A New Day...

Yesterday was a bit rough. Tried ordering groceries online. Spent a couple hours figuring out the website, etc. Then, when I went to pay, it wouldn't let me use an American card. Long story short, I spent many minutes on the phone with many different people, messaged other people who had lived here, and came to the conclusion that it was not going to work. I have to have a British credit card. So, after I hung up with the final person from Tesco (who was no help at all) I cried. The first sentence out of my mouth when Matt came to comfort me was, "I give up on living here!" (pitiful sobs and sniffles) His response was his usual calm and collected, comforting self, "Kelsey, you can't give up on living here. We have only been here for a week." I replied, "I know, but I liked being able to hop in my car and go get whatever I wanted whenever I wanted it." Then I headed to the kitchen to clean dishes, because that's what I do when I'm upset, I clean something...or craft. Once I pulled myself together, I realized that it was just going to take time to get adjusted. We will be able to get groceries; that online method was not the only means to get food. I have the money to pay for food, unlike millions and billions of people on earth. I am living in another country because someone was generous enough to take care of Matt's schooling and our living accommodations. I am happily married, healthy, and saved by grace. I have nothing to cry about. It is just going to take some time to adapt.

So I woke up this morning (rather early because Matt had to go take a matriculation picture in his Harry Potter robe) ready to embrace a new day. I watched BBC news online while I ate breakfast, got dressed in a cute outfit, and even put makeup on. Weird how I feel better when I take my time getting all gussied up - is that vain? Then, I hit the road to Sainsbury's, the closest grocery store.

Lo and behold, I discovered a short cut!!! I can't really describe it, and I'm not sure exactly how much time it cut off my walk, but it felt like so much less of a hassle. The shortcut is through this green with lots of sporting fields, and you get to it through this gated walkway. It is so much more picturesque than the roads I had been taking. Trees lining the walkway on both sides and then wide open spaces. It kind of made me forget I was in a city.

I was in a very pleasant mood by the time I reached Sainsbury's, and to top it off, the lady at the checkout was so sweet! As a general rule, I haven't found English people particularly friendly; they tend to be rather stoic and not very approachable...but this lady was so nice! She talked my ear off about where to find good deals on different things (she mentioned Poundland) and other types of chit chat. She was so helpful. It just made my day. When I left, she wished me good luck and said, "Cheers!" (which is by far my favorite little catchphrase here.)

The walk home with the groceries didn't seem nearly as bad as it did before. Either I am gaining some endurance, or I just had a better outlook. For being the coolest/cloudiest day so far, I felt the most warm and fuzzy I have since we arrived.

PS. A couple more vocab differences I've picked up on.
- odds and ends = "bits and bops"
- to stop in somewhere to have a look around = "pop in"
- to show up in a certain place at a certain time = "to turn up"

P.P.S. Thank you all for leaving such nice comments. It is encouraging to know that someone is actually reading what I write, despite its mundane nature.