KK’s Blog

I found a shower that works and is warm, and it was wonderful. I have to go up two flights of stairs instead of down one, but it is well worth it. It makes me happy so I just thought I would write about it.

Finally you get to see what Ruth looks like. There she is, my friend Ruth and me at Blenheim. And that’s the hat I just finished crocheting, comes in handy on cold days.

If you can access them, more pictures are at http://www.flickr.com/photos/cathead26/ but some of them are pretty goofy, perhaps a bit embarrassing for me but oh well. I’m goofy so that’s okay. And I’m trying to make sure the camera is actually taking the picture and getting us in it. Ruth has some better pictures I think so I’ll get those eventually and put those up too.

I got up early this morning to get to church by 9:30. I went down to take a shower at 7:30, pretty sure no one else in the house was up by then, so the hot water heater should not have been run down or anything. The shower wasn’t even lukewarm. It wasn’t as cold as all cold, but all hot was still cool at best. I tried both of the ones on this side of the house that are close to me. I guess tomorrow I’ll try to go to the other side of the house. I went down this evening and turned the water on and let it run to see if it would get warm at night. It didn’t. So I took a shower trying to stay out of the water as much as I could, shivering, and trying to make it quick. I might start taking showers every other day if this keeps up. Or ask someone at Regent’s about it I guess.

Anyway, I was almost late for church. I got all my stuff ready for Blenheim Palace and tried to walk fast to church. However, it was really cold and misty/foggy, which the moisture from the mist apparently freezes on the sidewalks. So I had to watch my step to make sure I didn’t fall on the slick sidewalks, which meant not quite as fast walking. I’m pretty sure that if the sidewalks keep being like this, I’ll fall at some point because usually me and slick/icy pavement do not mix well. I’ve fallen three times in the recent past that I remember, once on my head, twice on my bum (as the English say it). I got to church just a couple minutes before Mass started. It was a nice service. I like the 9:30 services because there’s actually music but it also means I have to get up early. Oh well only a couple more weeks of having to walk that far to get to church.

Then I walked over to Regent’s, blew my running nose (I think I’m getting sick, not bad sick, just like cold sick - but I’m the last of the G-town people to get sick, everyone else has before this - and with a combination of dry heat, cold showers, and half-hour walks in the freezing cold at least twice a day, even with taking vitamin C twice a day among my other vitamins, I’m bound to get at least a small case of the sniffles), and then went down to sign up for my meals. But the sign-in sheet wasn’t there. Ruth came in then and we both looked but could find nothing. She’s going to go down tomorrow morning and sign in and she said she would sign in for me too as long as the sheets are there then, so hopefully that will be okay.

We headed over to the bus station and found we had just missed the bus. The website said it came ever half-hour but not on Sundays. It comes every hour then. So we walked over to the train station to see if there was one there. There wasn’t. So then we ended up going into a cafe place and each got a small cup of tea. Ruth had never had peppermint tea so she tried mine. She said it wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be, still not her favorite though. Then we rode the bus to Blenheim, which luckily the bus driver called out when we got there because we were a little nervous we would miss it.

The Palace and grounds were so pretty. It stayed foggy all day and there was still frost on the ground and stuff. Some of the water was frozen too. We walked out to this monument, something of victory, while we ate lunches that we had packed. Then we went through the living crafts thing. There were a lot of neat things, of course all expensive, so we didn’t buy anything, but it was fun to look. And there was a food part too so I got to try some samples. There was even one stand with a guy selling sweaters made of alpaca fur! (Some people will understand my excitement with alpacas, it’s a long story.) After that we went through the palace. We went through fairly quickly on the exhibit part because I had already seen it all and it was crowded and Ruth said she didn’t feel like reading the things. But the Christmas decorations were beautiful. The dining room had a table set up for a meal and there was a toy train running as part of the centerpiece. One room had a bunch of different trees and there was a band playing Christmas music that was really cool.

