Just a quick
update on this, the last day of March 2012.
Hard to believe,
but I’ve only got 65 days left of my study abroad experience. It seems like
just yesterday that I was marveling and lamenting over how long it would be
until I was home again—and now, it seems like it’s just right around the
corner.
At any rate,
Easter Break has finally started—hurrah!
Two full weeks of relaxation = bliss!
Alas, I’ve started the break on somewhat
of a bad note, as I’ve been laid-up in bed and feeling sick. Fortunately, the
stuff I got from the pharmacy earlier today seems to be helping somewhat, so
hopefully I’ll be back on my feet soon.
In the meantime,
I’ve spent most of today watching stuff on the interwebs:
I’ve finished
the first seven episodes of ‘Modern Family,’ which both EN and Nic have been
after me to watch for a bit. I honestly haven’t laughed as hard and
consistently at a show since ‘Arrested Development!’ There are so many great
lines, and I have to admit that the Cam and Mitchell characters are Nic and I (respectively)—seriously,
it’s a bit frightening at times how similar we are.
[NB: Okay, I
confess that the above example is a bad one—for the most part, I am far more
like Mitchell than Cam. However, ABC has blocked me from seeing most of the
clips over here, so I'll work with what I have.]
Taking a break
from ‘Modern Family,’ I turned to a gay French flick called ‘Just a Question of Love,’ starring the hot-as-balls and openly gay Cyrille Thouvenin. The story was only so-so, but nonetheless nice in terms of being mindless fluff
that I could follow in spite of my medication-induced mental fog…and, it had a
happy, sappy ending. And I’m always a
sucker for happy, sappy gay love stories…which explains why I then spent the
next little bit watching the story of Josh and Nate from ‘Waterloo Road,’ followed
by a series of short films along the same line.
So, yeah, not
really a productive day.
But, I have lots
of things planned for Easter Break, so hopefully there will be some more
interesting updates coming down the pike. Since the weather’s supposed to be
fairly crappy over the next few days, I’m hoping to do a lot of the indoorsy things
that have been on my to-do list for ages, such as: visiting the Victoria &
Albert Museum, cruising through the Tate Modern, visiting Charles Dickens’ House, touring BBC, and maybe even
getting a drink or two at the Ice Bar. Oh! And I've discovered where they filmed many of the exterior shots from 'Beautiful Thing,' and so I simply must go there and snag some photos!
In the meantime,
it’s time for my next dose of medicine and so I’ll close. In parting, I leave
you with the song that’s been stuck in my head all bloody day…
There’s not too
much to talk about at the moment, but I figured I should do a quick entry just
to highlight a couple of things that I’ve done over the last week.
Tuesday night
(20 March) I traveled toLeytonstone—birthplace of Sirs Alfred Hitchcock and Derek Jacobi—in order to meet-up with
two UEL students, JA and GC, for drinks. The peers in question are both
thesis-level Cultural Studies students who occasionally pop into my horrid ‘Culture,
Power and Resistance in the Twenty-First Century’ class. One of them (JA)
also happens to be the UEL student that came to Columbia last year. We met up
at the Red Lion (which I think
might be affiliated with the pub I went to with K&M on my second night here), and spent a lovely couple of hours
catching up over beer and cider. We chatted about everything from white
privilege and racism in Europe, to the failings of abstinence-only education in
the U.S., to the attempted privitization of England’s healthcare system. You
know, casual over-drinks topics…for Cultural Studies students at least.
Tuesday night wasn’t
my only stab at being social this week. Last night (23 March) I happened to
catch a Facebook update from another friend, AH, that he was stuck at
Victoria Station, waiting for a train to take him back home (which is about an
hour away). Now, I’ve ‘known’ AH online for around 13 years—we’ve been part of
the same He-Man/She-Ra community since the mid- to late-1990s—but we’ve never
actually met before. (Namely because of the
ocean which separates us.) So, upon spotting this update, a hurried flurry
of messages were exchanged, and plans were made to finally meet up in person
while he waited for his rescheduled train. A short while later, and we were
finally greeting one another face-to-face.
