A.T.H.E.N.E.

Get Your Cyborg Name

"Not for now..."

Reuben asks me if I want any biscuits.
"Yeah, go on," I said, "I like the butter crunch."
"We finished the butter crunch!"
"How come? I only had one!"
"Out of the whole packet? No..."

This is the thing. I can't eat lots of biscuits (or anything) at once. I have to take my time. Reuben is the opposite. He also doesn't understand the phrase, "Not for now." When asked if I want another biscuit and I answer, "Not for now", this obviously means that I don't want another now but may have one later. He thinks it means I don't want another ever and gives him free reign to eat all of the packet.

So now I'm munching shortbread, kind of annoyed that I only got to eat one biscuit out of the packet I picked out and bought myself...

"Please, see my film..."

“Or I will be execute.” Borat has spoken so we obey his call and go see the latest film by Sasha Baron Cohen. It was incredibly offensive and hysterically funny. I will have that unpleasant image of male nakedness in my mind for days to come…

Bond... 21

Reuben and I took his parents to see Casino Royale today with his cousin in tow. His cousin’s sister and mum went to an Indian film instead. Strange people… How can you pass up the opportunity of seeing a Bond film?!

Anyhow the film was brilliant, the way James Bond should be. Everyone is saying Daniel Craig is the best since Sean Connery (of course) but everyone always conveniently forgets that Timothy Dalton approached Bond in the exact same way. Must be a Welsh thing… It was a fantastic film!! See it!!

Cadbury's

Anne arranged a trip to Cadbury's World in Birmingham for a tour around the chocolate factory there. As the minibus pick-up was at 8am, we decided to skip the bus and travel there ourselves, being faster and obviously more sleep-loving than minibus travellers!

The factory was enormous and smelt of warm chocolate all the way through. There was a little history on the start of Cadbury's and how Quaker Mr Cadbury founded his shop next to his father's drapery. As he made money out of his chocolate business, he and his sons built the village of Bournville as a community for its factory workers and their families. We then saw how chocolate is made and I particularly liked the way they make Creme Eggs. Mmm... yummy!!

We had free chocolate given out during the tour and I ate most of it on the move. The activity room didn't work very well so we had fun in the shop instead, buying some gifts for people and purchasing the new product, Purple Planet. I was in chocolate heaven all day. Funnily enough though, by the time we got to Amanda's, I couldn't face any more and I'll probably stay off chocolate for about a week!!

Moving in

Reuben and I moved into our new flat about 6 weeks ago and we've spent the time between then and now buying stuff for the flat and generally trying to make it look as homely as a new build can be!

We painted before we moved in so that was okay. Not too many discrepancies about colours thank goodness. I think Reuben really just wanted to avoid any tantrums from me and I used my "I have an A level in art" argument to generally win anything decorating-related. :)

First we wanted to get curtains for the patio doors. It took all of our day off work to find any that would have fitted. I measured (correctly!) from the holes left by the previous owners to the ground nad it seems the doors are just not the standard size for drop-curtains. Everything was too short or too long. In the end we bought the longest pair we could find and refitted the curtain pole almost against the ceiling. The curtains slightly brush the floor now. And we have to fill the holes left by the previous tenants because they are just unsightly!

The blinds were another hassle. Our parents gave us money so we decided to buy 'designer' and get them fitted. The guy came round with a tape measure and a catalogue of slats in different widths, fabrics and colours. He casually quoted us £350 for two blinds. Reuben and I smiled politely and said we'd call him. We then drove to IKEA and bought the same blinds for £30.

So its been fun...!

Wedding no 3

Dad and Pam got married today. All the family were involved in one way of another except for me. I guess this is what comes of trying to be independent. Anyway, Reuben and I had to sit separately for the ceremony which lasted about 10 minutes. My mother’s parents and sister were invited and looked as if they’d rather be somewhere else. I know the feeling…

After the ceremony everyone gathered for drinks in the bar. I however had to go and have my photo taken but the photographer didn’t seem particularly interested in having the family in the picture. He took loads of time getting bridesmaids Rosemary and Lynne into place and taking pictures of Dad and Pam on their own. When it came to all of us the shots were rushed. He took three with me almost completely obscured by my dad’s shoulder and Anna’s elaborate hairdo. Ho hum…

Dinner was weird too. It was a buffet table so everyone had a plate and went and helped themselves. However, being on the head table (away from Reuben) (again) we had our plates given to us with everything from the buffet in a big pile. It looked very unappetising and I don’t think anyone on the table ate much of it at all.

As people started to move around after coffee had been served the party started… If that’s what you could call it. It was a so-so pub band singing 80’s songs and they only performed for 15mins before going off for an hour’s break! Some finger food arrived onto the tables and we ate a bit and chatted to Chris and Cem but it wasn’t all that. We decided to call it a day and left about 10pm.

