| I want to be on vacation already |
[Dec. 29th, 2004|01:09 am] |
| [ | mood |
| |  drained | ] |
| [ | music |
| | rain on my porch | ] |
If anyone is interested: a friend gave me a $105 credit toward a Southwest flight and I can't use it. It's up for grabs but had to be redeemed by January 9th. Email me at Schmerika24@yahoo.com if you want it.
Found out tonight that my garage floods. I had a bunch of cardboard boxes with papers, keepsakes, and art supplies but it looks like I got there in the nick of time. Some things are wet but I don't think anything is permanently damaged. I saved my Great-Grandmother's vintage traveling trunk from a puddle. It was so close but it's not even wet. I'm glad I noticed before leaving on my trip. That would have been fun to come home to. Now my living room is full of everything that was in my garage. SIGH... what a night. And I have to be at work at 8am. Could be worse; at least I didn't die in a car crash in the rain. |
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| Rain Rain Go Away |
[Dec. 28th, 2004|09:49 pm] |
It is so scary how people drive around here in the rain. I just got off the phone with a 911 operator because I saw a car completely spinning in circles on the freeway on the drive home from work. That is about the 3rd or 4th accident I've seen recently from people driving recklessly in the rain. I was on hold with 911 for at least 5 minutes before I talked to anyone. I hear sirens now. I hope the people in that car are ok. |
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| 2005 is going to be a great year. |
[Dec. 22nd, 2004|05:25 pm] |
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I got my plane ticket today to Tahoe for the New Year. My friend Becka turned 21 yesterday and her parents got her a huge house for 4 days in South Lake. There's going to be about 10 of us. I actually got the days off work too. I just bought new snowboarding boots so now I get to break them in. It's all I can think about right now- I haven't been boarding in sooo long. Hopefully I can pick up where I left off. I was just starting to get good. I'm going to try to go off some jumps this time... last time I could handle some small ones but this time I need to get up the guts to try some big jumps. I'm actually applying this to everything in my life right now. Work, relationships, everything. I've come to the conclusion that I need to put myself, my feelings, my ego on the line. What do I have to lose? I think it will be worth it. |
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| Heebie Jeebies |
[Dec. 15th, 2004|06:38 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | uncomfortable | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Simon and Garfunkel | ] |
About a week or two ago, a guy came into work and I helped him pick out some art for the wall in his office. Mid 40s, kind of touchy-feely, but nothing that creeped me out. Yet. I actually thought he was gay at first. He came in today to buy another painting and I was helping him. He and his business partner were there and said that both of their cars were too small to fit the painting into and asked me if I drove a truck. Coincidentally I do drive a truck and they said they would pay me if I dropped it off at their office building right by In & Out in Mission Valley. I asked my manager if it went against company policy and he said it was fine and that people have done this before. I figured that it would be fine since it was right on my way home anyway, and I need the extra money right now for Christmas presents. I called the guy from work and told him I was on my way. I pulled up to the building and it was all shut down for the day and dark except for the lobby. I met the guy at the door and he wanted me to come inside and see how it looked on his wall because he AND his business partner are both colorblind. Uh huh. I got freaked out and told him I was late for plans. He puts the painting down on the side of the building, walks to his car a few yards away (of course it's the car I parked next to) and pulls out a bouquet of flowers and hands them to me. He thanks me over and over and keeps shaking my hand. I was creeped out but more pissed off that he didn't pay me. But it hit me more as I was driving home how bad that situation could have become. I really need to be more careful. I just hope he doesn't make a habit of coming to see me at Z Gallerie. I didn't even want to bring the flowers in my house. They're still sitting outside on my air conditioner. |
