A Thanksgiving Dinner that couldn't be beat

Today was my first Thanksgiving!

Trying to get into the spirit, I listened to Alice's Restaurant on a loop all day. I can now recite the whole 18min 37sec; I'm not proud.

All the other students left town a couple of days ago but will have to rush back for classes on Monday. So, feeling a little jealous, I invited some other international students over for lunch so we could spend the day among friends while all the Americans are off with their families.

I cooked walking bird with all the trimmings! The baked spuds were a little too crunchy for my taste but the sweet potatoes were perfect! (But not American style! They call them "yams" and cook them in syrup! I wan't prepared to go that far for the sake of authenticity.) The turkey was over 12 lb (5.5kg) and the three of us ate less than half! It looks like I'll be having turkey sandwiches for lunch for the next year or so.

Don't know how Xmas could beat that, maybe with a turducken!

It's cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey!

After a few days of sub-zero temperatures I feel like whinging about the weather again. This morning I woke up to see snow outside but apart from that today has been ok - the range was a sultry 0-11˙C. That really is quite warm compared with tomorrow's expected -12˙ low!

This probably isn't too interesting for most of you so, instead of continuing to whinge, I've placed a weather meter in the side bar, which will let you all know what's happening here in Bloomington, Indiana.

Americans and the Environment

A recent post of Cameron's got me to thinking about one of the things they do better here in Bloomington - public transport. One reason I chose Bloomington over La Jolla is that I didn't want to buy a car. Apart from learning to drive on the wrong side and the cost, it is better for the environment and my health for me to walk most places. But when the weather's not so nice for walking (woke up to find snow outside this morning!) the buses here are really good; much better than public transport ever was in Western Sydney. I was surprised to find that here in Bloomington the city runs a bus company, something Penrith Council refused to even consider when it was suggested. Fares are dirt-cheap (75c or completely free for IU students!) and to encourage people not to use cars, the first Friday of every month everyone rides free! The buses are well-maintained and wheelchair accessable; not to mention the "para-transport" minibuses that are provided for the handicapped on demand. I'm starting to understand that America gives a lot more power to lower levels of government, which means the city actually controls a lot of everyday things but it's still hard to believe that in a red state there is a local government that actually provides services that are good for the community and the environment.

On the other hand, there are ways Bloomington are not nearly as good as Penrith council, like waste management. Almost no-one recycles here. The city runs a basic recycling collection so I phoned up to get a recycling bin but they told me I couldn't have one because I'm in an apartment building! I'd have to bundle everything up and take it to a depot to recycle my rubbish - but I don't have a car! Such a waste!

I'm not sure how much happens at the state level but there's an ad on TV featuring "Senator Dick Luger" touting the benefits of using special 85% ethanol fuel (I think it would have to go in a Diesel engine, but so many people drive "pick-up trucks" here!). In Australia biofuels only get support if the PM gets donations from an ethanol company!

It's Snowing!

Just after I left my apartment today it started snowing!

There wasn't much, only a few minutes worth, which soon melted. I was just surprised to see it so early. I'll probably still have to wait until late December or early January to make a snow-man but I think it's going to be very cold for many months.

More Tornados

Today a tornado did come quite close to Bloomington. I'm not sure how far in miles but it was close enough for the sirens to sound! That was in the middle of a lecture so we all went down to the basement level of the building and stood in the hall for half an hour, waiting for it to pass.

It died down for a while but now that I'm home I can hear a lot of thunder (and very violent lightning) so there could be more tornados form. The storm warning remains in effect until 10 pm. When I asked the others in my class, they were a bit blasé about the whole thing. Most people here don't have storm cellars, they just recommended I hide in the bathroom!

Watch out for those winged monkeys

This is wierd: people in Australia know more about the weather in Indiana than me! This afternoon I got 3 different people emailing me to ask about the tornado and whether I'm safe - that was the first I heard about a tornado!

That is to say, I am perfectly safe and no-one needs to worry about me getting sucked into the sky à la Wizard of Oz.

Reading up on it now, it seems people were right to worry; it was in southern Indiana (and northern Kentucky) but it wasn't actually close enough to affect me. Apparently 23 dead and more than 200 injured! (Those of you who remember the movie Twister might be interested to know it was an F3, medium.)