Whenever I start blogging, I keep remembering things that I need to make sure I put in here before I go home and don't care about keeping this thing up anymore.
Yesterday I felt like a good little Oxford scholar...attending a whopping TWO lectures.
The first was a Sustainable Development Law conference at Exeter college. I expected lots of graduates..maybe some undergrads to be there. Instead there maybe 4 other students there, 2 of which were running the thing...and one of the girls already had her Law degree from Berkeley and a husband who is a UN Peacekeeper. Her name was Cinnamon. She was surprised when I told her I was from Ky because she actually lived in Dry Ridge (less than an hour from Georgetown) while working at University of Cincinnati for a while. It is certainly crazy the people you will meet.
The speaker was from Brazil. She discussed Environmental Law..and how to help sustainable development work in the future basically. I've never really given much thought to environmental law. I'm from an Agricultural background so you would think it would be the first thing I thought about....The conference was interesting enough..I was the only undergrad there so a lot of it was definitely over my head. I got a grasp on some of the issues though to think of for later.
The next exciting event of the day was a lecture in the Sheldonian by Amyrta Sen, professor of Economics from Havard University. I read Sen for my theories of politics course last term- his lecture was titles "What Theory of Justice"....Events like this help me to appreciate how many people are just thinking about issues for essentially their entire lives. Sen is one of the most respected scholars in political theory...he has a Nobel prize in economics....and he's still writing, researching....it just goes on forever doesn't it.
One of the most debated parts in the theories of justice is the idea of the "Impartial Spectator". Is it possible to ever consider the needs of a wider community over that of your family, friends, compatriots? Part of me wants to believe that it could happen....part of me doesn't see how it ever could.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Sen Lecture
A bit from Before
I need to read for my essay.
Instead I'm catching up on my life. I find that writing all of this down has helped me reflect a lot on what I'm actually doing with my time...as opposed to letting each day get away from me as I read my life away... I've always kept a journal of things. I started writing when I was 12 for fear that I would just forget it all at some point and my children would have no way of knowing who I was- It is strange that I would think of such things at the age of 12. I remember charting down how many miles I had run for Cross Country or Track practice...what my split was for each 4x400 meter relay competition....I thought I might decided to add all the numbers up one day and see how many miles I'd put on my body. I didn't want to forget what it was like to go through middle school, as much as I think I hated it. I didn't want to forget the names of the people I went to OBI with...since most of them I would never see again. I don't read through my journals often, but when I do it amazes me how much I HAVE forgotten of my life.
I wonder how much I will remember of Oxford. I'm getting to that point in the experience where I'm ready to go home...but also very aware of how permanent "going home" is. Leaving my Oxford friends behind after only a few months of knowing them will be sad. I will handle it because that's what I got used to doing somewhere along the way when I went to boarding school where I did good to keep the same friends for a full school year. The larger reality I'm having to face is leaving my Georgetown friends a year from now. I'm not ready to face that part of life where all the memories have been made and all I'm left with is a "This buddy of mine from college" story. I've been with my friends at Georgetown essentially longer than I have with any other group of people in my life. I think of this often. But I'll put that aside for now.
It is just interesting how much I want to hold on to memories and experiences...and that this is what largely motivates me to write so much. Some of the details are boring, of course. But then again, this blog is probably rarely read word for word by many people other than myself. I can't imagine letting this time of my life slip through the cracks with no record of what I'm going through.
It hit me recently that I can barely remember my last year at Georgetown. I stopped writing in my journal for almost a year. It was as if with each new level of stress I reached, I shyed away from writing about life. Perhaps I didn't want to remember. I wouldn't know now. I sometimes feel like I stop knowing myself when I stop writing. So I have no clue now what my deep reasoning would have been for not recording at least a thought or two down when I experienced what I feel was one of my most difficult years personally....Last fall was especially a difficult time that I'm glad to be far away from now. I remember being so distraught over a few personal issues that I couldn't bring myself to do much school work at all...it wasn't as if I had a ton to do, but I really did stop caring as much as I once did about nearly everything in general. I remember never going to bed before 2 am before my 9 am classes the next day. I remember wishing everyday that time would just go by so that those few months would be only a distant memory. Its funny that the whole time period is now a blur and much of it really is only a distant memory. I guess its good that I don't write about everything. Thinking on those months, Oxford has been a very good escape for me.