After the palace, we walked around the back of it and went into the “secret garden” which was still really pretty and quite green. It turned cold really fast so things were still green even though it was frosty. After this, we were quite cold, so we went into the gift shop and looked a bit. We tried to go on the small train to the butterfly garden but it wasn’t coming for a while and Ruth needed to get back to go to the grocery before it closed. I had already seen all that stuff and the main things I wanted to see were the crafts and the palace christmas decorations, so we went back to the gift shop and I bought some honey. I’m bringing it home but I’m also going to use it as a sweetener for my tea some I think. Then we walked back out to wait for the bus. Ruth had brought some lollipops so we ate those while we waited.

When we got back we walked to Sainsbury’s. I got some more crackers - the last time I’ll have to buy those I think. Then I headed back to Stanley Road and Ruth went back to Regent’s. It was a really fun day and we got quite a few pictures, though the best ones are on Ruth’s camera. She’s going to send them to me. Mine I’m sort of looking at the screen instead of the lens to make sure that I’m holding it still and that it actually takes, but I’ll put one up anyway.

When I got back to the house, I made some vanilla tea with honey in it. Then I called my mom and took some medicine to try to ward off my cold. I read some and then cooked my pizza for dinner. Then I talked to Kyle until he had to go to church. I went down to see if the showers got warm and washed my face when they didn’t. Then I crocheted a bit, and now I’m writing this before I go to bed so I can try to sleep off my runny nose. I hate having a runny nose, so annoying. Oh well as long as it doesn’t get any worse, or at least not until I get back to the States. But today was a very fun and good day. I’m really glad I made it to Blenheim, even if it was on the coldest day it’s been since I got here. It’ll probably be getting colder so that just means I have a reason to start wearing my big white coat. As long as it keeps me warm right? Okay I’m going to stop typing. Great day!

Well yesterday, I didn’t leave my room. The cold is deterring me from wanting to get out and do anything. Really there’s nothing to write about. I read most of the day, taking breaks between chapters by playing on the internet, talking to my mom and Kyle, crocheting, and eating. The reading was actually pretty interesting, about “piracy” in terms of intellectual property and the history of it and stuff. I fell asleep after dinner, got up to brush my teeth, and fell asleep again. The End!

Well yesterday I got up and talked to Kyle until he fell asleep. That seems to be the pattern we’re getting into. He’s going to have terrible sleeping habits because of me. I just hope he doesn’t get sick. And for once not being productive paid off. I had planned on reading ahead for my next tutorial, but then I wrote my mom a pretty long e-mail. I also typed up some poems from the book that Mrs. Miller sent me that I thought applied to the St. Mark teachers’ situation to try to make them feel better. I sent them as an attachment to my mom and she forwarded them to some of the teachers. She said they were a very good thing to read, so I’m glad I did that. I also got e-mails from my brothers, which made me happy. I miss them too. I think I have a unique relationship with my brothers and my family is just great and I’m so glad we’re close even if we’re on different sides of the world.

I also took a shower somewhere in there and the water here never gets hot anymore. I have it on all the way hot and it’s still only lukewarm and the bathrooms are freezing because they have windows and the heaters just don’t do much. So I’m always shivering in my showers, which is no fun. I am looking forward to a good shower when I get home.

So anyway, my mom called to talk for a couple minutes when she got to school just to tell me she was doing okay. Then I left for Regent’s for lunch. I sat near Ruth and this girl named Amy, who is really nice and we’ve talked a few times. We talked about weekend plans and crafts. I asked Ruth if she would maybe want to go to Blenheim Palace and she said probably but she’d think about it. By the end of lunch, she said she would. We’re excited about that. Ruth said I’m culturing her because she’s never been there before and she had never been to a ballet before either. It’s so weird how people here just don’t seem to travel as much as we do. They see a 3-4 hour trip as really long, while we see a 13-14 hour trip as pretty long. Even though people live so much closer to things, they’ve never been to them. Crazy. I guess it’s just another cultural difference.

