Captain's Blog: Month 1
Hello out there blogger world
So it's been over a month now since this little experiment called "Grad School" has begun. Unlike a proper scientist I have not done a very good job of taking notes, making observations etc. I will continue to try harder and make an actual plan of attack instead of just thinking about blogging more. After all this is as much for me as it is for you guys out there. I still fondly look back at some of my posts from the college days. Alright let's get down to business "to defeat the Huns" (sorry I couldn't resist)
What's been happening you say....well I have made friends with my classmates or as they call them here coursemates. We usually have lunch together and have even hung out outside of class! Gasp! They are a good little group of diverse people from literally all over the world.
Speaking of coursework, I'm finally getting a handle on the expectations and level of reading required but still feel like I'm not doing enough. I want to do well be still a bit unsure of how to do that. I find it funny that in our classes we discuss ways of teaching as well as methods and concepts at time I find myself comparing what we are doing in class to what we are learning. Overall I still enjoy this course and am glad I picked it.
On to the outside of class stuff:
I joined the Quidditch team (yes like in Harry Potter) and it's fun. The team is made up of mostly UK people and undergraduates but they are still fun. It's a very active game but not too competitive which is exactly what I need. I need to not get any fatter because I don't work out but also need to not get drawn in to a super competitive sport that distracts from my studies. We had our "freshers" tourney a couple of weeks ago in Loughbrough and finished 4th out of 5. To be fair the first 2 games we lost by 10 points and the 3rd game had poor referees. I'm not making excuses just want to show the full story. For example after playing in the 2nd game and most of the 3rd game the ref said that I couldn't play because of my glasses. Now to be fair I'm not that good of a player yet but I was really annoyed that I couldn't play right when I was doing so well because of some made up technicality. Then after 10 mins of waiting to even talk to the ref, the captain finally did only for him to allow me back on the field. The real pisser though is that I ran into someone after making a great play and the glasses cut my face. I could feel the smug looks from the ref. Anyhow I have finally gotten my prescription from the states and will be looking into sports goggles to prevent this kind of thing from happening again.
Went to London for the first time this past weekend. A former coworker is also pursing a Masters but in London so I took the promise of a free bed and Halloween party and headed down. With no classes on Fridays and cheap bus tickets I got there around 4pm. One quick change into a 50s Mousekateer costume later and we headed out to The Botanist with some of her coursemates. Though the party ended at 12:30am we had a great time dancing, drinking and talking. We even video chatted a dear mutual friend stateside. The next day I spent on a bus tour of the city, followed by a Halloween appropriate walking tour about Jack the Ripper and ended the night with a sunset cruise on the Thames. Overall I really think I got a nice overview of the city to make future trips easier. On Sunday before heading home I visited Kew Gardens. I did another walking tour which gave me an overview of the history and the sheer size and importance of the garden. It was nice to wonder around a botanical garden again, though it did make me miss home a little.
The only downside to my first month is that I now have my first cold. I still have not purchased a good heavy fall coat and thus when the weather changed over the weekend I was not prepared for the cold air on my walk back to my room. I ordered groceries (that's a thing here!) and medicine that I hope will get me through quickly. If not, I have paid my health fees so national health care....here I come!
That's about everything I think, got a few more trips coming up and just booked my ticket back home to the states. Can't wait to see my babes. In the meantime I think I'll add a few photos from the past month here. Enjoy!
and with that I leave you faithful readers....until next post laters
P.S.
Happy Halloween
So it's been over a month now since this little experiment called "Grad School" has begun. Unlike a proper scientist I have not done a very good job of taking notes, making observations etc. I will continue to try harder and make an actual plan of attack instead of just thinking about blogging more. After all this is as much for me as it is for you guys out there. I still fondly look back at some of my posts from the college days. Alright let's get down to business "to defeat the Huns" (sorry I couldn't resist)
What's been happening you say....well I have made friends with my classmates or as they call them here coursemates. We usually have lunch together and have even hung out outside of class! Gasp! They are a good little group of diverse people from literally all over the world.
Speaking of coursework, I'm finally getting a handle on the expectations and level of reading required but still feel like I'm not doing enough. I want to do well be still a bit unsure of how to do that. I find it funny that in our classes we discuss ways of teaching as well as methods and concepts at time I find myself comparing what we are doing in class to what we are learning. Overall I still enjoy this course and am glad I picked it.
On to the outside of class stuff:
I joined the Quidditch team (yes like in Harry Potter) and it's fun. The team is made up of mostly UK people and undergraduates but they are still fun. It's a very active game but not too competitive which is exactly what I need. I need to not get any fatter because I don't work out but also need to not get drawn in to a super competitive sport that distracts from my studies. We had our "freshers" tourney a couple of weeks ago in Loughbrough and finished 4th out of 5. To be fair the first 2 games we lost by 10 points and the 3rd game had poor referees. I'm not making excuses just want to show the full story. For example after playing in the 2nd game and most of the 3rd game the ref said that I couldn't play because of my glasses. Now to be fair I'm not that good of a player yet but I was really annoyed that I couldn't play right when I was doing so well because of some made up technicality. Then after 10 mins of waiting to even talk to the ref, the captain finally did only for him to allow me back on the field. The real pisser though is that I ran into someone after making a great play and the glasses cut my face. I could feel the smug looks from the ref. Anyhow I have finally gotten my prescription from the states and will be looking into sports goggles to prevent this kind of thing from happening again.
Went to London for the first time this past weekend. A former coworker is also pursing a Masters but in London so I took the promise of a free bed and Halloween party and headed down. With no classes on Fridays and cheap bus tickets I got there around 4pm. One quick change into a 50s Mousekateer costume later and we headed out to The Botanist with some of her coursemates. Though the party ended at 12:30am we had a great time dancing, drinking and talking. We even video chatted a dear mutual friend stateside. The next day I spent on a bus tour of the city, followed by a Halloween appropriate walking tour about Jack the Ripper and ended the night with a sunset cruise on the Thames. Overall I really think I got a nice overview of the city to make future trips easier. On Sunday before heading home I visited Kew Gardens. I did another walking tour which gave me an overview of the history and the sheer size and importance of the garden. It was nice to wonder around a botanical garden again, though it did make me miss home a little.
The only downside to my first month is that I now have my first cold. I still have not purchased a good heavy fall coat and thus when the weather changed over the weekend I was not prepared for the cold air on my walk back to my room. I ordered groceries (that's a thing here!) and medicine that I hope will get me through quickly. If not, I have paid my health fees so national health care....here I come!
That's about everything I think, got a few more trips coming up and just booked my ticket back home to the states. Can't wait to see my babes. In the meantime I think I'll add a few photos from the past month here. Enjoy!
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| Street art that speaks to the feelings of the masses |
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| Even Batman rides the Tube |
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| Skyline at sunset |
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| The London Eye, Westminster Abbey & "Big Ben" |
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| Tower of London |
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| Houses that remain outside as they were in the time of Jack the Ripper |
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| Kew Gardens brews their own beer #gardengoals |
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| Captivating cacti |
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| Inside "The Hive", an art piece highlighting the work of bees, their population demise and their utmost importance |
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| View from outside "The Hive" |
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| Perfect fall day and tree colors at Kew Gardens |
and with that I leave you faithful readers....until next post laters
P.S.
Happy Halloween
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