Hoorah!

I know its taken a while but I have been busy - honest! Reuben and I have been looking for places to buy and we finally found a flat we love. It's just like the one we live in now, except the lounge and bedrooms are bigger, its on the top floor instead of the ground floor, we have v nice large patio doors and we have loft space. Yeah! We just have the little matter of paying a large deposit and solicitors fees before we get our completion date...

Turning 30...

A mate of mine emailed me to tell me that he couldn’t bear the thought of turning 30 in the UK so spent a week in Havana and Cancun instead. It would appear that, despite trying to run away from the truth, the fact is that it catches up with you wherever you run off to. Home sweet home and reality sets in… having to tick the next box over on a form asking for your age is when the truth really hits you. Heheheh!!

I told you it would have been cheaper and more fun to have a bash! :)

Superman Returns

Superman Returns is a great film! Bryan Singer kept the original music without jazzing it up and the original titles, although they were admittedly altered to have cleaner lines for more effectiveness. They even found an actor who looked and spoke like Christopher Reeve! It was all pretty fantasmagorical. Not a fan of Margot Kidder, I found Lois Lane was more likable in this film and a bit more feisty; none of this “Superman, save me!” crap. She helped herself thank you very much! My only complaint was Kevin Spacey, usually a brilliant actor I rarely fault. He was just too nasty as Lex Luthor. Luthor had a bit of class to his nastiness - Gene Hackman would have never ordered his henchmen to beat a Kryptonite-weakened Superman to a pulp. He would have just left him to suffer and die a slow death.

Reuben complained that the older series was better. Yeah, I know, I thought so too. You can never beat the originals, although the first Mission:Impossible film was an exception. He then went on to complain about how he could see where the film had been cut up and edited. (sigh) Never content with just saying that original is best, he always has to deconstruct the film. And yet he complains to me when I say anything negative about his gung-ho films, like when I was just commenting that Rambo II was stupid, story-less and just an excuse for muscle-flexing…

Go Button baby!

Jenson came pole position!!

I couldn't believe it! I even had to watch the highlights just to make sure!! I thought I'd never see the day. Only took him 113 races... Maybe he took Jeremy Clarkson's advice and got rid of the bendy windscreen...?

Wedding no 2

Reuben's mate Vish married Anupa today.

We turn up at Vish's place to follow his car to the temple in a convoy. We eat a small dish which was pretty much rice and semolina and drink almonds in milk, both of which are taken for good luck. We drive to the temple in Potters Bar and hang about in the car park for everyone to arrive. After a while, the men followed Vish's car down to the entrance and I walked with the women afterwards. We entered the temple through different doors but we sat together with Reuben's mates from Bolton and Vish's cousin.

It turns out its a Hindu wedding but not a religious ceremony (which would take about 3 hours). Instead a registrar performed the ceremony which lasted 10mins tops. Indian music played and the audience was a sea of colours with women decked out in some really gorgeous saris and eleaborate hairdos. Afterwards the lengthy ordeal of photo taking started and Reuben and I slipped out to pick up his parents for the evening 'do'.

An hour later we arrived and dinner had started. We picked up platters and ate a number of small Indian delicaces including samosas, spicy potatoes and yogurt cake. The nut crush was the best although really sweet and I could feel my teeth loosening from my gums...!!!

Sometime later the bride and groom were back upstairs having photos taken with everyone and guests congratulating them. There were about 100 people at the ceremony but about 400 afterwards! Everytime I looked towards the door more and more people were coming in. It was amazing!! At 9pm they were still coming in and it was a case of queuing to see the bride and groom and then leaving for home! Reuben managed to slip off to the pub with his mates sometime during the 2nd photo session... I was a bit miffed I wasn't invited!

The wedding was super. Now I just have to wait for wedding no 3...

My latest claim to fame

I like Doctor Who a lot. So you can imagine my jealousy when I find out that an ex-classmate (who I was friends with for a bit) is the new leading lady in the new series next year! I only found out because I was trawling the Middlesex University website for postgraduate housing courses and her name sprang up as an ex-graduate hitting the big time.

Ten minutes later, I find that Tara has actually posted on Melissa’s blog about it. Damn! Yeah, I know, always the last to know etc etc.

Hi ho hi ho...

Reuben’s parents have damp coming through the external-side wall of their hallway due to the exterior paint holding in moisture and not allowing the brickwork to ‘breathe’. As a result, the paint in the hallway is blown and the plaster is crumbling away. So while a contractor works on the exterior paint, Reuben, his mum and myself have to strip the internal wall so it can be replastered.

