So I realize I haven't posted anything in a few days, but I really haven't been doing anything all that interesting to read about. I've spent a majority of my time in libraries reading and writing papers. I have a ton of work, which is fine because that is what I signed up for and I enjoy doing. Still, it's a lot of work. Well, fun for me, boring for reading about.
Wednesday I went to the Duke Humfrey library, which is a gorgeous room. It's wear they keep all the really old books in cabinets, and I mean, hundreds of years old. Plus the map room, which is what I was there for. It's kept pretty dark, especially after the sun goes down, and it's made of dark wood and the ceiling is very intricate. And for those of you who don't care about ancient books, it's also the Harry Potter library. Awesome, though the Hogwarts effect dies when you see half the desks stacked with computers and cellophane, but still a very cool room. No bags, pens or cameras allowed though, and since my cell phone makes a loud shutter noise for pictures, not sure if I'll be able to get any pictures.
Thursday relaxed a little and tried to avoid burnout. Some people did a Harry Potter reading where they read the 4th book outloud. It was entertaining, but I really wasn't into it and left after the first chapter. When it comes to books I want to read, not be read to. There were two guys from St. Peters there who all the girls were crowding. No idea how they coordinated what time to be here with them. Went back to the common room later and wound up talking with people till 4am. Lot of fun, but I definitely did not make it to breakfast Friday morning. Spent the day doing homework, and at night was our JCR (Junior Common Room) party. Helped set up for that, moving the table we used for pong was a little scary, but we got it done. Almost everyone showed up at some point, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. I know I really had a good time. Afterwards went to St. Peters to hang out with people, stayed till closing and then came back. We played truth or dare while we were there, so I got to tell about TPing Blair's house for my turn. Hung out in the common room for a while after getting back. Stayed up kinda late again.
Saturday was mostly a work day. There was a bop, but I decided not to go. Too much stuff to get done and I didn't want to have to cram it all in. Plus it was pretty cold out and I was in a stay inside mood. Did go down at midnight when it was over and people were just getting back. Heard some pretty funny stories, like someone making out with one of the guys who was here on Thursday for over an hour on the dance floor. She's still getting crap for that one. Around 12:30am we put O Brother Where Art Thou? on, think there were about 9 of us. Most of us were tired, so we fastfowarded quite a few parts to get to the ones we wanted. After that most people went to bed, I stayed up talking with Alix, Katie, and Jason. Around 3:30 someone decided to put Beauty and the Beast on, at which point I left cause I really needed to go to bed.
Sunday was mostly a work day. Got up late of course, but after brunch spent like 4 hours in the library, and then did more work here after dinner. Had our first official JCR committee meeting at 9pm, for which almost everyone remembered to show up. Got the rest of the year sort of lined up. Came back to my room to work, and gave into peer pressure a little later and went back to the common room. Got a little work done there, spent more time talking to Alix and watching Return of the Jedi. Fortunately it was close to the end, Luke was meeting the emperor when I got there, and I stayed till a little past the end when my laptop battery died. It hasn't been lasting more than an hour lately, but somehow last night when I planned on it dying early it actually made like and hour and a half. Technology. Spent this morning finishing my paper, and then had colloquium where we talked about More's Utopia that we had to read. I had most of it done. Really haven't got much done tonight, hopefully a little reading. So not a whole lot to read about, but a busy week for me.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
An English Rant
I spent most my day working with nothing special, so here I intend to rant about things the British do that make no sense to me and are actually inconvenient. Let's begin.
Walking. You would think for a place where you pretty much have to walk to get anywhere, people would have this one down. Not even close. In America, foot traffic pretty much flows in one direction on each side of the sidewalk, especially in the cities. Here, they just go wherever they feel like, in the street, on the sidewalk. My favorite today was the two girls with their arms locked together slowly zigzagging down the sidewalk. They didn't feel like go fast, and they sure made it hard to go around them. Or they like to walk in lines spread out across the sidewalk. They're not all together, they're just all walking at the same pace with no room between them and no one will move as you come at them, so you either have to push through or run around the whole line.
Also, they like to stop in the middle of the sidewalk. I understand the tourists who do, sometimes with cameras. Irritating, but whatever, been there. No, Brits will just stop, sometimes to look in the window, other times to sharply turn around and nearly walk into the person behind them (aka me) or sometimes for no apparent reason at all. There not even holding a cell phone. Some of them are looking in shop windows from the middle of the sidewalk, and do not expect them to move, or to not suddenly start walking and mow you down in the process. Just aggravating.
Next, cars. Yes, I understand the need to drive to get places and move merchandise, yadda yadda. But honestly, this is a city mostly designed before cars, and the streets were just not made to handle them. And when people tend to walk in most the streets, especially the cobblestone ones, cars really just do not belong. Or big trucks, of which there are quite a few, and I have seen more than one situation where a giant truck was slowwwwly backing up to let another get past. And do not doubt they will drive on the sidewalk to get around obstacles. Or even park on the sidewalk. Again, I was walking down a side street that had an unusually wide sidewalk, and out of nowhere some little black car drove past me, onto the sidewalk 10ft in front of me, and parked there. Literally shut the car off parked. I couldn't believe, the stupid thing was just wide enough to cover from the building to the curb. The dude was sitting in there as I walked past, and were I a little braver or in America, he would have gotten flipped off, but I settled for a dirty stare. Also more than once I have almost been run over by a car coming onto the sidewalk to turn around on a one lane street. I understand the need to drive, but cars really need to be banned from the city center or severely limited.
One good note about cars here, and even the newer trucks and buses, you don't smell any exhaust as they drive by, there emissions are so low. Good thing too, cause gas prices here would give the average American a heart attack.
Somewhere between these two irritants are bicycles. Nimbler and smaller, there not as problematic as cars. Still, there are some main pedestrian foot paths and crowded sidewalks they like to ride through and nearly run people over. Seriously, get off and walk.
Ok, this one I don't know if it's just CMRS or other places, the only public restroom I've been to is in the Sackler and it didn't have this problem. There are two faucets for the sink, one for hot, one for cold, like those ancient push ones they have in elementary schools. It's dumb. The cold is like ice, and the hot gets scalding so fast, it's practically useless. The only way to get warm water is to put the stopper in the drain. And even when there's only one spout, the hot and cold are still separate, which is the case for our bathroom. At first I didn't notice, but when I realized this when I tried using it to shave after burning myself with the one in our room. Nope, the hot and cold are separate, and if you look carefully as the water comes out when they're both on, it looks like fangs. Stupid and painful.
American music. Honestly, I'm in Britain. I don't want to hear Kanye West as I walk through the mall or Miley Cyrus' Party in the USA when I go to a dance. And remixing a song with an extra 5min of techno beats does not make it British either. They were playing King's of Leon's in the cafeteria today, which I'm sick of hearing back home. And the real killer is stuff we had over the summer is new hear, so they're constantly playing it. Just, in this case, less American.
Food is actually not as bad as I was led to believe it would be. Only thing, there is no need to cook meat till the edges curl up, or to never use seasonings or sauces. Just saying. Oh, and the Ketchup here is sweeter than it is back home, probably has more sugar in it or something. Actually tastes better, and worse for you.
A serious overhaul of the building numbering system. Some are numbered, some have numbers with a letter, and others have a name so they don't need a number at all. If you actually have the "address" for a building, use it more as a general guide for where the building is, don't actually rely on it to give you an accurate location.
Smoking while you walk. I get that you aren't allowed to smoke indoors here anymore, and you need your fix, but really, go stand to the side or something. A lot of them lack the coordination to walk normally, so when you throw cigarettes into the mix, and also generally a cell phone, they're just obstacles. And they will exhale right in your face. Not even an attempt to look away or up to exhale the smoke, they shoot it right in your face. I honestly think some of them make a game out of it, seeing if they can hit the target of your nose. Very tempted to trip the next one who does this to, though I doubt it will happen. But after anotehr month or two, will see how I feel.
Lastly, language. I understand that it's to cultures separated by a common language, but some of them don't make sense. Like calling a line a queue. A queue is when you set something to run automatically at a specific time, not what you do as you stand there waiting to buy groceries. Irritating. (And for all the talk about how much emphasis the British put on waiting your turn, bull. If you don't keep track of people, especially in the supermarket, they will cut you off.) Or how did fanny come to not mean in the back? Plus a hob means stove, which was very confusing at first. And they come up with some of the most disgusting names for food that actually taste good, it's just weird. (Though I'd like to know who eats some of the weird sandwich combinations they come up with.) Finally is the F-bomb. That has not lost its meaning, and if you thought people were bad about using it back home, cover your ears if you are ever around lay society here.
That's it. I'm sure I'll find more the next time I go out, or 30 sec. after I click post. Either way, maybe I'll make a 2nd one in the future. For now, I need to get back to work.
Walking. You would think for a place where you pretty much have to walk to get anywhere, people would have this one down. Not even close. In America, foot traffic pretty much flows in one direction on each side of the sidewalk, especially in the cities. Here, they just go wherever they feel like, in the street, on the sidewalk. My favorite today was the two girls with their arms locked together slowly zigzagging down the sidewalk. They didn't feel like go fast, and they sure made it hard to go around them. Or they like to walk in lines spread out across the sidewalk. They're not all together, they're just all walking at the same pace with no room between them and no one will move as you come at them, so you either have to push through or run around the whole line.
Also, they like to stop in the middle of the sidewalk. I understand the tourists who do, sometimes with cameras. Irritating, but whatever, been there. No, Brits will just stop, sometimes to look in the window, other times to sharply turn around and nearly walk into the person behind them (aka me) or sometimes for no apparent reason at all. There not even holding a cell phone. Some of them are looking in shop windows from the middle of the sidewalk, and do not expect them to move, or to not suddenly start walking and mow you down in the process. Just aggravating.
