I voted

Went to the dentist this morning again. They've told me that they can't finish the root canal process until there is no more pain (which was supposed to go away after a day or two). It's now day three, and i still have a bit of pain when I move around (or get bumped around in a rickshaw). So they cleaned the tooth out, put a bit of cotton wool in it, and told me to come back tomorrow morning.

I'm wondering if i'll end up spending 9 months in Chennai.

Went to the post office afterwards, and sent in my Absentee Ballot. The process was really really easy. As a US voter abroad, I was able to qualify for some new program where they email you a pdf of the ballot. Its a lot easier than in previous years, as it means you don't need to tell them where you will physically be 2 months ahead of time.

I wanted it to be as proper as possible, so I even got one of the post office employees to be my witness (although, I don't think he quite understood what he was doing).

The post office was a strange experience. The envelopes and stamps here don't have any gum on them. You have to go outside, where there are big bowls of sticky glue/paste, which you apply onto the backs of the stamps with your fingers. It's like fingerpainting, only not as fun.

When you think about it though, it's probably a good idea (although slightly confusing at first)... in this country where hygine is no one's priority, licking anything is a bad idea.

Anyhow, sent off my ballot, and then went off to the Amazing British Council office for 5 hours.. a beautiful new building, soft-ish seats, a very nice library of books, current magazines, and newspapers. I read the last two Sunday's Observers (for those of you who haven't spent the day reading a British Sunday newspaper - you're missing out), reading the Economist, and a few other mags.. very pleasant, and made me glad to be a British Citizen (although, not a taxpayer.. hah!)

I've spent about 4 hours over the last two days applying for summer internships. It might be a bit too early, but it can't hurt... We'll see if I get any decent responses from this.

Off to the dentist again tomorrow. With any luck, I might be able to finally leave here Wednesday morning (fingers crossed)