Around the World...and then some

I don't know why I go to extremes

I think the most interesting (or you could say wonderful or you could say horrible, but I'm going to go with the neutral "interesting") thing about being abroad is the way in which your mood just jumps from one extreme to another in a matter of minutes.

This morning was dark, cold and rainy. My alarm rang at way too early a time, and I would have done anything to stay in the warm sheets and sleep for a few more hours. But, alas, I got up, found an all-too-enthusiastic Irina Ivanovna for 8:00 in the morning, and was, let's say, not in the best of moods. It wasn't a bad mood, per se, but just a gloomy one. Kind of like the weather outside my window.

The gloom, however, fairly quickly changed to frustration (unexpressable frustration, of course) as I struggled to finish a homework assignment I didn't quite understand and found the line to obtain my metro pass too long to wait in and still get to class on time.

But after a class full of many words I just didn't understand, the sun had decided to come out. I went outside, got some lunch, and put on my iPod as I walked around in the sunshine. If there is one thing that will lift your mood everytime, no matter the problem, it's a bright sun and a blue sky. I saw a couple of friends who I hadn't seen yet today and we stood and talked for a few minutes. And if the sun doesn't lift you out of a bad mood, then friends are sure to do it. So as I walked to my next class, I was feeling all together much better and happier and even ready to tackle another class I probably wouldn't understand too well.

Well, after waiting 20 minutes for the teacher who doesn't seem to ever show up to class, and trying to make conversation with two girls who were also waiting for the same class, but refused to say more than two words to me, the happiness had faded into something that more resembled homesickness. I wanted a teacher who had office hours; I wanted a class that didn't change constantly; and I wanted friends, or at least people who like to make friendly conversation (...preferably in English).

Which brings us back to the fact that if sunshine doesn't lift your mood, true friends will. After giving up on the teacher who doesn't show, I came here, to the internet cafe, and talked on AIM for about 45 minutes with Rachel, and I don't think anything else could have better helped lift my mood. I wouldn't call it a happy mood at its current state, but at least I'm not ready to hop a plane to the states.

I'm not really sure why your mood jumps so much when you're abroad. Maybe it's the new experiences, which inevitably end in frustration or elation. Or maybe it's just not always knowing what's going on, which also generally ends when you finally give up, or actually understand. But I guess it all just shows that home means comfort, which in turn means some kind of level, constant feeling of understanding and contentness. I'm not really complaining about the extremes, just stating that they're there, inevitably, I think. And I guess until they go away, I'll just listen to Billy, singing about the same thing...or singing about ice cream, whichever you prefer.

posted by Becky @ 9:19 AM