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.