Two amazing gifts from two amazing ladies
The other day I went to my front door only to discover a recently delivered package on the ground. The package was from Hannah Jesus Koh and included a kind letter and two large Big Hunks:
That was a legit gift and I already ate one. Everyone, feel free to send more.
This evening I was getting ready to walk to the market when I heard a long ring of the doorbell. Only delivery men ring the bell for that long. I went down to the door and the delivery man walked me to the back of his truck. I signed for the package and he handed me a large parcel. I was thoroughly perplexed, supposing it might be one of the two packages my parents sent last week, but it wasn't in a USPS box and was too lightweight to be books. I finally got inside and took a look at the box. It was from Marleigh Jacklyn Dunlap and featured a Polaroid of the coast at Santa Monica:
Seeing this on the box made me well up with tears
I wondered what was inside (I heard a large amount of liquid sloshing around...)
Movies, socks, blanket, American flag, ocean water, balloon (Gifts)...
I open the box to immediately find this balloon:
Marleigh had intended for the inflated balloon to emerge from the box when I opened it - unfortunately it lost a lot of helium in transit, but it was so thoughtful. I began to pull things out, with tears in my eyes.
In addition to the balloon, Marleigh sent me:
Two mixes
Notice the hand-sewn writing
Two pairs of socks
She heard I needed socks - Kenneth Jones spells "C-L-A-S-S"
The classic 2002 sci-fi comedy sequel to Men in Black on VHS
This thing
The paper it was wrapped in left no questions regarding where she picked it up
Also this thing
Uh...
A light-up triceratops
For those of you who are neither native to the American Southwest nor acquainted with Latin American culture, the Quinceañera is the coming of age ceremony for Hispanic girls on their 15th birthdays:
You never know when these will come in handy in Fife
A blanket
The last bit is the best part - and I would expect nothing less from Marleigh.
Sand, a shell and water from the Pacific Ocean
I am guessing that this post will make everyone jealous, especially given the fact that Marleigh spent $54.50 (about £33) on shipping alone. I am truly grateful.
To both Hannah and Marleigh: Thank you so much for your friendship, your thoughtfulness and your senses of humour. You have no idea how much these gifts mean to me. I love you both.
In other news, yesterday was St Andrew's Day (the feast day of St Andrew), the Scottish National Day. Our town, being St Andrews, was the host of St Andrews Festival and though I didn't go to many events, it was a rather enjoyable celebration. I got to wear my full (semi-formal) traditional Scottish Highland wear (maybe I'll have pictures of that some time soon) without feeling like too much of a jerk (I always love dressing in traditional Scottish wear, especially now that I've a custom-fitted kilt). Also, two of my new friends (Jenn & Maria) got their M.Litts conferred to them yesterday. Jenn and Brandon had small get together at their house last night and it was great to hang out with these wonderful people.
I will be visiting Los Angeles from 19 December to 10 January. With this in mind, please make sure to hang out with me during the time I am back in LA. I miss you all deeply and Hannah and Marleigh's gifts only make me miss you all more.