Today was not an ordinary day. I still woke up at the normal time and got ready, but I made myself wait until 8:10 to leave the apartment. Just outside my apartment at the intersection of the nearest two streets, I witnessed an act of random kindness. An older man was bending down to pick up shards of a beer bottle that was smashed last night. I know he didn't work for the city because the workers that clean the street wear uniforms and always gloves. This man didn't have either. Yesterday I was on the metro on a line that had a decent amount of people on it. I didn't take the only empty seat because my stop was next. A man in his late twenties took it. He was only sitting there for a few seconds though. He stood up and offered it to a pregnant woman when she entered a few seconds later. It made me smile then and this morning to think that there are still people in the world who do things genuinely out of the goodness of their hearts.
My second class was strange today too. There were only six of us today because one girl was absent. Normally, she sits on the left side with Taylor and Christina. Since she wasn't there today, Sara (our professor) asked if I would mind moving to their side to even out the classroom since she wanted us to do group work. I didn't want to, but obviously I didn't say so. I said, yeah, no problem. Sara was joking a bit too because she said I was normally so serious in class (which I didn't know I portrayed that attitude), but being in a group with Taylor and Christina made me smile, which is true. The group work wasn't too bad, which surprised me. They suggested we put our desks all together, so they were nearly touching. We then participated equally, which is a first for me in that class. It probably helped that I found the chapter we had to read (which was about how Spain went from uber conservative to more liberal in terms of sexuality and contraceptives, including statistics about prostitution in Spain) interesting.
After class when we were in the bathroom, Christina, who I actually do like, asked if I liked being in a group with them today. I said yes, which was actually the truth. She then invited me over to her apartment to "pre-game" before karaoke tonight. I was pretty surprised, because it doesn't seem like they really let people into their "group" often. I didn't commit to going, but I didn't say I wasn't going either. I went to lunch next, and I decided today was a restaurant day. I got a salad, which I didn't really eat because I didn't like it too much (it had lobster, pineapple, and a really sweet dressing), and what I think was steak and french fries. The steak was really thin, which was fine, and half of it was cooked perfectly for me. The other half was really really raw, it was definitely red, not pink. But it was really good. I got an apple for dessert and stowed it away in my bag. I ended up riding the metro back with Taylor. It was, to say the least, really awkward. We were both there and going to the same place(ish), so I tried to make conversation to make it less awkward. It didn't really help, since the conversations died really quick. I still am not a big fan of hers.
On the way to the apartment it started sprinkling. I was excited, and I'll admit I walked a bit more slowly hehe. The people here must either not like rain or not be used to it, because it was barely sprinkling, and I counted t least five umbrellas. It made me chuckle a bit. When I got back to the apartment I decided to do my homework to get it out of the way, since the last thing I want is to forget about it and not have anything to turn into Jorge at class. It was our third composition, this topic was "An Unforgettable Trip". I wrote about my family vacation to Cozumel because I could easily meet the word requirement and it was an unforgettable trip. (We still haven't gotten our first compositions or our exam grades back). Then instead of taking a nap, I went to the metro. I lied in my blog yesterday... I spent more money today. But technically it wasn't on clothes, it was on shoes. They were on clearance though, and they're like what I wanted, and it's the last thing I'm going to buy except food! I mean it this time!
I also went to Avenida de América to get my youth metro pass for July, since I got an email a few days ago saying it was ready, and I met with Susan (our program director) today to talk about how to get it and where to go, etc. It was awful. I found it just fine, but communicating with the woman was nearly impossible! She said a lot, and after looking for me in the system, she said, "no está aquí", which means, "you're not here". I didn't understand, because I had gotten an email saying it was ready, and I know I was at the right place. I think she ended up getting frustrated with me because she just started saying "tomorrow, tomorrow". So I left. I'm going to talk to Susan tomorrow about it.
After that I cam back and changed my clothes, because I went to exercise! I know, shocker. I walked the short distance to the park and then I ran. Since I have no way of telling how far I run here, I went by time. I ran for ten minutes, and if it's at the same pace as when I run in Houghton, then it's a little over a mile and a half. I then did some abs and push-ups. I was so excited I can do push-ups again! I couldn't do them for senior year track or freshman year track at Tech because of my sprained wrist (that happened sometime in gymnastics). I guess it's healed enough by now. I also surprised myself because I did 25. Twenty-five! I must be doing something on a daily basis that requires me to use those muscles, because I remember a time when I could barely do ten. Then I did a five minute cool down run. It sprinkled a bit while I was at the park too, but it didn't rain like I was hoping. It felt amazing to exercise again though. I showered when I got home, because I was pretty warm and sweaty. I also ate my apple, because every time after I run I crave apples. Weird, I know. But the apple was delicious! I was glad I smuggled it out.
Now I'm waiting for dinner, and then after dinner I'm going out with a group to do karaoke at a local bar. I don't know that I'll actually get up and sing, but it should be really fun to go with the group and watch them all sing and socialize. It's been a really good day so far, so I'm hoping it'll continue to be grand. I do believe that's it though, so I'll post again tomorrow.
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