You wake up.
Ugh. Not the alarm again. I hate that ring tone. *Snooze*
You wake up.
Ugh. Not the alarm again. I still hate that ring tone. Maybe one more time. *Snooze*
You wake up.
Ugh. Not the alarm again. Fine, I'll get up. *Dismiss*
Not feeling ready to get up, you stare across the room through the crack in the curtains. It's sunny. Going to be a good day. Grab the ipad, prop yourself up, and check Facebook. Hm. Someone posted a picture of their (dog/cat/horse/office/house/child).
You finally roll out of bed, 7:50 am. Stumble to the shower, noticing that it is in fact a beautiful late-April day. Spring finally came to Oxford.
Lethargic shower. You've been there.
After almost failing to choose a shirt for the day, you stumble back upstairs for breakfast.
Bagel. Plate. Knife. Spoon. Banana. Glass.
"Morning Ellie"
You enter the lounge. OJ. Yogurt. Cream Cheese.
"How's your day looking?"
Good. You look outside and realize it is incredibly sunny. First time you've been blinded this year.
Breakfast and banter over, clean the dishes, assess the empty fridge, and pick up 2.35 from the change pile for lunch. Then return for an extra 1.10 for dessert.
Backpack packed, you're off. Gonna be a good day. Gonna be a good day. Ok, it's actually a bit chilly in the shade. Arriving at the lab (I still can't believe they chose olive green as the new vinyl floor color. Blech.), you greet the two people who have arrived. 9:10 am.
Email. Ugh. Four emails about an exchange with a Cambridge MCR. Two emails about dance. Four emails about starting "rent negotiations" with the college. One MCR officer is stuck in Israel (airline strike) and another in South Africa (mechanical issues?). Vice President on holiday in Netherlands, but have an amazing treasurer and secretary. Pizza night tonight. And dance practice.
Responding to the first wave of messages, you get 'caught up.' You grab your notebook and computer and head to another building to teach a lab. Concrete bridge design. Lecture by your supervisor followed by hours of undergraduate challenges. Spending all day with the supervisor. Fun.
Hours pass. Students barely making progress. Lunch time. Queue for canteen ridiculous because you entered at the Undergrad rush instead of the Grad student lull (30 mins before hand). Return to your desk, finding no one around. They went out to eat in the parks - a beautiful sunny day. Open inbox. YIKES! More emails about the exchange, the officer stuck in Israel, the social events that can't get planned, rent negotiations, three rooms up for rent for next year, and some other miscellaneous spam. Ok, I have time. Plan meeting for 8pm, decline participation in pizza night because of dance practice.
All that sorted, just in time to head back to the undergrad lab. Two more hours, dozens more questions. Only one group gets a successful design. Great conversation with my supervisor in the meantime... and 13 pounds per hour isn't bad either. Back to desk. Still more emails. Up to 39 received on the day. Oh wait, here's one about setting a meeting time for next week. 40.
Leave lab. 5:20 pm. 30 minute walk to Iffley gym. Remember that you forgot a call that came while in the lab. Dancesport captain? That's weird. Call back... voicemail. Arrive at practice. Text message about when college fees are due. Who knows. Friday maybe?
PRACTICE..... *relaxes*
Coach wants to talk about things. So much for jive. Practice over, you walk back towards college. Return call from captain again. He's busy too? No kidding. Anyway, he wants to talk about... other things. Why me? Go figure.
You hang up the phone and duck into the MCR. Pizza carnage. Well, I guess that was successful... wouldn't have wanted anyone to starve because I had a slice (no matter, I ate a sandwich on the way to practice). Meeting begins: logistics of a dinner exchange with Cambridge. Walking home, a beautiful evening, 8:45 pm. Checks email on phone. Five more. Hm, never did send three other emails I needed to... and it looks like I need to be in lab by 9 tomorrow to sign off on the undergrads' designs. No matter.
House quiet. Internet barely works. Bake an easy-bake oven roll since Dave left the oven on. Housemates slowly converge on the lounge in our internet-less existence. You work on MCR stuff, while housemates talk about random happenings. As you resort to a dramatic reading of the opening sequence from the Lord of the Rings movies (epic, I assure you) to music, you receive another email: don't forget about the theatre trip we have this weekend! Oh yeah... need to organize transportation to the Globe Theatre to see The Tempest. Add that to the list for tomorrow.
