hair dyeing photo documentary

Here are the photos from the hair dyeing night I had last Monday night with Aimee.

After the application of the hair dye. We wonder what it will look like since the hair was wrapped with foil after the product was applied and we don't really know if it was applied in a straight line across my head.

Making funny faces in the mirror. Will the dye be properly purple?

Using a mirror to take this shot, so my camera is in it. The profile shot. Clearly we have red instead of purple. I suppose blue does not stick as well as red to my dark hair.

What I look like now.

skype

I just learned during lunch today that Skype is not blocked in Pollock Halls like I was told back in the U.S. Now I can call my parents for free instead of the really cheap calling card that I bought and I can also call for ASCIT BoD meetings or call friends when they are actually around, instead of blindly calling at an hour that I think normal people should be around/awake. I really want to here how things are going during rotation and hear about this new incoming class of prefrosh. I am also starting to miss my tour guide job a bit with all the money that I am spending in the UK.

On a down note, I do have to do a lot of reading. I am behind on what I should be doing here. Hopefully I can get some papers read this week for my physiology class. I am writing an essay on the key role of alpha-Melanocyte-stimulating-hormone (alpha-MSH) in the regulation of feeding behavior and sexual behavior. I am hoping to get the three introductory papers read so I have some idea of what I will be writing my paper on. It is due in three weeks, so I really need to push myself to keep myself on track. I also need to have the readings for my philosophy class read so I know what is going on in class and I don't nod off or space out again.

I really hope that I do get to see Atonement this weekend. I mentioned it to a guy I met here last week and a week later his girlfriend said that they went to see it on a date. Darn it, he beat me to the punch. Maybe he just couldn't resist the pull of his man-crush on James McAvoy.

timestamp

I just noticed that the time stamp on my past entries were in the wrong time zone. I just changed the time zone to the proper one and all the time stamps on my previous entries were adjusted. Cool...

hot cold

As the temperature begins to drop here in Edinburgh, I've noticed more things bothering me. First, the radiator in the room has a dial, but when you turn the dial for heat nothing happens. Rumor is that there is a master switch that turns on everyone's heat and the dial on the radiator only works when that switch is on. This is probably true, but it is never on when I want it. For example, I realized the truth in this rumor when I felt the radiator this morning. It was nice and toasty standing next to it, but that was when I woke up this morning at 7:30am for my 9am class. When I got back from class it was cold again. Second, I learned that it is very common to have two separate taps on the sink, one for hot and one for cold. I can't actually get warm water when I turn on the tap. When I wash my hands I either get freezing cold water or burning hot water. When I wash my face in the morning, I can't stand the cold water anymore so I have resorted to putting the stopper in the sink and filling the basin with cold and hot water to make a warmer mixture.

On another note, today was my first practical session in my biochemistry class. I was a bit worried that it was going to be intense, but it was really easy. We had five girls on one bench to purify a protein. Because of new time restraints in the class we only had to run the affinity column. We didn't even have to transfect the yeast, culture it, or lyse the cells. That was all done for us. By the time I go back for the next portion, the assistants will have eluted our protein for us as well. I guess my expectations were a bit high, but it made me feel really smart.

At this point I should be reading the essays I was supposed to have read for my philosophy class, but I got really bored last night and kept zoning out. I had to keep pinching myself in my proteins class this morning to keep myself conscious. Good thing I read some of the material last night in the text, or I would be in a lot of trouble. I don't know what is wrong with me, I got plenty of sleep last night.

Jeff, the hair stylist from The Factory gave me an amazing haircut that I loved in Pasadena before I left, but it is starting to grow out and I was getting bored. I wanted to dye the tips of my hair blue, but all I could find at the drugstore was purple. That seemed to be a pretty good color on my hair so I bought the hair dye. Normally I would have thought about bleaching the area that I wanted to dye, but the box showed the results I was supposed to get with the product and the color was really purple, even on black hair, so I thought it would be fine. With Aimee's help, the dye was applied for almost an hour and a half. When I washed it out the color ended up being a more reddish color, instead of the purple it was supposed to be. I was a bit disappointed, but most people that have noted the color change have complimented it so I suppose it looks OK. Kudos to Aimee who did an awesome job with the color application. When I get a chance to find someone to take a photo I'll post it.

