Oh, wow, been a bit...

Sorry about the delay, ladies and gentlebeings.  Things have been hectic as of the last few days and I'll elaborate for you as to how.

First, and most importantly, I'm mostly no longer an illegal!  I say mostly because I still need to go and get my photo taken for my Residence Permit, but once that hurdle is cleared (in a single manly and mighty bound, no less) I'm good.  Of course, this being the byzantine and arcane bureaucracy of Iceland, it wasn't an easy, nor inexpensive, thing to do.

Allow me to explain.  No no, is too much to explain.  Let me sum up.  So, in order to get my kennitala (which is important, as I'm sure you'll recall from previous posts) I needed to hand in a bunch of information to UTL, in person.  This, of course, necessitated that I was in the country when handing over said information.  Once they received that, they could issue me my Residence Permit and kennitala.  But there was one hitch.  A minor, insignificant, tiny detail.

That detail?

They wouldn't issue the kennitala or Residence Permit while I was in the country.  And they need proof that I've left.  What sort of proof?  Oh, a faxed copy of my boarding pass.  Well, that shouldn't be an issue, should it?

Let me tell you, O Gentle Readers, what sort of a debacle the whole thing was (and, I'd imagine, still is.)

First off, everything got submitted to UTL.  Statements of Support, my OSAP documents, letters of acceptance, etc.  Easy part.

Then I got a Ticket to London for this past Friday, returning on Saturday.  I left the flat at oh-dark-hundred and caught the bus to Keflavik airport.  Got there around 7am, got checked in and headed to Customs to have them fax in my boarding pass - something which I know they do, as they did it for Andrew the week previous.

Well.

I get to customs, ask them to fax it and, I kid you not, Most Noble Reader, the officer says "Nope.  You don't need to do that."
To which I reply "Uh, yeah, I do.  I've been told specifically by Georgia at UTL that I need this faxed to her."
"Well, you don't."
"Look.  I'm a student at HÍ.  If I don't get this faxed to UTL, I can't get a kennitala and I can't get registered.  Could you please humour me?"
"Fine."  He 'faxes' the boarding pass and hands me the copy, then closes the door to the office.

This struck me as odd, so I went to find a different fax machine, which I did, at the Hertz Rent-A-Car location, no less.*  I explained the situation to the woman behind the counter, she agreed with me that it's insane and she agreed to fax it for me.

She faxed it and she checked the status sheet.  Fax not delivered.  Odd.

We tried again.

Fax not delivered.

She then offered to continue trying to fax the thing for me until it went through.  I thanked her profusely and headed to my plane.

I then landed at Gatwick, called UTL and asked if they'd received my boarding pass.  They had.  20 minutes earlier.  Thank you Hertz Rent-A-Car lady!

The following 25 hours were a montage of coffee, food and chat with Ren, then back to Gatwick and home to Reykjavik!**

Now, all I needs must do is get my photo taken (on Thursday) and in 3 weeks or so, I get my card!

Additionally, on Thursday, we finally went on our Þingvellir/Reykholt trip.  And I took pictures!

They are, of course, under a jump

You asked for pictures...

And pictures you shall receive.  Included are pics of a walk I took on the way to the library to do some studying, plus pics of a dinner Rouan, Paul and I had - bloðmör and boiled potatoes, with hákarl

As this is pic-heavy, I've included a jump.

Alas, no!

Sadly, folks, there will be no photos of the Aurora this eve. Cloud cover was way too thick above the harbour and the lack of ambient lighting didn't lend itself to good photography.* Mayhap next time!

*Lack of photographer talent notwithstanding, of course.

Wednesday gift

Well, 'gift' might be a bit overstating it, but here's an update nonetheless.

So, where shall we begin? Ah, yes, school. That makes sense, given the fact that I'm here for it (and it's also the stated purposes of this blag)

Got back my second Old Norse quiz and Exercise- I passed the quiz (albeit just) and got 88% on my exercise, both of which are nice changes of pace. Did a third quiz and handed in another exercise, feeling confident that both will be better than last time. This whole 'studying' thing seems to make a difference. Maybe I should have started doing this earlier. Well, no matter, I must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling toward the future!

Also, there is a really neat lecture on Thursday that deals with illuminated manuscripts in Old Norse and how those illuminations reflect the attitude the compiler/illuminator had toward the subject matter in the Reykjabók manuscript of the Jónsbók legal text. The fact that this excites me is, of course, illustrative of how fantastically nerdy I am, but that's OK.

Unfortunately, this also means that the Þingvellir/Reykholt trip is postponed yet again. Until next Thursday, at the very least.

Speaking of next week, I invade England again on the 23rd of September. This is going to be a short, targeted raid, though - as distinctly opposed to the week of marauding I did there last year around this time - in order to get me my kennitala. Yeah, you read that right, ladies and gents; I'm on my way to not being an illegal! All I need to do now is spend 25 hours in London, drinking and generally carousing, and all will be (theoretically) well!

