(Audio)BOOKS!

Monday chats in the basement library

Believe it or not, the pictures above still cannot do the Warners' basement justice. There is still another 180 degrees not captured. Penelope's office is a library in the basement of the Warners' house. Shelves are stacked (triple stacked) with books while more pile up on the floor. And the most impressive thing is that Penelope knows where everything is. This is always my first stop when I go on the quest for books needed for my tutorials.

A tradition has started in which I visit Penelope's library every Monday. At first the purpose was to get books, or to pick up my food stipend. But now the purpose is for conversation and company in a cozy home. Penelope always keeps a plate of biscuits on her desk for callers such as myself. For the past few Mondays, Adrie and I have left the flat together after breakfast to head over to St. John Street. There we are greeted by Penelope with a, "Hi, come on in!" and join her downstairs. Janice, who assists Penelope with paperwork, is usually found sitting on the couch organizing Penelope's makeshift card catalogue. After a while, Britney finishes her tutorial in the living room and comes down the stairs as well. Then we all talk about our adventures of the previous weekend and plans for the next week. Without fail, we always manage to touch on the subject of food, and it's at that point that Janice passes around the plate of biscuits.

It's not until Francis interrupts our stories by coming downstairs (to which Penelope says, "Hello, Beloved!") that we realize we've been there for over an hour and should leave to go work on our essays. Then we're given biscuits for the road and leave to do other errands and study.

Today my "other errands" included going to the post office where I sent off some postcards. This was my third time to go in the last week and the lady behind the counter now recognizes me. Feel free to send me snail mail because the lady at the post office can confirm I do write back!! (My address follows at the end of the post.)

Paper friends!

When I got back to the flat after going to the post office, I resumed my spot at my desk to start my essay for my upcoming Tolkien tutorial. The plan was to have all of the Lord of the Rings books read by Wednesday (the day of my tutorial). But, with the combination of sickness and...being realistic...I don't think this goal will be met. However, my tech-savy brother succeeded in sending me a copy of the audiobooks. This means I can listen to the series while doing other tasks at the same time, like writing my essay (or writing postcards...or playing with my hair...). I even used my new ability to multitask to teach myself how to make paper cranes (which now lie about my desk, made out of my old notes). There they sit, serving as a reminder to STOP DILLY-DALLYING!

Tonight the group joined Penelope and Francis at the Oxford Playhouse for a production of "The Handyman." I realized that this was the first play we've seen while here that was not Shakespeare. It was a play about an old gardener (played by Timothy West) accused of war crimes. On Wednesday we're having a discussion at the Warners' about the play with one of the actors.

Now I sit again at my desk, writing my paper (or blog post) while the audiobook continues to play from my laptop speakers. This morning I had to explain to my roommate that the old, british, man's voice coming from my room was actually the narrator of the audiobook and that I didn't have an old, gentleman caller. Both Britney and I are getting over being sick, and while we are now able to walk about, we still have persisting coughs. My best description is that it sounds like Britney and I are communicating with a modified morse code. Except instead of dits and dashes, it's wheezes and whoops.

For anyone with the itch to partake in snail mail:

Olivia Goza

21 Venneit Close

Roger Dudman Way

Oxford, OX1 1HZ

U.K.

What's shakin', BACON!

"Olivia went to England and died from the plague." For the last few days I've been convinced that this would be the closing sentence of my biography.

Hopefully the fact that I'm able to write a blog post is a sign that the sickness is ending. This week has been one full of soup, orange juice, pjs, and hot tea verses the coughing, headaches, tiredness, and fever. Being sick in a foreign country=awful.

A BBQ feast!!

