A quick succession of busy nothings...

     My sister Lindsay introduced me to Jane Austin at a young age.  "Pride and Prejudice" led the crusade, followed shortly thereafter by "Emma," "Sense and Sensibility," "Persuasion," and others.  One of my favorites is the less familiar "Mansfield Park."  The title of this post comes from that novel when Fanny Price, restless from the monotony of her unchanging routine, reflects that, "life seems nothing more than a quick succession of busy nothings."  I have an internal battle whenever I think of that quote because it is so easy to fall into that scenario, yet it's something I want to avoid at all costs.  If I were to sum up that sentence in one word it would be complacency.  I never want to be complacent, but at the same time, I don't want to waste my time doing millions of things that are, in fact, meaningless.

     Gratefully, I don't feel like either is taking over my life right now; it's merely a quotation that occasionally crosses my mind.  Big decisions are right around the corner, and it's been quite a ride setting everything into motion, as much as I can, to see what comes of it all in the near future.  Even though I don't feel like I'm wasting time on "busy nothings," I definitely feel like life is in "quick succession" mode.  Since there is so much that's been happening in the last little while, I'll let the following pictures tell some of the stories...

I stopped in NYC for a few days before and after the London trip and spent time with my good friend Liz Hansen.  I caught "Guys and Dolls" on broadway, as well as a visit to the Frick gallery where I saw Vermeer's "Mistress and Maid," which is the painting I researched for my senior thesis.
I've never seen NYC in snowy weather, but I thought Central Park was stunning with a light dusting of snow on the trees and sidewalks.
Best friends for fifteen years now - what a pleasure it was to spend time with Penn in London as tourists, a current student, and a potential student.  I love this girl.
Like I said, we had a blast doing the tourist bit in London - this is a view of Big Ben and the Parliament buildings from the London Eye on a rainy February morning.
The whole purpose of the trip was to visit the University of Essex in Colchester, England and figure out if I'm going to move there in the Fall to get my Master's degree in Art History.  TBD...
After meeting with the graduate advisor over my program, we explored the campus a bit and spent some time checking out the library.  It's supposed to look like floating glass from the outside, but the coolest part is inside.  The elevators are insane - I'm laughing right now just thinking about how much fun the two of us had riding in them - no doors, and no stopping.
We were able to stay with some friends in Edinburgh, Scotland for three days and I fell in love with this city in the first five minutes.  I wasn't expecting to find another school to apply to, but as it turns out, the University of Edinburgh also has the program that I am  interested in. We'll see which location wins out depending on what happens with my applications - Colchester, England or Edinburgh, Scotland.  
My trip was planned perfectly to be home in time for Steve's 26th birthday on February 12th.  I somehow managed to shove 26 balloons into my car (I wish I had that experience on camera - it was hilarious, I can assure you) in order to have a surprise waiting for him when he got home from his birthday dinner.  Let me just say - it's impossible to be inconspicuous when you're carrying around 26 brightly-colored balloons.  I made some fast friends with the customers behind me in line at the store as they interrogated me with lots of personal questions about the recipient of the balloons. 
And last but not least, Valentine's day!  Steve showed up at my house with a beautiful bouquet of my favorite flowers, only to have my dad answer the door and say, "Wow!  How thoughtful of you to bring me flowers Steve - you shouldn't have!"  Hahaha!!!  It was brilliant in terms of timing and execution on both sides.  This splendid evening included dinner, dancing, and a movie - all in the company of my dearest friend.