There is so much to catch up on! How could it have been over a week since I last posted??
So things are moving along at a quick clip here. We are already in Week 4 (but apparently weeks here begin on Thursday so tomorrow is week 5 *raises hand* Excuse me, I'm American and I'm confused...) and that is half-term for us -- that means there's only 4 more weeks of term before the end of this trimester. YIKES!
On that note, I guess it's time for a brief, and probably confusing, sketch of what an "average" week looks like for me. I know some of you have asked about school and I haven't really taken the time to explain it, so I'm going to try. Other than weeks beginning on really strange days, things are somewhat routine. I usually have "class" Mondays and Wednesdays, which means I may sit in lecture for an hour or, like today, almost eight hours (7 hours and 45 minutes, but who's counting?). Now there were breaks, but it was still a lot of being talked at. Usually lectures here have a good bit of discussion as well, but today.... well, it's over anyhow. So, classes Monday and Wednesday - that means I hop on my bike and cycle 3 miles in crazy British traffic to Homerton College, where the Faculty of Education is located. Then I sit in class with somewhere between 59 and 25 other students to hear about things like Research Methods (way more interesting than it sounds), other Perspectives in Education or lecturers from Educational Leadership and School Improvement (my specific focus). I have a lot of required reading for before class and even more outside of class for Essay 1 (as yet, still to be named) which is the only assessed (re: graded) work for this semester. In fact, there are only 3 graded assignments for the year that my degree is based on. Yes, three. No pressure. So I'll be writing two essays - one literature review and one methodology critique - and a thesis. Trust me, it's more challenging than it sounds. About every ten days to two weeks I meet with my supervisor who works with me one-on-one to help me keep my head on straight and stick to my timeline for the work that needs to be done. Amazing how efficient you can be when you know that it's going to be just you and her - no excuses for why you didn't read what you said you would, no one to cover for you if your work's not done. Now that's accountability.
So that's the basic sketch of school.
In other news, I am finding time to do other things also, and I don't mean just laundry and dishes. Two weekends ago (the last weekend in October) Josh and I went to London as described by our last blog post. Since then we visited a fun new restaurant
and Josh flew back to the States for his first week away to work on location with Tuck. He left early Saturday morning on a bus that left for London about 15 minutes before mine. A friend from college here, Katrina, and I had planned to spend the weekend in London, looking through Harrod's (yes, I really like Harrod's),
taking in a show in West End (like Broadway, but British), staying in a hostel, having high tea, etc. It was wonderful! We saw Shakespeare in Love at the Noel Coward Theatre, had tea at Kensington Close,
wandered around the Victoria and Albert Museum - including a stunning exhibit on wedding dresses from 1775 all the way to present day - had a charming lunch at L'Opera, a little bistro near the museum, and found where the Muffin Man lives (apparently it's not on Drury Lane).
All in all, it was a fantastic way to spend a weekend, especially since I would have just been home alone.
Since then, I've been working my butt off trying to plow my way through the literature for this essay, trying to keep some semblance of order in our flat, and scrambling to keep my sanity via quiet times and "playdates" with chicas here. It's a lot to juggle, but I'm so thankful for the opportunity to try. And I can't say enough how faithful God has been even when I let myself forget priorities. I've been especially grateful for our church here and our Life Group. They even threw me a special birthday surprise tonight, complete with flowers, a homemade cake with candles, a card, and balloons.
I felt incredibly loved and special. Even when things get lonely, I know I'm not alone, my Daddy has my back. He's amazing.
Last but not least, one of my absolute favorite things in the whole world is fireworks and today is, you guessed it, the 5th of November! What does that matter, you might wonder? Well, apparently a long time ago some guy named, ironically, Guy Fawkes got the bright idea that he would try to blow up the Parliament on the 5th of November. The Brits, being the wonderful quirky people they are, have decided to commemorate his failed attempt with bonfire celebrations and fireworks. Go figure. It's quite a nice tradition though and I always feel as if the fireworks are just for me, the next day being my birthday and all. So here's to a new year and democracy (sort of) and life in Britain!
So things are moving along at a quick clip here. We are already in Week 4 (but apparently weeks here begin on Thursday so tomorrow is week 5 *raises hand* Excuse me, I'm American and I'm confused...) and that is half-term for us -- that means there's only 4 more weeks of term before the end of this trimester. YIKES!
