*Whew*

What a long week. They happen, far more often than I would like, but fortunately my weekend should be nice and clear. Except for the homework, of course.

But I thought I would take a little time for an update on day-to-day life.

First of all, the tutorials. Love them. Both tutors are so incredibly smart, that I hope I'm going to come away understanding 1/10th of what happened in our sessions. My music tutor, is pretty incredible. He teaches at a boarding school, gives OOSC students tutorials, conducts independent research and is a professional choral singer. Crazy stuff. But he's great, and has given me tons of advice on how to improve my writing which I have tried to take (culminating in the comment today that I have "come a long way". High praise indeed).
And then there's Susan Halstead, my Celtic Studies tutor. She's crazy. Insane. Manic. Lovely, wonderful, and incredible. She works for the British Library, teaches OOSC students, and wait for it...: speaks/reads/writes 27 languages. Yep, I said 27. I'm not even sure how that's possible, and most people react by saying "I didn't even know there WERE 27 languages". The craziest part, I don't think she speaks any Asiatic languages. Which means she knows some insane stuff. And I happen to know she's learning Swahili right now.

So tutorials take up a lot of time, but not all, so I try to fill my time with random other things. Like traveling (Hastings, Bath, and Canterbury are the big destinations from this term). Plus church. Any weekend I'm not traveling I'm attending St. Ebbe's, which is just a great church, where the Lord is clearly doing great things. The people who inhabit this church are incredible people, so filled with humility and a wish to know God and God's people. I have never been so incredibly welcomed on a first, second, or third visit (outside of Kansas City's own VBC) than I have been at St. Ebbe's. That church has helped to instantly feel like I have roots here in Oxford. They also host a student's Bible Study, which is incredibly well attended. There are easily 100-150 students who come to learn about God and God's Word and to pray together in small groups every Thursday night. My Bible Study group is lovely, just a wonderful sweet group of girls who pray so earnestly and want to strive to be holier in their everyday lives, they are such an inspiration, and definitely the people I want to surrounding me. Each small group is headed by a student apprentice, and an older leader of the same gender as the group. In my group, that lovely lady is Georgiana. Now, the name is cool to begin with, but when she told me her father named her for "Georgiana Darcy" from Pride and Prejudice, I realized this was clearly someone I wanted to know better. :) She's wonderful, and leads our group in such a humble way, and it's clear she spends a lot of time studying the passages before she comes to us with them, and she's always asking us to dig deeper into what we're reading, it's great.

On any given morning, between 10:30-12:30, I can be found at Penelope Warner's house. She's incredible. In every sense of the word. She and Francis sort of take the place of everyone's parents, because they're just great like that. This couple are two of the most brilliant people I know, and yet they are also some of the most humble, generous, and patient people as well. They're also incredibly quirky. Like Francis owning a T-Rex egg. Yes, I did just say that. Or Penelope loving gift shops at all museums. I've really enjoyed getting to know both of them better. I try to drop in at least once or twice a week to chat and eat a cookie in their basement.

Other goals for the future: visit the Oxford Bridge Society. I know, ambitious, but I think I could have fun with that.
Which leads me to my last observation: I'm old. Really, really old. I crochet, enjoy face-to-face conversations, play bridge, and guzzle tea like it's going out of fashion. Really, I'm just a little old lady. Not that I think there is anything wrong with this, but I felt we ought to clarify the point. England is making me older than I was before I arrived. :-)