sincerely, mad: Shakespeare and the Covered Market

First things first- when I pull up my blog it says .co.uk instead of .com, and I think I could die. I'm starting to think exclusively in a British accent. I'm also starting to say lovely and brilliant a lot. I'm not even kidding. And I'm totally ok with it.

Well geez Louise, there's a whole lot I haven't told you about yet, so let's hop to it, shall we?

Let's start with Shakespeare and how much I love that. My teacher, Dr. Edward Clark, who insists on being called Ed, is absolutely fantastic. He is perfectly British and so incredibly smart. I am quite convinced that he knows everything. He starts talking about Shakespeare and his eyes light up and you can just tell how passionate he is and how much he loves it. Sitting in his class is like sitting in Finco's class- I feel like I am just learning so much and I love every second and I never look at the clock because I never want it to end. This class is three hours long but it flies by. He has poems memorized and has read a bajillion books. At one point Ed started reciting a Yates' poem, word for word, the whole thing, and the whole class just sat there in awe. I was surprised when no one knelt on the floor and started bowing down to this brilliant man. The fabulous thing is, it never seems to occur to him that the fact that he is a wealth of knowledge is unusual. He's published several books, one of which is coming out this month, he has done extensive research on Shakespeare, he finds the South exotic (say what?), and yet he talks to you like what you have to say matters. Any insight anyone has, he appreciates. He acknowledges student comments and answers questions like it is his favorite thing in the world. And it might be. Anyways, we're reading A Midsummer Night's Dream right now, which is one of the first Shakespeare plays I read, and next week we're going to the Globe Theater to see Julius Caesar. I know right?!

The other class I'm in is digital photography, which I think I will learn tons in. I don't have much to geek out about for that one, partly because I'm intimidated by the teacher and also because I really don't know what to say about it. But I'm really excited because I think I'm going to learn an awful lot and my pictures should get better, which is exactly what I was hoping.

I've been into town twice now, and I can honestly say that every time I cross the street, I fear for my life. Buses are especially terrifying. I am genuinely concerned about cars and buses and bikes and taxis because they never stop. It's only a matter of time before one of us gets squished. Both times we went to town we went to the covered market. It's this really neat place- I don't know how else to describe it except that it is literally a market, just inside. The roof is pink and there are little boutiques and restaurants everywhere, and they have Ben's Cookies and Moo-Moo's milkshakes. Moo-Moo's. I can confidently say without a shadow of a doubt that that was the best oreo milkshake I have ever had in my entire life. So thick and creamy, I literally drank the entire thing in a one and a half minute span. There is also a flower shop right as you enter and they had baby's breath, my favorite flower!

I'm making some great friends and learning so much. Don't get me wrong, I miss all of my family and friends back home terribly, but I'm just really really enjoying all of this and loving life right now. If this is any indication of what college will be, I can't wait.