So this campus is beautiful. Not all of it, but then when you're jogging around the lake or on your way to the post office you come across a bit that makes you go "ooh!" and wish you had brought your camera. Yes, I realize the issues that come when you attempt to take your camera jogging with you. Not practical. Which is why I still don't have pictures of many of the things I saw/see around here. I mean, I'm jogging along with my housekey and my cell phone stuffed in my socks, my MP3 player in my one pocket in my jogging pants... A camera just wouldn't work.

But that's beside the point. I guess the coolest things I've discovered so far are Heslington Hall - giant red brick building that looks a little like... hmmm... wonder if I've got that pic here...


Yup, looks a little like this baby here. This is Keele hall, which is at the University where one of my friends was finishing up her PhD (just submitted it! Yay her!). Most of these universities have been granted land by rich people and such, so I guess York is no exception. So we have Heslington Hall. There's a nifty fountain out front of ours, and some cool topiary.

But I guess the best part of the whole thing is that there is so much wild (and not so wild) life on campus.

One of my best experiences here hasn't had anything to do with school or people or architecture. I was feeling really homesick - missing the kittens, my friends, my family... Had just signed off the computer for the night, after complaining to a family friend that I missed everything and was really wishing I at least had a pet here to keep me company. I left the building to walk the few feet home, when what should saunter by me but this white blur. It took a minute, but I finally realized the blur wasn't entirely white, and that it was distinctly cat-shaped. It was hunting something in the bushes. I wasn't expecting to get anywhere - I'm used to the FEP cats, after all, where you have to ply them with food for 4 months before they'll let you pet them - but this cat was surprisingly responsive. On closer examination, she was an orange and white cat, not a tabby, just sortof splotchy, well groomed, well fed. But she let me pet her for a good 1/2 an hour straight. She nearly followed me home, too. The world works in mysterious ways, and I won't say that I had a spiritual revelation, but for the first time in a long time I felt like there was something out there looking out for me. It was fantastic.

But onto my other wildlife experiences: There are squirrels (not as many as the U of A, but that's OK - the squirrels here are freakin' huge!!!)... and there are bunnies. "Yeah, and?" I can hear you thinking... Well, these bunnies are CUTE! They're not the jackrabbit things that hop around in Alberta - they're more like real bunnies. They look rather more like the sort of pet you get at a petstore, although they're pretty big, for cute bunnies. They're all brown - not much use for being white here in the winter, I suppose. They're not big on people, much like the rabbits at home... There are pigeons. There are these crazy birds that I describe to myself as dinosaur birds. No idea what they are. Excuse me whilst I do an internet search to see if I can find out...

Ah. There they are. The Moorhen and the Coot. And I keep trying to upload photos of them and blogger keeps not letting me. Oy. Anyway, do a Google image search, and you'll see what I mean, especially if you look at their feet.

Then there's the fowl. There are ducks. Lots of them. About 5 different varieties. And geese! There are some that look like Canada Geese. And then there are geese that look like the geese you see in fairy tale illustrations. They're actually kinda cute. And there are swans. They're really lovely - they're black with red beaks.

But I discovered the extent of my animal withdrawal the other day. I was walking back home after heading to the post office in the village, and wandered past a pigeon that seemed rather more subdued and unafraid than your average pigeon. And I thought it was probably injured or something of the sort. And for about three seconds, before the bit of my brain that controls practicality kicked into action, I actually considered picking the thing up and taking it somewhere to get it help. Yup. A pigeon. Damn, I need a pet... Preferably something furry and cat-like in its appearance and behavior.