Because I was sick in the middle of the week, I skipped out on cooking dinner for the group on my designated night. I promised them instead, a feast at a later time. Today I kept with my plan of keeping things low key and only ventured outside to get groceries from the store. I then spent the rest of the day preparing my idea of a feast: an American barbecue dinner. I know I talk about food a lot, but that's only because it's one of the things I miss most about home. Especially: BACON! The other Olivia does not eat pork. She also went out of town this weekend. So to celebrate, I mean mourn the loss (Freudian slip), I couldn't help but cook some bacon. As I was frying bacon to go in the baked beans, I realized that I was smelling a smell I haven't smelled since I'd been in the US. It was wonderful!

To continue talking about food I miss: Oreos. On Thursday, Britney and Adrie made "slutty brownies," which might be the worst thing you can put in your body (and best). First you bake a layer of chocolate chip cookies, then you layer Oreos, and then you pour brownie batter on top and stick back in the oven to bake. A junk food trifecta! Not food for mere mortals. Oh and why are they called "slutty brownies?" They're quick and easy. Sinfully delicious. People would do naughty things to get one.

On top of being sick, the studying, reading, and writing had to continue in order to be prepared for my tutorial yesterday. When I got to the Pusey house yesterday, I was amazed to find my tutor wearing jeans. And even more amazed that he still managed to look hella fly! I only wish to live up to such classy dress.

Hitting the town...bundled in pjs...

Last night, because our flat has been infected with the plague, Britney, Adrie, and I decided to remain home instead of the usual Friday night pub crawling. So we bundled up in pjs for a night of movie watching. However we also wanted snacks, so the plan was to walk to the convenience store right up the street from the flat (this short distance justified us not changing out of our pjs). However we found the store closed and had to continue our journey further into town, further in the freezing, and further to where more people could witness us in our pajamas.

To sum up this week, I'd say "crummy" (referring to my sickness and dessert purging). However this next week holds lots of excitement: Halloween, Guy Fawkes celebrations, and another play with Penelope and Francis! It will also mark the middle of the term (cue the tears). Here's hoping for a second half full of good health, adventures, and just as much fun!

One Pumpkin to Rule Them All!

The Great Pumpkin makes the journey home

First things first: I got a pumpkin!! Seeing the leaves change outside my window, I've wanted nothing more than to sip apple cider (not the hard stuff), watch some football, and sit by a fire roasting s'mores. I decided to take autumn into my own hands and tonight picked out a pumpkin from the pumpkin patch...also known as Tesco. I just got home after carrying it a mile back to the flat to be carved later this week! Till then it sits on my desk giving my room a much appreciated festive look.

Other than pumpkin carving, this week holds another great task: finish the Lord of the Rings series. My next Tolkien essay is due next week and I have t-minus 6 days to complete the series. Today I finished the first book. I can't think of a better way to spend a rainy day! And I finished it just in time for tonight's C.S. Lewis Society meeting. This week the speaker delivered a talk over "Redefining Hobbits" (not all the talks are about Lewis). It was so neat getting to hear someone else give a talk over something very similar to what I am preparing to write my own paper about.

As I continue reading the series, I become very transported into the magic of Middle Earth and (quite nerdy) start comparing my own adventures here in Oxford with those of Frodo as he goes about his journey. But I'll save all that corniness for a later post...

Last night I saw yet another Shakespeare play. This time, "The Tempest" at the Watermill Theatre in Newbury. In the late afternoon, our group drove with Francis and Penelope to the theatre where we ate dinner in the restaurant prior to the play. The theatre was very small and our seats were front row. Besides having to resist the urge to touch the actors, I could literally see all of the spit that came out of their mouths as they PRonunciated their lines with great PUnctuation and PRecision (seriously, waterfalls). Unlike the other two plays, I haven't read "The Tempest" so cannot comment much to the director's interpretation. But I did enjoy a shift from watching Shakespeare's comedies to a genre most near to sci-fi.

My roommate's cough from the next room reminds me: it's tea time. The colder weather has given both Adrie and Britney colds and I'm trying not to be a fellow victim. I'm hoping that I've paid my dues back when I got sick after having no heat. For the meantime though, I remain in my room with my tea, Lord of the Rings, and my pumpkin.