On that note, I guess it's time for a brief, and probably confusing, sketch of what an "average" week looks like for me. I know some of you have asked about school and I haven't really taken the time to explain it, so I'm going to try. Other than weeks beginning on really strange days, things are somewhat routine. I usually have "class" Mondays and Wednesdays, which means I may sit in lecture for an hour or, like today, almost eight hours (7 hours and 45 minutes, but who's counting?). Now there were breaks, but it was still a lot of being talked at. Usually lectures here have a good bit of discussion as well, but today.... well, it's over anyhow. So, classes Monday and Wednesday - that means I hop on my bike and cycle 3 miles in crazy British traffic to Homerton College, where the Faculty of Education is located. Then I sit in class with somewhere between 59 and 25 other students to hear about things like Research Methods (way more interesting than it sounds), other Perspectives in Education or lecturers from Educational Leadership and School Improvement (my specific focus). I have a lot of required reading for before class and even more outside of class for Essay 1 (as yet, still to be named) which is the only assessed (re: graded) work for this semester. In fact, there are only 3 graded assignments for the year that my degree is based on. Yes, three. No pressure. So I'll be writing two essays - one literature review and one methodology critique - and a thesis. Trust me, it's more challenging than it sounds. About every ten days to two weeks I meet with my supervisor who works with me one-on-one to help me keep my head on straight and stick to my timeline for the work that needs to be done. Amazing how efficient you can be when you know that it's going to be just you and her - no excuses for why you didn't read what you said you would, no one to cover for you if your work's not done. Now that's accountability.
So that's the basic sketch of school.
In other news, I am finding time to do other things also, and I don't mean just laundry and dishes. Two weekends ago (the last weekend in October) Josh and I went to London as described by our last blog post. Since then we visited a fun new restaurant
My lovely pre-birthday meal (lamb!!)
Josh, getting ready to savor his delicious Chicken Supreme (see below)
and Josh flew back to the States for his first week away to work on location with Tuck. He left early Saturday morning on a bus that left for London about 15 minutes before mine. A friend from college here, Katrina, and I had planned to spend the weekend in London, looking through Harrod's (yes, I really like Harrod's),
Harrod's in London - Yes, that whole building is the store
taking in a show in West End (like Broadway, but British), staying in a hostel, having high tea, etc. It was wonderful! We saw Shakespeare in Love at the Noel Coward Theatre, had tea at Kensington Close,
wandered around the Victoria and Albert Museum - including a stunning exhibit on wedding dresses from 1775 all the way to present day - had a charming lunch at L'Opera, a little bistro near the museum, and found where the Muffin Man lives (apparently it's not on Drury Lane).
All in all, it was a fantastic way to spend a weekend, especially since I would have just been home alone.
Since then, I've been working my butt off trying to plow my way through the literature for this essay, trying to keep some semblance of order in our flat, and scrambling to keep my sanity via quiet times and "playdates" with chicas here. It's a lot to juggle, but I'm so thankful for the opportunity to try. And I can't say enough how faithful God has been even when I let myself forget priorities. I've been especially grateful for our church here and our Life Group. They even threw me a special birthday surprise tonight, complete with flowers, a homemade cake with candles, a card, and balloons.
All the goodies, minus the lovely piece of cake from Charlotte
I felt incredibly loved and special. Even when things get lonely, I know I'm not alone, my Daddy has my back. He's amazing.
Last but not least, one of my absolute favorite things in the whole world is fireworks and today is, you guessed it, the 5th of November! What does that matter, you might wonder? Well, apparently a long time ago some guy named, ironically, Guy Fawkes got the bright idea that he would try to blow up the Parliament on the 5th of November. The Brits, being the wonderful quirky people they are, have decided to commemorate his failed attempt with bonfire celebrations and fireworks. Go figure. It's quite a nice tradition though and I always feel as if the fireworks are just for me, the next day being my birthday and all. So here's to a new year and democracy (sort of) and life in Britain!
Remember, remember the 5th of November,
The gunpowder treason and plot!
I see no reason the 5th of November
Ever should be forgot!
Happy Guy Fawkes Day!
Cheers!
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