stalling.

Well, I'm getting down to my final hours here in Oxford. I can't say that I'm happy to go, but I don't really want to stay here much longer, either. I'm not homesick, but I do miss home. I think, mostly, I'm just missing Sean, and my sister. Throughout the trip, I've stopped at odd places and laughed at jokes, thinking how much they would have loved to be here and experience the same things. And, how much more I would enjoy it if they were here with me.

Even though I sound a bit forlorn, I really have had a ton of fun. Our group got along brilliantly, and managed to stay out of any really serious trouble. We were ordered to "disperse" a few times by the porters, and tiptoed across the forbidden lawn when we thought no one was looking. Tom led a sing (and dance) a-long on Cornmarket Street at midnight. We finally found out that the well-endowed unicorn in the great hall is meant to symbolize virginity. It's rained more than it's been sunny, but we've made the most of it. Joe's room became a piano bar, and the roof became "Boots". The guys managed to find the only place in town which would sell us Americans coffee after 3 in the afternoon, and they're greatly profiting off of our addictions. AHH! GIANT PARAGRAPH! Steve's luggage never made it to Oxford, but it did spend time in Paris, London, Africa, Romania, and probably Baghdad. Copa became our home. We learned the difference between candy and sweets. Angie knit hats in the bar - very sexy. We saw the Harry Potter release come and go, and have been lamenting on the book ever since. (By the way, good book - terrible epilogue.) I've made fantastic friends, who I'll be sure to still hang out with once I get back to Oakland. A lot of us have made some pretty big changes in our lives. Some people ended relationships, some people began new ones. I've learned a bit about myself, and made some decisions about what I want to do in life, and where I'm going next. I've spent too much money and eaten too much chocolate, and I've developed a strong attachment to coffee and mochas. We learned to pick out tourists in a crowd, and despise them for taking over "our" city. Shopping in Oxford is amazing, and I wish I had come with an extra $6000 to spend just in Primark and Next Clearance.

There's loads more. Lots of sheep and rain. I've had a great time, but I'm ready to move on to the next thing. Sean flies in tomorrow morning, and I'm going out to the airport to meet him. We'll come out to Oxford at some point and pack up all of my junk, and then I'll leave Brasenose. I'm shocked that it's over already, but I'm also glad. Well, I will be if I ever get my paper finished. It's awful, and I'm just dragging it on longer by doing this blog instead.

Anyway, here's the plan for the next few days. Sean and I will be in London starting on Friday. We have some friends in town we might meet up with, but other than that we're just going to hang out and do touristy things, and catch up. That's what I'm most excited for. I'll finally have someone here who I can share the trip with. I've made some great friends while here, but it's just not the same. Anyway. London until the 3rd, and then we're spending the weekend in Paris. After that, it's back to London, and then north to Sean's aunt's house until Wednesday. We fly out of Heathrow that afternoon, and I should be back in Michigan Wednesday night. Hooray for 5-hour time differences!

The only thing holding me back right now is this stupid paper. I hate it with a passion, and until it's finished I'll feel like I'm in this awful limbo. Bah humbug. Back to work. While I sit and think about it, the list of things I need to do before I leave expands like Oxford in a flood. Back to work!

Tut, tut. Looks like rain...

Sorry for the posting delay. I've been busy trying to get ahead on my homework. This Friday (for those who live under a rock) is the release of the final Harry Potter novel, and I intend on reading it all weekend. So, I'm trying to get all of my homework out of the way before then. I just got back from an early dinner at "Old Orleans", which is the most American restaurant in town. Best thing is - the prices are cheap! Of course, there's a KFC, McDonald's, and Burger King... but who wants to come all the way across the ocean to eat there?! We're all missing Taco Bell very much, though. England would be much better off with some Taco Bell.

Next week is my last week. AH! It's flown by so incredibly quickly. I want to stay!

Today, when I stepped out of Brasenose (in order to return a jacket at FCUK ((French Connection U.K.)) which I decided was superfluous) there were movie cameras in my face!!! It was as if I had stepped into the 1900s, and I was surrounded by strapping young Oxford scholars, riding turn of the century bikes and being all-together adorable. Turns out, today, the re-make of Brideshead Revisited is being filmed right out in the Radcliffe Camera. I didn't spot any stars, but there were plenty of extras to giggle at. Speaking of celebs, though, some friends spotted Kiera Knightly in London the other day. That's pretty nifty.

I still haven't been to the museums, here. I feel so guilty! There's a natural history one, a history one, and then a huge jumble of art at the Ashmoleon. I'll try to do one or two this week, after class. They're supposed to be a lot of fun, but I've just been to busy doing other things!

Last night was our James Bond night at dinner - complete with Tom the Brit singing Golden Eye and a few other songs. It was so much fun! We all dressed up in black (I bought the afore-mentioned jacket for last night) and had shrimp, steak, and sorbet. Then, Black Russians at the pub with more entertainment. I ended up leaving early to work on the Sheridan play we're reading, but it was a ton of fun nonetheless.

Tonight, we're going to see A Midsummer Night's Dream at a neighboring college. It's supposed to rain, but right now the sun looks promising, so maybe we'll get lucky. Tomorrow is the last day of class for the week, and then I'm off to London early Friday morning! Angie and I bought witch hats, since we're Harry Potter geeks. I'll be on the look out for a cool souvineer for Katie, of course.

Speaking of souvineers, if anyone wants one - tell me! I don't want to spend a ton, but I'll do my best. There's a flea market sort of thing going on tomorrow and there's always cool stuff there.

