So I'm drinking this juice right now that I haven't craved in a while. Probably because the first time I drank it I didn't know there was such a thing as juice that you use water to dilute. Quite a nice idea actually because it makes it last longer. Definitely not something that exists in America.
I'm sorry I haven't written the rest of my blog for "Easter holiday" as I have been lazy… I will write more soon (I HOPE!) :/
Showing posts with label culture. Show all posts
Showing posts with label culture. Show all posts
Sunday, 2 May 2010
Sunday, 21 March 2010
Randomness
So, my boyfriend is just the sweetest ever…
• We're going to London next week together and I think he's more excited than me. Lol.
• This morning, I cut myself shaving and texted him "Do you have a band aid?" and he didn't text me back, he ran down here and gave me band aids!!!
Some differences I should probably discuss…
• So fire exits are all over the place, just about every door in a building will say "this is a fire door," which confused me at first because I thought I was going to set off an alarm. Then, in stairwells, there will always be green signs that have a little man running and a door that say "fire exit." It's really crazy.
• I don't mind saying "lift" although I still catch myself thinking "elevator" and I don't mind saying bin but I often will say, "trash…uh….bin…?" :P I continue to say "jeans" or "corduroys" instead of "trousers" because "trousers" makes me think of Pewee Herman's…uh… "trousers" (up above the belly button with suspenders…eww...) Pants mean underwear.... Why can't they just call them "panties" or "boxers"….or "underwear"? :P
• I'm really getting attached to some of the food here…like… "Ginger nut biscuits" and these scone-things they have at breakfast here. Oh…and PANINIS!!!!! OMG they're THE NUM!!! :D
• Yesterday I was labeled as a "suitable American" by one of Stuart's friends… apparently most Americans here are wild or something.
• I can't help but feel different as soon as I open my mouth, but at least I'm speaking their language… :)
• There are really friendly people who work in stores such as Tesco…something you wouldn't find in any Wal-Mart.
By The Way...
The New Hall Ball (last week) was amazing! There was a chocolate fountain, a regular dance floor and a Ceilidh! Stuart wasn't there but I went with all my other friends (Alanna and her boyfriend, David and friend, Martin...then we met up Angus, Sean, and saw others around.) I Ceilidh-ed with Angus and and Alanna and I danced to all these songs we really liked. It was really fun! :)
----------------
Now playing: Sugar Glyder - Without One
via FoxyTunes
• We're going to London next week together and I think he's more excited than me. Lol.
• This morning, I cut myself shaving and texted him "Do you have a band aid?" and he didn't text me back, he ran down here and gave me band aids!!!
Some differences I should probably discuss…
• So fire exits are all over the place, just about every door in a building will say "this is a fire door," which confused me at first because I thought I was going to set off an alarm. Then, in stairwells, there will always be green signs that have a little man running and a door that say "fire exit." It's really crazy.
• I don't mind saying "lift" although I still catch myself thinking "elevator" and I don't mind saying bin but I often will say, "trash…uh….bin…?" :P I continue to say "jeans" or "corduroys" instead of "trousers" because "trousers" makes me think of Pewee Herman's…uh… "trousers" (up above the belly button with suspenders…eww...) Pants mean underwear.... Why can't they just call them "panties" or "boxers"….or "underwear"? :P
• I'm really getting attached to some of the food here…like… "Ginger nut biscuits" and these scone-things they have at breakfast here. Oh…and PANINIS!!!!! OMG they're THE NUM!!! :D
• Yesterday I was labeled as a "suitable American" by one of Stuart's friends… apparently most Americans here are wild or something.
• I can't help but feel different as soon as I open my mouth, but at least I'm speaking their language… :)
• There are really friendly people who work in stores such as Tesco…something you wouldn't find in any Wal-Mart.
By The Way...
The New Hall Ball (last week) was amazing! There was a chocolate fountain, a regular dance floor and a Ceilidh! Stuart wasn't there but I went with all my other friends (Alanna and her boyfriend, David and friend, Martin...then we met up Angus, Sean, and saw others around.) I Ceilidh-ed with Angus and and Alanna and I danced to all these songs we really liked. It was really fun! :)
----------------
Now playing: Sugar Glyder - Without One
via FoxyTunes
Monday, 8 March 2010
A Magical Night
Instead of "dances" they have "balls" here which will often provide live music a DJ or a Ceilidh band. Each dormitory has it's own ball and so do societies. I attended my first ball on the 26th of February.