After lunch, I headed to the social sciences library. I looked through some articles in The Economist online, just because I like to have somewhat of an idea of what’s going on in case Mark mentions something. Then I read through my notes and through some books to review for the tutorial. I went over to Harris Manchester at 3. I think I did pretty well in the tutorial. I was a littl confused on some things, so Mark clarified but I think I looked like I at least somewhat knew what I was talking about. And I picked up on the things that I didn’t understand.

So then the not working ahead paid off. He asked what we had scheduled for next week and it was about productivity in Britain. And he said he knew the Georgetown people had said I was interested in international economics so we talked about some possible topics concerning that. 8th week he already had it blank so we could discuss what we would do, but he said Britain’s boring so we would do something different for 7th week too since we have flexibility, again since I won’t be examined at the end of it all. So we decided to look at productivity and growth in India instead of Britain, but especially concerning how India has been affected by international intellectual property agreements and the WTO and stuff. So that should be interesting. I’m really glad I got Mark for my tutor because he seems to think we don’t have to stick to the plans all the time and can see that I’ll do the work so he can have a little more fun with the topics with me. So yay! So I’m glad I didn’t read ahead because then it wouldn’t have helped me at all. I mean, it wouldn’t have hurt me, but it was nice to take a short break between topics.

Oh and two funny things from the tutorial. When I first went in Mark said he had turned on his heat because of the cold. I agreed that it had gotten cold and he asked me if we had weather like this at Georgetown, in Washington, right? I said, oh . . . no, I’m at Georgetown in Kentucky, not quite as prestigious as the one in Washington. So then we discussed where Kentucky was, he had never been there. Another case of mistaken identity with G-town. Haha. Then later, I was drawing a graph on the board and he was having me put up numbers rather than just variables. So they say “naught” for zero, and he said put up 20%, as in “naught point two.” So to say write 20% but rather than 20, write 0.2. Except I was hearing “not point two.” So after he tells me this, I write 20 and he said, “No, naught point two.” And I sort of looked at him for a minute before I realized he was using “naught,” not “not.” And I said, “Oh” and told him what I was thinking, so I felt like a dork, but I’m glad I finally figured it out. I thought it was weird to write it as 20, but I thought that’s what he was telling me. So those were funny things from the tutorial.

Then he gave me a couple books to read about intellectual property agreements and said for other things I should just google things and he would too and see if he could find anything because he had sort of just made this up on the spot so he didn’t have any planned readings for me. So I get to be a bit more adventurous this week.

So I went back to the social sciences library and returned my books that I had checked out on Britain and then wrote some e-mails. Then I walked back to Regent’s, read a bit, got ready for formal hall, and went down there. There was some sort of rowing competition today, like time trials sort of, I gathered, so lots of people were talking about that. And it was guest night, so everyone was extra dressed up and lots of extra people were there. Ruth, Esther, and I sat together and most of the conversation was about rowing too. I had chickpea wellington, which was pretty good and I had parsnips, which weren’t as good but not bad I guess. Not something I would crave or anything. I don’t think I had ever had them before, though. Then dessert was coming and Ruth asked if I was having the “gateaux.” Some wine was being passed to the girl across from me so I asked if that was wine, but I thought it was odd that Ruth would ask that since she knew I didn’t drink. She pointed and said, no, the gateaux, pointing to the dessert, which was chocolate cake. I said I had never had it before. So she was really surprised that I had never had it. The girl across from me said she guessed we would just call it cake and I said oh. It’s apparently the French word for chocolate cake. Another confusing language difference. I did have the gateaux, and it was very good. I ate the whole thing even though it was almost too sweet. I’ve been craving sweets more since I’ve been here, which is weird for me.

After dinner, I had a bit of a headache and I wanted to get back and talk to my mom, so I walked on back after Ruth and I had agreed on a time to meet on Sunday to go to Blenheim Palace. When I got back to Stanley Road, I talked to my mom for a bit before she had to go and take care of some things at St. Mark before going to Michele’s for dinner, meatloaf, which sounds wonderful. Another thing to put on my list of things I want to eat when I get home. Ruth had told me at dinner that she had never gotten a stocking before (we were talking about Christmas plans), and she had even bought her parents stockings and filled them, hoping it would be a hint for them to get her one, but they hadn’t. So I thought maybe I’d try to crochet one for her and give it to her as a goodbye present. Except I don’t really know how to make one, so I tried a couple different starts last night. We’ll see if I get it done. Then I talked to Kyle, but we were both really tired. I think we each fell asleep at least 3 times during the conversation, so I finally said we needed to go to bed and forced him to get off the phone. So we hung up and I fell asleep, with happy thoughts in my head.

