Thankful Thursday!

If a fellow isn't thankful for what he's got, he isn't likely to be thankful for what he's going to get.
Frank Howard Clark


My Friend, Bianca- or "B" as we like to call her.   I have a billion reasons why I am grateful for knowing her.  First off, the girl makes me laugh to a point where I am crying.  It's usually something like her saying "What are limbs?" or her loud, contagious laugh (which is usually at me and then with me) that gets everyone around her laughing.   Sometimes, that is really would makes an okay day a good day.  She also cooks me chicken nuggets because I am afraid of the oven (legit).  Also, because of her, I can say that I think J. Biebs has a minuscule of talent. You might think this is a bad thing but I do not because in all reality I turned an indifferent or negative feeling into a positive feeling. Positiveness is key people! Don't worry, I do not have Bieber Fever.

      However, the reason that I am most grateful for B coming into my life is because of her kindness towards everyone, but it is especially beneficial to me, especially this week.  Why, you ask. Well, since I arrived in the UK I have poured pound after pound into a pay as you go phone (aka drain).  I could not get a contract phone because I have not lived her long enough.  It didn't matter when I told Mr. Phone Man that bill I still pay at home is three times as much as the monthly plan I am interested in (phone plans are great here, btw).  They just didn't care about this angry American's phone drama. So anyway, the folks at Orange (phone company) told me that to bring in a bank statement from my UK account and they will sort it out.  Their sorting it out went like this, "You didn't pass the identity check."  After they told me that I didn't have enough proof that I do exist, they gave me the alternative of asking someone to put my phone in their name and do a switch-a-roo in three months.  I could never ask someone to do that! I am usually the person that people ask to do that.  I told B about the insanity of these people and she said, "Is that all you need to do?"  I said, "Yeah, but I wouldn't ask someone to do that."  She said, "I'll do that for you."  This girl who has known me for 30 days completely helped me out and got nothing in return except for a hug that was too strong because I still don't recognize my own strength.

     So, thanks to B, I have a UK working iPhone in my possession and I feel whole again.  I'd like to think that I  am not a materialistic person except for when it comes to iThings.  If you don't have an iThing then you simply wouldn't understand.  So this week I am extraordinarily grateful for B because she has saved me a fortune and gave me my sanity back for now I have the Map App.

iPhones - (you knew it was coming, right?) Laugh if you must but I am probably the most grateful person on the planet for the iPhone and its existence.  It is the one thing that I am pretty flipping sure that I would be pretty miserable without.  You can do fun stuff like play angry birds, listen to music, and catch up on Facebook. You can do serious things with it like check your bank account, Skype, and write your Thankful Thursday post on the Note App.  You can do more phoney things like talk on it (but really, who does that?) or text! How I have missed texting like the Jedi Master I was born to be! With the iPhone 4s that I will get soon enough, you have Artificial Intelligence! Which, let's face it, who doesn't need some A.I. laying around?  P.S.  Have any of you seen the bit about who was Steve Jobs' favorite band and band member?

Bed Comforters - I never thought that I would be so grateful to know that one day I will be in contact with a bed comforter again.  Who would have ever imagined I would be so indebted to the likes of a blanket! The kind of blanket that I would just give away when I no longer wanted the bed set it belonged to. Oh! How I long for a regular blanket! In the UK, all they seem to have are bloody duvets.  Well, I would like to tell the inventors of duvets where to go and how to get there! I spend more time wrestling said duvet back into it's cover than I do actually sleeping with it. The thought of a regular, simple one piece blanket is just marvelous to me. People, I am telling you, Linus was right!!  They are wonderful pieces of comfort. You cannot realize what they offer until you end up with your foot stuck inside a duvet cover with the duvet at the other end of the cover! To you, Comforters of Bed Sets Past, I miss and adore you. I hope that you are being treated justly wherever you are.