My friend (at the time), Stuart (who is one of the people who I sit with at dinner and the guy who played in the snow with me) asked me if I wanted to come to the DRA (David Russell Apartments) Ball with him. However, he did not specify if I was to be his date or whatever. I believed it was safe to assume we were going as friends. Despite that, I was still very excited and somewhat hopeful (since I had developed a crush on Stuart in the previous week). My friend Alana was nice enough to let me use her hair curler and I got ready in her room (which is, ironically, right across the hall from Stuart's room). Once ready, I went and knocked on Stuart's door. He opened the door very slowly and Alana came out of her room saying, "She looks pretty, right?" and he was like, "Yeah!" As we walked down the stairs he said that he really did think I looked good and I told him he looked handsome, as he did. :)
It was a very cold and rainy night and I was not only wearing heels and a dress but still recovering from a cold. We waited on our taxi, which he had ordered at dinner and did not come. Sitting in the lobby, we compared drivers licenses (which was interesting) and talked until we finally gave up waiting and called another taxi. The taxi took us to DRA, where the buses left to go to the place where the ball was held. When we arrived, there were a bunch of people blocking the front door so we ran to the side door. As we were running, I instinctively (and subconsciously) grabbed his hand. He laced my fingers in his. After this, I thought maybe he did like me too, but I wasn't quite sure. We waited inside for a while to stay out of the cold and I met one of his friends who oddly left us alone after a few minutes, which made me just a little more suspicious.
After a while, we finally decided to get on a bus. When we went outside, we saw the line ("queue") was huge! We got in and waited. As we ascended in the "queue", I noticed a bracelet on the ground, which Stuart urged me to pick up. I was inclined to see if anyone dropped it, while he was inclined for me to keep it. It was silver with hearts on it. Upon finally getting on a bus, (many came during our wait), and shouting to everyone if they dropped a bracelet and no one claiming it, Stuart put the bracelet on me and that was when he kissed me. The ball itself was interesting. Upon entering a tent, there were paninis (like subs, but more like sandwiches) being served along with other things and tables. Making our way back, we were looking for somewhere to put our stuff down. Through the tent was the building where ice cream was being served on the right, a bar in the back and a dance floor to the left with a live band. There were two rooms off to the side, a room where coats were taken and another dance floor and where the toilets were. We saw a few friends, got some free ice cream and danced for a while. The band kept loosing power, unfortunately but not much fazed us that night as we were so happy just to finally know the feeling was mutual. We danced until the DJ came on, which is when we left due to Stuart's distaste for the music.
Since then, Stuart has been my boyfriend. He has been great and is very gentlemanly. He likes to make fun of the way I say certain things and has made it his goal to "british-ize" the way I say things. The way I say "bridge", which is already funny to my parents makes him laugh and he is determined to make me say it the right way one day. He also has made fun of me for saying "jelly" instead of "jam", "pants" instead of "trousers" and makes sure that I am saying "chips" instead of "fries", "crisps" instead of "chips", and "lift" instead of "elevator". Stuart said that he hopes that I will go back and say things this way, which will somehow influence everyone else in the states to and so it will be all his fault. What big aspirations he has...
On a side note, another funny thing I learned at lunch is that they still call "curly fries" "curly fries" and not "curly chips". I asked as to the logic of this and my friend, Angus answered, "Chips are thick and fries are thin." Hmmm....interesting...
