Day 113 - 116 - Slackademia to Academia

Cool post title, eh? Right on schedule, as promised in the last update, here's what has happened this week. It's no secret from reading this blog that the academic effort needed this semester has been a little less than at Michigan, but it's crunch time now with the end of the year coming. STAY TUNED TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!

Day 113 - Monday

Jordan, bless him, decided to go to Amsterdam in the threatening weather all by himself. He made it, found Michigan students in the Red Light District, and generally had himself a good time, so I'm glad his injury didn't impact his ability to see the mythical Amsterdam.

I spent the whole day in my room trying to get back into the studying groove. I endeavored to read the entire Dutch culture textbook in three days, and read a solid 1/3 of it with some self-congratulatory Community episodes sprinkled in. The history of the Dutch has some interesting points - like Tulip Mania and the creation of the polders - but after an entire semester of not really being pushed it was kind of hard to get back into history.

After Jordan came home I threw together some snacks and we just hung out for the rest of the night. We ended up watching The Human Centipede, which was more creepy than scary, and features the absolute worst female acting parts in the history of cinema. It was a good thing we watched it after Jordan's trip to the hospital, because the creepy German doctor in the movie surgically removes the knee ligaments in his victims.

Day 114 - Studying

I spent the day reading more Dutch history and culture. By far the most interesting chapters in the textbook were on Dutch law and the history of water in The Netherlands. The Dutch are very pragmatic about their laws, and their law enforcement philosophy is all about context. Crimes without victims are tolerated, and more productive solutions (rather than imprisonment) are offered for things like hard drug abuse. It's the way the laws should be. The Dutch get trashed by a lot nations for permissiveness, but living here has been a joy and the police have basically never factored into my life. They are doing something right.

The other most interesting bit is about the Dutch history with water. The Netherlands was literally reclaimed from the sea by the process of damning and draining to create polders, the Dutch have a long history with fighting to keep the sea out. They undertook massive projects like the Zuiderzee Works and Delta Works and now they're marvels of engineering. It's just fascinating to think about the extent to which water is everywhere in this country, and the complicated history the people have with it.

Jordan was physically beaten down after Amsterdam on crutches the previous day and had a well-deserved day of rest. I went grocery shopping and picked up some pretty good stuff to nom on. We ended up watching See This Movie, an early 2000s Seth Myers and John Cho mockumentary about two hapless young filmmakers. The ending was rubbish, but it was enjoyable enough. It's just nice to chill with a friend and watch a movie.

Day 115 - Farewell, Jordawg

Got up, did a bit more studying, then endeavored to get Jordan to the train station to get to Schipol for his flight to Belfast to see Friend of the Blog Cory. It took a while but we made it, and Jordan made it to the airport in plenty of time to catch his flight. Hopefully EasyJet treated him like a king again.

I went with James to grab some Eazie and discuss the Dutch culture final. We basically were completely unprepared to have any meaningful conversation on the topic, but Eazie is our spot and it was good to see James again after a couple days. You need your new friends here more than you'd guess at the beginning. I spent the rest of the day cramming for the test. It's an uninteresting story.

Day 116 - First Exam of 2011

So today marked the first exam I've taken since December 2010. That is awesome. The exam went fine, and while I didn't get 'em all right, I definitely got a good grade, which is nice. That should mark two of two courses completed so far that I've gotten good grades in, not that the grades I get here matter.

After the exam I met up with James to recap everything, and then I made my way back here. I completed booking flights/hostels for the Ireland-Spain-France-Italy trip I'm filling June with, which was a big weight off of my shoulders. Time to relax a bit before heading to wish Iowa Andy a happy birthday. Class tomorrow, a review for Globalisation, for the first time in ages. One week to learn something and prepare for that final. I'm also really looking forward to the London Calling festival this Saturday in Amsterdam with Ra Ra Riot, Cloud Nothings, and Twin Shadow amongst many others, so more on that after the weekend.

Thanks for reading, you guys. Closing in on four months abroad is pretty cool.