The idea was that we start on the top of the stairs and work our way down, slowly slowly. Reuben sits at the top, dust mask in place, and starts scraping at the wall with a small wallpaper scraper. Reuben’s mum, in the hallway by the door, smashes the paint and plaster away with one sweep of her trowel. So much for the ‘slowly’ idea! Reuben did away with his little scraper and wielded a hammer and chisel.

So we each work on a section, dust everywhere, and having a whale of a time smashing up the wall all the way through to the brickwork. In the end, we were hot and very dusty. My hair was grey and rigid from the plaster dust. It was gross. But at least the wall is now clear for the fresh plaster.

Paris in the summertime?

Today we go home. Nicely tanned from the heat and just itching with anticipation of getting back to a cooler climate. And we're only 3 hours from London. How silly is that?! There are lessons to be learnt - Paris is best seen during Spring or Autumn. Trust me.

le Lafayette

We our spending our last full day in Paris trawling le Galleria de Lafayette because we have 10% vouchers and because its supposed to be a beautiful shopping experience - complete with air con! Wahey! So we take a 20min walk down le Boulevard de Lafayette and reach the junction where le printemps is in full swing! We wander about with me stroking all the designer bags and shoes and Reuben admiring the watches and keeping me from going completely gaga. I mean there was this really nice pair of Chloe sandals and then I saw these gorgeous Gina slingbacks... (sigh)

And that was our day. A lazy walk into shopping central, wander around the shops, and a lazy walk back. I did buy a cut-price T-shirt in H&M because all my T-s are soaked in sweat (eww!) and we did have a fun time walking around a proper French market but that was the day really. Just walking and window-shopping. Perfect.

Le Louvre et le Basilique de Sacre-Coeur

Another hot hot day in Paris and shortly after breakfast we head out to the Open Tour Bus again to go to the Louvre... again! A short queue and we were inside the lovely air conditioning!!

No-one had to tell us where the Mona Lisa was - it was where the whole crowd was surging. Everyone was walking in one direction, right past the Etruscan and Greek antiquities and through the Italian paintings to get to Da Vinci's piece de la resistance. Even then it was behind a thick sheet of glass and flanked by two security guards. We saw it just so we could say we did, but we weren't particularly interested and certainly didn't queue so we could reach the front of the painting and take a good gander. It just wasn't worth it. And there's a good replica in the science corridor of Our Lady's.

I was more interested in the Egyptian sarcophaguses and Greek statues (surprise, surprise!) and I had my picture taken with Minerva. Reuben had his picture taken with a bust of a Roman emperor, possibly Hadrian but I can't remember right now. He looked super cool in his shades next to this head though!!

Reluctantly after a couple of hours we head out again and find ourselves outside the Musee d'Orsay but we are finding this trip a bit pricey and decide to skip seeing anymore galleries. I was a little disappointed but this was supposed to be a cheap break... We can always just come over again when its a bit cooler!

We make our way back to the buses and head up to Montmartre so we can climb up to Le Basilique de Sacre-Coeur. This place was absolutely gorgeous and much better than Notre Dame, even though I thought I would never think that. It was well worth the hill climb in 30C heat! We stood at the top of the hill for ages, able to see for miles across France. We then sat by the fountain at the base of the Sacre-Coeur and dipped our feet in the water. It was ironic - I had just seen possibly the most beautiful building in France and the best part of my day is sitting with my feet in not-very-clean water next to a noisy family from Holland!

Open Tour Buses

We wake up sweating like mad. There's no air conditioning in the hotel room and it's 30C outside. We shower and make our way down to breakfast on the basement level. A little woman looking a bit like Madame Tussaud asks for our room number and we sign our names on her list. She points to a table and we pick up our bowls and plates to see what's on offer. There are three Perspex bowls on a carousel full of cardboard corn flakes. A wicker stand holds bread rolls, croissants and sliced baguettes. Some ham and cheese are inside more Perspex bowls. Orange juice, grapefruit juice and milk stand in jugs by the coffee machine. Bienvenue a la petit déjuner pour quatre jours! All I can say is that the croissants are lovely although it'd be nice if the jam wasn't so watery. The corn flakes are cardboardy (as previously mentioned) and the milk is that longlife shit. However the coffee is the best in the world!

Open Tour Buses are great. For 28€ you get two days unlimited bus rides on Open Tour buses around Paris. Four lines stop at or near all the attractions and you even get personal earphones so you can listen to the commentary in 8 languages during the rides. So we grab our first bus outside le Gare du Nord and make our way to le Madeleine so we can switch lines and go to the Musée du Louvre. Of course, no one told us that all museums are shut on Tuesdays. Bother. We wander around the glass pyramid anyway and then decide that we will walk it to Notre Dame.