My friend (at the time), Stuart (who is one of the people who I sit with at dinner and the guy who played in the snow with me) asked me if I wanted to come to the DRA (David Russell Apartments) Ball with him. However, he did not specify if I was to be his date or whatever. I believed it was safe to assume we were going as friends. Despite that, I was still very excited and somewhat hopeful (since I had developed a crush on Stuart in the previous week). My friend Alana was nice enough to let me use her hair curler and I got ready in her room (which is, ironically, right across the hall from Stuart's room). Once ready, I went and knocked on Stuart's door. He opened the door very slowly and Alana came out of her room saying, "She looks pretty, right?" and he was like, "Yeah!" As we walked down the stairs he said that he really did think I looked good and I told him he looked handsome, as he did. :)
It was a very cold and rainy night and I was not only wearing heels and a dress but still recovering from a cold. We waited on our taxi, which he had ordered at dinner and did not come. Sitting in the lobby, we compared drivers licenses (which was interesting) and talked until we finally gave up waiting and called another taxi. The taxi took us to DRA, where the buses left to go to the place where the ball was held. When we arrived, there were a bunch of people blocking the front door so we ran to the side door. As we were running, I instinctively (and subconsciously) grabbed his hand. He laced my fingers in his. After this, I thought maybe he did like me too, but I wasn't quite sure. We waited inside for a while to stay out of the cold and I met one of his friends who oddly left us alone after a few minutes, which made me just a little more suspicious.
After a while, we finally decided to get on a bus. When we went outside, we saw the line ("queue") was huge! We got in and waited. As we ascended in the "queue", I noticed a bracelet on the ground, which Stuart urged me to pick up. I was inclined to see if anyone dropped it, while he was inclined for me to keep it. It was silver with hearts on it. Upon finally getting on a bus, (many came during our wait), and shouting to everyone if they dropped a bracelet and no one claiming it, Stuart put the bracelet on me and that was when he kissed me. The ball itself was interesting. Upon entering a tent, there were paninis (like subs, but more like sandwiches) being served along with other things and tables. Making our way back, we were looking for somewhere to put our stuff down. Through the tent was the building where ice cream was being served on the right, a bar in the back and a dance floor to the left with a live band. There were two rooms off to the side, a room where coats were taken and another dance floor and where the toilets were. We saw a few friends, got some free ice cream and danced for a while. The band kept loosing power, unfortunately but not much fazed us that night as we were so happy just to finally know the feeling was mutual. We danced until the DJ came on, which is when we left due to Stuart's distaste for the music.
Since then, Stuart has been my boyfriend. He has been great and is very gentlemanly. He likes to make fun of the way I say certain things and has made it his goal to "british-ize" the way I say things. The way I say "bridge", which is already funny to my parents makes him laugh and he is determined to make me say it the right way one day. He also has made fun of me for saying "jelly" instead of "jam", "pants" instead of "trousers" and makes sure that I am saying "chips" instead of "fries", "crisps" instead of "chips", and "lift" instead of "elevator". Stuart said that he hopes that I will go back and say things this way, which will somehow influence everyone else in the states to and so it will be all his fault. What big aspirations he has...
On a side note, another funny thing I learned at lunch is that they still call "curly fries" "curly fries" and not "curly chips". I asked as to the logic of this and my friend, Angus answered, "Chips are thick and fries are thin." Hmmm....interesting...
Sunday, 21 February 2010
Culture Lesson #1
I have noticed that it is really hard to write a blog everyday. I have not been able to keep up with it. Not because I can't, but well because I'm worried about not keeping up with class for the sake of my blog. :P I've decided to start some topic blogs as well so that I can keep writing without feeling like I must recount a WHOLE DAY!
Today's topic is differences. It is a quite odd concept to go to a country where everyone speaks your language but the culture there is different. I think I'm going to do this in list format.
• TRAFFIC: Quite obviously, a big difference between the British and Americans is which side of the road they drive on. But there is much more to it than just the SIDE they drive on…
○ LOOK RIGHT FIRST BEFORE CROSSING!!!: well, it seems self-explanatory, but in America everyone looks left first because that's where the closest cars are coming from. It's a confusing concept too because you're thinking…"oh….they drive on the left…so, left?" but it's really right.
○ WATCH OUT!!! (no J-walking): there seems to be no such thing as "pedestrians have the right away" here. I'm used to that being the #1 rule to driving so it's no wonder that I'm surprised when I run out in the street and cars don't slow down. (DON'T WORRY MOMMY! I made sure they were far enough away first!!!! And I haven't been hit, and I know better now, so PLEASE DON'T WORRY!!!)