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| Bone Balls |
[Oct. 30th, 2004|10:12 am] |
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Yesterday I got to clean mold off of bone balls. Update, I work at Z Gallerie now. We get new shipments of merchandise in every Tuesday and we have to unpack everything and put it on the the shelves. We just got in some new merchandise made of BONES from unspecified animals, including but not limited to decorative balls, bar utensils, and butter spreaders. Evidently the shipment got moist and the bone balls developed a layer of mold. My boss thought I was the best candidate for the job so I stood at the front desk cleaning mold with Windex. Needless to say, we got an email from the corporate office to recall all bone-related merchandise. |
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| Côte d'Azur |
[Dec. 20th, 2003|10:50 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  calm | ] |
| [ | music |
| | guy with headphones singing-don't think he knows we can hear | ] |
I got back tonight from a week in the French Riviera. Not a bad way to end my semester abroad. Emily, Annie, and I got to stay in a condo for FREE because Emily's parents are so cool. They traded in their timeshare in FL (plus some money) for the place in France, just for us. We hung out, drank lots of cheap red wine, ate crêpes and croissants, and slept. A lot. I really felt like I was on vacation. I got to practice my French a lot too. I remembered a lot more than I thought I would. We took some day trips to Cannes, Grasse, and the town square of Mougins, the little town where we were staying. I felt like I was walking though a story book most of the time. I loved the little houses, cobblestone streets, and old French women with no teeth just as much as the breathtaking mountains and blue ocean. Cannes was beautiful, but pretty much what I expected. Lots of tourist stands and restaurants on the strip. There was a little carnival and the three of us went on the ferris wheel at night and took pictures of the city lights. Grasse was a pretty cool little town with an amazing view. Lots of little houses stuck into the side of the giant hillside with the water in view. There were lots of little nice stores so I got to finish up my Christmas shopping. Very good pain au chocolat too. I think Mougin was my favorite. Wow, we were acutally there this morning, but after the trip back to London it seems like a whole other day. The little village must have been only a quarter-half a mile wide (what is that in km?) We did have to walk about a mile straight up to get there though. We were sitting on a little bench by a fountain, taking in the scenery, when poeple start opening their shutters and talking to the neighbors from their wondows. A tiny old French woman came out to fill up her glass bottles with fresh water from the fountain. She was very friendly and told us that the water was good to drink. "Très bonne, très froide, très bonne." There were lots of little art galleries and the smell of the tiny restaurants filled the air the whole time. It was all so relaxed. All the stores closed up for lunch. The streets were so tiny that cars would have to back up for another to pass, if the car could fit at all. In between the buildings were my favorite. Tiny little walkways made of cobblestone with old, three story walls on either side in rusty colors. Little benches and window boxes with bright flowers and vines that hung down and covered the architecture. There were even grape vines growing over the doorways. (We kept expecting the plants to be fake because they were so beautiful. We remarked a couple of times that it felt like we were walking through a Disneyland set. How sad!) This was the real deal. We took pictures, but they will never compare to actually being there. It's what I always imagined France to be like. It was even better. Sigh...
