aaahhahahaha it's 3 am

ok i totally meant to put this in the last post. purple skittles from america taste like purple skittles from america! it's not me! freaking british candy..... isleepnow

My Hat!!!

Ok this morning I left for my nine oclock class and was struck with a very large and insubstantial train more commonly known as wind. A horizontal tornado, if you will. It was very difficult to make any forward progress at all, and it switched directions frequently. Luckily, my playing of SNES Donkey Kong games had prepared me for this.

Yeah.

You know how in DK Country Two you can play as Dixie? And you know how she's got that hat? And you know how it never falls off?? Pure fiction, my friends.

The lovely Colchester wind, which is apparantly stronger and more devious than the wind of the Donkey Kong jungles, snatched my hat away. I chased after it, but it was too high for me to reach, and when the wind died for a moment, it deposited my hat on the roof of the Accomodations Office.

The office didn't open til ten and I had to get to class, so I left it. In class (Modernity), we talked about Yeats. After class I asked Clare about exams, and if I was expected to know everything from Autumn term as well. She got this horrified look on her face and said "Oh no, I hope not... but I don't see how you could take the exam and not know..." But she didn't really know and told me to go ask Hazel, which I did right after class.

Hazel said that no, I was not expected to know the Autumn things, and the the Exams Office was well aware of my status as an international student, and I would get a different exam than the others in my class. Well good. I hope it actually works out that way...

I went to the Accomodations Office next and asked them if there was any way I could get my hat down. They said to ask at the information desk about finding someone with a ladder. So I left the office and circled it, looking to see if the hat had blown down. It had not, or if it had, it had also blown away. So I went back up to my flat, knowing I could see the office roof from the kitchen.

The hat was no longer on the roof. I mourned it as lost and went to take a nap.

I left for Early Modern Culture early so that I could sign up for the Stonehenge trip this Saturday, but when I got to the table, the line was long. Really long. I stood in it for about half an hour and realized I was late for class. So I left it. I'm glad I did - this class takes attendance and counts participation. And we talked about cannibalism and the zombification of Irish people in British media in the 15th century.

After class, the Stonehenge table was gone, so I suppose that's that. I went to the bookstore to pick up the last of the textbooks I need: George Perec's Life: A User's Manual, which sounds pretty promising. I went back to the dorm very sadly hung up my scarf, thinking that it looked rather lonely on its hook, and really, a hat is needed to jusitfy having a whole separate hook for wintery accessories.

I sat down to check my email and received one from the Accomodations Office saying that my hat had been recovered!!! What??? How?? Oh well!

I went back out and picked it up with many thanks. It had been found by the employee entrance around 2:00. We are happily reunited... and I still have no idea how the Accomodations Office knew who to email. Ah, life's mysteries.

I sat down to read some webcomics and eat some Skittles.

Ok Britain. Seriously. What's up with the purple candy? Why does it all taste terrible? I thought Skittles was an American brand! Man. Maybe it's me. When I get back to America I need to eat some purple candy.

Some webcomics, some chatting, and then dinner. Leftover tomatoe soup was helped along considerably by the presence of a grilled cheese sandwich, which the Brits called a fried cheese sandwich, which is actually more accurate.

Tonight I booked flights. It was very frustrating, but Lisa and I now have flights to Rome! We are working on getting a hostel next, and then Phantom of the Opera tickets for when I go visit her in London.

That is all I have to report today. Tomorrow: Laundry and research

In Which I am Convinced of the Superiority of American Candy

Today I had only one class. It was the seminar for Myth. Seminar here is like recitation in the states - the big lecture is broken up into small groups. Only, here, the big lecture is only like, 25 students. And the seminar is still taught by the professor.

I got there very early to make sure I could find the room. I found it. Very early. There was another seminar happening in there so I sort of wandered around for a bit. I guess I looked lost, because my Early Culture professor saw me in the hall and asked if I needed help! That's the first time anyone in Britain has actually OFFERED help! I got over my shock and told him that no, I was just really early and waiting for my seminar to begin. And then, he volunteered the location of a common room where I could sit and read! So I did! That guy is awesome!

