Amber Williams

Life has been good! Slow during the week then a mad dash over the weekend (trying to get things done that includes Dave's help...and a car! LOL!) But during the week, I'm spending my time cleaning, cooking, wandering around the town, watching T.V. reading, and playing on the computer. Sounds exciting huh? :) It's not bad. Some days I'm a little bored, but I'm trying to make the best of this because I know I will be going back to work soon! (Which I am looking forward to as I know it will be a big help in making friends and getting to know the area better. But until then, my way of getting around is walking and exploring. I think I'm starting to get over some of the shock. I know I draw some attention, but I don't notice it as much as I used to. I feel bad though for the people who are with me though because they tend to get the bulk of the questions. Yesterday my soon-to-be in-law's stopped in and invited me to go out around the town with them, which ...

So this is my new home, this is my new way of life. Up to today, I've been pretty positive of things, but this morning has me feeling a little out of sorts and I'm not sure why. I think ultimately maybe it's because it just hit me that I'm here. This isn't a dream and this is a reality I'm am going to have to brave up to it. I think I'm also a little more lonely and scared than I was admitting to myself. Don't get me wrong, I'm not 2nd guessing any choices I've made! I'm glad I made this choice, but I think the "Culture Shock" is finally setting in. I feel grateful that of all places I could move to, at least I have some sort of bearings here. I may not understand everyone and everything, but I understand most people. What I'm finding is that there are adjustments I need to make (as choices aren't as abundant as they are in the U.S. In fact, I've come to the conclusion that American's are down-right SPOILED! You ne...

Whew! It's been a whirl-wind these last few days! Where to start? So my flight to England had me up bright and early at 4:45 a.m. Saturday morning. I went to the airport with my parents, drank coffee and said my goodbyes and made it through the gate a little early because be had noticed that my flight was showing a delay. I get to the gate and talked with the desk attendant and she assures me that the flight will only be 7 minutes late and EVERYONE will make their connections! So what ends up happening? The plane ends up being 40 minutes late, my connecting flight is clear on the OTHER side of the airport and I miss my flight after running from one end to the other! From that point, I ended up playing the run-around game back and forth between terminal 1 and 3 (in San Francisco by the way!). The lady with my flight wanted to book me on a flight that would go out the next day which meant I would have to cover my own hotel and get meal vouchers from them. I said no and her inform...

"Are you scared?" This is a question I get frequently from people and I sat with myself tonight and decided to try to be really honest with my feelings. So in simple reply: Yes, I am scared! You see, it's scary moving so far away from my family, especially because I'm so close to them. It's scary having to learn a new way of life, living, and rules and regulations and new structure of life...etc. I have fears such as "will they like me?", "Will I make friends?", "Will I be successful at work?", Etc. etc. etc. Even dumb things like driving (on the wrong side of the road no less!) stresses me out! Sometimes I wondered if I was crazy and the questions of "what the heck am I doing!?!? Is this crazy?!" Then I sit and look at pictures and notes and texts I've received which then just makes me want to get there and fit in and continue to love life with the one I love...So am I scared, yes. I may be scared, but I've ne...

I'm soooo excited! (and I didn't get a chance to blog about this yesterday!) I FINALLY received my visa in the mail yesterday via the UPS. I'm supposed to have a letter from the embassy stating that I was accepted, but since it's all going through the company we used, I guess one of the agents actually has the e-mail in her in-box and I can't get it until she comes back on vacation! (Ugh!!) I guess the e-mail actually came last week while they were off from work for the holidays, so I was approved last week! (Which would have been nice to know last weekend!...OH well!! At least I know now!!) I booked my flight to England for this coming weekend! I will leave early Saturday morning and be in England around midnight (Pacific time) which is like around 8 in the morning England time! I'm absolutely excited to see David! I haven't seen him in person since September 4th! So it will be amazing to be able to actually see and touch him and not talk through a co...

"This year I'm going to establish a New Years Resolution I KNOW I can stick to: I vow to gain ten pounds, spend in excess more than I could ever bring in, smoke a thousand cigarettes a day, and spend more time than healthy on facebook" (Not sure who wrote this, but it cracked me up!) How true is this statement when you think of it?? That's what seems to happen though, we make all these high-expectation promises of what we will accomplish then do the exact opposite. It's almost like a set up for failure! For that reason alone I decided this year I'm not going to make a resolution. The reason for it, I put so much pressure on myself and end up failing, so instead, I choose to keep myself open to learning and gaining new experiences and just a continuation of growth. Life has enough pressure on me as is without me putting a ton more on myself! That's not to say that it isn't a good thing to set high goals to achieve, but why only set that goal once a y...