A Semester "Down Under": Starburst Babies?

I apologize for being slack in posting blogs, but I just can't seem to sit down long enough to update. Most of you know that I am very active. Well, that hasn't changed since I've come to Australia. I absolutely love to go places, try new things, and try new sports. So, I have decided to try ALL of the sports that the hall has to offer. (Well... aside from footie, but I would do that too if they didn't tackle! For some reason, I don't think that would go well with my pacemaker.) Anyway, I just finished tennis, I am currently swimming, and I have just started cricket and indoor soccer. So much fun!

First, I will explain all about my tennis experience. So, we left for the tennis courts at 8:30 AM Sunday morning. I'm usually up by then anyway, so that didn't bother me. We arrived at St. Marks (another university about 30 minutes away) to see that the courts we were going to be playing on are grass courts. Ok, I thought only professionals play on grass courts. Well, I was wrong. So, grass courts do not have near as much bounce as clay and hard courts. The ball hit the ground and died. First strike against me. Second thing is we were playing against girls who were REALLY good (like played for State good). So, for someone who hasn't played tennis in about 4 years this was a shocker! However, I was so excited to play. I ended up playing in 3 of the 4 matches (1 being singles and 2 of them as doubles). Well, we started playing and I was feeling pretty good. I mean, we were losing pretty bad but I was having fun! Ok, I'm a little stubborn (or a lot depending on who you talk to) and thought that I could serve just as hard as I could 4 years ago after only 2 practices. Boy was I wrong! I woke up the next morning SO sore. But, it was worth it!

Now moving on to cricket. HAHAHAHAHA!!! For someone so used to playing softball and occasionally joining in on some baseball practices, cricket is really hard to get used to. They were teaching me how to bowl (AKA pitch). Well, it is kind of like a backwards windmill. So, it is the complete opposite direction than what I am used to. Also, you are not allowed to bend your elbow. Try telling that to my arm that has been throwing a softball/baseball (with a bent elbow) since I could walk! So, you can imagine how it turned out for me. However, after several practice bowls, I started to get the motion down. It still feels REALLY awkward but it is getting there. Moving on to batting. Oh yeah! The ball also has to bounce BEFORE it gets to the batter. There are no balls and strikes. Weird. This ball is about the size of a baseball and pretty much as hard. However, the batters are all padded up. They wear pads on their legs (up to their thighs) and gloves. Boys get to wear helmets but the girls don't wear them. As I'm getting all of this information, I'm thinking "Wait. Rewind. No helmet, but more padding than football players? This just doesn't make sense." I have been hit by pitches going a lot faster than these bowls on my arms, legs, stomach, etc. But, I don't really want to get cracked in the head. However, I will go with what they are telling me! Another thing about cricket is that they do not use gloves in the field. I already said that this ball is as hard as a baseball. No gloves while fielding but you wear them while you bat? I just don't understand this sport.

In other news, I have been enjoying the beach as much as possible while the weather is gorgeous and I don't have too much work to do. That way, when I come home in July to lifeguard my body won't be in complete shock over the harsh sun. Plus, I just love the beach.

Also, have I mentioned that I love the campus atmosphere? There is always some kind of music playing and there are little shops everywhere. However, the library closes at 5 PM and is not open on weekends. This semester is either going to help get rid of my procrastination habit (b/c I have to get things done early) or will add to it (through the beach and other fun things). We'll see how this goes.

Lastly, a little explanation of the title. I went down to the vending machine (w/ the mid-afternoon munchies) and decided to try starburst babies. Now, these things taste like starbursts but they are gummies. However, they are in the shape of babies. I just don't know how I feel about these. They taste really good, but I can't get the whole idea of "eating babies" out of my head. It reminds me of a project we did in Mrs. Thompson's english class my Freshman year at Mayo. Thanks to my lovely roommate, I remembered that we were reading "A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift. At first, I could not remember the title to save my life. I remembered what it was about, and I vividly remember the project. We had a paper plate with a baby doll and a plastic fork, knife, and spoon around it. It was kind of disturbing. And these gummies are giving me the same reaction.

So, I know I just jumped around like crazy, but I seem to have a good bit of energy right now. So, my mind is going all different places. (No... I'm not hyped up on caffeine.)

Until next time,

Elizabeth