Monday 14 January 2008

The American Way

Today was the first day of term, which felt a little anticlimactic since I don't actually have anything going on on Mondays. But I still got up bright and early and got ready, then plunked down in front of my desk and found myself totally unable to fire up for the beginning of term. It didn't feel like a new start, it felt like a morning at my desk. So instead of diving into lectures, I decided to dive into virtually everything else I had to do around campus.

I hadn't necessarily planned on this, but I impulsively joined a gym and paid for two months worth of my membership. I stopped by the post office and bought stamps, so I can finally defer my loans and send in my forms to vote absentee from North Dakota. I went to Boots, where I triumphantly left with sleep medication after reassuring the cashier that I didn't have liver problems, and I wasn't addicted to sleeping pills, and that I wasn't going to use it to start a meth lab in my wardrobe. (Typically, I think a doctor is supposed to screen you for these things, but the important part is that I got the drugs. And she suggested herbal supplements to try first, and I was like, ma'am, I don't want root extracts and I don't want plant fibers and I definitely don't want aromatherapy for my pillow. I want synthetic drugs that would knock a horse unconscious.) I bought a can of soup to crack open for lunch, then went next door to Borders and got a cup of coffee at Starbucks. And I finished all of it by 10am, which totally made me feel like my term was off with a bang.

Plus, I managed to spend less than fifty quid and I basically got the equivalent of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, at least insofar as those include a gym membership, voter registration, and a healthy mix of uppers and downers.

No comments: