Clothes

I intended to be streamlined. One suitcase. FAIL. I forgot that I left half of Macy's in my closet at home. Good lord I have a lot of clothes. Many of which I don't wear. But it's hard to give a lot of it away. Because there's always that "well, I really like it" or "someday, once I have a job again." In reality, I just need to get rid of it. It's doing no one any good sitting in my closet here. I think the trouble is that I feel like I spent all this time amassing it, and to just give it away makes me feel like I'm just going to have to start all over again. Pain. In. The. Ass.

Merry Christmas

Though they're spread through several continents at this point, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone. I miss and love you all.

Kansas City, Here I Am

Yes, it's been too long since my last post. Spare me. I've been busy with school. And friends. And playing Farmville on Facebook (thank god that addiction is over). But here I am, back in Kansas City, town of my birth.

Officially, I'm not done with the semester. While classes have ended, I still have two papers and two exams to complete prior to starting up again. I haven't even begun to think about completing those papers yet. Oh well, after Christmas.

Really, the last month and a half has been like the other months, full of work, writing, reading, and--yes--partying*. A few of the Americans (along with a couple of Brits and a Canadian) hosted a wonderful thanksgiving meal. Turkey and all. My responsibility was the cranberry sauce. Unfortunately, the supermarkets I went to were out of whole cranberries, so I had to buy the jarred stuff (no cans here, my friends!). I may have overbought a bit. With more-or-less a liter and a half of the stuff. Lets just say there's been a lot of straw-cranberry yogurt for the last few weeks. Being the night before a presentation, naturally I stayed up far too late, and was completely knackered by the time the presentation rolled around. Our group,instead of a traditional powerpoint decided to do it in talk-show format, with yours truly in the role of Oprah. It went off like a charm. Lots of fun.

Other than birthdays for friends, a few late nights, and a great Christmas meal, it's been lots of paper writing and reading. Though I've learned a lot this semester, theory-wise, I'm really to dive into more practical application next semester. Lets just hope the professors pull through.

So on the 14th, after a long night at one of my mates' house, I left for the states on a plane where the in-flight entertainment was malfunctioning. And boy, did the family next to me let the stewardess know about it. They got free Bloody Marys, I got a headache. Even trade, I suppose as I don't really like tomato juice. But, I was back in KC for a day and a half, then I left to see my friends in Chicago for a few. They held a rousing Christmas Cocktail party, replete myself taking off my trousers in the middle of the party (all in good fun, not drunken). So back to KC on the 20th for my parents' Channukah party, helping to paint the family room with my dad, and then Christmas Eve dinner tomorrow (yes, we celebrate both). On the 29th I'll head off to Vermont to spend New Years with friends and then down to NYC on the 1st to a wedding. Then to DC, then back to NYC to fly out. It's going to be fast and furious, but fun. But, I'm still looking forward to come back to Leeds and my friends there (though not to the mountain of work).

Hopefully in the next few days I'll get around to getting hoodies for my course (I'm slow on these things...sorry), and setting up my website--stephenanemeth.com. I've decided to take a new approach to blogging, and begin blogging again about whatever I feel like. Because, frankly, there isn't enough specifically about Leeds to excite me. So, I'll probably switch back to my other blog (thricetoldtales.blogspot.com) in the coming weeks. Or, you can go to the website once it's up and running.

Until then...MERRY CHRISTMAS, etc.

*I really hate that gerund. It's so non descriptive, since rarely am I actually going to a specific party. But, I often find myself doing the things that one does at a party when I go out (booze, dancing, saying inappropriate things, retracting inappropriate phrases, etc.) so I suppose it will have to suffice here for the sake of succinctness.

Friday Night Plights

This week (6, if you're counting) began the start of my "reading week." Trust me, it's in quotes for a reason. The idea is that you can catch up on all the reading you've been slacking on over the past few weeks, and work on the hundreds of papers and group projects that will be due in the subsequent ones. Clearly they didn't consult me when coming up with this brilliant idea.

After long nights last Friday and Saturday, Sunday promised to be a day of reflection (ha!) and reading. Not so much. Turns out my body likes this thing called "sleep" and focusing on anything longer than a blog post turned out to be a complete hassle. I did, however, manage to write about 4 paragraphs for a group project, though. That roughly works out to 1 paragraph for every 4 hours I was awake. I'm a rock star.