I did go to Ireland for five days last month but never got around to writing about it. I will try to do that sometime. |
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| 13 hours down, 11 to go |
[Dec. 14th, 2003|01:58 am] |
| [ | mood |
| | freezing | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Thank God nobody is snoring | ] |
It is about 2:00 in the morning and I'm sitting in an airport in Standsted, about 2 hours outside of London. We were supposed to fly to our long-awaited vacation to Nice in the French Riviera at 1pm today but that didn't happen...let me tell you why. The bus from the Victoria station got to the airport 45 minuted later than it usually does and Emily and I therefore made it to check-in 5 MINUTES late. They wouldn't let us check in and they said the nexy flight available to Nice or anywhere remotely in that area us the same time TOMORROW. So, Emily and I have staked out a row of chairs and are taking turns sleeping and watching the luggage. I just took a little walk around the airport to stretch my legs and it's like the Twighlight Zone in this place. Everybody is sprawled out like homeless people all over the floor. I had no idea this many people spent the night at the airport on a regular basis. I'm supposed to be snuggled in bed in a cozy hotel in France right now, but instead I'm going to go have some more certs mints to curb my hunger pains. |
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| Spare some change? |
[Dec. 7th, 2003|01:56 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | amused | ] |
Now I feel like my time in London is about complete. My friend Edson is an amazing guitar player and last night, a group of us went to Picadilly Circus to play for money. (They call them "buskers" here.) I had the time of my life. We set up shop right by the fountain and sang as the drunks headed home from the bars. Some of our biggest hits were Eleanor Rigby by the Beatles, Wonderwall by Oasis, and a little taste of California: Summertime by Sublime. We all had bets going on how much money we would make. The were all around £2 or less, but we actually waked in a jaw-dropping £21.46 and є2. Mostly thanks to one veeeerrryy drunk man who dropped a £10 note. We were very well recieved. Most people just smiled or laughed at 7 well dressed college kids begging for money, but a lot came up to dance or sing. One guy threw his pocket contents into the guitar case, which included a cell phone and tube pass. He then proceeded to throw in his shoes and then sat in the case himself. Too bad he didn't leave anything. Everything was going great until the cops came to tell us that busking in Picadilly Circus is illegal and started to write a ticket. Edson talked it out with them and they ended up posing for pictures with us. We went to one more location by a bus stop and made a couple more pounds before heading home. At least we have a home to head to, unlike most of the people who beg for money to live, not for entertainment. £21.46 doesn't add up to much when split 7 ways, and Edson wouldn't accept it when we tried to give it to him for his amazing skills. We dicided to buy some drinks tonight and celebrate with a reunion concert. |
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| STAGE DOOR THIS WAY |
[Dec. 4th, 2003|12:08 am] |
| [ | mood |
| |  ditzy | ] |
I went to see STOMP tonight with the two Laurens. I've wanted to see it for a few years now so I was very excited. The show was amazing. We went to the box office five minutes before it started and bought same-night tickets. We got first row on the first balcony fir 15 pounds (there is no pound key on this keyboard) when they are normally 35 pounds. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time because I have no rythm or coordination and I love watching people who do. There were some creative "instruments" like matchbooks and full metal kitchen sinks. Some friends of mine went to the show another time and waited afterwords to get pictures, and ended up going out partying with the cast. We thought we'd try the same thing. We waited around for about 10 or 15 minutes and nobody came out. We figured there must be another way out for the cast, but the theater is on a city block and we couldn't find anything. Then we saw this tiny, gross alley and followed it to the other side. There were double doors with a huge sign that said "STAGE DOOR". Yeah. By then everyone had left and we were left standing with our camera looking super cool. |
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| Thanksiving Chicken |
[Nov. 27th, 2003|11:29 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | full | ] |
I was pretty sad that I wasn't home with my family for Thankgiving, but it turned out to be pretty good here. Me, Emily, Annie, Lauren, Jess, and Tim (both visiting for the week) had a little potluck on the floor of our room. We had quite the spread- two kinds of cranberry sauce and stuffing, salad, gravy, asparagus, sliced lunchmeat turkey, and the traditional Thanksgiving chicken. Most of the food was out of a bag or instant, but it was sooo good. Then we went around in a circle and said what we were thankful for. Kind of corny, but necessary since we are all missing out families and friends back home. I have to say, I can make a mean pumpkin pie with no measuring cup. |
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| Chelseeeeeea Chelseeeeeea |
[Nov. 27th, 2003|11:36 am] |
| [ | mood |
| | hungry | ] |
Last night I went to my first real football game. About 7 of us went to the Champions League game bearing blue jerseys and cheered for Chelsea, who played Prague. We had third row seats by the goal; I was very excited. But I found out that these were not the most coveted seats like I thought. One wants a seat where the whole field can be seen. I realized this every time I got out of my seat to follow the ball. It was so great anyways. I don't even like soccer- ahem, football- that much but it was so exciting to be at a live game. They really get into it here. In the end, it was 0-0 because they don't do any overtime or sudden death or whatever here. Very anti-climactic, but at least we didn't lose. I would have been scared to see what that sea of blue would have done if we had.
So today is Thanksgiving. I actually keep forgetting because they obviously don't celebrate it here. No big Turkeys and pilgrims to speak of. Although I do pass a butcher every morning on the way to work with dead, feathered quails hanging on a string by their necks. So that kind of gets me in the spirit. I am really missing my Grandmother's cooking right about now. Are you aloud to FedEx biscuits and turkey? AND, just my luck, my brother has invited two of the Marines who work at his bar to join my family for dinner tonight, sans me. NO FAIR! Oh well, I will be there in spirit. And I bought cans of pumpkin pie mix so I am going to make one of those this afternoon in the community kitchen. Today is also my friend Annie's 22nd birthday. We are all going to dinner at this nice place down the street and then out to a bar or something. Four of us are chipping in to buy her a half hour massage for her present. She's going to love it. |
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| (no subject) |
[Nov. 22nd, 2003|03:37 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | amused | ] |
The Christmas show at my job (www.themetalgallery.com) is opening this Tuesday and I, being the intern, got to stamp all 450 invitations. To entertain myself, I read the names on every envelope. We actually sent invitations to The Rt Hon Tony Blair and Mick Jagger himself. Of course they don't actually come, but my boss said that Tony Blair's secretary calls to decline every time. There were also very many other interesting names. Here are some favorites:
Mr. Dudley Winterbottom
Mr. Richard Vanderpump
Robert Honeycombe Esq.
Mrs. Dorothy Hogg
Mr. and Mrs. Fish
Mr. and Mrs. Butter
Zoe Coward
Sarah Sparkie
Wendy Uren
Emma Duffus
Yes, I actually wrote them down. I couldn't resist. |
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| Wales and a horse named Billy |
[Nov. 22nd, 2003|01:51 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | relaxed | ] |
I can't imagine how people can ever be bored in this city. I am overwhelmed with things to do, many of them free! That word is music to my ears. There is a jazz festival going on right now and I am going to try to go to that tomorrow because it's the last day. Next Saturday there is a Charlie Chaplin festival with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. That should be really fun.
About two weeks ago I spent the weekend in Wales. I wan't sure what to expect at all because I haven't seen/heard/read much about the country. A group of us from the dorm happened to all go together and it turned out to be a really good time. Two days isn't enought time to spend in any country, in my opinion. That's not enough time to actually see or do enough. We did manage to pack a lot in though. The first day we went to a little town about half an hour from Cardiff and went horseback riding. No, it was more like nose-to-tail mosying. We rode for about an hour and a half through the Welsh countryside. The leaves were turning all shades of red, orange, and yellow and it was breathtaking. My horse was a very stubborn black thing named Billy. Billy would decide that he wanted to stop in the middle of the trail on several occasions. The guide was yelling at me to kick his sides as hard as I could but it seemed to have no effect on him. I almost got tossed over the front a few times, and Billy liked to scare the other horses. During the entire ride I saw a total of about two cars, both of which had to pull off to the side of the road as all 25 horses trotted past. That night, we got to stay in a great hotel. Some poeple went out to the clubs in Cardiff but most of us decided to sink into our amazing queen sized beds with a movie and a bottle of wine. Buffet style dinner and breakfast were included in our package and I think I ate my weight in food. I was hobbling around the entire morning too, thanks to Billy. We spent the rest of the day in Cardiff, looking around in the shops and pubs. There was a football game going on against England so the pubs were packed. We also managed to see the Cardiff Castle. The interior was very ornate and bright. Every room was decorated with a specific theme, like astrology, nursery rhymes, birds, or gems. I was later told about the ABC syndrome- another bloody castle/church/cathedral! Emily and I were talking about the numerous castles and churches we've seen on out trip. Right now, we laugh and groan but when we go home I know we're going to miss them. I think. |
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| (no subject) |
[Nov. 6th, 2003|12:35 am] |
So I haven't written in my livjournal for a while... I said before that I'm a big procrastinator. Today is Guy Fawkes Day. Four of my friends and I planned to go to this big bonfire in Wandsworth Park but the tube terminated one stop before ours. SO we had to walk to the park... but we got a little bit lost and ended up taking a cab to the nearest tube stop. I still think the cabbie took us way too far. We never made it to the bonfire but three of us ended up at a pub in Oxford Park. It was pretty fun. I had to be in pretty early though because I work tomorrow morning.
