Journal Entry 20: Presentations and My Final Post

This is my last journal entry for my international internship experience at Anglia Ruskin University.  Though I officially leave for home on Sunday, there was something fitting about ending this blog experience on the high note that today provided (Also, there is something about having exactly 20 entries that appeals to me). 

Today I had the opportunity to present my internship project for the first time in a public forum.  My fellow interns and I had a great turnout for our feedback session and the audience was very actively engaged.  It felt so rewarding to finally unveil something that I have been working on for the last three weeks.  The campus community really seemed to embrace the ideas for consideration that I developed from my research and I think there is a good chance these ideas could be implemented in the near future.  The presentation today was the culmination of a lot of hard work and I was happy to see that the staff at Anglia Ruskin were pleased with my work.

After my presentation, I had the opportunity to meet one-on-one with my internship supervisor Dr. Kundu.  He was extremely impressed with my presentation and my work.  He also gave me some good bits of advice to consider for the future with this presentation.  Additionally, he initiated a conversation on the fact that I should pursue publishing this work.  He gave me some great recommendations to do this, (as he has a publication list a mile long).  I hope that I will be able to pursue this in the very near future.  Additionally, he stated that I should continue to expand the scope of this project, so that I am not just looking at U.S. Student Conduct and England Student Discipline.  He felt that I could really start researching other countries' practices and develop even more comparative reports.  He mentioned that Japan, Mexico and continental Europe would be fantastic options. I think this would be a fascinating endeavor and I would love to pursue it.

Currently I am wrapping up a few things in my office and will be heading to meet my colleagues to celebrate the culmination of our projects.  This has truly been such a rewarding experience for me and today after looking through all my journal entries, I feel like I have grown significantly from this experience.  I remember the person that came here that was cautiously optimistic about his first plane ride ever.  Now, I feel so much more globally competent both personally and professionally.  The emersion process has been incredible.  I am so happy that I took advantage of this opportunity. 

Thank you so much to the following people as they were instrumental in getting to this place both intellectually and emotionally:  Susan, Dr. DuVivier, Mom, Dr. Kundu, Julie, Gary, Katie, Nick, Joey, all of my interviewees, Lorraine, Caroline, my loyal blog readers (the response has been fantastic!), my fellow interns (we may have looked like a rag tag bunch at first, but I think we pulled it off), my cohort, and anyone else that has helped me along the way.

Thanks everyone and much love.

ML

Song of the Day: The Smiths - "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before"

Journal Entry 19: Bangers and Mash and Evensong

Today was my last full day in my internship experience at Anglia Ruskin University.  First, I had my last one-on-one with Julie Walkling, the Director of Student Services.  She has been so helpful to me, giving me advice and serving as a mentor as I work towards my long term goals.  I am so happy Dr. DuVivier arranged for our one-on-one meetings.  I am glad to have Julie as a mentor for me in the future.

Also, I met with my internship supervisor Dr. Kundu to go over some paperwork and talk about the progress on my project.  I shared my findings with him and he was extremely happy with the work I had done.  This was nice to see as this project has been a lot of work, but I feel that I have learned so much more about student conduct in the United States, just by comparing it to a different system.  I am excited to present my project tomorrow.

Also, I had the opportunity to attend Evensong at King's College Chapel with Dr. DuVivier and Trevor this evening.  The music was truly beautiful and I came away extremely impressed.  The architecture inside the chapel was magnificent and while I wish I could share some pictures, there was no photography allowed inside the chapel, so I am sorry to disappoint about the lack of photos of the inside of the chapel.  I have been in some pretty impressive churches in my time, but this was truly breathtaking.  I have attached a picture of the front of King's College below. 

On the way home Trevor and I stopped at the Prince Regent Pub where I was able to get my truly English bangers and mash.  Getting authentic bangers and mash was on my to do list for this trip, so I was glad to finally check it off.  Tomorrow is my presentation and I am looking forward to sharing my findings with Anglia Ruskin University.  It will be the culmination of a lot of hard work and a great learning experience. 

Cheers!

Song of the Day:  Keane - "Everybody's Changing"

Journal Entry 18: My Final Bow Tie Tuesday at Anglia Ruskin University

Today was the last opportunity that I had to celebrate the glory of Bow Tie Tuesday at Anglia Ruskin University.  Additionally, tomorrow will be my last full day in my internship experience.  I will say that I have had an amazing experience working with everyone at ARU and that they have been extremely welcoming of me and have been very open to assisting me with my research.

Today I concluded my research and the written report portion of my project (came in at a solid 45 pages!).  I am now trying to work on finishing up the presentation portion and executive summary of my project and then I will give my presentation on Thursday for representatives from ARU.  After my presentation on Thursday, my internship work is done and I will have half of Thursday, all of Friday and Saturday to enjoy Cambridge before heading home on Sunday.  The group has been discussing going punting, so that might be in the cards. 

However, while thoughts of the weekend and heading home are nice, I still need to get through the next day and a half.  They should both prove to be pretty busy as I have meetings with a number of people.  I will say this though, I am looking forward to those meetings.  I am also looking forward to getting feedback from the stakeholders at Anglia Ruskin University regarding my project.  We will see how stakeholders feel about my findings on Thursday!

Song of the Day:  Coldplay - "The Hardest Part"


 

Journal Entry 17: Continued Exploration and The Batman Theme Song

Yesterday we had the opportunity to continue our exploration of Cambridge.  We walked about over near King's Parade and I will say, it does not matter how many times you walk on a certain street here, there is still always something you have not seen.  Our journey took us to several bookstores in the area where I was able to peruse through a myriad of familiar titles and some new ones that caught my eye. 

While walking down the street we happened to hear the familiar drumbeat of "Wipe Out" by The Safaris.  Once we reached the source of the music, that song ended and as if on cue for my arrival, the band began playing the theme song to the 1960's Batman television show that starred Adam West.  It was a small moment, but I thought it was a memorable one for my experience here.

We arrived at our ultimate destination of Castle Hill sometime later and we were treated to another breathtaking view of Cambridge.  After snapping some photographs we headed back toward home.  On our way Ryan and I stopped by an independent music store.  While in the store, I was looking through their book selection while listening to a diverse mix of music offerings.  First, there was a Japanese techno song that played followed by a French pop song.  As a musician, I always enjoy hearing different forms of music and I enjoyed hearing the songs this music store played.

Finally, after arriving back at the flat, I had the opportunity to Skype with my mother for Mother's Day.  It was very nice to speak with her and see how she is doing, especially since she has supported me so much in my journey through graduate school.  Also, these conversations are very interesting from a cultural perspective because she is always eager to hear about the little differences between English and U.S. culture.  So every opportunity I have had to speak with her has almost been a review of the day's cultural lessons. 

Song of the Day:  The Batman Theme Song

Journal Entry 16: London Take-Two

Yesterday I had the opportunity to return to London for a day full of sightseeing and adventure.  First I am sad to report that we were rained/cold/winded out of the Jack the Ripper Tour in the evening.  However, despite the weather's attempts, Melissa and I did have a pretty great day out and about in London.  There were a number of sights we were able to see that we did not on the first trip we took and despite losing out on 10 pounds from bailing on our tour, I was very happy with the day.

First we arrived at King's Cross and took the tube to the South Kensington Area of London and went to Harrods.  While it was not my particular cup of tea (I legit saw a bathrobe that was 170 pounds!) and I stuck out like a sore thumb in the stores with my Batman t-shirt and jeans on, it was still an interesting experience.  While there Melissa got some macarons that I will admit were pretty delicious, especially since I am not big on sweets. 

We stopped for lunch at Café Rouge and had a very nice meal before taking the tube and heading for Cleopatra's Needle.  This was one sight in London that I did not get to see on my first trip to the city so I was very excited to see it this time.  There are three obelisks that have this name, they are located in:  New York City, Paris, and London.  The London one and the New York one are a set and were originally erected around 1450 BC.  Seeing something that old that has held up so well was remarkable.  Also, I was very surprised with how large it was.  I am planning on seeing the other two at some point as well.

Unfortunately we chose a weekend where there was a significant amount of tube maintenance so many of the stations were shut down.  Luckily we purchased train, tube, and bus access on our tickets because we were able to next hop on a double decker bus to the Tower of London.  Melissa had not been able to see the Tower of London when she first went to London and I certainly did not mind seeing it again.  While at the Tower of London, we snapped some pictures of the Tower Bridge which is located next to it.  It was an awesome experience because right at the moment we were there, there was a double rainbow right behind the Tower Bridge, so I managed to snap a couple of photos of the beautiful occurrence. 

