When you find yourself in the thick of it, help yourself to a bit of what is all around you.

• So far week 3 is just dandy. Amazing food for lunch everyday, still no repeats. Brigette is magical.
• My lessons with Dr. Astrup are going well, however, I feel that they are a bit more like coachings. Which is a great thing, but is my technique really at a point where it's good enough? Nein. She's giving me so much rep which is amazing and I'm finally confident and consistent with my high. I've been working on 4 Strauss Lied (and she keeps giving me more) and I'm in love with all of them. It also feels good to have a headstart on my Masters recital things.
• After a recital at the beautiful Schloss Mirabell by the first place competition winners Pam and I were complete Fat Kids and had another Käsekrainer AND ice cream.
• Speaking of Ice Cream (or Eis here) Haselnuss or Hazelnut is to DIE for...no really. What is wrong with you America?? Where are all the hazelnut flavored things??
• In an attempt to make up for my Fat Kidness I decided to go for a run. I've been consistently running since January again, but when I got here I guess the combination of being in a foreign land and just being so tired all the time I haven't been running. Which is DUMB (for a million reasons), but mostly because there is a gorgeous running/walking/biking trail behind my host family's home that wraps around the foot of the surrounding mountains. Needless to say I will definitely be consistently running for the rest of my stay here.
• Tomorrow I'm singing "Joy beyond measure, mother" for Tom Enman's masterclass. I still need a lot of help with presentation of this aria so I'm excited to sing for him.

I'll end this post with another random observation: There are dead slugs on the sidewalks everywhere. On my run tonight I saw at least 30, no really, and I'm pretty sure I accidentally squished one or two. Go ahead everyone, eeeeeewwwwwwwwwwwwww.