Airplanes with focus on Airmail - Being far away from home isn't always a picnic. Seriously, you can have a hard time finding food that you like.  Who has a picnic without any food?  Plus when you get to where you are moving to, you realize all of the things you've left behind, like your favorite hoodie or the scrapbook you made with tons of pictures inside safely hugging your memories tight! It took two weeks but that wonderful airplane brought a lovely package from Lolly herself with the above mentioned items and also peeps, Velveeta shells & cheese, Stove Top Stuffing and a bunch of other goodies!  I never thought I would have a reason to be grateful for airmail or airplanes, but golly gee look at me thanking the Universe for the Wright Brothers (I really hope those are the dudes responsible for airplanes!).

And I was lucky enough to get another package from my brother and his girlfriend today!  It was a pleasant surprise as I thought it was going to be another week for the package to come.  Included were many awesome things, but my favorite items in the box of goodness were Wise Chips and UTZ dip!   I love chippies and dip! Who knows, next week those might make an appearance for Thankful Thursday!

Freedom of Choice(?)- I am seriously grateful for this all of the time but especially right now.  I have thought of many things to be grateful for this week but I have lost my knack of teachery and no longer carry a notebook with me (and I didn't always have my US iPhone on me) so I could not write down the ideas I had.  Well, it is 4:30 a.m. and I am choosing to end my weekly post this way.  Why?  Because I can!!


What are you thankful for?

Thankful Thursday!

"Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns. I am thankful that thorns have roses." -Allophones Karr

Another week has passed and now we are at week four of The Gratitude Posts aka Thankful Thursdays. My how time flies. Here are the five things I am thankful for this week...


Diversity- I am very grateful for so many different people on this earth. I absolutely love learning about other cultures! I find that Liverpool is much like home because of all of the different ethnic groups that are found here. I love it. How boring would life be if we were all the same! I am a super minority here and I am learning so much because no one does things here the way America or Scranton does them. I am incredibly grateful to be learning about different English and Welsh customs. I also really love the tolerance of diversity here in England. It's kind of like no one sees a skin color or minds a completely different culture thrown in the mix.


Words- If there is someone in this world who is not grateful for words than shame on them. I love words and I am glad I know them! I like to call myself a writer (but you actually have to write to do that) so of course I rely on words to get my point across but also (hopefully) make money one day. I like big words like "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" and I like little words like "a". Money is my least favorite word along with hate, war, and religion. Every word is very significant and can completely change a meaning of a sentence. And if you know me at all you would know that I LOVE to analyze sentences and find different meanings! Oh, Words, one of my biggest debts is to you.


Sticking to Things (Not to be confused with being stubborn) - I have this annoying inability to quit things. I finish what I start. Oftentimes, I have a difficult time seeing when something has finished and continue to try, fight, hope, etc for something. I think that this is a great characteristic to have which I am incredibly thankful for. After all, you will never know the outcome of a situation if you do not stick to it. This past week, I watched a friend possibly miss a great chance, which broke my heart. It was actually that moment that I just thanked the Powers That Be for my ability to just finish things and also for guiding me to a much needed nap instead of following my mom in a taxi cab to the airport. Liverpool is the best decision I have made in a long time. I am so happy that I just don't know how to quit things or I would have left Liverpool that first moment my mom left too.  P.S.  I am stubborn.


My Education- I often joked at a part of Marywood's long time mission statement which is something like -teaching students to live independently in an interdependent world- and something along the lines of helping students develop critical thinking skills. However, they knew what they were doing. It is because of my years at MU that I am able to be a leader in a group and that I am able to solve problems quickly (real problems, not math problems). Then when I add in my English background combined with my teacher training background I am overwhelmed with gratitude with the choices that I have made. This also came in handy at 3:30 in the morning when a friend of mine in the States needed help writing an introduction to a research paper. Guess who was able to write that up in minutes? How can one not be grateful for having the ability to help out a friend? I may be in an enormous amount of debt and have nothing to show for it. But, at the end of the day I get to say I am a teacher. Thanks to the Universe is in order for that one.