For all of you that have been inquiring, I have been to the pubs and bars multiple times since I have been here and have consumed alcoholic beverages. Don't worry, I am not being totally antisocial. There are just too many things for me to do here! I wish I had more time.

second week of classes

This is the second week of classes. Yesterday I sent my email to Lauren regarding my activities last week. I still haven't heard from her. I wonder how long I should wait for her response. I hope that this is not a sign of my impending doom. I did apologise profusely. Maybe that will appease her anger.

I feel like I should be working more on my classes. First off, I've only bought one textbook for my three classes. My philosophy of science class doesn't have a text, and I just can't be bothered to buy the books for my other classes since I can get them in the library. I should probably invest in a book for my physiology class. I'm in a stage that doesn't really want to do anything. I go to lectures and attempt to take notes when the lecturer isn't talking too fast and half understand most of the things that are brought up in class. I am just too lazy to read the textbooks because there are no assigned or really suggested reading in the textbooks. You are expected to just find your own way.



My current read is historical, Six Wives: The Queens of Henry VIII by David Starkey. This is one of my favourite historical periods because there is so much drama that a television show can be made of it (The Tudors). Honestly, this time period is like a soap opera, but in real life. I can't wait for Cate Blanchett's new Elizabeth I film this winter. Despite my enthusiasm, I've barely made a dent in this book and I am still waiting for Catherine of Aragon to marry Arthur. I just haven't had time to curl up with it.


Now I just need to get the time this weekend to go see Keira Knightly and James McAvoy in Atonement. The reviews out here were great when it came out a couple of weeks ago and I finished reading the book about that time. I think I need a good downer to get my butt in gear.

I'll be missing Rotation which probably won't be a huge deal. Hopefully I can depend on Lloyd to make the right decision this year. Don't be lame like last year's frosh. Please...

why can't i be clever?

The only blog I really read is Cindy's because I know about it and I wonder how her days at Caltech are going. When I read it for the first time, I loved her title and subtitle for the blog. It was so clever and I tried to wrack my brain for something equally clever, but the search was fruitless and I came up with the lame title I have now.

Aimee just told me about her blog today and I visited it in my half freaking out episode. She has a clever title too! Why can't I think of something? I have to brainstorm for a better title and subtitle. I really need something clever. Think Angela, think!

freaking out

At this point I am half freaking out. Every Friday I am supposed to send an email to Lauren, the Director of Fellowships and Study Abroad at Caltech. Last Friday I had classes until 5pm, then archery until 7pm, went to the pub with the archery club until 10pm and went to a friend's flat until 2am. I totally forgot to email her all weekend until I walked into breakfast this morning and sat next to Jerry. As soon as I sat down I swore. I forgot to write the email. You might think, 'It's just an email, there is nothing to worry about', but you are wrong. If I forget to write these emails I can get in a lot of trouble. I was told that I can be taken from the program and brought back to the States for forgetting to write a report on Friday. That is why I am so worried. I have just started the term and I know that I absolutely love it here. One term isn't enough, let alone having to go home early because I forgot to write my email to Lauren. I just sent my late report and I hope that I don't get in too much trouble. Please let everything be OK...

first assignment

I just finished my first assignment of the term, reading an article by Kuhn on scientific discoveries. I suppose it was pretty interesting, but I am not the biggest fan of philosophy after my freshman humanities class.

I've decided to join the Archery Club here. I went to shoot some arrows this afternoon and found it pretty fun, although I am not a very good shot. It should be fun, but I think that it is pretty silly that I have to get a membership to the gym in order to get into the the archery ranges that are in the gym to practice. It is a bit silly. I had to pay 10pounds to join the club and the gym costs 2.50pounds each visit if you don't have membership, 75pounds for a year. I hope that there is a better deal that I can get for the term.

