Another Good Week Has Gone By...

Can’t believe I have been here so long! The girls ask me everyday how long I plan on staying and the young ones ask if I’m going to sign a 10-year contract and I said well it goes year to year so we shall see. I have actually been thinking about how much I’m going to miss the girls and miss it here but it would just be even harder to leave for good if I stayed for another year after this.

I cannot wait for visitors and Italy! I am soooo excited and then it’s my birthday month when I get back from Italy and then first Thanksgiving ever in the dining hall and then it's my birthday! Can’t believe I’ll be 23-that’s pretty crazy. It is just so weird to think that I have been alive for 23 years-that is so long! I learned a new joke last night but I don’t remember it because I didn’t get it soo I can’t tell you but I’ll try to remember or ask to hear it again and then share it but I don’t think it was funny even if you understand it so we’ll see. I told all my jokes last night and now people said they are going to come with jokes next weekend so I need to step up my game and keep them comin!

Today we traveled over 2 hours to Sherborne which is a very pretty town (all the towns here are pretty though). The school was beautiful and they had really nice athletic facilities and a sports hall because it is shared with the community, not just the school. The Monmouth Boys School here is the same way with their facilities and such so they are nice because they are used by the community also. Our fields and Astro-turf are the only thing that other people use of ours really. We took 4 teams today-both senior teams, U15, and U14. They all won except for the U15. This is the year 10 group which is the team I have been struggling with because they are at that age where they would rather be doing anything else at the time than what they are supposed to be playing so it is hard to teach them anything lacrosse-related.I have had a couple talks with them this past week and they informed me today that they are sorry to disappoint me and they are ready to get better and really start trying and working hard to do better in matches. It was nice to hear and I am proud of them for wanting to do this but it is another thing to actually do it :) So we shall see.

I have acquired many different nicknames already since I’ve been here. I have America, Miss America, Miss P…and my two favorite Dan and Dani. (siiigh). I try not to answer to Dani but it just hasn’t gone away and seems to be spreading so there is no way around that one. I don’t mind Dan because my family calls me that so I am used to it and it reminds me of you guys :) America is the most common one and I am actually starting to respond to it which makes me laugh because it just sounds normal now.

Isn't it funny how i actually think ill have nothing to write about? ha-ha It was another pretty day today and I got some sun on my face again! I love having color on my face and the sun just makes me a happier person in general as you can imagine.

Lisa and Christine are going to buy me this thing online called SlingMedia or something like that and it is going to be amazingggg. What happens is you hook it up to a TV (Lisa’s) and I can access all the channels she gets live or ones she records for me or something. So this way I can still watch all my shows! It is my Bday/Christmas present from them which is a great idea and so creative:) so thanks guys! I want to encourage all of you who read my blog to become a “follower”. I know it sounds like I am forming a cult or something but it can show me who is reading it and it’s like a little blog club! It sounds fun! But there is no club with no followers so get on it! Hmm what else…

Next Friday one of the gaps had a birthday in July and we are celebrating it October 3rd. Starting at Spoons, which is the pub we always go to on Friday nights and then leaving around 10:45 to go to a park nearby to play flashlight tag. They call flashlights torches which took me awhile to catch onto. I was like we are chasing each other with torches? Why does this not sound safe to me and why are none of you worried…?They were like yeah you have to get someone with your torch and I was like get them as in like hit them with it? Haha I was confused but yeah it’s a flashlight! So that should be fun! I can’t believe Wednesday is October! Mom, you and MMJ come so soon!! I actually have a countdown on my wall of the number of days until half term break and each post-it has a number on it up to 20. They get here in 17 and Lisa gets here in 21. Time flies:) so anyways this is long and really has just pointless information in it, I’m sorry. I feel like there was something I needed to put in here and now I can’t remember so I have been rambling and just typing away trying to wait for myself to remember but nothing’s coming to mind.