Well yesterday’s most exciting part was probably the interview, but there were some other things that happened too. I got up early and talked to Kyle a bit and he tried to make me feel better about the interview. I was nervous. So then I read through my papers that I had submitted with my application and did some reading on Mansfield, both of which turned out to be pointless preparations, but oh well. Then I went to the interview, changing my shoes before going in.

After the interview I went over to Regent’s because it was getting close to lunch already. I e-mailed Kyle, my mom, and Dr. Hadaway short e-mails to tell them I had made it through. Then I went down to lunch. Ruth, Rhys, and Alex (another guy who hangs out with Rhys a lot) asked me how the interview went. I said it was fine, not bad, but I don’t know if it was good. Then I sat next to Ruth at lunch. They had cottage cheese again at the salad bar. They haven’t had it in a while. The main meal looked good too and they brought out extras so I had one of the chicken wraps. Not chicken wraps like we would think about them, they were cooked and had curry I think on them. It was good.

After lunch Dr. Curry asked me if I would come over and meet some men from this organization in Kentucky for two year colleges. They wanted to meet the G-town students but I was the only one at lunch. So I talked to them for a bit and I think I made Georgetown sound pretty good, which I don’t know if that’s what I was supposed to do but I just talked about the paths I was pursuing and stuff. Then I walked over to Keston and no one answered the ringing of the doorbell thing so I couldn’t go in. So I just left and went and looked in some shops because I didn’t feel like doing any work. I eventually made my way to the social sciences library where I wrote that really long e-mail to Dr. Hadaway. Then I returned, renewed, and checked out more books for next week and this week’s tutorials.

I walked over to Regent’s and checked my mail and I got a package from my mom!! I still had a couple hours until dinner and my mom had sent me food, so I decided to walk back to Stanley Road and eat there. Ruth wasn’t going to be at dinner anyway and I didn’t want to read til dinner. So I came back and had chicken noodle soup and a bag of popcorn for dinner. I don’t think I’ve ever eaten a whole bag of popcorn by myself, but it was the buttery kind so it was really good. Then I was looking up stuff this weekend. Judy had e-mailed me and asked if I wanted to come this weekend to Leigh-on-Sea in Essex. I was going to try, but then I noticed that this thing I want to go to at Blenheim Palace is this weekend, not next weekend like I thought. And I really want to go to that, so I wrote Judy and said I couldn’t come but I was really thankful for everything she had done for me. I might ask Ruth if she wants to go to Blenheim Palace with me. Then I’ll be pushing Bath back again, so hopefully I’ll make it there next weekend.

Then I talked to Kyle for a bit until my mom called. She had a really bad day, and I wish I could be there for her, but I’ll be home soon. She couldn’t talk long so I let her go, but then I e-mailed my brothers and told them they should call her but also just to update them a bit on my interview. Then I explored more thoroughly my package. My mom and grandma put it together apparently. They sent me a few books, one on starting your own business and the other on running your own restaurant. Fun! They also sent me a novel for the plane ride back. They sent me a bunch of yarn and some crochet needles, which is great because that is good relaxation for me. I finished a hat I had started two years ago before I went to bed. They also sent me some prayer cards and things and lots of food: more peanut butter, crackers, oatmeal, thin mints (yum), gum, granola bars, hot chocolate, and I think that’s it. So it was another very exciting package! Oh and she sent me a roll of film she had had developed for me with pictures from a lot of different things over the summer. So that was good to have more pictures.

After posting my interview blog and crocheting a bit, I decided to go to bed and sleep in today. So yesterday was a good day, though I was glad for it to be over.

