As weeks come and go
As weeks come and go, this one came and went. In retrospect it seems to have been a fairly productive week. Monday, I had my class as per then headed to the library. I eventually figured out how to find a book in the library(for some reason round here the Dewey Decimal system has gone the way of Old Yeller, in favour of something of unfathomed complexity involving a random series of numbers followed by a few letters that are occasionally part of the authors name and a map of the library... Somewhere in there I think you have to circumcise a goat and sacrifice a young child... It's just a weird system). I took out a number of books that had been sudgested to me by my probable dissertation supervisor. And as out of character as it sounds I also took out a book relating to my seminar on this Tuesday. I then read for a couple hours and met some friends at the student pub for a couple and then made it home without adventure.
Tuesday's seminar was filled with misconceptions and poor analogies, I must accept responsibility for the poor analogies but I still hold that my conception was as accurate as can be despite what that damned German journalist says! Bastard. After the seminar I called my unit back in London ON to enquire as to whether or not I could go to the unit here or not. I can't, not quite yet anyways. I then ran into a pair of newly wed Canadians from Manitoba one of whom is in my course, I then preceded to walk with them or places of abode being in the same direction. Before we were about to part ways I was cordially invited up to have dinner with them. I accepted and we had a very nice dinner talking about the course and adapting to life in England. The night began to wear on and I decided that I should head home before overstaying my welcome. I got home and read some of the books which I had taken out and had an early evening.
Wednesday I did laundry, I also had coffee(I actually did drink coffee, but only to be polite) with a friend.
Thursday I read and finished my presentation for Friday.
Friday I presented that which I had finished forming Thursday eve. Unfortunately my class was from 10-12 and I having to do the presentation this week, was in no position to skip as I usually do on the 11th November and get to a remembrance service. We did observe two minutes silence(more or less, it's rather hard to silence the city streets even in the dead of night let alone on a Friday morning) at 11. My presentation went well, I happen to have a unique view in my War in Philosophy and Imagination course I'm the only one(of three) to have any practical experience with the military and I also oddly enough happen to be the only war studies student (the other two are comparative literature). I seem to look at things a little less deeply which I think is a good contrast to these "deep" thinkers who in my opinion think too deeply on most things. After the class I then took the opportunity to meet with my potential/probable dissertation supervisor(he happens to run the philosophy and imagination course) and further discuss what I had come across in my week of reading. Much to my delight I was able to further his understanding of what I want to get at, and inturn he was able to give me more books to read and an area of thought to pursue. Right now I'm quite excited about this dissertation is seems to be setting itself up interestingly/frighteningly enough for a possible PhD dissertation.
Later that evening my buddy Steve came down, we proceeded to the Maple Leaf where we indulged in a pitcher of sleaman's honeybrown and a couple bottles of Canadian. The bar closed shortly as they tend to do round here(damn 11 of the clock pub closure) and we set about to find my buddy(another Canadian) who had given us rather cryptic directions(by cryptic I mean he told us the area of the city and no directions) to a bar he was heading to. A couple hours later and a number of pissed off cabbies(I hailed them and started asking for directions, most just started driving off, bastards) we eventually find a gay couple who were kind enough to direct us to the club in question. We get there and walk in to find everyone drunk out of they respective trees and the place relatively empty. I said high to my buddy who then as usual tried to enlist me as his "wing man" I declined and told him that despite the Steve and I were gonna head home.
Saturday was nice. We had made plans to meet up with a newly wed couple from Western, Jon and Heather, (who are over here at school and working respectively) for lunch. We met at Trafalgar square and had a lovely meal up in China town followed by gellato. It was quite a nice time and knowing they're in near the city I hope to get together with them again soon. We parted ways with them at the English National Opera(ENO) where Steve and I picked up our tickets for the evening and then hung out for a while and walked around the area a little. The show was wonderful, we saw Salome by Richard Strauss, for those of you who are not familiar it's the story of the crazy girl (Salome) who ended of Jon the Baptist. Although it could have used a little/lot more sexuality(it's not like we're in England or something, oh wait...) in the dance of the seven vales the show was great. Oddly enough it had this Nazi undertone to it for some reason. I've actually noticed that the Brits seem to have this odd fascination with Hitler and the whole Nazi movement, there's something about it on the BBC almost every day.
Sunday morning Steve headed back to Manchester and I've been reading(slacking) all day.
