This will be over before I know it

Hi Everyone,


I can't believe how fast time is flying and that it is already the middle of October! Before I know it my journey will be over and I will be back in the states to complete the second semester of my Junior year! While I am excited for what the future holds I also realize that I must take advantage of every opportunity to build connections and network and prepare for Graduate School applications. Yes!, I am planning to go for my Master's degree in Writing for Stage and Screen! And I am looking at some pretty competitive and top colleges. This means that I have to start putting together a portfolio and body of work. 



My Screen and Script class is helping me to start creating pieces of work that I can use for multiple projects in the future. And right now I am currently working on two separate scripts that can be made into short films. I am really enjoying being able to tell stories and create characters that I feel anyone could relate to. I am definitely learning the difference between writing for stage and screen. With writing for screen it's more visual and what is shown. Less is more.  I have also become close with the lecturer of the class who is a film producer and writer. She also gave me word of a Master's program she and some other faculty are creating that focuses on Screen Writing and producing. I told her to keep me in mind. 



TENNIS: Tomorrow October 14, is my first tennis match for St. Mary's. I feeling good about my game and confident in the men's team. We have a really strong group of guys and I look forward to competing tomorrow in both singles and doubles. Our opponent is Queen Mary's and I know absolutely nothing about their team. I also received my official Tennis Kit (Shirt) as they call it. It's a collard shirt which is a bit more fancy than the tennis shirts we wear back at W&J but I like it. And I will get to keep it as a souvenir. 



"WICKED" The Musical: Thursday I am going to see one of my favorite musical's WICKED! I  can't wait to see how it compares to the previous performance of the show I have seen. I will be going with some other international students who also took advantage of the discounted ticket offers! I will be sure to give a report on how it was, everything from the music, stage design and performances by the actors. 




CHIPOTLE and other Food places: My friend Ashley and I went to Chipotle here in the UK and it was AMAZING! I don't know if it was just because we were starving and literally inhaled our burritos in like ten minutes or what, but it was some of the best food I have eaten since I've been here! It compares very similarly to Chipotle back in the US.  Five Guys is another food chain that is common here, I haven't tried it yet. I will say Domino's Pizza is way better here...not as greasy and it tastes more authentic. McDonalds and Burger King are more healthy here as well. 




I guess one area that is bothering me is actually the lack of rigor. I am someone who constantly loves to be on the move or at least have something to do. Classes here are laid back in the sense that I have three classes that are two hours each but we meet one day a week. At times I find myself disengaged by the material because of the gap in-between the next class. This coming from being used to having a class MWF or TR. I'm not saying this is a bad thing however, I think there is a bigger emphasis on one's own willingness to learn and absorb the material. The lectures themselves are interesting when you think about it. A lecturer will talk for almost the entire two or three hour class. This is a long time of just information after information. And when it comes to assessments, for me at least, I have no exams or quizzes. I have papers that only need to be about 5-6 pages max. I just hope I am able to bounce back to having class five days a week instead of only three days. 



HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER: I 100% recommend you check out this show if you haven't already. The first season is on Netflix and the second season has started and you can catch the episodes on ABC watch or on Thursday's after Scandal. I watched the first season in two days, I could not stop! The cast is amazing and Viola Davis recently won the Emmy for her performance in the series! 



Well that's all for now. Look forward to an update on how the tennis match went, Wicked and any other fun stories that WILL happen along the way! As always if you have questions or anything you want me to write about or find out about just leave me a comment! 


CHEERS!!!

Ty G.