I Really Should Be Sleeping...But I'll Tell You About My Day

Argh, why aren't i sleeping right now. It's only 11:00 pm, so it's not too bad. Even though I'm tired and i have to get up early so that i can get a taxi to take me to the bus depot so me and the Peg people can catch a ride to Cambridge, i still feel like blogging for a bit. See, didn't i tell you this thing's addictive? I seriously write more on here than in my personal journal. Anyway...

today Conor took us to his church, Equippers Church. Met tons of great people. The church service itself was a bit charismatic than what me and the Peg people were used to, however i liked it. Fun fact: the church actually takes place in one of the oldest theaters in Auckland. the architechture is pretty sweet even though it's been restored. I wish i could post pictures for you on the blog, but if you ask my nicely i just might have to send some home as in snail-mail form, but that's IF you ask nicely.

after Church me and the Peggers went shopping and i bought some awesome sandals that feel like your walking on marshmallows (minus the stickyness). Definately better than my extremely thin pair. We then headed off to the Maritime Museum. i thought it was alright and pretty cool. Everyone else thought it was just alright. We did however get some cool pics of some boats that were there and Laura kept on "kissing" the statues. I know that probably doesn't make sense to you but it's one of those "you had to have been there" things.

Then it was the usual, shopping some more (i only bought a tank top this time) and then internet cafe. Back at the hostel i really wanted to get my hair cut (just the bangs) and Ruth volunteered to do it. Yay! Free hair cut. She told me that if it looks really bad then she would have to pay me. Meh, I was sure it would be fine cause it's just hair. So now i have bangs like i did when i was at camp. I missed having them. Now i feel kinda flirty, mysterious, mature...if a haircut can make you feel that way .i dont' know, it just makes me feel different, in a good way.

Ok I'm not quite sure when the next time I'll be able to blog/e-mail everyone but I'll try for ASAP so i hope that's ok. Wish me luck as i start Bible school either tomorrow or on Tuesday! Bye!

I Have Just Conquered Mt.Eden...Well Sorta

Today was supposed to by my anti-walking day, just chilling out with the 'Peg people (my Winnipeg friends) and seeing a few sites that were close by. But that really wasn't the case...

Well we ended up seeing the Art Gallery which was pretty sweet cause I've always loved art. However some of the stuff there i quite didn't understand, i guess i need the full story behind a work of art to truly appreaciate it. But that's just me.

After that me, Ruth, and Laura took the next hour or so do some hard-core shopping. However the only thing i bought was a pair of sunglasses cause my other ones were kinda falling apart. Ruth got a really sweet wig cause it had short hair and she wante to wear it home to surprise everyone. Laura tried to convince Ruth to actually cut her hair but when you have long hair like that it's hard to part with. But she got the cool wig! Speaking of haircuts, I'm thinking about getting mine cut again cause i miss my bangs, so I'm thinking about getting bangs that come all the way down to my eyes. if it looks horrible it's just hair, it'll grow back. That's my theory.

Speaking of theories...me and the Peg people were discussing weight gain when you go to bible school. Everyone they knew that went to bible school came back with more weight. I don't wanna get fat!! I have to burn off all the calories that i obtained within the last few weeks of my life in S'toon. So now I'm all paranoid about gaining weight. Hopefully i don't...

so back to my anti-walking story: after shopping for a bit, we heard a guy playing some blues music out on the street. So we listened to him for a bit, did some more shopping, and got our bus tickets to head out to Cambridge on Monday morning. Cause that's when we all start school. Then i headed home cause i just like being in general area of my hostel when it starts getting dark.

By that time it was 6:15ish and it wasn't really dark yet so i decided to trek up Mt. Eden. Yesterday i sorta did a trek however it was getting dark and i was in a residental area and i figured there's gotta be a path that you can climb up to get to the top of Mt.Eden. So today when i did find the right spot i kinda heard some live music. And we all know how much i LOVE live music. So i went and checked it out. There was a huge crowd gathered around a stage and i think they were playing Greek music cause i heard the word "Opa!" many times in the lyrics. Then I really started my trek up the hill.