Me and AH at Victoria Station
Since AH had a
couple of hours before his train was scheduled to depart, we nipped over to theDuke of York, a pub not
far from the station. This was actually my first experience meeting another
He-Fan/She-Raver in person—everyone’s so spread out in the States that it’s
hard to do so—and I loved every second of it. It was so surreal: two grown,
30(ish) year-old men—in a dark, noisy bar surrounded by stumbling heterosexuals trying to dance to ‘Hot in Here’ (and the men suggestively
removing their suitcoats)—talking about everything from the father/daughter
relationship between Hordak and She-Ra, to what kinds of material the Four
Horsemen will use to design Scorpia’s tail, to the role of the Filmation series
in producing a generation of really swell, inclusivity-minded people. You know,
casual over-drinks topics…for He-Fans/She-Ravers at least.
Beyond those two
bits of excitement, there’s really not too much else to tell. This week’s kind
of flown by (and, honestly, I wish it would slow down)! I’m housesitting for
K&M at the moment, and keeping their delightful dog Bowmar company. I’m
loving every second of the peace and quiet here. I hadn't realize how stressed
out I’d become living in the other house until I came here, but I suddenly find
myself very relaxed.
Of course, part
of the stress I’m feeling might have more to do with midterms than the
constant thumpa-thumpa at my flat. Basically,
our entire grade comes down to two grades: our final (60%) and our midterm
(40%). Oh, and they do not award 100% over here, the rationale being that if your work warrants 100% then you
should already be a teacher. Realistically, the highest score most students
earn is about 75%. So, basically, my midterms have to be spot-on if I want to
try to maintain my 4.0!
Fortunately, midterm madness is almost over. One of them (‘Realism,
Fantasy & Utopia’) was due last week, and the other two are due this week—followed
by two glorious weeks of Easter Break (yes, it's called Easter Break here), during which time I hope to visit Scotland!!!!
And then we go straight into working on our finals, because there's only like 5
weeks left of the actual semester following Easter Break.
Two final things I want to mention, but which don’t really
fit anywhere else:
First, yesterday was a gorgeous day! Mind you, this is still
London, so of course there was a
curtain of smog blanketing the skyline—I have yet to see a day that is both
sunny and clear—but I’ll take what I
can get! It was simply too nice restrict myself to the indoors all day, so
after class I ran to K&M’s house, spent some time with Bowmar, grabbed the
laptop, and headed to a coffee shop in Soho. The place was calledLJ’s CoffeeHouse, and my choice to go there was pretty random: I simply
wanted somewhere that was open-air and had free wifi, and this is where Google
directed me. After visiting their website, however, I also became smitten with LJ’s through the following ‘prayer’ posted on
their site (and which I can totes relate to):
Caffeine is my shepherd; I shall not doze.
It maketh me to wake in green pastures:
It leadeth me beyond the sleeping masses.
It restoreth my buzz:
It leadeth me in the path of conciousness for its name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of addiction,
I will fear no equal.
For thou art with me, thy sweetness and thy crema they comfort me.
Thou preparest a carafe before me in the presence of my barista:
Thou anointest my day with pep; my mug runneth over.
Surely richness and taste shall follow me all the days of my life:
And I will dwell in the house of LJ's forever.
The service was only decent (though very friendly), but the coffee and the
atmosphere as a whole were excellent. The gay Sohoians seemed to come alive, renewed by the
sun’s warmth. People were so happy and pleasant, and it all jived perfectly
with the mood I was in. (It was not, however, conducive to working—I spent 90%
of my time there just chatting with Nic over the interwebs.)
Secondly—and containing spoilers
(consider yourself warned)—I was saddened to learn on Thursday night that
‘Eastenders’ had killed off one of my favorite characters, George-Michael-obsessive
Heather Trott (Cheryl Fergison). Alongside the Dot, Kim, and Shirley
characters, Heather was one of my favorites. And the way in which she died—and
the status of her relationships with best-friend Shirley and her murderer at
the time—is just too sad. And sadly, it seems as if the U.K. soaps don’t bring
back characters from the dead in the way the U.S. soaps do. Ah, well—I’ll miss
you, Heather, but at least I can find some of your shenanigans on YouTube
still:
I
think I just watched the final (series 1) episode of “Borgen”. My goodness,
that show is spectacular, and very reminiscent of another television favorite
of mine: “The West Wing”!
Series 1 DVD—damn you, region encoding!
