Trade Offs

Maple Syrup and Nutella UK

I dreamt about maple syrup last night. I woke up and knew I had a problem. I should have already guessed after being told I came to the mind of someone who saw maple syrup in the grocery aisle. Apparenty, I've been more vocal than I thought (real surprise there). It cannot be a good thing when someone strolls down the grocery aisle, spots a random item, and thinks of you. Roses - normal, maple syrup - weird. However, in return I get the real treat of having Nutella UK. All nutella is not made equally.

Guacamole and Curry

So far there have been no dreams including guacamole...but they may not be far off. I already know what I'll be doing my first days back in June. These plans include Wayzata docks, Caribou, John Updike, cornbread, and creating a homemade guacamole recipe. It may take 5 batches to get it right...or 8...or 20. At least I am completely surrounded by amazing curries. No, they aren't exactly authentic but Anglicized tikka masala is still tasty as hell. I can definitely bring back my newfound love of curry to the states but I cannot exactly get it at my union, late-night pizza joints or Chinese take-out. Yes - English Chinese takeouts serve curry. Move here, now.

I Got Beef with You, Tea

There is an underground battle taking place in this country. A fight raging on every quaint, vine-tangled street. A struggle more epic than Cromwell's conquest and no more frivolous than Winston's handling of Gallipoli. I'm talking about the modern war between tea and coffee. 145 million cups of tea are consumed each day in Britain. I have no motivation to find coffee's accompanying statistic but I am motivated to guess that it is probably much less. Probably.

Tea, the traditional English beverage, is such a fundamental part of their culture that it would be silly to consider coffee as a true competitor. Fine, Brits, drink your stupid tea, with your stupid milk (which negates all health benefits, by the way) but at least give me quality coffee. The coffee trade seems to be sorely ignored. Half of the coffee aisle is filled with instant coffee. Instant. I'll pause to let you hold back your vomit. Coffee as Americans know it, the smooth drink made with ground beans and a filter, is rare. Espresso, americanos, and lattes are the usual alternative. Those are all great, in fact, Americanos are tastier and richer than filter coffee, in my opinion. However with the introduction of an espresso machine and milk steamer you can expect to pay a whole hell of a lot more.

Not only are my options limited here but so are my cafe hours. I've never been a library studier. I get distracted and lonely cooped up in my dorm room. I go to coffee shops to do homework. I appreciate the buzzing of caffeinated talk, the smell of freshly ground beans, the humming of steaming milk. I meet friends there and I read on their comfy couches. Most coffeehouses here close at 7pm on weekdays. Close at 7! It is unthinkable! I see how the British might have preferred hanging out spots late at night (pubs, bars and clubs) but come on! England was the birthplace of the modern coffeehouse. Give it some respect - and increased hours.

I want my coffee culture back.

Witches, Disease, and D.W Griffith

My sleeping schedule is so completely screwed up. I have only myself to blame for this. Well, myself, Lady Gaga, and black ciders.

Never before have I been more psyched for my classes. I give you...my course load:

Heretic, Witches, and Conspirators
A history course focusing on "the way religious and social minorities, particularly those regarded as heretical or socially malign, were perceived, written about and treated in the early modern period. Identities/Communities discussed will included witches, Jews, Catholic and Protestant sectarians and `vagabonds’".

Malleus Maleficarum is required reading. Bomb.

Body, Disease, and Society
Another 3-worder history course on how Europeans imagined the body and understood disease. What have I learned so far? Everything can be cured by a phlebotomy. Wait - maybe that isn't quite right...

Film and History
A cultural studies course on how history is displayed through film. We are focusing on American history and have started screening Birth of a Nation. Way to make an international student feel guilty about her home country.

I visited one of our two libraries today. As schools of comparable size, how does Leeds have 2 libraries and Wisconsin have 40?

From Leeds with Love

After being in this lovely country for only a week I've run into many strange things that cause George Orwell's 1984 and James Bond to come to mind. These are my favorite Bonds. You cannot have just one favorite - because it will automatically be Sean Connery. Although that does go against the definition of a favorite...

It is strange how vocal security here is about spying on your neighbors and those around you. In the US (airports, especially) you are told to keep on eye out, look out for suspicious objects. However, the British really put it in your face that you should report any suspicious people, activity, etc. It isn't that wild of a claim, I suppose, just surprising at how upfront it is. There are cameras everywhere you turn on campus and near all the residences. I like cameras, I do...because I have nothing to hide and I appreciate the feeling of safety they give me. However, whenever my eyes discover one camera they dart around to find the next, and the next. I look like a paranoid criminal checking out exit routes and vulnerable reception cords.

