What a Week Can Bring

My new home Nottingham in the background.

This week has been a full trial week to see how the rest of the term will go. This is our first week where we have no trips to go on this weekend and no other minor interuptions, just a full week of school and societies and whatever else is thrown into my path.
Monday, got up at 8:30 to catch our bus and start class at 10. This is the Physical Landscapes of Britain course. We basically learn about the beginnings of earth, how all the different landforms were created, and how different current day earthly movements work and how all of this create the rocks, rivers and valleys of Great Britain. Should be interesting, but a straight 2 hour lecture from 10-12 will prove to be a bit much. The professor is fun and rather lively, but no lecture is that endurable. It will be a struggle.
Mondays are also my group's cooking day. This week we made an amazing meal, of a stuffed roast of mushrooms,peppers, and onions alongside mashed potatoes smothered in a red wine beef broth gravy with carrots, and to top it off, an amazing Carrot Cake. I was all over making the carrot cake and spent my afternoon doing so. It was a double layered frosted cake. Definitely a pinnacle moment in my cooking/baking career. I finish off mondays with a good amount of physical activity playing volleyball from 8-10:30. It is not too far from the flat on the jubilee campus, about a five minutes bike ride.
Tuesday is a pretty laid back day. I have no classes, except for our flat course with our directors from Luther. We have to prepare a paper based on an ethical issue found in the papers throughout the week and write about it. Mark and Carole make supper for us, as well as a guest lecturer every week. Each week we are reading out of two different books about different aspects of British life. THis week was the British Political System and we had an ex. history prof. from Billburgh university come dine and talk to us about it. Every week is a different person who is an expert in that area, and we get to learn more about British Culture from those who know best, and can supplement our reading.
Wednesdays are busy! Kevin and I get up early to get to class by 9. American literature, which is basically a very watered down version of what we are supposed to be in. Most of these people in the class are american studies majors which means that they are focused possibly in American history, and are taking this course as a supplement. We read three more or less short novels and that is basically it with lots of little readings in between. Not to big a deal. At 12 is class #2, Islamic Tradition, which has proven to be one of the most boring classes I have ever taken. It's something about the speech of the prof. with this strange choppiness, and a constant rise and fall in his language that knocks me out.
I have been rushing out of practice to make it to rowing, still an hour late. THe bus system is nice as far as environmentalists are concerned but when it takes me an hour to get anywhere, that is just a bit too much! If I had a bike it would take me maybe 15 minutes, especially since it's all downhill, but no. I find the first bus that takes me to city center, then walk 2 blocks to get on a second bus that takes me across the river to The Forest Stadium, (the top football( soccer) team for the city) and then have to walk about 3 blocks around and down into the stadium to get to the rowing shacks that are just off the river. Luckily, I made some good friends this week that are willing to pick me up on campus and get me there on time.
I have applied to the St. Mary's Church choir last week, and had set up an audition for choir on wednesday night. After missing my bus, I then ran 5 blocks to the tram and got there just a tad late. There were five people in a little room all waiting for me. VArious members of the choir, a clerk of the church and the director. THey greeted me very warmly, and gave me some time to catch my breath before I sang my piece. It was an italian one of which I'll spare you the name, which I would say went fairly well. Following that he had me do a little sight singing which is basically the toughest part of any audition. I didn't do that hot, but wasn't too shabby either...Especially because....the next morning I got an emai and........ I MADE IT IN! I was now going to be part of the best church choir in the city, and what's more, I failed to mention that I get PAID! Yes, they pretty much slip me 800 pounds into my pocket for singing through a music scholarship. So now I have found my "job", and get to earn it by doing what I love most. I am so honored and excited. Tonight, (friday) is our first practice at 8. Little nervous but no big deal really.
Thursdays are catch-up days for the most part,
Fridays, we have our second islamic Tradition Class, and I have Choir Rehearsal that evening.
THings are settling in, and I am slowly managing to fill the gaps of having a comfortable and laid back life. Anyone who knows me well knows I can't relax very easily, and always got to be moving. Well, things seem to be molding themselves into that.