For
those who aren't already familiar with the Danish series, this is the general premise:
Pilou Asbæk
Courtesy
of various political maneuverings, Birgitte Nyborg (played by Sidse Babett Knudsen)—a politician tied to Denmark’s moderate political party—finds herself
thrust into the role of Prime Minister. However, the world of politics being
what it is, she only has two people within her inner-circle whom she feels she
can trust. One of those people is her (gorgeous) secretive spin-doctor, Kasper Juul (Pilou Asbæk). One of the things Kasper’s keeping a secret about, though, is his
relationship with a powerhouse news anchor named Katrine Fønsmark (Birgitte Hjort Sørensen), and their role in orchestrating Nyborg’s rise to power.
So,
getting back to the “West Wing” comparison, you’ve got: President Bartlett in
Prime Minister Nyborg; John Lyman and Sam Seaborne in Kasper Jull; and, CJ Craig and Danny
Concannon in Katrine Fønsmark. There’s even a niche for Leo MacGarry and
Abigail Bartlett in Nyborg’s Financial Minister and husband, respectively.
"Borgen" Principal Cast
"The West Wing" Principal Cast
At
any rate, I highly encourage any of my stateside friends to conduct a desperate
search for it—it’s worth the watching. (Just make sure you find the version
with UK subtitles—unless you happen to speak Danish.)
In
the meantime, if I can't find someplace in the US to watch series 2 and 3 when
I get back, I may have to consider never forgiving KG & MM for introducing
me to the show in the first place!
So, yesterday was the annual US American tradition of
gathering around yon television to watch commercials.
Don’t get me wrong, there’s a bit more to it than that: some
viewers—namely of the heterosexual male breed—tune in to watch a bunch of
savage barbarians beat the tar out of one another. They call this event a
‘Super Bowl.’ Being a slightly more intelligent and civilized chap, I don’t
quite get the appeal. From what I gather, however, the objective is to chase
down ablack-and-white checked pig, kick it through a hoop or net of some type, and then run
around the bases before the opposing team’s mascot gives you a strike. At some
point while this is all going on, spectators are supposed to divert their
attention to a bunch ofadorable puppiesyapping about which is better:beer that has more taste, or less filling?
As I said, though, the main purpose of this
sporting…spectacle is to celebrate America’s status as a consumerist,
capitalistic culture that supports 1% of the population while ensuring that the
other 99% of us can’t even afford basic human rights like, y’know, healthcare!
Of course, none of that matters as long as we don’t actually
think about it, right?
The ‘Super Bowl’ has admittedly given us some pretty memorable
commercials over the years. For instance, who could forget Apple’s Macintosh ad
that riffed on Orwell's 1984? Or Snickers’ humorageistBetty Whiteand hysexistcal Aretha Franklin commercials?
I surely couldn’t!
And last night, they did it again, this time courtesy of
MetLife Insurance. (See what I did there? I brought it back ’round to the whole
healthcare thing.)
Now, as you can see, this particular advertisement features some
pretty well-known animated figures owned by Warner Brothers (either directly or through
subsidiaries)...
Now, the question becomes, why are they featured in this
advertisement? Is it just good ol’ fun, meant to bring a knowing smile to
former fans of He-Man and his fearless friend, Battle-Cat? Or is there more to
it?
Let me back up a moment and explain some things—and, no,
this has nothing to do with my time abroad, but since I have the platform I’m
going to use it to talk about a topic near and dear to my heart: Masters of the
Universe (MOTU).
In 1982, Mattel—the makers of Barbie and Hot
Wheels—introduced a new 6” toyline called “Masters of the Universe.” The
minicomics that came with the original series told of a medieval world (Eternia) wherein science and sorcery merged seamlessly. At the center of this world stood an ancient fortress called Castle Grayskull; and, according to
Eternian mythology, (s)he who rules Grayskull also rules Eternia.
Enter: Skeletor, an
extra-dimensional warlord from Infinitia determined to claim that castle as his
own (with the added benefit of taking Tee-La, the warrior goddess, as his
bride). Also enter: He-Man, a barbarian jungle warrior entrusted with a
magical sword and harness by an (occasionally) different goddess figure, and
fated to be Eternia’s true king one day. (And husband of Tee-La—duh!)