Oh! Ceri is going to the doctor Wednesday and says she will probably be able to start working again on Thursday but that is doing stuff within the school, probably not going out to lessons and such right away but that is exciting to have her back! She said people have been telling her how great I handled this situation and have been doing a really good job with the teams and such. Made me happy:-) I like to think I’m a good coach! Ha. Hopefully they will learn things from me and continue to use it even after I leave-makes me sad to think about leaving them but it’s only September. Well I think that’s about it right now. I miss you all and will write again soon!

Love love love love,
DP (America, Dani, Dan)
xoxo

Sunshine:-)

Not sure what the last blog was about because I cannot see them because it’s blocked on the school internet because of these crazy kids. I will just write a quick one to say hello and let you guys know what is new. Today we had the South Wales Rally and it was supposed to be at our school but the pitches (fields) were too muddy and even if they were playable we didn’t want games all day running them so we had it at Cheltenham College about 45 minutes away and a very pretty town and school. I have been taking pictures then stopped because everything is so slow here that I cannot even upload them and it is very frustrating. It was a long day but HOT AND SUNNY and yes that needs to be in capital letters. I got sunburned cheeks:-) I was so happy when I got back and saw my rosey cheeks with color from the sunlight finally. We have had days of sun but I have been in and out with different lessons in the gym and outside that I hadn’t actually gotten color yet. I definitely got some color today and it made me extremely happy. I really think weather can change a person’s mood. The girls today were talking about how rain isn’t that bad and they have gotten used to the weather here. Today they said they wouldn’t have minded if it rained a little to cool things down. I said no do not take the sun away from me! Ha but it was a very good day-all three teams we took did very well winning more than half their games so hopefully they will only get better. I had to umpire (ref) and I am still getting used to it. When the other umpire blows their whistle I stop moving because I am so trained to stand when the whistle blows and then I’m like oh right I’m not playing I can move whenever I want ha. I now look out my window when I wake up to see if the cows are standing or sitting and always smile if they are standing. I get mad if they sit later in the day, thinking that means it’s going to rain the next day but I try to just enjoy the weather when it’s good. It has been hot the past week and today was beautiful. I have a day off tomorrow with nothing to do so hopefully it’s nice out and I’ll stroll into town and just do whatever:-)
Went out again last night-that was fun. People around here just started calling me America which makes me laugh because I actually started responding to it whenever I hear it. People are starting to know now as the American. When I go to order a drink she’s like hello American! Haha and when I hand them my Maryland license at the door he just smiles because I’m the only one he’s ever had-he said he has seen California though. He goes I always forget where the birth date is on here! So yeah it was another fun night out in the little town of Monmouth:-)
Lisa’s coming to visit!!!!! My mom and grandmother are coming October 14th and then my break starts the 17th so we’re going to London on the 18th and Lisa is meeting us there and then we will explore London then Mom and MMJ leave and Lisa and I go back to Monmouth for a couple days. Then I leave on the 24th for Italy and Lisa flies home to the States. It’s funny because in Australia I wasn’t used to the coins meaning so much-I am so used to just using bills and then here it’s the same way. At the ATM last night I was talking about how I had a ton of coins and forgot them because I forgot that they are important and was going on and on and this couple was standing behind us and he goes “excuse me..are you from America or Canada?” I was like I’m from America:-) and he was like oh yeah, people visiting forget that coins are important. They definitely mean something here! Then of course they ask why I’m here, what I’m doing, etc etc. ha
Alright well this about sums up what has been going on I think. Hopefully I can update again soon! Miss you all!!

Xoxo
DP

Week 3 Begins...

Well I'm sorry that I have been slacking but there hasn't been much to write about but I figured I would let things build up and then recap the past few days to give you some fresh, lengthy reading material. I know some of you live for this thing so I didn't want to let you down but waiting even longer to update you on my life across the pond-still not even sure what the pond is. Anyway, I have been so busy with the same old-lessons during the day, during lunch, after school, then boarding house duties. I have been helping with field hockey, swimming and netball which has been interesting because I am learning more everytime which is good I guess. Friday and Saturday nights were fun. Went to this pub called Wetherspoons (Spoons) with some people around here. Funny example of how I always use the excuse that I'm from America when I'm in awkward situations..
I was standing at the bar waiting for a drink and I saw a bag of chips there so I turned them so I could read what they said and this guy came up behind me and was like "woah woah woah, are you trying to steal my crisps??" I was like "ahh sorry I was just trying to read it, I didn't recognize the kind of chips they were." And he goes "they are crisps, not chips..and you were definitely going to steal them.." I was like "But I'm from America! I don't know anything!" haha and then he just made fun of me for calling them chips and everything was ok. So the fact that I am American and everyone loves my accents helps alot. All the girls make me mimic an English accent and they love it and say I'm really good at it so I just do it all the time haha
Saturday we played the only other school in Wales who has a lacrosse team, Howells. They were terrible. The coach was even worse (the coaches do the umpiring). She would make up rules and then tell us what she was calling and make us call it too. It was really bad, but I guess it is what it is! Next Saturday is the South Wales Rally here and it sounds fun. A bunch of different schools from England come here and it's like 9-4 so that should be fun and nice that it is here and we won't have to travel for it.
Yesterday was such a long day! I played netball with Ceri's team as their novice player and it was very obvious I had never played before. I kept getting called for foot work which is when you move your feet after you catch it and that is the main rule and I could have sworn I kept them still! I was getting really frustrauted. I was really long but it was fun. I feel like I got better and they said I was pretty good so I was like aw thanks! haha so that was my day yesterday..then I met my friend Evan at the pub to hang out and use his wireless there then came back and felt like I had wasted a whole day ha. But now I can say that I've played netball and that I'm good!
I'm going to Italy!!!! I booked a ticket from Gatwick, London into Pisa October 24th. How crazy is that?! I am going to Italy! I have a return flight home November 3rd out of Rome. I am going with a few girls from the induction course I met a couple weekends ago who are here doing what I'm doing. I am really excited and cannot wait to travel and see cool and romantic things!:-) We figured we would just stay in hostels and see how that goes. Hopefully they are safe enough just to sleep because I doubt we will be in there very often. But yeah...I'm going to Italy ahhh
I can't wait until my mom and grandmother come out here Oct 14th then my break is Oct 17th so we'll go to London the 18th. So that basically sums up the past few days. If I think of anything else, I will be sure to update you all. Sorry it is shorter than usual but it makes up for the ones that are pretty much novels!

xoxo
DP

beautiful day:-)

Today was gorgeous..it was sunny, blue skies, and perfect temperature. Apparently that is how their falls usually are but this year has been different. Heard on the news that the next couple weeks are going to be rainy then we are expected to have an Indian summer with really great weather in late September and October-lucky you mom and mom mom! That would be great, huh?:-)
Latest news: Ceri dislocated her knee which is all they know right now. She has to keep it stabilized in a full leg cast for 2-3 weeks then I guess they do x-rays and all that other stuff to figure out what they are going to do surgery wise or what is needed. So, it is just me right now and there are some other PE teachers helping out but I am pretty confident handling the girls on my own now:-) Ceri will probably be back in a couple weeks in a wheelchair in order to get down the hill to practice so day by day we go..
I am not really sure what else has happened the past couple days besides that which is a pretty big deal! I am planning a trip to Italy with a couple girls in the program for the end of October/early November so I am excited about that! I will take tons of pictures obviously and update my blog on all of my adventures because there will be daily experiences that I am sure you all will love to hear..probably about traveling in general even and just getting place to place and then what happens when we get there!:-) Can't wait to update you on those things!
I think of things throughout the day that I want to put in here and then I forget when I sit down to write so I just ramble. One of the PE teachers, Sarah, used to do lax but since she isn't anymore that is why I am here. She came to help out with the years 9 and 10 today after school and was saying how they've gotten so much better in only like a week since she's seen them last. I was like thank ya thank ya:-) So that made me feel good about what I have been doing even though I don't even really feel like I have been doing anything yet. I have the seniors tomorrow so that will be a more advanced practice-still haven't decided what we will do yet. It's difficult because by the time they get dressed and out there, we only have an hour and they only get twice a week but we shall see...anyways it is almost midnight so I will wait to write again until I have something really really interesting to share:-)