Between the responsibilities of group projects, plus my unenviable ability to distract myself with shiny things, reading week has turned more into research week. I mean, I guess I cursorly read a few dozen articles, but did any of it stick? Guess.

Aside from the group meetings, the big project this week was writing a 2,500 word essay on the extent to which "the business case" can promote sustainable business practice. Let me tell you: the ideas I had...and then realized were dumb. Sure I can tell you why a business case is good. I can tell you how it should be used, but that question "to what extent" has tripped me up for most of my academic career. Give me a "how?" and I'm solid. "why?" even better. But "to what extent" causes me to inevitably throw up my hands and say "it just does, OKAY!?!?" Not an effective argument in a paper, apparently. So here I sit on Friday night, paper started, but without any direction. Yep, I've got sources. Yep, I've got points, but I cant seem to make them all go together. Unfortunately, my penchant for extended metaphor keeps getting in the way, and I end up with a bunch of really good points but no academic support. This kind of writing, it appears, is not my forte (pronounced FORT...get it right).

Speaking of my inability to write, I got back my first essay. And I did, well, alright. Mediocre really. I figured it wasn't going to be stellar (1500 words on "What is sustainable development?" Really?) but I assumed that the feedback would be good and give me areas to improve upon. I was wrong. Much of the commentary was contradictory and the parts that could have been good advice were so vague I really don't have any takeaways other than I need to define things better (note to professor: so do you). I'm actually not as upset with the grade as I am with the fact that I have no idea what to do with the comments. Hopefully talking them through will give me more insight, but I doubt it. When I talked to him today he seemed just as confused by them as I was. Good signs.

On the upside, I'm going climbing this weekend, so it should be a nice getaway from my seemingly endless ability to dwell on arbitrary judgments.

Also of note, though semi-unrelated, I've been thinking a lot about what I want to do when I graduate. For a while I was thinking of maybe exploring a PhD. Then maybe a consultant (again). I think what I really want to do is talk a lot (shocking) and think, plus play around on the internet a lot. So I'm thinking now that the way forward may be something in publishing field. I'm not a stellar writer, and I have no portfolio to speak of so this task may be a bit more difficult than I want it to be, but right now, I'm thinking that maybe something in the vein of an online magazine/blog/site about sustainability could be a good career move. We shall see though. All I know is I have to do something more creative than making PowerPoints and work-plans all day. Thirty more years of that, and I'll end up a depressed, philandering alcoholic whose sole respite is the occasional phone call from a long-lost friend. Anyway, happy weekend!

All Hallows' Eve-Eve

On this Mischief Night (Devil's Night for your Michiganders), I find it necessary to reflect on Halloweens of yore, and my weird traditions/memories.

Over here, Halloween is primarily a childrens' holiday, sure some people dress up, but since fancy dress (costumes) are a common occurrence on any night of the week (I kid you not), I suppose it doesn't hold the same special place in the hearts of the English, though apparently it's a bigger holiday in Scotland and Ireland. MASSIVE fail England. Massive fail. Clearly, Halloween is one of the best nights of the year.

Despite the fact that in America, for women, it has largely become a chance to experiment with various careers (Slutty Nurse, Slutty Librarian, Slutty Sanitation Worker, etc.), it does remain one of the few times when you can express your creativity in a real and meaningful way. I love the unexpected costumes that people come up with. Case in point, my sister went as a towel rack (two towels attached to a bra). Yet others have gone as "The Fall of Man" by Magritte. Absolutely brilliant.

I tend to have wonderful ideas...in May. Sadly, despite my efforts to remember these, I inevitably fail. I was considering going as Max from "Where the Wild Things Are." Unfortunately, my onezee didn't come in time (oh, don't worry, it's still on the way). Plus I was facebook-threatened if I went as that. So I didn't. Instead I'm going as Patrick Bateman from American Psycho. For those of you who haven't seen the incredible movie that is American Psycho, behold (I can't embed): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vzN3qO-qc8U

I'm excited. I even printed the business cards: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoIvd3zzu4Y

I suppose it reflects something in me that I'm a little OCD about the details. OK, so the font isn't Cillian Rail, but I did manage to get something similar. Also, I found the Four! album cover and have my CD printed and ready to go. So it's not the most creative, but it works given my limited resources.