Bad idea. It's now 10.30am and the sun is in full swing. We ramble along the bank of the Seine, pitying the people sweltering under the glass on a barge trip and fanning themselves frantically. We arrive at some shade and gasp for breath. Reuben purchases bottles of water and we gulp it down with relish. We pass le Palais de Justice and finally spot le Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris surrounded by tourists in groups and taking pictures from all angles. We are herded into Notre Dame with the crowds speaking all different languages and manage to grab a seat near the pulpit so we can admire the windows. Having cooled down sufficiently we tour the cathedral and head back out into the heat and to catch another bus.

We pass le Institut de France and le Musée d'Orsay before getting off the bus at le Place de la Concorde so we can walk down the Avenue des Champs-Elysées. The shops were brilliant and we popped in and out again to appreciate the air conditioning. I now feel quite weak from the heat and am grateful each time a feel a slight breeze of air. We arrived at le Arc de Triomphe and took pictures before taking our third bus pass the Trocadéro and arriving at le Tour Eiffel.

It is now 1pm and incredibly hot. We walk through the park behind the tower and stand near a sprinkler to cool down. In our search for a bench we end up sitting on newspaper on a 'bird bench' with two lovely American old dears. One said she was born in London and had that distinctive Anglo-American twang in her voice that made her sound Canadian. Her friend was all-out Ohio. We chatted for a bit and ended up travelling on the bus with them pass the Hôtel des Invalides back to Le Madeleine so we could change tour lines and take a bus up to Montmartre.

Montmartre is a bit like Tottenham - it's dirty and you can get mugged in broad daylight and no-one would bat an eyelid. However it is where le Basilique duu Sacre-Coeur is situated, as well as all the sex shops and the infamous Moulin Rouge. As we travel up the Boulevard de Clichy Reuben constantly jokes about going into a sex shop. So we get off the bus and do just that. We decide against buying any DVDs as they all only play region 2 but I was a bit tempted to get my brother a magazine entitled Down the Hatch. Giggling madly we took our last bus back to le Gard du Nord and went back to the hotel.

Its been so hot we haven't eaten all day and have just drank the equivalent of 2½ litres of water each. So we shower for the 3rd time (our 2nd being the sprinkler in the park) and attempt to find somewhere were we can eat small portions. We go to Buffalo Bill and opt for the a la carte menu of burger or buffalo wings with fries followed by crême brulée and expresso. The restaurant had air con but they didn't turn it on, typically tight of Parisians. We did have some very nice Pina Coladas even though they cost 9€ a go. Eating and drinking is turning out to be expensive in Paris. Bottled water is at least 2.50€ a time for a regular 50cl bottle.

Desperate now for some air con we wander up the street and end up in McDonalds. Sitting under the air con slurping a vanilla milkshake was the ultimate feeling. You cannot believe how nice it was. And we decided we must be pretty desperate to be in Paris and Maccy D's being the best place to go.

Bonjour Paris!

No, we didn't see the brilliant film Funny Face but have gone to Paris for the week. We decided we needed a break and ten minutes later we had a week booked up in Paris. Bizarre! So finally the day has arrived and we pack and take a taxi to Cheshunt station. From there we take a train to Liverpool St and then the Underground to Waterloo. ABBA songs aside, we catch the Eurostar at 4pm and take a direct train to Paris. This gives me a chance to try out my bad French (and even write some of my blog in the language too!).

We arrived at the Gare du Nord and were accosted by a beggar asking for money . We said we didn't have any, but then he saw us going to the Bureau de Change so we quickly ran around him when he was distratced by a group of tourists loading a taxi with their cases. We found our hotel really easily, literally just around the corner, and we checked in without any problems. The nightclerk introduced himself as Keith which we thought was rather English-sounding for a Frenchman. Its a bit like a Spaniard being called John Smith. Our room is on the 7th floor and has a lovely view of the Tour Eiffel and Le Basilique du Sacre-Coeur. The traffic however is deafening. In Paris there are no houses - everyone lives in a flat. So all the buildings are built 7-8 floors high. This makes the sounds in the street resonate up the buildings. So you can imagine how loud it is when you are situated on the main road. Nothing but police and ambulance sirens wailing through the air not to mention that Paris has possibly the world's worst drivers and they do nothing but cut each other up and sound their horns repetively.

Tired from the journey and feeling rather peckish, we leave our room and walk towards Le Gare de L'Est in search of food. We find a little Italian-style cafe and order a pizza to share. The waitress looks a bit annoyed by this and prances off into the kitchen. The couple next to us ask if we speak English. On reply, they start talking nineteen to the dozen about how they came to Paris for a long weekend and gave us tips about visiting Notre Dame and the Open Tour buses that dot the city. We thank them as they leave and we order dessert. I ask for fruit salad so the waitress yanks open the fridge door, pulls out some fruit, slams the door shut again and stalks off to the kitchen. It is mega hot in the retaurant and the ceiling fans are just circulating warm air. I think the heat is getting to her...! When it came to paying up, we put down the cash but mistook a 1 cent coin for a 1€ coin and she got really annoyed. "Fifty not five!" she yelled at us. Reuben swapped the cash over and apologised but she wasn't having any of it. Something tells me we won't ever be going back there...