Of course, there is one hitch with the plan - it just wouldn't be entertaining otherwise, would it? That hitch is my missing the first of two seminar discussions in the Medieval North course which cover, essentially, the topic of my MA thesis. Ah, well. C'est la vie, non?

Finally, I got a bit of a hot cash injection today and promptly acquired a cellphone and digital camera as cheaply as possible. The digital camera had the great advantage of being purchased at a Tax Free store, too, so that means I get a good chunk back next Friday. That also means I get to buy liquor at the Duty Free when I return on Saturday morning.

I think that about sums it up. There will be a photo update soonish; I'm going to try and get some photos of the Aurora Borealis this evening and, failing that, I'll get some of the harbour and the general coastal area.

I lied

It's not next week that you get photos, but today! Sarah graciously loaned me her camera and, as such, I have trekked about the immediate area and acquired photos for you all to see!

First, I got me a sweater; it is swank, warm and matches the gloves Emily knit me. I approve wholeheartedly.

Your humble narrator, plus his swank sweater.  Gods above, I look fancy.

Next, my housemates! First, Sarah:

She didn't want her photo taken. I told her I wouldn't. I clearly lied. She now knows better than to trust me.

Next, Hana:

Don't let the studious-looking environs fool you. She's reading cracked.com

Now, the Tour of the temporary* Jimhallr!

First, the Couch and Table where everyone meets, hangs out, and I study:

Another angle of the Couch and Table:

Next, my Room from the doorway:

This is where I sleep. It's actually much more comfortable than it looks.

The Kitchen! Wherein magic is performed and tasty food (like the sexpot**) is created!

The back of our apartment!

Finally, the view down Snorrabraut, the intersection about 6 metres away from our front door.

And that's that for now, ladies and gents. There'll be pics post-Þingvellir and Reykholt trip!

*Temporary in that I'm only staying here until I finish my MA

**Not what you think. It's basically a hotpot which Hana and I made using the same philosophy behind good sex: If it feels good, do it. This one included tofu, potatoes, carrots, garlic, rice, pasta, lentils, tomatoes, frozen mixed veggies, spices and HP sauce. It's delicious.

A day of many things happening

Some good, some decidedly un-good. Allow me to elaborate, in the style of Ennio Morricone.

il Buono:

1) Went to two Noam Chomsky lectures today; The first was about Linguistics and the theory of a Universal Grammar (along with some commentary about how Syntactical studies should be more accurately referred to as Word Order studies) and the second was a political lecture regarding the two 9/11s - the one in New York and the one in Chile from 1973. Both were absorbing, although I do get where Bahb was coming from when he said Chomsky was no Asimov; engrossing material, but not the most engaging speaker. Acerbic and dry, yes, but not terrifically so.

2) Went to Nexus, the comic book, DVD, manga and general nerdbookstore, conveniently located a block and a half toward the sea from my apartment. It was replete with all manner of awesome manga (Eden: It's an Endless World!, Gundam 00, etc.), graphic novels and comic compilations and a complete section of Warhammer and 40k novels, including the Ciaphas Cain, Hero of the Imperium* omnibus, the first Gaunt's Ghost omnibus and the Eisenhorn omnibus. All of which are reasonably priced, if not less expensive than back in Canada. This bodes ill for my bank balance and for my studying time.

Speaking of studying...

3) Had my first Discussion class for The Medieval North today. It was a Seminar and, as such, I enjoyed the hell out of it. Of course, the fact that I tend to have my speech very informal and peppered with colloquialisms did draw some attention from the Professor, Víðarr, but still. Fun times were had by all, I think.

il Brutto:

1) I have successfully completed my OSAP hoop jumpery. This involved me writing a letter giving Emily authorization to get info about my loan, photographing said letter, photographing my SIN card and then sending those, along with a copy of my passport to NSLC in order to get my loan released. In 7-10 days, I'll have money. In theory.

il Cattivo:

1) Found out today that the Internet bill had been consistently paid one month behind. This means that, in July, Hana paid for May and June and, this month, we paid for July and August, as 1) the bill is not sent via post, but rather to the initial account holder's email and 2) the September bill had yet to be printed.

2) Found a collections notice for the Electrical bill. From May. And June. I'm assuming July's involved too, somehow, and August. But Orkuveita Reykjavíkur won't give us information without the kennitala of the person who originally set up the account (I think - the rep's English wasn't so good, and this info was relayed to me via Sarah)

There shall be a reckoning regarding these issues. A mighty reckoning, oh yes.

So, there you have it, ladies and gents. There's a trip to Ölsmiðjan this eve, so I'm doing some studying before that. Otherwise, not much going on for the rest of the day.

