I find myself again in the basement computer lab of the central building at Hillhead - a spot not as appealing as my favorite haunt at the Gustavus library, but quiet and comfortable nonetheless. Another week has passed, and my acquaintance with 'The Granite City' is yet continuing to grow. My mind is in a much quieter state since my last post. I am no more disposed to a sudden attack of loneliness, and I do not constantly find myself thinking of home and those I know and love. I am still lonesome at times, yes; but lonesomeness is always accompanied with a certain degree of contentment, an altogether different feeling than loneliness, and can even be a thing desired and thankful for. During these times I often find myself - weary with reading, and owning a scanty provision of entertainment - forced to think, - something which I now realize I had rarely done in the past. Now thinking is not a very comfortable feeling to the novice, whose mind has up till now been like a sort of display case which can hold bits and pieces of information in a somewhat coherent order, and is able to discern and separate into levels of importance; but nothing is fixed to the foundation or lasts for a significant amount of time before the next experience comes and takes its place. But I have lately been forcing myself to pause and examine the weather inside me - those feelings that come on their own account, sent from another master, whose influence we have as much control over as we do the weather outside us. It is amazing when one endeavors to embody his feelings into thoughts and words. What pleasure comes from the mere attempt to find the meaning of a thing - its very heart and soul? - the 'Why' behind an experience or a feeling. But what about Scotland you may well ask?

Classes began last Monday, and being the nerd that I am, I was more than happy to begin studying and putting my mind to work. I am taking two classes: Victorianism - a 19th century English class - and a Greek class on the Epistles of the New Testament. In my first V. class, my professor couldn't figure out how to turn the front lights on, so he lectured for an hour in the dark, while 50 students or so listened to what seemed like a voice booming out from nowhere. In contrast, there are 5 students in my Greek class, including me. But that isn't surprising because there were very few students in my Greek courses at Gustavus as well.

The other significant event that occurred was the commencing of basketball tryouts. There is one gym on campus and the wood floor is as slippery as a hockey rink. Nearly all 50 sports clubs train at this court, so we have practice only twice a week, which is a relief, compared to the amount of training required, for any sport, at the collegiate level in the States. Believe it or not, I am the best player on the team, which is a shock because I was one of the worst players on the Gustavus team; in fact, so bad that I got cut! The difference in competition is profound, that is, in basketball. But America has their own sports and so does Europe and, indeed, the world; and it is not a stretch to say the general personalities of a culture are vaguely embodied in their sports. My roommates have more than once expressed their disgust with the slowness of football and baseball. 'Every time you think something is about to happen, a whistle is blown or they cut to commercial!'

'But they never score any goals in soccer. How can that be exciting?' I was arguing for argument's sake; I actually do like soccer.

'That's what makes the goals so priceless! Every pass, every block, every dribble is crucial to the outcome of a game, because often the difference is only one measly goal.'

My roommates had a point. Americans do like to score and to cheer for the scores.

But once again I have wasted myself with thinking and typing - writing about one's life is not an easy task. If I have kept just one person interested to the end, I have succeeded. I have some things planned for the upcoming week, including a trip to Slains Castle up the coast of the North Sea, so the next post should be a good one. Till next time, Cheers!