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!