I am just beginning to realize how spoiled I was at Tech. Back in California I didn't have to pay to use the gym, I didn't have to pay for all the printouts that I had to make for classes. At Edinburgh, I have to pay to get into the gym and for any printouts in the computer lab. I am given a few pounds for printing, but I don't want to waste that on class readings since I have essays in every class I am taking. Another interesting system at this school is that a lot of work is submitted electronically on the internet. At first, I thought that this was to ensure that assignments were turned in on time and to save paper, but in addition to the electronic submissions, I also have to turn in a a hard copy of all my assignments. Clearly I thought wrong.

first day of classes

Today is the first day of classes for me. Yup, three of the four classes I am taking meet today. I am currently waiting for my Science and Society class to start in Appleton Tower. I got out of Physiology early today, which was nice since it is usually a three hour class. I rediscovered my hatred for powerpoint lectures this morning in my Reproductive Biology lecture. With powerpoint presentations the lecturer will always print out a copy of the presentation and give it to the class, so I never want to take notes. Then the lights go out, further inducing a desire to sleep, despite getting more than enough of zzz's the night before. That's right, with 20 minutes left in class I was zoning in and out and I don't even remember what was being said, although I know I wasn't asleep because I remember seeing all the slides in the handout on the screen in front of the room. Thankfully I didn't fall asleep in Physiology, where the lecture was decently interesting and audible.

The computer I am at is one at a small cafe in the building that I am having my next class at. The keyboard is weird and I keep pressing the wrong keys when I try to type something. First off, the arrangement is totally different, the @ symbol is above the ' symbol, next to the colon and semicolon instead of being above the 2. In place of the @ symbol is the quotation mark. Imagine me trying to type email addresses on this keyboard. Second, the shift key is tiny and I keep accidentally pressing the \ key next to it when I want to capitalize a letter. Finally, the enter key is also smaller that I am used to so whenever I want to press the enter key to search something or start a new line, I get #, the key right next to the enter key. So odd...

Looks like people are standing around the lecture theatre waiting to class to start so I should probably go even though there are still 10 minutes left before class begins.

worrywart is what i am

Worrying is something that I do best. I took the MCATs on August 2oth and I checked online for the when the scores will be released. September 19th. Yes, that is in 2 days and I can't stop worrying about what the score is. After the exam I didn't think I did very well, but I didn't want to cancel the scores (after what that exam costs?). Now I can't stop worrying even though people always say that I can't do anything about it anymore, which is true, but doesn't ease my anxiety.

I also freaked when I checked my classes for this week online. When I looked at the time of the first class for my Structures and Proteins class it was listed as 9am today. I was definitely not there for that class and I started freaking out. I even called Aimee to see if she went to class. Thank goodness about 5 minutes later I saw the lecture schedule list and noticed that the first lecture is on Thursday. Thank goodness that was a mistake. I do not want to be missing the first day of class. No classes today for the bank holiday.

Americans...

I really hate the reputation that Americans have abroad. In a lot of foreign countries we are seen as being uncultured, having bad habits, and thinking that the American way is the best. Unfortunately, I feel like it is only perpetuated by the people that go abroad and give others this impression. I was sitting in the dining room eating my breakfast and overheard a table of Americans. One girl was so excited and was talking about how she saw a cello player plucking his instrument instead of playing it with a bow and thought that it was "so awesome". Honestly, that isn't exactly the most original thing you can do with a stringed instrument. Naturally one would think that you could pluck any instrument with strings. I almost wanted to burst out laughing, clearly she has not heard a lot of music played on a cello or violin. Playing a pizzicato is probably one of the most basic skills you learn on the cello and is commonly used on the bass, especially in jazz. I guess it would be too much to ask if she had actually ever heard any classical or jazz music in her life.

I also saw some Americans playing beer pong on the lawn of one of the dorms. Can you not survive without playing beer pong for three months? There are plenty of bars, pubs, and clubs a person can go to a drink socially and be normal. Why beer pong? The "table" they made was also really short and made from a plank resting on the backs of two chairs. When I commented on how short the table was, the explanation that I got was that it got too expensive at the home dept type place that was charging per foot. Basically they just blew a ton of money on a plank for beer pong and no other purpose. I sure that they also cannot bring it back to the states either so they pretty much just flushed the money down the toilet. Maybe one of you guys that love playing beer pong so much can explain to me why you would waste your money on something like this when there are perfectly reasonable tables in the pantries.

rain, rain, go away, come again another day

I woke up today looked at my watch, saw that it was past noon, changed, brushed my teeth, and did all my other morning rituals before I headed out to brunch. I did this without once opening the curtains or looking at the day ahead of me. As soon as I walked into the window-lined stairwell I realized it was raining. Not the drizzle that I have had in the past here that ended in about five minutes, it was actually properly raining, though not the pounding forceful type. Thank goodness it wasn't windy so I could use the cute polka dot umbrella Cindy got me. Hopefully this will pass soon so I can go out and wander about and window shop.

