I'm 24, I'm a 1LT, Barca are Champions, and I love my Oxford fam!

This past week was a great one with lots of fun and friends and many many reminders as to why I love Oxford and will be so upset when I have to leave!

Tuesday was my birthday and I didn’t want to work because of the fact it was my birthday and it was a beautiful day in Oxford so I didn’t really work.... I had a nice lunch/coffee break out in the sun in Bonnie and then celebrated my birthday is the best way imaginable, circuits! The sad thing is I’m kinda serious, I really love circuits! After circuits I got dinner at Nandos with some of the circuits crew. It was great to spend time with Matt, Gemma, Leon, Emma, Bonnie, Rupert, Darren, and Danielle. The food was good, the company was better, and I’m so glad I’ve gotten to know these amazing people in the past 6 months or so. They’re such a welcoming group and they’ve been so good to me, I’m gonna miss them (and circuits) terribly!

The rest of the week sort of dragged by because I had much to look forward to at the end of the week. Friday evening Shiri flew in from Israel which was super exciting!

Saturday morning was football development training so during training Shiri went for a run then when she was done we left training a little early and wandered around Oxford seeing the sights. We hit up Exeter and its Fellows Garden to see the view of Radcliffe Square, New College chapel and cloisters, the Bod, St Mary’s Church, Christ Church Cathedral and Hall, and the Covered Market. It was rainy and dreary and lots of places were closed because of a graduation ceremony so we went home in the early afternoon, showered, and changed for the evening’s festivities.

We then met Si and Kim and headed into town for dinner, again at Nandos. Yes, it is that good that I can eat it twice in a week. Danny and Tommy joined us for dinner and then Bonnie and Kirsty showed up and we all headed over to the Duke’s Cut where the party would be. Speaking of the party, this lovely get together was in honour of several things: my birthday, the Champions League Final, and my promotion from 2^nd to 1^st Lieutenant. So yeah, back to the party. I reserved half of the pub for just our group which worked out perfectly and gave us lots of room, good view of a big tv, and good access to the bar. Basically all my friends and I could possibly want. Tradition in the US Air Force dictates that, when an officer is promoted, for their celebration they put down their one month’s raise on the bar for all their family and friends. Since I only had 1 member of my actual family to celebrate with, I decided to celebrate with my Oxford family. The bar tab opened at about 7:30, just before kickoff for the game, and was open until the bar closed at 12:30. It was quite a tab...

The game was awesome, even though most people were rooting for United, but regardless of what result you wanted, you couldn’t complain about the actual match itself. After the game we just hung out at the pub until it closed and then moved on to Anuba, another bar/club down on Park End street. I’m not sure exactly when I made it home, but it was late...

In all, I was really happy with the evening. There were over 30 people there and it was amazing to spend time with such incredible people whom I’ve been blessed to get to know. Some of the people there I’ve known since I first arrived in Oxford, others I’ve met within the last few months, but I wouldn’t trade any time I’ve had with any of them and I’ve loved every minute of my friendship with them all. Sadly, some of my closest friends were missing (especially Neal and Soupy) and I wish I could’ve shared this time with them as well, but just so they know, I was missing them and wishing they were there. I want to again thank everyone who came for making the night, and my time in Oxford, so unbelievably incredible!!

Ok, that got really sappy and mushy and that’s no fun... So yeah, here are some fun pictures from the night.