“Delay is preferable to error.” - Thomas Jefferson

I'd like ALL of you to keep that in mind in between blog posts! This one took a long time upload, I know, but that's because I was trying to figure out HOW I could upload a video to this blog that was so long. I tried uploading it THROUGH youtube, and it didnt work. Then I tried vimeo which I use for all my other videos I make, and it didn't work either! Finally I used iMovie to export it into youtube, instead of going through the website which worked GREAT! Uploaded really quick, and I was able to put it right into my blog!!! I have a few more videos I'm still working on. One from Spain, one from some of my free time activities (hanging out with my friends, going to the eiffel tower, etc.), and one from a boat tour I took down the Seine! I won't be updating for the next week probably because I'm sick right now and the only thing on my mind is sleeping and surviving. So, that means I also won't be doing anything worth blogging about (just a warning so you guy's don't get agitated like you have been with this last post!)






Seville, Spain from Lauren Cashwell on Vimeo.



Cordoba, Spain from Lauren Cashwell on Vimeo.

“He who wants to change the world should already begin by cleaning the dishes.” - Paul Carvel

So maybe I wasn't cleaning dishes, but I was scrubbing showers! That's a start right? It sure felt like a lot of work. As many of you know my apartment is very old, so I noticed that the tile looked a little strange. For a while I just brushed it off as being old tile. Well, what I had been describing as "the poppy seed growth" on my shower, was actually mildew. So, I had to get down and dirty and attack it!
While I'm not a fan of chores (who is?), I sort of enjoyed this one... My mom told me to make a make-shift mask out of something so that I wasn't breathing in bleach. Me, being innovative as usual, wrapped a sports bra around my head and tied it together in the back. It worked REALLY well, and it was comfortable and soft.

Here's a picture of my shower before I got hold of it:

And here's a picture of how it looked once I worked with Mr. Magic (a.k.a bleach and a scrubber):

So, I'm glad to have that out of the way. My bathroom feels so sparkly and brand new! Also-- I'm not sure if I've mentioned this previously but my lights were out in my bathroom so for the past two weeks I've been getting ready in a crummily lit corner of my room. I'm not sure why it took me two weeks to get a lightbulb, but it did and when I finally bought one I got home, screwed it in, and it didn't work. It was like someone was making a cruel joke out of my life. For those of you that don't understand what I'm referencing, there's a dumb blonde joke that asks "How many blondes does it take to screw in a lightbulb?" Well I have the answer.... and it's apparently more than one.

My landlord came by today and fixed that for me though, so my light is in working order again! It's nice to take a shower that isn't in pitch black darkness for the first time in several weeks. 

Last night I had coffee with a boy I met at church which was really nice. We had a lot in common and it was fun to get to hang out and talk with someone that had so many similar interests.

I know a lot of you (Like Mrs. Mahala!) like me posting pictures of what I cooked for dinner, so since it's been a while I'll go ahead and do that!

SO, two nights ago I didn't have very many options mainly because I just hadn't had time to get a lot of basic things I needed from the grocery store. It ended up being a Peanut butter & strawberry jelly sandwich kinda night (paired with some apple sauce). Needless to say, it was DELICIOUS (That's for Zak Marlow who pointed out that it's apparently my favorite adjective when it comes to describing the way food tastes).

 The next night, I had cooking instructor Elizabeth Lauster avec Chef Pretty-Boy teaching me how to make pasta and creme sauce.

 Boiling noodles for the first time! Exciting!

 The final result!

 Then tonight.... things got interesting. I went to the store because I thought it would be a good idea to have some chicken nuggets. (I'm most likely not getting enough protein here). So I bought one of those bags that has like, 50 nuggets in it. On the front it said "DINDE NUGGETS". Thinking that Dinde was the way French people said Dinosaur (it sounds correct, doesn't it??) I was like Score! 50 Dinosaur nuggets for three euros! So I bought it, got home, translated the front of the bag only to find out I had actually bought turkey nuggets..................................... Don't be fooled by the picture. They were terrible. Anyway, I paired those with two baby bake potatoes. One of them was good... the other wasn't.

  Seeing as I pretty much picked around that entire meal, my stomach was rumbling in about 30 minutes. That's when I decided to treat myself to a delicious dessert. I made some hot chocolate in my cute little cup and saucer, and I had a piece of toast with strawberry jam on it. SO much better than my actual dinner!

I hate to report that not much else has happened in these couple of days... Hopefully some interesting things will happen tomorrow or over the weekend!

Somebody posted a video of me speaking French today on Facebook but you can only see it if you're friends with the person that posted it, SO i'm going to see if there's a way I can download the video file onto my computer and upload it for you guys! Sorry if I can't though!

Au revoir, 

Lauren