Foggy Day in London Town

This weekend I decided two things: 1. I should always carry an umbrella and ignore forecasts that predict no rain and 2. I'm planning my future excursions while in England to include just me, myself, and I.

Big Ben!

Yesterday I traveled with Britney, Cam, and Adrie to London for the day. We woke up and caught the Oxford Tube (a bus that runs between Oxford and London). I spent this last week reading maps of London so that when we got there, we would have an agenda of things to do or see relative to a certain area so that we could make the most of the day. This was mistake number one: having a plan. More specifically, expecting the others to go along with the plan.

The plan was to leave Oxford by 8:30am in order to make it to Buckingham Palace with plenty of time to see the Changing of the Guard. Traveling with a group, we left at 9:30. Missed the ceremony.

The plan then shifted to getting food and after a bite to eat we wandered around the National Gallery. I can try with all my might, but I will honestly never have the endurance of a real art snob. That doesn't mean I don't appreciate art, I just mean that my appreciation doesn't increase by spending eternity walking around.

I quickly moved through the Renaissance paintings to the more contemporary art. As I was looking at the collection of Monet, Renoir, and Van Gogh I got the urge to be back in Paris.

Next I got the urge to wander further away from the group (who were still in the Renaissance rooms) and continue my London adventure alone. I sat down on one of the benches in the room where a little kid was drawing in a sketchbook while looking at Van Gogh's sunflowers. The scheming and plotting was just getting good when the others caught up and together we decided we'd outdone ourselves on art for a while.

After leaving the gallery we crossed Trafalgar Square to get some coffee. Here is where I realized mistake number 2: traveling with someone that has as big of an appetite as Cam. Honestly if I had to describe our trip in a few words I would say, "restaurant hopping." But really, I found myself racing along the streets of London to find places to eat so that Cam would be fed, and therefore happy. The result of all this wandering (fast paced walking) was not getting to do or see a lot of London.

After eating dinner in Chinatown, I convinced the others to look in the used book shops on the next street over. The walls were covered in old books and I started dreaming about having a book collection that size of my own one day. On one of the shelves I picked out a really old copy of Pride and Prejudice. I showed Adrie, who is taking an Austen course. After realizing it was priced for 85 pounds, I put it back. "Watch it!" said the old man at the counter. I realized that by putting it back I had accidentally bent a few of the pages. I turned to Adrie and mumbled, "We gotta get out of here" and we then left as I heard the old man take the book off the shelf and call out, "Unbelievable!" I had wandered into the shop as a book lover and left as a book destroyer. Sorry, dude.

What do you think we did next? Get food, DUH! We walked (raced) along Oxford Street to a place that Cam said made awesome waffles. Soon it began to sprinkle. In my head I could not fathom how I was in such a situation. Walking in the rain, my legs about to fall off, for a waffle?! Half an hour later I found myself standing in the cover of a metro station, eating a waffle covered in cream, strawberries, and chocolate. I can only describe it as: FREAKING DELICIOUS! It was really impossible not to have a slight lift in spirits after eating it.

I regret being a book destroyer, but no shame for destroying that waffle! This brings me to mistake 3, which completely contradicts mistake 1: not having a plan. It was raining, our legs were tired, and it was time to go back to Oxford. I knew perfectly well how to get from where we were back to Victoria Station, but it involved taking the metro, which the others didn't trust (and were completely oblivious to my familiarity with the underground). Therefore the adventure continued in the rain, looking for the proper bus to take us to a station that would then get us home. By the time we got to the station, I was completely soaked. And by the time we found the proper pick up point for the Oxford Tube, I was breathless from dodging traffic.

I slept most of the way home and it was a miracle that my legs found strength to carry me back to the apartment. With all the events of the day that sound miserable as I type them, I don't regret the trip. I was able to see a new area of London, see the National Gallery, and eat some pretty good Chinese food (and a waffle made by angels). I am also not going to hesitate about traveling alone in the future and I can't wait to plan my next trip in which I have every excuse to be selfish! This means walking at my own pace, eating at normal times, and not sacrificing my plans for others' wishes...cause honestly selflessness is overrated (you can decide for yourself if I'm joking).