My Brother - drives me insane. But there is no one I can count on quite like I can count on him. We are very much alike but we have entirely different ideas and beliefs about things. This makes it quite impossible to have a conversation with each other. He thinks he's always right, yet I know I am always right. So you can see how we run into a problem. However, this past week I was talking to one of my flatmates about siblings and she told me that she doesn't have an older brother but she always wanted one. I automatically thought of how lucky I am to have mine. I am so unbelievably grateful to have him as a brother. Please understand, I love all of my siblings equally. But, there is nothing like a relationship with an older brother to a sister. I have a older and younger sister so I know that there is a difference between the relationships of each. It's funny because I was "working" with a friend of his this spring and he said something that was getting me agitated and someone else said "Autumn, I would love to see you deck him." The pea brain then said "I'm Corey's friend." I looked at him and said, "I'm Corey's sister." And then a friend chimed in and said "She's his sister and it's Autumn. You won't win that battle." Pretty much how it's been my whole life.

Corey's birthday is three days after mine and every year (except for when he turned 18) and when I lived in Florida we blew out the cakes together (and now Jacob does it too). Of course, I love when my birthday comes along but I always thought I was especially lucky because I got to share my candles with Corey. We threw a surprise party for him and it was my job to get him to the place. I said "why me?!" and my mom responded with "because he will go there for you." It's kind the way it has always been. Not that he wouldn't do it for anyone else, but, Corey really goes out of his way for me often and I try to do the same for him.

When my heart was broken, I called Corey. When there is bad news, I call Corey. When there is good news, I call Corey. When things are going great, I call Corey. When I am trouble, I tell everyone not to call Corey. And when I am about to do something stupid (which really how often does that happen), I hear I am going to tell Corey. As long as I can remember he has always watched out for me, even when I couldn't recognize that he was only trying to help.

So I found this from an old blog of mine the same night I had the sibling conversation:

He [Corey] always watched out for me. When I look at pictures from when we were little he is always standing near me looking like he is standing guard for me... and I said that to him and my mom the other day and they both respond with "that's cause I/he was. " - May 02, 2006

What are you grateful for this week?

Thankful Thursday!

"I am thankful for every moment." - Al Green

This week has flown by and Thankful Thursday has passed me by except in California....  which is where I shall pretend I am right now.  (Note:  There is no where else I'd rather be than Liverpool.)   I have not thought about this as much as I have the last two as I have been busy enjoying life but if I had to pick five things I am grateful for at this moment they would be... 

My Mother - Probably one of the biggest cliches out there but I don't care.  My mom is like an old song on the radio. It doesn't matter what type of mood I am in or the day I am having, her words are always what I need to hear even before I know I need to hear them.  I honestly wouldn't be here without her. Of course, I wouldn't be alive without her. But, I mean I  wouldn't be in Liverpool without her either.  In fact, she is the one who introduced me to John Lennon and The Beatles.  So that alone is enough to be forever in her debt!  But that is just the start of it.  She's raised me, fed me, helped me with homework, cleaned up all types of my messes, never missed a single thing for any of her children (I think she has a few clones out there). Let's not forget countless hours in countless hospital rooms she's spent just sitting by my side when I was younger.  The reason I am alive is because of this woman.  Whenever any doctor told her I wouldn't survive, she kept faith in me.  She's amazing.  I can only hope to be a fraction of the mom she is to my currently non-existent children! She's so awesome that she doesn't care that I have a Top Ten list of things that she does that drive me insane (and it's way beyond ten).  She will go to the ends of the earth for us and most likely get lost along the way because she knows a shortcut (that is on the list too). 

Patience - I have always been a patient person. I guess that comes from sort of having to wait around for someone to help with something.  As I get older, I realize just how much having patience has helped me along the way.  I know a bunch of people that could use some patience in life and I am happy that I have that going for me.  There are some things that truly try my patience.  However, for the most part I am pretty good in that department. 

Skype - I mentioned technology in my first post but I really am grateful for the invention of Skype.  I am so happy that this free service enables me to speak with my friends and family back home.  It is a great thing to be able to be picked on 3,500 miles away when that is exactly what will cheer me up at 6:17 in the morning. And with Skype, it's like there is no distance at all.  Thank you, Skype.