Of course i didn't know where i was going but i just followed the pedestrian signs and the paths. I was able to make it near the top cause the summit was kinda fenced in and there were cows grazing (ya you read that right, cows). One of them even "mooed" at me after i took a picture of it. LoL! but i was able to get some other really sweet pictures of the view. You know how you can hold your thumb and forefinger out and say to someone "I'm squishing your head"? Well i was actually able to do that to SkyTower. i got a picture of it, so if you dont' understand i can just show you. I really need to find a computer that has the "Hello" program so that i can post pictures, cause i miss doing that. I ended up spending about an hour in the Mt.Eden area, then i headed back to my hostel. And now my feet are killing me!

Tomorrow I think the plans are gonig to Conor's church then maybe the beach. I'm definately looking forward to that one! So i guess I'll sign off for now, talk 2 ya l8er!

Couldn't Sleep Anymore

Well it's 8:15 a.m Saturday Jan.29 here in sorta sunny Auckland. Couldn't sleep anymore so i decided to just get up and do something. WEll if you count updating my blog again something to do. I mean naturally blogging is an addiction to me but then I'm New Zealand and i feel like i need to keep all of you up to date.

Oh fun fact of the day : the guy that plays "Terri Sheridan" in "Lare Croft Tomb Raider; The Cradle of Life" is Gerard Butler. OK if that means nothing to you get a picture of the Phantom from the movie...if you look really closely (cause you can only see half of the Phantom's face) you will realize it' s the same guy. I had my suspicions about that but then a "Woman's Weekly" magazine down here confirmed my suspicions. Yay! I was right!

Many of you have been asking the same questions so I'll just post of them here...time depending...

How hot is it down here?? It's about +20-+30 somewhere in there

What's the time difference? If I've figured it out right it's about 19 hour difference. I'm 19 hours ahead of you guys (if you're in Sask.)

When do i start school?? On Monday Jan 30th

Are there mountains where I am?? Well Auckland is built on 48 extinct volcanoes, from what I've read. The realy mountains (like in Lord of the Rings) are at Mt.Cook, which is in the South Island.

I guess that's it 4 now. e-mail me more questions and I'll probably put the answers here, so i hope that's cool. bye 4 now!

More Random Thoughts in Auckland

This is the 4th time I've posted today...well today Auckland time that is, how sad. I've spend about $8.00 on interent today. Not too bad 'cause Zelly said that one hostel was $6.00 for one hour. I've been online for about 3 hours today so it's not that bad.

*sigh* It still hasn't hit me that I'm going to Bible school on Monday. Bible school. I mean i feel so inadequate for it. Bible school. I mean how am i really supposed to feel about that. I mean I'm scared cause I don't really know how God is gonna change me and i'm also excited because i don't know how God is gonna change me. If you guys could just pray that i stay focussed on God for the next six months that would be awesome. Pray that i can meet people that are at about the same spiritual level that i'm at, if that's possible. Thanks, I really do appreciate it that many of you are praying for me.

I'm really waiting for sunset cause I want to walk up Mt.Eden, well it' s not really a mountain it's a large hill (Mountain, to me equals Rockies and mounds of rocks that look similar to the Rockies) and see sunset from there. Maybe even get some sweet pictures too. I'm really liking it here, the weather is perfect summer weather (even though it's autumn here), the people are nice, there's no tax, food is good, I guess I'm liking everything so far. *sigh* but it's not home. I think i really need the winter and cold to just even things out a bit.

Oh some of you were wondering what a hostel was. It's like a hotel except more like a dorm room. You get the option of stay by yourself or with a group of strangers. The dorm rooms are cheaper even if you never get to meet anyone really cause people are constantly moving out are coming in. It never ends. Then it kinda reminds me of my house in S'toon, well the kitchen at least. Cause you need to clean up after yourselfs (even though that sometimes doesn't happen in S'toon) and you can have a cupboard if you want. There's showers and bathrooms on each floor. What else can i tell you, well if you have further questions, feel free to e-mail me. That way i know what to post.