Miss you all!
xoxo
DP

Cheers

Nothing too exciting today so this will probably be a short one..well I say that but who knows once I get started:-) Today during PE, we had the years 7 and 8 so they are about 12 and are fun to play lax with because they just love everything we do. We played relays, break out, steal the bacon, and anything else we could think of to encourage loving lax and bringing their friends along. We have new people joining everyday for each year which is neat and they actually are pretty quick learners. No rain today-it was a nice day and they said this is how their Falls usually are but now there are flood warnings for tomorrow and through the rest of the week-go figure when I'm here! Hopefully it passes with all the hurricanes whenever they leave and the nice weather will come through eventually. Saturday the Duke and Dutchess (I think that's what they are called) of Gloucester were stranded because of the road closings and floods so the helicopter landed on our lax field to pick them up and there was security everywhere blocking the roads off and such-how cool is that?
Forgot to mention their yogurt here..well, "yoghurt". I tried it and it was horrible-tasted sour and it was not even something that I would get used to the more I ate it because I won't eat it again. At dinner tonight, they had a salad with tomatoes and what looked like mozzarella so of course I was loading on both because I love it, as most of you know, and I tried the mozzarella and can't even describe what I tasted. First of all, I am not even sure if it was cheese and it was just the most bitter taste I almost spit it out. Here, it is very very rude to not eat everything on your plate (everyones plates are completely empty at the end of the meals) so I had to eat whatever the stuff was that I thought was mozzarella and it was terrible-I wouldn't breathe when I was chewing it so I couldn't taste it and swallowed most of it whole so I wouldn't have to chew it long. The food is very good here though which I was quite surprised. Most of it is like stuff at home but just called different things and I'm not very picky so it hasn't been a problem. Today though, I don't even want to know what I ate...
Lacrosse here is very different in terms of commitment and that is why Ceri was so curious about American lax because it is such a huge commitment compared to the girls here. She said she tries to make things mandatory but it is not enforced by the parents which makes it harder for her to enforce it. Today one girl was excited because she could make the game on Saturday. I was like I don't get why that's even a choice and Ceri was like I know, it is unbelievable and you don't even realize until you start to experience it. One girl couldn't come to practice today because she had band at 7 and needed to do her homework before that. Some of the seniors are missing one of their 2 practices a week after school for a 10-week cooking class of chicken cordon blue. I was like forget the class! I'll get my mom to teach you when she's here! haha. But it includes meals to take home every week and a bunch of stuff-looks pretty neat actually. But there are just so many things for these girls to do that they can't commit to just one and it is just so different from America where kids are forced at such an early age to pick one thing and play year-round and if you don't then you basically don't play in college. Very different, but they are fun and very nice-love listening to me talk which is still funny. Some of the girls say everything after I say it just to try to sound American which is funny because I try to repeat what they say to sound English haha. Anyways that is about all I have for today:-) I will let you know about the flooding tomorrow. The PE lockers already flooded this past weekend and girls had to take everything home to wash it because their lockers were full of water and got their "PE kit" wet and muddy and such. So it has been pretty crazy..well ok goodnight, bedtime for this girl!

talk soon!
xoxo
DP
ps-one of the PE teachers was saying how apparently when the cows are sitting down, that's how you know it's going to rain and I was like well I haven't seen them stand since I've been here! I thought it was funny haha...obviously they had been walking around and such but I just meant that because it's been raining so much they haven't bothered to stand up...anyways. night!