There were only about 7 people in my seminar. It went all right. The professor has this habit of covering his eyes when he's trying to remember something. He looks so sad. When he is not covering his eyes, he looks like the actor who plays Peter Pettigrew, only slimmer and with less horrendous teeth. I think I impressed him with my knowledge of poetic meter and the myth of Persephone. And made the rest of the class hate me.

The seminar ended around 1:30, and I was planning on going to the Literature Department Office and asking about a literary magazine... No one so far has mentioned one, but if the university has one I think it would be neat to get involved, since the archery club apparantly no longer exists.

Sadly, the Literature Department Office closes at 1 on Fridays. I really think that anyone who works on campus must have two jobs, because nothing is ever open...

I went back to the dorm, and ran into Sebastian along the way. He said he was going to Tesco and I said that I also needed to go. He sort of looked off in the other direction and was like "Oh." I think he did not want me along, which was fine by me since I'd be faster alone. So I went back to my room and sort of puttered around a bit. I read the letter I got from grandma! It made me happy. But there wasn't much else to do. I got bored pretty fast and decided to go back out and get some Stuff done.

First stop was to register with the local health center. The sheet we got at orientation said we should do this in the first week of classes, so I figured I'd better get it done nowish. This did not turn out as I had hoped, however, because they needed to know EXACTLY how long I'd be staying, and I have no idea when my flight out will be... so I didn't register. Hope I don't get sick.

Then I stopped by the bookstore and got the very last copy of a book I intend to write my Early Culture essay on. Close call, that. Don't know where I'd've picked it up if it had been sold out.
Then I went looking for postcards, but did not find any, so I bought some chocolate and a muffin instead.

I went back up to my room, picked up my shopping list, and began the hike to Tesco. On walks such as these I am able to ponder the many mysteries of life, such as: "What will Kerial do next now that he has been captured by vampires?" and "Should I be writing in third person or first person?" and "How does one become a Great Author?" and "How can they claim that the Tesco is only a ten minute walk from the University?"

Because you know, it more closely resembles a 20 minute walk, in that it takes about 20 minutes, and is a walk.

Hey, not so bad, pretty pleasant walk on the way there. It's the way back that gets you. I purchased pasta sauce, soup, liquid soap, a dish towel, pasta, kleenex, chips, and some candy. It doesn't look like that much, but when you get to the top of the hill it FEELS like a lot. My shoulders hurt. I am glad I refrained from purchasing water and a pillow as well. Next time... when I am feeling strong.

I got back, recovered a bit, checked my email. My package from mom and dad came in! But... the office was already closed (even though they had only just sent the email) and they don't open again until Monday. I am REALLY looking forward to getting that book light so I don't have to get out of bed to turn of the light anymore.

Then I went to eat some of my new soup for dinner. It tasted like warm water lightly seasoned with onion and celery... (it was supposed to be chicken noodle). That brand fails. But at least I got some vegetables, I guess. There was no one in the kitchen at dinner. I suppose they had other things to do on a Friday night, which is just as well because it means it's quiet around here for a change. I read a bit while I ate and then took a shower.

When I sat down at my computer for my nightly blogging and chatting routine, I opened the chocolate caramel bar I'd bought and ate it... and it was delicious. But it left a weird taste in my mouth, like drinking milk and then not brushing your teeth for a while. So I opened the jellybeans and ate some of those...

A word to the saavy Tesco consumer (Hi Lisa!). The Tesco Jellybeans are, I am convinced, the origin of J.K. Rowling's inspiration for Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. The purple ones taste like a combination of potatoes and the way a house full of cats smells (only, in taste form). The green ones taste like plants after a warm spring shower.

My garbage can overfloweth with purple and green beans.

The End.