Next, cars. Yes, I understand the need to drive to get places and move merchandise, yadda yadda. But honestly, this is a city mostly designed before cars, and the streets were just not made to handle them. And when people tend to walk in most the streets, especially the cobblestone ones, cars really just do not belong. Or big trucks, of which there are quite a few, and I have seen more than one situation where a giant truck was slowwwwly backing up to let another get past. And do not doubt they will drive on the sidewalk to get around obstacles. Or even park on the sidewalk. Again, I was walking down a side street that had an unusually wide sidewalk, and out of nowhere some little black car drove past me, onto the sidewalk 10ft in front of me, and parked there. Literally shut the car off parked. I couldn't believe, the stupid thing was just wide enough to cover from the building to the curb. The dude was sitting in there as I walked past, and were I a little braver or in America, he would have gotten flipped off, but I settled for a dirty stare. Also more than once I have almost been run over by a car coming onto the sidewalk to turn around on a one lane street. I understand the need to drive, but cars really need to be banned from the city center or severely limited.
One good note about cars here, and even the newer trucks and buses, you don't smell any exhaust as they drive by, there emissions are so low. Good thing too, cause gas prices here would give the average American a heart attack.
Somewhere between these two irritants are bicycles. Nimbler and smaller, there not as problematic as cars. Still, there are some main pedestrian foot paths and crowded sidewalks they like to ride through and nearly run people over. Seriously, get off and walk.
Ok, this one I don't know if it's just CMRS or other places, the only public restroom I've been to is in the Sackler and it didn't have this problem. There are two faucets for the sink, one for hot, one for cold, like those ancient push ones they have in elementary schools. It's dumb. The cold is like ice, and the hot gets scalding so fast, it's practically useless. The only way to get warm water is to put the stopper in the drain. And even when there's only one spout, the hot and cold are still separate, which is the case for our bathroom. At first I didn't notice, but when I realized this when I tried using it to shave after burning myself with the one in our room. Nope, the hot and cold are separate, and if you look carefully as the water comes out when they're both on, it looks like fangs. Stupid and painful.
American music. Honestly, I'm in Britain. I don't want to hear Kanye West as I walk through the mall or Miley Cyrus' Party in the USA when I go to a dance. And remixing a song with an extra 5min of techno beats does not make it British either. They were playing King's of Leon's in the cafeteria today, which I'm sick of hearing back home. And the real killer is stuff we had over the summer is new hear, so they're constantly playing it. Just, in this case, less American.
Food is actually not as bad as I was led to believe it would be. Only thing, there is no need to cook meat till the edges curl up, or to never use seasonings or sauces. Just saying. Oh, and the Ketchup here is sweeter than it is back home, probably has more sugar in it or something. Actually tastes better, and worse for you.
A serious overhaul of the building numbering system. Some are numbered, some have numbers with a letter, and others have a name so they don't need a number at all. If you actually have the "address" for a building, use it more as a general guide for where the building is, don't actually rely on it to give you an accurate location.
Smoking while you walk. I get that you aren't allowed to smoke indoors here anymore, and you need your fix, but really, go stand to the side or something. A lot of them lack the coordination to walk normally, so when you throw cigarettes into the mix, and also generally a cell phone, they're just obstacles. And they will exhale right in your face. Not even an attempt to look away or up to exhale the smoke, they shoot it right in your face. I honestly think some of them make a game out of it, seeing if they can hit the target of your nose. Very tempted to trip the next one who does this to, though I doubt it will happen. But after anotehr month or two, will see how I feel.
Lastly, language. I understand that it's to cultures separated by a common language, but some of them don't make sense. Like calling a line a queue. A queue is when you set something to run automatically at a specific time, not what you do as you stand there waiting to buy groceries. Irritating. (And for all the talk about how much emphasis the British put on waiting your turn, bull. If you don't keep track of people, especially in the supermarket, they will cut you off.) Or how did fanny come to not mean in the back? Plus a hob means stove, which was very confusing at first. And they come up with some of the most disgusting names for food that actually taste good, it's just weird. (Though I'd like to know who eats some of the weird sandwich combinations they come up with.) Finally is the F-bomb. That has not lost its meaning, and if you thought people were bad about using it back home, cover your ears if you are ever around lay society here.
That's it. I'm sure I'll find more the next time I go out, or 30 sec. after I click post. Either way, maybe I'll make a 2nd one in the future. For now, I need to get back to work.
Monday, January 24, 2011
Ghosts, Homework and Parties
So apparently I didn't write at all this weekend, so this should be fun playing catch up, and sorry, it's kinda long. So Friday, I don't remember what I did. Pretty sure there was a nap involved in the morning. I know in the afternoon I actually got some work done cause I went to the Radcliffe Camera for a book. Some scary but nice looking guy even told me where the section I wanted was, which required climbing some narrow stairs. Still, the building is amazing. High dome ceiling with beautiful architecture, and the floor is padded so it doesn't make a ton of noise when you walk, unlike most the other libraries where every step you take makes you feel like a giant. Anyway, its two flaws are one, it smells funny (I think because of the floor) and two, people there can be a little rude. I mean, I understand not wanting someone to sit next to you, but that does not entitle you to take up three desks. Sorry, but buy your own book if you want to work like that.
After dinner I killed time before we left for the ghost tour around Oxford. Little pricey, but it was fun. It was me and a group of 12 girls, so unlucky 13 for the tour guide. It was freezing out, by the way, probably the coldest it's been since we got here. Real smart choice on our part. Anyhow, the tour was a lot of fun. Honestly was more historical than superstitious, which was a little disappointing. I mean, I learned a lot and saw some ancient parts of the city, but the ghost stuff was more in passing and there were only a few spots where we actually talked about how the place is haunted. Also had some Harry Potter sights pointed out to us, like the tree under which Malfoy gets turned into a ferret. We also snuck into one of the colleges real quick to see the courtyard, thrill of adventure there. Ended by a pub where you have to go down a real narrow alley to get to it, little sketchy looking, but supposedly from the middle ages. Tour guide informed me I was a lucky man to be with so many girls, to which I agreed. Feel like I used to hear that about something else I used to do as well? Anyway, after indecision and walking around trying to pick a pub, a few girls and I just came back to the hall, it was too cold out. For a little while I just sat on the sink with my feet on the heater, felt so good.
After that I decided to do some work with the books I have in the hall, so I went to the common room to relax and work. There was no one in there, so I grabbed my movies and threw the first Pirates of the Caribbean on. Seen it so many times I basically have it memorized, so it's easy to study to. Think I got 15min in before other people showed up, and from there my work ethic quickly died. Placed filled up pretty quickly, people half-watching the movie, talking, I played some weird card game Fluxx with mainly the three returners and other people who joined and quit. Game was hysterical, my stomach hurt by the end from laughing so much. Anyway, Pirates ended and it was decided to watch Gladiator because a few people hadn't seen it. Funny thing, I've owned it for 3 years and never seen it either, so we put it on. Nice to have a break from the usual chick flick, to which most people agreed. At first people were being noisy (myself included) so we had subtitles on for a while, but eventually everyone paid attention so we turned them off. I also got a bit of noise for some of my movies, both ones I have and what some of them are, whatever. Movie ended at like 2:30 AM, at which point we all crawled off to bed.
Saturday got up kinda late, as did most people. Was one girl's birthday today, but we all sang and stuff after 12 the night before. Went to brunch, came back and actually got work done, which was nice. Finally video chatted with home for the first time, which I was really happy about. Of course there were technical problems and my Dad had to be dragged out of bed to help. In the end they could see me fine but all I saw was a grey screen. I blame Dad's laptop. After that again my productivity pretty much died, think I got somethings done but I can't remember what. Decided to go to early morning mass for the 23rd, so I went to bed early instead of staying up in the common room again.
So I was the first one up and out Sunday morning. Everyone else in the building was asleep, so all the lights turned on as I walked out. Also had on my black cap, which I wore all day. Managed to find Blackfriars church rather easily, which surprised me. Its address said it was further down, but by luck I found it. The entrance to the chapel is actually a little side door right inside the main entrance to the school's courtyard, which surprised me. Anyway, it was a big room, but the altar was in the middle and there were chairs lined up in the back half. Old, rickety and uncomfortable, but they keep you awake. Place was also pretty empty, mostly older adults. Only other teens were there with their parents, and just like back home people showed up late, one guy during the homily. Otherwise it was pretty much the same, the only time there was a word difference was a line in the Nicene Creed, which is surprising. When I've gone to other churches even in Illinois, there have been times where what I automatically say for a prayer is different from the congregation. Really expected a bigger variance. Only other differences was the place was freezing, everyone kept their coats on and all the women their hats, and the priest had an English accent instead of an Asian one. Oh, there were also no kneelers, and the floor was really hard. Only a few of us actually knelt the whole time we were supposed to, most the older people just stood. Otherwise, felt like home.
Walked back to St. Michael's, it had warmed up quite a bit considering what the temperature had been, and the streets were a little busier. I'm actually learning my way around here pretty well, though if you ask me street names I still don't have a clue. Went back to bed till brunch, then ran over to St. Peter's library to work hard, since I had a paper due the next day. I really hate that library. It's crowded, the floor creaks everywhere, and out of 4 books I only managed to find 1. I found where the others were supposed to be, found the spot between two other books where they should have been, and they weren't there. Later I managed to find another one, but that required getting a ladder to reach it. Errr. After a few hours of reading an archeology book, which I have decided I do not like and now understand why many historians prefer written sources, I ran over to the Radcliffe because I knew they had one of the books that St. Peter's was missing.