As a rule, the Eternians were safe thanks to He-Man and his
friends. But something was happening here on Earth that muddied the waters a
little. (And, no, I’m not talking about the controversial fact that DC Comics
decided to position He-Man as a bi-terrestrial character—his mother, now
Eternia’s queen, was apparently from Earth.)
Suddenly, Mattel—and others, to be sure—found itself able to
market directly to children in ways that it had never been able to do before.
Enter: the half-hour toy commercial (a.k.a. modern cartoons), ensuring that He-Man and his friends would be duking-it-out with the forces of evil five days a week!
From 1983-1985 (and then afterward courtesy of repeats),
Mattel—through Filmation—brought the adventures of He-Man and the Masters of
the Universe into the homes of boys and girls across the Western world. But, being capitalists
at heart, the big bosses at Mattel realized there was more to the children’s
market than just little boys!
Enter: She-Ra, the Princess of Power (POP) and He-Man’s twin
sister—and a toyline that was, from the bosses’ perspective, aimed at girls.
(This latter fact is highly debatable, as there are many boys who collected the
POP toys, just as there were girls who collected the MOTU toys.) The initial
She-Ra series ran from 1985-1987, but, like its sibling-show, continued
afterwards through repeats.
The MOTU mythos relaunched itself again—accompanied by
fresh toylines—in 1990(-1991) and 2002(-2004), and the property even saw a
live-action movie produced in 1987 courtesy of Warner Brothers.
Supported by an active fan-community (and yet another toyline, now in its fourth year), the MOTU property has been with fans almost
constantly for the last 30 years. And, rumor has it, that Mattel plans to make the property’s 30th
spectacular.
Not only is therebrand new artwork and other collectibles, but references by Mattel officials
to big and exciting things down the road
Could that include a new MOTU cartoon, which what we see in the MetLife commercial
is a preview of? Fans like myself are certainly hoping so!
Now I want to move on to the other big story from
yesterday’s baseball match, or whatever it was: the half-time show.
One word: Madonna.
Another word: Awesome.
Rumor has it, the Material Girl pulled her hamstring right
before the show, but that didn’t stop her from putting on a great performance,
which included bits from fan-favorites “Vogue,” “Music,” and “Like a Prayer.” (NB: Those individual links take you to my favorite versions of each song!)
Yet, as much as I love Madge (excepting her acting
‘abilities’), I’m not here to talk about her performance. Rather, I want to
talk about her wardrobe choice.
For your convenience, I’ve embedded her performance last
night. You don’t have to watch the whole thing, but, at the very least, watch
her during the opening (“Vogue”) segment, and pay special attention to her
ensemble:
It didn’t take long for me—and numerous others—to drop our
jaws when we saw her. “What’re you lookin’ at?” you may join the immaculate
Madonna in asking. The answer is, first and foremost, her headdress. Next it’s
her golden cape. And then the rest.
Almost immediately, my stateside MOTU/POP-friends went to the
Facebook store and started posting comparison images like the one seen here:
The Material Princess?
That’s right: we were comparing her to She-Ra. (See, I
really do try to make these posts come full-circle!)
And I agreed initially,
but it didn't take long for me (and others, to be fair) to realize that the comparison was
close but still a touch off…
And then I (we) remembered the Bubble-Power She-Ravariant from the original and MOTUC toylines:
Left: Original Bubble-Power She-Ra Art by Nightwing / Right: Bubble-Power Madonna?
Perfect comparison!
Now, do I think the homage was intentional? No.
Would I love
to find out that She-Who-Must-Not-Act-Again and Mattel planned this whole thing
out as part of the MOTU 30th Anniversary celebration?
Abso-freakin-lutely!
All right, kiddies, I think I’ve blathered on enough about
all of this. I could go on and on—I haven’t even touched upon the various
ideologies MOTU and POP viewers were inculcated with over the last three decades!—but
I won’t.
Besides, I need to start writing my next entry, which is a
look at part of the UK’s culture happening this very day…
This weekend’s been somewhat of a wash, so there’s really
not too much to say. In other words: this will be short.
