Out of the ordinary...

Dear all,

This will most likely be my last post for a while. Why, you ask? I guess I don’t always have to save the greatest news for last, so I’ll come right out with it: I am going home soon! It was not supposed to happen this way, but due to some exogenous circumstances, it will. I am arriving in Budapest on Dec. 12, and will be off to happiness-land shortly afterwards. My schedule is pretty packed already, but you all know me: there is always room for meeting up with close friends and other cool people;) I guess what I am trying to say is feel free to ask, and please don’t be disappointed if it does not end up happening, there will be plenty of time over the summer.

That being said, let me turn my focus back to my life here. Apart from the regular activities I wrote about in my last post; looking back on the previous few months, I think I can say that I am happy with the other, more irregular ways I have found to relax. Here is a(n obviously incomplete) set of these out-of-the-ordinary events:

If I was going in chronological order (which is not really my intention), I would definitely have to start with the Huskers game. It was one of my original goals to get to see our beloved football team live, and on this front I got extremely lucky since I accomplished this goal in my first week here. It was an easy win for the Huskers, and an utterly unforgettable and totally epic experience for me and the people I shared it with.

I have had 2 unforgettable online parties. One relaxed, music (rock/punk/blues/metal)-oriented one with Ákos, and another completely spontaneous and crazy with some of my best friends at E.T.’s place. As much as I hate online means of communication sometimes, I have to admit that I am pretty glad I had the opportunity to participate in these (details, again, in private…;)), as well as having kept in constant touch with pretty much everybody important (thumbs up to all of you guys too!)

I have managed to get out of Lincoln twice. First to Ashland (courtesy of Martin, my buddy from Husker Hall), which resulted in a very cool bar night with nice people in a small town environment. The second time we went John’s (my graduate advisor, Dr. John Hibbing) absolutely fabulous weekend house to hang out with some fellow department members and two Danish visiting scholars. Apart from the amazing food, and the party we had (both there and downtown afterwards), this was the only time I had the opportunity to truly enjoy silence, the stars and nature. I miss that a lot, so I will try to change that next semester, although it is damn difficult (=impossible) to get anywhere without a car.

A little positive newsflash: it looks like my knee is finally on the road to recovery! One morning I had to get up at 5 and ride 5 miles to get to the hospital where I had my MRI… and pay 500 dollars for it (all hail the mighty U.S. healthcare system), BUT: the results were absolutely positive. With the magic pills I am taking now, courtesy of my family (mom) who found them, I am for the first time in 6,5 years optimistic that I have an actual shot at full recovery. Accordingly, I resumed doing karate and also continued doing some knee-friendly sports, mainly swimming and cycling.

When my otherwise rather busy schedule (see http://balazsinlincoln.blogspot.com/2012/10/everyday-activities.html) allowed it, I also took part in a few events. It included three cool birthday parties, one of which was my own and saw probably the largest turnout ever… even though metal was scarce (shame). In addition, I attended an LGBTQA event, and the Indians’ (the real ones, not natives:)) great feast, Diwali. The University also has its own move theatre, where I saw Avatar and Lawless for a great amount of 1 dollar (combined).

There have been ups and downs (there always are…), but all in all I can say that the fun factor exceeded my original expectations by far. I already have some plans for the future too… but all in due time.

Until then, have a great start of winter!