We were told at orientation that to watch TV here you have to buy a pretty pricey license. Apparently, these trucks with hi-tech antennas drive around regularly and can sense when you are receiving illegal signal. That just sounds so...Orwellian. I'm just imagining a white van with "War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, and Ignorance is Strength" painted on the side driving up to my flat and listening in. Is she committing thoughtcrime? Probably.

Motown, Madonna, and Celine.

Reasons I currently love England:

They play Madonna in their grocery stores. I'm not talking about Like a Prayer, 4 minutes, or even Holiday. I'm talking about those center-of-the-album tracks that don't hit American airwaves.

They have a Lebanese joint that plays the best of Celine Dion. So while eating delicious pita and hummus, My Heart Will Go On starts up. What the what? Where am I?

They appreciate Motown and know the words to Ain't No Mountain High Enough. But than again, who doesn't?

Their scary street hoodlums are actually just 14-year-old boys who play a form of "made you look". I tell you, there is nothing funnier than making someone look down at something that isn't even there. God, run an hour of that on NBC and BAM, you have a revitalized network.

Natalie in Leeds - for real this time

I'm sitting next to a barred window, near a plug-in that popped angrily at me earlier, with a fresh cup of tea (green with lemon, and not reheated). That's right - I'm officially in England. Before it's mainly been, "Natalie in Borders, worrying", "Natalie in Plymouth, panicking", and "Natalie in Manchester, freezing". I'm in Leeds now and all is well.

Ever seen the Nicole Kidman film, The Others? Well that is exactly what the British countryside reminded me of. As we trained to Leeds there was a thick fog set low in the valley and the country homes were consumed by it. It probably looked stately and beautiful to any other observer but with my great lack of sleep and foggy mind, I jumped to a Tom Cruise-produced movie.

The city center of Leeds is clean and lively yet it is juxtaposed with old, almost charred looking churches - making a very interesting city landscape. Students walking the streets here would fit nicely into Michelangelo's Cafe on State - well put together and very international. Everyone is very nice but I'm a bit worried about how my American accent sounds to their ears. After discussing this very topic with some locals I discovered that as long as you don't have valley girl accent, you are fine. In fact, many boys we met in this pizza shop around 2 am mentioned how much they loved American accents on girls. But this could have been because we were at a dive that sold 18'' pizzas for 2 pounds. And it was 2 am.

I've had this affinity for the English accent since I was 3 and danced around to Mary Poppins while eating chocolate teddy grahams. I like to think that I can do a convincing one. I think this so much that for April Fools Day last year I left voicemails for 4 people as Keira Knightley. Now, I didn't want to really go into the accent here but the potential for entertainment was so high and offense so low. Apparently my Keira Knightley is from the slums of London (maybe I'm just doing a pre-Pirates Keira?) and my normal English accent is actually tinged with Australian. I speak Spanish with a Japanese accent so I really shouldn't be surprised. But a quick tip to instantly sounds some form of foreign - just add a bit of r after an o. Such as "nor, I wouldn't fancy that". Or, "Sor, really I don't knowr wha' you are talkin' about".

I leave you with a beautiful picture of my fish and chips. Fish-n-chips? Fish an' chips?

Cheers Minnesota!

Just some photos of people I'll be missing. I'm used to being away from some of them for 3-4 month bouts, others I haven't been away from for more than 3 weeks. Strange how spread out around the world we will be. El in Peru, Amy in Spain, Char in Australia, Alisa in NYC, Emily in Denmark, and an awesome bunch in the midwest. It will go by so fast. Before I know it we will be lingering past midnight on the docks of Wayzata and dipping our feet into Lake Mendota.

My plane leaves tomorrow and I have all things squared away: travel docs, train tickets, appropriate weight baggage. Nonetheless, I don't plan on sleeping much. There is too much to plan. I'm already readying a trip to Copenhagen in mid-February to visit my sister and my future hermano. I'd love to make it over to Ireland for St. Patrick's Day...even if all those Catholics are shut away in church all day (so I hear). I'm also planning on training down to Southampton on April 14 to visit the docks and graveyard. I cannot imagine a better way to spend the date.

I'm thinking of writing a novel on the flights there. I'll let you know how that goes :)