My Flatmates -   I am so happy that the six girls are awesome.  They are extremely helpful and hysterical.  They each remind me of a person back home and I laugh in my head when they say or do something that one of my friends back home would do. They always translate a word to American terms for me so I don't make a complete fool out of myself.  Also, B does a find job of making food for me when I say "B, do you want to help me with this?" She knows already that by help I mean please just cook it.  They laugh at my lack of cooking skills. So do I.  I am grateful that we haven't end up with a bad bunch of girls.  That would have made for a long year. 

Laughter -  I mean, for real, what is a better sound that someone laughing?  When I hear someone laughing (or wheezing when I am in the States) I start to laugh 99% of the time and smile for sure.  What Grinch wouldn't be grateful for something so simple that makes someone smile?  Not this one.   A baby's belly laugh is especially contagious. I am thankful for every laugh I hear throughout the day as I know that someone else will begin to smile because of it?

What are you grateful for?

I obviously should have included California in this one!

Thankful Thursday!

This past week held a very interesting (and surprising) combination of things that I became overwhelmed by feelings of gratefulness or subtle hints of gratuity that made me feel inclined to  whisper thanks  to the Universe.

Autonomy   - defined as the state of functioning independently, without extraneous influence found in Dorland's Medical Dictionary for Health Consumer.  Not always, but I often like to be alone.  I moved to a strange country on my own and I am really thriving here.  I also became grateful for respect for autonomy that others have.  This (autonomy) is something that I wasn’t aware existed until my Christian Marriage course. Not only did that course enlighten me to a new term but it also let me know it was okay to want to spend time by yourself.  I don’t always want to be alone but I am glad that I can be on my own and not have a nervous breakdown for being on my own.  Sometimes, you really are your own best company. I usually always agree with me and when I don’t I just tell myself to shut it.

Second Chances – For a very long time I was very upset that I wasn’t offered a second chance with a significant other. While  pondering the second chance of two other people, it took me by surprise that I might not have gotten a second chance with him but I did get a second chance at “life” by getting the opportunity to live in Liverpool ( a place I love) and study The Beatles (whom I love the most in the world, besides Jacob). By letting go of my past ever so slowly each day, I am able to embrace this opportunity and take the chance to really be Autumn in a way I couldn’t be when I was longing for the past.  Also, two people In my life are getting a second chance at friendship and I think that is the most brilliant thing I have seen in a long time.  I always thought that they would be the best of friends and it seems as though fate gave them another shot.  I am happy and thankful for them and for myself. 

 Music- Contrary to what I imply, I don’t think there is bad music out there.  There is music I don’t like. However, someone in the world does.  It moves someone and that is all that matters. Whenever I hear a song I feel some emotion.  Whether it is a good or bad feeling  I am always started in a rabbit hole of thought when any song plays.  Anything that stirs up emotions, or makes you think, is quite awesome.  I can’t imagine life without music. At least mine would be empty. So whoever it was that made the first sound of music, I would like to thank you a billion times over. I know I am leaving a huge part of my music out but that part deserves their own section another week. 

Ketchup – Yes. I am thankful for ketchup.  I have the following going against me when it comes to eating:  I am allergic to red meat (for real); I do not like turkey or seafood; I cannot eat chicken if it looks like chicken; if it sounds or looks weird, I will not eat it; I cannot cook. So this basically limits me to microwavable chicken or cooking pasta.  Back home, I often made ketchup sandwiches for a quick snack or I would make noodles with butter and put some ketchup on them. Now that I am living in the UK I have found that ketchup makes many other things better.  Since I always have it in the flat I can always have a ketchup sandwich before class or when I don’t feel like making anything. I would never imagine I would ever be grateful for a condiment but I’ve run in to some bad pasta sauces in the last six weeks and I have become inclined to put some good ole Heinz on my noodles and eat away.  And please don’t roll your eyes in disgust at my eating habits until you have actually tried a ketchup sandwich or noodles and ketchup. BAM.