There are three other people who work at my job besides me. Francis and Elisabeth own the gallery and Val is the bookkeeper. Val is absolutely hystarical. She has the best sense of humor and makes me feel right at home. If I have any questions she doesn't make me feel dumb. She invited me out shopping tonight and to a pub on my first day. It was pretty cool to have a few pints with one of the bosses on my first day. I have been pretty bust at work. They are just finishing up an exhibition and I am helping to polish and send back the pieced to the artists with letters. I have been helping to set up displays and do a lot of grunt work. It's usually pretty busy and interesting but I hate to think that I'm not getting paid. I just have to keep in mind that this will be great experience (not to mention the big fat letter of recommendation I'm going to get!)
I went to Belgium a few weeks ago and it was AMAZING. First I took the Eurostar into Brussels. I went by myself and stayed in a youth hostel that night. I didn't want to sit in my room all night so I figured I might as well make friends. I walked up to a big group of boys and started talking to them. It turns out that they were all from Scotland, there for a football game (Glasglow vs. Brussels). It was so funny because the shirt I wore that night was the same colors as their team. They liked that a lot! After Brussels I went to Mons for a night. I rubbed the monkey's head for good luck in the plaza and made friends with the waiter in an Italian restaurant. I was there for about two hours as we tried to communicate in English, French, and Italian. I lived in Belgium on a military base for three years when I was ten-twelve years old and I went back to see my old town. It was pretty bizarre. It was like walking through a dream. Nothing really had changed since I'd lived there. I saw my old house and the trail I used to ride my bike to school on, the deli I used to get sandwiches at, the old bowling alley. It's all still there. I almost didn't get to go on base because I forgot my military ID in London. I went back to Mons on the bus and returned with my American passport and they let me on. After I toured around the base I walked about two miles to Casteau, the town of some old friends I hadn't seen for about ten years. I walked up to the front door, hoping that they still lived there and that I still remembered enough French to make myself understood. My friend's younger sister, Ludivine, answered the door and the whole family welcomed me with open arms. They made me stay at their house instead of my youth hostel and also made me change my train ticket to leave three days later. It was absolutely amazing. I felt like a -part of their family. They took time out from their lives to take me shopping, sight seeing, and even to my old school. I went to a French school the last year I lived in Belgium. It was so beautiful. Little brick buildings built around a tiny church with a black wrought iron gate in front. As we were driving there, the first snow flurries of the season started falling. I walked around the courtyard and caught snowflakes in my mouth and on my mittens. My old teacher, Monsieur Yves, hardly recognized me. He let me sit in on his fifth and sixth grade class that day. The kids were so accepting. They were in awe of being in the presence of an American. There was an article in their student newspaper in English about Halloween and about seven of them cam up and asked me to read it and then translate it into French. I was tickled pink. I got a picture with the whole class before I left.
Last night I went to see The Phantom of the Opera. A few of us won free tickets before we left for the trip. The seats were nose-bleed but it was amazing none the less. That was the first time I had seen it. The female lead was so amazing she gave me goosebumps.
