Sunder

"Are you happy? Because that's all that matters." 

 ...

So jet lagged...

This post will take some time to finish. Headaches and other aches are kicking in. I am not happy with this jet lag.

Beijing

     Complications all over the Au Pair program. What the hell, complications since this whole trip started. I should've seen it coming. But I went for it anyways. Never seen myself as a quitter. I will not go into big details about why I am no longer doing the program. It's something a bit personal. But rest assured it wasn't because I couldn't handle the pressure. On the contrary, those last few days things seem to be really looking brighter. Had friends, the family wasn't pushing me around so much, I was pretty much getting used to everything there. But then misunderstandings here, problems there and everything pilled up, making me take the hard decision to head back home. It was not easy. I spent a few nights thinking it through. But in the end it was the wisest thing to do. I did make a fast stop before getting home.

     Saying goodbye to the girls was not easy. The last two days the girls asked me why did I had to leave and if I was coming back after that. They kept hugging me each minute and saying "I live you Valerie" or "I love you my baby". Yes, they had this weird thing where they kept saying I was their baby. I just went with it. The night before the oldest one started crying saying she didn't want me to leave. I've just been there for two and a half week and they were reacting this way. I was impressed.

     The morning of the day I left was a bit more relaxed. Woke up to help with the girls (yes, I decided to work until the last minute), got them ready for school and said goodbye. They both hugged me tight. The oldest started crying again and the host mother took some pictures of the oldest not wanting to let me go (which was a bit too much for my liking). I wont lie here, a tear or two may have came out. Those girls had been just a bundle of love when they were with me, their witticism was so funny. I came to grow affectionate towards them. But there wasn't much I could do, and the goodbyes had to be said.

Seattle & Portland

     Since I was leaving early, I missed him and Seattle was on the way home, we kind of decided I would stop there for a few days. There were no exact plans for the days I would be there, but things turned out better than if there was an actual plan. First night in the USA, and all I could think about was pizza. And so pizza it was. I didn't know how much I missed and loved pizza until then. I had a moment with that pizza that can't compare to any other moment with any other person in the world. So powerful. Food...

     Did a date on Portland. His idea, not mine, which was kind of exciting since in a old post I wrote I wanted to make a date out of a concert without him knowing it and... you understand. Let's just keep going with the story... While I was tempted to say no, he did say yes to me in Chicago, so why couldn't I do the same? This time it was dinner and movies. Dinner was perfect. We had some street cart burritos (Portland is really famous for it's street food. And now I can see why.) and then saw Edge of Tomorrow. It's nice to have someone to share your love for time-travel (sci-fi) movies and things. The movie is really good. Simple, funny, full of action and eye catching. I was fangirling inside.

    Actually... this trip was pretty much a big canned cheese. It was just us two having fun and being total goofballs around Portland, and I don't think you are really interested in that. Lets just say that the stop in Seattle/Portland created some amazing memories and marks a new stage in my life. And this is kind of more than you need/want to know. So, NEXT!

Puerto Rico (home)

     Slept almost 24 hours straight once I got home. The whole Chicago-Beijing-Seattle trip threw my body clock away. I am happy though. I did more than I could have asked for. Even if I couldn't go to South Korea like I wanted, I can't say I had a bad time. For me this past month counts as the whole summer. Even if I don't do much here in Puerto Rico for whatever is left of summer, I will say I had the best summer vacations ever.

     People all over have been impressed that I am back. The common comment is "Hey! Weren't you in another country or something?". I wish I could just reply "well, you see me here now. That pretty much means I am back. Just saying...", but the nicer version of me comes out and I usually say "Yes. I just came back." Then the questions of what happened start. I am lucky to have amazing friends who just help change the subject since they know that's something I don't want to think about. But they keep asking so eventually I've had to say "let's just not talk about that okay?". People...

      What else...? Oh! Once again I feel lucky. I got my old job at the library back. So at least I can make some money while I let my summer pass by. I am seriously considering getting another part time job for the summer. Something simple. Just want to make a bit of extra money and do something with all this free time I have. I'll probably see if I can find something when I go to the mall today.

...

      On side note, I really don't know what to do with the blog now that I am no longer an Au Pair. Should I just continue to use it as a kind of place to let my thoughts about those daily things come out or just let it be until my next adventure? Let me know what you think!

(: