The Best Friends of a Boarder:

Trader Joes!!! I love their food (for those not from here, it is a mostly organic import store)- they have the best foods to keep in your dorm, from chocolate, lemon meringues, cookies, Thai ice teas and caramelized popcorn to full exotic meals that you just add to water or microwave. MMMMMM!!!
My fridge- Keeps things cool for the summertime and lets me save leftovers from good restaurants. The freezer doesn’t work in any fridge on campus, however. My roommate and I were contemplating if we should get a deep freezer for ice cream etc.
My Laptop- many people have Macs (the new one, and they are awesome) but most people still have regular PCs. Get one!! If you don’t have one because they are like your best friend! Homework, checking mail, myspace, checking the weather, whatever, it’s all right there in this little portable box. Plus, everyone plays and shares music through their laptop.

My Big, Thick, Down Blanket - Keeps me warm on the nights where it just freezes. Apparently in order to get heating, we have to appeal to some higher power, this is a very long process, and we are always cold already in early October.

My Bean Bag! Fun for people who come in my room to chat or for me, when I am sitting on the floor with too much stuff to fit on my desk.

Big Baggy Sweatshirts and Shorts! The most comfortable thing to wear ever, only does not work on formal dinner night.

Flip flops! I wear flip flops everywhere (other shoes are still needed). I have to wear shoes to go to the bathroom because it just grosses me out to think how many people share it, but with flip flops it is very easy!

That’s all I can think of right now….

Kate

Friday the Thirteenth

In order to understand why today was the perfect day, you have to understand that there have been many unlucky experiences for me over the past few days, even weeks. Therefore, you may understand why, although not superstitious, I approached this day with caution.
When I awoke this morning I found that it was the first time it had rained on school in the morning since I arrived. Consequently, the tennis game, I was elated to find, had been canceled. I would have the whole day free after school!

Classes were the usual. I found I had received a good grade on a history paper and Chemistry included a competitive game as a review for Monday’s quiz.

Afterwards, I had the afternoon free in which to finish up some homework (an early start for Monday is the best strategy) and then take a relaxing shower. I felt good and ready to go on the night’s activity: IN and Out and a movie.

Going to In and Out with approximately 100 people was chaos. The two busses pulled into the parking lot and we eagerly spilled into the restaurant, much to the dismay of some of the families. We did try to be orderly, getting in groups of ten to place ridiculously large orders. I am sure they closed early tonight. I was embarrassed to find some girls from my old school waiting impatiently in line behind us. Needless to say, I hid my face.

My burger was delicious. I watched the fries being made; one of the workers presses gigantic potatoes through these blades and dumps them into the deep-fryer. Everything is very fresh. The local kids taught foreigners about the “secret menu”. This amused me, but I am not big on “animal style” fries; I tried them for the first time tonight. What is kind of sad is that I never even knew about the menu that apparently all the locals know about until I went to boarding school.

Anyway, we had some drama at dinner when one of the teachers (teachers are very involved in our lives) responded to “Christy” asking for another fries, by saying “ I don’t know what “Kevin” sees in you” Many people thought this was going to far. Christy is petite, but she doesn’t eat petite portions (she’s not unhealthy either).

Kate