Well I don't really know what to post about now. So far the only people i know that are going to Capernwray too are the Winnipeggers that i met in LA. Man I'm tired. I think after my Mt.Eden sunset I'm going to bed. Bye 4 now. Don't be surprised if i blog in a few hours...LoL!

Random Stories Of The Day

Still in Auckland and I was just here @ the internet cafe a few hours ago. Now i"m back again with Laura. So here's a couple funny stories 4 you....

I left a note at my friend's hostel telling them I'd be back by about 3:00 and that we should do something when they got back. So i walked around a bit and saw this really tall tower which to me resembled the CN Tower in Toronto. I thought to myself "I'm going up there, I don't care what it is, I"m going up". So i found the entrance and it turns out it was SkyTower, the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere. so pretty much like CN Tower. Got some sweet pics of the view from there. There's also the options of actually climbing the tower and jumping off, I just might have to try that someday, I mean I AM here for 6 months right??? I was able to witness somebody jumping off the tower, don't worry they were strapped between 2 cables but it looked like tons of fun.

On my way back to my friend's hostel i almost got hit by a car, I'm fine, no damage, it's just that I'm really not used to the whole left side of the road thing.

I went back to "Conor's Top Floor" hostel to wait 4 my friends however they weren't there yet. The manager ( i figure because his name was Conor) was in the office and he asked me to do him a favor. He needed to do somethings in the kitchen and want to know if i could watch the office for him. Seriously! All i had to do was act as if I knew what I was talking about, i guess i could do that. However turns out my friends came in just as I was about to check my e-mail and they seemed pretty shocked that I was in the office @ the desk there. Good times. Turned out there were in the area of my hostel and I was in the area of their hostel pretty much the whole day. Kinda random and funny. Jordan even bought guitar, it's cool cause it's blue and has leaves on it.

K, for those of you who had no idea what i was talking about with the pedestrian things here's the jist of it: When the lights turn green (for pedestrians) you can walk to the other side of the street by going straight across OR going kitty-corner, does that make sense?? Hope so :)

Somebody reminde me to never get flip flops with thin soles, I have a habit to scuffing my feet when i walk so i wear in my soles easyly. Argh! the only reason why i bought these things was cause i didn't want to wear my runners in Fiji.

alrighty I'll sign off 4 now...

Auckland

Hey again! well right now I"m a internet cafe in downtown Auckland. Fiji was amazing! I definately suggest you go there if you get the chance.

so here's the deal, what I"m gonna do is mass e-mail all you guys once or twice a week, but I"ll update the blog a few times a week. That way if you don't check the blog u get the full details but if you just check your e-mail you get the basics. It's totally up to you.
So right now it's 5:00ish Jan 27 your time (if you're in Sask) but it's Jan 28 12:55 NZ time. The flights here were good. Kinda cried a bit when i hit me that i won't see you guys for half a year. Aw.....

Anyway thanx to those of you who are e-mailing me, good to know that I'm missed. As for those of you who haven't e-mailed i understand cause you might actually have a life. *sigh* just try to keep in touch over the next 6 months k?

So I'm staying @ hostel in Auckland. don't have a clue who the other 6 people are who are staying in my room. Kinda sucks that it's Co-Ed. I'm really not a big fan of that but it's cheap and it's a place to stay for a few nights and i get a shower. Man my shower today was very well deserved....i feel SO clean and fresh now. Yay for cleanliness! My Winnipeg friends are also in Auckland. got a message 4 me from Laura (on of them) so i took a bus and walked to their hostel, however they weren't there and i couldn't get a phone number for their hostel from my hostel. So now i"m just killing some time fro a bit then I"ll head back to their hostel to see if i can find them.

Downtown Auckaland is very interesting. I really get a kick out of the way the crosswalks work here. So the vechiles take turns going there directions (just like bakc home) however the pedestrians go all together. all the vechiles stop 4 them and when you hear the buzzer all the pedestrains just go. they just move. they don't really go straigh across like we do, then just crozz the street. HOpefully that makes sense to you. If not I guess i can explaing it when i get back.