Pints with the Prof

Watching the debate at the Student Union

The atmosphere of Oxford as a center of learning has really made an impression on me in just the last 24 hours. I've mentioned before about the debates that the Student Union hosts. Last night was the second one of the term and I put aside my research for a while to be a part of it. When we got there, we flashed our Union IDs and were let into the debate chamber. At 8:30, applause started as the debaters came in: students and guests, all in formal wear. The topic of this debate was over the legalization of assisted dying. The guests included professors, doctors, and representatives of Parliament. Before the end of the debate, the floor was opened to members (If I wanted, I could have gotten up myself). When the debate ended, people voted Aye or Noe depending on which door they exited the chamber from.

The whole way back to the flat, we continued the debate. And all of us were remarking on how impressed we were with the learning environment that surrounded us. When I arrived back at the flat, I had a new motivation behind my paper writing. I spent another Thursday night preparing my paper for my Friday tutorial, and then the majority of today. At 3 I went downstairs to print my paper (I fixed the printer, so no more having to pay money for my paper). I then walked to my tutorial in the light drizzle/mist of England.

Here's my next point about the learning atmosphere: I presented to my tutor my paper on the Oxford Movement and Edward Pusey...while sitting in the Pusey House...in Pusey's library. That's just not something that I could experience in Conway, Arkansas.

Enjoying a pint with my tutor after my tutorial

A few weeks back during our introduction lectures, my soon to be tutor, John Jackson, mentioned that he wouldn't mind getting together with our group for a pint sometime. Cameron, being the outgoing person he is, and not afraid to talk to anyone, emailed him this week wanting to take him up on the offer. So today after my tutorial, John Jackson and I walked down the street to the Royal Oak and met Cam, Adrie, and Britney who were there waiting for us. The five of us sat around the table, drinking a pint, and talking about our time in Oxford. As I was sitting there I had the happiest feeling come over me, not because of the pint, but because in just the last 24 hours I had become fully convinced that my decision to study in Oxford was one of the best decisions I've ever made.

The feeling lasted as we said goodbye to my professor and stopped at Tesco so Cam could get dinner fixin's. I got some more staples: bread, milk, PEANUT BUTTER, and packed them in my backpack for the walk home; all except the bread which didn't fit so I hid it under my rain jacket and walked back with my new loaf shaped belly.

Tomorrow the plan is wake up early and catch the bus to London. We've been joking every time we pass the bus station that we should just hop on and go to London for the day. Tomorrow we are actually going to.

Now that I have down time cause my papers have all been turned in...why not make this blog post longer? I really like making lists, so here is another list of things I have learned in the last few weeks:
1. Running out of food is bad. Running out of toilet paper=a whole new level of bad
2. Tea solves everything. Cold? Tea. Thirsty? Tea. Tired? Tea. 4pm? Tea.
3. When pub crawling, if the bar you're in is playing Barbra Streisand, and you and the girls you're with are the only females...you might be in a gay bar.
4. Never underestimate the deliciousness of a grilled pb&j and how comforting it can be on a late night while writing a paper.
5. All you have to do to look like a local is walk with determination. Careful though, people might ask you for directions.
6. I don't have a fear of the two spiders on opposite corners of my wall. What I do have a fear of is them meeting one day in the middle and becoming friends and then plotting against me.
7. To get rid of the leaky faucet making a "drip" noise every 10 seconds, put the sponge under it to catch the drips.
8. There's always a creative and inexpensive solution to problems (see above).
9. The easiest way I get homesick is when a song related to camp plays on my iTunes shuffle.
10. My first month here has completely flown by!

What are you TOLKIEN about?