By this point, the weather had been on and off all day and it was looking to take a turn for the worse.  My shirt was mostly soaked from my Poundland umbrella breaking multiple times in the wind.  Though I will admit, it was pretty poorly constructed to begin with.  So Melissa and I decided to not take the Jack the Ripper Tour because the winds were picking up even worse and neither one of us had proper jackets on.  However, we did head over to the Whitechapel neighborhood where the incidents occurred to take a quick peek before getting on the tube and heading back to Kings Cross. 

As I mentioned, overall it was a great day and one that was full of learning for me.  First, I will admit, I have never taken the tube (or subway as we call it) so that was very cool for me.  Also having walked almost 10 miles the first time really helped me with my ability to navigate the city.  It is so fascinating being surrounded by landmarks that are so well known, that when you walk up to them it almost doesn't even seem real.  This is aided by the fact that some of them are so large they don't look real.  However, they are and it is important to take in the moment and pause on what got you to that place.  I will say I am so glad I have taken this opportunity to experience this wonderful country.  I look forward to starting my last week here and then heading home to my family!

Song of the Day:  The Smiths - "Panic"

Journal Entry 15: Seeing Another Side of Cambridge

I had a great day yesterday in my internship experience at Anglia Ruskin University.  After a great interview while at work, Ryan and I went to Jamie Oliver's restaurant in Cambridge.  While there I had some of fantastic food and was able to finally try black truffles!  After eating Ryan and I explored the area around the University of Cambridge and took in the sights by the river. 

Today I was able to explore a side of Cambridge that I had not seen yet.  While I know we cannot necessarily see "everything" there is to see in the short amount of time that we are here, I was surprised at some things I had missed that were right in front of me.  It was great to get out and explore this area and learn more about Cambridge.

Today I am off to London to explore there a bit more and to go on my Jack the Ripper Tour!  I am so excited to be in London once again.  Also, I am excited about what my internship experience will bring next!

Song of the Day:  Imagine Dragons - "It's Time"

Journal Entry 14: Decisions for the Weekend and An Interview Gone Well

Today I had a great experience interviewing a representative from the Student's Union Advice Service at Anglia Ruskin University!  I was able to get all of my questions answered about the services they offer and how those impact the student discipline processes.  I think the interview was full of great information that I can use in my project.  As far as the project is concerned, I am almost done with the portion on the U.S. student conduct system.  I was also very excited because I got a response from the request I sent out for interviews to Wright State.  Additionally, I found another stakeholder at Anglia Ruskin that I want to interview for my project and scheduled a meeting with her next week.  She is a representative of Counseling and Wellbeing Services at Anglia Ruskin.  I am looking forward to getting her perspective.  Especially after all I have heard related to practitioners wanting to better support students with mental health concerns. 

Also, I am proud to report that I have FINALLY decided what to do this weekend!  I think I will spend Friday in Cambridge going out and about in the city after work.  Then on Saturday, Melissa and I will be going to London again in the daytime and then doing a Jack the Ripper tour in the early evening!  I am very excited for Saturday as I will get to see more of London that I previously had not seen and I will get to learn more about an interesting (and dark) period in London's history (spoiler alert, I am a history nerd).  Also, this weekend I will be taking the tube in London, no ten mile walk for me this time!  Pictures to come!

I am learning so much about the Anglia Ruskin University and student discipline in England.  However, I will say I have been a bit bad this week as I have not ventured out into the city that much this week.  I have been pretty tired from writing all day, that by the time I get back to my flat I just want to relax.  I will change that this weekend and get out there and experience what England has to offer again!

Also, I am looking forward to taking the train again.  I wish that we had a better system of trains in the United States.  It really is a cost-effective and fast way to travel.  I detest having to drive everywhere.  I do realize though that there is a stark cultural difference that likely would prevent this from happening.  That is, many Americans already do not use our existing forms of public transportation such as buses.  Additionally, most Americans would probably feel self conscious about getting onto a train with a bunch of strangers.  I personally infinitely prefer it as a means of traveling long distances to driving.  Again, I do wish it was something we would consider in the states. 