While that entire last paragraph seems to have little to do with my experience in Oxford- it really was a significant precursor to my few months here. And it is something that I want to remember to some extent in terms of who I was before coming here. It is strange how people see me as generally a put together person when re-reading my blog I think I portray someone quite a mess...this is why I love to read other people's blogs. It's interesting how some of them focus on points of view, with little emphasis on personal life....and others are almost a moment by moment account of one's daily experience. I've recently been exploring some other blogs from students at Oxford. Some of it, even though my experience as a student here will be limited, I can relate to very much. Some of it...makes me realize why I may never be the academic that I secretly wish came naturally for me....It is nice to know that there are people who care about the same things I care about...And who have a need to express their life experience through writing..to an unknown audience especially. As summer has arrived, I honestly imagine myself writing to no one now. Most of my friends are hopefully nowhere near a computer...most of my family is looking forward to seeing me, rather than spending time on here trying to catch up....
Anyway....this was just one of those notes that I needed to write...to myself..i just realized it has no logical flow or common theme other than my rambling.....if there are still people reading this thing...thanks for bearing with me and "one of my moments"
Saturday of Eights
The were amazing!! They bumped very soon after the start as they have done every other day...and we were soon on to celebrating their victory!
The Saturday of summer eights was one of the most "typical" Oxford type things I have been too. The river was jam packed with people coming from a wide range of social groups. Along with all the University students and boat clubs...there were families around with kids picnicking in the park side...and there were several older people dressed stylishly in the Old boat crew suit coat complete with straw hat. Smells of grill out food were every where, something I cannot wait to get back to when I go home this summer. People covered all of the boat houses...pouring along the stair cases and the railings of the balcony...the atmostphere was bustling, exciting...the rowing was pretty intense. It makes a nice memory.
What's Next
Everyday I grow more jealous of people at home who are enjoying summer without an essay looming over their head. I just felt the need to mention that. Every day I wake up planning on getting right to work...and find myself able to waste more time than than should be humanly possible. I stayed awake until 3 am last night...I had cleaned my room until about 2 but then went downstairs and ended up talking to Alanna for much longer than I planned. I really needed a good chat though. I just made it sound like I was a complete disaster in terms of cleanliness- my room wasn't that bad- but I've managed to misplace a 50lb. note that I just "know" I left in my drawer. I've noticed it missing for a couple of weeks now, but have decided not to look for it because usually that doesn't really help. Recent events, however, have demanded that I find it.
The day before yesterday I checked my mailbox to find my Debit Card there waiting for me. This was strange because I didn't even realize I had lost it! Upon checking my account I 've found 60 bucks spent on it at the Tesco (a grocery store here). I'm glad to have my card back...but nothing about this situation makes any sense. Why would some one spend my money then return my card to college? Why wouldn't they just keep it? My worst fear is that who ever did spend the money kept my number for later use.....This means that I really need to shut my card down. But I have 2 1/2 weeks left here....I can't just not have access to my money. I was hoping to find my 50 pound note- at least then I would feel like I could shut the card down and have a reasonable amount to get me by until the end. The note HAS to be in my room unless it was stolen. So I'm hoping that it just turns up, as things tend to do with me. But if I'm going to shut my card down...I don't want to take out money and then find the 50 pounds and not need to spend them!!!!
Thinking about all of this just makes me angry. I'm angry at myself if I irresponsibly misplaced both my cash and my card. Secondly, I 'm angry that someone would steal from me. Either way of course, it falls back on me to have not been more careful with my money. Most of all, I'm frustrated because I don't know what to do about it next. I am the most tight person with my money out of every one I know. To spend money beyond necessity for me generally takes a lot of convincing and reasoning with my self. To think that someone else would spend my money so generously is almost ironic- or maybe it isn't exactly irony- but it is bothersome. It makes me feel like I really cannot justify doing a lot of the things I wanted to do before I left. If I had planned to spend, say 200 more bucks before leaving....well 160 is already accounted for- even if my 50 pounds has not been spent...it seems to be as good as gone as I cannot find it anywhere.