I honestly believe that my subconscious self is out to sabotage my conscious self. I have a habit of turning my alarm off on the first ring and then continuing on with sleep, completely oblivious to the fact that I have doomed my intended schedule for the day. After turning off not one, but my three alarms set for this morning, it was a miracle that I woke up when I did: thirty minutes before my tutorial. I had to leave my flat immediately if I was to make it in time to St. John Street. I put on clothes, slipped gum in my mouth, grabbed my paper, and walked as fast as I could along the muddy path towards town. Luckily Barry was running late too, because I arrived all sweaty at the Warner's before he did. I had time to calm down and prepare myself for the cuteness of Professor Barry, who to my absolute delight was wearing his chevron sweater again! (He must know it's my favorite!)

I had a lot more confidence reading my essay aloud a second time than I did at my first tutorial. This might also be due to the fact that I was talking about Tolkien, Lord of the Rings, and fairy stories, rather than citing history novels I knew little about. We then talked for the rest of the hour about how Tolkien and CS Lewis both shared an arrogance for the best ways to define certain stories. I could find myself appreciating Tolkien because I myself can be arrogant about certain things. (It's only cause I'm always right...)

With my work complete on my Tolkien tutorial, I then set out to get my books for my Anglicanism tutorial. My tutor emailed me a list of books he said were available at the Brookes Library, which is across town from where I live. I bought a bus ticket to get there and while I was waiting at the bus stop, I took out my Tolkien reading to keep me entertained. To my annoyance, a guy came up and asked me, "Don't like Tolkien much?" That is what I thought he said. Why would I be reading Tolkien if I didn't like it? After many confused "whats?" I realized he said, "Don't like TALKING much?" He was trying to make conversation about how I was choosing to read at a bus station. And then he apologized for bothering me. I had to explain that I simply just didn't understand him and conversation turned to how I was from the US, studying in Oxford, and reading at the bus stop because I was waiting on a bus that was 20 minutes away. He then wished me good-day and left on his bus. If you know me, you'd know how strange it is for me to have a conversation with a stranger and you'd appreciate the awkwardness that this morning held for me.

Anyway, the journey to the library continued. After a long shelf search, wouldn't ya know, none of the books on my list were there! I decided the best next step was to go home and get some lunch. Since I had woken up late, the only sustenance I'd had was gum and a biscuit from Penelope (and I'm not talking about an American biscuit with gravy, I mean a half dollar sized English cookie).

My kitchen smells awesome

With my savvy internet searching skills I managed to find my history reading online, which means I don't have to wander around town tomorrow. As of now, I've got dishes drying, clothes washing, and a whole pan of spaghetti sitting on the stove. I took on the job of making tonights dinner for the group, however as I was in the middle of browning beef, I learned it would be for just me and my roommate because the others were making other plans. So now I have leftovers galore and will probably be eating spaghetti for the next week. I deemed the dinner "instagram worthy," so here's a shot to prove how the others missed out.

The Union Bar

Finding a place to study in a college town shouldn't be hard. And having a quiet apartment is a nice backup. But because I'm so easily distracted--oh wait let me post a picture.

Studying at the Student Union bar

Getting distracted is easy in the busy town that Oxford is. Today however I took my books over to the Student Union and managed to get some great studying done! 

The Union has a library, lounge space, a bar, and every Thursday hosts formal debates. Today was the first time I took use of the place. On a Sunday there was hardly anyone else there. It was just Cam, Britney, and me in the bar. I'm used to Hendrix where Sundays mean "study ass off cause you didn't at all for the last two days." 

The Union also hosts other events (not just debates). More to come later this month about that. Oktoberfest is in two weeks! And then Halloween, which yes, is celebrated here. I don't think "trick-or-treating" is a thing, but I do think the "spookiness" of the holiday is celebrated. We are planning to go on a ghost tour of the city. I also want to find a pumpkin to carve. Then I'll light it up at night in my window and give my neighbors something to wonder about. "Dear, come to the window. There's a glowing gourd across the way giving me the most evil grin." MUAHAHA!