Most of
yesterday was spent writing (draft) essays for various scholarships I’m
applying to for the 2012/13 school year, and when I wasn’t doing that, I was
helping Nic run lines for his show that opens in about two hours (8PM
Central)—break a leg, baby! Later in the evening, however, I joined KG & MM for
"EuroCrash! The Musical," which was written by their landlord. The synopsis is as
follows:
“Meet Mark and Gilda—the Hansel and Gretel of Euroland—as they discover
the fantasy world of the single currency. Meet Papa Kohl and Madame Mitterrand,
the charming couple who hold it all together; meet the Snake, a clanky
prototype; Jean-Claude Trichet, the last great eurocrat; the PIIGS, paying for
past profligacy; the dark eminence of the mighty Bundesbank; and the wild,
exotic currencies of central Europe. All this packed into a pantomime. Vicious
rhymes, great music. From the creators of last year’s sell-out Broke Britannia!” ~ "EuroCrash! The Musical" Official Website
Image Courtesy of "EuroCrash! The Musical" Website
Now, I know what
you’re thinking: that sounds…interesting. And you would be correct. It was
actually quite amusing for the most part, and I walked away with a much better
understanding of the euro’s history than I ever had before. The acting was
good, and the lyrics to the songs were very cute! Who knew an economic downturn
could be so much fun?
Following the
show, I joined KG & MM at The Sun Inn for dinner and drinks (the second round;
the first being at the show). The food was excellent, as was the atmosphere,
but the company and conversation are what put it over the top as wonderful!
The Sun Inn / Image Courtesy of their Website
Somehow, today
was even less productive than yesterday. Once again, I helped Nic run lines for
a good portion of the day. Then, this evening, K&M went to her cousin’s
house for a bit, so I went out for some British Chinese take-out at Xiong Mao. Instead
of the stereotypical fortune cookie, however, I received two chicken wings. And
no chopsticks. I was confused—either the hostess really, really liked me (hence
the wings), or she hated me (hence the lack of a cookie and chopsticks)—so, of
course, I took to the Facebook-program-store to state as much. Fortunately, a
more worldly friend clarified that the fortune cookies are an American thing,
and that the wings were probably because it’s Chinese New Year’s Eve, and then
another friend, who lives in Cornwall, said that he’s never known Chinese
take-away over here to come with chopsticks. Ah, cultural adjustments…
Seriously, these are the types of tidbits that should be in one of those
London: From A to Zed books!
At any rate, at home with my take-out, I turned on the
telly, and what should I find: “Come Dine with Me.” I swear, that show is like
crack and I’m a filthy junky! After noshing away and enjoying this week's batch of participants, I chatted with Nic and the
folks for a bit, and then retired to watch BBC iPlayer in bed—which is
currently streaming “Doubt,” an AMAZING movie if you haven’t seen it yet!
Well, that’s enough for now. Not sure what’s on the schedule
for tomorrow yet—the hunt for housing resumes, and laundry happens. Those two
things are definites. Beyond that, though, I may do the Westminster Abbey tour
tomorrow.
P.S. to Cultural Studies and Queer Lit friends: I just found
out that Karl Marx and Radclyffe Hall are buried in the SAME cemetery, and that
it’s not far from here. Who’s going to be a creepy graveyard stalker? This guy!
Karl Marx Memorial (NB: This photo is NOT mine!)
Radclyffe Hall's Memorial (NB: This photo is NOT mine!)
My apologies to
everyone who’s been waiting with baited breath for my next installment—last
night I was simply knackered, and couldn’t bring myself to type anything out.
So, tonight you get a two-for:
YESTERDAY:
I had the day off yesterday, and spent most of it hunting for housing via the
interwebs. No real luck, though, so I decided to sign-up for something called
speed-flatmating. It’s like speed-dating, but…well, looking for flatmates.
Hopefully that will work (especially after today’s experience—but more on that
later)!
Later in the day, I attended a film night sponsored by UEL’s GLBTQ group. The event
was...okay. But the film, called "Fit," should have been titled "Meh."
I mean, sure, I'm glad I did it for the experience, but it
certainly wasn't worth the money or hours it took me to get there. There were
only six other people there, and not a single one of them even introduced
themselves to me, let alone did anything to make me feel welcomed. I was pretty disappointed by the whole thing.
We
did watch two episodes of "Will & Grace" before the movie (which
I find increasingly problematic the older I get, and the more academically
minded I am). Nonetheless, it was interesting to see which American-based jokes
landed, and which ones went over their heads. As for the movie: imagine
"Step Up" (2, 3, or 10, since the first one was at least mildly
enjoyable), meets "Fame," meets a high school coming out movie. My
gravy, it was sooooo bad.