I've maintained a fairly reasonable attitude about. Really there is nothing much I can do. If I lost my 50 and don't find it, then I just have to accept that. Even if it had been strangely stolen- I really cannot know or expect it to be returned. So I just need to accept that its gone.
As far as my credit card is concerned- the money should be refunded to me by the bank. And the important thing is that I have it back. Even if I didn't realize it was lost originally. So that's that.
The bad thing is, I have a hard time just not thinking about the fact that I have lost 100 bucks somewhere. May be in the grand scheme of my life this won't feel like that much money....but when I don't even have enough to pay for next falls' tuition...100 bucks sure seems like a heck of a lot for this moment. That's 5 trips to London, at least 4 meals that I could have dined out in Oxford, 3 nights of weekday waitressing, an opportunity to do something that I may not feel like spending the money on now that it's already gone somewhere. Thinking about it is just distracting me from work at the moment. I only have so much junk in my room...it couldn't have just dissappeared.
Aside from being cut in line...losing money or being robbed is probably my second greatest source of frustration to an irrational extent.
Tonight the Regent's students are presenting the play Twelfth night. It looks beautiful outside for the moment so I guess we will be able to have it outside!! I should have worked more today. I guess there will always be work to do.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Summer Eights Week and Vivaldi's Gloria
Last week was an exciting time for the Regents Park rowing team- the week of Summer Eights. Even though I wasn't actually rowing in the boat for competition time, my daily schedule centered around the women's racing.
I missed the races on Wednesday, but on Thursday was able to watch the second round. Because the river isn't wide enough to have 13 or so boats race side by side, the boats line up and attempt to catch the boat in front of them (called a Bump because they used to actually hit the boat with their own) before they are caught by the boat behind them. This is not so easy...if the boat in front of ours bumps successfully...then both that boat and the boat they caught are out of the race...and our girls then have to catch the boat that was in front of both of them...So, you can see how a lot of the competition is based on skilled rowing...and a lot is based on pure luck...
My house is just around the corner from the river...so several of us from Stanely road went to Donnigton Bridge to watch the girls race on Thursday. The gun fired...and several teams went by us while our girls were nowhere in site. Finally, we saw a group dressed in red heading into the trees...this was clearly the Regents team, but we could not figure out why they weren't rowing straight. My heart sank for the team convinced that something had gone horribly wrong...but apparently, they had bumped with in the first 15 strokes of the start and just needed to move out of the way!!
It was a beautiful day, so I found my books in the SSL and went to the University Parks to read for a while before dinner. I couldn't imagine spending a day as beautiful as this one inside a library...even if it is more effective for studying. Like I've mentioned before, the sun is not promised to show up everday here..so I have to enjoy it when I can...I watched a bunch of students play ultimate frisbee. I was jealous, trying to recall the last time I had been able to play. I think it must be last fourth of July at my house. I thought about how frisbee must be a universal college pastime...if school in America were in session right now...there would sure enough be a ton of students playing in a field at any given university.
Friday was gross and rainy outside...but my housemates and I braved the weather to watch the races once again...and of course, our girls did an amazing job bumping fairly quickly into the race again.
Gloria
I couldn't hang around for long, because this was the evening of our Choir performance of Vivaldi's "Gloria". We have only been working on the piece for a few hours overs the course of 5 weeks, which is not really any time at all to learn such a piece. I have loved being part of a choir again, even if I really don't read music that well. Singing is just one of those things I need in life -for stress relief...artistic expression...or just to be part of the music...I don't know what it is. The neat thing about Gloria was that we performed it right in our own quad at Regents. The rain cleared off to make for the most beautiful setting. The concert was preceeded by free Pimms for the audience- who were all dressed up as formal hall was to follow. It was just one of those moments that is exclusive to my Oxford life. Vivaldi, tuxes, and a endless flow of Pimms shared by students and faculty in the garden before dinner.Formal hall had an extra bit of excitement to it..complete with table cloths..and a much greater crowd than usual because of the concert. Though no event followed I spent quite a lot of time visiting in the JCR before heading home.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Fourteen down, Two to go
Tuesday, May 29,2007
Where did May go? As of today I have exactly 3 weeks left to enjoy Oxford. I cannot believe how fast time has gone by.