(Cool) Air – Cliché, I know.  I was feeling a tad under the weather this week and my room was so hot.  I dislike being cold but I really dislike being hot. When I am sick, the dislike of being hot almost turns into a hate for it.  I turned the heat down in my room and it still wasn’t cool enough.  My window had been locked until this week and when I finally opened it there was a Pandora’s Box of spiders waiting to come in so I slammed that right shut as soon as I opened it.  In order to get some air in my room, I propped open my door and the kitchen door and let the wind blow in from the kitchen.  I can’t even being to describe how thankful I was for the cool air to come through. And also how idiotic I felt when I realized it took a heap of spiders to make me feel grateful for it!   Oh… here's to you, Air, for keeping me alive.  

What are you grateful for this week?

Here's to Seeing Slam Dunks in Schools Again

        Insomnia (or just a lousy sleep pattern) can really get your mind thinking.  It doesn't always produce the best thoughts but once in a while you get a fond memory right in the front line.  This is what happened tonight. This one actually got me out of bed because I have found the problem with the American Education System! (No, it is not the teachers' fault that your kid isn't learning anything.) But there is a story to be told.

      I have had great teachers from kindergarten to present.  I can honestly tell you that out of my 22 years as a student I only had three "lousy" teachers who, might I add, were not a part of my public education. Other than those three, there are countless amount of teachers that have impacted my life in a positive way.  I am sure that most of you reading this know that I have a BA in English but this story isn't about an awesome English teacher (btw all of mine were FAB and did impact my life). This story is about my gym teacher at Neil Armstrong. How about that for a twist?

     As most of you probably know I am not, you know, the most abled bodied person. When I was a kid gym class was quite a drag because for the most part I'd watch the kids play volleyball or something like that from the stage (our gym was also where the stage was) and it was just boring and kind of like, ah, rub in your face deal. Of course, that was never the intention, I just needed to be with my class and this was before adaptive phys ed invaded my life.  So once or twice a week I'd spend an hour in the gym, do what I could and watch what I couldn't (do).

     My teacher, Mr. O'Hern? was a funny guy.  He always reminded me of the host of "Supermarket Sweep" and was always totally cool to kids.  I always remember him being nice to me. Because of him, I don't really have crap memories of gym. Besides that volleyball thing but I think that's because I really wanted to play and be like everyone on 90210.  However, when my friends were all playing basketball I paid close attention.  I loved basketball and it is just bewildering  to me to this day. (If only MJ would come back and be awesome.)

   I am losing track (it's 4 in the morning).  So I don't have a before or after of this memory.  I don't know what led to this or what really happened when it was over.  I just remember the event. Yes, event.  I remember Mr. O'Hern just saying, "Come on. I'll help you." He picked me up.  He told someone, I don't remember what classmate, to hand me the ball. I took it.  Then, Mr. O'Hern lifted me up higher so I could reach the basket and, ladies and gentlemen, I made my first and only slam dunk.  This teacher, by breaking all of the modern school policies, impacted my life by showing me I could do the impossible!  That is pretty flipping awesome.

      If the slam dunk of the universe were to happen today, Susie's mom would sue the teacher, the school, the district, and the company who made the basketball for putting Susie's life at risk or even more dramatic saying she suffered severe emotional trauma because Susie is afraid of heights.  Oh, how can I forget?  Everyone would be sued just for the fact that Teacher X touched Susie in a completely innocent manner. So I mean it's not that teachers are the problem. The fact that teachers' hands are tied from the get go is the problem.  Teachers are no longer able to connect with students. How can we expect students to succeed when we are drilling them for tests that are rubbish and can't so much as crack a joke with them from January to the end of PSSA time?

   Maybe it's me.  I don't know. But I do know that I don't remember a thing about taking the PSSA's except trying to hurry through them so I can take a nap before the next section. Huge impact, right?  Wrong.  The huge impact was the teacher who took time to assist me make a slam dunk.  That memory bopped me out of bed - 3,200 miles away from the school and almost 20 years after its creation.  That is making an impact in a student's life.

     I hope all of my readers who are teachers can help a kid make a slam dunk today. Break the rules. Take the chance. Go above and beyond. Swish*.







