Blatant Procrastination… and a month’s update

I should be writing, reading, studying, essay completing, library voyaging, WORKING, getting back into the swing of things.

Instead, I am blogging.

NYE.

After sleeping for a good fourteen (!!) hours, I’ve managed to pull myself out of bed and start the process of becoming a Cambridge student. This means I showered. And took a picture of outside, because it’s as far from Doha as you can get.

See? Snow.

Doha has never seen snow.

In addition to the weather, I’ll miss other fun and exciting things, like:

• This magazine. And writing all day, dreaming about writing at night, and being surrounded by some pretty good mentors (here’s looking at you, Big G.)

ABODE Magazine

• Fun press outings, such as tea at The Ritz, listening to carolers, viewing interesting cars (…), and other top secret things I simply can’t mention.

Tea at The Ritz - Carlton, Doha. They do a pretty good job.

Why YES, that IS an Aston Martin. Funny you should ask.

• Exotic tropical fruit and food, which resulted in conversations like:

Coworker: “Danae, what IS that? On your desk?”
Me: “A papaya.”
Coworker: “It’s huge. I thought it was an entire ham.”
Me: “Watch me eat it all.”

Coconut water, from the coconut itself.

Jackfruit. AKA DELICIOUS

• And these people

These ones too.

Le Office

I’m about to go get some stuff done, like sending off internship applications (well hello, National Geographic! And NPR! And The Washingtonian!). There are so, so many I am interested in… so many I would love to do in a heartbeat.

Like, hey, a radio/magazine internship in Santiago, Chile (for which I have a phone interview scheduled). Or an internship with a newspaper near San Francisco (same as above. Phone. Thank you, Skype). Or magazines in Tokyo? Or…

Magazine before it's bound

I’ll also be working on my MPhil application, because nothing screams “welcome back from your working holiday!” quite like applying to be a Cambridge Grad. (The Davies-Jackson starts as an affiliated degree.)

View from the ABODE office

And hey, since we’re at it, I’ll be finishing my big semester-long essay while reading some serious Adam Smith. (“Smith? Perfect, Danae,” said my Director of Studies. “His works are light. You can carry them with you while you travel, read them on the train.” …guess what didn’t happen?)

So enough blogging. I’m going to tug on my boots and brave the tropical (ha) weather outside.

I missed Cambridge. <3