Okay, so here’s how my interview went. This is actually an e-mail to my advisor Dr. Hadaway, so there are a few times that I address him but I think it still makes sense. I’ll write another entry on the rest of my day later, but this is a detailed account of the interview, so it might be boring, I don’t know. Read it if you want or you don’t have to. Of course, I guess you never really have to read my entries. Okay I’ll be quiet now. Onto the interview.

I showed up at Mansfield a little early, about 15 minutes, and went to the Porter’s Lodge and the guy there said it was fine to be early and took me to the building where I would have the first part of my interview. I went up to the guy’s office, and he asked if I could wait because his colleague wasn’t there yet. So I looked through the PPE handbook again until 11. Then he said the other guy wasn’t there yet, but we might as well get started. So this was the Politics tutor, or one of them. As we were talking, the Philosophy tutor, or one of them, came in. So first the politics guy asked me about the program I was currently in, as in the Regent’s program and how it related to Georgetown, but not really about the 3-year degree at Georgetown or anything. He asked how my tutorial was going and if I thought it was hard. I said it was, but then we deduced that maybe it was more different than hard, and I was adapting to it pretty well. He asked if I would focus on all three subjects or choose two. I said I would probably do politics and economics.

Then he gave me a sheet of paper with a statement on it: “If a person is forced to do something, the person is free to do that thing.” And we discussed the truth and falsity of this. I said I would say it was false, but I could see how it might be portrayed as true, so we looked at it from both angles. Then after hashing that out a bit, when I couldn’t think of anything more to say, he said we could move onto another topic. He asked me if I could give a definition of a bicameral legislature, so I said two house government. Then we discussed the merits of it. I kept trying to use the US government as an example and he kept trying to pull me toward using it as an abstract idea, like if we were writing a new constitution, why we might choose bicameral rather than unicameral. He then asked if I knew of any unicameral legislatures. I said no. He said New Zealand and Sweden were and we discussed their similarities to each other. I said they were both neutral and then that they were small in comparison to at least the US. Then he asked if I knew of any US states that were unicameral. I said no. He said Nebraska used to be he thought. And then said, well now we’ve at least all learned something new, and gave it over to the philosophy guy.

This guy gave me two sheets of paper and we looked at the first one first. It was talking about consistency and inconsistency and then gave three statements and asked if they were consistent. I at first said yes, then he pointed out something in the wording and then I said so maybe no. But then we tried to define the difference between actions and events and with those definitions, choose if the statements were consistent. He said he could see how my first intuition was right and thought I was on the right track, but I couldn’t figure out what he was looking for me to say next, so he sort of gave me what he was thinking, which I think was sort of what I said at first, but I guess not in exactly the same way. When I get back I can show you the papers and tell you more what I’m talking about but it’s hard to write it out. Then he had me read another question about whether saying one statement and its negation can ever be consistent. I said I didn’t think so but then that seemed too easy, so he asked me to explain it. I did and he said it was right. Then we went onto the other sheet and he picked a phrase at random. These were statements that he said could lead to a little more discussion. He picked a statement that love at first sight is possible. So we discussed love at first sight and love and came to the conclusion, my original one, that it isn’t really because love is more complicated than that, but he had me try to work out how it was more complicated and stuff.

They also asked me how I would feel about coming for three years instead of two. The politics guy said they normally ask the students this who are applying to get a three-year degree in two years. I said it would make a difference and I would have to consider money as well as being away from home longer, but I said I could see the benefits of it, especially after looking through the PPE handbook. I said I thought Georgetown had prepared me, but there was still a lot that happens in that first year, so… Then they asked me if I had any questions. I just asked about the PPE test and they said I shouldn’t have to take it since I am applying for a second undergraduate degree and that process is different, especially since I have already had experience in the subjects and stuff, but they would make sure.

So then the politics guy walked me over to the building where the economics guy was. I almost got lost but found his office. His name wasn’t spelled like it sounded. There was another economist there too. So first the main guy asked me how my other interview was and who was there and then some background on me, again focusing more on the Regent’s experience than the Georgetown one, and focusing on the differences in economics and what I had covered in economics. He asked me if I had had calculus and how far I had gone in it. I had by syllabus-like thing from Mark with me so they asked to see that to see the topics I had covered and such.