Berkhamsted

First day of lax today and it was quite an experience. It reminded me of a club lax tournament. It was in Berkhamsted which was about 3 hours away and they had 11 pitches (fields) so it was a huge facility. It was rainy and cold and there was about a half hour of sun and I was so excited, then was told it wouldn't last long which it didn't. The coaches umpire and that was interesting..I am obviously still learning and a little hesitant but will get better:-) I got a compliment from one of the coaches on my new goalie and how she seems to have natural talent and will be really good. She did very well and all 3 teams we took did well-getting better throughout the day. First day is always a struggle getting back into the swing of things, especially with the weather being how it was. I am not phased by rain anymore or puddles in my shoes which is good I guess since it happens quit often. I just tell myself that I will be showered and dry at the end of the day-staying positive:-)
I saw a bunch of girls from the induction course we had earlier and that was fun..also saw Steph Schnieder who was a senior at Denver when I was a freshman. She is going on her 4th year out here which is pretty unbelievable. She couldn't believe that I graduated already which I said I couldn't either. Bittersweet day starting lax officially here and knowing everyone's back at Denver starting classes tomorrow. It is quite the adjustment but is getting easier and I am definitely growing up and becoming more mature with more responsibilities everyday which is good. I had the second senior team today who will primarily become the team I will coach. It is hard because they only have about an hour on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school so time is quite limited and limits what we can do and what I can teach them but it will be ok. Another week starts tomorrow with Assembly at 8.50am so it's back to the busy days with PE lessons and boarding house duties. Still can't believe I am done with college..it is very weird to think about.
On the way back from Berkhamsted, we had 3 hrs of "Ask Danielle anything.." so that became quite interesting. We compared everything we say differently, they asked about college in America and think playing lax there would be amazing which I said it is an awesome experience but goes soo fast. They said they all want my accent and love listening to my stories which made me feel special ha. I explained Thanksgiving and they asked if you just sit around and pray and I said it is a time to come together and be with the people you love and they asked if it's like the episodes on Friends haha. I said yes, but different for everyone:-) They asked about cliques, trends, sayings/phrases, high school, and everything imaginable. They also like when I do an English accent and say it's not so bad so I'll keep working on that I guess.
They said they have X-Factor on the bus going to games and stuff and basically they use the microphone on the bus and perform and sing..I was like oh man I was made for this:-) haha can't wait for that. I was threatened and told that I better not be good and create competition. I said that I think I'm good but I'm really not, I just love to sing! obviously you all know that already..
I told them I was going to have my mom bring karaoke revolution american idol edition for play station and we can have competitions and they also want me to show them DVDs of my Denver games-that made them really excited...and me because I miss it!
After we got back tonight, I worked with a girl who graduated last year and came to help today and she loves lax and plays point (they still do the positions) and I helped the vice captain of the first team who plays cover point and we played in the gym and I taught them some defensive things..just some basics with 1 on 1 defense but they really liked it so I'll probably do that more often-lax lax lax! haha. Anyways...it's late here so I'm going to go to sleep but I just wanted to fill everyone in on my first day of lax games and give you some Monday morning reading at work:-)

