The internet/computers are an easy distraction, and can easily become a large vice. I have no problem with distractions, I love them—within reason. I think I’m about due for a balancing of my computer usage time. Anyway, this is my excuse for not making as many posts, I’ve been trying to par down and observe my overall comp/net usage to get more satisfaction without feeling like I’m missing something.

Last week it snowed. It was worse in London (about a foot I heard), but here in Canterbury it was maybe just an inch or two. They shut down school for half the day, but the buses were still running and everyone was out-and-about having snowball fights, so I imagine the closed it mainly for fun purposes. England claims up to 3 billion pounds in lost revenue, but I had no such lost income. I went to town to a (French-)Mexican restaurant called “Cafe Des Amis.” They have a lunch time 50% off discount for students, which is unreal. You can get a fairly large plate of food for about 2 pound 50. Fantastic experience! The food was delicious, I had a very non-Mexican pesto and roast vegetable quesadilla and several kinds of salsa. The best part was the salsa’s. They were so good, the closest thing I’ve had to good salsa sense I got to Kent (without having to make my own), woo hoo! Found a new favorite place.

They started selling more Cadbury eggs around England in preparation for the Easter holiday’s. I say more because they sell Cadbury eggs pretty much year round here. It’s pretty sweet if you’re into that. No ‘peeps’, though, and there is a serious lack of other Easter candies. Again, there is a lack of ‘holiday spirit’ here. I couldn’t prove it before, but now I’m positive that people don’t seem to get as excited about holiday’s here. That’s cool though, to each their own. As for me, I think I like being sold holiday spirit, and I have faith that America will continue to think of innovative new ways to do just that. Speaking of things being less important here, most people don’t care at all about the Academy Awards. I would say that I’m just a bit biased, but it is an American award ceremony, and aside from a few film students, several people have told me they don’t even know what it is. Same with the Super Bowl, no one even mentioned it besides maybe one or two Americans around me. I suppose all this makes sense though. However, having grown up around it, it just drives in the point that I’m not at home. I don’t know where “home” is specifically, but I can tell you that it is in America. I still miss America, friends, and family a great deal. I’m quite ready to get back to life there, but I’ve still got several more months to be positive about and getting the most out of my opportunities.

Groundhogs day rocks. The movie, and the day. Which is also something that’s basically a joke over here (though, it’s a joke in America too). Originally I had planned to see the movie at the theater last week, there was a showing at the campus cinema. However, it snowed that day and America got 6 more weeks of winter–so the cinema closed. Instead I watched it in my room with a bunch of folks. Fantastic movie, one of my favorites, and an annual tradition for me.

Last but not least, as far as events from the past week, I traveled to Edinburgh in Scotland. Edinburgh is beautiful, and if it’s anything like the rest of Scotland, I have only pleasant things to say about the home of Gordon Brown. I took the overnight bus from London with friends Kat, Matt, and Sagan. The bus ride is almost exactly 8 hours. It’s not easy to sleep, and our bus ride out was particularly hard because of someones alarm. No one got up to turn it off, including me unfortunately, and it went off at weird times throughout the whole trip. Even now I’m wondering, “What was with that damn alarm clock?” We stayed at the Globetrotter Inn, which is about a 15-20 minute shuttle ride from the city center. This is possibly the best hostel I’ve stayed in, rivaling only the Hostel (Fort Mason Hostel) I stayed at in San Fransisco two years ago around this same time of year. Beautiful beach view, and relatively easy access to public transportation.

First we visited the Edinburgh Castle, and saw a 21 gun salute in honor of the anniversary of Queen Mary of Scots first day as Queen. The castle was nice, well worth the 10 pound entry fee if only for the view of the surrounding areas and over-the-top museum exhibits. I did try some Scottish Whiskey, but that stuff is sick unless you drink it super slow. Another highlight from the trip was our visit to the National Gallery, and the National Portrait Gallery, respectively. Matt and I had some great soup at the restaurant attached to the former, the proceeds of which (as with most museum cafe’s and restaurants) goes back into the museum. There pieces by Titian, Raphael, Seurat, Van Gogh, and more. I love art museums.

The ride home was much better, because besides not having an alarm clock, it also had a lot less people. I did take sleeping pills on both trips. In my opinion this is a good idea for any time you’re going to be in public transportation for a long time. It helps you sleep, and most of the time if you’re taking airborn or nyquil or the like, helps to keep you from contracting everyone else’s germs. And with that, I’d like to mention a few quintessential travel items I’ve found useful in my trips in and around England.

Inflatable Neck Pillow. You’ve seen these, you blow them up and then it fits around your neck like a donut with a bite taken out of it. It keeps you from straining your neck while sitting upright. It doesn’t take up much space when deflated, and if you don’t like pain (like most people) it’ll start paying itself off after your first trip, I guarantee it.
Ear Plugs. If you’re staying in hostels and traveling around random people these are fantastic. I just took some from the shop at WTIU before I left, and I can’t tell you how much they’ve helped me. Not just while traveling, but also at home—it can get really loud at 2AM on a college campus!
Pocket Knife. Knives are a bigger deal than cigarettes or Alcohol in England. I’ve been carded for buying a kitchen knife. Regardless, a pocked knife is a crucial item to have. You never know when you need to cut a nagging thread, or some cheese, or an apple. Get one with a bottle opener if you know what’s good for you.
Small/Light/Convienent Laptop. Matt recently bought this really really small computer in Canada for something like 300 Canadian dollars. It’s absurdly cool. It’s the most efficient thing ever. You can watch movies, browse the net at cafes, and write down whatever in one tool. I love my laptop, and I can’t tell you how useful it is.
A Digital Camera. This is an obvious one. But, I’d like to mention an extra use I’ve found. Sometimes you may find yourself faced with information that you’d like to have access to later. Like shop times, or movie times, or prices for food, or whatever. If you’re really crunched for time, and your camera is detailed enough (mines just 7.1 megapixels which I think is pretty standard nowadays), just take a picture.
A Small Lock. And make sure it’s a pretty good one. This can solve a world of problems. You never know when you might need a lock, it’s just handy to have around. I use mine all the time at hostels.
Mini Sewing Kit. This may seem obvious, but it took me a long time to realize the everyday usefulness of these little things. Particularly in our increasingly frugal times, you’ll find it’s much easier to spend half an hour sewing up a loose him rather than buying new clothes. These kits just make it really convienent wherever you are.
Sleeping Bag. I don’t have one yet, so I can’t say much. But there has been a lot of times where I wish I had brought my sleeping bag somehow. Particularly if you use services like “Couch Surfing,” or stay at backpackers hostels, or go backpacking for that matter. And with that.
Backpack(s). A light one, AND a heavy one. I only have a day pack and a normal pack, but the choice makes life much easier. I use my light backpack for groceries and produce from the farmers market and T regularly. Simple, but time tested.

One final note. I recently watched some episodes of a PBS series online. They can be found at e2-series.com. The one on Food Transportation basically sum’s up the most important points that can be cleaned from Michael Pollen’s book “The Omnivores Dilemma” that I consistently rave about. This series is brilliant beyond just food though, and I would highly recommend it to anyone concerned about current issues in energy consumption and the state of the global economy.