Cathays, Cardiff, Wales

Well, I've said goodbye to small-town Kentucky life for a while, and I've been in Wales for almost two full weeks. Seems like a month, at least! Exciting things that have happened since I've been here, including:

--receiving my new glasses in the mail, which I was forced to pay 40 pounds for once they were delivered to the door. Hooray for customs.
--finding out that "pants" is an unacceptable term for what I wear daily to cover my legs. Apparently we wear trousers, and men wear "pants" underneath their trousers; the American equivalent would be boxers. Thank you, British roommates, for setting me straight.
--auditioning for orchestra, which went quite well actually. It seems, however, that my tendency is to play too "refined." Hmmm....
--meeting and adjusting to three new roommates, described below:

1) Gemma. She's 19, about 5'4", and a soprano. I first met Gemma when I got to the train station in Cardiff. She actually reminds me a bit of my old roommate, Michaela *shout-out to my dear M, wherever she may be in the boiling hot city of Austin, Texas--I miss you and your mug-stealing, your dirty dishes piling up along the counter, and your Angelina obsession--those certainly were the days, weren't they* because she dies her hair black, wears mostly black (and has similar mushpuff combat boots), and she drinks black coffee in a British tea hell. In addition, her former boyfriend is in his forties--the similarities are almost too much to take! :-)

2) Helen. She's 22, about 5'8", and a soprano. The only thing I can really say about Helen is that she strikes me as being incredibly English. She does, in fact, come from England; Manchester to be precise. She's blonde, and is totally in love with her boyfriend Edward, to whom she sends "Finding Nemo" plush toys as well as note cards with assorted cartoons and messages such as "Miss you Beary Much" on them. This may sound nauseating, but is actually quite endearing. She enjoys making lists, formulating cleaning schedules, and ironing her jeans. Mostly, she wants everyone to be happy.

3) Sunniva. She's 24, about 6', and a mezzo-soprano. She's also Norwegian. Her default phrase for "Cool," or, "Oh my goodness," is "ooh-la-la!" which she says at least twice in every conversation. She also bakes her own bread and freezes it, as she finds the bread here unacceptable. She wakes up early to go running in the park, then showers and heads to school for exactly two hours of practice, in which she sings for 20 minute intervals with 20 minute breaks in between. She also has a tendency to drop things, such as her cell phone (oops, I mean Mobile), which I have seen hurled across the kitchen. Twice.

What to notice about the above comments--I am living with three--yes, three--singers. It is actually a pretty good arrangement so far. I am teaching them sight-singing and basic theory. :-) They are wonderful students, eager to learn.

I must now go do my reading for class. (But Shelley, you may say, you haven't started class yet; your first day is Monday. Well, one of our professors is so ahead of herself that she sent us reading to do IN ADVANCE.) I guess my English major skills are coming in handily after all--critical essay, boom, I've dissected it in minutes! :-)

Take care, gentle readers. As Wai Lau says, Happy Wales!