friday, 30 april

overheard: "i think i'd be a really bad actor; i can't put my legs in the air without..." -couldn't say

i'm pretty much done with that paper. hurrah. becky goes home today. congrats, my sister, on finishing your first year at university. big bad sophomore now. and coming to visit me in less than a week. quite exciting. i picked our places on the dinner seating chart. milner hall. closest to high table. and nowhere near the warden. other than footnote-checking, i think i'll be able to turn my extended essay in to the clerk of schools this morning. why am i stresed about that. i'm going to spend the rest of my day in the radcam reading urban planning stuff. take a day off of early modern history before i spend the weekend transcribing the book of the commissary court of the royal pecualiar of st katharine's by the tower of london from 1583-4. i know y'all is jealous of my life. heh.

in other news, why does scott mcclellan still have his job? he's absolutely awful. i miss ari. i also miss the (perhaps naive) notion that america was a noble enough country to ensure that people acting in our named didn't do things like this. really really sad about that. grrr: 'His lawyer, Gary Myers, told the Guardian that Sgt Frederick had not had the opportunity to read the Geneva Conventions before being put on guard duty, a task he was not trained to perform.' i'm pretty sure one doesn't need to read the geneva conventions to know that torturing and sexually assaulting prisoners is WRONG. hmmm. let's think of something less depressing. OH! NYT/CBS poll numbers released yesterday show bush way down. which is always good. ok. break? break.

thursday, 29 april

overheard: Q: "how many ADD kids does it take to change a lightbulb?" A: "wanna ride bikes?" -vittles, via hot tipper amanda

how did it get to be thursday already? i'm going to rhoho to put me and beckers on the ball dinner seating plan. i know. you're jealous. my tulips are AMAZING. such a neat color. and they drink water like it's their job. today is pie day. as you may be able to tell, i'm a bit less exasperated than i was yesterday. we'll see what comes of that. but i could actually finish that essay today. we'll see. it will requre me to read and rewrite the last paragraph. which i've been particularly successful at avoiding.

what's making me angry today, you ask? well, for starters, friendster is down again. big surprise. as i've probably mentioned, i think the president refusing to appear alone before the sept 11th commission is absurd. and that his constant assertions of executive privilege are somewhat akin to that of charles I. which i suppose would make rove bush's buckingham. neither charles nor buckingham did so well, in the long run. not that i like cromwell, either. i'm just sayin.

wednesday, 28 april

overheard: "he does not have my big" -jack

i'm getting a little exasperated about being unable to ever get hired to do anything ever. which may be a little extreme, but whatever. congrats to beckers on her two little achievements yesterday. getting 'paid' to play basketball is pretty clutch. kinda like getting paid to read all day. today i hope to finish the extended essay for my MSt. and maybe even figure out how to submit it for assessment. we'll see. i'm preparing an onslaught of internship applications. ARGH. and don't even get me started on karen hughes's rhetorical yoga on late edition the other night.

tuesday, 27 april

overheard: "my mobile doesn't have the word 'punting' in it!" -angry girl on st aldate's yesterday

well i paid (through the nose) for battels and my credit card bill yesterday. serves me right. you'll be happy to hear the shorts thing worked out pretty well for me yesterday. i heard a rumour that the masters garden (see 25 april entry) is actually open now. i should invest in a blanket for laying out reading on the grass. by which i mean falling asleep.

things that require people's thoughts and prayers today: mary mcgrory's funeral was yesterday. i'll miss her quick wit and wonderful columns in the post. also, a georgetown sophomore was found dead yesterday in DC. so keep him and his family in your prayers. finally (and, in the long term, probably most importantly): tomorrow the supreme court is hearing oral arguments for two cases involving the long-term detention of american citizen 'enemy combatants', denying them access to lawyers, &c., &c. the bush administration claims that, acting in his capacity of commander-in-chief of the US armed forces, the president can circumvent the constitunal rights of citizens, both in peace and in war time. as the new york times has pointed out, if the government wins its case, ' "it would mean that for the foreseeable future, any citizen, anywhere, at any time, would be subject to indefinite military detention on the unilateral order of the President." That formula for totalitarianism has never been the law in America. It is up to the Supreme Court to ensure that it does not become the law now.' i don't know about you, but i think (my aversion to swearing aside) that this idea is scary as fuck. no matter how benign or well-intentioned the president, his powers should not be unchecked or uncheckable. so, yeah. you should be afraid, too.

