winter time

in the past month i have been introduced to so many american traditions: ( i know i've already mentioned a few of these, but i thought i'd elaborate )

October 31st: Halloween

i have spoken to alot of christians about this holiday, which i think seems a strange thing to celebrate in the most 'christian' nation in the world. mostly the christians celebrate it as a 

'harvest festival' where they participate in the less creepy aspects of halloween, like dressing up and trick or treating. 

my friends insisted i go trick or treating, so on halloween night, we made a pathetic attempt to dress up like robots in cardboard boxes and aluminum foil! we then trekked out to the richest neighbourhoods with our pillowcases to collect all the lollies. i didn't think people would really give to a bunch of 20 something year olds, but they were impressed with our efforts and the fact that it was my first halloween ever...

November 20th: Thanksgiving

we had a 4 day weekend for this holiday, so that people had enough to fly home if they wanted to spend thanksgiving with their families. 

i and 4 other from the base were invited to my friend whitney's house, who lives here in denver. it felt alot like christmas to me - a big lunch on a ping-pong table that had been turned into a table with alot of autumn decorations around the place. 

i was informed that turkey was manditory for this meal and there was so much shock

 when i confessed that i had never tried pumpkin pie before. lucky i liked it, cause all eyes were on me when i was eating it! 

it snowed alot on thanksgiving day, which was so much fun! later that night, we tied sleds to the

 back of a friends truck and he pulled us around the church parking lot next to the base. i have never seen so much snow! 

November 21st: Black Friday

this day is similar to our boxing day, i guess. it is basically a public holiday where the shops sell everything at a ridiculous discount - and the crowds come out in their multitudes to find the best deals. 

a few of us lined up at some shops before opening time in the snow, and then fought through the crowds for all the 75% off bargains. i didn't really buy much, but it was fun to watch and be a part of. 

but, humans will be humans when it comes to this sort of thing - one shop attendant at a wallmart in denver was crushed and killed by the crowds when she opened the front door to let them in. crazy. 

anyway - i am really enjoying the winter weather. the snow in denver is sporadic which means you get a bought of it followed by a few days of warmer, beautiful weather - it means you never get sick of the cold or the snow. i love getting bundled up every time we go out (yes, it's still a novelty i guess) and i love the crunching sound that snow makes under your feet. i have had a couple of funny falls, but it's always a soft landing :) 

my close girlfriends and i love to go and sit on the swing sets when we have a free day - this is one of the things i'm really going to miss.