Tomorrow is another day and I am looking forward to taking in more of England this weekend and taking a break from my project for a while so I can see the sights!

Song of the Day:  Coldplay - "Don't Panic"

Journal Entry 13: Final Grades and Family Dinner?

I had another productive day in my internship experience today.  I spent most of the day continuing my progress on writing about the American system of student conduct in higher education.  I am almost finished with this section and will need to give it a good edit before moving onto the next sections.  I am very excited for my interview with the representative from the Anglia Ruskin University Student's Union tomorrow.  Their role in the process is so much more formalized than anything we have in the United States and it will be great to hear how they view their role in the student discipline process.

Today I received my final grades from my last semester of coursework in my Master's Program.  I cannot say it enough but I am so proud to graduate (with a cumulative 4.0 GPA to boot!).  All I have left to do is finish out my experience here in England and my graduate career will be complete.  It has been a journey, but one I have been glad to take!

I think this weekend I would like to try to organize a "Family Dinner" (this is a throwback to Ohio University circa 2008-2010 and Marietta as well) with the rest of my cohort members this weekend.  However instead of cooking I think I will try to see if they would like to go to the Jamie Oliver restaurant here in Cambridge.  I think it would be a very nice way to celebrate our upcoming last week together in England (three of us will be leaving and two will be staying for one more week) as well as our end of the semester and/or degree achievements!

Song of the Day:  Elton John - "Tiny Dancer"

Journal Entry 12: Research and More Research

Today was a very productive day in my internship.  I was able to transcribe my last interview I conducted for my project and was able to get a lot of research done for the analysis of student conduct systems in the United States.  Additionally, I was able to write a significant portion of the U.S. portion of my project.  I was also able to create and send out interview questions to relevant student conduct practitioners at Wright State University and I am hoping they are willing to give me feedback on the questions I asked to help with the U.S. portion of my project.  Tomorrow I will continue to work on the U.S. portion of my project.

After work I headed to the Snug with Ryan and Melissa for dinner.  I was able to get another sampling of fish and chips, (which I enjoyed much more than the first!).  Over dinner it was interesting to hear about other's experiences in England thus far.  Whenever we get together as a group it is very interesting to hear other people's thoughts on the experience.  Hearing these views gives me a fresh perspective that is rooted somewhere beside my own experience. 

After dinner Ryan and I headed to Tesco to pick up snacks.  I am very excited to report I purchased crunchy English peanut butter (or as they call it "peanut spread")!  As strange as it sounds, tasting foods and finding differences between the U.S. version and the U.K. version is a guilty pleasure of mine.  I am definitely able to say that without a doubt, I prefer English chocolate infinitely more to American chocolate.  I rarely eat chocolate at home because it is to sweet and artificial tasting for me, that is why I like dark chocolate so much.  But English chocolate is a bit of a game changer, I think I might need to find a way to sneak some into my carry on luggage on the plane home!  Melissa is also a big fan of comparing food and she reported to me that McDonald's tastes the same (I am glad I did not have to participate in this experiment).   

Also, I am supposed to attend a cricket match tomorrow, which should be very interesting as this will be my first time experiencing live or televised cricket (though I have seen random highlights on SportsCenter in the past).  I am excited to be able to take in the sport and learn more about English culture through this experience.  I also have two final interviews to conduct for my research and those will take place on Thursday and Friday.  After that, I will write up my observations!  It is strange to believe that I am almost completed with this project.  Anyway, I am looking forward to what tomorrow brings!

Song of the Day:  Oasis - "Don't Look Back in Anger"

Journal Entry 11: Bank Holidays and Relaxation

We had the day off from work at Anglia Ruskin University because it is a Bank Holiday in England.  Consequently, I decided to use today to relax (honestly my feet are still sore from London).  I watched the first Amazing Spider Man (it was okay) before heading out into Cambridge in search of food.

I decided to try to take some new routes to get to familiar places.  I have gotten very good at my ability to navigate the city of Cambridge, but I still obviously haven't seen everything.  While going about on one of my new routes I did encounter a nice little residential neighborhood.  The streets were very quiet there and it made for a pleasant walk.  When I got to Parker's Piece, I found tons of people lounging about on the grass, as well as some taking part in games of football, etc.  It provided a nice background for my little stroll. 