Then he gave me a sheet with some questions and a blank graph on it. The other guy had me read it and draw on the graph what I thought the picture should look like. I hadn’t covered this topic at Regent’s but I did a bit with Dr. Cooper (intertemporal model of consumption), though at first I couldn’t remember what the picture was supposed to look like. I said so and he said to just use common sense rather than try to remember what I had already learned. So I started thinking that way and then sort of remembered what I had learned, though not the equations or anything. So I drew the picture and then they asked me what the intercepts would be so I said that and got it right. Then they asked what the equation of the line should be and showed that I should have brushed up on my algebra before this. They helped me out a bit and I finally got the equation. Then they pointed me to the last question which changed the numbers and thus, the intercepts so I had to relabel the graph.

Then the main guy asked me if there were any particular topics of which I had interest in economics and I said I had read quite a bit on international developmental economics because that is what Mark has been assigning me in my extra books. Then he asked me if I had covered current account deficits and the US deficit. I said I had somewhat with Mark, so then he asked me about the capital account, and I stumbled through that with him sort of dragging me along. Then he asked me if I thought the current account deficit was too big. I said I felt like maybe it was but it wasn’t too big a problem. And we discussed about other countries saving and the talk I went to with Martin Wolf as the speaker because he spoke about that.

Then they asked if I had any questions. I asked again about the test and he again said I shouldn’t have to take it. He again said the second undergraduate degree was different because I have already had teaching in the subjects. This is when he told me that he thought only about 10 people were accepted for the second BA. I just nodded. He wouldn’t let me keep the sheet of paper I had drawn on. So then I left.

When I was talking to Ruth, my good friend here, she had said to make sure I sounded really enthusiastic about learning and stuff and it was okay to not know what I was talking about but just to show that I was teachable because if I act like I already know it all, then there’s no point in them teaching me. Of course I never remember any of this in the interview, so I don’t know if I sounded enthusiastic or not. And I felt like I did okay with the questions, but I don’t know if I sounded like I already knew too much. I definitely don’t think I do but I think I held my own fairly well. So hopefully I showed myself as teachable. We’ll see. I’m okay with the outcome either way. I’m still not completely sure what I would say if they offered me a place, probably yes as long as I could get the money, just because I don’t know that I could say no to Oxford. But I don’t think I have a huge chance, just because I’m competing for one of the most popular programs and I’m doing it in an odd way in which they don’t seem to accept a whole lot of people. I guess Regent’s might still interview me. Mansfield didn’t act too impressed but I can never read people too well, so I don’t know. I’d rather not go through another interview. It was pretty stressful and like I said, completely different from any other interviews that I’ve done. Not just asking about me but asking me to solve problems. It was hard and I’m glad to have it over with, but as I was going through it, I didn’t feel too nervous and I sort of just said what I thought and that’s all I can do. So those are my feelings on it. But I think I can at least bring back a lot of information on it for G-town when I come back, which will be good.

I had a little trouble getting up at 7 this morning, so I slept in for an extra 15 minutes. I know, it’s terrible. Haha. Tomorrow I’m going to sleep in before my interview, if I can. I may be too nervous. Anyway, this morning, I talked to Kyle until he went to bed. Then I got on Oxford’s website and read their suggestions for preparation for interviews. Then I walked to the Gulbenkian (fun name) Lecture Theatre for another lecture. This one, I didn’t really understand what she was talking about so it was sort of boring, but she was British. After that, I went to Blackwell’s Bookstore and looked for a book called “Getting into Oxford and Cambridge.” I found it and read the section on interviews.

Then I went to lunch. Marshelle sat across from me so we talked a bit. She might come back to England next year during her year off before she goes to grad school. After lunch, I chatted with Ellie for a couple minutes. She said I looked like I was going to play sport because I had on sweatpants, but a nice shirt, but I guess it wasn’t a sweater or anything. Their dress is quite a different style than I am used to. I told her I was just being comfy.