Next week? Pictures! Of Þingvellir, Reykholt and, if you're lucky, the Domicile and Surrounding Area.

*Caution: Link directs you to TV Tropes, and woe unto those who fall into it's depths!

Accursed consequence!

(As a note, I like prefacing things with the word 'accursed,' if you've not noticed)

So, today was a day of consequences catching up with me; it was also, as you may no doubt have guessed, a day where in I learned quite a bit about myself viz those consequences.

So, shall we begin?

First, my foot. I am, for those of you unaware, afflicted with the gout. This is an incredibly unpleasant and painful form of arthritis caused in part by a staunch dedication to epicurean hedonism. Specifically, light-coloured beers and liquors, caffeine, chocolate, red meat, shellfish and tomatoes are terrible for gout. Those of you familiar with me know that I have essentially described my ideal menu in that list. This is a problem. Especially as I've essentially lived off of coffee, lager and tea since I got here. While tasty, not so good for the hoof. Fortunately, a brief stop at a local Asian market procured me a tasty tofu-based desert which, along with the Tylenol 2s I've been eating like candy, seems to have mitigated the pain. There is talk of celebratory drinking this eve to commemorate Sarah's completion of a BA paper on Karen Blixen. My course of action? Celebratory club soda!

Not pictured: The decalitre of lager I drank before the Gout Gremlin showed

Second, school. I had an Old Norse test today. "Fuck yeah!" I hear you say. "You translate that shit for fun! You should have no problems!" These were exactly my thoughts as well. Suffice it to say, I learned quite the lesson today. The fact that I've not taken formal education in Old Norse since 2007 means that I really, really shouldn't have thought a cursory glance at the grammar would serve me. So, after bombing that test and emailing my Professor (who is a totally awesome dude) a conciliatory email letting him know I'm not actually an idiot. I was simply absurdly arrogant and, now chastened, I have resolved to do my damnedest to ensure that such a clusterfuck as that never occurs again. I'm going to be having my hands full as it is with the courses I'm taking this year (and my desire to do the entire MA in 2 semesters) that I can't afford to fuck around.

Third, fucking around. Not going to lie. Been reading a lot of Bernard Cornwell and playing a lot of Mount and Blade: Warband. As opposed to reading up on my Old Norse orthography, phonology and morphology. That will change. That will change damned quick.

Fourth, the Immigration Issue. Finally got approved for making myself legal! Unfortunately, this means I need to leave the country and fax in my boarding pass to UTL so that they can issue me my Residence Permit and Kennitala. That will be done once my OSAP arrives.

Fifth, and finally, OSAP. Sent off the confirmation of income today and they should be in Canada early next week. Which means that early the week after next I get my money, then I go to the UK - to visit either Ren or Jess, or both! - and then back here with a Kennitala and a residence permit and all that good stuff.

And now, to look at getting me a cell phone!

Accursed circumstance!

Today has been a day of accursed circumstance, as the title of this post suggests. Accursed how? Well, allow me to enumerate:

First) The class trip to Þingvellir and Reykholt on Friday has been postponed for a couple of weeks, as we here on the Isle are getting the remnants of Hurricane Irene slammed into us.

Well, slammed isn't the correct word; gently wafted is more accurate, but it doesn't sound as impressive. Either way, no trip until the 15th, which does have the upside of me being able to then get a camera for it. So that's nice.

Second) I am dying. Slowly. Uncomfortably.

Well, that may be hyperbolic. I have a cold. It's the standard 'starts in my brain, moves to my chest and then to my nose' plague which I come down with every six months or so. It reduced me to a dribbling, shivering husk a few days ago. Now all I need to deal with are nasal issues too graphic to describe here. However, it does irritate me greatly.

Third) I'm still in limbo with the Útlendingastofnun. We're scanning and sending copies of my OSAP papers to see if that will satisfy them.

This one actually does torque me off quite badly. I mean, I'm not sure what else they want from me at this point.

Four) The part of my brain that is churning through my thesis idea gets all up in the grill of the part of my brain that actually needs to analyze historical information in an apolitical (or at least non-Marxist) fashion. Not everything is about class struggle and the conflict between ecclesiastical and lay power systems.*

Fifth) Torfi mentioned translations as a viable Thesis Project. This caused the other part of my brain that churns through project ideas to start jumping up and down and shouting "Hávamál! Translate Hávamál, you mankey bastard! DO IT!"

This could be good, but I'd need to justify just why a new translation of Hávamál is needed, which could be tricky.**

So yes, this is how things have been going thus far.

*I lied.  It is.
**Because it's an awesome poem and provides a good amount of insight not only into the mentality of the 11th C. ruling class, but it also presents the sort of Viking Ideal, much like a Viking 138 Commandments and 26 commentaries on the Runes and Magic