I'm an idiot

This past week was probably my most hectic one as I had to finish two essays in a week's span. I was determined to finish before Bobbie Jo came on Saturday, so I worked like a madman, skipping meals to work in the library and enduring minimal amount of sleep. So...today was my tutorial, and what do I discover? The essay that I was killing myself over was "a suggestion." AHHHH!!!!!! Where was this noted in the syllabus (Oh...right in plain sight...gotcha). Who reads the syllabus anyway?!?! I guess I'll have to make a note of that from now on. Needless to say, my tutor was very impressed with my appetite for knowledge. I just had to play it off..."Well, I'm here to learn, so I figured this would be the best way..." And she bought it! Apparently it's believable to her that I would willingly commit five days worth of reading and writing for a non-mandatory assignment! Not to mention that in this time span, I could have been working on the essay that is actually requited of me! As I was reading my worthless essay aloud to her, I had to suppress the urge to laugh at what an idiot I am.

My plans for the first two weeks of break that will make you jealous

I feel as if a massive weight has been lifted--Bobbie Jo, Jennifer, and I booked our flights for break! Bobbie Jo will arrive in London on Saturday in which I will pick her up from the airport. We'll spend a low key day touring Oxford followed by a Wild West themed bop at Regent's. But after that, we will kick it in high gear, becoming certified world travellers. We'll be flying out of London to Barcelona in which we will spend a few days exploring the Gaudi architecture, the beach, and the Picasso Museum. I hear there's a Frank Gehry sculpture on the beach that I'm real excited about! Then, we fly to Venice! I remember when I was younger wishing to visit Venice for the sole purpose of being serenaded by a dark and handsome Italian as he swiftly steers our gondola through the watery streets. It's funny how I've changed so little. After Venice, we'll kiss the gondolier goodbye (metaphorically speaking of course) and catch a train to Florence--the hometown of Michelangelo and the heart of the Italian Renaissance! After a few days of cultural enlightenment, we're off again....to Rome!! There's so much to do and see in Rome, I don't know where we will start. I know we'll travel the touristy route of the Colosseum, the newly restorated Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's Basilica! From Rome, we fly back to London. I'm quite pleased with our destinations, and it was all done surprisingly cheap. The taxes for one of our tickets ended up being more than the actual flight! After Bobbie Jo leaves us for the States, Jennifer and I will have a week to travel before her family gets here for her and Tyler gets here for me. Talk of Paris and Switzerland was thrown around for this week, so it should be interesting to see where we will end up.

Of course first, I need to get through this last week of Hilary term. It's really flown by! I sincerely hope this week flows on a slow and steady pace considering I have one 2500 word essay and another 5000 word paper due....so much for having the easy tutorial. It's all very manageable. I just need to be productive and finish the term strong! Now after that little pep talk, back to the books for me...

Oh, you study "art history"

Not to brag, but my tutorial has been way cooler than all the other Georgetowners. And that's the super-smart Oxford way to phrase it. Instead of having writing a weekly essay like everyone else, my tutor and I meet every other week at a place where I can experience art firsthand. We've met at the Ashmolean and Christ Church in Oxford and the National Gallery and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. And not that I'm trying to justify the lack of work I've done here, but these trips have helped me about as equally as the essays. I didn't realize how inarticulate I was when speaking of art. It's an entirely different experience being in front of a piece that you've read about and someone asking you, "So what do you think?" At first, I felt like a pretentious art snob, but I've really grown to enjoy it (lingering over a work of art that is not being a pretentious art snob). Of course my essays, or lack thereof, have caused me to become a source of contempt and mockery among my peers. They pretentiously scoff"Oh you study 'art history'" or "Did you see any pretty pictures today?" I would be jealous too if I saw someone actually look forward to their weekly tute.

Today was my final tutorial field trip of the term. I met Claire (my tutor) at the Victoria and Albert Museum. The V & A, as we hip art students like to call it, is according to it's website "the world's greatest museum of art and design." Being the world's greatest museum of art and design must be quite a feat in that the V & A is HUGE! There are a few prints and paintings, but the museum is so much more than the typical "high" art. There are collections of metalwork, ceramics, photography, and textiles. It has tons of sculptures including several casts of famous ones such as Michelangelo's David. There were also special interest exhibits, the two main ones featuring the dynamic fashion of Kylie Minogue and the affect of the slave trade on decorative art (needless to say these were not in the same room). The V & A is probably my new favorite museum, and I study paintings, not design. The museum spans from prehistoric to contemporary. I definitely would recommend it for anyone with an interest in museums. In fact, I'm going to make a trip to London later in the term for a special V & A visit for the Surrealism exhibit that will be in effect at the end of March

Netball Banter and Rowing....an Oxford tradition everyone loves to hate

Today has been a wonderfully lazy Sunday. I woke up around 10, made some coffee, and read my travel books (okay, I did revise a little of my last essay, but we'll not count that...). Tonight, the rest of the Georgetowners and I are meeting Dr. Hadaway (who's here for six weeks) to go to evensong at Christ Church. Afterwards, we'll go back to the Georgetown flat for dinner. Yesterday, by contrast, was quite productive and eventful. I had to get up at 9 to meet the girls' netball team for the Cuppers tournament. Getting up in the single-digit hours on a weekend is not a common Oxford occurrence (for me or any student really). It was an interesting tournament. I'm still not sure of all of the rules, but basically, it's similar to basketball minus the contact and also everyone has assigned zones that they must stay in or get penalized for being off-sides. I know it sounds extremely lame. Luckily, I have one of the best positions. I play Goal Shooter, so I and another girl do all of the scoring. Goal shooter is a position which I imagine is similar to the quarterback in football because I get the majority of the glory when everyone else is doing the more difficult, less fun things. I enjoy how low-key netball is though sometimes when the ball is near me in the opponent's hands I'm really tempted to swipe at the ball which is a netball no-no.