Swish is the sound effect that a basketball net makes as the ball goes through.  I think.  I'm an English teacher who is studying The Beatles in England. What the flip do I know about basketball sound effects?

The Grateful Post

   I have decided to follow the steps of my dear friend, Amanda (from Let's Take The Metro), and do one post a week focusing on five things that I realize I am grateful for each week (new or old). Hopefully other people will read this and begin to focus on things they are grateful for and not focus so much on what they don't have or what is going wrong.   The first week (or weeks)  I am going to get all of the obvious stuff out of the way.  In these weeks most of the stuff that has to do with my character or things like that.  Once all of the ordinaries are taken care of I will move on to the extra-ordinaries. (Although- I think my character is pretty extraordinary!)

Being Alive - I decided to take care of the cheesy and cliche topic first.  It really isn't cheesy or cliche though. It's actually quite important. If I weren't alive I couldn't be doing this right now and I think you think this is pretty important.  For real though, I'm quite stoked I'm alive.   No matter how bad your day might be remember that there is always tomorrow. Or is there?  With so much crap going on in our lives it's easy to get disgruntled but once you realize how quickly it can be taken away,  you'll change your tune. Just saying.  I found myself right in the middle of a great life and I'm pretty flipping happy I stayed alive long enough to get here.  Word.

My Support System - My family and friends are pretty flipping amazing.  It turns out that moving to another country isn't as easy as it looks and it could be quite scary.  As I have been here for one month and three days.  I have come to see how awesome my support system is and I hope that you can realize how awesome yours is too.  I must say they each contribute to my success in their own way and without each of them my life would be a little less full of sunshine. (How about that for cheesy?)  My family and friends have made this transition quite easy and I am incredibly grateful for that.

Technology - I have been in love with technology forever. I always need the latest and greatest communication devices. There is no better example of why I should love technology than when I am able to feel right at home 3,200(ish) miles away from the familiar roads of Scranton. With Skype I am still to talk to my friends, be hollered at by mi madre and play Batman and Robin with Jacob.  That is something to be thankful for!


My Faith in Humanity  - I am disgustingly optimistic that the world is going to be a better place one day.  Liverpool has only reaffirmed that belief.  I am pretty happy to see that mankind hasn't given up on mankind.  Imagine the disaster that would be!  I know the world and people are perfect but I do think that there are still pretty good people in the world and they have good intentions. This doesn't seem like something to be thankful for but think about someone that you know that has no faith in humanity.  I know a few of those people and it makes me sad to think of the way they see the world. I hope they change their minds soon.

A Sense of Humor - I am so happy that the Universe has given me a sense of humor.  I really do have a way of looking on the bright (or funny side) of things (and sometimes at the most inopportune times).  I really do think that my ability to laugh at the not so small troubles is what prevents all of my hair from turning gray.  I mean my first month in England was not the easiest. I had many hiccups along the way but just laughed them off. Seriously, I was almost stuck in Ireland two weeks ago and laughed at the idea that I was going to be stuck in Dublin. Think about it.  Autumn stuck in Ireland.  That is funny.  Laugh as much as you breathe. If you can't find it in you to laugh at least smile.  You have a beautiful smile.

So that is it for now.  I know utterly obnoxious but at least I am not complaining.  I am already thinking about next week's post (which I think this will be on Thursdays from now on).   Once you start to notice things you are grateful for they kind of just flood you.

And I will close this as Amanda (I know her in real life too) does:
What are you grateful for?

Follow Up

I didn't have access to the internet for most of the day yesterday and when I finally gained access today I was saddened to see that Troy  Davis was put to death.  Apparently Davis claimed his innocence until his last moments.   Aren't you wondering if Georgia made a mistake?  Wouldn't you think he'd come clean in his final moments and seek forgiveness?  I don't know.  Things are backwards if you ask me.
One of my friends posted  "A man was just murdered down in Georgia."  I agree.


So yeah here is the link to the story that I saw when I signed on.  I know that most of you probably know about it already because you are in the States and have access to your technologies that are just a fond memory of mine. 


Huffington Post: Troy Davis Executed