I can see Kentucky from my gym!

Not really. But pretty close! I'm surprised at how close Brookport is to the KY border. Just have to cross a HUGE metal grate bridge (I'm thinking of you, Hattie Wagner!) and there you are. Last night, as I was roaring across aforementioned bridge in a rather obnoxious red pickup  that was blasting country music with a group of anthro majors I had met only hours ago (I didn't even have a seatbelt! Eep!), I thought of how bizarre my life is...one week ago I was still in Greece.

I have 24 roommates. Just as I suspected, living in a gym is pretty crazy. We have tons of space, but everyone is just out in the open. It kind of looks like the Old Gym in Spokane Middle School, or a strange version of convention bunks... I have high hopes, though (as always)--I think it will certainly be a growing/learning experience, and it's been fun so far.

One thing I've learned already-Spokane is not a small town. Brookport is a small town. Spokane is a rural community. This place is crazy, because they have all the stuff a town does (a library, a town hall, a bar, a diner, a laundromat, and a grocery store), but they just have one of each and they are tiny. Spokane doesn't have any of that stuff! It's pretty cool, and the locals seem friendly (Pretty sure that's a prerequisite for living in a small town that hosts visitors often).

So, archaeology. The first day was fun. It's like manual labor meets science. First of all, I thought it would be more trowelling, and less actual shovel-digging. It's hard work, but no big deal. Secondly, it's kind of strange to be one of the few non-majors. I definitely have some of the most room for learning opportunities, if you catch my drift. We opened some units today, which means we dug through topsoil stuff (plowlevel) and while we did find a few ceramic pieces, we didn't do too much actual excavation or anything yet. I did get supto dirty, though. yay!

Turns out I am sort of liking this blogging business, so I'll try to keep it up. The internet here is super sketchy (or supes sketch, if you prefer), but I'll give it a shot.

I also don't get very good phone service, but you should text me anyways.:)  I already feel a little isolated! (This is one of those camp-type situations where days feel much longer than a regular school day-like PA training! So even though I've only been here a day and a half, it seems like a while. Which is cool, and everything, because I'm meeting new people and learning/doing new stuff, but still.) 

I tried to add a picture of my little "room," but I'm not sure what happened. Maybe next time! :)

Blarg...er, blog.

Hi! So, I have decided to step into the realm of blogging on the eve of my adventuring to archaeological field school. Couldn't be a better time to start, I guess, except for the fact that I don't know if I'll have any reliable internet access. Or if I'll even like blogging. I already feel pressure to come up with witty and clever things to say, so I suppose this will be an adventure in itself.

Here are the facts, and hopefully engaging stories will soon follow.
1. I'm leaving tomorrow morning at 6am. I'm heading to a field school program near Brookport, IL.
2. I'll be learning about archaeology on the Kincaid Mounds-through, as my very detailed syllabus says, "digging. lab. more digging! more lab!"
3. I'll be there for 4 weeks. (I've had a few tiny nervous bouts, but I keep reminding myself it's just like a block.)
4. I'm going to be living with the other students and staff members in a gym. I have no idea about how this is going to work logistically speaking, but hey, I'm sure it will be sturdier than a tent. I'm actually really interested in this living situation, so I have no doubt I'll tell more about it later.

And...that's it for now, I guess. Yay, my first blog post! Hopefully I'll be able to keep them succinct enough that people will read them all the way through. :) Now off to finish packing (and by packing, I of course mean some sleeping).

PS-seriously, I'm making no promises that I'll be able to/be interested in/have time for a consistent blog. But who knows, I might really get into this...