One thing that amuses me about netball, and British sports in general, is the cheers during play. The girls on my team say things like, "Unlucky!" if I miss a shot or "Brilliant" if I make it. My personal favorite is "Two cheers for [insert opposing team's name here]!" It's so polite and comically British that I couldn't have imagined it any funnier in my mind.

Though netball is much more casual Oxford sport than say...rowing. Rowing is an Oxford tradition in which I don't believe I'll get into. I went out on the river twice, and on the second outing, I'm pretty sure I had gotten worse. There's so much to remember, and it's such an unnatural technique. If you mess up, turning your oar around or getting out of sync with the other rowers (there are 8 in a boat), you're screwed. Once, I fell behind in the stroke and my oar nearly killed me. The girl behind me in the boat had to take my oar as I ducked out of its way. My back hurt for two weeks after my second and hopefully last outing. At first I was a little disappointed in myself for not taking advantage of what I initially thought was the ultimate Oxford experience. I'm rather sporty, so I thought I should definitely row, right? However after witnessing rowing culture first-hand, it didn't take long to realize rowing is not for me.

With the upcoming Hilary boat race (torpids), the rowing team likes to have practice at 6...in the morning. I understand that good things don't come easy. An amount of sacrifice is required for any great reward. These students spend at least five days of the week out on the river while somehow managing to pull off passable essays. Yet what is this "reward" of rowing? Maybe the earliness and frequency of these outings wouldn't be as appalling if it seemed as if people actually enjoyed rowing. I've heard a few say how wonderful it is being out on the river and how much fun it is once you get the technique down, but these meager attempts of enthusiasm seem few and far between compared to the number of complaints. It's almost as if these rowers in their half-hearted attempts of ardor are trying to convince themselves that they actually enjoy rowing. Well, I'm not buying it. These rowers are putting in so much effort for so little reward. They know it, and I know it. Oxford tradition or not, I think I'll remain a land-lover until punting comes into play. Punting, is an Oxford tradition in which I've heard genuine enthusiasm. Now, I'll only need to learn what exactly this "punting" phenomenon is all about...

I'm a horrible blogger...

Well shoot. I have been seriously slacking in the blogging-department. I was pleasantly surprised to find three comments on my previous blog. People read my blog....wow. Before, I was doing this due to selfish motivation, but now I feel as if I'm here to entertain (this statement reminds me of a paper I just wrote about Degas' dancers, but anyway...) although I'm sure I have scared all readers of my blog away with my lack of committment. Okay, I need to tell myself that this is something that I'll want to have later. Yes, I'm a blogging-machine now.

I suppose I'll just start off with what's happening now, and later work my way backwards (or not...I make no promises). I've been here for more than a month and a half now. There are only two more weeks in this term...crazy. Honestly, I'm ready for this term to be over. I'm really excited about the break. Bobbie Jo will be visiting me the first two weeks. I think the plan for these weeks is to focus on Italy and Spain. Tyler will come later for ten days during the Easter holidays. I think his visit will be more low-key, taking in the British sites, and perhaps the famous Oxford/Cambridge boat race. I also think I'll be spending much of the six weeks with Jennifer. Her parents will be visiting the same time Tyler is here, so that worked our perfectly. She'll be travelling with Bobbie Jo and me as well. This weekend, I have been looking into specific places of where I would like to go. The Georgetown group has talked about going to Italy and Greece together during the last week and a half of break. I really hope this pans out. The beach on a Greek island--complete with the deep, blue Mediterranean and historic richness-- seems the perfect way to end our six week vacation. I believe we (Jennifer, Bobbie Jo, and myself) are getting Railpasses, so we'll have access to 18 countries!!

I can't believe I'm one of those kids with a blog...

I'm new to this blogging thing. Hopefully, it won't be too time-consuming. If it is, it's not the blog's fault. I take full responsibility. Well, me and my addictive personality that is.

I'm in week three now. I didn't have too many responsibilities the first two weeks which was nice. It gave me time to acclimate to the new surroundings. I went exploring a lot which was amazing. Oxford is the most beautiful city I've ever been in. I can't believe that I live here! The entire city is filled with history. Just on my way to Regent's, I pass several medieval stylized, Gothic buildings, a botanic garden, and the pub that C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkein frequented! I'm completely overwhelmed by the possibilities of experience!

The five of us Georgetowners are living in a house on Stanley Road about two miles from Regent's. It's quite a hike there and back. Since Regent's feeds us every week day, it's really not an option to stay at our new home. The first week we were all so sore, and I think that a bike would be a wise investment. It's a cycling culture here. The slight incline on the way to Regent's does somewhat trouble me though...

Now, coming into the third week, I'm need to buckle down. I have my first essay due this Friday. Not doing work has made me forget how much pressure writing a quality paper feels like. Whereas at Georgetown, it would be easy to slack off and still manage grades, the one-on-one tutorials make it impossible here. My tutor, Claire, is really great though. She's so British and says really polite things like "Oh, that'd be grand." It's quite entertaining, but people don't always like when you laugh at them everytime they finish a sentence, so I've had to contain myself.

I'm sure I'll post later this week considering it'll keep me from doing necessary work ;)

Pictures to come later once I figure out this downloading thingy...

**This picture is the quad at Regent's Park.

**The image at the top is the dining hall at Regent's. Looks a lot like the dining hall in Harry Potter right? Well, a more ghetto version, but I like to use my imagination :D