In less than two weeks I’ll be back in London attending lectures, studying and writing my papers. I am thankful that going to London this time will be less stressful than last September when I had no idea what I was actually getting myself into. For example, this time I won’t be shocked at the discovery of my meager lodgings or have to go through awkward introductions with new people. I do love my life in London and am eager to carry on, but when I think about how much I have to do once I get back, I get overwhelmed and start to panic—what if I don’t get everything done?!? I start two new modules next term and I’m worried about how I will manage those classes, plus work on the blasted papers from first term AND begin research for my dissertation (thesis). Before I actually begin that research, I have to decide on a topic…What if the topic I choose is a dud? What if I get bored with it? What if I fail!?

OK Mindi, breathe--get a hold of yourself...take a step back…

A better perspective is to focus on the great time I’ve had being home so far and the nearly two weeks ahead that I still have to enjoy in Michigan and Illinois.

Here are some things that I missed while I was in London and have been able to do since coming home:

• sleeping in my own beds (Holland and Lansing) with soft sheets and fluffy pillows
• spending time with my family (immediate and extended)
• wearing the half of my winter wardrobe that I couldn't bring with me
  
• eating Mexican food
• wandering the streets of Chicago
• attending my church in IL
• drinking coffee at the local coffee shop
  
• seeing my friends
• using my cell phone
• reading a few novels
• lounging on my blue couch, or any couch, actually
  
• watching TV (I've missed you, my friend.)
  

Here are some things that I look forward to before going back to London on 8 January:

• more of the above
• shopping for good deals
• snow (?)
  

I must say it's good to be back in the States, but now that I'm here I keep thinking of London! What's up with that?
I had a great flight from London. The plane was only about 50% full, so I had plenty of room to spread out. I think I even slept a little, which never happens since I usually can't get comfortable in such a confined space. When I wasn't dozing off or reading, I was peering out the window, intrigued by the landscape below me. I love window seats! Even though I've flown to and from Europe a few times, I never remember seeing what I saw this time--apparently on my other flights it was either dark or cloudy. Below were tons of ice burgs floating about and crazy tundra that must have been Iceland or Greenland or something. Amazing!
When I landed in Cincinnati, about half of my fellow travelers and I were involved in a major breach of security by no fault of our own. We were let off the plane into the regular terminal rather than being directed to Customs and Immigration. It took over an hour for the TSA to round up all the wayward passengers and herd us to the correct place which meant I missed my flight to GRR. As a consolation, I was given a meal voucher to keep me occupied and my stomach satisfied until the next connection. I wouldn't have minded a refund on the flight or some free SkyMiles or something, but whatever. Thankfully the surprise I planned for my parents was not effected by this change in schedule.
I was chatting with a few of my American friends in London and we all expressed concern that once we were back home, we'd start spending money like crazy since things would seem so cheap compared to London. It's a good thing I have some Christmas shopping to do to distract me from spending money on myself. I'm hoping to get downtown Chicago yet before Christmas to experience the bitter wind gusts and crowds which signify this festive time of year. Whether or not I spend money shopping there is not important--all I really need is a Chicago fix.
I'll be heading back to London on 8 January and I doubt I'll be adding to this blog while I'm home. So, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone!

I did a little shopping on Friday with my friend, Marta. It was my reward for working hard on my essay all week. Actually the working hard didn't last ALL week as I had planned: Thursday was a bust due to the aforementioned insomnia. But, the first half of the week went well anyway, so I went shopping. We got an early start since the main shopping areas are insane in the afternoon. We started on Regent Street and went to the huge toys tore, Hamley's, because Marta had to buy her niece and nephew presents. It reminded me of FAO Schwartz in Chicago (and NYC). Since they closed their doors a few years ago, I don't think there's an equivalent in the US anymore. We also walked through Carnaby Street, which I had not done before. Quaint.


The highlight of the day was Harrods. Neither of us had been there yet, so we were looking forward to seeing what the hype is all about. Plus, we thought it would be nice to see the Christmas decorations. (I actually wanted to see the Santa 'Grotto' because it's apparently quite elaborate--I was picturing in my mind the Santa setup in "A Christmas Story". We found Father Christmas Land, but the big man was behind closed doors; tickets were necessary to get in!)
Wow! What a store! It's huge! A person can spend all day there wandering about, getting lost. Of course, neither of us bought anything since it's pretty pricey. We did partake of lattes and scones with clotted cream in the cafe though. I could have eaten a full meal somewhere else for the price I paid, but no matter--it was a one time thing.
It's pretty funny to observe shoppers at Harrods. Granted we were tourists too, but at least we TRIED to blend in and be discrete. There were a couple of ladies in the cafe at a table near us who were picking up the centerpiece, turning it over, examining it--please! How obvious can you be?!? On the other hand, pretty much everyone in the store is a tourist, so there's no sense trying to disguise one's true identity. I should have just taken a picture of my coffee and scone as I was tempted to do. Instead, I took a picture of the building from the street.


