Ok. So.
So we're heading into the crazy travel part of my semester. Since I have a presentation and a paper due the Wednesday and Thursday before fall break, and I'm not going to be in Bath next weekend (oh hey Dublin!), I've been a good studious girl and started my paper on the English Civil War.
It's not going well. No matter how boring I find the American Revolution, at least it is fairly straightforward. The English don't do straightforward, at least not in the 1640's. Historians also don't agree on anything that happened. Not the causes, not the effects, not even if certain groups of people (Like the Diggers and Levellers) actually existed. The religious situation at that time was also all messed up. They all thought the Pope was the anti-Christ and the Queen was in on a plot to influence Charles I to hand England back over to Rome. I'm glad I'm getting a jump start on it. This way, it's not a big deal when I get too frustrated and have to turn to something else.
Went hiking in Wales on Friday. Add another country to my 'places visited' list. It's one of the prettiest places that I've been so far. It was a two hour bus ride to the place where we were hiking. The first part of it was the absolute worst - it was pretty much vertical in places, and very very muddy. I almost lost a shoe in the muck, which would have been horrendous. My shoes haven't ever been that dirty. After we finished that first part, though, it was much much better. The day was perfect - mid sixties, bright blue sky, and a slight breeze. The views were absolutely spectacular. Pictures can never do it justice, though I did take quite a few of them. The bus driver we had on the trip was a crazy Scotsman who may or may not have actually known how to drive. He kept talking to us the whole time. When we stopped at a rest stop on the way so people who didn't bring a lunch could buy one, we all got off the bus. I was the first one back, and he started talking to me, and he told me that I was short! He thought I looked taller sitting down. Granted, he's was something like 6'3'', so my 5'5'' wasn't that impressive. It was funny though, he kept bringing it up. He also kept saying "Awesome", because he heard us saying it - I guess it's an American thing that they don't really say over here. He thought it was hilarious.
The leaves are starting to change on the trees here. I thought that we weren't going to see any foliage, but I guess I was wrong. It's not nearly as nice or as colorful as it is in Vermont, or even back in Dedham, but it's nice enough. It smells like fall, anyways.
We're doing Robin Hood in my Myths&Legends class, and we have to watch three different versions of the movie before class on Wednesday. The Disney version isn't one of them, unfortunately, even though the professor told us it's actually one of his favorite versions. Which totally shocked me. David O'Shaugnessy just doesn't seem the type. Although, he did say in class that it was "surprising" that the version of Robin Hood (written) we read didn't have anything in it that could be considered "homoerotic". And he sounded disappointed about it. Crazy Irish man.
I get my first two papers back this week - Education on Monday and Myths&Legends on Wednesday. I'm slightly nervous for them. I have decided, though, that not getting A's on them is far from the end of the world - especially given that the grades don't transfer back to SMC, just the credits.
It's not going well. No matter how boring I find the American Revolution, at least it is fairly straightforward. The English don't do straightforward, at least not in the 1640's. Historians also don't agree on anything that happened. Not the causes, not the effects, not even if certain groups of people (Like the Diggers and Levellers) actually existed. The religious situation at that time was also all messed up. They all thought the Pope was the anti-Christ and the Queen was in on a plot to influence Charles I to hand England back over to Rome. I'm glad I'm getting a jump start on it. This way, it's not a big deal when I get too frustrated and have to turn to something else.
Went hiking in Wales on Friday. Add another country to my 'places visited' list. It's one of the prettiest places that I've been so far. It was a two hour bus ride to the place where we were hiking. The first part of it was the absolute worst - it was pretty much vertical in places, and very very muddy. I almost lost a shoe in the muck, which would have been horrendous. My shoes haven't ever been that dirty. After we finished that first part, though, it was much much better. The day was perfect - mid sixties, bright blue sky, and a slight breeze. The views were absolutely spectacular. Pictures can never do it justice, though I did take quite a few of them. The bus driver we had on the trip was a crazy Scotsman who may or may not have actually known how to drive. He kept talking to us the whole time. When we stopped at a rest stop on the way so people who didn't bring a lunch could buy one, we all got off the bus. I was the first one back, and he started talking to me, and he told me that I was short! He thought I looked taller sitting down. Granted, he's was something like 6'3'', so my 5'5'' wasn't that impressive. It was funny though, he kept bringing it up. He also kept saying "Awesome", because he heard us saying it - I guess it's an American thing that they don't really say over here. He thought it was hilarious.
The leaves are starting to change on the trees here. I thought that we weren't going to see any foliage, but I guess I was wrong. It's not nearly as nice or as colorful as it is in Vermont, or even back in Dedham, but it's nice enough. It smells like fall, anyways.
We're doing Robin Hood in my Myths&Legends class, and we have to watch three different versions of the movie before class on Wednesday. The Disney version isn't one of them, unfortunately, even though the professor told us it's actually one of his favorite versions. Which totally shocked me. David O'Shaugnessy just doesn't seem the type. Although, he did say in class that it was "surprising" that the version of Robin Hood (written) we read didn't have anything in it that could be considered "homoerotic". And he sounded disappointed about it. Crazy Irish man.
I get my first two papers back this week - Education on Monday and Myths&Legends on Wednesday. I'm slightly nervous for them. I have decided, though, that not getting A's on them is far from the end of the world - especially given that the grades don't transfer back to SMC, just the credits.