Last year, I was a banana split, the year before, a hipster, other years I've been sports themes, usually due to a lack of forethought. But, I always get really excited about Halloween. By far, my best costume ever was a man in the shower, done when I was in elementary school (Briarwood Bulldogs!!!). My mom, dad, and I built a shower curtain around me that I could wear, with a shower head and cascades of glittering blue foil in the place of water. It was quite the costume. I may just repurpose it again if I get the chance.

Halloween in elementary school was always something special. The day would start out with the music teacher coming on over the school's PA system and playing a recording of Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor. Then, the day's announcements would be read in a commensurately scary tone. After that it was onto the classroom Halloween party, provided by the PTA mothers. Pumpkin cookies (natch), apple cider with dry ice, and likely a game of bobbing for apples or some such activity would take place. When we had library on said day, we knew we were in for a treat. Though we had some pretty sweet (for the time) technology, like Laserdiscs, the scarier movies were always played on that little tape/filmstrip combo. Essentially it was a film projector where you would play a tape of someone reading the story, and at the "ding" you would advance the frame. It was AMAZING. Trust me. Anyway, it was usually something like something about a haunted house or, my favorite, Saint-Saen's Danse Macabre, with oil paintings to accompany the music. A must-see for any 10 year-old. The younger grades would have a costume parade, full of pride in their various costumes of dragons, witches, ghosts, TV sets, and M&Ms. It was always one of the best days of the year.

At some point Halloween became less about the day and more about the night, with the obligatory parties, jungle juice, and flip cup tournaments. Though it's changed in the way it's celebrated, I still get giddy on the day before, hunting around for that perfect accessory. The one that makes the whole costume. I can't wait to see the creativity on display tonight.

Even though it's the night before, since the party is tonight, Happy Halloween. Shortly, I'm off to an old gothic house to celebrate with my coursemates and friends here. To my DC/Chicago/NYC/KC people, wish I could be there with you all. I'll be sure to raise a glass tonight. On to show these Brits how it's done!

And Kristen, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Pictures!

Well, I finally managed to get a few pictures of my flat and of the campus. It's not much but I'll try and get more in the next few weeks. To take you on a tour from campus back to my flat, I present...

Our student services center

One of the older buildings on campus, which forms the Clothworker's Court

The park I walk across (Hyde Park)

The street where I live

View of flat from the outside.

My kitchen

My Room (some things never change)

Classes are beginning to get a bit more interesting. Although Research Methods continues to be a snoozer, we do have a few essays in the next few weeks, so I suppose I need to start getting prepped for that. Unfortunately, I tend to write best under pressure, so I fear what the days before the essays are due will bring. On the upside, my shipment of wine from the Naked Wines should be coming soon. 6 bottles of (hopefully) decent wine at £6 each. Sounded like a deal to me. And a coping mechanism for the coming weeks.

Next week is reading week meaning no classes and a chance to catch up on all the readings we haven't been doing. In reality I'm sure I'll spend a few days reading/writing, but I'm hoping to take a day trip somewhere. Maybe to York or Durham if the weather holds.

The weather has turned fully into fall. It's started to get a bit grey and rainy, but the leaves are changing, so it presents nice contrast, at least. Plus, it's a good excuse to eat heavier foods (storing my fat for winter).

Speaking of fat, while I've been running on a (semi) regular basis, I have yet to actually go to the school gym. This is primarily because it's terrible. Seriously, it looks like the weight room in our high school. I'm glad they're building a new one, but for now, it's still daunting to have to go, sign in, and work out on one of the 20 treadmills they have--shared between 30,000 students. Maybe I'll go tomorrow. Then again, maybe I'll just eat. I'm much better at it.

Friday I finally made it to the theater downtown to go and see The Fantastic Mr. Fox with a friend. It was comforting to know that the overcharging of concessions has made it to England. 1 student ticket, a small popcorn--which could have fed a small village--and a "small" coke (same story) set me back £12. That's about $20 for those of you counting. I think I'll skip the food next time.

I didn't mention it in my previous post, but the place where I saw The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus is one of the only gas-lit movie theaters left in the UK. It's pretty cool. A balcony, non-stadium seating, a lack of cupholders, and the soft flicker of gas-light (seriously) during the film give the whole experience a very pre-WW1 feel. I think I'll be attending there more often.