Today I had my 6th tutorial of the term. Its funny that I feel how I did based on the trip following my tutor from the front door of his building to his office. Generally we discuss how much its been raining...or how nice it is that it finally stopped raining...today there wasn't any small talk on our way up the stairs. His first question to me is "How did you find the reading this week?" This allows me time to elaborate on what I didn't understand...and offer up some excuse for why my essay was not that great. This week my topic was the role of culture in conflict...I just felt so scattered in the reading and this immediately was reflected in my essay. Well, at least my intro was pretty good. The hour did go by fairly fast though, and I didn't feel as much tension as the last time my essay didn't turn out so well. I'm glad he doesn't talk about being dissapointed, which is was my last tutors response when I did less than what he thought I was capable of. I guess there was some element of motivation though....I'm horrible at just feeling guilt ridden if I think I've let someone down.
We actually did talk about allergies at one point- which I am having a TERRIBLE time with at the moment. Saturday evening, the night before I begin writing the essay, I come up with a massive headache around my eyes. No matter how much I slept I felt like I just could not keep my eyes open. I had wanted to go to the rowing dinner to celebrate the team winning blades that afternoon...but instead I fell asleep around 9 pm. (yeah these are the moments when I just feel lame) I woke up when Kristie came in- and my clock said it was 11. My plan was to get back up and read for a while so I could get started on the essay in the morning....but when I finally managed to get out of bed I realized it was 2 am!! So, it appears my clock is broken. I read an article, went back to sleep at 4 , then got back up at 1pm on sunday. 12 hours of sleep total, and when I woke back up I still felt just horrible.
I have never had time in my life to be sick. My work week is not scheduled around the possibility of being knocked out for a day until I start to "feel better". I have always had the worst attitude when I comes to being sick. First, I refuse to take medicine until the pain makes it unbearable obvious that I am ill enough for it. I never had a good reason for this. Its just how I am. Secondly, I never concede to my sickness and stop my routine for it. I have always felt that if I can tell myself not to be ill, it will be so. Needless to say, getting through my essay writing last Sunday was a tedious and painful task when my eyes wanted so badly to rest. Luckily my sister happened to go home this weekend so I was able to call her on skype..and probably spent too much time talking to her and my parents. Around 2 I did started to feel better. I slept from 5am to 7am...then went about the business as usual of finishing up the essay right in time to sprint on my bike to Regent's, print my paper, and walk the hard copy down to Nuffield college.
This walk is one of the most rewarding times of the week. Every sunday night I wonder how the week went by so fast, and when will this endless writing process ever end... and every monday afternoon I think "that wasn't so bad". James, another guy from Regent's, also has my tutor for a different topic. We usually walk together, talk about how it went...how sleep deprived we are, and how our tutorial dates go,- how his threats of no tutorial have actually been successful in helping us get the essays turned in. I laughed when James said that he's never turned in essays on time until now-and how last week he turned up to a tute with out any essay at all...I'm sure if I actually went to school here I would be in the same situation a lot. I've met a lot of students at oxford who have punctuality issues.....like I really belong..haha.
It is so nice to have someone with the same tutor as me this term, someone who can understand what it's like to sit there in an hour session being expectedto know far more than I do (and justifiably, because my knowledge of history is pathetic ow)....we laugh about the moments when he asks us the details of our discipline and all we can do is sit there in silence staring at the ground...hoping he will eventually consent to helping us about with the answer. I've finally gotten to the point where I will just admit that I don't know...rather than bearing the awkwardness of complete silence for what seems like ages.
I can't imagine what Lee's response would be if I told him the essay would just have to hold off because my face hurt.
