Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Six Months

This week marked 6 months in Cambridge for us. In some ways, it feels like we've been here for 6 weeks.

Things we're now used to:
-paying extra for a sandwich or coffee if it's for "eat in" versus "take away"
-calling "carry out" "take away"
-pulling a giant cord to turn the light on in the bathroom because some electrical code prohibits switches within a certain number of feet of a sink/tub/shower (no electrical outlets either)
-most shops (including the mall we live next to) close between 5 and 6
-not having a car
-the newspapers -- plentiful, and more than a person can read in a day and still do one's job
-plentiful British quiz shows (not that we understand everything, mind you ...)

Things we're still not used to:
-the %^&*ing washing machine/dryer (worthy of a separate post at some point)
-having 1 choice for salsa, and it's in the tiniest jar you've ever seen
-no grape jam/jelly in all of Europe
-figuring out the right time to say "cheers" (it's roughly the equivalent of "thanks", but whenever I use it I get strange looks)
-eggs aren't refrigerated (but they say on the box, "refrigerate after purchase" - ?)
-Scottish accents

The next 6 months have the potential to be difficult as we descend into winter. However, we've been warned. With all the quiz shows and newspapers, maybe we'll just stay in for the worst months.

Naaaah.