Very hot and bothered now we wander back to the hotel and hope that next day we fare better.

80th birthday

My nan turns 80 tomorrow so my uncle has organised a get-together at the Royal Chase. Reuben and I turn up and mill about waiting for everyone to arrive. I got to see all my cousins (except Hayley) whom I haven't seen in ages, plus my dad's cousin and her family, and my nan's brother and his wife, daughter and son-in-law. Then my dad's cousin's daughter turned up with her 3 girls. I just about managed to name everyone on the table!!

We sat near Chris and Cem on the near corner and had cold meats, salads and jacket potatoes passed round by waiting staff. We then had trifle for desert though it didn't have any cake at the bottom, so we debated whether it could actually be proper trifle or not... and then we had coffee and Elizabeth Shaws. I managed to knock over an entire jug of milk though it didn't drip onto anyone so that was lucky in a way! Nan's brother William, who everyone calls Jock(!) was passing around an old photo of him, my nan, and their other brother and sister, John and Nancy, both of whom have now passed. My Nan is crying in the photo so Jock says that she is always crying, and didn't he look handsome back in the day? It made us laugh a bit and he managed to make my Nan cry (with laughter) so he could prove a point. (sigh) Families, eh?

Wedding No 1

Reuben and I have three weddings to attend this year (so far!) and this is the first. Alan is Reuben's mate since nursery and we have been invited to see him marry the lovely Caroline.

So early this morning we were up and dressed ready for our trip into Central London. They are getting married in St Bride's near St Paul's Cathedral and it is a really beautiful little church. We nabbed good seats at the back, facing the front, while everyone else was ferried into side-facing seats. Caroline came half an hour late (Alan sneaking peeks at his watch every ten minutes) and within the first 5 mins had the hiccups from giggling so much. The priest nipped round the back to give her a glass of water! Hymns were mumbled by the congregation, although since everyone knows the words to Jerusalem so this was belted out with much aplomb at the end. During the signing of the register, the St Bride's choir sang Cole Porter's You're The Top and Let's Do It (Lets Fall In Love) which I thought it was kinda cool...!!

We met up with Reuben's other mate from nursery, Sai-Hong and his wife and son, Deanna and James. We walked slowly and, in my case, painfully through the heat to the reception venue 10 mins away. It's about 28C today and my 3inch heels are not helping matters. One very sensible woman was carrying a posh pair of teal sandals with skyscraper heels and wearing an old pair of flip-flops during the walk to the venue. I wish I was so smart... By the time it came to photos though my shoes were also being held! I can only suffer so much for my art...!!!

During dinner, Reuben could no longer contain himself and starting mucking about, rubbing his nose and balancing a spoon on it. This gave the man next to him an opening and he grabbed two spoons and put them in his eyes. Suddenly, all the blokes on the table are playing spoons, putting the decorative feathers in their hair, and taking lots of silly pictures with the disposable cameras on the table. Deanna was pissing herself with laughter but I was just embarrassed. Reuben always has to start these things... Speeches followed and the best man told a rather amusing anecdote about how he and Alan pretended to be his boss and his superior at a wine-tasting event, even though neither of them know anything about wine. Their comments evenutally became ridiculously stupid (e.g. wine no 122 - disturbing lack of vanilla) and were sent by email to their boss' email before the end of the night...!

Tables were cleared and the DJ came on and proceeded to chase everyone away from the dance floor by playing Ruby Tuesday and Everybody Changes. With no proper dance tunes being played, we decided now was the time to leave and, saying goodbye to Alan and Caroline, we walked/hobbled back to the car.

Italy 2006

When you are France’s star player and it is your last night as captain and as an international footballer, with millions of people across the world watching, what do you do? Well, if you happen to be Zinedine Zidane, you head-butt a member of the opposing footy team and get a red card for your idiocy. Well at least he won’t be forgotten.

Funnily enough, without their star player on hand and with Thierry Henry taken off for a substitution, France lost. Italy scored 5 spot-kick penalties after extra time and won the Jules Rimet. Bella! Italy are the 4th time winners of the World Cup. See ya in South Africa in 2010.

The Taverna

A lot of money has exchanged hands this weekend and it turns out I owe Reuben about £30 so I offer to treat him to dinner. We decide to go to The Taverna in Waltham Abbey. It has great reviews and is supposed to serve very good Greek food. So we leave home in good time and arrive about 7pm and book a table for 7.30pm. We hang about in the pub opposite watching the Doctor Who series 2 finale in ‘mute’. Finally we head back and wait in the bar to be seated. We see a long table with ‘L’ plate balloons and Reuben says, “Oh look! There must be a hen night here tonight.”