Miss you all!
xoxo
DP

Cats and Dogs

The rain today has been miserable! It makes it soo hard to get out of bed in the morning but I cannot wait to sleep in tomorrow and go to sleep tonight without setting an alarm! Today was very very relaxed and pretty much wonderful. The PE department had the year nines for the first 2 periods and the lax girls came with me and Ceri to the indoor pool and we played games there since it was miserable outside and the girls would not have played lax out there. I had them play lax games in the pool like steal the bacon and we did relays and a couple other things. They are very good swimmers so it was easy to come up with things to do. I got some more keys today to the athletic buildings and such but have no idea what any of them go to and don't have a key ring big enough for them all yet. I am going to look like the keeper of a jail with how many keys they gave me but it makes me feel important:-) The head mistress actually lives in "the old jail house" which is it's actual name. She was joking today about how she was afraid the bank would turn her down when she gave her address to them. But she is very into having staff parties and said it is a great party house so she wants to have everyone over-not sure I can handle that..I ran today through a cemetery and have no idea why because I was looknig behind me the whole time and basically sprinted out of it. I had tea/coffee with her today because she invited all the new staff for a small get together in her study so that was nice I guess. I decided to go running outside today for a change instead of a treadmill because I feel like I am going nowhere on those things but it rained and I came back soaking wet. I had no idea how hilly it was-I almost thought I was going to need an inhaler at one point. And some of the roads do not have sidewalks so I would run extra fast on those and then be gasping for air at the end ha I saw road kill right next to the curb I was running on and screamed so that was interesting. The houses are gorgeous around here. Mom-you would looove riding your bike around this town (check your bike at the airport:-)) but yes you would love it. This was my first time running outside so I was staring at the houses in awe and they all have names which is really cool. One is called September House which I thought was pretty cool. Lucky for them it's their month! haha So anyway that is how my day has gone. Now I am on boarding house duty basically just updating my blog then dinner at 530 and then we shall see from there. I will keep you all posted on how eventful my say off is tomorrow!
oh ps-I got internet in my flat..not sure how long it will last because they have to reconfigure it eventually but I want to skype and webcam with whoever whenever I can so let me know!!:-)

xoxo
DP

life with the cows

I always wonder what I am going to title these posts and then I just sit here and let something come to me. The reason I named this one "life with the cows" is because there is a fence around the astro (which is what they call the turf field) and then maybe 20 feet away is a fence and a ton of cows were there today against the fence eating I guess? They are usually farther away because I hadn't seen them when I have been on the field and the girls acted like it was nothing out of the ordinary...just cows. Wonder what was for dinner...haha just kidding. So today I taught them some Denver drills. I always jump in and play with them and actually got sad today realizing I wouldn't be playing lax with my Denver girls anymore:-( Also, I realized that I talk in the present tense saying things like "well at Denver we do this...my coach always tells us..." One example today was during a lacrosse lesson during the day, there were about 10 seniors and they were just very blah and not wanting to be there (granted it was raining off and on go figure) and so I told them to fake it. Just act happy like you are having the time of your life and would not want to be anywhere else. Liza used to tell us this all the time and it actually works because you start to exaggerate the excitement and then it just becomes funny and somewhat obnoxious, nonetheless lightening the mood. I also had them do dirty band aid which is a 3v2 in front of the goal but we couldn't name it that because they call band aids plasters (plastas) so that made me sad because I had been calling it that for 4 years. I had them all line up on the endline and go one by one off the line yelling and running and as soon as they had to take a breath, they had to stop running and they loved it. One girl literally got 5 feet because she started laughing (I thought of Sarajane:-)) and then a couple others stopped because they were laughing too. Overall, they are all a great group of girls who love learning and are good at lax. Ceri says I have to teach more because they are so intrigued with everything I say that they pay such close attention whenever I talk. Sometimes they don't know what I'm saying and it makes me laugh because I forget I have an accent to them. During a drill I said "talk it up" and they looked at me like I had 5 heads. I was like ohhh I mean keep talking..communicating..haha. Today at lunch I learned that Ceri is picking up on my American language saying defense with a long "e" in the "de" and pants instead of trousers and she said her parents asked her a question and she said "uh huh" and then was shocked because she didn't know where it came from haha They also say things like car park instead of parking lot, boot of the car instead of trunk, and things I hear everyday where it makes me go "hmm". I realized that when they say tshirts, they mean polo shirts. The girls practice in kilts and polos-that is their gym "kit". When they play sports, everything they need for that sport is called their "kit". I will think of some others and let you know because it is very cool to hear how different it is. They call z's zeds and h's are hache with a long "a". I started adding milk to my tea a couple days ago-not sure why..just seemed like the right thing to do. I asked them why they are so against "zeds" and they just laughed and also why everything with an "or" also needs a "u" to be "our" like colour, favourite, etc. I have been working with a couple goalies teaching them what I know which is more than you would think and just printed some stuff online to read about it and have been working on attack and draws and other things too. It's fun helping with every part of the game and teaching them what I know. I went into Bristol with Ceri last night to get my sim card for a phone and the whole way back I told her about sports in America and college sports, particularly lacrosse and she said she could listen to me talk about it all day because it was so cool and she wishes she experienced it. Made me feel bittersweet about it-happy I experienced it and have all the memories sports related and nonsports related but also sad that it's over..oh and also today she told me that when I got out of the car last night I was like "cya, it's been real!" and she goes I sat there and thought "real? well yeah it was real.. what did she just say?" haha it made me laugh really hard and then they asked what I meant by that. I was like I don't know..real..like fun..good times. ok well like all my other ones this is extremely long. Sorry!! I will write again soon. Glad I am not writing in my journal though because my hand would probably fall off so thank the Lord for blogs huh?:-) Still working on getting wireless in my flat, I told the tech guys I would meet them here in the morning after my lessons and that I'd be waiting-I am sure they hate me haha but I miss my fellow Americans and need to skype and see everyone!! k talk soon!