Ok, sufficiently caught up for the moment! 45 emails in, 16 emails out. A full day in lab, a good dance practice, situations diffused, MCR running smoothly, socialised with housemates, and it was a sunny day to boot.
Last step, jot down a blog. Fathom feasibility of making macaroons (nope!) and tomorrow's schedule (UG lab, personal lab work, find technician, lunch with Warden, follow up with gait lab, social secretary meeting, dance practice, write unresolved emails (including the inevitable responses from tonight's messages), maybe read more 5 pages of Les Miserables if there's time).
12:20 am, email says another room is available for rent for next year...Whatever.
Brush teeth, wait for Liam's trademark expression ('Night guys!'), return to the bat cave for a nap. Sleep is instantaneous.
A brilliant day.
CULTURE CORNER
Word of the Day:
Ta! - Int. Colloquial for 'thank you!' Exclaimed alone or within a normal sentence. Ex. Ta for meeting up with me today!
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Saturday, April 13, 2013
Sweet Six-week Spring Break
Spring has sprung here in Oxford* and like a blooming daffodil, I have been rejuvenated by a nice long "break" following the rigours of term time! As today is the eve of 0th week Trinity Term, it seems high time to reflect on the highlights of the last few weeks of break.
The most significant aspect of this break has been the opportunity to relax. Since I have travelled extensively in the last six months (NC, California, London, France, Italy, Germany, and Switzerland), I decided it would be advantageous to take a proper break. This allowed me some time to focus on my research while reconnecting with one of my almost-forgotten hobbies, cooking. Much to my housemates' chagrin, I led a sweeping campaign to return our cluttered and neglected house to a state of decent hominess (side note: why are homely and homey antonyms for sounding so similar?!). In response of their cooperative efforts, I subsequently put on a three week clinic. The results:
Southern fried chicken & cornbread
Easter lamb dinner
Red onion paella
Almond-rolled goats cheese w/ beetroot salad and pesto
Roasted veg
Battenberg cake (http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/battenburg_cake_60878)
Jenna's chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake bars (http://buyinganelephant.com/2012/04/)
Apple-raspberry crumble
Chocolate bread & butter pudding
Double chocolate macarons
That's right, I made macarons. From scratch. These delicate, almond based, French biscuits might be seen as a pinnacle of baking. With a trans-oceanic spirit of exploration, my parents and I simultaneously ventured into the perilous jungle of the unknown in hopes of finding the unicorn of the pastry world. Team GB (my kitchen) actually ended up having a greater challenge with the ganache filling than the cookie itself. 'Broken' the first time, I failed to 'fix' it the second time, only succeeding with the use of an electric hand mixer the third time. In the meantime, Team USA (my parents' kitchen) casually prepared their ganache before taking a break to go run some errands. When the biscuit-prep began, Team GB almost ran into trouble when adding boiled sugar to egg whites. The meringue matrix collapsed. Team GB panicked, but a loyal housemate recommended I just beat the mix with the hand mixer to stiffen it up. Save of the day! Team USA seemed to cruise along with their hands tied behind their back. Well, when the baking completed, and scores tallied, Team USA won by a narrow margin: No cracks with a few stuck to the pan, while Team GB had 50% cracks and a couple stuck to the pan. Then again, looking at this picture from Team GB, I'd say there were no losers:
So it's been a cooking-filled break. Actually, this week has been quite interesting for other reasons too. Monday saw the passing of one of the 20th century's most influential leaders, Margaret Thatcher. On Tuesday, 'Ding Dong the Witch is Dead' was one of the most downloaded songs on iTunes. Hopefully it will suffice to say that the former Prime Minister's death has engendered a variety of responses. As an American, all I will remark on is the fact that she held particularly close ties to Reagan, collectively forming a bastion of economic conservatism in the 1980s. Given that most of the readers of this blog know much more about the era than I, I will avoid speaking beyond my understanding. I will merely add that Wednesday's military honours should be particularly interesting to watch... I remember watching Reagan's funeral in high school and thinking that his image in public opinion has improved with time, whereas Thatcher's image may have aged more like a soured wine than a fine one. We'll see.