I've also had "burger rings". They're like chips but in a ring shape and are supposed to taste like a burger....personally i think they should work on that part. So far I"m liking New Zealand but I think it' gonna take me a while to get used to the whole driving on the left side of the street business. Anyway i gtg. I'll probably update the blog within the next couple days cause I'm in Auckland til Sunday, i think. Well whenever the Capernwray bus thing comes. I"ll talk to ya l8er! Love you lots!

Again with the Dear Strong Bad...

Oh SB....how i love you, now why isn't my mass e-mail on my blog yet??? Stupid computer...grrr..so here's where all the details of my New Zealand life will start...so if you don't check your e-mails you can just check here...k? Talk to ya l8er! Thanx for the question Lenard Nemoy........(Dreamail)

Fijian Tour

Oh i've been trying to tell you guys about my Fiji island tour that lasted like 3 hours but was totally awesome however Jonny & Kevin & Joelle were all talking to me online....don't worry i still love you guys.

So my tour started @ 9:15. there were only 2 of us on the tour, me and AnneMarie from Australia. our first stop was "the Gardens of the Sleeping Giants". "Sleeping Giant" is the nickname for the mountain that is above the gardens cause if you look @ the mountains you can kinda see a silhoutte of a man sleeping on his back hence "sleeping giant". the Gardens were SO lush and green, i was very impressed. Like picture the Garden of Eden, without Adam & Eve and no animals...then make the colors more vibrant. I guess that's the only way i can describe it

Next we had a short tour of the President of Fiji's village. very cool. Some of the villagers don't wear shoes cause they figure since their ancestors didn't wear shoes when they were here, it's like a tradition. A lot of the ladies were selling shell and stone crafts...there were even some traditional weapons that I just MIGHT get for my boys (the Homestarmy) but i might reconsider cause they ARE "weapons". LoL!

Next we went to the top of a hill where you can see the coastal area of Fiji. I got some great pics, i wish i could show you now. *sigh* i will when i get back. I even bought a cool royal blue summer dress and some new flip flops. very summery and cool

Man I'm hungry. I wish they had recognizeable food here @ the airport. It's all Fijian and i wouldn't have a clue what to get. I might get something small just to try it, but i don't know. I'm tired too. I see that it's 6:45 back home. I'm just gonna keep the blog in Sask time cause if i change it then EVERYTHING changes. Plus then i know what time it is back home. Aw, i Miss you guys lots! And why does dial up have to see SO STINKING SLOW!! Grrrrr, i guess it's better than nothing. I'll catch ya'll l8er! just 5 more hours til my flight 2 Auckland! bye 4 now!

Fiji

Well I got here at like 6:00 in the morning local time, don't even ask what that is Sask time. So i"m on a computer at the airport...just kinda killing a bit of time cause my plane doesn't leave Fiji until like 6:00 at night. so I don't really know what I"m gonna do for 12 hours. LA wasn't so bad cause i was with other Capernwrat people so they kept me somewhat entertained. Man is it ever hot over here, it feels like +36 C. Stupid me, i brought some clothes in my bookbag so that i could just change clothes b4 i got to Auckland, however i ended up packin a long sleeve shirt and my dance pants, both of which are black. And like I"m gonna wear those in Fiji!!!! ya stinky right! well i did get a few e-mails from a few of you guys. Thanx. didn't really get a chance to read them though cause the computer here is dail up and it's , well, very slow. Ya i still don't know what i can do for 12 hours. actually now its just 10. Maybe I'll just read/ write in my journal/ write up favorite song lyrics etc. I mean I'm an only child I think I can deal with it. Oh man am I ever hot over here!! I'm really craving a shower though. Anyway there might be the option of a coupole hour tour... just might have to do that up. So I'm signing off, please e-mail me! Love to hear from you guys (BIG HUGS!!!!) bye & God bless!

