Please forgive me for keeping you all in suspense. I’m not cruel, just busy and easily distracted!

As of today, I have been in Limerick for exactly one month. It seems like time is moving both very quickly and very slowly, and both are in a good way. In the first month of my stay, I have gotten used to several things and started to miss other things. For example, I am becoming an expert at remembering which way to look before crossing a street. I can count coins easily now without having to look at the number value on the face of the coin. I am getting closer to using the term “chips” exclusively and not saying fries (this is an important one!) Best of all I am getting used to the cold. I don’t really even think about it anymore unless I am waiting for forever for the bus or if I have forgotten my gloves.

As I mentioned, I have also started to miss certain things more than I though I would, or I miss things I didn’t realize I would be without. One thing I miss is Hans. Who is Hans? Hans is my VW Jetta. I miss being able to get in my car and drive to the store at midnight if I please. I don’t, however, miss having to think about gas money-bus fare is much cheaper. I miss Twizzlers. It isn’t an insane craving, but I love them. However, not having them will maybe make them seem that much better once I get home! The thing that I probably miss the most that I didn’t realize I would miss as much as I do is not food, an object, or even one thing. I miss USC. I’m having a good time here. I love it here. My professors are pretty awesome, my classes are GREAT, and the campus is beautiful. However, it is not Columbia. There is no French House with Erin and Stephanie and Caroline and Mary. There is no Horseshoe with tea olive trees. There is no Beezer’s. Lame, I know. I was so ready to come to Ireland and be away from USC for a bit that I forgot to consider how much I do actually love it. Columbia means more than just school. It’s a mixture of classes, friends (friends are pretty much pseudo-family to me), atmosphere, and simple daily life. I’m just glad I didn’t miss football season!

Now on to lighter and less sappy, emotional topics!

The last two weekends I didn’t really do anything out of the ordinary and that was the way uh-huh uh-huh I liked it! Last weekend I did laundry. While this is usually an insignificant and ordinary daily thing, one cannot fully appreciate it until one has been limited to washing one load of clothes per week. I had actually been two weeks without washing clothes (aside from a few things that I’ve washed in my sink) and I came frighteningly close to tears thinking about the French House, where I have an en-suite washer and dryer and can wash clothes when I please for free. However, once I got my laundry tokens and had TWO loads of laundry washed, dried, folded and out away, I felt much better. Who knew that clean clothes could bring about feelings of elation?!

I’ve found during the last two weeks that I am really settling into a normal routine of daily tasks much like back home. This is really an achievement because it means that I am more settled and becoming adjusted. It’s hard sometimes to remember that this isn’t a vacation-I actually AM here for school. Some things I enjoy doing are watching Friends while eating lunch, taking daily long walks/jogs by the river, (trying) to go to the library at least twice a week, and (trying) to go to bed at a reasonable hour.

A few interesting things have happened, though. I was eating lunch on campus one day and one of my history professors ended up sitting beside me. He asked me lots of questions about the differences between university here and back home, lecture styles, etc. It was interesting because it was pretty informal and I wasn’t really expecting professors here to be like that. Another little shake to my routine was that I had to switch out of my tutorial for European Society and Governance into another one. At first I was almost bummed because the instructor for that tutorial was pretty much awesome. However, it is just another example of something seeming lame but turning out to be amazing. This is due to the change in paper assignment between the two tutorials. In the tutorial I was originally in, I was going to work with four people and write a paper on the Marshall Plan. Interesting, yes, but somewhat dry in my taste. In my new tutorial, I actually got to choose (from a list) the topic that I wanted to write on. The instructor mentioned this one and my heart was set. I have to read a book titled In Pure Blood, which is written on the Lebensborn Program in the 1930’s/1940’s in Germany. Basically, the Lebensborn Program consisted of “baby factories” and the kidnapping of thousands of Polish children in order to further the ideal “Aryan” race. The problem is, I only have 600-800 words to write. For most papers, that length requirement would have me saying “Sweet!” and “You have got to be kidding.” For this, however, I find myself saying “…that’s all I get?” However, I get 20 minutes to talk when I present said paper, so the instructor told me I could go further if I wish. Who knows, maybe having a (much) shorter length requirement will make it harder because I will have to make my words matter instead of beating my brains trying to add fluff to meet the usual length requirements. This topic is morbid, yes. However, if you know me and my weird little brain, my excitement will make sense to you. You see, I believe that by looking at some of the darkest parts in history can help shed light on some of the greatest parts of the human condition.

And to wrap things up this update, I will tell one more quick story. Last night the International Society had ‘80s Night at the Stables (bar/restaurant here on campus.) Usually I avoid this type of thing like the plague, but I decided to go. I went shopping and bought purple tights and a headband with a silky black bow, threw on my new earrings shaped like nesting dolls and my black Converse and went. Surprisingly or not, I enjoyed myself. I didn’t dance or anything, because I don’t dance. I met another girl who is studying here, but she has actually been here all school year, and her friend who is studying in Galway. I had a Bulmers and we sat around and talked. It was a pretty good night.

The end. I actually have some more, but since this post is lengthy, I’ll add another post in the middle of the week. See y’all later!