Hi! I'm still alive!

Hi everyone,
Sorry for not posting for so long. I've been pretty homesick and overwhelmed with school lately, so I haven't been in the mood to write. I haven't gone on any trips or anything, which is kind of lame, but I honestly have not had the time due to essays, reading, class, etc. I still really like my classes, but they take up A LOT of time.

In addition to doing school stuff, I also kind of stumbled into volunteering at this non-profit fair trade grocery store called New Roots. It's on the way to my classes, and I stopped in on Wednesday to buy some bananas, as I was craving them like none other. (I have weird intense cravings here. Like, 90% of the time when I'm at a coffee shop, I get hot chocolate. I'll even be planning to order a plain latte, and then at the last second ask for hot chocolate. I'm barely drinking coffee anymore. I have no idea why this has happened.) The lady at the counter asked if I'd ever been there before, and then told me all about the store: its mission, its origins, etc. It turned out that she — her name was Grace — and her husband, a Methodist Minister, started it up in the 60's as a way to raise money to help the poor in Sheffield and to raise awareness of social justice issues. All the people who work there are volunteers. So I impulsively asked if they needed new volunteers at the moment. Before I knew it I had an appointment to come back on Friday to be interviewed. I passed my interview, and now I'm starting work tomorrow at 8:30 am. I figure it's a great way to meet locals and make friends (maybe?). So wish me luck!

I have to end this here and go meet my flatmates to order pizza. I'll try to write more later about a few other things I've been up to. Miss you all!!

Things I miss about you:

Dad: your "dadisms." I haven't had this much fun since the hogs ate my little sister!

Liz: your amazing sense of humor and being able to hang out with you. You always give me a whole new perspective on life.

Jenny: Talking with you face-to-face! I think we both use facial expression a lot in conversation, so email just isn't good enough!! :)

Chally: having someone to talk with about academia and its ridiculousness. Ruminating over the meanings and validity of various anthropological theories. So... being nerdy together.

Mom: Climbing together, of course. But also just hanging out, playing with the dogs, making fun of the cats, finding random things in nature and being like, "Hey! This is cool!"

Emily: Making dinner together. Coffee together. Everything together!!

Allie: Everything you are. You're just awesome. Your pithy observations on life. You say the things I think. :)

Mark: Your humoring me when I try (and fail) to talk football with you as if I know what I'm talking about.


Okay, more later!