Fortunately, I pushed through an got the thing finished, and my 14th Oxford tutorial is over. Now I can just sit in the bodleian...admire the Radcliffe Camera from this gigantic window across from me..wonder why this guy next to me isn't wearing any shoes like this is his room or something....and do some much needed catching up on my blog.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Return to Bath
Things are happening faster than I can write about them!!Wednesday Kristie and I took a day trip to Bath. It was nice to get away for a little bit from the routine (or my non-routine it seems) of Oxford. When I went to Bath with mom and dad I thought it was the most beautiful little town. So I was definitely excited to go back, especially since Kristie hasn't been yet. We took the train from Oxford, and changed rails at Didcot Parkway.
I love the train stations here. Especially the ones in smaller towns like Bath. They are exactly what I imagined them to be like if I were reading a novel involving trains or something. Less intimidating and busy than a subway...and even styled a bit in the little details of the architecture...I suppose its a good thing I enjoy sitting outside by the tracks because Kristie and I managed to miss our train to Bath from Didcot. No, we didn't arrive late. In fact, we were about 5 minutes early. We sat on a bench, Kristie bought some skittles (which were really cold strangely and almost broke our teeth)...and we just hung out. A train came that was headed to Bristol, we watched the people get on and off...watched the little men blow their whistles and shut the doors...and realized about 5 or 10 minutes after it left that this was the train we were to be on. If I knew my English geography better I would have realized that Bristol is just beyond Bath..so Bath would be a stop on the way their...but instead we had to wait another hour for the next train to Bath.
No problem really, as Kristie and I just talked the time away, occasionally interrupted by a non-stopping train whizzing and creating the most painful screeching noise. But eventually our train did come...and less than an hour later we were in the beautiful little town of Bath.
Our first stop was a Sweet Shop that Kristie fell in love with. It was so tiny, but old fashioned just like it would have looked a hundred years ago I think. The candy was displayed in Jars all around the room that the lady would have to shake out on to a scale. It was priced by weight...there were all sorts of sweets hanging from the ceiling as well. While we were there, a couple of school boys came in wearing their uniforms and ready to spend whatever pence they had on candy braceletys and gummy things...I, as a tourist, look at this daily visit as such a novelty. It was just really cool.
We basically just walked to where ever we could...making our way to the Royal Crescent...watching people lay around on the grass in the parks...We saw the greatest tree and stopped for pictures before heading to a bird aviary and then the botanical gardens where Kristie was followed around by a little old man walking his dog. The gardens just smelled of spring, and the roses there smelled exactly like what you would bottle up as "Rose" perfume rather than some cold refrigerator in Kroger. I just love the smell of roses.
We picked up dinner (sandwiches) at the grocery store and went for a walk along the river to eat them. Then we went to the Pump Room, which is right next to the Roman Baths for afternoon tea and scones. Eating in the Pump Room tops my list of favorite experiences of England. It was very proper...accompanied by classical piano ! It was just a beautiful room with the most delicious cream and scones- It was nice to spend some time with Kristie as well, and talk a bit about our Oxford experience and some of our expectations of returning home. It will be interesting to see certain changes in our lives that stick and some that we will lose rather quickly. I won't go in to those now...maybe another time.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
If Only Everyday were like Today
This has been one of my favorite days in Oxford.
I had my 5th Trinity term tutorial this morning. It went pretty well becuase I worked harder on this one - It amazing how much I feel I learn in just one tutorial session. I guess having someone holding me directly accountable to explain what I've learned makes a huge difference.
After this I headed back to Regent's, where I met my housemate Jonny and we went to get lunch from a sandwhich place. I generally don't eat outside of college but today we planned to go Punting instead of lunch since it was Tyler's last day with us. So next we headed to the river for punting!!
Punting is something very unique and popular in Oxford... the boat is sort of like a Gondola, it sits low in the water and someone stands in up on the back of it to steer with a giant pole. I have to mention here that today was absolutely gorgeous in every way. Just warm enough to feel like summer...just breezy enough to be comfortable....and the most beautiful clouds! It made for a perfect time on the river. After working so much the past days, I just loved laying there in the boat and soaking it it. Tiny white gosling feathers covered the water and floated all around in the air. I don't know where they came from really...it almost seemed like it was snowing....it was really beautiful though.
