Yes

Dublin, Dublin, Dublin, I had no idea.

There is no place to start writing from because everything is worth remembering. There is no time to stop and take photos, to pocket lens caps, to not use flash photography, to slow down the shutter speed or even stand still. I am vibrating with excitement and all my photos turn out blurry, and I love them, because that's what it's like, a blur.

After spending so much time in the last month and a half feeling guilty and self conscious for not tuning into the same frequency as the other people I'm traveling with it feels so overwhelmingly satisfying to be able to do exactly what I want completely for myself. Everywhere I go, I can't help but smile. It's so great not to have to practice looking naturally happy for photos. Even I know how little I smile lately.

But everything's so great. I'm constantly surprised how much I love everything, or maybe I've just forgotten what it's like to be completely happy all the time. I can be friendly, I can be outgoing, I can not be a bitch as long as I don't feel like a cornered animal, as long as I don't feel bad for wanting to be alone and be independent and learn and live.

More specifics later. Art! Glorified hitchhiking! Joyce! Dublin! Dublin! My heart is going like mad and yes I say yes I will yes.

Sunglasses

Right now, everything is stress.

I came back from Venice this weekend and everyone was huddled up in blankets and multiple socks. The cold that I didn't pack for had officially hit Florence, and apparently it's illegal in Tuscany to turn on your heat before November 1st. I crawled up into the loft, found the mildewiest comforter, and spent the first part of the week snuggled up to sickness.

This was, of course, on top of midterms. Three days, three tests, one paper. Galileo and Luther. Shivering, sniveling studiousness.

Because internet was 8 euro at the hotel in Venice, and permanently shut off at our apartment (or so we thought), I only really planned out my eleven-day break, which starts tomorrow, at the beginning of this week. When the internet wasn't shut off, my credit card was. I'm sure at some point later in this trip losing 6 euro will really bother me, but I wish my bank would stop protecting me from putting a deposit down for my hostel friday night. Keep me in the sheets, not on the streets, Commerce.

All of my clothes drying out on the on our patio were surprisingly not dry, considering the 100% humidity this morning, and both of my white v-necks had mysterious grey blotches over their lower halves. I'm down literally one half of the shirts I brought. I feel like I'm on the Oregon Trail.

All I can do is wander around the house wearing gigantic turquoise and orange sunglasses to keep myself mildly sane.

Octo-Italia

Long story short: I'm really busy with school and writing an essay about the octopus, which I probably wont even post on here because I'm gonna get that sucker* published. However, expect this post to turn into a photo-essay-but-really-just-photos in a couple of days when I upload my photos and swipe most of Claire's.

*See what I did there?

But really, when I was chopping the legs off the body suctioned itself to the cutting board. WHAT A CREEPER.

WC&H: A Thinly Veiled Intro to Christianity

"Nevertheless, Augustine firmly believes in the humility of his religion, a religion that asks not what we can humble deduce from scientific observation and analysis but rather proudly explores where the limits of blind faith can reach, a religion which has 'tamed him' and 'bridged every valley, leveled every mountain and hill of [his] thoughts' and 'cut straight their windings, paved their rough paths,' or, as I prefer to read it, leveled the topography of what was probably the beautiful landscape of a brilliant mind."

I am so over Western Civ.

Sardinia

Just like girl scout camp, but with 

less s'mores

and more tables full of open beers ready to be topped off with rohypnol and handed out, 

less truth or dare 

and more never have I ever (never have I ever lost never have I ever so quickly), 

less singing songs in rounds,

and more going around the corner of the dodgiest bar in Europe and banging in the bleachers.

But just as always, waking up in a room full of girls, passed out in my clothes with dirt in my hair, ready to go home and be alone.