The BEST VACATION EVER (part II: on friends, family, pianos and pets)

Before I start, I want to say oops. I started writing this post like two weeks ago, and promptly forgot about it until just now when I wanted to start a post on haircuts. (New post coming soon! Haircuts!)

I honestly don't have that much more to share about my winter break as it was fairly uneventful. I already told you about the couch and the dorky card games. Well, I guess I did visit one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world, but that was second to spending the weekend with some long time college friends.

Because it's hard to take pictures of emotions and all that junk, here's some pictures of some of the things I did over my winter break.

Visited with my family. Honestly, I spent most the break doing this, and as a result forgot to take any sort of group photo. Here's the best I can do without photoshop. Photo credit goes to my sister.

Went hiking in the mountains with these lovely people in Mt Rainier National Park. Actually, we didn't so much go hiking as take a couple short walks, but there were sick people present, and for me at least, the hiking really wasn't the point. 

 (Emma, Paul, Angela, Ashley, Jake, Andrew)

The mountain! (actually it's a volcano)

Played my piano. Okay, technically it isn't mine, but I am the one who plays... Wait, that's not my piano, that's the piano in the small house inside my parent's house. My mom has a doll house which is decorated to look something like our big house, complete with yellow sofas, pianos and Christmas trees. I forgot to take a picture of the real piano.

Photo credit: Celeste

Went to Seattle multiple times for various reasons. It's a nice city, and I shouldn't hate on it too much since I'm probably going to end up living there at some point. 

gazing nostalgically at the Smith Tower

Went hiking by the lake where I worked for two (three? I don't remember) years with the friends I have who are still in the college town. Oh, Bellingham. I miss making solidarity eye contact with the other cyclists in the rain. I feel your pain, man, but it's what we get for being a healthier, greener, better class of people.

Harassed cats. Not only my parents' cat, but my friends' cats too. Did you guys know that string is the most exciting and the most terrifying thing? It's not alive, and yet it moves through the air like a snake! KILL IT.

[picture not available. cuteness overload.]

Anyway, as a whole it was really nice to be back and see everyone. I got to see this little snapshot into everyone's lives--what they're doing, how they're feeling, who they're seeing... It was a little tough too, since I'd been away so long. Things have changed, and it would be silly of me not to admit it. But if my own life can serve as any kind of example, change is almost always good. Let's say 97% of the time (puberty wasn't so fun). I can only hope things don't change so much between now and when I go back for good, but barring an alien invasion or massive lahar and ash flow, I don't see that happening.