After punting, I headed off for a walk around Oxford. I stopped in Merton College just to have a peek since I haven't been there yet. In the back there was the most massive tree covering the yard. I tood several photographs because it was so breathtaking. I found myself wanting to climb it. It has been so long since I've climbed a tree. I visited the college chapel then headed on for a walk through Christ Church gardens. This was my first time walking through the long path of gigantic trees. I just imagined how many people have enjoyed this same walk. It follows right along a pasture and offers the perfect view of the University from a distance. I found myself stopping by the river. Usually when I come to the head of the river it is for rowing practice. This time I was able to stop and lay in the sun for a while. I fell asleep in the grass listening to the rowing cox's leading their crews on the river.
When I woke up it was just about 5- and time to hear the McCandles lecture presented by Dr. Ward. Dr. Ward is one of my philosophy professors at Georgetown College. His lecture concerned different ideas of conversion as contested by two well known theologians. It is always nice to have visitors from Georgetown come. After dinner Tyler, Kristie, and I went with Dr. Ward to the Turf Tavern pub for some good catching up.
I took the passage through Queens lane on the way home, which is sort of dark and scary in the romanticized Oxford way. It was one of the few times on bike that I've been able to view all the stars behind the "dreaming spires" of the colleges. It is a beautiful spring night in Oxford.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Something Different
I wish this layout attached the date to my blog entries...and I like the background too much to change it so i guess I'll just have to write it myself.
Friday, May 18, 2007
Blah.
I have not felt like writing.
anything.
For an academic program that revolves around weekly essays and little more- this is not a good thing. Nor is it good for a blog site which can't exist unless I do something worth writing about. I've have tried to analyze myself - and respond accordingly, but nothing I've rationalized seems to make me feel like doing anything. I could be lazy. I could be a bit burned out. I could just be uninterested-or interested in other things. I could be homesick. I could just be ready to move to whatever is suppose to come next......Or I could just blame it all on the weather...it has been raining for a week now.
For the sake of the value of my last four weeks...and for this blog, lets hope that I become motivated to do SOMETHING. otherwise I will have to resort to talking about the weather some more i guess......
It's not that I'm not getting the work done. I am. But I'm not working nearly as intensely as I did last term. And because International relations is very specific in terms of historical events, it is not good for me to come to a tutorial just not knowing things. This is what happened last Tuesday. My topic was NATO. I read everything Lee told me to. I understood the concepts and the challenges.....but when it came to writing the essay I just didn't get the answer right. I tried to look more broadly and theoretically as he suggested...and instead I turned out far too broad and still missing the theory part altogether.
Now, I have decided to do better this week....but like I said, I feel as though I 've lost most of my interest in working on it altogether. I know that this has to be my perfectionism creeping in again. It has to be. I'm afraid that if I work the amount that I would to try to get it right....I may still get it wrong....and no matter what there is no way I'm going to know all that I should to just pop off examples that Lee is looking for in the tutorial. This subject is getting as hard as I will let it become....and at times like this I wish there were some moderation about me. At least then I could half way try. Instead I know that I will continue to just completely slack....or I'm going to obsess over my essay for a full 6 days and still stress over it when its done. I thought I had achieved some sort of balance...but I realize now I was just relying on my previous knowledge of the topic to allow me to work less...now the material is relatively unfamiliar...and I seem to be backing down. Probably doesn't make for the most intriguing blog subject. But I feel as though I need to recognize my need to get with the program before I get to the end and wonder why I wasted the time.
Right. It's only worth as much as I'm willing to work on it.