About eight of us just bought tickets to a football game. It's Prague against Chalsea (GO CHALSEA!) on the 26th of this month. We're all going to dress up in blue (Chelsea's color) and cheer like we're actually from England. It should be great. |
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| (no subject) |
[Oct. 21st, 2003|10:18 pm] |
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I'm at a youth hostel in Belgium right now and the whole livejournal site is in French. Cool. |
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| (no subject) |
[Oct. 19th, 2003|01:48 am] |
Mike just spent an hour teaching me how to put pictures on my livejournal. It was all through instant messenger- that was tricky. Here is a picture of a group of us out for Emily's 21st birthday at Samuel Smith's Pub. Here is a pic of Jeremiah's teeth running into my head near the end of the night:
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| (no subject) |
[Oct. 19th, 2003|12:17 am] |
Risky Buisness was just on... I love that movie. Erin was in London with her mom this week and I got to see her a few times. We went out to the Science Museum and saw the Lord of the Rings exhibit they have there- very cool. They had a lot of the original costumes from the movie on display. There's an exhibit on the Titanic that I want to go back and see later. I also saw my first Imax film there. It was a 3-D movie about bugs. The whole trip made me think of Kevin haha. The other night, we went to see Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Erin and her mom went that morning to buy tickets and got fourth row center. It was so great! They car flew out over the fist few rows and confetti fell from the ceiling onto the audience. I had a great time visiting with them. It's strange to see someone out of context like that. I am on break for 11 days so I made plans to go to Belgium from Monday to Thursday. I'm excited to go somewhere really by myself for the first time. I'm taking the Eurostar from London into Brussels. I have a hostel there for that night and the next day I'm going into Mons. I'm going to go back to where I used to live to walk around the base. I'm sure a lot has changed in nine years. I wonder if my old house is there. It's going to be bizarre! I'm sure it's all going to look smaller than I remember. (I went back to Virginia a few times and saw my old house there and the "big" hill next to it that I used to roll down. Needless to say, it was more of a slope than a big hill.) I'm trying to get in touch with some old friends from 7th grade. I would love to see them but I'm nervous. They only speak French and I'm afraid I won't be able to remember enough to talk with them. I would want to say so much but I'm afraid I'd only be able to manage "where's the bathroom" or something. Everyone says it will all come back. I hope so. |
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| I almost feel like a grown-up |
[Oct. 13th, 2003|06:14 pm] |
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I just got back from my interview today for my internship at The Metal Gallery. (www.themetalgallery.com) I left really early to make sure I could find the place and I practically got blown away on the way there. I was wearing a past-the-knee skirt and I was sure it was going to end up over my head from the gusts of wind. The gallery is small and in a "smart" area of London (as the owners called it) and exhibits only metal work. They were in the middle of a photo session when I got there. The owners, Francis and Elisabeth, seem nice and eager to teach me about the responsibilities of working at a gallery. For once in my life, something has actually turned out how I pictured it. More later. |
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| (no subject) |
[Oct. 3rd, 2003|06:33 pm] |
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We went on a field trip today to the Globe Theater. It was so beautiful! We got tickets to see 12th Night for Friday. They are standing tickets but they were only £5 and we will get to feel like low class Elizabethans. After that, a bunch of us headed next door to the Tate Modern. I could spend days in there but what we saw today was amazing. I got to see works by Lichtenstein, Giacometti, Pollock, Monet, and a bunch of artists from London. I am going back as much as possible. From the museum, we walked along the side of the Thames and collected rocks and glass and old pieces of dishes that were washed up on the shore. I promised one of the cooks at my work that I would get him a rock from everywhere that I went. After that, we went out to eat and explored the city a little bit. We went to a tiny Thai cafe and I got to try curry flavored Pringles. Bizarre. I just came back from an Irish pub down the street from where I live. My friend Cristal and I had a baked potato and wine. Tomorrow afternoon I'm planning on going to a gallery on Kensington High Street. They have an exhibit with works by convicts and the mentally ill. It should be pretty interesting. I'm off to play soccer- no football- right now in Hyde Park. |
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erikainlondon's journal