Blenheim Palace

The whole group with Francis and Penelope (our English dad and mum)

Blenheim Palace

This afternoon we set out for Blenheim Palace with Francis and Penelope. We first stopped to see where Winston Churchill was buried before continuing on to the palace to see where he was born. As with all our past excursions, we couldn't have asked for better weather. We toured the inside of the palace, had a bite to eat, and then wandered the grounds.

The grounds were beautiful! After walking down by the water, we went and explored the "secret garden." (It wasn't so secret because there was a sign pointing to it.) I really want to write a lot about the place, but the majority of the day was just taking in the beauty of it and the fall weather. So here are pictures to replace my lack of words...

In the rose garden

The Water Gardens

As of this evening, I am sitting in my apartment after ordering pizza, watching Lord of the Rings, and eating cookie dough that Britney made to go with the movie. I couldn't think of a better end to the stressfulness of this past week.

I had my first official tutorial on Friday, in which I read my paper aloud to my tutor and then we discussed for an hour. Everything about the situation was stressful to me: writing a paper on a topic that I didn't know anything about to start, and then having to act like I did. Back home I'm used to the system of submitting a paper and then turning my back on it. DONE! PHEW! Not the case here.

In the "Secret Garden"

I left my apartment two hours early prior to my tutorial so that I would have enough time at the library to print my paper. This was a great decision as it took me forever to print. When it failed to print the first four times, the lady at the counter told me I would have to just try from another computer. Finally on the fifth time I tried, she realized there was no paper in the printer. HA! I wasn't the idiot. And I laughed while five copies of my paper then printed from behind the counter.

After paying 80 pence for my paper, I realized that the printer had cut half of it off. I was anticipating the difference in paper length, so I changed my computer settings. However I found it was an unnecessary change and ended up paying another 1pound 20 pence for a second copy of my paper.

By the time I got to my tutorial I was all kinds of nervous. My tutor sat across from me in an armchair and said "Begin." I wanted to be like, "So, just like um read this out loud? And, like you're gonna listen and not fall asleep?" Kudos for his attention span. It was the longest six minutes of my life. When I finished I promptly said, "Um speaking um isn't my um strongpoint um."

I was hoping to just sit back in my own armchair for the remaining hour and listen to him talk, but instead he asked questions. And I was supposed to have an answer? More "ums" followed. Then I was given my next assignment, another paper due next Friday. The reading and writing continues!

Yesterday was also special because it was the anniversary of me becoming a big sister. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BROza, Ian Goza!

Crouch, Touch, Set!

Today the other Olivia asked if I wanted to go watch a rugby game with her, so I paused the paper writing and took her up on it. I couldn't miss the opportunity to see guys in shorts grunt at one another through mouth-guards! Oh hecks no. So this afternoon we walked down to New College and I watched my first match of rugby.

This evening I went to the first meeting of the C.S. Lewis Secret Society. Actually it's just the C.S. Lewis Society...I added the "secret" to make it sound cooler. They meet every Tuesday of the term and students of the University are invited to come and listen to a talk. The talks are not always over C.S. Lewis. There is one scheduled later this month over Tolkien. And the lecture given tonight was on G.K. Chesterton. Afterwards a bunch of the students went to grab drinks at the pub down the street, The Eagle and Child, where C.S. Lewis, Tolkien, and other members of the Inklings were fond of meeting. Being the oh so responsible student I am with a paper due in a few days, I passed on the pub and sit here instead writing a blog post. (I'll make up for it later.)

Today I also experienced my second moment of homesickness; the first being when my heat was out and my body hadn't adjusted yet from the Arkansas summer. Today as we were walking back from the rugby game, Olivia asked me if I ever get homesick. While I was explaining how no, I was pushed from the nest at a young age, I love Oxford too much, the world is my oyster, blah, blah...I couldn't help but think in my head how I would much rather be walking with someone that was comfortable enough with silence so I wouldn't have to constantly answer to petty conversation. Then when we got back to the flat, I checked my mailbox and found that the lone envelope was addressed not to me, but to my roommate. OH THE HORROR! Blasphemy! The nerve! Cursed be he that addressed the note! A plague on both your houses!