During a couple of other downtown outings recently, I was happy to find a couple of Christmas trees that were nicer than the sad-looking one on display at Covent Garden.

This one is at Trafalgar Square. It's from Norway. Every year Oslo gives London a tree in gratitude for assistance during WWII. A thoughtful gesture.


On Sunday I went to the Evensong service at St. Paul's Cathedral. The tree in the courtyard nearby was very lovely as well. Not big or anything, but tastefully decorated.
This concludes my expert critique of Christmas trees in London.

It's after 1:30am and I am still up. Going to bed around 1am is pretty normal for me here--I can be quite productive in the evenings. But lately I've been having insomnia. The past few nights I have not fallen asleep until probably 3:30am. I've gone through phases of insomnia quite frequently in the past but have always attributed it to stress from teaching. But since it's starting up again here, I must be cursed with this condition. I can handle a couple of nights in a row of 5-6 hours of sleep, but after that I start getting really annoyed. Plus, today I just could not concentrate on my research because I was so sleepy. Thankfully once I do fall asleep, I stay asleep. The problem is that I need to get up no later than 9 so I can make it to breakfast.
Tonight I decided to purposefully stay up later so that when I do actually go it bed maybe I'll fall asleep sooner. And, screw breakfast tomorrow; I'm not setting my alarm. Sleep is more important than balanced nutrition at this point.

To tire myself out, I attempted the Sudoko puzzles in today's thelondonpaper. I've only ever tried Sudoko once before and it frustrated me so much that I quit. But this attempt was successful! I did the easy AND medium difficulty puzzles without any hints. See--I really do work well in the evenings!
I think that's the problem, actually...my brain goes on overdrive at night and I can't fall asleep.

Here's evidence of my accomplishment.

The end of my first term is in sight! I can't believe how time has flown! Even though the term is almost done according to the calendar (my last class is Thursday night!), I have a lot of work ahead of me. Each of my two courses is assessed by one, and only one thing--a 5000 word essay.

I would have loved to start on these essays from the very beginning, but the topics weren't even assigned until after half-term. I am a bit disgruntled about this as I had hoped to at least have the first drafts done by Christmas break. But, alas, the Institute of Education's procedures don't function on my timeline. The typical coursework scheme here is to have an essay topic halfway through the term, complete a rough draft or outline by the end of the term and turn in the final draft at the end of the next term. In other words, the essays I am working on right now aren't officially due until mid-March! It's nice to know I have plenty of time, but I'm hoping I won't need to use it.

I have set goals for what I would like to achieve before I leave for Christmas break, but right now I am not entirely sure I will meet those goals. The whole preparation stage to writing these essays is quite time consuming. Tracking down books and journal articles in an unfamiliar library is the first hurdle. Then, once I actually possess the materials, it's exhausting to read through it all. It has been a long time since I've read academic books and journal articles and many of them are constructed of 30-word sentences using words I don't understand. I have to read the same paragraph four times before I (maybe) get the gist. Thankfully I actually like to read; otherwise this stage of the process would be torturous.
After reading for a while on both topics, I decided to focus my attention on my math education essay. I met with my tutor and discussed a few things and finally this past weekend started to get some words on paper. The stimulating topic: assessment and homework in mathematics education. I KNOW all of you are dying to read it!

One of the things I love about studying full time is that I have a chance to read about new things happening in the educational world. When I'm teaching I am so caught up in day-to-day planning and grading that I feel I don't have a chance to grow as a teacher. I can attend all the faculty meetings, in-service days, and conventions there are and hear about all the new teaching and learning theories and methods, but if I don't have the time to contemplate the things that were presented, there's no way I'll actually be able to implement anything new in my classroom, even if I really want to. There is only so much time a teacher can spend on job-related issues, and unfortunately, that time is often spent on the immediate tasks at hand, such as writing a test or grading papers. Any reading that teachers do have time for will most likely be novels or magazines because it's entertaining and gives them a break from their demanding job.

In the months that I've been here, and particularly in the past few weeks that I've been doing some in-depth reading, I've had the opportunity to actually learn about and consider how certain practices will make me a better teacher. I have come across so many things that I am excited to try in my own classroom. I can't remember the last time I've had this attitude--I wish all my colleagues could experience this. I propose mandatory sabbaticals for all teachers. :) Hooray for learning!