Warm and Fed

Imagine the next sentence being read over a loud speaker, with confetti canons going off after it's read. "I have heat and hot water again!" (BOOOM CONFETTI!) On Thursday, I again sat by the window waiting for the repairman. Before the bell had finished ringing, I rushed to let him in to our igloo of an apartment. He messed with a knob hidden in the back of the cabinet under the boiler, did something with an air pump, asked to "take a wee," and then told us it was fixed. Not even two minutes after he left did I wait to take a hot shower!

So now our apartment is cozy again! And it sure makes a difference to come home to a warm room after walking in the chill. On Thursday night I heard a strange noise next to my bed and finally realized it was the radiator working. I can already tell I'm going to be great friends with the radiators. There is one in my bathroom right under the towel rack for my towel to get toasty while I shower.

Last night I cooked in my own kitchen for the first time because it wasn't freezing. I have made toast and cereal, but this time I actually made a meal. I honestly could start a separate blog about the food I've had here. When learning I would be in charge of my own meals, I settled with the thought that I would probably be starving most of my time abroad. However this is not the case at all. Our group of five decided that we would take turns cooking dinner each week. It's much easier and economical to cook for five rather than one. This means that five nights a week we share a home cooked meal and the other two nights we either are on our own eating leftovers or we go out.

I'm lucky to be with a group of good cooks. Last night I made some cranberry chicken and potatoes. In the past Adrie has made some chicken tacos, Britney makes a good lasagna, and even Cameron knows how to flip some tasty pancakes. This morning was awesome  because I woke to the sound of people in my kitchen making french toast. YUM! Tonight we got take out from a Chinese place. But seriously, I could go on and on about food!

After a warm breakfast and a warm shower, Adrie, Britney, and I decided to go into town and do a little shopping. We started at Primark (what I can describe as England's Forever 21). It was too overwhelming so we moseyed around the Covered Market and down Cornmarket Street. I ended up buying a pair of boots. When I bumped into a girl with my bag of new boots, she gave me the evil eye and told me to, "Whaatchit!" On the streets people bump into each other all the time never saying 'scuse me...so 'scuse me for trying to fit in with the locals. Anyway I just did what I would normally do when a girl makes me mad: act like she just farted.

Shopping today made me realize how different (more free time) the next part of my semester is going to be. Friday was our last day of lectures for our introductory course. No more leaving the flat at 9am. to make it to St. Peter's by 9:30 where we talk about English history, literature, and politics, while drinking tea and coffee and eating biscuits. It was sad to think I wouldn't see Penelope or Francis on a daily basis, but they made it known we are welcome for tea anytime at their house. This next week begins the actual Michaelmas Term and we are scheduled to meet with our tutors for the first time.

Both of my tutors are professors that I have already met through the introductory course and I couldn't be more excited about having them! John Jackson is my tutor for my course over the "History of the Anglican Church" and he is a boss. He is American, having come over to study himself and then moved to Oxford with his wife and kids later. He wears a hat to match his suit and always a bow tie and hanky. On Friday he showed us his multicolored socks saying that ya gotta make sure you have some color on. We are meeting next Friday over coffee to discuss my topic. Then he suggested that any other time in the term we can get the group together for some "pints."

Barry Webb is my tutor for my course over "JRR Tolkien." He has given multiple lectures to us, typically over poetry and Shakespeare's plays. After every lecture he's given, I've thought that I would honestly be happy to listen to him lecture forever. My notes prove it too. He is extremely intelligent, very quiet, pops in a joke every now and then, and pretty much just adorable.

So my schooling for the next few months will involve weekly meetings with these professors to discuss my topic. And where will I meet? Either over coffee, at the professor's office, home, or...in a pub over a pint of ale. England is wonderful!

Me, Adrie, and Britney