We get seated and order. A large party of girls come in wearing silly hats, over-large sunglasses, and one in a veil. This must be the hen party… although they sat at another table.

And then another group of girls came in wearing cat masks and devil horns. They sat behind us.

And then another group, this time wearing bunny ears and placards saying ‘chicks’ and ‘cocks’ (depending on which side of the family they were on, I guess).

And that was our night. Streams of women just poured into the place, each having their own hen night. And Reuben and I sat there on a little table for two in the middle of all this, trying to have a nice night out and surrounded by very drunk and giggly girls. The group behind me had sparkler fireworks in their cocktails which worried me a little.

And it put us off our food a bit. Reuben said he felt a bit intimidated and I said that I did too! The waiter could have at least warned us when we booked the table that it appeared to be hen night for half the women in Waltham Abbey.

England bite the dust (again!)

Yeah, my bad. I haven't written for ages!!! Last week at work was pretty slow so I started writing up all the missing bits of life story that I would have normally blogged about, and then sent it to my home email so I could post it. No email has arrived. The new system at work must have blocked it.

So all my footy anecdotes are for naught. Just five words: England never won on penalties.

Free lesson (9.30-11am)

I'm taking some time out at uni... or college. Whatever. I'm a CONEL student which is college but I study at Middx Uni so go figure. It's one of them. Any case, I got a free lesson because I did my assignment at home instead of in class. No way was I handing in a piece of handwritten work. Everything is word processed. The lecturer said presentation wasn't part of the assessment criteria and as long as she could read it, she wasn't bothered. But I am. So I get a free lesson. And I spend it playing on the Internet and writing my blog. I would spend it studying but the library has a weird layout and I've gotten lost twice this morning. And then I tried to start typing up my last piece of work but I can't figure out the print system. I think I have to assign my work to a printer, then go to the print release computer next to the printer and release the page so it prints. Oh, and I have to buy credits at 50p a page. Not really worth it. I'm sure it was something like 10p or 20p at UKC. Has inflation gone up that much in nine years?

I should stop rambling and get to my next class...

Descending the slippery slope...

It's my birthday. Yet another year has passed but no wrinkles have appeared as yet, so it's still good! But having reached my late 20's, I think I've had a good life so far. I mean, I've gone through education, moved out, found a gorgeous and wonderful man... My life is good.

I did get some birthday cards today which was nice. I secretly think some people forgot simply because I didn't organise a get-together like I usually do. But then I thought that people won't make the effort to come visit me and expect me to go into Central London to meet them, so I didn't try organise anything. What's the point? Too much time and effort is wasted and I'd rather spend it with people who appreciate me.

So I end up at Dad's. Which was weird really because it's the last place I expected to end up. But I was invited so I accepted. It was nice to chat to everyone and I showed off my holiday snaps while Anna and Rosemary showed us theirs from the Collectormania weekend in Milton Keynes.

It was a nice day. No rushing around. Just taking it easy. And that's all I want from life.

Day 8 - San Jose to Los Angeles (to London)

So we're in San Jose and in a gorgeous hotel conveniently near the airport. Unfortunately, I threw up at 1am this morning. A week of junk food and a day of wine two days previously have not helped matters. I have a good diet at home and my body has rebelled against my not drinking water, OJ, and six portions of fruit aand veg a day. It sucks. I'm sick and this is probably the best place we've stayed in all week and would have been the best brekkie ever! I order Jenny to go and have breakfast while I have a nap, but she traipsed back 5mins later saying it wasn't the same... but she could have made her own waffles.

I am in no condition to fly but fly I must, and I take my bag to the car looking like death warmed up. We drop off the rental car at the airport and sit in the waiting area for ages doing crossword puzzles as we have arrived mega early. We board a place and an hour 15 mins later, we're in LAX. We trek in the Los Angeles heat from T4 to T2 with our heavy bags and heavy wine carriers. This is not improving my condition...

Liz picked up Jenny and we bade farewell. I check in my bags and wait...

I board the plane, grab an aisle seat, and sleep. And sleep. Dinner arrived and I ate the salad, sesame crackers, and Oreo cheesecake before... yep, sleeping! I wake up for breakfast and skip the egg and cheese roll, just drinking the OJ and picking at the fruit salad. As we land, I feel a little nauseous but remain okay! My bag came out relatively quickly and I skipped customs, rushing out to meet Reuben. Who I missed a lot while I was away!! But I am still tired, drained from being ill, and very jet-lagged. I desperately try to stay awake until 9pm and watch some highlights of the San Marino Grand Prix, which Michael Schumacher won, so it hasn't been the best of days!