I also went about looking for train rates to Manchester next weekend.  After finding the rates, I realized they were a bit out of my price range.  Needless to say, I think I will be heading to the Medieval town next weekend!  I will be sure to post lots of neat pictures of what I discover there.

Song of the Day:  Radiohead - "Street Spirit"

Journal Entry 10: Sore Legs and a Ton of Turkish Food

I will be honest, after all the walking from London, I woke up feeling like I was hit by a double decker bus.  I guess that is what walking almost ten miles will do to my body.  However, Ryan and I both agreed that it was worth it.  By walking as much as we did we felt like we were really able to get a better sense for the city. 

After getting ready, Ryan and I headed out to get some lunch we decided to go to a sushi place that was recommended to us as Ryan has never tried sushi before and it is my favorite food on the entire planet.  I will give Ryan credit on this trip, he has eagerly stepped outside of his comfort zone in many ways, even through the food he has eaten.  Needless to say, Ryan did not enjoy the sushi even remotely, but I was proud that he tried it.  Next, we ventured off to find some old bookstores to get some souvenirs.  During this adventure we randomly bumped into Melissa and we all went over to the market located in town.  While there, I stopped off to get some tea for Susan and I, as well as a box for our friend Tiffany.

After returning home, I relaxed for a while and Skyped with Susan before getting dinner.  I decided that I also wanted to have a culinary adventure and tried the Turkish restaurant down the street from my accommodations.  I went in having no idea what I would order, but once there I ordered the lamb shank and rice, as well as a pita salad for take away.  When I watched the employee pack up my food I realized he had given me a gigantic portion of food that he had to contain in a tin serving platter (that was extremely hot).  I was shocked that I had this much food for as reasonably as it was priced.  It wasn't until I got home and unloaded the contents of my bags that I noticed there were two forks packed into them.  So basically, I ordered the equivalent of two humans worth of food.  Oh well, more leftovers for me! :)

While the day was low on activities, as I mostly lounged about, (though I did enjoy watching a jazz band at the pub next door).  It was nice to have a culinary adventure!  I am going to continue to push myself to make the most of this experience and am considering taking a train to Manchester next weekend.  I have also heard rumor that there is a medieval town about 12 miles outside of town that you can access via bus.  I think that could be an interesting adventure as well.  We will see what I decide to do, but I cannot wait to see where this adventure takes me!

Journal Entry 9: London Calling

Today was the big day where we ventured off to the City of London!  Ryan and I made this journey together and first and foremost I will say, we had a blast!  I developed my wish list of places to visit while in London and placed those sites into Google Maps (thanks to Susan for sending me the PDF <3).  Ryan was interested in visiting many of the same places I was, so it worked out very well for both of us and we both agreed we made a great traveling team.  Armed with a cell phone full of screen shots of Google Maps directions, we set out for one of the largest cities in the world... Warning: What follows are the highlights of a fantastic trip to London, but certainly not the complete story as there was so much to see. (I am uploading 192 pictures to Facebook, so what I don't mention here will surely be contained in those photos.)

We managed to get through the train station in Cambridge with relative ease, despite the fact that neither of us has taken a commuter train in the past (also we somehow go the tickets for half price, go us!).  We arrived in King's Cross about 15 minutes earlier than we were supposed to according to the railway estimates.  The first thing we did was find a map.  Next, I layer the map out on a large piece of stone and began to use my highlighter to lay out our Google Maps route.  After doing this we set off!

First we had lunch at a restaurant called Trio D'Or Café.  This place was family run and featured some great sandwiches and salads.  After eating we headed out to see the Tower of London.  On the way we managed to snap several pictures of the sites with relative ease, because surprisingly there were not many people around us! (this lasted for a while, until we hit the Tower of London, then we found them).  We made it to the Tower of London, snapped some photos and admired the scenery.  I also found myself jealous because they have a catapult and I need one.  After Ryan got some things at the gift shop for his nephew we set out to our next destination.  However, we were sure to stop and admire the world famous Tower Bridge. 