Tuesday's seminar was filled with misconceptions and poor analogies, I must accept responsibility for the poor analogies but I still hold that my conception was as accurate as can be despite what that damned German journalist says! Bastard. After the seminar I called my unit back in London ON to enquire as to whether or not I could go to the unit here or not. I can't, not quite yet anyways. I then ran into a pair of newly wed Canadians from Manitoba one of whom is in my course, I then preceded to walk with them or places of abode being in the same direction. Before we were about to part ways I was cordially invited up to have dinner with them. I accepted and we had a very nice dinner talking about the course and adapting to life in England. The night began to wear on and I decided that I should head home before overstaying my welcome. I got home and read some of the books which I had taken out and had an early evening.
Wednesday I did laundry, I also had coffee(I actually did drink coffee, but only to be polite) with a friend.
Thursday I read and finished my presentation for Friday.
Friday I presented that which I had finished forming Thursday eve. Unfortunately my class was from 10-12 and I having to do the presentation this week, was in no position to skip as I usually do on the 11th November and get to a remembrance service. We did observe two minutes silence(more or less, it's rather hard to silence the city streets even in the dead of night let alone on a Friday morning) at 11. My presentation went well, I happen to have a unique view in my War in Philosophy and Imagination course I'm the only one(of three) to have any practical experience with the military and I also oddly enough happen to be the only war studies student (the other two are comparative literature). I seem to look at things a little less deeply which I think is a good contrast to these "deep" thinkers who in my opinion think too deeply on most things. After the class I then took the opportunity to meet with my potential/probable dissertation supervisor(he happens to run the philosophy and imagination course) and further discuss what I had come across in my week of reading. Much to my delight I was able to further his understanding of what I want to get at, and inturn he was able to give me more books to read and an area of thought to pursue. Right now I'm quite excited about this dissertation is seems to be setting itself up interestingly/frighteningly enough for a possible PhD dissertation.
Later that evening my buddy Steve came down, we proceeded to the Maple Leaf where we indulged in a pitcher of sleaman's honeybrown and a couple bottles of Canadian. The bar closed shortly as they tend to do round here(damn 11 of the clock pub closure) and we set about to find my buddy(another Canadian) who had given us rather cryptic directions(by cryptic I mean he told us the area of the city and no directions) to a bar he was heading to. A couple hours later and a number of pissed off cabbies(I hailed them and started asking for directions, most just started driving off, bastards) we eventually find a gay couple who were kind enough to direct us to the club in question. We get there and walk in to find everyone drunk out of they respective trees and the place relatively empty. I said high to my buddy who then as usual tried to enlist me as his "wing man" I declined and told him that despite the Steve and I were gonna head home.
Saturday was nice. We had made plans to meet up with a newly wed couple from Western, Jon and Heather, (who are over here at school and working respectively) for lunch. We met at Trafalgar square and had a lovely meal up in China town followed by gellato. It was quite a nice time and knowing they're in near the city I hope to get together with them again soon. We parted ways with them at the English National Opera(ENO) where Steve and I picked up our tickets for the evening and then hung out for a while and walked around the area a little. The show was wonderful, we saw Salome by Richard Strauss, for those of you who are not familiar it's the story of the crazy girl (Salome) who ended of Jon the Baptist. Although it could have used a little/lot more sexuality(it's not like we're in England or something, oh wait...) in the dance of the seven vales the show was great. Oddly enough it had this Nazi undertone to it for some reason. I've actually noticed that the Brits seem to have this odd fascination with Hitler and the whole Nazi movement, there's something about it on the BBC almost every day.
Sunday morning Steve headed back to Manchester and I've been reading(slacking) all day.
posted by Brett at 10:31 p.m.
2 Comments:
is this whole "coffee" business going to be one of those things where ten years down the road s/he is still asking you for coffee and you still choke it down 'cause you never had the guts to tell him/her that you hate it?
Stop the cycle of lies now!!!
You know, here at Oxford there are 139 libraries and they all use different catalogue systems. I am not joking, each library (or set of libraries, which make knocks a handful off that total) determines how they want to organize their books. Of course I don't have to use nearly all of them... right now I'm sitting happily at 6 or 7 of them. It makes reading a nightmare, and lets not get started on essays. But I have to go, its my turn on the pentacle-shaped slab in the candle-lit back room. Have to grab a goat and head on over...
Post a Comment
<< Home