○ USE THE CROSS-WALKS!!!: there are two types of cross-walks: ones with traffic lights where you have to push a button for the light to turn red (the light doesn't stay red very long though so if you're not right up on the street when the light turns red, you're probably going to have to wait for it to turn green and then red again) and then there are the cross-walks with big poles beside them that have yellow blinking lights at the top. These are the best because it seems cars have to stop at these whenever a pedestrian is crossing.
○ Round-abouts: these are used at intersections instead of traffic lights. A little more convenient for the drivers (not having to wait for the light) but less convenient for pedestrians (having to go find a cross-walk nearby, that's usually a traffic light one)
• FOOD: oh, the dinning hall…
○ We're all starving: Upon entering the dinning hall for the first time, I was excited to see that it looked somewhat similar to Gee's set-up (kitchen inside, with lots to choose from) as for some reason I was expecting them to give us a general plate of food that everyone got. However, as I went off naming the things I wanted, I was yelled at, "You can only choose ONE entrée!" (I was quite upset…I am used to an all-you-can-eat buffet in Gee dining hall). Another reason why this is upsetting is when there are long lines and I cannot see all there is to offer, I'll often see a more desirable food after I have already settled for something I was unsure of. However, I am not able to get this more desirable food and it really does upset me. Surprisingly enough though, they seem quite generous with breakfast as I can get an entrée, a cereal, a fruit, toast, AND coffee!! During lunch and dinner, however, we can only get an entrée, fruit and a side (either appetizer or desert) so if you're really hungry you're screwed! At least the entrée comes with salad…
○ Shortage of Ketchup: I have also had a hard time with ketchup! Whenever I get "chips" (fries), they only give me two packets of ketchup. However, that is sadly not enough to cover all of my "chips." :'( I tried going back to get just one more and got YELLED at and then they called seconds (yes, they call seconds and you can go get something else if there's anything appetizing left, but I don't know how exactly it works so I haven't done it yet and whenever I want to it seems I come too early and must wait 45minutes before seconds, so I just leave) and I tried to get more ketchup again and got yelled at again. :'( I guess I'm too American.
○ Pitchers: When going out to dinner, everyone will get a glass and a pitcher of water to share. I was worried about my "endless cup" going away, but this works. :)
• Academia: here's what I want you to find….now go off and find it!!!
○ Print your own syllabi!: "Hello class, welcome! I assume all of you have been on Web CT and printed off the syllabus, yes?" (Web CT????!) "It has a list of readings on it. You have to do all of the ones on Section A, but the Section B readings are optional." (Readings??? Wait…what textbook do I need to buy??? I'm confused!!!!) This is how my first lecture began. The lecture's words in quotes and my thoughts in parenthesis. She went on to confuse me more by talking about some other professor coming to talk to us in week 3 and in the tutorials. The only thing I understood correctly is that I was not going to be GIVEN a syllabus, I had to go print it myself. It was the same in my psychology class, but in my other philosophy class, I was lucky to have a professor who handed them out. I did find out what Web CT is (had to do a search) and I logged on and all my syllabi were on there and a few of the readings as well.
○ There's no such thing as a "textbook": Upon reading my syllabi, nothing made since to me. Every reading is a different article…so what textbooks did I need? I didn't find this out until my first Philosophy of Mind course when the professor was talking about 3 different textbooks we could buy. I raised my hand and said, "So…do we have to buy them all or just one of them…?" He responded, "Oh…well, yes…uh…I believe textbooks mean something different in America…textbooks are books to give you just a background information on the topic." I was still a little confused, but basically I only needed one and I really don't need it very often either. :/ There is also a collection I needed as well. So far, it's more of the "textbook" of the course I guess you could say. I'm glad it's useful.
There is, of course, the different things they will say, but I will go into that another day...
Today's topic is differences. It is a quite odd concept to go to a country where everyone speaks your language but the culture there is different. I think I'm going to do this in list format.
• TRAFFIC: Quite obviously, a big difference between the British and Americans is which side of the road they drive on. But there is much more to it than just the SIDE they drive on…
○ LOOK RIGHT FIRST BEFORE CROSSING!!!: well, it seems self-explanatory, but in America everyone looks left first because that's where the closest cars are coming from. It's a confusing concept too because you're thinking…"oh….they drive on the left…so, left?" but it's really right.
