During the year that I have moved out here, I have fenced on and off. Every practice, my Achilles' Tendon would ache and I would have trouble walking. It reminded me every time of the incident, and the pain would discourage me from fencing for a while.

Regardless, I've stuck with the sport. I took the time to ice my Achilles', do my stretches and the exercises to strengthen it up.

Just this last Friday, I went to practice. It was a really good practice, and I felt like I worked really hard.

As I was walking down the steep steps that lead to the fencing studio, I realized that I no longer felt the pain. Not when I was on the strip. Not even after.

The whole realization was a weight off of my chest.

Time flies, doesn't it?

I was planning to post something next week, on the real anniversary of my rupture, but I felt prompted to write a small entry today. This is because the tournament where I injured myself is going on this weekend. Its funny how fast things change.

My apartment here is not a typical apartment- it is a three story house that the landlords have converted each floor into an apartment. It is pretty typical here, since there are a lot of historic houses around here. Today, I decided to do a little cardio, to the dismay of my landlords. They called me and told me to stop making so much noise so early in the morning. I didn't think 9 am was so early, since both they and the tenant above me have made noise that woke me up earlier than that. Now, I'm a little paranoid.

My life as a student has caused me to adopt odd hours, mostly because I am studying, working and/or hanging out with my colleagues. I probably should clarify with my landlord what they expect from me. I really like this apartment: it is close to the school, it is cute and spacious. So I will try my hardest to keep it.

I was perusing The Grad Cafe forums yesterday, and found this topic that made me contemplate for a while:

Homesick

Its been two months since I've been here, and I've slowly accepted the town as my home. There are strange things that puzzle me, like the lack of alcohol sold in the super markets, sour oranges or the early closing times of bookstores.

But there are other things that are exciting. I get to use fluffy jackets, warm sweaters and colorful scarfs. I see change in the weather. And I feel like I'm basked in nature here. Wow, look at the amount of trees everywhere!

Of course, my course load is preventing me from being homesick by piling up more work to keep me busy. I also receive weekly calls from my parents and also try to talk to my friends and family online. I just wished that my internet connection was better. I'm looking into remedying that.