other news? i had a wonderfully productive night yesterday. today i have to go to the HFL after breakfast, to read (hurrah) and maybe learn something (double hurrah). i went to a talk on the march toward gay marriage in canada, the UK, and the US. it looks like massachusetts is slated to go live with the same-sex marriage dealy on 17 may. who wants to bet me five bucks that god won't smite boston to rubble by the end of the year.

monday, 26 april

overheard: "i'm getting wandery. i think i'll wash my hands again" -mom, in regent's park

when i left my room this morning, my first thought was that it felt a bit like the first day of school in spokane in the autumn. a not unpleasant feeling, i assure you. my reminiscing, however, was shattered when, on my walk down brewer street to the gym, i smelled the lilacs blooming in pembroke's garden. then it felt more like the last weeks of school in the spring. which was an even better feeling. but then i remembered not only that i have a dean's collection today (ack), but that i really do have to spend the morning at the bod. but at least i'm wearing shorts for the first time this year. huzzah. and no, i haven't even opened RSS once today. surprised? me too.

sunday, 25 april

overheard: "very valley" -joe

although amanda may occasionaly advise diffently (and she's wrong), going on a date with someone from the valley is NEVER a good idea. even if you both live in dc. the smell just doesn't go away. i'm kidding. people from the valley don't smell. but that still doesn't make it alright.

kristof's column in yesterday's new york times was AWFUL. i wrote an angry letter. and speaking of angry, do you need evidence that nothing matters? because there it is. here's a link to a fun review of a new book about bush's ethics, or lack thereof. what else do i have to say? i'm glad i'm not hung over.

jack and i tried to go sit and take some sun in the masters garden yesterday afternoon. there we sat, me enjoying susan brigden's new worlds, lost worlds whilst jack pretended to read a chinese grammar. enter stage asshole (erm, i mean stage left) a custodian with a (?!?) scout. aside: who knew scouts worked on saturdays? mine certainly doesn't. said custodian simultaneously demands that we identify ourselves and informs us that we are in "a very dangerous area." jack supposed it was the land mines in the lawn. i was of the mind that corpus was planning an attack. it turns out there was herbicide on the lawn. which made me all the more relieved that we hadn't been licking the grass. he also mentioned something about a bench having to be in one particular spot on account of its being in memory of a nurse. that part made less sense, if you'll believe it. nevertheless, our nefarious plan to read in the master's garden was effectively quashed. but don't worry: magdalen college school is still using the chch tennis courts.

saturday, 24 april

overheard: "he's fisting my neck" -suzie

i can imagine no oxford afternoon more pleasan than the one i had yesterday. mike and jack and i had a picnic in the chch master's garden, after which we walked along the thames river path to the village of iffley, where we had pints of beer (or, in mike's case, half a pint of really expensive pimms). and sat watching what was (apparently) this exceedingly charming pub's trailer park theme day. i don't think i'd seen that many pittbulls since, well, spokane. i suppose i should go enjoy another lovely day.

friday, 23 april

overheard: "i'm playing with it in my pocket" -jack, ages ago

on a somber note, let's take a moment to remember the people of north korea, where a rail blast claimed three thousand casualties yesterday. it's too easy to overlook the suffering of people who live under governments to which we are hostile, but such unnecessary loss of life should sadden all of humanity.

i'll be working in humfrey's today, methinks. and wearing sandals. take that, oxford. ok. i needs to get to breakfast. oh. and happy george's day. every country should have a mythical, dragon-slaying patron saint.

thursday, 22 april

overheard: "don't ever have kids. look what it did to me" -dod, via hot tipper amanda

i can only assume that my father means we are the reason he can't sit on a sofa for more than 5 minutes without falling asleep. first things first: this article in today's new york times reminds me one of the reasons i like the uk. sure, i think the undergrads are a bit whiny about having to pay £3,000 p.a. for higher education, especially when it's in the form of an interest-free loan from the government that one only has to repay when one's income hops above a certain level. BUT i do respect that people here get outraged at the idea of universities becoming bastions for the rich, a concept which is hardly on america's social radar screen. yes, christ church is posh. whatever. at least there's some sort of desire to level the playing field for incoming students. but don't even get me started on the blair government's plans for an access regulator. bad news. you're totally asking for that awful umbridge woman from the 5th harry potter book to be made flesh and dwell amongst us.