Worked there till dinner, ate quick then did more work in my room till it was time for the JCR meeting which I had volunteered to do. While waiting for people I found soccer balls in the common room, which was a little random. Anyway, it should be a fun thing to do, and we also already planned out a few events. At 8pm most of us went to/were already in the common room to sing happy birthday to the two people whose birthdays were today. Go figure. Anyway, sang, gave them the gifts we pitched in for, and dawdled for a bit while people made plans for what to do. After a short while I needed a change of atmosphere, somewhere less upbeat where I could go be gloomy. I went back to St. Peter's to finish taking notes and get started on my paper, on the way ran into people who tried going to the pub only to find it was closed. Worked till about midnight, decided to quit, came back and took a shower, watched the movie I made last year and went to bed.
I don't feel like this is really a place to spill my guts out, if you're wondering why there isn't more about Grandpa and my feelings for today. I have a journal for that, not a public website.
Anyway, today was all work, unfortunately. Got up, had breakfast, and since Craig wanted to sleep I went to the computer lab to work. A good thing too, I'm able to focus better there than in here where I tend to be easily distracted. Spent the morning writing my paper, took a break for lunch, then went back to writing. Finished around 3pm, which was nice. Maybe should have proofread, but I just e-mailed to my professor. So done. Relaxed for an hour, then had a lecture on the renaissance. Weird state of mind for that. Already mentally tired, but I found the subject of Utopia fascinating. Took 2 1/2 pages of notes in 45 min, and honestly it maybe felt like 10 to me. After that though my hand started to hurt and after 1 hr. 15 min I was starting to lose focus, which I guess was better than some of the other students. Took over 4 pages of notes, and a good chunk of ink. Not sure I brought enough pens at the rate I'm going right now. After dinner I've been relaxing and getting some little things done, like this and some e-mails. Have some reading to do, and planning to be in bed by around 11pm hopefully. Shouldn't be a problem, feel tired already.
After dinner I killed time before we left for the ghost tour around Oxford. Little pricey, but it was fun. It was me and a group of 12 girls, so unlucky 13 for the tour guide. It was freezing out, by the way, probably the coldest it's been since we got here. Real smart choice on our part. Anyhow, the tour was a lot of fun. Honestly was more historical than superstitious, which was a little disappointing. I mean, I learned a lot and saw some ancient parts of the city, but the ghost stuff was more in passing and there were only a few spots where we actually talked about how the place is haunted. Also had some Harry Potter sights pointed out to us, like the tree under which Malfoy gets turned into a ferret. We also snuck into one of the colleges real quick to see the courtyard, thrill of adventure there. Ended by a pub where you have to go down a real narrow alley to get to it, little sketchy looking, but supposedly from the middle ages. Tour guide informed me I was a lucky man to be with so many girls, to which I agreed. Feel like I used to hear that about something else I used to do as well? Anyway, after indecision and walking around trying to pick a pub, a few girls and I just came back to the hall, it was too cold out. For a little while I just sat on the sink with my feet on the heater, felt so good.
After that I decided to do some work with the books I have in the hall, so I went to the common room to relax and work. There was no one in there, so I grabbed my movies and threw the first Pirates of the Caribbean on. Seen it so many times I basically have it memorized, so it's easy to study to. Think I got 15min in before other people showed up, and from there my work ethic quickly died. Placed filled up pretty quickly, people half-watching the movie, talking, I played some weird card game Fluxx with mainly the three returners and other people who joined and quit. Game was hysterical, my stomach hurt by the end from laughing so much. Anyway, Pirates ended and it was decided to watch Gladiator because a few people hadn't seen it. Funny thing, I've owned it for 3 years and never seen it either, so we put it on. Nice to have a break from the usual chick flick, to which most people agreed. At first people were being noisy (myself included) so we had subtitles on for a while, but eventually everyone paid attention so we turned them off. I also got a bit of noise for some of my movies, both ones I have and what some of them are, whatever. Movie ended at like 2:30 AM, at which point we all crawled off to bed.
Saturday got up kinda late, as did most people. Was one girl's birthday today, but we all sang and stuff after 12 the night before. Went to brunch, came back and actually got work done, which was nice. Finally video chatted with home for the first time, which I was really happy about. Of course there were technical problems and my Dad had to be dragged out of bed to help. In the end they could see me fine but all I saw was a grey screen. I blame Dad's laptop. After that again my productivity pretty much died, think I got somethings done but I can't remember what. Decided to go to early morning mass for the 23rd, so I went to bed early instead of staying up in the common room again.
So I was the first one up and out Sunday morning. Everyone else in the building was asleep, so all the lights turned on as I walked out. Also had on my black cap, which I wore all day. Managed to find Blackfriars church rather easily, which surprised me. Its address said it was further down, but by luck I found it. The entrance to the chapel is actually a little side door right inside the main entrance to the school's courtyard, which surprised me. Anyway, it was a big room, but the altar was in the middle and there were chairs lined up in the back half. Old, rickety and uncomfortable, but they keep you awake. Place was also pretty empty, mostly older adults. Only other teens were there with their parents, and just like back home people showed up late, one guy during the homily. Otherwise it was pretty much the same, the only time there was a word difference was a line in the Nicene Creed, which is surprising. When I've gone to other churches even in Illinois, there have been times where what I automatically say for a prayer is different from the congregation. Really expected a bigger variance. Only other differences was the place was freezing, everyone kept their coats on and all the women their hats, and the priest had an English accent instead of an Asian one. Oh, there were also no kneelers, and the floor was really hard. Only a few of us actually knelt the whole time we were supposed to, most the older people just stood. Otherwise, felt like home.
Walked back to St. Michael's, it had warmed up quite a bit considering what the temperature had been, and the streets were a little busier. I'm actually learning my way around here pretty well, though if you ask me street names I still don't have a clue. Went back to bed till brunch, then ran over to St. Peter's library to work hard, since I had a paper due the next day. I really hate that library. It's crowded, the floor creaks everywhere, and out of 4 books I only managed to find 1. I found where the others were supposed to be, found the spot between two other books where they should have been, and they weren't there. Later I managed to find another one, but that required getting a ladder to reach it. Errr. After a few hours of reading an archeology book, which I have decided I do not like and now understand why many historians prefer written sources, I ran over to the Radcliffe because I knew they had one of the books that St. Peter's was missing.
Worked there till dinner, ate quick then did more work in my room till it was time for the JCR meeting which I had volunteered to do. While waiting for people I found soccer balls in the common room, which was a little random. Anyway, it should be a fun thing to do, and we also already planned out a few events. At 8pm most of us went to/were already in the common room to sing happy birthday to the two people whose birthdays were today. Go figure. Anyway, sang, gave them the gifts we pitched in for, and dawdled for a bit while people made plans for what to do. After a short while I needed a change of atmosphere, somewhere less upbeat where I could go be gloomy. I went back to St. Peter's to finish taking notes and get started on my paper, on the way ran into people who tried going to the pub only to find it was closed. Worked till about midnight, decided to quit, came back and took a shower, watched the movie I made last year and went to bed.
I don't feel like this is really a place to spill my guts out, if you're wondering why there isn't more about Grandpa and my feelings for today. I have a journal for that, not a public website.
Anyway, today was all work, unfortunately. Got up, had breakfast, and since Craig wanted to sleep I went to the computer lab to work. A good thing too, I'm able to focus better there than in here where I tend to be easily distracted. Spent the morning writing my paper, took a break for lunch, then went back to writing. Finished around 3pm, which was nice. Maybe should have proofread, but I just e-mailed to my professor. So done. Relaxed for an hour, then had a lecture on the renaissance. Weird state of mind for that. Already mentally tired, but I found the subject of Utopia fascinating. Took 2 1/2 pages of notes in 45 min, and honestly it maybe felt like 10 to me. After that though my hand started to hurt and after 1 hr. 15 min I was starting to lose focus, which I guess was better than some of the other students. Took over 4 pages of notes, and a good chunk of ink. Not sure I brought enough pens at the rate I'm going right now. After dinner I've been relaxing and getting some little things done, like this and some e-mails. Have some reading to do, and planning to be in bed by around 11pm hopefully. Shouldn't be a problem, feel tired already.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
I Love Books
While I've been pretty busy over the past few days, it isn't all that interesting. Tuesday I had my first real tutorial, which went pretty well. I'm very glad I took Butler's British history course, cause she asked me some questions that I otherwise would not have known the answers to. I was also asked not to find my own Internet sources for papers in the future, though the one I had used was recommended by Butler. Whatever, next time I'll just stick with the reading list. Lazed around a bit afterwards, then went to the Bodelian to work on my Medieval Travel Writers paper. Took me a little while to find a book, but I finally did. Some people there can be rude, just stomping around and being rather noisy as they fortunately just pass through. Meant to get more work done when I came back, but unfortunately I didn't. Meant to go down to the common room for like half an hour, and instead wound up there for 3 talking to people and watching Breakfast at Tiffany's. Not bad, I guess, and at least now when people reference it I'll actually know what they're talking about.
