, difficult, and expensive process to do on your own. One good thing we saw, we are able to stay in London through November next year (2014) if we wish to stay a little longer. 

Cheers