wednesday, 21 april

overheard: "i have a little one too, but i think i got it from the sea" -jack

can you believe yesterday was 4/20 and i didn't do a damn thing about it? i can. according to the christ church flag guide, today is the queen's birthday. so happy birthday, your majesty. got an email back from dr archer this morning. good advice for my dissertation and good stories about his vacation. otherwise, i've just been academic tidying today. i need to get my butt back to the gym. grrr. after dinner, perhaps? it's always so crowded. maybe i'll just get to bed early and start my term-time gym routine tomorrow morning. oh. i was encouraged by the reports of the oral arguments before the supreme court yesterday. i can't wait for someone to write a 700 page history book called the personal rule of george the 2nd. charles lost his head, you know.

tuesday, 20 april

overheard: "i think i'm a great catch" -jack

two news items before the rest: first, i'm proud to have gone to georgetown, on acount of this GULC professor's op-ed piece in today's nytimes. second, how shameful is it that the times of london's off-lead today was on david beckham? i mean, yeah, he looks damn hot with that haircut. i'm not saying he doesn't. but come on, the times: you're not the mirror. we like you just the way you are. the tabloid format seems to have gone to your head. shame. now on to the important stuff: my cousin steven emailed me to remind me that the birthday i had in mind yesterday was, in fact, his brother louis. so a belated happy 17th birthday to you, my cousin. in other news: jack is back in the uk. and aaromi will be here within the hour. which means that aaron is heading to spain. thanks to mr evans for the two CDs worth of pure joy. er. something. wonkette was particularly good yesterday. and dinner in hall starts tonight. not that i'm excited. which i am.

monday, 19 april

overheard: "he told me from the start he didn't have sex on the first date" -mom

i feel like it's someone's birthday today. any takers? how is it already monday of 0th week. i want -2nd week back. i made of a list of crap to do for the week. had weird dreams last night that i don't remember very well. ps. none is a singular pronoun. doesn't anyone remember mrs rowland's 7th grade grammar lessons? perhaps not. beyond all that, i mostly just have to go to the library. i think they start serving food in hall tomorrow. i hope. i'm humgry. and i don't want my battels.

sunday, 18 april

overheard: "you want a piece, dad?" -bobs

had a good workout this morning. went to a good dinner at jamal's last night. got a lot of work done yesterday. all in all, i can't complain about much. i'm a little hungry. how thrilled was i to see that there's an article on wonkette in today's new york times? pretty damn thrilled. best part: i've been reading it since early february, thinking i was late on the bandwagon. turns out it was only launched in january. for all of you political junkies not reading it: start. it makes for a good humorous break from endless slate/salon/washpost/nytimes reading. in other news: how ridiculous is it that americans tolerate crap like this from our president. it's pretty clear he's either maliciously deceptive or entirely incompetent. and those are best case scenarios.

saturday, 17 april

overheard: "mistletoe: the semen of the gods" -the stonehenge tour van driver.

yes. guildhall was mildly successful yesterday. busuba was VERY successful. as was cafe orient. jack, i blame you for not taking me there earlier. in other news, i see JR is wearing shorts today. way to seize summer. i'm going to spend the day working. i hope. and eating. so hungry. but where was i? oh. yes. last night is the first time i can remember crying inconsolably in a dream. weird, eh? i was distracted at the gym today. not by boys. by my guilt for not doing enough work. i'll go to confession today about that. or not.

friday, 16 april

overheard: "thirty thousand pounds!" -big issue dealer, as reported by hot tipper JR

today is a guildhall library day. and though it's going to sound a tad on the dweeby side, but i'm really excited. it should push me from the "i guess i could write that chapter" side of the line to "yay! i can write that chapter!" or something. watched the hours last night. it reminded me of two things. firstly, that i miss the chch people who have all disappeared since term ended. secondly, that emotions aren't tidy things. nor are they designed for the well-differentiated compartments into which we try to fit them. and it may be how we deal with the ganglia flail around that determines our emotional states. just a thought. went back to o'neill's last night. a bacon cheeseburger and a pint of guiness extra cold for £7? i'm in.