I might be exaggerating a smidge.

Best Thing Since Fried Bread

English breakfast from Mick's

Yesterday I started the morning off with a full English breakfast. After learning where I was staying, my tutor insisted that I try "Mick's Cafe" which is right up the street and what he described as a "hole in the wall." That's what it was indeed. I probably wouldn't have known it was there, even though I walk past it every day.

I got tomatoes with my plate, Adrie and Cam got beans, and we all had tea. I also had "fried bread" which tasted close to something served at the fair. NOM!  In order to get back to the flat we practically had to waddle. But it was so nice to start the morning off with a hot meal instead of my usual bowl of cereal.

The weather was nice enough to make me want to be outside so after letting our breakfast settle, Adrie, Britney, and I took some books and went to find a place to read. We walked down St. Giles and stopped in a small park. I found it too distracting to read with all the traffic going by, so we didn't stay long. When we got back to the flat, we were on our own for dinner; meaning grilled pb&j sandwiches while we watched episodes of Gilmore Girls.

Reading outside along St. Giles

The evening concluded with the three of us checking off three more pubs from my "pub list." Now that schools have begun term, we noticed a lot more college aged kids wandering around (a large number of people were walking around in togas, but we had no luck in finding out where they were going). We did however get to try our hands at a game of darts.

Today has been spent like every past Sunday that I have spent here: in my pajamas, with the washing machine going, and a cup of tea to accompany my school reading. My fridge has practically been emptied now. I was so proud of myself for finishing a carton of milk before it turned solid. (Food here has less preservatives, which means expiration dates are closer than you think!) Tomorrow we get another installment of our food stipend which means a trip to Tesco AND an excuse to go visit Penelope and Francis!

Shoes, Soup, Skype

Above are some pictures I took as I walked back along the canal path from the store. It's nice taking this roundabout way to go back and forth between town and the apartment. Maybe soon I can post a video of my duck friends that like to walk with me.

This morning I had a meeting with my tutor at 8:45. It takes about 30 minutes to get from the flat to town, so basically this morning was the earliest I've gotten up since camp. I walked to the Jericho Cafe where I met my tutor and he bought me coffee to sip on while we discussed "The History of the Anglican Church." I'm totally ok with this system: the free coffee continues!!!

Right now I'm talking with Emily Estes over Skype. She's a hoot and a half.

Not much else happened today. I was tired from waking up early so the rest of my day included lots of Netflix, tomato soup, and reading about "fairy stories" for my Tolkien course. Penelope brought over some more books for my history course as well as a guitar for me to borrow for the term. (They had an extra guitar lying around and asked if anyone wanted to borrow it...so I took them up on it.) And my new shoes came in the mail from the US!

Tomorrow is Saturday and if we wake up early enough the plan is to go to "Mick's" up the street for a full English breakfast. Here I go talking about food again...

Now I gotta guitar waiting to be tuned, a stomach excited for breakfast, and Emily Estes singing One Direction to me. Word.

Paper 1. Done!

Adrie and I have diagnosed ourselves with "food tourettes." Occasionally we end up sitting together, each of us on our own computer, looking at Pinterest. It will be total silence until one of us gets to a good looking recipe and then yells out something like, "TAQUITOS!" We could do this all day.

This morning I woke up in "go mode." My first paper was due today and I still had about 1000 words left to write. I sat down once again at my desk and tried to power through, while simultaneously trying not to panic. Two bowls of cereal, a shower, lots of creeping out the window, and some furious typing later, it was dinner time...and paper submitting time.

Fish and chips, mushy peas, and a pint of cider=YUM!

