Thursday, 6 November 2008

"I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride my bike. I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride it where I like..."

Yes, I do have a bicycle. I bought one due to the 1/2 hour walk from my flat to Wadham College/the city centre. On a cycle, it only takes 15 minutes, 10 if I go really fast. Here's the problem: I am the poster child for Murphy's Law--anything bad that can happen, will. I had the bike for a week when I noticed that my front tire was completely flat. So, I took it in to a cycle shop by my flat and the guy said that what had probably happened was that the tire was not properly fitted to the frame. I could take it back to whence it came (a 45 minute walk) and it would be covered by warranty or I could pay 10 pounds for it to be repaired right by my flat. Dilemma!!!! Instead of making a decision, I just haven't ridden my bike for a week. By the way, it is blue, has a wire basket, a light on both the front and back and mudguards (or fenders as my dad likes to call them).

Now I can get to the point of this post. THE ELECTION. I am elated at the results but what I am even more excited about (if its possible) is that not only was I a part of making history but I watched history happen. As we watched CNN, the state-by-state projections rolled in. For each state projecting Obama as the winner, the entire room would cheer. I stood in the bar at the Oxford Union and watched as CNN was projected onto a big screen, predicting Obama as the future president at 4:00 am. (That is a six-hour time difference from Central Time). I was in the library of the Oxford Union watching the BBC's coverage of John McCain's concession speech. Amy and I stood watching, holding hands and crying, her because McCain reminded her of home and me because his speech was heartfelt, honorable and incredibly moving. For President-Elect Obama's speech I stood on a radiator, clinging to a window frame in the bar to see the screen while around me, Brits and Americans alike watched as history was made. Listening to those two incredibly moving speeches made me realize the integrity of both men. For Senator McCain to shush those "booing" in the crowd and the honor he did President-Elect Obama by giving him his compliments and wishing him the best was not an easy thing. However, he did it with great poise--what a great man. I hope he will continue to do great things in Congress. As for our future President, I look forward to his leadership. His speech proved he will truly be a great leader.

I had not realized until that night how lucky I am to be a part of a nation such as America. Our politics truly affect the whole world and though I knew this, I never understood the magnitude until I discussed American politics with Brits who knew as much as, if not more, about it than I did. We should feel proud that we come from a nation that can truly make a difference in this world. No matter whether your candidate won the election or not, there is one crucial thing to remember: we are all Americans, and we are so fortunate to have the ability to impact our politics.
Now that I've had my soapbox moment, (and I truly feel like I should have been standing, arms behind my back, the American flag as a backdrop while "Proud to be an American" played in the background) I'll tell you some more stuff about Oxford and etc.

Basically, my friends and I have been working and working and working. We took Friday (Halloween), Saturday (the American Halloween party) and Tuesday/Wednesday (Election!!) off work for the most part...so now we get to play catch-up. The workload doesn't wait for our convenience. Tomorrow we are off to Cardiff in Wales for a day-trip with the programme. Its a two-hour bus ride so I fully expect everyone will bring a book or two with them!

For my tutorials on Tuesday and Wednesday, I read Thomas More's Utopia and researched D-Day. Obviously, I had no problem doing the reading for my history tutorial. In fact, my tutor said that Band of Brothers is an essential read, so I bought it. Here is the teensy problem...I absolutely love it. I was supposed to be reading about D-Day (6 June 1944) and I found myself reading about the Battle of the Bulge (end of December 1944). Ooops. I told my tutor about my new procrastination tool and she just laughed. She later sent me an email to confirm the change of time for my tutorial and the post script read: "Put down Band of Brothers!"

It is now midnight and the bus is picking us up at 9:00 tomorrow. I need some sleep--still catching up from Election Night since I didn't go to bed until 6 in the morning and had to wake up at 9 for a tutorial! Have a good one and watch for futher news concerning the trip to Wales and more importantly, my bike!

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