We next went to William Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.  This new site is built on the original grounds and has recreated the original structure, with some added on structures as well.  While there, I was able to purchase a copy of Julius Caesar (one of my absolute favorites by Shakespeare) for about 7 quid, I was happy with the affordability, way to go Shakespeare.  I was a bit disappointed because I wanted to buy a bust of the man himself and sit it in my office in my future job (similar to Batman's Shakespeare statue button in the older comics), but I really didn't want to explain why I had a bust of Shakespeare in my carry-on and I know I cannot afford the weight on my lone checked bag. 

After this, we went to see Big Ben.  For much of the way to Big Ben we were able to walk right on, or near the riverside of the River Thames and I will say it was a breathtaking view of the city.  Also right as we walked up to Big Ben, the bell rung because the hour was up.  Ryan and I were very excited to be able to hear Big Ben roar!  We both took about 1,000 photos at Big Ben and also we checked out a statue of Winston Churchill.  It was so awesome to see something that is world famous, but that also has been around since Big Ben has.  It was an absolutely beautiful site, so much so that it did not even seem real. 

After getting our fill of Big Ben, we headed to Buckingham Palace.  I also managed to sneak in a selfie (which I rarely ever do) with a Royal Guard marching about in the background. 

Next we walked past the Royal Gardens and the Wellington Arch by Green Park.  While there we randomly visited a very powerful memorial for airmen who passed away in military service.  I really enjoyed Ryan and my style of being flexible while visiting London, as I think we were able to see some really awesome areas that were not in the original plan!  After this, we stopped briefly at a pub before heading through Chinatown and onto Forbidden Planet.

It is no secret that I am a huge fan of comic books.  Today worldwide was Free Comic Book Day.  This is a wonderful and magical day (where in an attempt to hook new readers) the major and minor publishing companies publish special edition comics and give them away for free.  Also, stores around the world discount their prices.  While at Forbidden Planet I managed to pick up a couple of free comics and treated myself to my very own Sonic Screwdriver just like on Doctor Who!!!  I also was able to get my picture taken with a life sized Batman statue, I am glad I wore my Green Lantern shirt because we looked pretty close to the Justice League.

After leaving Forbidden Planet, we started the trek back to King's Cross to catch a train back to Cambridge.  During our entire visit, Ryan and I did not take the tube (or subway in the State's) or a cab or anything like that once.  We walked throughout the entirety of our visit.  According to Google Maps, this was just a hair shy of 10 miles.  However, it doesn't take into account the extra walking we did outside of the route.  I will say this, I have been to many a major city, such as New York, Washington D.C., Chicago, Philadelphia, and so on.  However, never have I been in a city that is more walking friendly than London.  There no time (except for about 5 feet on the way to Big Ben due to construction) where Ryan and I were without a walkway.  It was fantastic!  So friendly to foot traffic. 

Also, Ryan and I kept complementing the city on how interesting the architecture was.  London has a fabulous mix of contemporary and older architecture that actually works well together.  It was extremely beautiful.  I think that London has now taken the cake for my favorite city that I have traveled to thus far.  Also I am proud to say that I have successfully navigated two of the biggest cities in the world (New York and London).  It is worth mentioning that London was extremely easy to navigate, (though it takes some time to get used to the placement of street signs, but it is that way all over England from what I have seen so far).  I am just so glad that I made this journey to see London as it was a great experience and I look forward to doing it again in the future.  Anyway, my legs are tired and I am heading to bed soon as I am beat!  Thank you for reading as always, it is so nice that people have taken an interest.

P.S. I am currently awaiting my photos to be uploaded to cloud storage.  I will add them first to Facebook under their own album and then will add a select few here to accompany this post.

Song of the Day:  Elton John - "Levon"

Journal Entry 8: Interviews and Little Endings

I have really been acclimating well to my surroundings here in Cambridge.  It seems like the longer I am here, the more confident I become.  I have been making it my mission to figure out all of the little nuances within English culture, particularly in language.  What I have been spending much of this time doing is figuring out the pieces of slang.  Believe it or not, this makes it easier to function both in public places and at work, etc. 

I also had another great interview for my project.  Again, I am amazed at how eager these high level staff members are to talk to me.  They all have spoke very openly about the student discipline process here at Anglia Ruskin, that I am sure I will have so much to work with when I get down to writing up my report and presentation.  At this point, I feel like I need to be careful with how much information I try to tackle within it, because my interviewees have been so open.