I was feeling kind of disgusted after the fact—the group didn't even make an
effort to get to know me as I was leaving—and I think that's because I partly
assumed it would be kind of a ready-made friend set, you know? Like, they'd
wonder what it was like to be gay in America or something. I don't know. But it
wasn't what I expected.
So,
at any rate, I tried to make myself feel better by swinging by Buckingham
Palace on the way home for some more night photos. Wow—unlike Tower Bridge and
the Tower of London, it was super sketchy and dark all around. And people were
few and far between. I kind of feared for my safety a bit. (Unrelated to that
last thought, but it was also the first place I've seen unhoused persons since
I've been here, and someone vandalizing property—a young, well-dressed white
woman tagging a phone booth). But I pushed through, determined to turn my mood
around. I got one or two decent photos out of at least.
Buckingham Palace
I tried to get in, but they wouldn't let me...
...Or did they?
Finally,
when I returned home, I watched two episodes of “The Inbetweeners,” which Nic
and I typically watch courtesy of BBC America. For once, though, I was able to watch it
unedited—and it was a bit overwhelming, actually. I just might prefer the
bleeped out version a touch more. (Or, looking back at what I’ve written so
far, maybe I’m just in a crabby, I-don’t-care-for-much mood today…)
TODAY:
Today was
another non-school day, and another day of searching for housing. And this time
I actually got an appointment to check out a place. Everything seemed good—the
price, the location, the lack of a deposit—until I actually arrived: a huge
portion of the wall against which the headboard was resting was caked in mold.
Ugh! Obviously, I won’t be living there…
But, since I was
in Stratford already, I decided to check-out one of London’s newest
attractions, which has the UEL campus officials positively abuzz…
Don’t get me
wrong, it was a nice mall—but, I can honestly say that if when (and if) I ever
get homesick for American culture, I can just pop over to the Westfield’s and
it’ll be just like I’m home again. Except with a Marks & Spencer’s instead
of Target. (Sadly, there was still no sign of Grace Brothers Department Store…)
They're free...mainly because I haven't found them yet. (Or because all but two of them are dead now...)
In short, I’d
prefer spending my time in a more interesting London environment than one that
I can find in practically any American suburb.
Ah, well, at
least I got to watch another batch of episodes from “Come Dine with Me” (the celebrity version this time) when I came home.
Oh, and I had dinner at a pub called “The Trout”—it was pretty tasty.
Until next time, remember: you've all done very well!
So, today was the third day of orientation, and, by far, the
best, because it included the induction ceremony for my school...
PLEASE STANDBY FOR AN EMERGENCY BULLETIN:
Before I go too much further, I should provide some quick
notes on differences between American and British English when it comes to
discussing academics. For one thing, “college” is called “university” over here
(apparently, “college” is a term used for posh high schools). Next, “courses”
are referred to as “modules,” and your program of study (e.g., Cultural
Studies) is called your “course.”
THIS CONCLUDES THE EMERGENCY BULLETIN…
Okay, got that? So, the induction was for my program of
study (Cultural Studies) and things related to it.
It kicked off with a two-on-one meeting with the head of the
program, Debbie Shaw. She’s seems to be a really cool person, and she even
remembered me from her brief visit to Columbia for last year’s Cultural Studies
Association conference. She gave us the ins-and-outs of the program, and
instilled a bit of the fear of God into us regarding assessments (the primary
method of evaluation our progress—there are two of them per semester, and one
is worth approximately 45% of our final grade and the other is worth about 35%
of our final grade). I wasn’t able to meet my second teacher because he won’t
be back from his sabbatical until next week (I'm excited to talk more with him because most of his CS work centers on sex and pornography!), and my third teacher wasn’t there
either. Ah, well.
After meeting with Debbie, I had some downtime. Starving, I
grabbed a full English breakfast from The Edge (one of our on-campus
restaurants)—eggs, friend bread, bacon (ham), hash browns, and beans; and, no, I did not eat any of the mushrooms or black pudding. Yummy
yummy yummy—I’ve been waiting for a FEB since about two minutes after I left
London the last time!