In other news, my upstairs neighbor continues to blast his subwoofer right above my head. As I'm writing this. Ugh. Sadly, I don't think reasoning with him is going to do much. So I'll just use my tried and true technique of banging on the ceiling. Fortunately, he has really good taste in music. Unfortunately, I don't want to listen to the bassline of the new(ish) Animal Collective CD five times in a row.

I did just find out that William Fitzsimmons is coming to Manchester on November 13th so I may try and go see that if I can recruit anyone to go.

Also, I have my debit card! Finally. But I got locked out with my PIN number, so I can only buy things online until my replacement PIN comes.

The subwoofer is getting to me now. Time to go punch some holes in my ceiling. You think I could just leave headphones at his doorstep? Also of note. He sounds like a bleating sheep when singing. Just sayin'.

On Food

To be honest, the food here has not taken much getting used to. There are certainly more meat pies and their variations (pasties, etc.), but aside from a few things, I'm able to get most of what I need/want. I can't say much about the restaurant scene, as I've only been to two or three thus far, but the curries are AMAZING and generally, the quality of prepackaged foods are years ahead of what we have in the U.S. Also, food is far less expensive.

I'm not going to get into a rant about food politics, though I certainly could, but needless to say, it is far more likely that someone of limited means could buy a healthy meal here than in the U.S. What's interesting is that looking at people and the kinds of food they have in their carts, even though healthier options are cheaper, people still load up on the processed carbs in the form of sausage rolls, bakewell tarts, and mince pies. This is making me somewhat reconsider my stance on food politics in America. Although I wish that the fruits and veg were cheaper at my local Whole Foods or Safeway in the States, there is a very large cultural barrier that may never be broken down when it comes to getting people to eat healthy. Simply put, tradition often rules out over logic. I truly think the only way that food policies could get people to eat healthier would be to tax the hell out of the foods with higher calorie/fat ratios, to discourage people from eating them. This is not something that will likely happen anytime soon, though. Nor should it. In spite of what the hall monitor in me wants.

What is nice though is that I don't have to worry about high fructose corn syrup when I go to the store, since it's banned here. So many food companies have complained that they would have to reformulate all their brands and food prices will go up, etc. Given what I've seen, this doesn't seem to be the case, since most of those foods are produced globally. Honestly there's not THAT much difference in taste between an Oreo here and one in the States, I don't think most people would be able to tell the difference unless they were looking for it.

I know I said no food politics. I lied.

Anyway, I'm a big fan of the Indian food over here. It outranks the U.S. stuff by a mile. But given Britain's colonial dealings with India, I suppose it should. The pizza here is by-and-large pretty weak. I have yet to find a proper stonebaked pizza with the charred crust. I'm still feeling around for a decent sushi place. Unfortunately the "New York Maki Rolls" (whatever THAT is) at the sushi place on campus are pretty crap, though the fish itself isn't too bad. I haven't tried it here yet, but from what I hear, Mexican is pretty much a lost cause. And barbeque? Ha. I was pleasantly surprised by a nice Italian place only a few (30) minutes walk from me. I'll probably be spending more money than I should there.

Burgers, despite their ubiquity here, are generally pretty average. I'm not sure what the British definition of burger is, but in the states, it's generally meat, salt, pepper, and maybe a bit of garlic salt/onion powder. Apparently it's common to put in things like breadcrumbs, egg, and onion. To me, this is a meatball, but to each their own, I suppose. I did make a proper burger tonight, with Shake Shack sauce (nb: the sauce recipe is amazing, I highly recommend you try it), which was exciting. It was probably 90% of what I was expecting, though the meat was a bit different, and I can't find a Kosher dill here to save my life.

Also, I miss delis. I'm really considering opening up a (sustainable) kosher deli with decent pastrami here. Max's doesn't look to promising from what I can tell online. I have yet to head to Myers to see if I can procure some pastrami, but I'll probably head over there soon and bring back a proper deli sandwich for my coursemates. Hopefully they'll have kichel, my all time favourite jewish food (aside from mandel bread).

Either way, I'm slowly readjusting to my D.C. routine of cooking decent food. But it's hard with limited pots, pans, and cookware. I make do, though. At least I can find most of the same food.

So far, so good on the food front. I'm going to keep my eye out for decent mexican and sushi. I'm sure there's a proper pizza place SOMEWHERE. I continue to add to my list of British foods I don't (and probably will never) understand, like Salad Creme and various fermented yeast products. But, the pasties are amazing, the water is potable, and the veg is fresh.