An E-mail home

just some observations and stuff before i go to bed. its 920 here and its still not dark. its not really sunny out or anything but the sun is definitely not down. i have really good blinds in my room tho that block out the sun. I have a really really hard time understanding the kids at school because they talk so fast and their accent is way harder to catch than i thought i would be. people are nice but you have to talk to them first. some dont have much to say tho. i think they are used to the same 100 kids in their grade. also the school is not as intense at academics as my old school. its so known for their rugby that the people that go there are kinda known as meat heads and are just what they call here "naughty" however there are definitely smart guys and tons of people id definitely like to be friends with. I got a ride with a kid named george today which was good so i actually knew someone before i got there. also people have a hard time with my name. I have to repeat it a lot and then spell it out so people get it. i definitely get stares so i know people know im new but maybe they are just shy to say something. im going to just make it my goal tomorrow to just not be shy and just talk to everyone. its just hard to think of something to say.

on a different note... race is a very weird thing here. there are absolutely no black people here. what would you even call a black person here. an african kiwi??? moari or pronounced moldy ( host brother says this is the actual pronunciation) are called black people here. 
i look forward to every meal because sharri cooks a lot. they definitely want me to be part of the family and push me to try everything that id like.

o and back to school. everyone has the wildest haircuts ever! some are long, a lot have mullets (yes a ton do), some have a shaved front head with a fro in the back, and a very popular style is to have long hair spiked with gel in all different directions. and MOST of them have a whitish-gold dye in them. im surprised this is all allowed at an all guys private school. I really dont think the school can control the students  well as theyd like.

I love everything a lot and i really have nothing negative to say except for the fact that i hate not knowing anyone at school and having no one to be with at breaks because durring them all the senior kids seem to leave campus and drive some place. 

when i first arrived i did not see many differences. i think this is due to the massive differences i saw between other countries with different languages at orientation. i just thought well maybe the accent is just different here. Now after going to school, going to a physiotherapist, talking to the principle, meeting the running club coach, and just in general talking to people, this country and america are WAY different. they really expect guys to be big manly rugby players or some other rough contact sport player. this isnt really me. When i met the principle for the first time he said "i read your records you very good at athletics, (gives me an up and down look) I thought youd be taller." 

the people here seem to be harder with a tougher shell to crack than people in america describe them to be. when i got talking to the principle more about everything he was very nice. You have to prove yourself first here i think before they accept you.

now i make the choice: do i run and do the regular routine i do in the states with the possibility of making it to NZ championships but probably not. but i could also make some great friends doing this. but it would also be hard to do this when i am trying to go on trips and have fun. or more importantly... do i do some sport like rugby or cricket where i can have fun but most likely be very bad at it. this has its ups and downs. i really do believe you need to prove yourself with a sport here and i know i can with running and i know i cant with another sport. but on the other hand i would have no pressures to run everyday or have a schedule and could just have fun. its just that i see not running biting me in the ass later because i know its me and that id love to make it to nz champs. if my knee was not bad the choice would be simple.

just random thoughts...