The human cannon ball

I went to the circus last night. Not like Barnum and Bailey's circus at Reunion Arena. This was like a proper acrobatic freak show that took place in a big, white tent in the middle of Leed's park. It was the Moscow State Circus. It was definitely entertaining, but I felt like it had some residue of the Soviet era attached to it. Like these were the people who were assigned the job of "circus performer" by the communist regime in order to cheer people up and show the outside world that the USSR wasn't really a bad place to live. The performer's clothes and equipment were worn and faded and the men didn't smile much. The clowns made jokes about vodka. They did the whole illusionist thing sawing a woman in half. I have to say, even though I know it can't be real, it still confuses me how they can do that. The trapeze artists and the rubber woman were my favorite though. I don't know how you learn to do the things they did without killing yourself in the process. Pretty amazing. Anyways, it was a fun break in the middle of an otherwise school dominated weekend.

Good intentions

I start off my days with such good intentions. Then, somewhere along the way I end up spending two hours on YouTube instead of reading articles for my dissertation. I need discipline. In so many areas of my life ... school, quiet times, working out, healthy eating, cleaning. Realizing you have a problem is the first step, right? So I am going to change this. Really.

My computer crisis turned out not to be as bad as the HP guy told me it was. I got everything fixed, hopefully, and didn't lose anything after all. Yay! I have a month left before my warranty expires, so if something still is wrong, it better happen soon.

Now, to switch topics. Nothing bothers me more than seeing English butchered in the written form. (Actually, that's not true. Lots of things bother me more ... poverty, slavery, racism, abuse, seeing drunk guys peeing on buildings as I do nightly in Leeds ... you get the picture.) Never have I seen it so abused as I have this year. I think it is because text messaging is really popular here so everybody uses shorthand and abbreviations. Also, a lot of my friends speaks English as a second language, so when they try to use slang it can just get confusing. For instance, this week I received an e-mail inviting me to "port-luck" from my Singaporean friend. Take a look at some of the most egregious messages I've received:

Itz a Friday after all so therez no better time 2 start a get2geda than sunset.

Now shez out with anoda piece 4rom da Archives.

No shakes about it. Happi Niu Yia, da Chinese Way.

W8 4 me.

Like nails on a chalkboard.

Fun British phrases of the day:
good fun: Yes, we learned to play cricket. It was good fun.
give it a go: I've always wanted to learn, so I thought I'd give it a go.
I hear these phrases at least five times a day. They make sense, but we don't really use them in America. Wonder why.

The unthinkable has happened ...

My laptop is broken. I realized that besides being robbed, losing a family member, contracting a fatal disease, or having my identity stolen while overseas, this is just about the worst thing that could happen to me. (It always helps to have some perspective). Seriously though, it's a pain. I'm afraid I'm going to lose all my essays and dissertation work, photos, and music. Plus, since I use Skype to talk to my family and friends, I have basically lost my ability to communicate with people back home. I spend more time on my computer than I do in class or interacting with people in the human world, so it literally feels like I'm losing a best friend. My laptop knows me. Hmmm ... on the other hand, maybe this is the best thing that could have happened to me.

Other than that, life is looking up. God is good.

The February blahs

I have decided that the most encouraging thing in this world (besides knowing Jesus) is the knowledge that time goes on. It's a guarantee. One of the only things you can count on in this life. Right now, I want to go home. Winter without a car sucks. I don't feel like I belong anywhere yet. I am ready to be out of a dorm and in a house again. School is tough. I realized that I haven't really had a good hug since I said good-bye to my parents at the airport in September. I need one. July seems like forever away. But it will come. And until then, I choose to trust, live, learn, and have fun. I've always believed that happiness is a choice. It's been easy to think that because I have found happiness to come naturally in my life. But now it's a little tougher, so it's time to put my belief into action. I will be happy. I won't complain. And I will try to walk by faith and not sight, because right now I still don't understand why God gave me this opportunity. I feel like I've failed somewhere along the way because things haven't gone as I imagined they would. Maybe I entered into things with unrealistic expectations.

Take a deep breath, Meghan. It's going to be ok.

Now faith is being sure of what is hoped for, and certain of what is not seen. Hebrews 11:1