xoxo,
dp

and it begins..

So school and lax started yesterday so I have been nonstop. All of the terminology is different and I am saying weird words and then I step back and go "weird." ha..I don't have an accent and won't get one obviously because you can't acquire one after a certain age but I am sure I will keep picking up on words and phrases like bril (brilliant), fab (fabulous), poss (possibly), lovely, fit as in saying someone is good looking, mad when you are saying something is crazy. I don't know- I still ask people to repeat what they say alot but that will get better I suppose. I find myself talking to myself too often because when I'm alone I just talk out loud which is weird but it's comforting ha. Everyone has been so nice letting me take my time to feel out the days and my timetable (schedule basically) and get used to everything and how it works. The boarding house staff is being really nice and giving me time to get situated with learning the ropes of the PE department and the lax teams and everything. I have not even started to try learning girls' names. It is just soo hard-there are so many! I teach lax throughout the day to different age groups and also help the other PE staff with other sports but this week we have been getting them settled with their gym lockers and everything like that. Every afternoon after lunch I teach an age group lacrosse with Ceri from about 130-4 because 130-2 is open lax time when kids can come and play so we work with them during that time everyday and then 2-4 is a different age group depending on the day. Mondays 4-30 we have years 7&8 which is 11/12 year olds, Tuesdays after school are the two senior teams (first and second), Wednesdays are the years 9&10 which are 13/14 year olds and then Thursdays are the seniors again. I have boarding house duties 615-930ish on Mondays and Tuesdays and then 4-9 on Fridays because there is no lax after school. My days are craaazy busy and it is so exhausting. My feet actually ached today ha. I went into Bristol with Ceri to the indoor shopping arena (aka: mall) and she said it is just crazy during the holidays since it's inside which I guess isn't common but I could have very well gone crazy in there. It was huge and sooo many stores! But I went in and for a sim card for a phone (which I now have!) and then we walked around and left (me being empty handed). I was very proud of myself though for not buying any clothes and I even turned down a couple purses which was very unlike me. I may go into town Saturday though since we play Sunday and I have off Saturday:-) We are playing in an 8-aside tournament Sunday leaving at 6:30am and not getting back until about 7pm. Ceri said that is one of the longest days and they aren't all like that but we have so many teams that every match day is basically a play day. Sunday we are only taking the 1st and 2nd senior teams and the U15 teams because the U14, U13, and U12 don't start games yet. I'm not sure what else there is to talk about because everything just happens so fast- not enough hours in the day! Oh! I went into town today to get some basic office supplies for my flat and a bulletin board and things like that (quite a site walking back to school carrying pens, pencils, bulletin board, milk, bananas, binder, dividers, etc.) My hands were COMPLETELY full and my hands were burning from the heavy bags but anyway..guess what I bought:-) a picture of Elvis for only £1.99! I was so happy. I went back to my flat and hung it right by my front door before I even put the milk away:-) So that made me really really happy. I set up my voice messaging system in my flat so you guys can ring me whenever and I check it everytime I go back to my flat and it says you have no new messages-kinda hurts my feelings ha. My # is: 01600711264. You can ask my mom or Lisa how to call internationally because they have both called me there. Leave me messages:-) Well that is all I can think of for now...still trying to get internet in my flat...pretty frustrating and the tech guys sigh heavily when they see me knock on their door waving because they know why I'm there haha k miss you guys!!!!
Sorry mom..too tired to proofread this one...:-)