Wednesday was seminar, which went rather well, especially considering I hadn't done some of the readings. Prolly shouldn't let that happen again. Philpott's a lot of fun, but I'll probably be in trouble if he catches me slacking off. After lunch I headed out to do some last minute research before writing my paper, but I stopped at Blackwell's on my way to the Bod. That was a mistake. The place was huge. Combine Borders and Barnes & Noble back home, then double it and you get a rough idea of the size. The basement was very cool where it does this thing where it keeps dipping down for different subjects. Unfortunately the basement is mostly sciences so there wasn't much of interest to me, though it did have the map section, where I was able to get a decent one of Oxford. It's funny, they have things for basically every country in the world there well organized except for England. You can find atlases, but general city maps like they have for other places are nowhere to be found, and ones for Oxford were spread around the area in little displays. The first, or ground floor as they call it, was mostly modern books, with new releases in the front, and in the back a DVD section, science fiction and other newer books, and then a children's section. The second floor (British first) has a little cafe that was packed, and then is mostly poetry and Oxford Press classics, which at pretty much every bookstore in the city our 2 for 3. Most likely going to be a problem soon, but fortunately not yesterday. The third floor (or second) was all history books. So many, and so much I'd love to have. Somehow I left that floor without anything. That floor also had a section for learning Greek and Latin. Finally the fourth floor (third, or attic, whatever) was the used book collection. Some of them were a little cheaper, though there were some old ones for a pretty penny. It was the worst kept room too, kind of had a paupery feel to it. The floors weren't carpeted and were really creaky, the bookshelves were kind of old looking and it was a little cooler. Still everything was well organized, and nothing looked too bad. Here I did find a book. Sorry, knew the instant I walked in the store I prolly would find something. Still, the book and 2 maps only cost me £5.50.
Actually, the fact that the place was so huge it was discouraged me from buying anything else. There's so much that if you just go in there to browse for anything like I was, it's a bit overwhelming. It's very cool, but if you don't go in there to look for something specific or only intend to examine one section, then it's a little too big. Surprisingly I was only there half an hour longer than I planned to be, then went over to the Bod.
Came back to St. Michael's to work on my paper, which wasn't going so well. Decided to try St. Peter's for one last book. I went around the entire library before I eventually stumbled across the section in a corner of the basement, found exactly where the book should be, and it wasn't there. It's off in their stacks, wherever those are. Came back and worked on finishing my paper, took forever. I had trouble figuring out what I wanted to say, and was often distracted by movies on my laptop. Finished a little after midnight though, and went to bed exhausted.
Woke up this morning feeling dizzy, so I skipped breakfast to sleep a little longer. My stomach didn't like it, but my head did. Went to my tutorial, which was fun. I learned quite a bit about my tutor Alun, who has had experience in tons of fields. I did have to read my paper out loud to him, which I did not rather enjoy. Talked about things for next week, then went to lunch. The soup was disgusting, but I was starving and ate it anyway. The pasta and meatballs (pretty sure they were meatballs) were good though. Went out and got a haircut, not too expensive and the guy was nice. It looks good, though I would have preferred it to be a little shorter so I wouldn't have to go again. Oh well. Also stopped an bought a calendar, good thing to cause the shop's closing Sunday. Not exactly what I wanted, but it looks good. Lazed around till dinner, which was not that good, I picked the wrong dish. What I get for trying something new. Plan for the rest of the night is to find the books I'll need to do work tomorrow and then chill in the common room. Should be an okay night.
Wednesday was seminar, which went rather well, especially considering I hadn't done some of the readings. Prolly shouldn't let that happen again. Philpott's a lot of fun, but I'll probably be in trouble if he catches me slacking off. After lunch I headed out to do some last minute research before writing my paper, but I stopped at Blackwell's on my way to the Bod. That was a mistake. The place was huge. Combine Borders and Barnes & Noble back home, then double it and you get a rough idea of the size. The basement was very cool where it does this thing where it keeps dipping down for different subjects. Unfortunately the basement is mostly sciences so there wasn't much of interest to me, though it did have the map section, where I was able to get a decent one of Oxford. It's funny, they have things for basically every country in the world there well organized except for England. You can find atlases, but general city maps like they have for other places are nowhere to be found, and ones for Oxford were spread around the area in little displays. The first, or ground floor as they call it, was mostly modern books, with new releases in the front, and in the back a DVD section, science fiction and other newer books, and then a children's section. The second floor (British first) has a little cafe that was packed, and then is mostly poetry and Oxford Press classics, which at pretty much every bookstore in the city our 2 for 3. Most likely going to be a problem soon, but fortunately not yesterday. The third floor (or second) was all history books. So many, and so much I'd love to have. Somehow I left that floor without anything. That floor also had a section for learning Greek and Latin. Finally the fourth floor (third, or attic, whatever) was the used book collection. Some of them were a little cheaper, though there were some old ones for a pretty penny. It was the worst kept room too, kind of had a paupery feel to it. The floors weren't carpeted and were really creaky, the bookshelves were kind of old looking and it was a little cooler. Still everything was well organized, and nothing looked too bad. Here I did find a book. Sorry, knew the instant I walked in the store I prolly would find something. Still, the book and 2 maps only cost me £5.50.
Actually, the fact that the place was so huge it was discouraged me from buying anything else. There's so much that if you just go in there to browse for anything like I was, it's a bit overwhelming. It's very cool, but if you don't go in there to look for something specific or only intend to examine one section, then it's a little too big. Surprisingly I was only there half an hour longer than I planned to be, then went over to the Bod.
Came back to St. Michael's to work on my paper, which wasn't going so well. Decided to try St. Peter's for one last book. I went around the entire library before I eventually stumbled across the section in a corner of the basement, found exactly where the book should be, and it wasn't there. It's off in their stacks, wherever those are. Came back and worked on finishing my paper, took forever. I had trouble figuring out what I wanted to say, and was often distracted by movies on my laptop. Finished a little after midnight though, and went to bed exhausted.
Woke up this morning feeling dizzy, so I skipped breakfast to sleep a little longer. My stomach didn't like it, but my head did. Went to my tutorial, which was fun. I learned quite a bit about my tutor Alun, who has had experience in tons of fields. I did have to read my paper out loud to him, which I did not rather enjoy. Talked about things for next week, then went to lunch. The soup was disgusting, but I was starving and ate it anyway. The pasta and meatballs (pretty sure they were meatballs) were good though. Went out and got a haircut, not too expensive and the guy was nice. It looks good, though I would have preferred it to be a little shorter so I wouldn't have to go again. Oh well. Also stopped an bought a calendar, good thing to cause the shop's closing Sunday. Not exactly what I wanted, but it looks good. Lazed around till dinner, which was not that good, I picked the wrong dish. What I get for trying something new. Plan for the rest of the night is to find the books I'll need to do work tomorrow and then chill in the common room. Should be an okay night.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Not a Kidz Bop
Harry Potter 7 was amazing, the 2nd part can come out any time now. It was pretty cool to see the movie in England, though I don't think there was any difference, it was still fun. The theatre was nice, you sit kind of low and the chair backs are high, but you can see in between them to the screen so even if someone tall sits in front of you you can still see the screen. Just Zoe and I went, Katie said she had too much homework (and possibly too much of a hangover), a little expensive, but if another group wants to go I'd gladly go one more time, it was a great movie. Unfortunately going to the movie also meant missing dinner, so I ran to Tesco to grab some dinner, got Croissants and cheese, the place was a zoo and quite a few shelves were empty. What I got was fine, though the cheese I got was pretty much American, didn't feel like being too adventurous, plus it was a good price.
Got back to the dorm and ate pretty quick, then changed clothes to go to the bop party at St. Peters. The theme was pop/rock stars, so you were supposed to dress up as a musician basically. Figured I'd just say the lead singer of an obscure band if someone asked, which fortunately no one did. Jason and I were two of the first ones there, just sat around in the pub for a while waiting. Eventually everyone showed up, about the time I was about to walk back to St. Michael's to see what they were doing. No one was really dancing in the JCR, just standing around in the pub talking, so that's where we went. It was packed. The instant you moved a foot someone else had filled the space where you just were. Eventually the girls decided they wanted to dance, so I went with them. We were the only ones and I was self-conscience as usual, but I got moving and everything was fine. It also helps that British guys can't dance either, so I didn't look like a complete idiot. We were some of the first ones in the JCR, but over the course of the next hour it really filled up. Like, extremely packed. Our group varied in size, starting big, shrinking, adding more people, then shrinking again till there was only 4 of us. When Craig decided to start busting open his glow sticks to make himself all sparkly I decided that was enough for me. I had been there for 3 hours, it was really getting cramped in the room making me uncomfortable, and how drunk people were was really starting to show, so I said bye and came back.
Expected the place to be empty, but there were some people in the our JCR (Junior Common Room, by the way) so I joined them expecting quiet and to talk about the bop. Then all of a sudden most the people from the bop were back, apparently it ended like 5 minutes after I left, go figure. Supposedly it moved to a club called the Purple Turtle, where things could get really rowdy, but I don't think anyone really went afterwards. We had our own fun, with Craig somehow bleeding from his hand, that's what happens when you cut open glow sticks, and one girl had lost her wallet. Everyone else was tipsy and looking for bed. Still, we talked for a while and threw Hercules in the DVD player, but slowly people drifted off to go to bed, and halfway through I decided to call it quits too. There were only 2 girls left as I went, and they were arguing about whether or not to shut it off, still not sure what they did.
Sunday I spent most my day reading, writing a paper and doing laundry. Both the washer and dryer are 1.30 pounds, needing a 10p, 20p, and £1 coins. The £1 is whatever, but they actually don't give you many 10p and 20p pieces, and I only had enough to run the machines 3 times, and because they are such tiny washers, I needed to use the 3 just to wash them. I managed to get one more 10p piece, so I was also able to run the dryer, and just left stuff out to air dry, like shirts that could shrink and my jeans(which are still hanging in the laundry room and which I should probably go get after this.) Anyway, I also missed brunch because apparently they switched to regular times, which meant 11:30 instead of 12:30, nice of them to tell us. So I went back to Tesco and got stuff for sandwiches as well as detergent, so whatever. It also got me some of the coins I needed, so it all worked out. Ciabatta bread, roast turkey, and cheese make really good sandwiches, FYI.