TOTAL MILES (to the airport): 1.52

TOTAL MILES OVERALL: 506.08

Day 7 - San Francisco to San Jose

We are up early but not early enough - breakfast finished 5 mins before we reached the reception to ask if breakfast was complimentary!! We check out anyway and walk to Ghiradelli Square.

It was all still opening when we arrived and a man with earphones was blasting the street dirt away with a power hose. Avoiding the water as much as possible, we buy chocolate from the Ghiradelli Chocolate Shop and head to the trolley car so we don't have to climb the very big hills back to the car! We do have to go down a couple of steep hills though, making us think of John Cleese's Ministry of Silly Walks. I decide against risking breaking my neck by goose-stepping down the hill Back in the car, we find the Cliff House easily and wait there for Joe and Jean... and eight other people! We have lunch and a good natter before finally making our way into San Jose to visit the Winchester Mystery House.

Mrs Winchester's husband and daughter both died before she was 40 and, being a spiritual woman, believed they had been taken by the spirits of those killed by the Winchester rifles. To appease (or confuse!) these spirits, she moved into an 8-bedroom house and, over 38 years of 24/7 construction and building work, turned it into a 6-acre 160 roomed house. Work only stopped after 38 years because she popped her clogs. The house includes a door to nowhere (open the door and drop 12 feet to the outside ground), a cupboard that opens into a wall, and a staircase that goes up to the ceiling... She was mad. Evidently. Jenny and I said in every room, "This woman is mad/ bonkers/ weird..." and other variations of 'whacked-out pyscho'. Melissa would have loved it.

TOTAL MILES: 48.66

Day 6 - Napa to San Francisco

San Francisco again! After leaving Napa and sorting a lengthy mix-up with the motel room being upgraded but not being told it would cost more, we finally buy stamps for Melissa's postcards and drive to San Francisco around the San Pablo Bay so we arrive via the Golden Gate Bridge. We head up into the hills just before going over the bridge so we can take lots of photos and we look around the old fort built up there.

Back in the car, we head over the Golden Gate Bridge, find Fisherman's Wharf and park up so we can have a good wander, but not before we have driven down the Crookedest Street in the World - Lombard Street, made famous in films like Herbie and Bullet. I taped some of the descent on my camera and it was so cool!!

Anyway, we walked along Fisherman's Wharf and hopped into the Boudin Sourdough factory where we could watch the bread being made and taste the different varieties. Afterwards, I bought some souvenir T-shirts and we wandered up Pier 39, looking at all the tacky stuff and trying on silly hats in a hat shop! We then did a whistle-stop tour of the city on an open-top tour bus, passing the Civic Centre, Union Square, the financial district, and the Crookedest Street from a distance! We also saw Chinatown but we missed seeingf Ghiradelli Square, so we make it our priority to do that tomorrow!

TOTAL MILES: 52.33

Day 5 - Wine tasting in Napa

We are in Napa so the only thing we can do is... wine tasting!! We picked up a flyer that has free or complimentary tasting 'flights' and circled all of them on the map. There are literally 100 wineries and vineyards all along Napa, St Helens, Yountville and Calistoga, so we were picking and choosing!

First stop was a chocolate shop, Annette's, where Jenny purchases a box of chocolates and a bottle of port chocolate sauce, which was a little strong for my liking. We then head into the Valley.

We went to five where we got free tastings, one of which we bought bottles of gorgeously-sweet wine and some equally gorgeous-tasting cheese! We then went to the Frank Family winery where I announced I had had enough wine for one day. It was hot, I hadn't eaten properly, and I'm downing all kinds of wine without any water inbetween! Jenny bought bottles here too, before we headed to Sterling, our last stop for the day. We took the cable car up the hillside to the winery at the top. We did the short walking tour of the winery, looking at the presses and barrels, before our last tasting of the day. I purchased wine here too because it was too scrumptious and I want Napa Valley wine in the my cupboard!!

In the afternoon, searching for a light snack in Calistoga, Jenny dropped in on a family friend who offered us use of her house until she had finished work. So we had a Napa Salad to share and went to the house, just a short drive away from Calistoga and the Petrified Forest. The house was cool as were Joe and Jean. They offered us dinner and we shared the chocolates bought this morning. Jenny took advantage of the port on offer while Joe and I had some Jim Beam and Glenfiddich! :) We arranged to meet again in San Francisco for lunch before departing... and I feel a little bit sick from all the alcohol consumption!

Day 4 - San Simeon to Napa

We drove from San Simeon up towards Vallejo, past Berkeley and into Napa Valley... or so we thought. The 80 veered left and suddenly we're on a bridge.

