meanwhile, in weird news...

Alright. Having had my rant (and then given a much more polite version of it to the people at the office, who've kindly agreed to help me all they can with the awful, admittedly ineffective system they've got)...Life got much better the end of this week.

The sun came out, and I had a picnic by the beach with a friend while reading a Havelok, a Middle English romance about an exiled Danish king who happens to breathe fire in his sleep. Super pleasant.

I also woke up this morning to go swimming (Getting back in the water has been absolutely fantastic. Although I can say with great disappointment that my times are not what they used to be....) but apparently there was a problem with the pool today, so instead, my swimming buddy and I grabbed coffee at North Point. (They took one look at us and knew our order. Achieving "regular" status is my absolute favorite.) We took our coffee to go, and drank it out by the cliffs, watching the tide roll in and crash against the castle wall. It was a delightfully Scottish morning-- low clouds, wind, the whole town washed in grey. St Andrews is sparkling in the sunshine, but it's unmistakably striking in this more natural setting.

But to get to the "weird news" bit: on the way back, we walked past a construction worker kneeling in the middle of the street. With a tiny brush. Dusting off the spinal column and pelvis of a 15th century monk.

...as you do.

Seriously though! First of all, how bizarre is it that they managed to lay down a sewage system right next to this body without finding it? And secondly, man. I've gotta say. Bits of 17th century pottery found by Jamestown settlement back home have got nothing on this kinda history. At least for a medievalist :)

Which makes me incredibly glad to be here. Before leaving, I'd encountered a lot of people that asked (and rightfully so), "But why are you going all the way to Scotland to study literature?" And obviously, the US has some great literature programs. But on days like today, I'm super glad to have chosen St Andrews. Because sometimes, on the way home from coffee by the cliffs on the North Sea, overlooking the castle ruins, you run into people digging up ancient history.

And what could possibly be more exciting than that?