○ WATCH OUT!!! (no J-walking): there seems to be no such thing as "pedestrians have the right away" here. I'm used to that being the #1 rule to driving so it's no wonder that I'm surprised when I run out in the street and cars don't slow down. (DON'T WORRY MOMMY! I made sure they were far enough away first!!!! And I haven't been hit, and I know better now, so PLEASE DON'T WORRY!!!)
○ USE THE CROSS-WALKS!!!: there are two types of cross-walks: ones with traffic lights where you have to push a button for the light to turn red (the light doesn't stay red very long though so if you're not right up on the street when the light turns red, you're probably going to have to wait for it to turn green and then red again) and then there are the cross-walks with big poles beside them that have yellow blinking lights at the top. These are the best because it seems cars have to stop at these whenever a pedestrian is crossing.
○ Round-abouts: these are used at intersections instead of traffic lights. A little more convenient for the drivers (not having to wait for the light) but less convenient for pedestrians (having to go find a cross-walk nearby, that's usually a traffic light one)
• FOOD: oh, the dinning hall…
○ We're all starving: Upon entering the dinning hall for the first time, I was excited to see that it looked somewhat similar to Gee's set-up (kitchen inside, with lots to choose from) as for some reason I was expecting them to give us a general plate of food that everyone got. However, as I went off naming the things I wanted, I was yelled at, "You can only choose ONE entrée!" (I was quite upset…I am used to an all-you-can-eat buffet in Gee dining hall). Another reason why this is upsetting is when there are long lines and I cannot see all there is to offer, I'll often see a more desirable food after I have already settled for something I was unsure of. However, I am not able to get this more desirable food and it really does upset me. Surprisingly enough though, they seem quite generous with breakfast as I can get an entrée, a cereal, a fruit, toast, AND coffee!! During lunch and dinner, however, we can only get an entrée, fruit and a side (either appetizer or desert) so if you're really hungry you're screwed! At least the entrée comes with salad…
○ Shortage of Ketchup: I have also had a hard time with ketchup! Whenever I get "chips" (fries), they only give me two packets of ketchup. However, that is sadly not enough to cover all of my "chips." :'( I tried going back to get just one more and got YELLED at and then they called seconds (yes, they call seconds and you can go get something else if there's anything appetizing left, but I don't know how exactly it works so I haven't done it yet and whenever I want to it seems I come too early and must wait 45minutes before seconds, so I just leave) and I tried to get more ketchup again and got yelled at again. :'( I guess I'm too American.
○ Pitchers: When going out to dinner, everyone will get a glass and a pitcher of water to share. I was worried about my "endless cup" going away, but this works. :)
• Academia: here's what I want you to find….now go off and find it!!!
○ Print your own syllabi!: "Hello class, welcome! I assume all of you have been on Web CT and printed off the syllabus, yes?" (Web CT????!) "It has a list of readings on it. You have to do all of the ones on Section A, but the Section B readings are optional." (Readings??? Wait…what textbook do I need to buy??? I'm confused!!!!) This is how my first lecture began. The lecture's words in quotes and my thoughts in parenthesis. She went on to confuse me more by talking about some other professor coming to talk to us in week 3 and in the tutorials. The only thing I understood correctly is that I was not going to be GIVEN a syllabus, I had to go print it myself. It was the same in my psychology class, but in my other philosophy class, I was lucky to have a professor who handed them out. I did find out what Web CT is (had to do a search) and I logged on and all my syllabi were on there and a few of the readings as well.
○ There's no such thing as a "textbook": Upon reading my syllabi, nothing made since to me. Every reading is a different article…so what textbooks did I need? I didn't find this out until my first Philosophy of Mind course when the professor was talking about 3 different textbooks we could buy. I raised my hand and said, "So…do we have to buy them all or just one of them…?" He responded, "Oh…well, yes…uh…I believe textbooks mean something different in America…textbooks are books to give you just a background information on the topic." I was still a little confused, but basically I only needed one and I really don't need it very often either. :/ There is also a collection I needed as well. So far, it's more of the "textbook" of the course I guess you could say. I'm glad it's useful.
There is, of course, the different things they will say, but I will go into that another day...
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