1. All of my exams are worth about 70% of my final grade
2. Reason 1 causes me to study less diligently until 3 weeks before my finals, which is s t r e s s f u l.
I had 4 exams two weeks ago and my first math exam on Saturday. And now I have a healthy week and a half before my last exam, which shouldn't be too bad. I'm taking the opportunity to relax a bit now and get prepared for my around-the-world travelling. That means eating through all of my staples and getting rid of the clothes I can't bring- both of which are significantly more difficult than I originally thought. I need to eat a little less than a pound of dried chickpeas in one week. Is it possible? I don't know. We'll see.
It's officially winter here in Adelaide and I must say, this weather is deceiving. It's too sunny, and although I complain every day about it being too cold, it's actually not that bad. The house just isn't insulated so well, and so at night the inside of the house actually feels colder than the outside environment. I really wish things that illogical weren't possible.
But, as with all of my good-byes, I'm starting to get into a nostalgic mood. I'll miss quite a few things, like:
- How two rolls of sushi costs you less than $5. Seriously. I'm never buying sushi in the States.
- Tim tams, Lamingtons, Pavlovas, and all the delicious desserts that helped me to gain so much weight last semester
- Being able to bike everywhere and feeling (relatively) safer on the streets than I would biking along most of the roads in Texas or North Carolina
- Being able to say "heaps" and "keen" without getting weird looks. Guys, they're good words.
- Orchestra. Keith. A viola section. Private lessons. Performing. Not that it's not possible in Texas, but the options are much more limited. Which is, of course, logical- TAMU is an engineering/agricultural university. But still, I get sad even thinking about how I'll have to return my borrowed viola.
- Living a short ways from the beach. Being able to surf and kayak with the dolphins over the weekends! Going on outdoor climbing day trips. All the climbing people I've met.
- City photowalks. Urbexing attempts. Photography club.
- Dance halls that are not country-western themed. The lack of cowboy/cowgirl boots on the street
- Cafes other than Starbucks. Good vegetarian options at restaurants.
- Being with international students. Having such a large international group in a university (where only 1% of the students are international at TAMU, I think the number is closer to 16% here)
- Living in a city. Sure, Adelaide is known for being boring, but anyone who says that is obviously not comparing it to a Texas country town.
But, to be fair, I guess I should list a few things I'm looking forward to:
- Being able to keep my money! And not having to spend it all on things like food or toiletries.
- Real Mexican/Tex-Mex food. And Taco Bell.
- Being able to have a car. Although I think I will make more of an effort to bike around now.
- Having family only 1 time zone away instead of, you know, 11.
- Having insulation in my housing. And maybe a dryer for my clothes. And getting my bed back so that I don't feel carpet every night.
- UScholar stuff. Yeah, I'll admit it, I miss being able to do those activities and talk to everyone. The group is made up of pretty good people.
- Discussing basically anything American without having to resort to apologetics.
- Being able to catch up with my TV shows (I've been so upset at my lack of access to Arrested Development). Internet service that is not extremely slow!
- Knowing how to spell most words. Becoming better at English (if you want to make your English skills go down the drain, hang out with non-native speakers. It works)
- Catching up with friends from high school and college more easily. Getting free cake in Blocker every month for people's birthdays. Free pizza every week from the Math society! It's usually Hungry Howie's. Those crusts are amazing.
I'm sure the latter list will be less pessimistic as I get more excited to return to the States. All in a matter of time. Once I start travelling, I'm sure my opinions will change.