And for the parents: I've been getting pretty good grades on my papers, nothing below a 3.8 so far. I got your package yesterday - THANK YOU!!! It definitely made me miss you guys, though. I've yet to have a pasty here that can compare to the ones back home. But, I've seen lots of adorable dogs that I'd love to bring back with me!

Just to Clarify...

Hello, everyone!

I hope you're all doing well and having a relaxing July back in the States. I heard it's been really, really hot there. I hate to say it, but I'm wearing long sleeves right now (Reason #436 why I want to live in England). It's a pretty lazy day here in Oxford. Lots of tourist groups going around the colleges, so it's easier to stay indoors than to battle the crowds. I just got back from Boots, which is like a glorified CVS. I had to pick up some Germolene (which is like neosporen), and it burns like the Dickens!!! I felt like such a baby when I put it on and yelped. But, I'm tough. I can take it. (Mommy... will you kiss my boo-boo?)

So, yes. Today's rather slow. However, last night was the official Brasenose/American pub crawl. It was a flop, to be honest. Most of the pubs we stopped at were either closed, too busy, or refused to serve our gigantic group. There was supposed to be a designated drink at each pub (stuff like gin and tonics, and other lethal drinks), but I just opted for a cheap beer here and there. After about an hour I left early and was in bed by midnight.

Tonight, though, is Jessica's birthday! We've reserved the top floor of a wine bar (Copa) a few blocks away and that should be pretty fun. I'll probably stick to water or Pimm's tonight since we have a LONG day in London tomorrow! In fact, now that I think about it, I'll most likely sneak out early.

So, to clarify, I'm not in a constant drunken stupor here in Oxford. And, to clarify even further, each time I've mangled my ankle was completely without the aid of alcohol. And, I was even on flat ground. For some reason, I ankle just gives out without warning. It's bruised. I think that means it's healing. And, to clarify to the extreme, I've not become obsessed with shopping. Yes, I've bought 4 pairs of shoes. BUT (still with me, Dad?), it's all within reason. Really. I had to get a pair of slide-on flats since my air cast doesn't fit in my normal pair. I found a sale, two pairs for 15 pounds. The salesman was really nice and we chatted for quite a while, and as I was leaving he offered me a third pair for free. So, you see? Good price! And, they're sturdy and have cushioning.

As for getting all of my junk home, I think I've got it covered as well. No worries!

For those of you who care, but didn't know, I posted about 50 pictures on my Flickr account yesterday. This address should get you there: http://www.flickr.com/photos/auddieellie/sets/72157600700932911/

Tomorrow is London! I'm very excited. We're leaving in the morning (no class!) and eventually seeing Love's Labours Lost at The Globe! It isn't my first choice of Shakespeare's plays, but it'll be fun nonetheless. Right now we're reading Midsummer Night's Dream, which I love. I wish we could see THAT at the Globe! Instead, we'll be seeing it next week at Trinity College, here in Oxford.

Speaking of which, I need to work on my Midsummer essay. I'd love to hear how all of you are doing! Leave a comment and tell me what you've been up to, if you have the time.

Happy Birthday, America!

I think tonight might be something of a slower night for me. We'll see. For now, I have a few moments to write! Every day in Oxford gets better and better, but every day I spend out on the town means more work is piling up back at BNC. Tonight I'll have to crank out two papers, finish reading Macbeth, read Love's Labours Lost, and then start on a paper about that as well. Being a slacker is not safe when you have a whole semester's worth of work to do in a few weeks!

So. Yesterday was America Day! Hooray! We celebrated by running around the quad with sparklers, being extremely loud, and playing flip cup and beer pong. Good stuff! Even better - me and Angie won! Wooot!!!

After that, we all headed into the BNC pub. That's right, folks. The pub is about a 30 second walk from the door of my room. I love it. Jessica and I sat with about a dozen of the British BNC kids and tried to follow along with their really bizzare drinking games. It was absolutely hilarious. Plus, they go and play every night, so Jessica and I will probably go back for a few hours tonight. (Don't worry. Plenty of time for homework.) The two main people we met were AK and Tim - who challenged us Americans to a cricket match! Mwahahahahaha. I'm so stoked. Tonight, I think we're teaching them Thumper or beer pong. Or both. Should be fun.

After that, the Oakland gang all wandered around, looking for a pub or bar that was open past 11pm and had people our age in it. No luck. We ended up at a wine bar, where we were definitely the loudest people (that's usually the case). There was a bar that was supposed to be an America, down-home southern food sort of place... but it sucked. I left early with a few of the other girls and was asleep by midnight.

I got the cutest shoes today!!! I know, you're all thrilled, right? They're awesome. I took pictures. If I can figure it out, I'll start posting pics from all the things I've been doing. (I know I've been saying that for days, but I really mean it!) Everything here is ridiculously expensive. If it doesn't warm up soon, I'll break down and buy some sort of fleece pull-over. I see loads of locals bundled up in coats and scarves, whereas I'm just in a sweatshirt.

Speaking of which - hoodies. Apparently, they're the ultimate tourist indication. Only Americans and tourists wear hoodies here. And backpacks, but that's more understandable. So, I'm trying to stay away from my hoodies as much as possible. Thank goodness I brought a sweater! Plus, every girl here wears cut canvas flats (like my Rocket Dogs, if ya know what I mean). They're in every store, and not too expensive!

It's raining again, but I think it's hilarious. British weather makes me laugh. Plus, I don't mind the rain, so it's all good. Even better, now that I've waterproofed all of my shoes and I'll do my bags as well.

Great. Now I feel guilty for writing in this instead of working on my paper(s). I'll do another update once I'm more caught up.