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Published: September 18th 2009
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There is good news and less good news:
The good would be that I AM going to get a reading light by my bed (!) AND I am not going to have to pay for it!! (In my bedroom you will see I only have an overhead light...which is sort of away from my bed) As some of you already know, it is my MO to do a large portion of my work sitting on my bed. Granted, I have dealt with this kind of set up before, as in our last apartment. However, lighting here is ridiculously expensive. There are all these teeny lights and they want to sell them to you for like 15 pounds or much MUCH more. Where are Target, Kmart, and Bed Bath and Beyond when you need them? You would think considering how gray and/or dark it is here a lot of the time, it would be more reasonable. Don't they get tired of the dark? Anyway, my search for lighting was not going well and it was making me sad, because I like my spaces to be well lit. Well, this morning at breakfast I asked Pete (the owner of our B&B) if
he had anything or any suggestions as to where I might go about finding something. Apparently you need some kind of permit for all lights that you have that plug into the wall but are not actually attached to the wall or something crazy like that. (I know, it's insane! Do you think they actually come to inspect people's houses? I didn't ask about the details...) Anyway, he says that we all will be getting wall reading lights by our beds, so that is exciting. I am not sure when though. We are apparently also going to be getting new carpeting at some time in the near future (I am not nearly so excited about that... I think it's going to be a big ordeal and that the carpet we have now is okay... but I wasn't asked...). So I am not sure if that has to happen before we get the lights. We'll see. I'll keep you all posted.
In more good news, today was BEAUTIFUL (70 and sunny) and we got to to run a few errands and walk around town. There were tons of people out enjoying the weather. We got lunch to go and walked
over to a green by the river and ate there. Following lunch, we went on a punting tour of the Cam (the river). It was really beautiful and we got to see some of the colleges. The old buildings (really all of the buildings) and bridges are really interesting. There were tons of people out, some clearly punting for the first time, which was entertaining. One frazzled man shouted out to our tour guide as we passed, "Any tips?" We decided that we want to try punting on our own, but at a less busy time! Although I am not exactly sure how many companies exist, according to Hilary "there seem to be two companies that give tours (of the river)... one that employs cute college boys... and the other that employs homeless men." We went with the cute college boy company (obviously) and were not disappointed 😊 The group on our tour was quite diverse as well. In addition to ourselves, there were folks from England, Canada, and Australia.
As a brief note, the other good news is that I found a website where I can watch the office online. I was very concerned about this, as NBC
actually won't let you watch it on their website outside of the US. This just seems like insanity to me, but luckily I have found a way around it.
Now for the less good news: The search for the other item on my wish list, a lap desk, isn't going nearly so well as with the light. Now, I love my lap desk that I have at home a lot. It is both super functional and super cute--so what's not to love? As I was imagining my life in Cambridge, I even briefly considered packing it. However, I didn't think it would pack that well and I didn't want to have to leave it behind if I needed the room when I was coming home. I also thought I would be able to get one here. That dream is turning out to be a more far-fetched than I imagined. I set out with high hopes yesterday, hitting two bookstores. There was nothing in the first one, so I decided to check out the Borders in town. I figured it was Borders, surely they would have something. Well, I searched most of the store without seeing anything resembling a lap
dresser and wardrobe
notice the all-important "tea set" on the left side of the wardrobe! desk, so I decided to ask the guy at the information desk if they carried any. Well, the way he responded to my question, you would have thought I had told him I was from Mars. I tried to explain that it was sort of like a laptop desk except, you know, not for laptops. He continued to look at me blankly. Well, at this point another guy walked over. He seemed to know what this was, although not what a "lap desk" was. He suggested I try an electronics store and that I might be able to get one with a fan, so I don't think he understood my actual goal. I thanked them and left the store... and the search continues...
In other news I have not one, not two, but SIX blisters on my feet from all the walking I've been doing! I am walking kind of like an 80 year old woman. I guess its a good thing there is a pharmacy right down the street where I could buy some stuff to take care of them AND that I just bought a bus pass. Clearly I let my feet get "soft" over the summer
with all of that driving around and those pedicures! For the time being, I have decided to postpone renting a bike since the traffic here still makes me a little bit nervous.
As a final observation, I found it interesting that tonight as I was standing waiting for the bus TWO people stopped and asked me for directions! (I know, right? ME! ha!) I must do a pretty good job of faking the confident look. Anyway, I even successfully directed one of them. But it made me realize that I am not the only one here who is new and/or doesn't know their way around... which is a good feeling 😊
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