I bought a bike. congratulations are in order.
i had a plan, and i executed it. with few disasters. the disasters were not my fault!
my plan was: go to town. buy a bike, snacks, TP for the bathroom, get DUTCH passport photos taken*, maybe drop in the piercing shop if i had time. then go home, collect residence permit paperwork and insurance info (and things for class),take these things to the international officer's office and work out the details of permit with her and also pay for the insurance i need to have to live here, go to class, buy books from the student org booksale, eat dinner, chillax, maybe go to bar.
*i need these to get the residence permit. and my US passport photos won't work, because they are not meeting the dutch standards, which require visible ears and a closed mouth, amung other things. my us photos have me smiling and with only one ear visible. if i had known, i would have had them taken differently and saved 8.50 euro. sigh. things is 'spensive!
what actually happened:
went to town. check
got photos (out of order, but no matter)
went to bike shop. found a bike for 75 euro, which is decent for here apparently but expensive for me. asked if he took credit, was told NO!!!!!!!ARGLEBLAXXORZZZZ!!!!1!!!!1!!! since i only had about 50 euro on me, i had to go to an atm to get some with my debit card (i still don't know how much this will cost me, but now i'll know). (he held the bike for me, which was good since someone else wanted it in the 10 min i was gone). went back to bike shop, discussed locks with shop man, decided on a study but used chain and a solid keylock, total cost about 16 euro but cheaper than new gear. bought bike and lock. bike is pink and white (wouldn't have picked this, but meh.) and has lights for night riding.
went to albertheijn and bought toilet paper and chips and cheetos. meant to buy granola bars or the like for breakfast replacement, but forgot. sigh.
managed to get everything into the bags i was much glad i had brought, and my bike was not stolen! good things do happen.
rode home much faster than i had walked out, and with less stress on my knee**. i was pretty smug about this!
put my bike in the bike shed, took my purchases upstairs, and organized/filled out the paperwork i needed.
this is where my day stopped being successful--330pm.
**my knee has taken to large amounts of complaining when i walk a long ways. dunno why, and i am not amused.
packed up my things and went to the international officer's office. two other people were waiting already. (recall: i have class at 4. oh, i didn't say that already? class at 4). i wait about 15-20 min..no, really. it was 20, no lie. finally my turn, and all i have time to say is "when are you in tomorrow, i have to go to class?" MISSION FAILED
so i go to class--politics, which i haven't been to yet because of the scheduling shit (which is fixed, thank you rosemary orr, though i still have not met my tutor). it was actually pretty neat, though i think it will be a tricky class and lots of writing and high expectations. funny thing...i realised about 5 minutes in that the professor (who i had assumed was dutch because they all are) is actually an american. you get so used to the dutch accent that it's a bit of a jolt to realize that this guy talks like me! weird! he seems a bit of a stick in the mud, though. eh. smart! though.
so, 6 pm, leave class, go to dining hall to get books. get in line, wait...they are out of one of the books i need. dammit. so i have to go to the Uithoff to get it, sonova bitch. then i go to pay, and the bookshop (which SPECIFICALLY SAYS that they take credit cards) tells me that their credit terminal thingie is not taking the cards. (killkillkillkillkillkillkill). so they tell me to go online and pay their account with my card using bank info online. sigh. but they will hold the books for me...yeah, great, but i need to READ THEM.
eat dinner, ahve lovely chat with sherilyn about how white people have blue eyes and black people are not really black (she's from singapore, and finds all the colors white people come in mildly fascinating, especially hair).
go home, chillax (YET ANOTHER MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!). GET SUDDENoopscapslocklol random Skype call from mizzpyx, who i chat with on LJ but have never spoken to IRL or on the phone before. we had a lovely chat about all sorts of things, from "goddammit credit cards not taking" to the middle east and palestine and how it relates to 9/11 and US's terrible conflict management to dressing in drag to how much US college costs (so cheap in ireland!). i love random friends, they make my life better.
then sit around and blargle on the internet for a while longer, catching up with all sorts of people including naomi, who didn't know i was on the continent (yes, smithies, your naomi) and xlostxrareity, who apparently didn't know either, and seductive_lime(amy, smithies) who misses me....
ended up being too lazy to go to the bar. but eh. don't need to be there all the time. do wish to find a few people who leave campus and want me to come with, i'm not comfy going out alone. i've only been here a week and a half, i have time.
my plan was: go to town. buy a bike, snacks, TP for the bathroom, get DUTCH passport photos taken*, maybe drop in the piercing shop if i had time. then go home, collect residence permit paperwork and insurance info (and things for class),take these things to the international officer's office and work out the details of permit with her and also pay for the insurance i need to have to live here, go to class, buy books from the student org booksale, eat dinner, chillax, maybe go to bar.