Danielle

ps-number might not work to my flat actually because Lisa said she just tried and she wasn't sure but I will let you know:-)

September 1st

Hey-
Well my head is spinning..that is basically the only way to explain everything that is going on and everything that is happening right now. This past weekend we had the English Lacrosse induction and we learned anything and everything in such a short amount of time so my brain is about to explode. We learned about child protection, the English education system, rules of the game here, umpiring, coaching/drills, what we are here to do, what we could be asked to do, how to act with the boarding students and also how to act with the staff, and anything else they could throw at us. We all took so many notes it is ridiculous but I left with a bunch of new friends and people to travel with and tons of lax drills/lessons and things to do with the girls. I met people who are in Scotland, right outside London, and in various towns around the UK. We already made a facebook group and decided that we need to travel everywhere possible and visit wherever we possibly can while we are here so that we can see every town in England and get to know everyone's area. Also, people have very different living arrangements. Some people are living with families, others in houses with other people, and many have their own flats on campus and some do not even live on campus. I am the first American at this school so I am an experiment; another girl is starting a completely new program where there was no lacrosse and has to do boys and girls programs; one girl is actually a University coach at Duram and obviously making bank there haha about £400 more than the rest of us. That is going to take alot more time though because she has to do it all, including contact us for recruiting information and such. It was very cool to talk to people about where they are, what they are doing, where they went to college and high school and just to see the range of people doing what I am doing. Overall, no one wanted to leave because we had a lot of fun together during the day and at night, we went out to the campus pub where the induction course was which was very convenient. The next day the people in charge said we are a much more "lively" group than last years and said they weren't sure what other word to use for us haha. We want to plan trips to London and other countries around Europe. There are opportunities for us to all form a lacrosse team and travel to tournaments around Europe including Madrid, Berlin, Prague, Latvia and so many other countries so we are going to match up dates of our breaks and see what we can come up with. Now I am back at school trying to get internet in my flat which is quite the complicated task and also tried to get a calling card but apparently the machine at the post office is broken until next week which doesn't make sense to me-crazy Monmouth. Wednesday I will go into Cribbs which I don't know where that is but Ceri is taking me to look at phones and get a UK plan (not international because it's too expensive and I'll use calling cards and Skype which is webcamming) and also there is a broadband wireless stick I can get for my laptop. If I can't get the I.T. guys to set up my wireless before going into town after practice on Wednesday then I will do the plan for the broadband stick because the head of boarding said it is no more than £10/month so we shall see. I am dying for internet in my flat so that I can start webcamming with people and chat online! Mom-got the featherbed today so I made my bed with that and the flannel sheets and it's brilliant:-) I have had so much tea since I've been here and somehow acquired quite the taste for coffee-my mother's daughter:-) Anyway, this is becoming pretty long and I'm sure I could keep going and going but will just update you in a few days hopefully when things have hopefully fallen into place. Tomorrow begins my first day of PE classes then practice after school then boarding house duties and I think I have Multisport duty tomorrow night which I just take them to the gym and play games with them which clearly isn't a problem for me:-)

Miss everyone and talk soon!
Danielle