The Car and The Test

So the past week has been a little eventful for us.  Last Tuesday, I was driving home from school, had stopped at a traffic light at a roundabout, and all of a sudden heard a horrendously loud noise.  "Oh no!" I thought.  "I think that's my car!"  I didn't want to stop in the middle of the lane of traffic, so I decided to keep driving until I could pull over.  There was a horrible scraping sound and it sounded like I was in a Nascar race.  A little further ahead, safely pulled over, I got out, looked under the car, and saw a pipe hanging down from the car and touching the road.  "Great," I thought.  "What do I do?!"  To make the story short, Luke phoned our garage, who came to rescue me, and we ended up paying loads of money to have our middle (which was the part that was dragging the ground) and front exhaust pipes replaced.  Oh, sweet car repairs!

The second event of the week was my (Whitney's) taking the Life in the UK test.  The government here has decided that if you want to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (the next step for me in regards to my visa), you must pass a test about life in the UK.  You must read several chapters of a book and learn obscure facts that you are then tested on.  There are 25 questions, and you can miss no more than 6.  So, I studied diligently for my test, learning things like what percent of women with children work, the percent of the population that lives in each of the four countries, how the government functions, how many independent schools there are in the UK, what percent of children go to them, what percent of children work and the minimum wage for various ages in the UK, the government target for people going on to higher education, the percents of ethnic minorities, the percent of people who say they are Christian and other religions in the UK...you know, useful information for daily life.  Thankfully, I've passed!  So the next step is forking over more than half a months pay to the government, along with my pass certificate and evidence that Luke and I are, indeed, still married and living in the same place.  Hopefully, though, if I should apply for citizenship, I don't have to take the test again.  Hooray!

Finally...it's been snowing here!  Not consistently, but here and there.  Above are some pictures that I took at school during lunch yesterday.  School didn't end early, nor was it cancelled today.  Sadly, it hasn't really accumulated.  But it's been lovely to watch!

Pictures from Stourhead

Stourhead: The right edge of the lake, under one of the trees, is where Luke proposed.  The fall colors were lovely!

Luke and his mum at Stourhead.

Latest Happenings

I had to get my passport renewed.  It was a chance to update my picture and actually have a decent one taken...one without the half head of bangs.  The day I went to get my picture taken, I made sure I dried my hair with the hair dryer and I even put on makeup.  It would not be a repeat of last time!  But alas...it was to be a passport picture.  When it was ready to take the picture, they told me I couldn't smile.  (Apparently, in British passports, you are not allowed to smile in your passport picture.)  But I'm American...so I needed to smile!  In my confusion of whether to smile or not smile, I ended up making a posed smile...and the result?  Another horrible passport photo.  Oh well.  It will only last me for 10 more years! 

My latest discovery is that I have to take a test on Life in the UK before I can apply for indefinite leave to remain here.  There is a book to read, things to be memorized, and a test to pay for and take.  So soon I will know more about percentages and facts about the UK than my husband or work colleagues!  Hopefully, that is.  Time is not really on my side, as I have a few weeks to cram and pass.  And so off to study I go...