The day you buy your own insurance

is the day you know you're not a little kid anymore.  I don't know where it happened exactly. The line between adolescents and adulthood is fuzzy, but today it became perfectly clear to me as I walked into an insurance agency ready to ask about policies, rates and coverage. In all honesty, it was Friday afternoon and their hours ended about 20 minutes before I got there. TAK, I couldn't actually buy the insurance today, but the point is that I had all intentions of doing it. Perhaps that's where I'm still a kid.. still putting things off and not checking the hours of operation before I go all the way across town. That's not something my mom would do. So I guess I'm not quite there yet. 

On a lighter note, I found an amazing Indian food place really close to where I live. It's vegan, yet still good. I really wanted some chicken curry, but it's actually good enough that I'll still go without the meat. Everything is totally organic and made fresh everyday and it's only 15czk per 100g.. (it makes a full plate only about 3 usd!!) it's self serve and absolutely the most perfect place I've found in Prague so far. (Fried meat, sausages, and potatoes get old and repulsive after a while..) I'm obsessed and have already eaten lunch there two days in a row.

OK>>>> so I am writing this blog as I sit in a coffee shop near my place and in the middle of writing I stopped to use the bathroom. It's the kind where you have to ask for a key.. I went in, and as I tried to leave it was fucking locked from the inside and the key wouldn't budge. I got locked in the bathroom for like 20 minutes until someone tried to use the bathroom and finally figured out that I was locked inside. How embarrassing. They were all speaking in czech, probably about how the stupid American locked herself in the toilet. I decided I wasn't embarassed enough to leave though. The wifi is too fast. :) Plus I have a nice corner window seat and I like watching the people walk by. 

Nothing I'm writing about has any real coherence, so bare with me..

I feel extremely accomplished today (aside from missing the open hours to buy insurance). Yesterday, I needed to get a paper notorized and Rusty told me, oh just go to a czech notary, they won't charge you much. But I was terrified to go to one because I've heard horror stories about how they speak zero english. My only other option was to go to the US embassy, but they charge $30. oo. I was feeling brave, so (after an arguement Rusty and I had the other night about how I haven't learned enough czech) I decided to memorize how to ask for what I needed and just try to go to the czech one. Worst case scenario, they don't understand me, I get embarassed, and go pay a shit load at the embassy anyway. So, I went to some office I found on the internet and  held my breath. In a nutshell, mission accomplished. And it only cost me 36 czk. That's less than 2 dollars! I was so proud. 

Then, I went and opened a czech checking account. (ha) It was something I had been putting off for months, but with my newfound confidence, I thought I had better do it before the high wore off. 

Now, I should have my visa next week, I think Rusty's mom will bring it back to Prague for me on Tuesday (because she's the sweetest person ever) and I can find out if I can work legally with my visa or if I have to go apply for a "work visa." I hope not. I'm looking for a job, but right now I'm trying to focus mainly on making sure I have the best grades possible this semester since last semester wasn't so hot. I found a lot of good job offers out there but without a work visa, I think I may be reduced to working shitty under the table type things. (for the time being) 

Hmmmmm so, Last night, I went to the best bar in Prague, Blind Eye, and listened to some live gypsy music and had a couple beers. It was nice until the owner of the bar recognized me as "the girl with the other stupid american girls"... A few months ago I was there for the first time and I went with some people from the study abroad program I'm in and it was a big mistake. I was having a really good time, they were playing amazing music and it was just a good atmosphere. But of course, there's always the one girl who drinks way too much and acts like an idiot (just for the record, I know I've been that girl too, but this particular night I wasn't). Said girl, wanted to buy me a shot, so I was like, what the hell, ok. We went to the bar together and of course she was drawing negative attention from the bartenders because she kept fucking up how to take a shot of absinth with sugar. I went to the dancefloor and was minding my own business when the bartender comes up to me a little later in the night like, "hey, your friend is passed out on the floor in the bathroom and there's a line.. can you get her out of there?" Fucking hell. She's not even my friend, we just happen to go to school together. We were in a big group, but of course no one gave a shit about her, so I drug her out of the bathroom and put her in a taxi to go home. I went back inside and appologized to the bartender and had a short conversation scoffing about how 20 year olds are so immature. Apparently, he thought I was older, haha. I just smiled and laughed. Anyway, that's how he remembered me and I guess it wasn't so bad, since I don't think he considered me as one of the annoying ones. Just an embarassing situation. He's dating one of my friends (well, aquantance of sorts) and they are probably one of the cutest couples ever, just by the way. He's the kind of person who is so smart and quick witted that I feel kind of awkward around and always end up stumbling over my words and end up sounding really daft.

Then I walked home through the Zizkov tunnel, probably one of the creepiest things ever. It's a really long tunnel that connects Karlin (where I live) with Zizkov and it's okay if you're with someone, but alone it's pretty fucking scary, especially thinking that if someone was set on doing something to you, you would have no where to go and no one would see/hear you. But last night was especially bizarre. I was pretty buzzed and just wanted to get the hell through the tunnel and back to my bed. There was music playing coming from somewhere, and as I got closer it was a homeless guy with a little record player. It was nice classical guitar or something, the acoustics of the tunnel and my buzz made it a little unclear. As I walked past him, I tried to look occupied because eye contact would just be too uncomfortable. I pulled out my phone and pretended to text. After I was in the clear, I relaxed a little. Then, he stopped the music. I walked a little faster. Then.. he started playing the record backwards! It was so fucking creepy. Like the cliche devil music or some shit! I mean, who decides, 'hey, it's 2:30 am, I think I'm gonna go to the most sketchy place in town and play records backwards' ? So weird. 

OK, that's enough for today. 

AHOJTE', NAZDAR :)