What I'm Learning
Trip Start
Sep 14, 2007
1
19
38
Trip End
Dec 20, 2007
Swansea,
United Kingdom
Thursday, October 11, 2007
- How to budget
with the GBP what it is, compared to the USD, i really think about spending my money before i spend it. i'm trying not to let the little things go (a pound here, a pound there) without thinking about it. i take my time at the grocery store looking for the best value, checking for sales, buying in bulk when it makes sense.
- How to relax
i've never had so much free time. its extremley liberating. 4 day weekends every weekend. i couldnt believe the week was over today. it feels like summer. my classes are very undemanding as well. its quite insane. i cant believe how the time fills up though. planning trips and next semester takes up time. and also its nice to have time just to spend sitting down in the kitchen with people, playing cards and talking.
- That cheap generic brands can be good
i usually stick with what i know at the grocery store. i'm getting outside my comfort zone and trying new things here. saving a few pence here and there with non-brand name PB or jam is a good thing.
- To be careful with groceries
i was not happy with the food i got today. i was really excited about it after shopping. but the avacados arent really ripe, the bananas are green and yet still bruised, the cheese isnt what i was expecting and the 5p cheaper unsliced bread is hard to cut. i need a satisfying meal, and i wasnt satisfied with this stuff. usually i'm okay though.
also to make sure i eat the food i buy before it goes bad.
- How to cook
my banana bread was a hit at the potluck dinner. i know i can make granola now. i'm much more confident cooking chicken dishes. pasta was never that hard to begin with. i'm remembering to eat vegtables with dinner too. i can make crepe-like pancakes. ham, egg and cheese combinations are simple and yummy. oatmeal in the morning with fruit. i can bake an apple in the microwave. i can make fruit yogurt by adding jam to vanilla yogurt.
- That if things have to get done, I have to do them
here, there is no cleaning lady coming for the bathroom like in Geneseo. we wash our dishes and laundry and toilets and shower and carpets and desks. i sort out and pay my housing contract. i lug my dirty laundry to the launderette down the road and back. i contact the superintendent when my light is broken, and if i dont, i have a broken light. i buy toilet paper and paper towels. i make it to the bus on time, or i am late to class.
i guess its not a lot different than geneseo. but it feels more independant. this is our apartment, and no one else is coming in here to check on it. theres no RA in the building to keep things under control. theres more freedom and more responsiblity. i like it this way.
- "how we spend our days, is how we spend our lives"
time here is flying. i need to make the most of each day or i'll miss out. theres a time to sleep and a time to move. a time to write and a time to live. and its time to get up and go now.