Once I thought of a better closing sentence than, "Henry VIII should've adopted..." and after emailing our papers to Penelope, we (Adrie, Cam, Britney, and I) celebrated our first scholarly achievement by eating dinner out at O'neills, the Irish Pub where I had the best fish and chips since my time in England. When we were leaving the pub it was raining (crazy English weather!) so instead of trekking back to the flat in the rain, we literally walked across the street to Java Co for some dessert and coffee.

When we got back to the flat (after it stopped raining) we watched the Emperor's New Groove on my laptop...a movie that never gets old to me. (KRONK!!) And that is what brings me to my present moment of having "food tourettes" while sitting across the room with Adrie.

Tomorrow morning I have my first tutorial with John Jackson. We're meeting for coffee. The challenge will be finding the coffee shop, so I plan to leave extra early. I had my tutorial with Barry on Wednesday and absolutely loved it. The image of him sitting across from me in his chevron sweater, boat shoes, and hardly making eye contact still makes me smile over what a cute old man he is. When he asked me why I wanted to take a course on Tolkien, I explained how I was choosing between that and CS Lewis. I was delighted when he started talking about how the two authors are so very connected, having both studied and taught at Oxford, and that we would begin the course by studying both. So really I'm getting the best of two courses! Fun fact: Francis was actually one of CS Lewis' last students. And was on faculty with Tolkien during his last years teaching.

Write, Edit, Repeat

I'm currently sitting in a spot that has become very familiar to me in the last few days: the desk in my room next to the window. Last week I would perch here as I waited for the heat repairman, as it has a great view of anyone approaching the flat down below and provides nice solar heat. Recently this is where I have taken up residence to write my 4000-5000 (I'll prob settle for 3999) word paper that is due on Thursday. I'm also keeping an eye out for the postman and feeling kinda like Harry Potter in the first book when he waits for his Hogwarts letter. Depending on how visible I am to those outside, I could easily be known as the "third floor creeper."

As I work on this paper, I realize how long it's been since I've actually done something for school (besides reading Bleak House this summer). While the others announced they were on word 2000 of their paper, I was still struggling to form a thesis. "Henry VIII" was too broad a subject, according to my tutor, so now I am researching his first marriage and what came before all the reformation stuff. I'll also have to remind myself to edit my opening sentence before I submit my work. I don't think "Henry VIII wanted a lady on the street but a freak in the bed" is really going to be funny to Francis as he grades it.

I just returned from Penelope's house where I checked out two more books to help me write. This morning the whole group went over to the house to have a class on how to study during our time in Oxford. Every two week periods, we will be writing a sum of three essays and it is important to know how to pace the self; something I'm terrible at...obviously, I'm writing a blog post right now. I'll probably get exhausted of writing papers by December, but I'm sure the transition of going back to Hendrix where I'm expected to attend an actual class will be even more difficult.

Now I'm just trying to embrace the way of life where I am (including the way of learning). I think I've mastered the art of getting groceries. I've started carrying my empty backpack to the Tesco so that I can fill it with heavy items like milk and juice and can then walk home practically "grocery sack free." I also discovered the "shortcut" from town back to the flat. Whether it is actually shorter or not, I have yet to time it. It is true however that it is more scenic; a pathway along the canal and then under the train tracks (which I have to physically duck to go under). It's also nice to walk away from the stress of the traffic. To make the other Olivia shut up when she kept going on about the aggressiveness of the traffic, I told her cars have the right of way here, not pedestrians; something I totally made up, but learned today is actually true. I should get more credit for being a genius.

My break time is over now (see, I'm getting better at pacing myself already!) I'm going to put on my new Mumford and Sons album, make a PB&J sandwich (I caved and bought peanut butter), and continue working on my paper about how when you marry your brother's widow, don't expect to have a healthy son to play ball with, or build legos, or...rule a country.

OH! And my dear brother IAN has yet to skype me so I can tell him my woes about the fact that the internet doesn't stream American TV shows. How am I going to know what happens on the final season of The Office?!