Veronica Mars and Pumpkins

I feel like I've been really terrible about updating this, and then honestly when I do update, it's usually rather hurried and thoroughly uneloquent. I update on facebook quite a bit, so that's got to be worth something, right? And anyway, even when I'm in the process of writing a post, I get distracted by the dumbest things. Or even not-dumb things, but things that could wait. Let's be honest, though, I don't know why I bother. It's something of an outlet, I suppose (read: procrastination tool), and the peeps back home can read it if they're bored. In other news, the subtitle of this post is "Why do I blog?" And the titular question goes unanswered, I spoil it for you. Sometimes I feel like I'm something of the blogging version of that person who talks just to hear their own voice...but then I remember there are people out there who say really dumb things, which is so much worse than rambling.

Lately:
Tutorials have started! Tomorrow marks the beginning of the third week of term, which is affectionately known here in Oxford as "Third Week" (yup). So far this semester, I've written 6 2,000(ish)-word essays, attended a few lectures of varying intellectual levels and topics, met with my primary tutor 2 official times and my secondary tutor once. This is not me ranking them as individuals: the tutorial I attend 8 times (once a week) and write a weekly essay for is called "primary" and the tutorial I attend 4 times (every other even week) and write a bi-weekly essay for is called "secondary", I think mostly because it just happens less, not because it's less important. Also, I get 6 transfer credits for my primary, and only 3 for my secondary.

Also during term-time (so not that first month, which wasn't official Oxford term) we're to be working on our "long essay" (which is exactly what it sounds like. 4,000+ words on the topic of our choice). My topic is super exciting (for a cinematically-inclined history nerd, that is): Soviet film propaganda. We're supposed to turn something in on Monday narrowing that down a bit, so it will undergo a little editorial work this weekend. But I'm glad I'll at least be working on something fun that I chose all semester--rather unusual, that. ;)

In other news, I've officially become nocturnal. The past week, I've typically not gone to bed before 4am, half the time because I was frantically researching or writing essays, and the other half because Ginger and I (and others) have stayed up making pumpkin/chocolate chip/almond muffins and watching Veronica Mars, among other activities like keeping up with the Cards game, chatting with Karson, and drinking wayyyy too much tea (as if that's possible here). I've discovered the wonders of British grocery store bakery bread for 50p (that's less than a dollar!), which is incredibly fresh and delicious and lasts for a little less than a week. Also, clotted cream (which sounds gross, I know) goes with strawberry jam on scones. It just does. Oaties: "biscuits" made of oats, sometimes packaged with half of them as chocolate, but putting Nutella on the plain ones is even better. All of these things go. with. tea. So does any form of cake. Or cookie. Or muffin. (Those pumpkin muffins were--still are--delish. We ate them while drinking tea and watching Australia.)

So basically, all is well. I'm more homesick than usual, but I guess maybe that's to be expected, seeing as it's just a little past halfway in my time here. I considered posting a facebook status of everyone I missed, but that seemed counterproductive. I'd be better off listing what I don't miss. ha. But I've been really missing my boyfriend (as to be expected, but it's still hard), my dog (I always miss him when I'm at school, but I didn't even get to see him over break :/), my family (even though I've been away at school, England is a lot further away, and I can kind of feel it), my JBU friends (so so much), all my other friends (even though I wouldn't see them as much anyway, it's kind of like with my family, and I just feel so far away from everyone back home), and I miss the USA, especially Arkansas (read: Chick-fil-a), and very especially Siloam Springs & JBU (read: Pour Jons). Luckily, I have some wonderful friends here in Oxford. <3 -Hayley