Spent the rest of the night working on my paper, got to the last paragraph and quit, planning to finish in the morning, which was a good thing cause when I looked over the last few sentences I wrote my grammar was pretty sad, like not really English. Also tried talking to Mom while I was working on it, which really didn't go so well. Good to know she's actually got a plan in the making for her trip, hopefully there won't be too many problems with that.
Today was I was mediumly productive. Finished my history paper, lazed around till lunch, then went straight from lunch to the Stackler Library, which I really do not care for. The people there are rather, if not mean, then just grumpy and impatient with people who have no idea what's going on. Apparently you have to register your bod card before you can get in, which I did not know and which the front desk lady angrily informed me after I tried to get in. It was also a pain to find anything there, like a place to sit. Eventually I just took my book and went downstairs, since I doubt we're allowed to check anything out from this library either, and did find a group of open tables. Eventually I had to use the bathroom, so after walking around 2 floors I asked, and found it was right next to the stairs I had been using, go der. Got sick of working a little later, came back, wasted time, had dinner, and now doing a little bit of work and mainly this. I have my first real tutorial tomorrow, for which I e-mailed my paper early today, while I still have one due this Thursday and reading for Wednesday. Either going to work on that or a rant blog about things the British need to Americanize. Right now the blog is looking a lot more likely. Anyway, there's an update for the 2nd half of my weekend, and I can't think of anything else, so for I guess I'll sign off for now.
Got back to the dorm and ate pretty quick, then changed clothes to go to the bop party at St. Peters. The theme was pop/rock stars, so you were supposed to dress up as a musician basically. Figured I'd just say the lead singer of an obscure band if someone asked, which fortunately no one did. Jason and I were two of the first ones there, just sat around in the pub for a while waiting. Eventually everyone showed up, about the time I was about to walk back to St. Michael's to see what they were doing. No one was really dancing in the JCR, just standing around in the pub talking, so that's where we went. It was packed. The instant you moved a foot someone else had filled the space where you just were. Eventually the girls decided they wanted to dance, so I went with them. We were the only ones and I was self-conscience as usual, but I got moving and everything was fine. It also helps that British guys can't dance either, so I didn't look like a complete idiot. We were some of the first ones in the JCR, but over the course of the next hour it really filled up. Like, extremely packed. Our group varied in size, starting big, shrinking, adding more people, then shrinking again till there was only 4 of us. When Craig decided to start busting open his glow sticks to make himself all sparkly I decided that was enough for me. I had been there for 3 hours, it was really getting cramped in the room making me uncomfortable, and how drunk people were was really starting to show, so I said bye and came back.
Expected the place to be empty, but there were some people in the our JCR (Junior Common Room, by the way) so I joined them expecting quiet and to talk about the bop. Then all of a sudden most the people from the bop were back, apparently it ended like 5 minutes after I left, go figure. Supposedly it moved to a club called the Purple Turtle, where things could get really rowdy, but I don't think anyone really went afterwards. We had our own fun, with Craig somehow bleeding from his hand, that's what happens when you cut open glow sticks, and one girl had lost her wallet. Everyone else was tipsy and looking for bed. Still, we talked for a while and threw Hercules in the DVD player, but slowly people drifted off to go to bed, and halfway through I decided to call it quits too. There were only 2 girls left as I went, and they were arguing about whether or not to shut it off, still not sure what they did.
Sunday I spent most my day reading, writing a paper and doing laundry. Both the washer and dryer are 1.30 pounds, needing a 10p, 20p, and £1 coins. The £1 is whatever, but they actually don't give you many 10p and 20p pieces, and I only had enough to run the machines 3 times, and because they are such tiny washers, I needed to use the 3 just to wash them. I managed to get one more 10p piece, so I was also able to run the dryer, and just left stuff out to air dry, like shirts that could shrink and my jeans(which are still hanging in the laundry room and which I should probably go get after this.) Anyway, I also missed brunch because apparently they switched to regular times, which meant 11:30 instead of 12:30, nice of them to tell us. So I went back to Tesco and got stuff for sandwiches as well as detergent, so whatever. It also got me some of the coins I needed, so it all worked out. Ciabatta bread, roast turkey, and cheese make really good sandwiches, FYI.
Spent the rest of the night working on my paper, got to the last paragraph and quit, planning to finish in the morning, which was a good thing cause when I looked over the last few sentences I wrote my grammar was pretty sad, like not really English. Also tried talking to Mom while I was working on it, which really didn't go so well. Good to know she's actually got a plan in the making for her trip, hopefully there won't be too many problems with that.
Today was I was mediumly productive. Finished my history paper, lazed around till lunch, then went straight from lunch to the Stackler Library, which I really do not care for. The people there are rather, if not mean, then just grumpy and impatient with people who have no idea what's going on. Apparently you have to register your bod card before you can get in, which I did not know and which the front desk lady angrily informed me after I tried to get in. It was also a pain to find anything there, like a place to sit. Eventually I just took my book and went downstairs, since I doubt we're allowed to check anything out from this library either, and did find a group of open tables. Eventually I had to use the bathroom, so after walking around 2 floors I asked, and found it was right next to the stairs I had been using, go der. Got sick of working a little later, came back, wasted time, had dinner, and now doing a little bit of work and mainly this. I have my first real tutorial tomorrow, for which I e-mailed my paper early today, while I still have one due this Thursday and reading for Wednesday. Either going to work on that or a rant blog about things the British need to Americanize. Right now the blog is looking a lot more likely. Anyway, there's an update for the 2nd half of my weekend, and I can't think of anything else, so for I guess I'll sign off for now.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Learning Experience
I should be working on a paper, but this is much easier to write. Didn't do much of interest yesterday, ended up devoting most of my time to studying. Did go for a walk though, something I really enjoy doing and helps calm my mind. Only thing that would have made it better was if my puppy was with me, though I'm not sure how he would behave in such a close, compact city. Walked along the old wall and around the Bodleian, which was surprising quiet and a nice change of pace. I've decided I need to buy an Oxford map so I can mark down areas that are interesting and shops I want to check out, especially the multitude of bookstores.
Did go out to the St. Peter's pub with a few people yesterday, which was pretty fun. Also learned a few people's alcohol limits, as well as some personal background and opinions. Everyone here is fine with the fact that I don't drink, much more so than some people back home. Place was pretty small, and as the night went on it got pretty packed.
Around 10ish I think we left, I came back to St. Michael's while the rest of the group headed off to a club. Had planned to get a little work done, but instead went to the common room and wound up watching movies with people. Blatantly clear already, with only 3 guys in the building the girls are going to dominate the TV, so what we were watching was mostly chick flicks. Still entertaining though. Between movies some people went out for late night junk food, which I chose to forgo in an effort to both save money and eat healthier while here. Sat around and talked with some girls while we waited for everyone to get back. After the 2nd movie it was 2AM, at which point most of us were already falling asleep. Got back to my room and just crawled into bed, but with brunch at 12:30 today (which is the same time as lunch, so I don't see why they even bother calling it brunch) I got to sleep in, which is the first time that's happened since I got here, so I guess it was a decent trade off. And now I should go back to work, since we're planning to go see Harry Potter in like an hour.
Did go out to the St. Peter's pub with a few people yesterday, which was pretty fun. Also learned a few people's alcohol limits, as well as some personal background and opinions. Everyone here is fine with the fact that I don't drink, much more so than some people back home. Place was pretty small, and as the night went on it got pretty packed.
Around 10ish I think we left, I came back to St. Michael's while the rest of the group headed off to a club. Had planned to get a little work done, but instead went to the common room and wound up watching movies with people. Blatantly clear already, with only 3 guys in the building the girls are going to dominate the TV, so what we were watching was mostly chick flicks. Still entertaining though. Between movies some people went out for late night junk food, which I chose to forgo in an effort to both save money and eat healthier while here. Sat around and talked with some girls while we waited for everyone to get back. After the 2nd movie it was 2AM, at which point most of us were already falling asleep. Got back to my room and just crawled into bed, but with brunch at 12:30 today (which is the same time as lunch, so I don't see why they even bother calling it brunch) I got to sleep in, which is the first time that's happened since I got here, so I guess it was a decent trade off. And now I should go back to work, since we're planning to go see Harry Potter in like an hour.
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Nought Week Down
So I've been here at CMRS for a week now, and I must say I'm actually starting to enjoy myself. This week of term is called 0 week, or, as the British say, Nought Week. Yesterday I had 3 of my classes, the two tutorials mistakenly both scheduled for 10:30am, and my seminar at 11am. Fortunately everything was straightened out so I was able to make it to both intro tutorial meetings and only a few minutes late to my seminar. Both of my tutorials seem like there going to be fun but a lot of work, and they are not as structured as I'd like. Both of them require writing a 2000 word paper a week, which is standard for this program, but then both of them only gave a long "recommended" reading list that should help with writing them. While I appreciate the options, I really would have preferred something more structured where they say "you have to read this, this, and this, and then write a paper referencing/about them." No such luck. My seminar class is a little more structured with the readings, though again there are many books that are recommended you read, but not required. The seminar also ran through lunch, which I was rather upset about. I was hungry, and having to wait another 5 hours for a meal is aggravating, especially since I wasn't in the mood to go buy something.
About an hour later we had our group picture, and it's a good thing we all get along rather well because we were squished together rather close. Sad too that even with so many girls I'm was still in the middle height range. After the picture I went to the computer room to look up some of my books, a rather annoying system they have for our personal library. We're not even allowed in it.