More Info 4You...

man writing a simple e-mail really shouldn't b that dificult. stupid technology!!! I think i spend almost $20.00 US on my non working e-mail attempts. Grrrr....oh well I have Phantom of the Opera so I'll be happy! Yay! so if any of you want to mail me pictures of random people or events or anything that's happening in your life feel free to send it to:
Earlene Ulrich
c/o Capernwray Bible School
P.O. Box 702
Cambridge
New Zealand
I'd really love to hear from you. I miss all of you SO much so you gotta keep in touch k?I'll try my best to write personal e-mail when i get the chance. God bless!!

Greetings from Los Angeles

just so you all know, this is the 3rd e-mail that i've tried to send using a vendin machine type computer...i don't think it completely agrees with me but that's besides the point. ARGH!

Well my flghts went well, i was able to meet up with 4 other Capernwray New Zealand bound people. they were all from Winnipeg. I think we'll all meet up in Auckland and do something before school starts so that'll be fun

My newest CD is kida like my LA souvenier...the Phantom of the Opera movie soundtrack. I'm SO excited to listen to it. i know some of you are groaning ( i can almost hear you from there) and others of you may be proud of me but all i can say is watch the movie.I mean I liked it...can u tell?? Hehehe!

Oh and 4 those of you who wrote in my yellow journal @ the party last night it definately kept me entertained for a little while. Loved the random pictures, "non-readable" messages, inside jokes, and "big hugs". Aw, i miss you guys. If I"m missing someone's e-mail address just let me know and i can add them to my list. I miss all of you guys. I kinda cried a bit in the airport and I didn't even leave S'toon, how sad is that? Aw, you make sure you e-mail me stories k? Such as D&D, Coving, Grad plans, final exams, new loves, old loves, new babies in the family.... things like that k?

Oh i tried sushi here in the LA airport, I don't think i like it. Nope I don't think so, but i did at least try it u gotta give me SOME credit here. OK well i better let you guys go of else this thing will seriously go against me again. Miss and  love all of lots! E-mail me back ASAP!!!

To see what else I'm up to check out "Earlene's Thoughts"

 http://earlenemayulrich.blogspot.com

*God made all the stars out of nothing*

*He just went ppp, and there they were*

God Bless

Sledding

Today my plan was to go sledding with Ian, Danielle, and Reid in Muenster. So i picked up Danielle and we headed to Ian's. Then we all piled in his car and about halfway to Lake Lenore we decided to head back cause the road's were terrible and it was really hard to see. We ended up sledding in Ian's yard, well actually it was being pulled behind the four wheeler, but i still condsidered it sledding. So many good times! First of all i haven't been outside for that amount of time (about 2 hours) in a long time, plus I just couldn't stop laughing whenever Ian or Danielle fell out of a sled. Quite comical. There's a small "ramp" i guess you could call it make up of snow that Danielle tried to go over on a sled. Then i tried to go over it however i was kinda on the wrong side of the ramp so i wasn't going over the smooth part. The sled ended up leaving me on the snow and i ran into the sled all at the same time. i think i have a bruise because of it...yes i think i do. Apparently there was one time when one of the dogs got in the way of Danielle's sled and she kidna hit it. I have no proof of it but that's what eye witness accounts state. Then after sledding we watched "Back To The Future". I loved it! I suggest you all go rent it, buy it whatever you need to do and watch it. It's a must see! Now i'm just killing some time while waiting to burn a music CD and another video DVD. So i guess I'll talk to ya'll later!

Check Out This Website!

The Phantom of the Opera If you want to see the preview for the movie go to Videos, click on Final Trailer. It may take awhile but it's all worth it ;). I'm SO excited!

The Addam's Family

About a week ago I mentioned that i was listening to "The Addam's Family Song" and i said that i shoould post the picture that I have of Nicholas, Hughie, me, & Ian. And here you go! (If it doesn't show up, i"m extremely sorry)

Me & Joelle, Aw!

Mmm, Chips!

Of course hanging out would be nothing without food!