*i need these to get the residence permit. and my US passport photos won't work, because they are not meeting the dutch standards, which require visible ears and a closed mouth, amung other things. my us photos have me smiling and with only one ear visible. if i had known, i would have had them taken differently and saved 8.50 euro. sigh. things is 'spensive!
what actually happened:
went to town. check
got photos (out of order, but no matter)
went to bike shop. found a bike for 75 euro, which is decent for here apparently but expensive for me. asked if he took credit, was told NO!!!!!!!ARGLEBLAXXORZZZZ!!!!1!!!!1!!! since i only had about 50 euro on me, i had to go to an atm to get some with my debit card (i still don't know how much this will cost me, but now i'll know). (he held the bike for me, which was good since someone else wanted it in the 10 min i was gone). went back to bike shop, discussed locks with shop man, decided on a study but used chain and a solid keylock, total cost about 16 euro but cheaper than new gear. bought bike and lock. bike is pink and white (wouldn't have picked this, but meh.) and has lights for night riding.
went to albertheijn and bought toilet paper and chips and cheetos. meant to buy granola bars or the like for breakfast replacement, but forgot. sigh.
managed to get everything into the bags i was much glad i had brought, and my bike was not stolen! good things do happen.
rode home much faster than i had walked out, and with less stress on my knee**. i was pretty smug about this!
put my bike in the bike shed, took my purchases upstairs, and organized/filled out the paperwork i needed.
this is where my day stopped being successful--330pm.
**my knee has taken to large amounts of complaining when i walk a long ways. dunno why, and i am not amused.
packed up my things and went to the international officer's office. two other people were waiting already. (recall: i have class at 4. oh, i didn't say that already? class at 4). i wait about 15-20 min..no, really. it was 20, no lie. finally my turn, and all i have time to say is "when are you in tomorrow, i have to go to class?" MISSION FAILED
so i go to class--politics, which i haven't been to yet because of the scheduling shit (which is fixed, thank you rosemary orr, though i still have not met my tutor). it was actually pretty neat, though i think it will be a tricky class and lots of writing and high expectations. funny thing...i realised about 5 minutes in that the professor (who i had assumed was dutch because they all are) is actually an american. you get so used to the dutch accent that it's a bit of a jolt to realize that this guy talks like me! weird! he seems a bit of a stick in the mud, though. eh. smart! though.
so, 6 pm, leave class, go to dining hall to get books. get in line, wait...they are out of one of the books i need. dammit. so i have to go to the Uithoff to get it, sonova bitch. then i go to pay, and the bookshop (which SPECIFICALLY SAYS that they take credit cards) tells me that their credit terminal thingie is not taking the cards. (killkillkillkillkillkillkill). so they tell me to go online and pay their account with my card using bank info online. sigh. but they will hold the books for me...yeah, great, but i need to READ THEM.
eat dinner, ahve lovely chat with sherilyn about how white people have blue eyes and black people are not really black (she's from singapore, and finds all the colors white people come in mildly fascinating, especially hair).
go home, chillax (YET ANOTHER MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!). GET SUDDENoopscapslocklol random Skype call from mizzpyx, who i chat with on LJ but have never spoken to IRL or on the phone before. we had a lovely chat about all sorts of things, from "goddammit credit cards not taking" to the middle east and palestine and how it relates to 9/11 and US's terrible conflict management to dressing in drag to how much US college costs (so cheap in ireland!). i love random friends, they make my life better.
then sit around and blargle on the internet for a while longer, catching up with all sorts of people including naomi, who didn't know i was on the continent (yes, smithies, your naomi) and xlostxrareity, who apparently didn't know either, and seductive_lime(amy, smithies) who misses me....
ended up being too lazy to go to the bar. but eh. don't need to be there all the time. do wish to find a few people who leave campus and want me to come with, i'm not comfy going out alone. i've only been here a week and a half, i have time.