From there I went out shopping for a few things. My first stop was a little book/card shop called Waythner's right by the dorm, where I decided to splurge a little and bought myself a nice little Moleskine notebook for £10, yes a little pricey but it's really cool and I love using it. Then after walking around in the rain for a bit either watching people or trying to remember where different stores are, I went to the local pharmacy to get kleenex. That's one thing at least around here, there's no just general store, every shop is pretty specialized. Was going to buy just one box, but the girl at the counter informed me that I could get a second for only another 20 pence. Wasn't posted or anything, so thank God I went to a real person to pay instead of self-checkout. After that came back here, dropped my stuff off and went to dinner.
Went back to the Computer Room to print out an assigned reading, cause I could not read it online anymore. Took me like 10 minutes to open the stupid door, thing is a pain. Input a code, turn your key and doorknob at the same time then push. Somehow today I managed to get it in one shot though. Anyway, while I was in there trying to figure out how to make the stupid Mac print in duplex, I heard someone else struggling with the door so I let them in, turned out to be Brenna. Gave up on duplex, just printed the darn thing single sided, which ate up 30 sheets of paper. Could have shrunk the font size I guess, but didn't think of that till it was already done. Talked to Brenna for a while, then came back to the room to read, made it about halfway through before I started falling asleep, and after 45min. of struggling decided to say screw it and just go to bed. Funny thing is, this is the time I normally like to take naps back home anyway, plus getting up so early definitely helps.
Today I spent my time working. After breakfast I did waste time with Facebook and NCIS, but I did get notes on one book. Then went to lunch, and after which I went over to the Bodleian Library. A very cool place, and something of a pain as well. Something I'll discuss at a later post. Anyway, after over 3 hours there I came back and just wandered around St. Michael's as my brain was fried. Dinner was an hour early, so left for that and had a very enjoyable time with people. We all actually sat for some time after we finished talking, instead of slowly drifting away after finishing like we usually do. Post-dinner was mediocre studying, internet time wasting, and talking to home. And at this juncture in time after showering and all that what-not, it is time for bed again, which I am definitely looking forward to.
About an hour later we had our group picture, and it's a good thing we all get along rather well because we were squished together rather close. Sad too that even with so many girls I'm was still in the middle height range. After the picture I went to the computer room to look up some of my books, a rather annoying system they have for our personal library. We're not even allowed in it.
From there I went out shopping for a few things. My first stop was a little book/card shop called Waythner's right by the dorm, where I decided to splurge a little and bought myself a nice little Moleskine notebook for £10, yes a little pricey but it's really cool and I love using it. Then after walking around in the rain for a bit either watching people or trying to remember where different stores are, I went to the local pharmacy to get kleenex. That's one thing at least around here, there's no just general store, every shop is pretty specialized. Was going to buy just one box, but the girl at the counter informed me that I could get a second for only another 20 pence. Wasn't posted or anything, so thank God I went to a real person to pay instead of self-checkout. After that came back here, dropped my stuff off and went to dinner.
Went back to the Computer Room to print out an assigned reading, cause I could not read it online anymore. Took me like 10 minutes to open the stupid door, thing is a pain. Input a code, turn your key and doorknob at the same time then push. Somehow today I managed to get it in one shot though. Anyway, while I was in there trying to figure out how to make the stupid Mac print in duplex, I heard someone else struggling with the door so I let them in, turned out to be Brenna. Gave up on duplex, just printed the darn thing single sided, which ate up 30 sheets of paper. Could have shrunk the font size I guess, but didn't think of that till it was already done. Talked to Brenna for a while, then came back to the room to read, made it about halfway through before I started falling asleep, and after 45min. of struggling decided to say screw it and just go to bed. Funny thing is, this is the time I normally like to take naps back home anyway, plus getting up so early definitely helps.
Today I spent my time working. After breakfast I did waste time with Facebook and NCIS, but I did get notes on one book. Then went to lunch, and after which I went over to the Bodleian Library. A very cool place, and something of a pain as well. Something I'll discuss at a later post. Anyway, after over 3 hours there I came back and just wandered around St. Michael's as my brain was fried. Dinner was an hour early, so left for that and had a very enjoyable time with people. We all actually sat for some time after we finished talking, instead of slowly drifting away after finishing like we usually do. Post-dinner was mediocre studying, internet time wasting, and talking to home. And at this juncture in time after showering and all that what-not, it is time for bed again, which I am definitely looking forward to.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
So It Begins
Yesterday we started getting into the regular beat of things around here. Had a lecture in the morning about what was expected of us academically, how exactly classes were going to work, and then a general overview of what our Integral course will be covering. Later in the day was the first Integral lecture, and while Dr. Crowe made some interesting points, there were times I found it difficult to see just what his purpose for the whole lecture was. If that's the worst of it though, I should be fine.
More importantly though, we all got sworn in at the Bodleian Library. This library isn't just some building full of books either. It has its own campus, with several major buildings in one area, and several other Bodleian system libraries in the area. Then there are the stacks, about 10 million books not even on the shelves, that are stored all over the country. They used to be stored in one building across the street from the main section, but it got too small, so the books have been relocated while they work on building a new one for them. Unfortunately the library is a bit stuffy, so even though they have all these cool materials, the place is rather stuffy and difficult to deal with. Browsing is rather hard, and they can be kind of stingy when it comes to using certain parts and materials. I do understand where they are coming from though. It's a reference library for a lot of people, so they need to keep materials controlled; plus it is one of six national book repositories, meaning it has a copy of every book published since the 1600's. It is a book lover's dream and nightmare at the same time. So many books and material, so much difficulty just to look at it. And for those of you who don't care about books, the Bod is also where parts of Harry Potter were filmed. The first room we walked into reminded us of the movies, and the next room over is the one used for the infirmary scenes. Also one of the upper reading rooms was used as Hogwarts library, though I'm told they discourage people from going up there, and don't allow photos in any of the buildings. Still, I'll find an excuse to go in and sneak some pictures.
I also signed up for a library card at the local public library. While it probably won't be as academically helpful, it'll be nice to have access to entertainment materials and such. The place was rather busy with people from all over town, which was pretty cool to see. The library's part of a mall I walked around for a while, and there were even two video game stores, both of which were having sales and both of which I managed to leave without buying anything. There were also two bookstores, one which was rather expensive with a few sale items, and the other one which is closing and everything's pretty cheap. Again didn't buy anything, but I know I'll be back to the one that's closing. It's only 2 minutes from the dorm after all.
Dinner last was weird. After having the dining hall to ourselves up till now, it felt strange having to share with regular St. Peter's College students and not being able to all sit at one table. You can definitely see cliques forming within our students already. There's one group of girls that instantly segregated themselves, so it'll be interesting to see how the rest of the term goes.
Today most people started their tutorials, and I spent my time lazing around. Both of mine start tomorrow, at the same time, of course. I've gotten it straightened out so I can meet both, but still, annoying. After lunch today I went out exploring more of Oxford. Found the post office, some places to try eating at, 2 cool stationary shops, and 3 bookstores. How I managed not to buy anything I have no idea, though there were a couple of books that almost became attached to my hand. And I haven't even been to Blackwell's yet, which is supposed to be one of the largest bookstores in the world. I am in pretty serious trouble here.
Tried doing some work after I got back, having some difficulty focusing on it, which is why I'm typing this instead of reading it. Also found some readings in my mailbox tonight, really hope which ever professor they're from does not expect them read by tomorrow. Didn't even specify what class they're for. I think I know, but it's just a guess. Anyway, I have meetings for my three classes tomorrow, hopefully everything will be fine and the reading won't be too overwhelming. Till then, try and relax tonight before the work begins tomorrow.
More importantly though, we all got sworn in at the Bodleian Library. This library isn't just some building full of books either. It has its own campus, with several major buildings in one area, and several other Bodleian system libraries in the area. Then there are the stacks, about 10 million books not even on the shelves, that are stored all over the country. They used to be stored in one building across the street from the main section, but it got too small, so the books have been relocated while they work on building a new one for them. Unfortunately the library is a bit stuffy, so even though they have all these cool materials, the place is rather stuffy and difficult to deal with. Browsing is rather hard, and they can be kind of stingy when it comes to using certain parts and materials. I do understand where they are coming from though. It's a reference library for a lot of people, so they need to keep materials controlled; plus it is one of six national book repositories, meaning it has a copy of every book published since the 1600's. It is a book lover's dream and nightmare at the same time. So many books and material, so much difficulty just to look at it. And for those of you who don't care about books, the Bod is also where parts of Harry Potter were filmed. The first room we walked into reminded us of the movies, and the next room over is the one used for the infirmary scenes. Also one of the upper reading rooms was used as Hogwarts library, though I'm told they discourage people from going up there, and don't allow photos in any of the buildings. Still, I'll find an excuse to go in and sneak some pictures.
I also signed up for a library card at the local public library. While it probably won't be as academically helpful, it'll be nice to have access to entertainment materials and such. The place was rather busy with people from all over town, which was pretty cool to see. The library's part of a mall I walked around for a while, and there were even two video game stores, both of which were having sales and both of which I managed to leave without buying anything. There were also two bookstores, one which was rather expensive with a few sale items, and the other one which is closing and everything's pretty cheap. Again didn't buy anything, but I know I'll be back to the one that's closing. It's only 2 minutes from the dorm after all.
Dinner last was weird. After having the dining hall to ourselves up till now, it felt strange having to share with regular St. Peter's College students and not being able to all sit at one table. You can definitely see cliques forming within our students already. There's one group of girls that instantly segregated themselves, so it'll be interesting to see how the rest of the term goes.
Today most people started their tutorials, and I spent my time lazing around. Both of mine start tomorrow, at the same time, of course. I've gotten it straightened out so I can meet both, but still, annoying. After lunch today I went out exploring more of Oxford. Found the post office, some places to try eating at, 2 cool stationary shops, and 3 bookstores. How I managed not to buy anything I have no idea, though there were a couple of books that almost became attached to my hand. And I haven't even been to Blackwell's yet, which is supposed to be one of the largest bookstores in the world. I am in pretty serious trouble here.