thursday, 15 april

overheard: "honey, i'd like to have a craft that could not possibly poison us" -mom

so, definite highlight of yesterday would be the return of mike , and the promise of yet another fun term at chch. went to pizza express with aaron and mike and JR for dinner, and then had a pint of guiness on george street before a couple bottles of wine back in mikes room. i made my grand return to the bod yesterday, as well, but none of my earmohis friends were there, which was sad. i did manage to buy endnote, though. thanks mom. making my life so much more fun. hurrah. fun and nerdy.

wednesday, 14 april

overheard: "that's why japanese girls make good wives" -random chch custodian

i forgot yesterday to say something. can't remember what it was. which, i suppose, would mean i forgot again. i need to eat more. and go the gym in the mornings. as it stands, the gym isn't gonna happen today. but i am gonna get some bod time in. hurrah. um. went to sofi de france for lunch yesterday. i wish edamame were open, though. mmmmm. today? dunno. we'll see. hungry. breakfast.

tuesday, 13 april

overheard: "cleavage snake. i'd like to get one of those" -amanda, of course.

what a great week. i think i walked myself (and my family) ragged, but i got to see lots of cool stuff. and i ate myself silly. that was a most house family week. i wish becky could have been there. but now i'm back at oxford. and aaron is here. he says hello. but i'm stressed for not having done any work (or having gone to the gym) for ten days. so i'm gonna run. i'll try to get some photos of the family visit up soon.

monday, 5 april

overheard: "we don't have any rocks, sir" -cafe zouk waiter

kurt cobain commited suicide ten years ago today. not only is that sad in it's own right, but it makes me feel ridiculously old. hurRAH for the parents visit. it's been amazing so far. so much food. so much fun. and a fair amount of sleep, too! the first day (saturday) we went to G&D's, then around christ church, we checked the family into their rooms, and then went to mass and dinner. yesterday we went to blenheim palace and tried to go to edamame, but no dice. italian food, evensong, and brown's for desert. pictures will be forthcoming. i'm headed to the gym. later.

saturday, 3 april

overheard: "so he means closeted?" -amanda

so yeah, the creepiest article ever in the times yesterday meant that i couldn't get back to sleep once i'd woken up this morning at 5. so here i sit, anticipating a call from my parents. yay! so hungry! then maybe showering, tidying up the room and a little work before meeting them at the bus station and beginning our engladventure. ps. this has been the most productive week of my academic life, which hopefully will assuage some of the guilt i'll start to feel around tuesday not doing work while my family are here. oh, and one last thing, this article is ridiculously stereotypical and offensive. ok. not the article. but the people in it.

friday, 2 april

overheard: "but she doesn't like me either, so it's fine" -bobsforth

ok, first off, can we talk about how much it screws with my mind to convert regnal dates into julian dates? it really shouldn't be so tough. but it just messes with me. here. i tshow you:
10 December, 26 Eliz = 1583
19 February, 26 Eliz = 1583
15 September, 26 Eliz = 1584
10 December, 27 Eliz = 1584
15 September, 27 Eliz = 1585
the problem, you see, is that elizabeth acceded the throne on 17 november. so her regnal years tick up one every 17 november. meanwhile, the anni domini changed on the feast of the annunciation (25 march), which, i suppose, strictly speaking, makes sense. in theory, anyway. but it means that 31 december 1560 is followed by 1 january 1560 and 24 march 1560 is followed by 25 march 1561. but all four of those days are in 3 Eliz--the third year of her reign. yes. i think about this a lot. yes. i'm a nerd.

another thing i was thinking about today whilst walking to the gym: how neat the sound of bells are. and how cool it must have been to be in oxford when the bells were pretty much the loudest thing there was. none of these minicabs that drive to fast and scare the living bejeesus out of me.

thursday, 1 april

happy birthday, callie rose!
overheard: "he probably has fewer pairs of designer sunglasses than you" -james

first lesson of april: don't pretend you're fit to make sound decisions when your blood sugar is low: you're just grumpy. eat something. yesterday was AMAZING. without much effort, the beauty banished every memory of the horrid winter. spring is here! so on the first truly wonderous day of the year, where do you think i could be found? yup. in the hist.fac.lib. on the plus side, i sat below an open window and i had a lovely view of of a hertford college quad. i think i ground my teeth in my sleep. oh. and two more sleeps!