Of Snow and Lazy Ants...

It's finally started to snow in Ann Arbor... well, something like snow. On my way back from class on Wednesday, I was mildly surprised to hear the little tinkle tinkle of hail falling on my car. Hail is like ice pellets, thankfully they were pretty small and harmless. (Snow comes in the light flaky form). Snow also means that I have to wear multiple layers now, since it's abominably cold outside, and my skin dries up into scaly flakes (ugh).

School-wise, I'm approaching the end of term (Dec 15) and then there's a short 2 week break for Christmas. You would think that the US is predominantly a Christian nation, but in fact, the US takes great pains to keep religion out of the public square. For example, there are laws in some states that you may not display the nativity scene (Baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph) in public because of its religious significance. Similarly, no religious holidays are permitted in the US. In a manner of speaking, I think that Singapore is far more accepting in celebrating the different faiths in our community.

It's always amusing to see how life and nature imitate the culture of the country. After dropping a chocolate chip on the floor (baking accident), I was somewhat annoyed to see an ant trail leading up to the chocolate chip the next morning. The strange part is, the ants move soooo slllooooowwwwwwllllllyyyyyy. Like they were having a leisurely walk. Whereas in Singapore, the ants scurry around like the world was coming to an end. Make whatever conclusion of that as you will =)

I should be headed down to Florida next week for the Thanksgiving break. I'm pretty stoked about FINALLY going to Disney and Universal Studios. Yes, I'm the biggest kid around here haha.

The Colors of Autumn

Linguistically, since I'm in the US, it should be the "Colors of Fall", but I'll make my exception for my fellow British ex-colonialized countrymen.

It has been a really chilly and blustery autumn lately, with temperatures from -2 to 8, but the wind really makes it a challenging affair. The wind can blow right through 2 layers of clothes and set your teeth chattering. In the morning, the steering wheel of the car is so cold that I have to wear gloves to drive. How cold is it? Take 2 bottles of ice water out of the fridge. That's how cold it is.

I'm headed down to a latin music and dance concert today with a friend. It's part of the University's Arts and Eats programme. For $15USD, you get a pizza dinner and a lecture by a member of the University's music faculty on the history and background of the music/performance. You also get a student priced stall ticket (normally about $35) in one of the best concert halls in the country: The U of M's Hill Auditorium. According to my math professor, the conductor of the Boston Philharmoic Orchestra will only perform in 2 places in the US: The Orchestra's home concert hall and Hill Auditorium.

Anyway, I have a great set of photos to share: The Colors of Autumn. Check it out, especially the gorgeous houses/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/19385174@N04/

Woohoo, it was cold last night. How cold you ask? I was out this morning to grab my GPS for recharging, and there is a layer of frost on my car. FROST! Brrrrrr

Some updates on my life. School's been school, and we've officially crossed the mid-way mark for the semester. Coming up will be Halloween (which is huge in the US, like the equivalent of Christmas in Singapore. Pagans *cough*) and Thanksgiving (4th Thursday of Nov). I have several papers due this week, but unfortunately I just got started in World of Warcraft again. Decisions decisions... anyway, it was great to go raiding with the gang again.

The colors of fall are really pretty, all golds and oranges and browns. The leaves are starting to fall though, so hopefully I can get some pictures up before they all go away. I'm headed up to Professor Waltz's place today; she's having a house party for all students in her Foreign Policy class. It's an hour's drive away (see attached Google Map)


View Larger Map

Holiday plans: I should be headed down to Florida during Thanksgiving (finally off to Orlando), and over to the West Coast in December when school ends. Have traveling companions for both, so it should be a blast!

Fall is back!

Fall weather is back! And the temperatures are hovering between 4 deg and 16 deg these days. BRRRRRRR!!! It's at times like these when I totally appreciate having a car; being able to drive right up to school and spend the least amount of time in the chilly air is always brilliant. The leaves are turning a gorgeous shade of yellow now, so I hope to get some great pics up for you guys =)

I'm headed down to Cedar Point, Ohio on Saturday. (www.cedarpoint.com). It's touted as the amusement park with the most number of coasters in the US! Woot! I'm gonna coaster all day! October is the off season for cedar point, so I hope to be able to get on all the rides with a minimum wait. BUT, the catch is the temperature is 15 deg in the day. If its chilly just walking around, imagine what it would be like hurtling around at 100kmh in this temperature! MADNESS! I'm definitely gonna dress warm =)

I really ought to make a shopping list when I go to the supermarket. And it's not because I forget stuff. Example: I wanted to get some lemons, honey and soy sauce for a chicken chop marinade that I planned to do for dinner on Thursday night. I ended up with about $100 worth of groceries from just browsing the shelves. Ugh. Oh well, at least I have 2 types of marinades, barbeque sauce, a pepper grinder, balsamic vinegar, lemons, honey, soy sauce and other goodness sitting in the kitchen cabinet. =)

Next post should come with cedar point pics =)

Sweater and Cider Party!

Some weird parties are thrown in Ann Arbor: Hung out at a "Sweater and Cider" party on Saturday night. It's the Fall season and the apple harvest, so apple cider is available in abundant quantities. Typically, apple cider is warmed and spiced with cinnamon for a comforting drink when the weather gets cooler.

Only problem is, the weather is ridiculously warm this week. The temperatures in Michigan have climbed to Singapore levels, so in all honesty, drinking warm cider isn't going to make me happy. And the theme of the Sweater and Cider party is to wear an ugly sweater to boot (which incidentally, I'd rather not buy an ugly sweater just for one party).

Alright, so my friends and I ended up in T-shirts and beer, but we were sweaters and ciders in spirit heh.

Microeconomics test coming up on Monday, and several essays due in the following week. I'm trying to get all my stuff done by Friday so that I can make a run down to Cedar Point in Ohio for a day of ROLLER COASTERS!!!! WOOT!!. (http://www.cedarpoint.com)

1 month milestone

It's been one month since school started, and 6 weeks since I first woke up to a US morning. Time really flies...

Gull Farms Corn Maze!

Been a long time since I've updated my blog. School work's been getting tougher, with tests and papers to write. Weather's still a bit silly though, warm as summer lately, although the evenings are blessedly cool (about 18 deg C in the evenings).

Couple of the Ford school folks and I dropped by the Gull Farms Corn Maze on Saturday. (http://www.gullmeadowfarms.com/) A corn maze is just that: literally a maze carved into a corn field. It's also a farmer's market, where you can buy fresh apples, apple products, pumpkins and stuff! =)

It was a 1.5hr drive each way, and my first real experience on the highways in the US. Michigan highways are unbelievably boring, just miles and miles of straight, bumpy concrete slabs and nothing but farmland all around. Yawn... I can't imagine what it would be like to drive 4 hours to Mackinac Island

Bought a bag of apples, some apple cider, apple butter (sweet baby food haha) and a half dozen of ridiculously crispy deep fried cake doughnuts.

Some photos for your consumption =)

A) Things to do in the Corn Maze:


B) The Corn Maze. We cheated by bashing through the maze:



C) Milena, me, Siobhan:



D) Inside the Farmer's market