So, in an attempt for inspiration I attended the Elizabeth Colson lecture last evening associated with the Center for Refugee Studies. Mark Duffield presented a talk on Development Emergency...or rather the emergencies that occur with underdevelopment. Duffield was an Oxfam Representative in Sudan in the late 80's and is now at the University of Bristol. The talk was interesting enough...but what I love the most is the response of the people in the room. This lecture isn't a typical weekly lecture for students. Its more of a special event catering to researchers who have been working on these topics for ages. The dialogue going on between Duffield and the adults presents was really above my level of understanding most of the time. The crowd, even though they agreed with some of his work, were just incredibly harsh on an level that could only be witnessed in such scholarly settings.... The critiques when beyond basic "left vs. right wing" debate to a this theoretical analysis of what his arguments for development contained....and I wondered how nerve racking it must be to deliver a lecture to people who have been involved in this research to an equal extent. Of course this seemed to be no trouble for the speaker. One of the men in the crowd was part of the Tsunami response evaluation committee so he felt the need to bring that to the table...and others in the room would bring their own research into their challenges to Marks' paper as well. Most of it was beyond anything I could really understand fully, but I found the dialogue fascinating and also a reminder of just how much I don't know about the topic I am to major in.
Political studies just offers endless topics for debate.....and whats truly interesting to me is that the issues of real significance seem to be locked away in rooms of these lectures cared for only by scholars and researchers in the field. Not that the big issues we get hung up on for voting aren't important...I think its just interesting to see what becomes priority when shaping political choices in general. Because the truth is that the idea of "development" would not even cross my mind were I not studying politics -well, aside from the realization that poverty exists. Beyond that, everything I know politically would still circle around healthcare, taxes, etc. I hate that I don't have an opinion on some of the topics I'm convering becuase I never have have been challenged to consider the issue. Development is just one of these. Even though I study politics, I generally don't blog about it basically because most people find it boring or just have a very solid opinion about it anyway... I have to admit that I find most of the popular debates overdone between people who aren't going to compromise anyhow. But beyond abortion, and the death penalty, and gun laws and all of these topics that it seem to ground the political perspectives of most people I have met....there are some issues that are more than relevant and demand more attention than simply the debates of well-experienced scholars using jargon that prevents a simple mind like mine from taking part in the discussion.....
Why was I a junior in college before I grasped the reality of human trafficking? Why can I not understand the intricacies of a debate on facilitating or giving up on development as a response to the third world?
Okay, well now that I have succeeded in boring myself in a political discussion that I promised never to have on my blog.......i can get back to the business of reading for my next question "Why is Security such a Contested Concept?".
hmm...i didn't realize it was.
just kidding.
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Dahby Day
Derby Day just isn't the same in England. I heard the queen even left and went to Kentucky to join in the excitement. But I didn't miss out on all the fun. No, because my friend Celia had her birthday party last Saturday...which I considered to be a Cinco de Mayo/Derby/Birthday celebration.
While I may not come home with an English accent, I have learned a thing or two about words while I've been here...for starters it is the Kentucky "DAHby".....Kristie and I tried to explain that the correct term is Derby...but it all just came out Deerrrrby when Celia was repeating it..and I have agreed that the "ah" sounded much better than all that...
Our friend Sarah hosted the BBQ at her house. It was my first bbq while I've been here and it was Celia's first birthday BBQ -so an exciting time for all. The food was amazing, of course..and I ate until I was miserable. We had KousKous with our grilled chicken, hamburges, and suasage...and I've wondered why we don't have kouskous in the states...it is pretty good if it is cook right.
I always love going to Sarah's house. First, I love hearing her tell of south africa. Second, I love being in an actual home everynow and then.
The day was absolutely perfect for a dahby. We spent all of our time outside in the sun in Sarahs backyard/garden. She has a little greenhouse that I thought was just amazing. And I've decided that I want a little green house in my backyard one day.
Also, we played croquet! This seems to be a very Oxford thing as Regent's has croquet set up in the quad all of the time now. I remember playing on an old set when I was really young-but I truly can't remember the rules- none of us were really great at is so we just spent most of the time taking pictures.......yeah, check them out
It was a nice saturday all around. Cinco de Dahbirthday. sure.
Sunday, May 06, 2007
MayDay Madness
Do people actually celebrate may day?
Photo from this year's event- bbc
Oxford students, as expected, are not to be underestimated. The tradition of bridge jumping continued this year by a faithful few who just waited until the police had gone.....
