so the jetlag isn't as bad as i thought it would be. i woke up this morning at 5 am, but have been able to sustain my energy all day. being in europe always reminds me how lazy i am. walking everywhere is difficult, i feel as if my feet are about to fall off. and it's only day one, it better get better. the weather is all kinds of unpredictable, with bursts of rain and cold wind followed by blue skies and warm sun. and it's crazy expensive over here, especially with the dollar being so weak. the ladies and i went shopping and stocked up on canned goods. i'm determined to eat every meal in, which is probably better for my taste buds, as the food here is crummy.

but i don't mean to complain. i'm just adapting to these new environs and am glad for it. i'm having a blast with my roommies and sucking in the city. tomorrow is a walking tour and some more orientation. i bought a London A-Z Guide and plan on getting a Time Out London tomorrow so i can see what shows are going on in the coming week. it's very mundane already.

let's see, what else is interesting?? oh yeah, my roommies and i were walking home last night and saw a guy crack his head open on the sidewalk. i've never seen such a sight. he was stumbling past us, drunk (as his friend who stumbled past himself about 20 minutes later explained) when he slammed into the ground, head first onto the cement. he started gushing blood and then having what appeared at the time to be seizures, those he was likely vomiting up his alcohol. and the blood just kept coming, his face clotted up with it. after we got over the initial shock, we ran over to a parked car, in which sat two guys from jamaica consulting a map. we asked to use their cell phones and called the bleeding man an ambulance. none of us knew where we were exactly, so the operator was getting as frustrated with us as we were with her. two brits kindly took the phone and the ambulance arrived 15 minutes later. meanwhile, the man kept trying to get up and falling down. we were annoyed that the paramedic took so long to arrive and told her so. she told us to stay out of the way and let her do her job, so we eventually left the man in her able hands and felt like obnoxious americans who expect everything their way. in retrospect, it was probably no big deal to them -- another drunkard splitting his head on the sidewalk. but to us it was much more traumatic. we talked about it at length for a long time afterward and told everyone we saw about what happened (though they seemed less interested in it than we were). it was just such a terrible sight. it seemed like he was going to bleed to death right in front of us while we stood helpless -- not having a clue where we were and without a phone of our own. i also felt bad that i was too chicken shit to go up to him and tell him to hang on and that help was on the way. no one did. we just yelled at him to sit still from a distance, all of us too scared to come close to the blood. from where i stood some 20 feet away, the sight of his bloodied face made enough of an imprint to flash before me a few times when i closed my eyes last night. i'd like to think that if given another chance, i would come nearer to him and offer some comfort, but i'm not sure. his name was eugene.

other than that, i've just been adjusting to my new life here. i get lost nonstop, even with a map in my hand. i'm going to make my world-famous burritos for my roommies tonight, for everyone except als, who refuses to eat meat in the UK for fear of foot-and-mouth and mad cow. she's a vegetarian this summer. what's comical about this is that she absent-mindedly ordered eggs the other day at a cafe and has been battling food poisoning ever since.

that's about it for me. i need to keep a regular journal while i'm here to fulfill a class requirement. even though i'm working, i am earning credit toward my degree and have to attend a class once a week. i think this will serve as the journal, provided my prof OKs it. so expect to see my observations of london and the retelling of events here. i'll try to not make it too boring. cheers for now.