sick & tired

Literally. Yawn. I have had a miserable cold the last couple of days. Yesterday I barely left my room; I just stayed huddled under the blankets coughing and sneezing. My poor little nose (well, not very little, really) is positively red. I am, however, greatly improved today. My fever seems to have vanished, my sinuses are clearer, and I don't look so gross.

Have you ever noticed that some people manage to look lovely and adorable even when ill? Some girls I know get these prettily flushed cheeks and their voices sound all cutesy when they're sick. I am not one of those girls. When I am sick, I look sick and disgusting and hideous, basically. BUT I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I won't suffer a relapse and that by tomorrow I'll be quite recovered enough to not only stay awake for but actually pay attention to my first lectures of the year.

I find it interesting that the question I have been asked more than any other since arriving here is for whom I voted in last November's election. People I've just barely been introduced to seem to have no scruple in wishing to immediately identify my political stance. And they aren't rude about it at all, it just seems to be a matter of concern/importance to them.

Thursday night there was a big - or at least, what was SUPPOSED to be a big - dance party at one of the campus bars. I went with some people from my hall and it was...umm...well, it was fun. It was clear that most people there were far more interested in the drinking than the dancing, and those that were dancing were mostly pretty drunk, but the few people I was with hardly drank at all and we had a good evening of conversaton and dancing. Except for when a few guys got just a tad lecherous at about 1:30, so we then decided to leave. It was nice to have some company though.

I was going to make this entry longer but have now decided against it. The "a" key on this keyboard is remarkably touchy and I wind up getting multiples of that admirable vowel every time I try to use it. Further, I'm rather hungry and am going to walk into town for awhile to have some coffee and perhaps get a book. Then I'll probably curl up in my room again, tired from my day's exertion. It's sad that a mere couple of days of being ill can turn a pleasant and short walk into something genuinely tiring.

Also, I really need to try to track down some proper tissues. Do they have Kleenex in England? We shall soon find out.aa