Tried doing some work after I got back, having some difficulty focusing on it, which is why I'm typing this instead of reading it. Also found some readings in my mailbox tonight, really hope which ever professor they're from does not expect them read by tomorrow. Didn't even specify what class they're for. I think I know, but it's just a guess. Anyway, I have meetings for my three classes tomorrow, hopefully everything will be fine and the reading won't be too overwhelming. Till then, try and relax tonight before the work begins tomorrow.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Medieval London Tourism
Today we went to the Tower of London for our first field trip of the semester. It was rather exciting, and the bus ride there was pretty fun, seeing some of the English countryside and random towns tucked into valleys. Nothing like the US. We also got a quick tour around London while we navigated our way to the tower, though it was hard to see some of the things are professor pointed out from where I was sitting in the bus. I loved walking along the cobblestone paths, seeing a piece of history that is so often referenced to. The original White Tower was built by William the Conqueror, and the castle has been expanded over the centuries as various monarchs desired.
At the same time the place was a little disappointing. While it was amazing to be in a building older than our country, oftentimes it was hard to get the feel of wonder that so much has happened here. A lot of places, like the scaffolds and execution blocks, are gone. While the tour guide talked about how this was a place where kings and queens walked, of the various uses the buildings have seen, of the lives lost on these very spots, it is awe inspiring. Yet as you look around yourself, now there are gift shops and museum displays that just seem to take the authenticity of the place. There were times it felt more like I was at an exhibition at the Field rather than the Tower of London itself. While it was awesome to be there, it often was hard to get a sense of just how old the place is and all the important events that have taken place there. The ice skating rink on the front lawn definitely did not help.
After we got in the front gate and were left to our own devices, the first thing a group of 10 of us did was go for food, since we really hadn't gotten breakfast. It was just like a food court at any museum, though a little more compact. How we managed to get a table for 10 people is beyond me. Then we went to the guided tour, and had a little photoshoot while we were waiting. Our tour guide was pretty funny. It's very cool that he gets to live and work in the tower, though after 27 years of military service I'd say he earned it. Then we went into the chapel where several kings and queens are buried. I had to warn one of the girls in our group no photos before she got in trouble, but it was a very cool building. Then we checked out some of the rooms where people were held prisoner, and took plenty of pictures of the wall carvings.
Next was the Crown Jewels, which were amazing. Unfortunately it felt a bit like a Disney attraction, where you got to watch videos of Elizabeth II's coronation and about the crown jewels before you actually got into the vault where they are held. They are almost indescribable. Crowns, swords, and scepters made of solid gold and every inch coated in diamonds. Then there was the African Eye, the world's largest uncut diamond, which is bigger than an egg. I mean, just one little diamond off the crowns is what most women get for their engagement, and there were at least 10 of them. The last one on display was created for George V when he was crowned Emperor of India in 1911, was worn the once, and hasn't been used since. That's a hundred years this solid piece of gold laced with diamonds and other precious stones has sat around. Awe-inspiring, sickening, and what do I have to do to be royalty?
Afterwards we went into the White Tower, the oldest part of the castle. While very cool to walk around a medieval building full of suits and armor, again it lost some of the effect with the modern museum set-up. Very cool, but really not what I flew across the Atlantic to see. Also, they whitewash the building every 40 years or so, and they're just finishing the last wall, which was covered in tarps, and should be taken down by mid-January. Go figure. Though if you look at some recent pictures, the tower was looking more brown than white, so I guess it is necessary.
Finally, the girls had to go the bathroom which had a long line, and we had to be back at the bus soon, so I went to run through the Medieval Palace myself. Very cool, extremely barren and authentic looking, and big. Kindof had to rush, so I really didn't get to read the placards, but I did get some nice pictures(Yes, I'm one of those camera tourists who detracts from the authenticity, whatever). At the end was Salt Tower, which looked kind of big, so I skipped it since I was short on time. Got back to the bus, and most of us tried to sleep on the way back. Driving out of London was cool, the Eye was all lit up, though I couldn't get a good picture of it. London is a very interesting city, with some very modern architecture, some dilapidated old buildings from rebuilding after WWII, and then some that with one look are obviously centuries older.
Unfortunately I really started to fall asleep right before Oxford, so we arrived just at my most tired. Anyway, because we got back 7PM GMT, all the grocery stories were closed, and no one wanted to go to a sit-down, so I ended up going to McDonalds. Just wanted a db cheeseburger and a shake, but the place was a disaster. Didn't have any of the order of a US one. There were two guys running registers, the guys in back were really slow making the food, and while the crowd was small when I got there, and was rather big when I left. I also had to wait 15 minutes for my food, everyone who ordered me already had theirs, so I got a free drink for the wait. These seems to be becoming a common thing in England for me. Hopefully it doesn't extend beyond this weekend.
Anyway, got back, ate, through my trash out in the kitchen so it wouldn't smell up the room, stopped in the common room and watch Dogma with people for a while before deciding to call it quits for the night. Shower, this and AIM, and hopefully bed soon. Early morning again tomorrow.
At the same time the place was a little disappointing. While it was amazing to be in a building older than our country, oftentimes it was hard to get the feel of wonder that so much has happened here. A lot of places, like the scaffolds and execution blocks, are gone. While the tour guide talked about how this was a place where kings and queens walked, of the various uses the buildings have seen, of the lives lost on these very spots, it is awe inspiring. Yet as you look around yourself, now there are gift shops and museum displays that just seem to take the authenticity of the place. There were times it felt more like I was at an exhibition at the Field rather than the Tower of London itself. While it was awesome to be there, it often was hard to get a sense of just how old the place is and all the important events that have taken place there. The ice skating rink on the front lawn definitely did not help.
After we got in the front gate and were left to our own devices, the first thing a group of 10 of us did was go for food, since we really hadn't gotten breakfast. It was just like a food court at any museum, though a little more compact. How we managed to get a table for 10 people is beyond me. Then we went to the guided tour, and had a little photoshoot while we were waiting. Our tour guide was pretty funny. It's very cool that he gets to live and work in the tower, though after 27 years of military service I'd say he earned it. Then we went into the chapel where several kings and queens are buried. I had to warn one of the girls in our group no photos before she got in trouble, but it was a very cool building. Then we checked out some of the rooms where people were held prisoner, and took plenty of pictures of the wall carvings.
Next was the Crown Jewels, which were amazing. Unfortunately it felt a bit like a Disney attraction, where you got to watch videos of Elizabeth II's coronation and about the crown jewels before you actually got into the vault where they are held. They are almost indescribable. Crowns, swords, and scepters made of solid gold and every inch coated in diamonds. Then there was the African Eye, the world's largest uncut diamond, which is bigger than an egg. I mean, just one little diamond off the crowns is what most women get for their engagement, and there were at least 10 of them. The last one on display was created for George V when he was crowned Emperor of India in 1911, was worn the once, and hasn't been used since. That's a hundred years this solid piece of gold laced with diamonds and other precious stones has sat around. Awe-inspiring, sickening, and what do I have to do to be royalty?
Afterwards we went into the White Tower, the oldest part of the castle. While very cool to walk around a medieval building full of suits and armor, again it lost some of the effect with the modern museum set-up. Very cool, but really not what I flew across the Atlantic to see. Also, they whitewash the building every 40 years or so, and they're just finishing the last wall, which was covered in tarps, and should be taken down by mid-January. Go figure. Though if you look at some recent pictures, the tower was looking more brown than white, so I guess it is necessary.
Finally, the girls had to go the bathroom which had a long line, and we had to be back at the bus soon, so I went to run through the Medieval Palace myself. Very cool, extremely barren and authentic looking, and big. Kindof had to rush, so I really didn't get to read the placards, but I did get some nice pictures(Yes, I'm one of those camera tourists who detracts from the authenticity, whatever). At the end was Salt Tower, which looked kind of big, so I skipped it since I was short on time. Got back to the bus, and most of us tried to sleep on the way back. Driving out of London was cool, the Eye was all lit up, though I couldn't get a good picture of it. London is a very interesting city, with some very modern architecture, some dilapidated old buildings from rebuilding after WWII, and then some that with one look are obviously centuries older.
Unfortunately I really started to fall asleep right before Oxford, so we arrived just at my most tired. Anyway, because we got back 7PM GMT, all the grocery stories were closed, and no one wanted to go to a sit-down, so I ended up going to McDonalds. Just wanted a db cheeseburger and a shake, but the place was a disaster. Didn't have any of the order of a US one. There were two guys running registers, the guys in back were really slow making the food, and while the crowd was small when I got there, and was rather big when I left. I also had to wait 15 minutes for my food, everyone who ordered me already had theirs, so I got a free drink for the wait. These seems to be becoming a common thing in England for me. Hopefully it doesn't extend beyond this weekend.
Anyway, got back, ate, through my trash out in the kitchen so it wouldn't smell up the room, stopped in the common room and watch Dogma with people for a while before deciding to call it quits for the night. Shower, this and AIM, and hopefully bed soon. Early morning again tomorrow.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Free Day
So today we were pretty much left to our own devices to do whatever we wanted. Got up at for breakfast at 8am, only to learn that they won’t be feeding us this weekend. Rather upsetting to learn after getting up so early. So a few of us went to Sainsbury’s, a local grocery for store, for something to eat. I got a rather bland British version of a cinnamon roll and lemon/lime water, which is rather good. Talked with other people in the kitchen for awhile, then went to the lecture hall for a talk about the field trips we’ll be taking. While interesting, the professor jumped around quite a bit and it was hard to focus. Afterwards helped move a few boxes to a professor’s room, and then went out with Craig to take pictures of Oxford. Got some cool shots, though where we went is not really the downtown areas or where I’m going to spending a majority of my time. Hopefully I’ll take some more of the schools and dorm later. I’ll post the ones I took today soon. There was one area that seemed to be part of the Thames with a little path around it. There were also houseboats in the water by the path, kind of reminded me of an American trailer park. After we got back I relaxed and took a nap, then went down to the common room to read, though I wound up watching the TV more.