Also, I had a conversation with my brother today about what I termed as "little endings".  He was telling me about it was his last day in his internship experience and I told him "yeah, it happens, it's all little endings now".  That is, it seems like there are always little things when you come towards the end of your graduate program where you think "Oh, this is the last time I have to register for classes", etc.

When thinking about that, I realize I maybe have skipped a bit over some of those little endings.  I have been balancing a lot this semester in my program and towards the end, I was just trying to get all my finals done before coming here to England.  With graduation happening at Wright State tomorrow, now I find myself thinking about how my time as a Master's Degree student is coming to a close.  To be honest, I rarely talk about this sort of thing, but I have put so much work towards this goal of getting this degree for the last 5 years. 

My last year of undergraduate work, I just thought a lot about how I would much rather be in classes related to student affairs, but I needed to finish my degree.  Then as an AmeriCorps member (while I had a fantastic time in this program, learned so much, and met some great people) I also did without a lot.  That is, in case you aren't aware, AmeriCorps members make very little money (around $10,000 for the year).  While I was personally and professionally very happy, I was struggling a lot financially.  However, what kept me going was the goal of getting my Master's Degree.

Then after getting into and progressing through my graduate program, I just kept looking toward the end and achieving my goal.  Now that I am at the threshold of it, I don't think that I really stopped to think about it.  I always seem to keep myself busy professionally, so it's hard to sit back and admire my progress I guess...I started thinking about this today and thought "Maybe I will bask in this achievement for a bit...".  Then I realized I was JUST researching and saving information on Ph.D. programs in student affairs today, so that when I want to begin going through the application process on that endeavor, I will have starting point.

I know this journal entry doesn't really fit the mold of my England trip, but I feel it is appropriate.  That is, if you asked me two years ago if I ever thought I would be in England, interning and doing a project on student conduct, I would have laughed in your face.  However, here I am and now that I am I just would like to say thank you to all the people who have helped me over the years.  Also, thank you to the people in my life that have believed in me all this time.  Even though I am not walking in graduation tomorrow, you can rest assured that I will be here, mulling over some piece of student affairs work in my head and missing all of you that are back stateside.  Thanks for reading.

ML

Song of the Day: The Smiths - "Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want"

Journal Entry 7: Data Transcription and Traditional Fish and Chips

I had an extremely productive day today in my internship experience at Anglia Ruskin University.  Somehow in a 9-4:30 day I was get all of the information from the three interviews I have conducted transcribed.  Additionally, I was able to complete some additional research about the Students' Union on campus and some of their advocacy services they offer.  I have one interview tomorrow and a lot of time to read some of the research I have gathered. 

Also, I was able to finally have my official England Fish and Chips from The Eagle Pub.  I will say, they were fantastic.  With mushed peas on the side, I will say that this was a great meal.  Quite honestly, it was the best fried fish of all the times, though that could be just the excitement of England, because I make a pretty cracking fish and chips myself.  Also, I was able to have a photo taken with some of the classy gents that grace the walls of The Eagle :)

Also, I was shocked to realize that I have walked so much since I have arrived in England that I wore a small hole into the bottom of my favorite dress shoes.  Given that I have only been here for less than a week, I would say that is pretty impressive.  As a result of my new found hole in my shoe, I purchased a new pair of shoes at the local Primark (I am addicted to Primark already!).  I feel that my old shoes will likely not last through the rest of the trip, so I am glad I was able to procure another pair.  When I get back stateside, I will buy another pair of the exact shoes and limit the amount of time I walk on cobblestone and the like in them.  Anyway, the plan is still to hit London this weekend but first, I am going to Skype with the Designing Diverse Learning Experiences class that I co-facilitated for the first year cohort this evening and go to work tomorrow.  As always, I am looking forward to another day in this experience!

UPDATE:  I thought it would be worth mentioning that in many times when students go around to pubs, they sing as they walk to the next one (trust me they have serenaded me many nights now).  Most times they sing older traditional sounding songs.  However, tonight they walked by singing "All I Do is Win" by DJ Khaled...

Song of the Day: The Clash - "London Calling"