The highest peaks and the blackest holes.

This has been a rough week. First off, it feels a lot longer than eight days.
Last week, I agreed to work two night shifts at the potato plant. Which meant I spent 16 hours staring at dehydrated potato chips on a vibrating conveyor belt. My poor senses.
The worse part was walking to the break room, as the smell of cooking and raw potatoes makes me slightly nauseated now. A lot of breathing through my mouth.

Of course, working from midnight to 8am totally screws up that biological clock and I've been trying to fix it - with little success. Seeing as I was in bed by Midnight and woke up at 4 am today.

Then Monday and Tuesday I spent stressing out about my visa application. The lovely UK has decided to change their visa laws, making them more like the USA. I've dealt with USA visa requirements, working for ISU International Admissions, and they are tough. So now the UK requires proof of funding, which I don't have at this moment, so I was supposed to send my loan documents. Which I don't have because Napier apparently needs various loan docs first.
It's been !@#@!)(# frustrating because the requirements are slightly different for US citizens.. and AUGH... can't type... smoke coming out of my ears.

So my visa app may be denied because I couldn't submit the required documents. But I mailed the docs anyway. See, the first time I applied for a visa (in those long ago days), it led to a heart-halting few days where I didn't have it and found out I might not get it in time for my flight. Oh, the memories. So this time I realize I need my visa before I can book a flight. I'll hear this week if I'm denied, I hope.

Then, Wednesday I reported to work, only to be told they wouldn't need me at all this week. Three shifts lost. So no income for this week and possibly next. Rats.
The world, of course, requires money for things like flights to the UK and food. And I've decided I need to sell my beloved car for funds, which has led to some harsh words with family over this (as they were planning on keeping my car)... which translates to more stresses as I have little time to do this and pack and sort through the mountains of boxes with my life in it.

One of my finer neurosis is the ability to worry about things that aren't even a possibility. Already I'm worry about how to get all my belongings over to the UK if, as is my heart's desire, I get a job there. Belongings = books. And a garderobe (which is a medieval word!)
Now I am rambling.

The good points of this week have been getting my biometric data taken. My pinky fingers have really blurry prints. So I can commit crimes using them, I'm sure.
Also, W is now 1 year old! Because his dad is out of town, he's getting three celebrations, kind of. We dropped by Friday, his actual birthday, to give him a present. He loved it.
Yesterday, we had cake and opened a few presents while Daddy got to watch via Skype. This was hard on my bro.
We got him several books, including Lambert the Sheepish Lion and Put Me in the Zoo (which I remember reading and now want to read again).

Trying not to think that I will be leaving my nephews soon.

To end, I've had a great week in regards to entertainment.
 C, my bro, gave me an Amazon gift card for my birthday. So I spent a bit of that this week and got the latest CD from OneRepublic, Waking Up. They are fast becoming one of my favorite bands. Great music.

I also went to see Prince of Persia and adored it. It's Medieval, but I don't know much about Medieval Persia, and I could actually enjoy it. It is a fantastic film. Villains, sand, camels, sword play, a kick-butt princess and ostriches. The whole film reminded me of some sand-epic from the 1960s I would watch when I was young. I even went and saw it again on Friday night. Yep, that's how hardcore I am. Plus, Jake Gyllenhaal is not hard on the eyes.

To combat the foolishness that is Twilight, I've been reading Sunshine by Robin McKinley. I've been an avid McKinley fan for years and read this novel when it came out. I remember loving it and, since my mum adores Twilight and, along with the rest of the world, I've been inundated with the pseudo-stalker Edward and his moribund Bella, I'm rereading it to remind myself of a good novel. I suspect that I might have read and possibly liked Twilight if I hadn't read Sunshine first (kind of like trying to enjoy Justin Bieber after The Beatles - you just can't do it). McKinley trumps Meyers' vapid style. Sunshine, the narrator, is vastly more fun and interesting to read about than Bella. Plus, McKinley throws in tons of references to Gothic fiction and some fantastic dessert names. Wow, it's fun.
FYI: The book has two cases of very bad swearing and... well, two scenes of a sexual nature. So you can't say I didn't warn you.

Also, in regards to television, my bro has introduced me to Warehouse 13 which is a series about a group of US government officials who track down unusual objects that are affecting people. The first episode involved a hair ornament that belonged to Lucretia Borgia and now I'm addicted to the show. I'm going to have to narrow down my list of TV shows, because at this point, I won't have time to do coursework.

Anyway, those are my recommendations and this week's report.
Next week promises to be just as fun.

Cheers!