Going to the Kilns (Lewis' House)

Most of us slept in late today, resting up from our big day and late night last night.  A few of us left Crick at 2:00pm and walked to the Bus Stop heading for The Kilns (which is the house of C.S. Lewis).  We arrived near Lewis Close and got to walk around the little cottage. Nicole, the SCIO director, told us about the inside while we sat in his garden.  She then showed us the pond where Lewis and Tolkein would go swimming.  We then walked to Holy Trinity Church where Lewis preached a few sermons and attended services.  He is buried in the graveyard beside the church.  We got to see the pew where he and his brother sat and there was a window beside it that had pictures of Narnia.  We walked back to the bus stop and headed back to Crick.  Some people went back out again so it was really quiet for a change.  I went downstairs and played guitar for a bit until the rest came back home and we used our new TV to watch "Casino Royal." Four people from our group left around midnight for Paris so we saw them off.  Tomorrow is our last Sunday service here and we are planning on going to University Church.  

Happy 4th of July in Jolly 'Ol England!!

July 4, 2008

We woke up for our last Friday field trip and met up at Wycliffe Hall.  We got on the bus and rode to Coventry.  We weren't too impressed with the looks of the city, but the Cathedral was really nice.  It had been bombed in WWII but the part that survived still remains.  They built a new modern Cathedral beside it that is almost all made of concrete but has beautiful modern stained glass windows.  Much of the architecture was very modern. There was a large mural in the front of the church and the stained glass had a very modern art look.  After our short tour of the Cathedral, a few of us chose to take Holy Communion at a small service.  Then we walked around Coventry to find something to eat.  We decided on Subway and took our sandwiches back to eat them on the lawn behind the Cathedral.  We visited the gift shop and then played in the fountains in front of the Cathedral.  We got back on the bus, damp from playing in the water and made our way home.  We all gathered in the kitchen to finish our dishes for the 4th celebration.  We walked with our potluck dishes all the way to the Vines.  When we arrived we were greeted by red, white, and blue decorations and more than one person wearing a flag shirt.  We put our meat on the grill and then Chris had us all take turns reading the "Declaration of Independence."  We prayed and then dug into all the delicious food.  It was looking overcast so we gathered around the TV and watched "The Royal Tenenbaums."  It started clearing up outside so we headed out for soccer and an egg toss.  Some of us decided to throw water balloons at the guys but it was short-lived when they started retaliating.  We ended the night with an intense game of Mafia.  I didn't play the second round so I got the guitar from the living room and played.  Then Katie came and listened and we talked until the others were finished playing. We didn't walk back to Crick until 3:00am.  It was a great 4th of July celebration in England!!

Scones, Tea, and the Bodleian Library...

July 3, 2008

Today I had my last Jane Austen class and our professor brought us scones and tea! We talked about "Persuasion" and "Emma."  After class, I walked to the Bodleian Library to look up sources for my papers.  I really enjoyed it because I got my books called up into the Radcliffe Camera. I climbed up on the ladders to get my books on the top shelves and found a seat near the window so I could view the inspiring spires of the city.  I lost myself in my work and stayed there for three hours! Then I walked back to the Crick House, taking a short cut through the University Parks so I could take off my shoes. I arrived in time for another family dinner of spaghetti & meatballs and salad.  It is so nice to come home and find everyone gathered around in the kitchen ready to share a meal together.  A couple of us stayed around the kitchen and talked about music for a little while.  I went up to take a nap and then Lindsey came to wake me up so we could go feed the horses down the road with Howard.  We took them carrots, apples, and oats.  Then we headed back to the house and Lindsey and I started carving the pineapple for our 4th of July dish!

Family Dinners

July 2, 2008

Today was our first rainy day in a while; we've had such beautiful weather.  I walked with Lindsey to Sainsbury's and we bought groceries for the family meal! I offered to do the dessert of ice cream cones and Oreos. We also bought fruit for our own dish for the Fourth of July.  We took a cab back to Crick because we had a lot of groceries.  It was so different from the first time we arrived by cab because we knew where we were going.  We unloaded our groceries and then read our selection of reading for class.  We then headed to our last Literature class. We talked about Joyce's "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man."  After class, we came back to Crick and started on the meal of chicken alfredo pasta and caesar salad.  I turned my laptop on to some jazzy tunes and everyone said it was like we were in a restaurant.  We all had our family meal together after Howard prayed of it and then dessert.  Then we gathered around the sinks to wash dishes together.  We hung out downstairs for a bit listening to music and then headed to our rooms to work.

The Crick Family

July 1, 2008

This morning some of went to an optional meeting about Oxford scholarships, fellowships, and other programs we might be interested in.  After the meeting, I went to my Jane Austen class and we discussed "Mansfield Park" and our views of Fanny Price.  It was fun because the other girl in my class and I disagreed.  After class I walked to City Centre for some more groceries.  When I got back I met Lindsey, Leslie, Howard, and Julianna at Wycliffe and we walked to the Yo Sushi for dinner.  It was really neat because we sat a table where a conveyor belt came around containing different colored plates. None of us had been to a place like that so we really enjoyed the new experience.  We walked back to Crick and took a nap and around 9:00 we started setting up for the dance party we were planning to throw for Lindsey's birthday.  We danced to crazy songs and had "some good clean fun" as Lindsey describes it! We didn't think anyone could hear us but apparently you could hear us three houses down!