hallowthanksmas

The Great Grey has arrived in Oxford. If you live in the UK you’ll know what I mean by that; and if you don’t, just imagine that the sky has been overrun by cloudlets determined to interrupt photosynthesis. I’m really pleased that my spell-checker allowed the word cloudlet. It might have just made my day.
Conclusion: the sky is grey, and with it, Oxford and its businesses have heralded the arrival of Oxmas with glee. Yes, nowadays Christmas begins ridiculously early almost everywhere - and the UK doesn’t even have Thanksgiving to interrupt the transition from Halloween to Christmas, meaning that I saw a Christmas tree being raised up on the night of the 31st of October in my local TESCO - but I don’t really mind. Firstly, I love the lead-up to Christmas, which far outweighs the celebration itself, and secondly, OXMAS!
It takes place at the end of November, when the Oxford term ends. Well, actually we finish on the 3rd of December so it’s technically in the Christmas month!!! This is how it works: Jesus being born not quite as good as modern day Christmas which is not quite as good as Advent which is not quite as good as Oxmas. It’s going to be spectacular. Or mediocre. Or satisfying… there will be cake and biscuits and presents and sing-song and it’ll be splendiferoustastic! I just hope it snows.
Lately I have: attended an IKEA birthday party; found a house for next year with seven beautiful people; walked through the University parks with some of them; dressed as a goth for a bop (Oxford term for massive party); and best of all, been rained warm beer on in a pub in Bristol during a cheese society meeting where I was tied to a man’s hand and forced to draw kangaroos* .

     

*this may be a liberal retelling of the truth.

place to call home

I’ve just recovered from a pesky bout of late-starter freshers flu which is why it’s been a while... Nothing serious, just a drippy tap of a nose and a tickly cough. I did lose my voice for a couple of days, but found it swimming in a Lemsip lake so it’s all good now.
The week itself was as per usual.
Two essays, a handful of other translations, commentaries, grammar exercises, Spanish lessons son muy bien.
On Friday, a friend from London (well, friend from school who studies in London) came to visit which was a really nice break, and on the night previous I visited my aunt in Abingdon for some relaxing cannelloni.
Friday, celebrated a friend’s birthday with a midnight walk around Oxford (that wasn’t the plan; we didn’t reach our intended club destination), went on a little three-pub pub-crawl, started to figure out housing for next year - easier than I’d feared, but more complicated than I’d hoped is a good way to sum it up.
Two movie nights. Last Thursday was a mini Monty Python marathon, and yesterday I watched The Shining for the first time. It wasn’t as scary as I’d feared, but I still spent half the movie clasping other people’s hands, shoulders and knees. It sounds like a kids’ game. It was pure terror.
Ate and drank a couple of meters away from Emma Watson on more than one occasion, but I’m so oblivious about celebrities that I only found out afterwards both times. Some of my friends met Lord Faulkner. Apparently he’s really important. :D His name’s familiar to me so he must be…
As every year since my 8th, which was spent in Florida, Hallowe’en was a total non-starter. I wore a Viking hat for some of it.
So yeah… that’s me all done.
Till next time.