Another thing, when I opened the curtains there were also these weird flower pedal bits on the sill. I have no idea where they came from since they window hasn't been open and I can't really see a tree with blossoms on it near my window at all. Strange.

On the eating perspective, I lost a bit of weight the first few weeks I was here, mostly by eating a light breakfast and skipping lunch. This tended to happen because it was a bit pricey and I would be so busy walking around and exploring the city that I would just forget to eat. That worked out really well until about a week ago when I got to my dorm. Pollock Halls serves us breakfast and dinner seven days a week, where breakfast is a choice of OK tasting and greasy hot breakfast or cold cereal and dinner is a choice of mush, pasta, or pizza. I feel like I am back at Tech dinners, but it isn't all you can eat and the pasta isn't oily and blistery. Now I am gaining back the weight from all the carbs, oil and grease that I am eating. Plus, now I just sit around reading or on the computer with nothing to do. I can't stop myself from wanting to eat three meals and snacks in between. Ugh... I think that I should really be thinking about eating healthier though.

The pantries here (a.k.a. kitchens) don't even have stoves, we just get a water heater, small fridge, sink, microwave and toaster. Even if I didn't want to eat the food in the dining hall I couldn't really cook anything for myself. Instead of setting off fire alarms by burning microwave popcorn, the residents here set off the fire alarms by burning toast. Strange how the same thing happens, but in a different way.

the view

Photo of the Day: Holyrood Abbey.

The ruins of this abbey are connected to the outside of Holyrood House Palace, the Queen's residence when she visits Edinburgh. From the tour of the palace you can see the apartments of Mary, Queen of Scots and see lots of items from that time period that belonged to her and the people that are historically associated with her. As is the usual case with palaces and castles, Holyrood is physically a lot more attractive than Edinburgh Castle and should be a definite visit for anyone. Holyrood Park is also right next to Arthur's Seat, an extinct volcano. The summit is also the the highest point in the city and worth a visit for a great panoramic view of the city.

RENT: why am i not there?

I just found out that Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp are back on Broadway for RENT. They were the original Roger and Mark. I really wish that I knew this when I was back home for a few days, I could have seen it! Darn it. Unfortunately I think that their stint is over in early October. The two of them are just so amazing in the film and on the original show. Argh! I should have YouTubed RENT more often over the summer...

starting over

I have decided give blogging a go. In the past I've been terrible at keeping journals. I always start and stop. I love the old fashioned feeling it has, but I can never keep up and actually write things in appropriate time intervals. This method of keeping a journal may be better since I spend so much of my life as a college student on the computer.

I suppose there are a couple of things that have spawned this idea. First, I've been reading a good friend's for the last few weeks to see how her hectic life is going after I have left the country. Cindy recommended it as a great way to prevent writing skill from atrophying, which would be a big problem when I need to be an essay writing machine for medical school applications. Second, I am currently studying the first term of my junior (third) year at the University of Edinburgh. Every Friday I am required to write an email back to the Caltech Director of Study Abroad to keep her up to date on my comings and goings. I thought that this would be a great place for the events of the week to flow and a place to let my friends back in America know how I am doing in this absolutely amazing city.

I have been in Scotland for about three weeks now and I have loved almost every moment of my time here in Edinburgh. I was able to fly in a couple weeks before the term started and stayed at a friend's house (bless Iain's family). I spent the weeks exploring the city, climbing Arthur's Seat and getting acclimated with the city. I met a bunch of people through Iain and even ate haggis in the first week of my stay!

Right now it is Fresher's Week, an orientation for the first years and foreign exchange students. Classes start next week and I will have to start getting serious. I am staying in dorms with all the freshers (or frosh) and nights can be absolutely insane. It is a bit odd for me because most of them have just gone out and gotten drunk almost every night this week. They'll come back at 4 in the morning and run down the halls, banging on doors and walls. This can be pretty irritating when you are sleeping. The freshers also love talking about drinking. I've found an easier time chatting up third and fourth years, thank goodness. Unfortunately I have also caught the Fresher's Flu, the equivalent of Frosh Plague. Alas...

This entry is looking a bit long. I probably should have started this earlier so that I could actually write things down when then happen rather than after the fact. I hope that this term abroad is going to be as fun as others have described in the past. This is my chance to learn if Tech is the problem or if I am.