Meanwhile, In the Cold and Rainy North...
Oct. 21st, 2011 11:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sub_divided(I decided to move this post here from tumblr after discussing (okay okay, "explaining without having been asked") what I use the two blog platforms for. It is probably a ridiculous distinction only I care about, but anyway...)
This follows: http://subdee.tumblr.com/post/10966340645/things-about-england
The weather has actually been pretty nice this week! I need to change my sleeping schedule though, because by waking up at noon I’m missing half the daylight.
I got one of those “natural light” alarm clocks - the light gradually dims at night, gradually brightens in the morning, moving “sunset” and “sunrise” to times of my choosing - but I think I’m undermining the thing by hitting “snooze” at full brightness. It’s like I’m training myself that it’s okay to sleep while the sun is up. It’s not okay!! All daylight is precious!!!
One nice thing about living in North England: they take seasonal depression very, very seriously here. I did my undergrad in Michigan, which is just as cold (or maybe even colder) and almost as dark, and we didn’t have half the resources that are available here. There are like five different help/hotline things, I have a department rep AND and flat rep AND a graduate student association rep, plus the department admin, and of course (not least) my tutor. There’s just more staff, in general, per student here. I dunno if that’s a US vs UK thing or a large school vs. small school thing, but it’s nice.
It is weird to have one person, my tutor, who is supposed to supervise my project and also be a source of support for any personal issues I might have. It’s like having a boss who is also your counselor (or vice versa). Weird!
Generally settling in well and having a good time, so yanno, don’t take this post the wrong way. It’s just an interesting (and welcome) change.
Next up: reviews of post- post- modern philosophers, and a rebuttal to my “everything about postmodernism is terrible” Contemporary Issues professor.
Shoutout to berthardy, up in Glasgow! Did you know that it is actually *less dark* in Glasgow in the winter than it is in York? I think it’s because the big cities in Scotland are on high plateaus, whereas most of the Northern English cities are in valleys.
This follows: http://subdee.tumblr.com/post/10966340645/things-about-england
The weather has actually been pretty nice this week! I need to change my sleeping schedule though, because by waking up at noon I’m missing half the daylight.
I got one of those “natural light” alarm clocks - the light gradually dims at night, gradually brightens in the morning, moving “sunset” and “sunrise” to times of my choosing - but I think I’m undermining the thing by hitting “snooze” at full brightness. It’s like I’m training myself that it’s okay to sleep while the sun is up. It’s not okay!! All daylight is precious!!!
One nice thing about living in North England: they take seasonal depression very, very seriously here. I did my undergrad in Michigan, which is just as cold (or maybe even colder) and almost as dark, and we didn’t have half the resources that are available here. There are like five different help/hotline things, I have a department rep AND and flat rep AND a graduate student association rep, plus the department admin, and of course (not least) my tutor. There’s just more staff, in general, per student here. I dunno if that’s a US vs UK thing or a large school vs. small school thing, but it’s nice.
It is weird to have one person, my tutor, who is supposed to supervise my project and also be a source of support for any personal issues I might have. It’s like having a boss who is also your counselor (or vice versa). Weird!
Generally settling in well and having a good time, so yanno, don’t take this post the wrong way.
Next up: reviews of post- post- modern philosophers, and a rebuttal to my “everything about postmodernism is terrible” Contemporary Issues professor.
Shoutout to berthardy, up in Glasgow! Did you know that it is actually *less dark* in Glasgow in the winter than it is in York? I think it’s because the big cities in Scotland are on high plateaus, whereas most of the Northern English cities are in valleys.