Another interesting element to this week has been my serendipitous accruing of theatre tickets. Through a couple of circumstances, I ended up with tickets to a youth community-theatre production of Oklahoma! on Wednesday in addition to Les Miserables tickets last night. Having already extolled the virtues of the latter on two previous occasions, I'll simply highlight that I have started to read the book, which, in combination with the (decent) movie, provides for a fantastic theatre experience. As for Oklahoma!, I was first surprised by the quality of the performance: the singing was impressive and the American southern accents were perfect for adults, let alone 12-18 year-old British kids. I found it strange watching this American musical in the UK. I wondered how this piece of Americana - somewhere between the Wizard of Oz and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - would be accepted by this international audience. If the musical was originally written to an American audience who would at least have a superficial understanding of the 'old west', how would someone from overseas perceive the show in comparison to me? Is it simply a story of a love triangle, independent from its setting, or does a little understanding of historical and cultural background add meaning to the plot? How about in terms of forming cultural perceptions?
Well anyway, I think I'm going to let you mull that over. It's raining outside and I think I'm due to return to my book. Or find some food. Or plan some MCR events. Or take a nap. Or plan a trip... So many things to do!
Next stop, on to Trinity Term!
*The temperature yesterday was 11C/52F, the warmest it has been all year. We've had one day of radiant sunshine, but a few days of decent sunshine. It's practically summer.
CULTURE CORNER
I played a board game a couple weeks ago entitled 'Oxford by Degrees.' I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to someone who has never studied here, but in one's quest to graduate via the completion of assignments and terms, it hilariously brings to light many of the quirky attributes of Oxford life.... "Someone steals your bicycle. Take 4 off of every spin until you walk to the police station to report it." Or, "Your mom sends you post. Return to your college to collect it, then miss a turn." Or, "If it is Hilary term (in the game), go to the boat house to watch Torpids (a boat race). Stay there until you spin higher than an 8." This, my friends, is quality entertainment. Especially if you graduate with a First.
Which reminds me, maybe I should explain the UK grading system. In the UK, one is not graded on an A/B/C/D/F scale, but on a 1/2/3 scale. The highest degree is a 'First,' which is roughly equivalent in prestige to graduating 'cum laude.' Then, one can be awarded either a 2:1 or a 2:2 (read as 'two one' and 'two two') for first and second class 'Second' degrees. Collectively, these probably correspond to grades from a mid-A down to a low-C. Graduating with a 'Third' is like finishing with a D. Most importantly, I think the bell curve is quite normally distributed: an equal-ish number of firsts and thirds (which are few), and an equal-ish number of 2:1s and 2:2s. As far as percentages go, someone who consistently gets 80% on their essays is likely to get a first, whereas if you are below 45%, you are probably destined for a third. As you can tell, the exams here is much less forgiving than in the US. Good thing I don't subscribe to this system as a DPhil student!
The most significant aspect of this break has been the opportunity to relax. Since I have travelled extensively in the last six months (NC, California, London, France, Italy, Germany, and Switzerland), I decided it would be advantageous to take a proper break. This allowed me some time to focus on my research while reconnecting with one of my almost-forgotten hobbies, cooking. Much to my housemates' chagrin, I led a sweeping campaign to return our cluttered and neglected house to a state of decent hominess (side note: why are homely and homey antonyms for sounding so similar?!). In response of their cooperative efforts, I subsequently put on a three week clinic. The results:
Southern fried chicken & cornbread
Easter lamb dinner
Red onion paella
Almond-rolled goats cheese w/ beetroot salad and pesto
Roasted veg
Battenberg cake (http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/battenburg_cake_60878)
Jenna's chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake bars (http://buyinganelephant.com/2012/04/)
Apple-raspberry crumble
Chocolate bread & butter pudding
Double chocolate macarons