Then I walked over to the social sciences library, read a bit, looked up some stuff on interview suggestions, skimmed some articles from the Economist online to get a little up to date on current events, and that’s about it. Then I walked back to Regent’s and took notes on my discussion questions. I think I’ve got a pretty good grasp of it, but I’m nervous when I don’t have a paper to turn in because it seems like I do better when I turn in a paper. I might read some more before the tutorial too.

I got done a little before dinner, so then I was thinking about the interview and worrying until I started to feel sick to my stomach. So then I e-mailed my mom to try not to think about it and write about it. It always helps me write about things, to get them off my chest. After this, the dinner bell rang so I went to eat. Ruth was just getting there too, and she gave me a little card, which was sweet. It said she would be thinking about me tomorrow and that I would be fine, just to smile and nod if I didn’t understand what they said. Dinner tasted okay, but my stomach was still a little feeling bad, so I didn’t eat much. They had leftovers of desserts from last night, which I really liked that so I got that instead of the lemon meringue pie that was the real dessert.

Then Ruth and I went up to the JCR and talked for a while, about the interview and her interview, and then about beauty contests or scholarship competitions. Then I headed back to Stanley Road. I ran into Marshelle, Rhys, and some others on their way to a pub. Rhys told me I should come drink to get ready for the interview rather than go back to Stanley Road. I said thanks but went on back. I think he always says it knowing I’ll say no, but still asks me anyway. I guess it’s considerate to invite me? When I got back I checked e-mails, made some phone calls about things that needed to be taken care of back in the States. Then my mom got back to school from errands so she called me. I talked to her for a while and we decided that I’m in a great position so I should just have a good time in the interview. Now I just need to make myself believe it.

So now I’m going to go to bed and try to get a good rest, advice from Pamela in her e-mail of advice for me. And I think she knows what she’s talking about when it comes to these things.

Yesterday, I got up early and headed out to be a little early to a lecture on Economic history of Britain at 9. I found my way to the building it was to be at, and asked where the room was. I was the first, and only for a while, person to get there. I read through the PPE handbook to get an idea of what the program I am applying to is about. The lecturer eventually came in and he was American, not British. At first, I thought maybe I had just gotten used to the accent so if it was small, maybe I couldn’t detect it, but then he put up a diagram of Aggregate Supply/Aggregate Demand and said if he were teaching a macroeconomics course, he would start with that rather than the Keynesian diagrams. Which that’s how we learn it in the US, which is why I had no idea what I was looking at during my first readings here. It made me laugh.

After the lecture, I walked to look for Mansfield so I would know where I was going for my interview. I found it and the office where I report to. So that’s good to know. Then I headed over to Regent’s and read until lunch. I finished my book just before lunch, so yay. I sat with Ruth and we talked some, but then she had to leave early. Esther sat near us too and this girl named Sarah, who I don’t know all that well but she hangs out with Ruth and Esther some. They asked me how things were going and I told them about the interview and they tried to give me some advice.

After lunch I walked over to the social sciences library, stopping to look for where a lecture I am going to today will be held. Then I changed my schedule for G-town around a bit. I figured out how to get it so that I can still take the classes I really want to even if I graduate, so that was exciting. It’s sort of complicated so I won’t try to explain it to you. But yeah I get to take some cool English classes that I think will be fun. Then I read another chapter in a textbook and read some more from the PPE handbook. My stomach kept making noises the whole time, so I was sort of embarrassed, but it wouldn’t stop so there wasn’t much I could do about it. Just growling and stuff, but I don’t think I was hungry. Crazy.

So then I headed back to Regent’s for the Christianity and Culture lecture, so I could fulfill my requirement of three. Dr. Curry was there but none of the other G-town students, including Kyle, so there was no discussion afterward. Which I don’t know if I’ll be able to come to another one so it sort of made me mad because I think I’m supposed to be at three discussions too. But oh well. I tried. Kyle had been sick the night before so I thought maybe that was why he wasn’t there, but then I saw him in the library so I guess he just forgot. I also didn’t have anything to do because I had finished everything I brought with me because I thought I would be discussing until dinner. Both the computers in Regent’s library were being used, so I just sat around until dinner.

