Sunday, 10.25.2015 - 9:27 am.
My research project is coming along. I think. For now, perhaps until I meet with my supervisor this Tuesday. I may have said it before, but I cannot stress enough the joy of dedicating your days to reading, writing and researching a subject you love. And hopefully something new and useful for many people will come out of this.
We've been making friends at the department. On Thursday, Andrew, Steph (another PhD student, Andrew's friend and classmate from their undergraduate years) and I went for coffee, to celebrate her birthday, and we invited another student from the department. I hadn't talked to him and I thought he was very serious and distant. Not quite, it was a delight having a conversation with him, he's really nice.
I'm not much of a social person as it is, and having to socialize in a language that's not my own doesn't make it easier. But I'm making the effort, plus I can only tune my ear and tongue to the fine English language if I keep interacting.
Yesterday, Andrew and I went to see Ant-Man at the Students' Union. There's some kind of film society and I've marked a bunch of screenings I'd like to attend. It's something to do, and also part of the effort I mentioned. Back in Chile, Andrew and I would just stay home when we weren't working, even on weekends. It was the easiest thing to do, but truly, there are so many cool things out there, it's a shame to miss out on them. At least here I'm not tempted to stay home: I love the weather, I love the surroundings, and there's always something to do or to see. I do want to go out everyday, even if it's just to walk around the neighborhood.
We had a great yesterday: we went for a breakfast at a pub nearby, what a wonderful place. Then we went shopping for a toaster and beds for the cats, who, to me, had not found a place of their own in the house (indeed, they slept like logs last night!). Then we went to the SU with Steph's daughter, who's 12 years old and adapting to life as a teenager who just moved overseas. Then we went for pizza! And then I came home and talked to Brother and SIL #3 on Skype, which brought me so much joy. A wonderful day.
And we gained an hour today, this also makes me very happy.
I'm trying to keep up with my friends and family, and my home country in general, however ugly and disheartening things are over there. I do find it a bit difficult, keeping up, but I don't want to get caught up and isolated in my immediate reality only. Again, it'd be the easiest thing to do.
On that note, however, I'm still missing a proper space where to sit down and write my non-academic stuff, which helps me keep up and running. Perhaps this month we can buy a desk and put it in the attic.
And that's it for now. Perhaps it's not as exciting to write an update in which everything's going so well but there you go, I'm really grateful for that and I'm doing my best to keep it like that, while try to be aware of things that must be fought for, or against. Oh, and today's Brother and SIL #1's...24th? wedding anniversary! Hooray!
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