That's right, I made macarons. From scratch. These delicate, almond based, French biscuits might be seen as a pinnacle of baking. With a trans-oceanic spirit of exploration, my parents and I simultaneously ventured into the perilous jungle of the unknown in hopes of finding the unicorn of the pastry world. Team GB (my kitchen) actually ended up having a greater challenge with the ganache filling than the cookie itself. 'Broken' the first time, I failed to 'fix' it the second time, only succeeding with the use of an electric hand mixer the third time. In the meantime, Team USA (my parents' kitchen) casually prepared their ganache before taking a break to go run some errands. When the biscuit-prep began, Team GB almost ran into trouble when adding boiled sugar to egg whites. The meringue matrix collapsed. Team GB panicked, but a loyal housemate recommended I just beat the mix with the hand mixer to stiffen it up. Save of the day! Team USA seemed to cruise along with their hands tied behind their back. Well, when the baking completed, and scores tallied, Team USA won by a narrow margin: No cracks with a few stuck to the pan, while Team GB had 50% cracks and a couple stuck to the pan. Then again, looking at this picture from Team GB, I'd say there were no losers:
So it's been a cooking-filled break. Actually, this week has been quite interesting for other reasons too. Monday saw the passing of one of the 20th century's most influential leaders, Margaret Thatcher. On Tuesday, 'Ding Dong the Witch is Dead' was one of the most downloaded songs on iTunes. Hopefully it will suffice to say that the former Prime Minister's death has engendered a variety of responses. As an American, all I will remark on is the fact that she held particularly close ties to Reagan, collectively forming a bastion of economic conservatism in the 1980s. Given that most of the readers of this blog know much more about the era than I, I will avoid speaking beyond my understanding. I will merely add that Wednesday's military honours should be particularly interesting to watch... I remember watching Reagan's funeral in high school and thinking that his image in public opinion has improved with time, whereas Thatcher's image may have aged more like a soured wine than a fine one. We'll see.
Another interesting element to this week has been my serendipitous accruing of theatre tickets. Through a couple of circumstances, I ended up with tickets to a youth community-theatre production of Oklahoma! on Wednesday in addition to Les Miserables tickets last night. Having already extolled the virtues of the latter on two previous occasions, I'll simply highlight that I have started to read the book, which, in combination with the (decent) movie, provides for a fantastic theatre experience. As for Oklahoma!, I was first surprised by the quality of the performance: the singing was impressive and the American southern accents were perfect for adults, let alone 12-18 year-old British kids. I found it strange watching this American musical in the UK. I wondered how this piece of Americana - somewhere between the Wizard of Oz and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - would be accepted by this international audience. If the musical was originally written to an American audience who would at least have a superficial understanding of the 'old west', how would someone from overseas perceive the show in comparison to me? Is it simply a story of a love triangle, independent from its setting, or does a little understanding of historical and cultural background add meaning to the plot? How about in terms of forming cultural perceptions?
Well anyway, I think I'm going to let you mull that over. It's raining outside and I think I'm due to return to my book. Or find some food. Or plan some MCR events. Or take a nap. Or plan a trip... So many things to do!
Next stop, on to Trinity Term!
*The temperature yesterday was 11C/52F, the warmest it has been all year. We've had one day of radiant sunshine, but a few days of decent sunshine. It's practically summer.
CULTURE CORNER
I played a board game a couple weeks ago entitled 'Oxford by Degrees.' I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to someone who has never studied here, but in one's quest to graduate via the completion of assignments and terms, it hilariously brings to light many of the quirky attributes of Oxford life.... "Someone steals your bicycle. Take 4 off of every spin until you walk to the police station to report it." Or, "Your mom sends you post. Return to your college to collect it, then miss a turn." Or, "If it is Hilary term (in the game), go to the boat house to watch Torpids (a boat race). Stay there until you spin higher than an 8." This, my friends, is quality entertainment. Especially if you graduate with a First.
Which reminds me, maybe I should explain the UK grading system. In the UK, one is not graded on an A/B/C/D/F scale, but on a 1/2/3 scale. The highest degree is a 'First,' which is roughly equivalent in prestige to graduating 'cum laude.' Then, one can be awarded either a 2:1 or a 2:2 (read as 'two one' and 'two two') for first and second class 'Second' degrees. Collectively, these probably correspond to grades from a mid-A down to a low-C. Graduating with a 'Third' is like finishing with a D. Most importantly, I think the bell curve is quite normally distributed: an equal-ish number of firsts and thirds (which are few), and an equal-ish number of 2:1s and 2:2s. As far as percentages go, someone who consistently gets 80% on their essays is likely to get a first, whereas if you are below 45%, you are probably destined for a third. As you can tell, the exams here is much less forgiving than in the US. Good thing I don't subscribe to this system as a DPhil student!
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