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!

This and other Travel Blog posts imported from an old blog on 2/3/2009, for posterity's sake.