Here we go again...

So I realize it's been a long time since I've posted anything... 3 and a half months I believe? And in between I've visited 4 countries with my awesome Californian friend Erika (we hit up Poland, Hungary, Croatia and Slovakia together in May), explored Iceland on my own, came home from an amazing work-abroad experience, taught ESL to adults for 6 weeks, went to the cottage for a week, then headed to Thunder Bay to visit Alex for 3 weeks. Phew! It's been quite a summer. And lots has happened in between - catching up with friends, visiting people, practicing silks and trapeze and hula hooping and general running around like a madwoman being chased by a deranged emu. Scratch that last part. Anyways, aside from having very little time to myself, I realized I was due to post at least a little something before my imminent departure from this great country of ours. (Except if you're American...then it's not. Sorry!)

I sit here, a mere 22.5 hours away from my flight out of Toronto, surrounded by suitcases and clothes and one hell of a disaster of a bedroom. And it's boiling in here. I've left getting ready to the last possible second, and not because I'm excited to go, it's more due to the fact that I feel like I JUST unpacked these damn suitcases, about 90 days ago...

But yes, I'm off on another adventure, my 3rd move overseas in my brief lifespan of 25 years. Twice it was in France, so I figure 3rd time is a charm, (to see a different part of the world, anyways). I'm officially a student again, as I begin my studies at the University of Edinburgh in an attempt to keep up with all my scholarly friends and family and try to grow a few new brain cells in the process. I'll be cramming my brain full of new knowledge about the English language: history, applied and theoretical linguistics, dialectology, phonology, semantics, etc. etc. And hopefully, at the end of it all, I'll have a little MSc beside my name. (That's right...the sciences are just reserved for you biologists and chemists out there! Language is a science dammit, and is a lot less disgusting to dissect.)

So, why Edinburgh, exactly? I don't really know when I came across the idea, although I believe it came out of the boredom of googling various postgraduate programs and being completely un-enthralled with anything I came across in this country...and the excitement at the prospect of leaving it again. I'm not quite sure what drew me to it...I mean, I've never even been to Edinburgh before, much less stepped foot into Scotland. For some reason, however, I knew that that was where I needed to be, my calling! More post-secondary education in a country that speaks a variety of English so absurd I can barely understand it. (Ironic?) I'm not sure what to expect, or what this year will bring, but I hope it fulfills all my expectations and more!

Here's to new adventures...