more on ducks
for almost three days (comprising the whole weekend), the Worcester internet was down. mind, this is at a university where libraries are closed on sundays (and certainly never open late anyway) and i could not have found free wireless in town to save my life. this caused huge problems for some people, like my friend Ben who had to email a paper to his tutor, or Elizabeth the Goddess/Visiting Students Director, who's an Adult and had Work to do. i was mostly concerned that i couldn't get on facebook. at any rate, i think all the JYAs had very american moments, as we thought to ourselves, "this would have been fixed in twenty minutes at home..."
seriously, it was a very strange weekend; i was ALL out of money on my phone, due to an accidental nine pound phone call to Scotland (by accidental, we mean, priyanka's an idiot who can't calculate 15 x 60 = too much money), and i'd get back to my room at night, look sadly at Sophie (the Dell), lament the lack of television or dvds handy, and realize: i had nothing to do but my work.
of course, i did do my work, unlike now when i am writing this but not, importantly, a paper on courtship novels.
sorry, i don't want to belabour the whole *fowl* theme, but seriously: the ducks! okay, and i am NOT a bird person, as many can attest; usually, i pretty much despise them (dirty, squawking, mean, etc.). but these ducks! there are two families, the white ones and the brown-black ones. the white ones are the best. they are hilarious. i can come home in the foulest of moods, and if see them i just start laughing.
it's not just the Worcester ducks either; this morning i was by the canal, and there were all these cuties lined up on the bank, taking turns diving in and climbing out and purring (in a duck way).
i mean...i do still hate birds though. goddamn pigeon flew past my head this morning. they're the worst.
hm. i feel i have somehow missed the logical and comprehensive update on Life at Oxford. perhaps i should start with the basics.
Bed and Board: i have a quite roomy single in Staircase 19, as it's called, with plentiful shelf space, a sink, and a fridge. i have since acquired (from a discount store and Elizabeth's JYA closet) a toaster, a kettle, and a coffee-maker, though i don't really know how to use the last one.
Academics: i'm taking two tutorials, one on 19th c. novels, the other on John Donne. i also attend a couple lectures, but that's just extra. basically i have all this unscheduled time combined with 20pg reading lists to chip through each week. so i've been going to the English Faculty Library a lot to get books, and the Worcester Lower Library to study (very small, but has the advantage of looking like a French palace). my next move will be the Bodleian Lower Camera Reading Room. after that, Frost will pretty much be hell.
Social: i mostly hang out with select JYAs (old and new) and a sort of random collection of brits who are sometimes nice to us. my next-door neighbor is very sweet, but i think she's too much of a babe to want to be my friend (damn redheads). i have identified a few kindred spirits whom i now intend to cultivate--they are the low-key, liberal arts college-types. i think they like to sit around and talk about books. i tried (i tried!) to do the other thing last week: we had people over, we drank a lot of wine, we went to the college bar and then on to Park End, one of a number of clubs round the corner. and i was drunk enough to be into it for a while...and then i kind of looked around, realized what i was doing, and booked it out of there. it's just, well, clubs are kind of gross, aren't they? yeah. i think i came home that night and started to write a drunken blog post (of the same title), but got interrupted by the phone. sorry; no doubt one of those will turn up sooner or later.
i suppose that pretty much sums it up. meanwhile i haven't written a word of my paper, and instead of doing that, i'll probably go to the library in search of more "books" i "need" to write it.
oh yes, number one best thing about being back in england: gingersnaps.
seriously, it was a very strange weekend; i was ALL out of money on my phone, due to an accidental nine pound phone call to Scotland (by accidental, we mean, priyanka's an idiot who can't calculate 15 x 60 = too much money), and i'd get back to my room at night, look sadly at Sophie (the Dell), lament the lack of television or dvds handy, and realize: i had nothing to do but my work.
of course, i did do my work, unlike now when i am writing this but not, importantly, a paper on courtship novels.
sorry, i don't want to belabour the whole *fowl* theme, but seriously: the ducks! okay, and i am NOT a bird person, as many can attest; usually, i pretty much despise them (dirty, squawking, mean, etc.). but these ducks! there are two families, the white ones and the brown-black ones. the white ones are the best. they are hilarious. i can come home in the foulest of moods, and if see them i just start laughing.
it's not just the Worcester ducks either; this morning i was by the canal, and there were all these cuties lined up on the bank, taking turns diving in and climbing out and purring (in a duck way).
i mean...i do still hate birds though. goddamn pigeon flew past my head this morning. they're the worst.
hm. i feel i have somehow missed the logical and comprehensive update on Life at Oxford. perhaps i should start with the basics.
Bed and Board: i have a quite roomy single in Staircase 19, as it's called, with plentiful shelf space, a sink, and a fridge. i have since acquired (from a discount store and Elizabeth's JYA closet) a toaster, a kettle, and a coffee-maker, though i don't really know how to use the last one.
Academics: i'm taking two tutorials, one on 19th c. novels, the other on John Donne. i also attend a couple lectures, but that's just extra. basically i have all this unscheduled time combined with 20pg reading lists to chip through each week. so i've been going to the English Faculty Library a lot to get books, and the Worcester Lower Library to study (very small, but has the advantage of looking like a French palace). my next move will be the Bodleian Lower Camera Reading Room. after that, Frost will pretty much be hell.
Social: i mostly hang out with select JYAs (old and new) and a sort of random collection of brits who are sometimes nice to us. my next-door neighbor is very sweet, but i think she's too much of a babe to want to be my friend (damn redheads). i have identified a few kindred spirits whom i now intend to cultivate--they are the low-key, liberal arts college-types. i think they like to sit around and talk about books. i tried (i tried!) to do the other thing last week: we had people over, we drank a lot of wine, we went to the college bar and then on to Park End, one of a number of clubs round the corner. and i was drunk enough to be into it for a while...and then i kind of looked around, realized what i was doing, and booked it out of there. it's just, well, clubs are kind of gross, aren't they? yeah. i think i came home that night and started to write a drunken blog post (of the same title), but got interrupted by the phone. sorry; no doubt one of those will turn up sooner or later.
i suppose that pretty much sums it up. meanwhile i haven't written a word of my paper, and instead of doing that, i'll probably go to the library in search of more "books" i "need" to write it.
oh yes, number one best thing about being back in england: gingersnaps.
posted by priyanka at 10:30 AM
2 Comments:
This update meant so much to me, just as I was about to give up hope. I hope the ducks continue to treat you well, and more good luck with all things Oxford.
I agree with cg and Abby: alhamdulillah, thank god you are alive!
oh, and I'm so excited you got a kettle and coffee maker in your cozy little room. and you should know, if you ever need any help figuring out to use a coffee maker: I am THERE.
say hi to the ducks and to england for me.
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