I ate my meats, but didn't want any puddin'!
Having stuffed myself, I meandered around the main hall of
East Building. I glossed over most of the groups advertising their things
because they were all sports-related, and anyone who has known me for more than
a few minutes knows that I’m not sports-inclined. But then…
Wait... what? Did I just see what I thought I saw?
Why… yes… it’s…
UEL HAS A TRIATHLON CLUB!
It’s £30 for the semester, and I’ll have access to
swim-training on one night and biking/running on another. Coaches will also be
available, and, when I asked about my lack of a bike in the UK, I was told that
I could just rent it if I wanted. Even better, the team currently consists of
some staff members and two students (neither of whom has actually done a tri
before)—meaning, despite my lackluster physicality, I’m still the most
experienced one of the lot! AMAZING! So, yeah, I think I’m gonna sign up for
that bad-boy—but I am NOT swimming in the Thames!
After chatting it up with the students advertising the
triathlon group, I headed on to my next session: a meeting with Hugh Bowman,
the Cultural Studies program’s personal librarian. He’s a 64 year old
Scotsman—at least I hope he’s a Scotsman—with a really long, gray, shaggy
beard. From the start, he reminded me of Dooley from “Santa Claus: The Movie.” And
he was also very pleasant and quite humorous, rounding out the comparison. (He
also has the distinction of being the first actual UK citizen I’ve heard use
the phrase “Bob’s your uncle!”)
Best. Librarian. Ever. (Next to Barbara Worley.)
After Hugh, two other speakers inundated us with information
on everything from the campus bookstore, to emergency phone numbers, to
equipment rentals (e.g., cameras, sound equipment, laptops, etc.), and more. As
if all that wasn’t bad enough, the leader then played a 13 minute video about
all of the accommodations UEL offers for students who need them (e.g., dyslexia
services, childcare, etc.)—in all, about 9 people were interviewed during the
course of the video, and at the end of each segment they would repeat the URL
where viewers could find out more: “double-u, double-u, dot; you-eee-el;
dot-co-dot-u-kay; forward-slash ______” By about the third time I could no
longer hold my giggles, because I just kept hearing the Georgie character (from
“The Catherine Tate Show”) plugging one of her charity websites!
Orientation ended with a lovely reception in the Art and
Design gallery, where the Dean served us wine and sandwiches. She was a lovely
woman from Dublin, with short salt-and-pepper hair and striking eyes. Both the
Dean and the Vice-Chancellor offered us their words of welcome, and then we
were able to mingle with staff for a bit. Very nice.
Don’t worry, I’m almost done…
Below you’ll find a few snapshots form my continued
exploration of London at night. Tonight I took the DLR all the way to the Tower
Hill stop, where I hopped out and walked around the Tower of London and Tower
Bridge (and City Hall). I love this freakin’ city!
Until next time, remember: Bob’s your uncle!
PS: Today was a two-coffee day (awwww); but, I got to watch another episode of "Come Dine with Me" on TV (yay)!
Well, today was the big day: orientation at UEL (part 1 of
3); and, it went very well! Now sit right back and allow me to regale you (bore
you?) with the day’s adventures…
It all started, as no morning ever should, at 4:58 AM GMT,
when I woke up for no freakin’ reason. I mean, seriously, I had another
hour-and-a-half in which I could have rested. Alas, it was not meant to be. So,
I tossed and turned for a bit, until, finally, I just said, ‘Screw it!’ and
went over to the computer…
And who had just posted on my FB wall their well-wishes for
my day? The divine Mr Ruley, that’s who. Turns out he was just about to go to
bed as I was getting up. So we chatted it up for a bit online before I finally
resigned myself to the fact that it was time to go. That was Great Start Event
#1.
Great Start Event #2 happened as I was making my trek toward
the tube stop: first, my iPod randomly selected Eartha Kitt’s “An Englishman Needs Time.” Why was this so great? Well, lemme tell ya: it’s awesome on one
level simply because it was Heavenly Eartha herself, on another because it was
a recording taken fromthe concert that Nic and I saw her perform live, and on
a third level because it was about an Englishman and I’m in, well, England.
