Different kind of homesickness

When the amount of entertainment media one has, measured in number of novels and gigabytes of audio files, is finite, care must be taken to both ration and savour new material.

I brought 10 books. The complete novels of Jane Austen, that's 7, Great Expectations, The Power of One, and Wuthering Heights. In any other three month period, 10 would seem excessive, but in less than half my stay here, I've already finished 6. Of the four remaining, I've already read two, but a while ago so I'm hoping they're fresh. I read Sense and Sensibility a few weeks ago; the last time I read it was probably around 2006. I read as slowly as possible and the book was even more hilarious than I remember. My Aunt Sandy is mailing me a book, so I feel like if I work hard at stretching each one, and maybe give Great Expectations a second hurrah, them I think I'll make it, and only jog, rather than sprint, to the airport bookstore during my stop over to peruse every gossip rag in the joint. Charles Dickens vs Us Weekly. IT'S A TIE. I've also added some feeds to this RSS thing I found on my phone, and I now treat myself every now and again to the bandwidth required to load up some of my favourite blogs.

Music is another question. I have a four gb ipod with me, holding about 800 audio files. I debated for weeks, no joke, about music vs podcasts, and in the end brought 6 This American Life episods. Sometimes I kick myself for bringing so few, and at other times repeat the action for bringing so many. On one hand, it's obviously the best podcast ever, right? And it's such a nice hour of thinking about ways in which humans are humans, bless them. And it's so North American that it cures bouts of homesickness. I've listened to Return to The Scene, from early May, three times now. TAL fans, if that one somehow slipped through your listening, go have a hear now. On the other hand, a whole hour is like 20 songs, and while I'm a huge advocate of listening to good songs on repeat, I'm also getting a little ear-restless for some new tunage, you know? I don't really miss tv, though I am a bit curious as to whether Dollhouse pleased it's fans over the second half of the season. Rob/Jake/Greg... did it? But I really can't wait for some new music. Lisa, I expect you to write me a syllabus of things I need to catch up on that came out over the summer.

I would also like to say that long car rides are no longer the best time to listen to This American Life, and that lying under your mosquito net on you bed, after a long day of teaching and often not understanding/being understood, now takes the pole position. Also, to my cousin Britt, I feel like you would really like that podcast, and its free on itunes.

I guess I'm going through a bit of homesickness, but not in the usual PEOPLE! COMFORT FOOD! FAVOURITE BATHROOM! Kind of way. (And don't tell me you don't miss your favourite toilet while travelling) but rather in a culture way. I really can't even what I would do without internet and emails from friends and blogging and etc. Cannot imagine.

I also have a rule that I can't indulge in more than one form of entertainment at once. "Listening to music while blogging? You sybarite*!" Last week, in a show of utter decadence, I listened to TWO unlistende to This American Lifes, and felt a little guilty all weekend. This means that when I listen to music, I really LISTEN to it, you know? I also don't think I'd have enjoyed some of these books nearly as much if I didn't self-mandate the savouring of every word. I'd like to say that when I return home, I'll have a newfound appreciation for songza.com, or the local public library, but let's just face that that's probably not true.

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* I also brought a pack of flashcards and have been writing vocab on them. And so yes, sybarite is one of my new words. Thanks dictionary.com word of the day! (I think)