Aside from the early morning excitement, I witnessed some strange singing groups dressed in green.....drummers on the street....and a fire juggling guy dressed as a jester...
I had to get on to my tutorial though, so I couldn't stay around for all the festivities. My meeting last Tuesday went pretty well again. This week we discussed Neoliberalism and Constructivist theories- nothing to get to excited about as far as my blogging is concerned. I celebrated the end of another week with my first visit to the Westgate Mall.
I wasn't excited enough to jump off any bridges or anything.
Black Coffee
Oxford has fastforwarded my life by 10 years.
This is the conclusion Kristie and I have reached as we begin our final month of life in England. First of all, we have each embarked on a new series of cooking experiences. While left to my own resources over break, I moved from the reliable pasta dish to discover the endless possibilities of a potato. I guess that isn't so noteworthy. But then I made a casserole. And I found myself spending half of my day looking up recipes and cooking...and the other half enjoying whatever creations Kristie and I came up with. While the end of break has left me with much less motivation for getting too creative with food- I still find myself getting excited over figuring out a new use for my block of cheddar or that long grain white rice .....
I'm jealous of Kristie. She studies Art history- so instead of spending an afternoon cooped in a library she gets to look at stained glass windows in some of the colleges around her. She also only has 4 essays due this term-the rest of her tutorials being a more hands on art experience with her tutor- like a visit to Christ Church. I've decided I'm an easily influenced person as her relaxed nature is rubbing off on me- and for some reason I feel like I can just spend a day lazily chatting it up with K-dog (this is my new title for her) in the coffee shop or on some random field trip we decide to make.
Last Thursday we couldn't decide what to do- so instead of reading we baked Peanut Butter Cookies. We found a recipe for these cookies which only required three ingredients! That's right. Not only are we solving our motivation issues by eating- but we have reached the stage of life were the excitement is more in the act of cooking.
Another day we visited the Christ Chruch dining hall (the same dining Hall used for the Harry Potter movies) We've been waiting a while to do this so were thrilled to go inside and check out all the dining perks of the Christ Chruch students. It was incredibly impressive. They have lamps going down the tables, proper place mats with menus printed on them- and they even have juice!!- not just water.
Now, all of this may not seem to justify my feeling older than I should. Anyone can bake a casserole if they are hungry enough. And most college students will find some way to put off work. (Like right now, I'm blogging) But the kicker comes in the things that are completely contrary to anything that seems to identify me as Jennifer Martin.
1. I drank black coffee the other day, not to stay awake, just because I simply didn't bother to add milk or sugar. Black coffee is something I did not envision myself EVER consuming. And if I were to drink it, I certainly would have to be thirty with a regular career demanding a caffeine fix each morning. Kristie has also confessed to this.
2. I have consistently felt the need to go to bed before 10 pm for more than a couple of weeks now. I cannot discuss this any further as the shock of it alone may have already sent many of my past room mates into fits of worry over me.
3. I take multi-vitamins. (Kristie steals hers from Tyler)
4. The whole booking flights and just up and going to Paris for the weekend or hopping on a bus to London still freaks me out. I keep wondering if I would let my daughter do that at my age if I have one-and I keep thinking there is no way I would trust for things to work out for this person that doesn't even exist. What's even more strange is that everything with our travel plans have worked out. We didn't get mugged or pick pocketed or anything crazy. The hostels actually existed. And we visited a TON of museums, cathedrals, and the best art in the world. One day when I get around to blogging about Paris you will realize how nerdy Kristie and I really are. Anyhow, basically the entire travel bit makes me wonder how my parents stood not knowing where I was half of the time for 5 weeks.
5. I have noticed that I've encountered fewer disasters as of late that would normally result from my scattered mind. Either I'm just not getting out enough for things to happen...or I may actually be getting some form of ordered system going on. Now that Ive said this who knows what will come up.
Okay, well, this is all for now on the matter of my behavior that should place me well beyond the age of 21. All is not lost- one thing I have not out grown is my outstanding procratination ability. Of course, the fact that I condsider writing a grand alternative to ...well, writing....that is just another issue in itself.