And then (Great Event #3), my iPod started playing “It’s Getting Better” by Mama Cass Eliot (Mamas and the Papas). Again, you may wonder why I’m
classifying this as something great. You see I fell in love with the song (and
the group) through their inclusion in one of the most romantic gay films I’ve
ever seen: “Beautiful Thing.” (The flick in question was one of the few things
that kept me sane in the early days of my coming to terms with my sexual
identity—try as I might to find positive, happy representations of gayness,
queer filmmakers of the ’90s were seemingly eager to paint a picture of gayness
equaling misery, suffering, death, drugs, and infidelity. Damn it, I wanted
more—and found exactly what I was looking for in the sweet love story of Jamie
and Ste.) At any rate, the song was awesome/fitting because the film is set in
Thamesmead, about 2.69 miles away from UEL. (Hmm….a day trip might be happening
soon…)
Eventually, I made my way to the tube and began my journey
proper. The entire trip took me about 1.5 hours—first I had to transfer from
the District to the Jubilee line, and then I had to switch again to the
Docklands Light Rail (DLR). Shockingly, it wasn’t bad!
Part of My Journey
Orientation itself was a bit overwhelming! Lots of
information coming our way about everything from library services, to visa
no-no’s, to trips around London and elsewhere. It was all a bit much, but after
I’ve had some time to digest it all, it should (hopefully) make sense.
At 12:30 PM GMT we were given £5 vouchers to any of the
multiple eating establishments on-campus. I wasn’t interested in much, so I
just grabbed an egg sandwich and a coffee*—except, the grandmotherly cashier
wouldn’t let me get away with just that. She kept insisting that it was a waste
of money (as the two items only came to £2.65, or thereabouts), and forcing
food on me! First, she told me to take an apple, which I did so as to be
polite. Next, she told me to take a banana—I protested that it was too much,
but she insisted…and then she insisted again, telling me to take a second
banana! Finally, to top it all off, she told me to pick up a pack of belVita
Breakfast Biscuits! It was all a bit absurd, but I did as I was told—guess I
have dessert and breakfast for tomorrow.
Grandmotherly Cashier, or Nabisco Enforcer?
Following my sandwich and coffee, I wandered around the
campus a bit. It really is a unique place—between the adjoining Thames and the
occasional fishy breeze, one definitely feels as if they’re near docks, and the
colorful, rounded dorms blend in almost perfectly with that nautical setting. Then
there’s the London city airport, which is directly across the river—the
large(ish) planes landing and taking off within seeming arm-reach is really
cool. In some ways, UEL is very reminiscent of Columbia, but in other ways it’s
just different enough that (at least at this point) it makes me feel a touch
homesick.
UEL/Docklands Dorms on the Thames
London City Airport and the Thames (Behind the Big Giant Head)
At 2:00 PM GMT, a group of us headed over to the Gallions Reach shopping center. There wasn’t too much there, but it was fun to go along
on my first excursion with my London peers.
Around 5:30 PM GMT, I finally left campus and started the
long trek home. I did make one final detour though: when it came time to
transfer from the Jubilee to the District line, I left the tube and made my way
to the street-level. You see, I was at the Westminster Stop, and one of my
biggest regrets from the last time Nic and I were here was that I never got
decent photos of the Palace of Westminster (the parliament building) at night.
Tonight I rectified that, as can be seen from the photos below. And while I was
there, I was able to actually hear Big Ben toll the 6:00 hour.
The Millennium Eye
Brett, "Big Ben," and Palace of Westminster
Westminster Abbey
After wandering for a bit, I returned home and chatted
briefly, once more, with Nic as he prepared for tonight’s show. Then I enjoyed a
yummy dinner of chicken and rice with KG and MM while watching “Coronation Street.” (I’m sure I’ll talk more about it later, but I’ve had a great time
discussing British soaps and audience interaction with KG and MM while I’ve
been here—I think the fact that they’re such a phenomenon over here is awesome,
and I really want to get at that difference between British and USAmerican
culture. I also think it’s interesting that British soaps are ongoing
narratives like our own, despite the fact that so many other British television
programs are self-contained narratives.)
Anyway, I’ve blathered on enough for one night—time to close
shop. Till the bell tolls again...
* I haven’t mentioned it here yet, but I’m trying to curb my
coffee addiction while I’m here. I’ve done really well the last two days,
having a single, small cup both days. No more. Quite the change from my
multi-pot/day habit!