Kimberly & Jennifer Playing Air-Hockey

After hanging out about hour an hour at the rink, us girls were getting a bit chilly so we headed down to the church to warm up. Joelle got her car stuck in some snow on her way there but somehow she was able to get herself out. While waiting for her car to arrive me, Carmen, Pam, Kimberly and Jennifer all decided to play pool and a little bit of air-hockey.

Pam

Ryan brought his girlfriend, Pam, along for skating. She basically hung out with us girls the whole night, it was awesome.

Me & Joelle

Yes, I'm wearing Joelle's glasses.

Skating

Today was the usual Youth Group activities at my church and since it was my last Friday before i left i figured i might as well make an appearance. I knew the plans were for skating so i went directly to the rink and there was people. Yay! Here's Joelle, Jennifer, Carmen, Kimberly & Amy.

The Phantom Of The Opera

Today was what i call a rollercoaster day. First of all i was frustrated cause me friend Trent is gonna move in the house when i'm gone and i was trying to figure out whether or not i needed to take my room down, put it in storage, or let Mike stay in my room, or let Trent stay in Darcel's extra room, or all these other options ran throught my head. However after talking to Trent he said that he was just gonna stay in my room, so i can leave it set up and when Mike leaves Trent can move downstairs. Secondly Krystin called me on Tuesday and told me that "The Phantom of The Opera" was playing in Saskatoon was playing this weekend. Me, her, Nicole and Trent have been waiting to see this in theatres since November. So i was extrememly excited about getting all dolled up and dressed up all fancy like for the movie cause it's "Phantom". Oh man, SO many inside jokes from camp were based on "Phantom". Ex: The Fan-Thumb and "My Phantom Lives". Good times. So my day was a rollercoaster cause of these two differing emotions.

What Color Are You?

Green You are a very calm and contemplative person. Others are drawn to your peaceful, nurturing nature. Find out your color at Quiz Me!

Mrs.Kernaleguen, Me, and Mrs.Bates

Me and My Band Teachers

Without Mrs.Kernalguen and Mrs.Bates I probably wouldn't have even thought about becoming a band teacher. They're such awesome teachers, they're more like friends. Thank you!

Reid, Me, & Paul

I feel so small and little compared to these guys!

Saying Goodbye to My Tenor Saxophone

This was the last time i get to see my tenor sax, well it's not really mine, it's the band's but i used it for two years and i got pretty attached to that thing. I mean we've been through two dance recitals, Addam's Family, and my audition. *sigh* I'm sure gonna miss that thing. Mrs.Bates is letting me bring her alto sax to New Zealand. It'll take me a little while to get used to that thing. I'm thinking when i buy my own saxophone I'll name it "Carol" after Marzipan's guitar, even though from what i heard you're supposed to name your instruments the opposite sex that you are. I'm sure gonna miss that sax. I think it was Mrs. K that said "It's gonna be a sad day when Earlene says goodbye to that saxophone". It was quite sad.

Hughie, Becky, & Me

Again Hughie couldn't stop moving.

Danielle, Darren, Me, and Hughie

Darren & Danielle

Danielle's Hat

She was just basically showing me her cool hat.

Hughie Putting Away His Trumpet

Again, Hughie moved so the picture's a little blurred.

Hughie,Paul, & Darren

The boys figured out that the last pciture was sort or messed up because Hughie moved. Their plan was that all 3 of them were gonna move at the same time to screw this picture up. However my flash was much too fast for them so they all jumped up at the same time but the picture ended up being pretty good.

Hughie,Paul, & Darren (A Bit Blurred)

After band there was the usual visiting with me buddies. Hughie evidently moved during this picture.

Practicing

Hughie At Band

I tried to get Hughie to stand still, but we know that Hughie is uncapable of doing that.

Band Practice, Again

Here's everyone getting ready to play.

Emma & Olivia

This is probably the only "normal" picture of Olivia that I have.

Paul, Hughie & Kevin

These boys were up to their usualy "mischeif" before band.LoL!