Later went to dinner with a group of people, but we had to split into two groups cause the pubs are rather small. Craig went with one group of 4 girls across the street, while the other group of 4 and I went to the pub Eagle and Child, which is a big name around here. It's where Tolkien and C.S. Lewis liked to hang out while at Oxford. Yep, it's pretty awesome. What wasn't awesome is that my food order got lost or delayed somehow, so I didn't get my chicken burger till everyone else was already pretty much done. But we were talking, so waiting wasn't that bad, plus I got my money back, which was rather nice.
We took the long route back to St. Michael's, mostly by accident, and then quite a few of us went to the common room to watch a movie. Ended up watching Pocahontas, which is fine by me. Rather a happy Disney movie than some of the other ones they were considering. I'm typing this while we watch/take shots at the movie. Still can't get Wi-Fi to work here, so I'll post it when I get back to my room. Overall today was a pretty good day. Tomorrow's our trip to the Tower of London, so hopefully that will turn out good as well. Suppose bed is a good idea now, since I'm still adjusting to the time change. Hopefully I'll be fully acclimated and 100 percent soon.
Lastly, here's a picture of the first boat of the houseboat line on we walked by.
Some were nice, some were sketchy looking. It was all very interesting.
Later went to dinner with a group of people, but we had to split into two groups cause the pubs are rather small. Craig went with one group of 4 girls across the street, while the other group of 4 and I went to the pub Eagle and Child, which is a big name around here. It's where Tolkien and C.S. Lewis liked to hang out while at Oxford. Yep, it's pretty awesome. What wasn't awesome is that my food order got lost or delayed somehow, so I didn't get my chicken burger till everyone else was already pretty much done. But we were talking, so waiting wasn't that bad, plus I got my money back, which was rather nice.
We took the long route back to St. Michael's, mostly by accident, and then quite a few of us went to the common room to watch a movie. Ended up watching Pocahontas, which is fine by me. Rather a happy Disney movie than some of the other ones they were considering. I'm typing this while we watch/take shots at the movie. Still can't get Wi-Fi to work here, so I'll post it when I get back to my room. Overall today was a pretty good day. Tomorrow's our trip to the Tower of London, so hopefully that will turn out good as well. Suppose bed is a good idea now, since I'm still adjusting to the time change. Hopefully I'll be fully acclimated and 100 percent soon.
Lastly, here's a picture of the first boat of the houseboat line on we walked by.
Friday, January 7, 2011
I Hate 777s
Okay, maybe not hate hate, but I prefer the 757 I took from O'Hare to JFK. Not as many people, less walkway space for people to get up and move around. Also to this flight's benefit was that I got a window seat, and there was no between me and the guy to my right, so I had a bit more room. It also took off on time and landed early, which was really nice.
Really didn't have any problems at JFK, but my flight got delayed for three hours before we could bored, at which point people were seriously annoyed, and rather rude. Some girl put her giant carry-on in the overhead for my seat and then went and sat somewhere else, leaving no room for other people to put stuff in. I know it really pissed one guy off, who almost got into a fight with an attendant. The girl who sat next to me on the 777 instantly plugged here headphones in and started watching a movie, great talker there. Plus she had the window seat and she didn't even look out it, very irritating. There wasn't anything I wanted to watch though, and I got to triple check my choices since we spent an hour on the tarmac before they even started towards the runway. Finally took off, I just listened to my MP3, and dinner was shortly served.
For all the crap you hear about airplane food, it was surprisingly good. Tortellini, salad, roll, crackers, and a chocolate chip cookie block. Then they killed the lights, I tried sleeping but it was hard without any real place for my head, plus all the screens people still had on glowing. They gave out blankets and pillows that made it a little better, but not much. Faded in and out a few times, during which I lost all track of time. Eventually I gave up and played my GBA for the rest of the flight, served hot croissants as it got light out, which was good. We landed shortly after.
Most people had a connecting flight, so they all pushed and shoved to get off and see what options were available to them since we were so late. I calmly waited until most of them were gone and then deplaned. Most of them were in a big group as I walked past, so glad they rushed so much. Customs was a breeze, the lady and I pretty much just talked about how expensive education is, and the riots because it could get higher. Grabbed my bags easy, but then I had to get to the central bus station, which required a looooonng walk down a twisty tunnel carrying two backpacks and hauling my other two bags, while smartly wearing my winter coat. 3/4 of the way through I finally took the coat off I was sweating so bad, and fortunately the station was cold. Bought a ticket no problem, then got a bottle of Fanta. Pretty sure I really overpaid, but I don't care, I was really thirsty.
Got on the bus, and then at the other stop my roommate Craig got on and sat behind me, it was cool to meet him there. Another exchange student got on from the South who was the typical American. He sat in two seats first, then moved back next to some old lady so he could talk to us better, and he was practically leaning back on her the whole ride. Plus he was really loud, it was pretty embarrassing. Got to Oxford, and after a little getting lost we found who we were supposed to meet and made it to the school. The cobblestones made my duffle bag keep falling off my wheeled suitcase, so again I was sweating when we reached the dorm. Oldish, narrow, neat and crappy at the same time, I'll put pictures up of my room soon here and on Facebook. And apparently compared to some others, it's really nice. I've been here a little over 24 hours now, and I've run the emotional gambit from wanting to move here to laying in a fetal position wishing I was on a plane back home. Maybe I'll talk more about that later. For now this is long enough, and I feel like doing something else.
Really didn't have any problems at JFK, but my flight got delayed for three hours before we could bored, at which point people were seriously annoyed, and rather rude. Some girl put her giant carry-on in the overhead for my seat and then went and sat somewhere else, leaving no room for other people to put stuff in. I know it really pissed one guy off, who almost got into a fight with an attendant. The girl who sat next to me on the 777 instantly plugged here headphones in and started watching a movie, great talker there. Plus she had the window seat and she didn't even look out it, very irritating. There wasn't anything I wanted to watch though, and I got to triple check my choices since we spent an hour on the tarmac before they even started towards the runway. Finally took off, I just listened to my MP3, and dinner was shortly served.
For all the crap you hear about airplane food, it was surprisingly good. Tortellini, salad, roll, crackers, and a chocolate chip cookie block. Then they killed the lights, I tried sleeping but it was hard without any real place for my head, plus all the screens people still had on glowing. They gave out blankets and pillows that made it a little better, but not much. Faded in and out a few times, during which I lost all track of time. Eventually I gave up and played my GBA for the rest of the flight, served hot croissants as it got light out, which was good. We landed shortly after.
Most people had a connecting flight, so they all pushed and shoved to get off and see what options were available to them since we were so late. I calmly waited until most of them were gone and then deplaned. Most of them were in a big group as I walked past, so glad they rushed so much. Customs was a breeze, the lady and I pretty much just talked about how expensive education is, and the riots because it could get higher. Grabbed my bags easy, but then I had to get to the central bus station, which required a looooonng walk down a twisty tunnel carrying two backpacks and hauling my other two bags, while smartly wearing my winter coat. 3/4 of the way through I finally took the coat off I was sweating so bad, and fortunately the station was cold. Bought a ticket no problem, then got a bottle of Fanta. Pretty sure I really overpaid, but I don't care, I was really thirsty.
Got on the bus, and then at the other stop my roommate Craig got on and sat behind me, it was cool to meet him there. Another exchange student got on from the South who was the typical American. He sat in two seats first, then moved back next to some old lady so he could talk to us better, and he was practically leaning back on her the whole ride. Plus he was really loud, it was pretty embarrassing. Got to Oxford, and after a little getting lost we found who we were supposed to meet and made it to the school. The cobblestones made my duffle bag keep falling off my wheeled suitcase, so again I was sweating when we reached the dorm. Oldish, narrow, neat and crappy at the same time, I'll put pictures up of my room soon here and on Facebook. And apparently compared to some others, it's really nice. I've been here a little over 24 hours now, and I've run the emotional gambit from wanting to move here to laying in a fetal position wishing I was on a plane back home. Maybe I'll talk more about that later. For now this is long enough, and I feel like doing something else.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Where I Never Planned To Be
Study abroad was never something that I planned to do. Whenever someone would give a speech about how great study abroad is I would just tune them out. It wasn’t something I was interested in and never planned to even bother looking into. I had enough trouble going to a different state for school, I had no need to go to a different country. Somehow though, my plans have once again changed. By chance I got a flyer offering the opportunity to a study at a school where I would like to earn my masters in the subject in which I plan to achieve a doctorate, and it was something that I simply could not pass up. I don’t know if what I expected to happen, but here I am the night before my flight kicking myself for what I’ve decided to try…again. I’m sure I will be fine once I get there, since I am never a fan of traveling, but being the homebody I am leaving is always hard. I am super excited about studying at Oxford, and I want to be there now. I’m just not sure how long I want to be there, cause I know I’m going to miss being at home and EC. Oh well, what’s done is done. Hopefully I’ll be lucky and not have any travel troubles and will soon be in Oxford, seeing the school and meeting new people. Well the games afoot, follow your spirit, and upon this charge cry God for Harry, England and St. George. (Should probably see where this quote is from besides the new Sherlock Holmes movie).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)