The crazy London life and Dublin's epic fail...

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This past week was a roller coaster of good events and bad events so I'll just go through the ups and downs...

So I joined the football (soccer) and basketball teams at the uni and I had my first practices this past week. The skill levels are all varied on both teams because athletic programs are not as developed in the UK compared to the US, especially for women, but the girls are super friendly and I love being in a team environment again. Also, the fitness aspect is also amazing. I haven't done basketball sprints since high school so my body reeallllyyy felt it...or rather I really knew my legs exist because they ached all over. The down side is that the practices are at night, and since my body isn't used to the rush of endorphins, I was pretty much an insomniac this past week. Monday night I didn't get to sleep until 3 in the morning after a 4v4 football game and then Wednesday night I was awake until 7 in the morning after an hour and a half of basketball fitness. And I had to get up at 8 for class!

Wednesday afternoon I went to the Finance, Accounting, and Consultancy Career Fair at school and realized I can apply to/interview for jobs here in London so I can potentially live and work here like I've always wanted. Being in London for almost a month now has made me realize how much I feel like I belong here. It just feels so right. The city isn't overwhelming to me like NYC and there is something about the culture here that is more balanced than the work culture of the US. The only other place I have felt like this was at UVM, but even that has its drawbacks because it doesn't have the business industry and program that I need. Whereas London, on the other hand, seems to have everything I need and want: great education (the professors seem more enthusiastic and their teaching methods promote learning instead of just getting good grades), great job opportunities, diverse culture, public transportation, great friends...I feel like this is home to me and I've only been living here for 3 and a half weeks! Yes, it has its drawbacks: my family and friends aren't here, it can be extremely rainy, and people can be very rude. But I feel like I can mitigate or avoid these factors--I never thought I could live in a huge city after changing so much in Mexico, but me in this city just feels so right! I talked to Jess about it and she even said I seem more settled in London than anyone else in the program. I don't feel like I'm American, even if I have the "accent", and I don't feel like I quite belong there. What is strange is that the lifestyle is just as fast paced as in the States, but there is just something different about it here. I haven't quite put my finger on it yet, but I think it has to do with how people view work in relation to their lives and how accommodating employers seem to be to employees desires. Granted this is based on Erin's job in psychology and the varied jobs of people I've met in my travels, so I don't know how accurate this is. I won't REALLY know until I work here!

Therefore, after the fair on Wednesday, I have been researching opportunities in consulting and it's getting me really excited. I love the dynamic environment of a project based role and that fact that you are always working in a team to solve a problem. What really got my attention about the nature of a consultant's job is the interpersonal interaction required to work with clients and aide them in solving their issues. This interpersonal interaction is what I've been lacking a little bit in my previous jobs in business. I hope this whole application/interview process won't stress me out too much though. I precisely didn't want to worry about that stuff while I'm here, but the prospect of living here with Erin and everyone else I've met so far is so appealing. I don't know how feasible it all is, but a girl's gotta try!

To add to the stress of little sleep, class work, and job applications, I had to pack for Dublin and get to the Luton airport for a 6:25 am flight on Friday. I checked in online and printed out my boarding pass a week in advance so as to be prepared. I also got to the airport Thursday night so I wouldn't potentially miss my flight if I missed the early morning train. I had never slept on an airport floor before and I felt like a hobo, but I wasn't the only one catching some Z's before an early morning flight. I woke up at 4am and went upstairs to go through security. They looked at my passport and boarding pass and scanned it, so I thought I was in the clear. Well, apparently I wasn't... when I was boarding at the gate, the attendant told me I didn't have a stamp so I couldn't get on the flight. Why would security scan my boarding pass and let me through if they saw I didn't have it stamped?! I ran upstairs to try to get the stamp, but the desk was closed and it would have cost me £100 to reschedule my flight, which was more than what the original flight cost me. So I went home and Cassie went to Dublin without me. Epic fail. I should have been more thorough, but every other time I had checked in online in advance and didn't have to check in a bag, I just printed out my boarding pass and went through security to my gate. I just didn't know. Lesson learned--get more sleep and go to the check in desk no matter what.

This weekend hasn't been a total loss though. I went to a sun & snow show yesterday and got loads of information about trips I can take during winter break all throughout Europe for really great prices. I can't wait to snowboard the Swiss Alps!

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Comments

[Jeannie]

my favorite part of this whole entry is the fact that you wrote "epic fail" in the title