At dinner, we had fish. Ruth was surprised that I got the main, but I said I like fish so I always get it when they offer it. Yum! We talked about the interview and she tried to offer me some advice, but she said she really didn’t have much. The girl sitting next to her said she wore jeans to the interview and then she tripped and fell when she went in and then her bag got all caught up or something. She said she thinks they just let her in because they felt sorry for her. Haha. But that made me a feel a little better about it. I’m going to dress nice but not too nice I don’t think. They say be comfortable but not sloppy looking. Ruth and I planned to hang out a bit after dinner tonight, so she can give me some more of her “expert advice.” But maybe she’ll make me feel better the night before it all. One in every three “qualified applicants” are accepted according to the website, so I don’t have much hope. But I’ll just do my best and if it doesn’t work out, then I might actually be relieved.

I walked home and talked to Kyle for a bit. His work got cancelled because there was supposed to be a tornado coming Louisville’s way. We hung up before the storm got there so he could turn off his computer. Then my mom called and we talked a bit. She had to e-mail me more forms to fill out. Even when I’m gone I have a ton of stuff to do for G-town. I e-mailed some of my friends back, but still have a couple to reply to. Then I went to bed, hoping to get up early and get some work done this morning, which didn’t exactly work out as planned, but oh well.

So yesterday was a pretty exciting day, although that was pretty much the only thing that happened all day. The night before (I think everyone probably knows this by now) I talked to Amanda because she had gotten engaged, so that was exciting news. Then I got up in the morning and had breakfast, all that fun stuff. And then I checked my e-mail and I got the e-mail about the interview. So yay! Of course, I called my mom and Kyle and woke them both up, which I’m sure they appreciated. Then I e-mailed my tutor about rescheduling and Pamela to ask her a question about the test I may have to take. Then I e-mailed Dr. Hadaway to tell him. And finally I did a mass e-mail to all the Georgetown people to tell them.

Then I made myself read until a little after 12, at which time I registered for some random classes, which didn’t fulfill either of my plans for graduating or not, sort of a combination of the two. Just wanted to make sure I got into some, which I don’t know if any of the ones I signed up for will fill up, but you can’t be too cautious. Mark e-mailed me back and said it was no problem to switch things around. We will probably be meeting on Friday afternoon, which will be weird, throw my schedule for a loop, but that’s okay. Then I walked to lunch.

When I got there Dr. Curry and Marshelle were waiting outside so I told them about it, and then I told Ruth. So really most of my day was telling people that I had gotten an interview, not even a place at Oxford or anything, just an interview, but that’s okay. After lunch, I stayed at Regent’s and read all afternoon, taking a couple breaks to check e-mails and such. I replied to Mansfield and told them I would be there, and found out that Dr. Hadaway and his wife had their baby, Jackson Bloom Hadaway, yay!! I got some replies from my friends with advice, with them telling me they would support me whatever I did, but still some advice too, which was good to hear. A really sweet e-mail from Whitney. And Dr. Apple and Dr. May wrote me back, Dr. Apple telling me that Mansfield was a solid college, which made me feel good (it seems like most people haven’t heard of it) and Dr. May telling me he didn’t think we’d get this far with the first 3-2 class (haha). Lots of little supportive e-mails too.

Dinner was good, not much to say about it. Then I headed back to Stanley Road. I talked with Kim on MSN and told her about the interview and she asked me about how things were going and such. Then I talked to Kyle before he had to go to a Bible Study and I talked to my mom before she went to her rug-hooking class. Then I fell asleep, on accident, and woke up to an AIM message from Amanda. She got accepted for the spring term Oxford thing, so she’s definitely coming over here next semester. Yay for her!! So all kinds of news yesterday. I guess it wore me out. After I fell asleep again, I woke up to wash my face and brush my teeth. Then I went back to bed for good this time.