I just want to curl up in bed and watch TV or something

So you want a blog post about the University, do you?

First things first. I bought a coke, a sandwich, and two candy bars for under £5. This is a major accomplishment, and I know how I’m going to be eating on weekends from here on in. Unless I make friends who can teach me about the kitchens, of course. And I’m still unclear on how the dining card works, but when I was going to ask the front desk it was closed. At any rate, York is in the middle of finals week, so I can give them some time to get into the swing of things.

You read that right. Finals week. For some inexplicable reason, Fall Term finals are after the Winter Holiday. Can you even imagine that? Taking your finals two to three weeks after your last class? And during those two to three weeks, you were at home with your family and celebrating whatever winter holiday you celebrate? Not to mention New Year’s! How on Earth do these kids maintain grades?

Of course, that could be why getting a 69 in the class is the equivalent of getting an A-. Go figure.

Oh, by the way, it’s raining outside. It just makes you want to curl up in bed and take a nap. Hopefully the weather clears up before classes start next week. Though that’s unlikely.

My plans of meeting people have been thwarted by finals week, too. Nobody in my block is ever home since they’re all out studying. A lot of the bars and restaurants are empty since people are taking classes. I might try to go out there later just to see what there is to see. And, of course, I have two different orientations tomorrow, so that’ll be a good opportunity to make friends. Hopefully.

This campus is also huge. Like, surprisingly huge for such a small school in such a small city. Though a population of 13,000 people is by no means “small,” the entire thing just seems small. I mean, York is a small city!

At any rate, the school is very spread out. Two of my American companions are living in a hall that’s a 5-minute bus ride away, with nothing between campus proper and their hall. Thankfully, my department is in the same building as my room. It’ll make commuting to class earlier.

There is something in my sandwich that tastes weird. It’s egg and bacon, and Mysterious Other Taste. Eww. At least I bought me some awesome British candy bars! It’s kind of funny how my EAP friends are so enamoured with Cadbury. I guess I’ve been spoiled by my semi-frequent trips to Ireland, because I’m already very familiar with the candy selection there. It’s really not that different here. But hey, I’m not going to argue that they’re not good. They are. I guess everyone else will just have to get used to it!

I saw the rough equivalent of a fifth of vodka for under £5 at the on-campus grocery store (!) today, and it actually made me a little homesick for Santa Barbara.

On that note, a proper on-campus grocery store is the best idea ever. I don’t have to go all the way into York if I need to pick up some munchies! And it’s pretty cheap, looking at my lunch of a sandwich, Coke, and two candy bars for under £5. Plus, they had an ATM outside that actually took my debit card! LIFE IS WONDERFUL, GUYS.

Plus, I had to pull some shenanigans to get an Internet connection. Basically, the dorms don’t have a WiFi connection; they do, however, have an Ethernet jack. Unfortunately, something is wrong with my Ethernet cable and my laptop won’t recognize when it’s plugged in. I’m not sure if there’s something wrong with the cable, the wall, or my laptop; all I know is that it won’t work. Maybe my American computer/Ethernet cable don’t agree with the Brinternet.

Yes, I am proud of that pun, thank you very much.

But, fortunately, my dorm room is very close to the Langwith Hall study room. I actually pick up their wireless signal on my laptop. Therefore I can simply connect to that with my student ID. It’s not the best connection  — for whatever reason, I can’t upload photos to Facebook — but it will do for now. And according to Caitlin, I can get a free Ethernet cable from the IT Department. I’ll wander back that way sometime in the next few days, I think. I’m going to need more munchies, and I need to figure out how my dining card works, and I want to visit the bar, and the IT Department is (sort of) on the way.

Speaking of Langwith Hall, that is indeed where I’m living. And my dorm room is completely ridiculous. The bed clothes I was provided with look a bit like they belong in a prison. The floor looks like it hasn’t been vacuumed in days, if not weeks. The sink is janky beyond belief. The curtains don’t reach across the window. I had to jury-rig a hook in order to hold them mostly closed so I could change. I’m not sure if the heater actually works, or if it simply creates a placebo effect.

Oh, and then there’s the showers. I’m not sure how many of us live in Langwith’s C Block (it really is a prison!), but there is only one toilet that I have been able to find. And it takes 5 minutes to flush properly. There’s also only one shower that is prone to flooding. You have to shower fast or else the floor becomes covered in water. I really don’t want to be the stupid American foreign exchange student that floods the dorms, thanks. But at least the shower pressure is good and they know what hot water is!

I have yet to explore the kitchen or that mysterious other room that appears to have a bathtub in it. Yes, a bathtub. I don’t get it either. I am also unclear on my address and where the mailroom is, but I was going to ask the front desk about that. Oh, wait, the front desk is closed. Never mind.

At least all of my classes seem to be working out. One of the girls in EAP has had so much trouble trying to get her classes figured out. I ran into her and another one of us while wandering about campus, and I tagged along for several of the “go to this department and get told to go elsewhere” adventures. Utterly awful. I can’t even imagine what a mess I would be in if I was having the same troubles. Thankfully, my department seems to have things under control, for the most part. I do need to add another Summer Term class because I currently am not signed up for enough units, but I can do that tomorrow when I go to the English Major Orientation.

One of these days, I’ll have everything figured out. Bus schedules, campus layout, how not to freeze to death... it’ll come.

(Yes, it is freezing cold here. Yahoo says it’s 6°C, but I think Yahoo is lying. It doesn’t feel windy or anything, but it definitely feels colder than that. I need more blankets...)