“It’s a dangerous business… going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.” – J.R.R. Tolkien

Recently, I came across this quote on a travel blog and fell in love with it, though as an English major, perhaps I should have recognized it beforehand.

One reason it’s taken me so long to write this post, I think, is because it is difficult to summarize three weeks that were so crucial to my life, as well as my mindset.  Traveling to Australia, along with the events that transpired there, was life changing. Struggling with which side of the aisle to walk on in the supermarket or getting in the opposite side of the car reflected how new everything on this journey was to me.

The moment I met up with all of the students…

Sunlights slants through the trees, blinding me.
Smoke rises from the chimney carrying an acrid scent.
Wind showers me with sparkling fairy dust from the trees
Making me blink, blink, but then I feel like I can fly. 

Copyright 2014 Brenda Davis Harsham

© Karen Hutton CC BY-NC 3.0

Monument Valley (Navajo: Tsé Biiʼ Ndzisgaii, meaning valley of the rocks) is a region of the Colorado Plateau characterized by a cluster of vast sandstone buttes, the largest reaching 1,000 ft (300 m) above the valley floor. It is located on the Arizona-Utah state line, near the Four Corners area. The valley lies within the range of the Navajo Nation Reservation and is accessible from U.S. Highway 163.

Monument Valley has been featured in many forms of media since the 1930s. Director John Ford used the location for a number of his best-known films, and thus, in the words of critic Keith Phipps, “its five square miles have defined what decades of moviegoers think of when they imagine the American West. [Wikipedia]

Catatan: Nostalgia untuk minggu ini adalah catatan 2011, salah satu derby terbaik sepanjang masa. Sekalian membalas kekecewaan derby Minggu, 9 Februari 2014 kemarin yang berakhir mengecewakan 0-0.

Thank Klose!

“A very great deal is possible with the players we have in the squad.” (Miroslave Klose)

Kedatangan penyerang jangkung Jerman, Miroslave Klose ke Lazio seperti sebuah kado hadiah buat Laziale awal musim 2011/2012 ini. Tanpa membayar sepeser-pun, Klose yg habis kontrak di Bayern Muenchen akhirnya memilih Lazio sebagai pelabuhan selanjutnya. Hasilnya, pekan pembuka lawan Milan Miro langsung bikin gol saat laga belum berjalan ½ jam. Pekan demi pekan konsisten bermain bagus makin mengukuhkannya sebagai idola baru Olimpico. Terakhir pagi tadi, saat Lazio nyaris “hanya” meraih 1 poin setelah drama panjang dua kali membentur tiang, Klose muncul sebagai pahlawan di menit terakhir! Menerima umpan matang Matuzalem, Klose yg lolos offside mengontrol bola sesaat sebelum mengeksekusinya dengan dingin.

Di menit 93’ itulah Lazio…