Clare: "I thought we were gonna hit the bridge a bit later."
Jenny: "If you look to the left you should be able to see the Golden Gate Bridge."
Clare: "I can't see anything on your left!"
Jenny: "Oh look! There it is on the right!"
Clare: "But... if it's on the right, that means..."

I look up from my map and see tower blocks coming into view.

Clare: "We're on the Bay Bridge heading into San Francisco!"
Jenny: "...Fancy lunch?"

So we have lunch in San Francisco. Which has nothing to do with my map reading skills. Neither of us saw the 80 offering a right-turn away from San Francisco and into the direction we wanted to go. We reckon its a conspiracy to make people go to San Francisco and pay the Bay Bridge toll.

After lunch we head to Walgreens as my watch battery has ticked its last tock. The shopkeeper validates our parking ticket and we purchase a cheap purple watch (which incidently glows in the dark) and hair dye!!

Back in the car, we successfully navigate our way to Napa Valley and check into the motel. We then search the brochures and find a cool French cafe by the riverside called Angelos. I order a bottle of water which bills as $7. I am horrified when Jenny tells me this. However, there's still a long way to go before I catch up with her $130 mistake. :) The food was gorgeous though, and we had soup and salad, a cheese 'platter' to share (it could hardly be called a platter when there was only four bitesized portions of cheese, some honey and a thin slice of apple) and fruity cocktails.

Our wallets worse for wear, we head back to the motel and dye our hair. I dye Jenny's hair a shocking red, which is actually only a bit shocking where her former highlights have soaked up the dye. I then dye my own hair blonder so it looks sunkissed for a while when I'm back at work. However, there was somoe bad news - Jenny's hair dye turned the white towel pink. And the colour stain refused to come out. We hid it among other white towels and hope we don't get billed for it!

TOTAL MILES (including the San Francisco detour): 259.83

Day 3 - Hearst Castle

The reason we are staying in San Simeon - Hearst Castle! Though its strictly not a castle, but a large mansion on the hilltop of the Santa Lucia Mountains. Its name is Casa Grande and is full of Spanish and Italian antiques and art. Its a 5-mile bus ride up to the top and has some really great views over the Pacific Ocean. Though we booked for 10am, we got an earlier tour at 8:45am and even that group was only half the usual amount! We got a tour that showed some of the rooms and the main gardens, but apparently there are also night tours which show a bit more of the house. It was freezing nonetheless. I think its warmer in England right now...!

After the castle we still had most of the day to kill so we headed into Cambria, a small town down the road from San Simeon. We decide on the spur of the moment to get pedicures, but the one place in town was closed due to a family emergency. Slightly put down, we then decide to purchase nail stuff and colour our hair. In both drug stores, we find only four hair colourants and its a permanent dye. But we do find funky nail polish!

We stop for lunch and I have the largest Caesar salad known to mankind. It came in a mixing bowl! And Jenny had equally large onion rings with her lunch, so big they looked as if they had been made around a drinking mug!

We head back to the motel to do our nails. Half a bottle of cheap wine and an episode of Prison Break later, I have a full set of green toenails out of a bottle called Kermit. Yep, Kermit green toes. Nice! It was very thin polish though and took three coats before it was noticeable. I couldn't be bothered with any more coats of polish and just lay there, chilled out.

Late evening we felt peckish and stopped at a seafood restuarant, the Mantra Ray, where I had the nicest piece of salmon ever! We tried to watch the sunset but it was way too cold and we killed the rest of the evening by starting a comic strip of our 'adventures' for Melissa. Jenny has the job of inking them and scanning them to the travel blog!

Day 2 - Santa Barbara to San Simeon

I woke up at a decent time of 8.30am and had a breakfast of cereal and pastries... Apparently, iced pastries and sweetments are normal breakfast fare in motels and hotels!

Thanks to our error of initially driving in the wrong direction for dinner last night, we found a quicker route to the 101 and started our journey to San Simeon along the coastline and through the hills. The scenery was very green and quite breathtaking sometimes. It was a little bit like Scotland.

On the way, we stopped at Solvang, an American Danish village. Not a bit of Lederhosen or Buckwurst to be seen, though we did take pictures of the Viking Motel and its decorative roof! And of course we sampled some Danish pastries!!

We arrived at San Simeon late afternoon and check into the Quality Inn, across the road from the sea front. It is freezing. I wish I'd brought my jacket now! We drink cheap wine and eat 'bunny' cake, and decide on a plan for the rest of the week. Jenny hasn't booked anything else for the week, so we come up with a plan and spend about an hour looking for motels and booking them at the cheapest price we can find in the AAA book. Not too cheap though, or we'll be staying in unsecure dumps!

We take an evening stroll along the beach and our toes turn purple with cold before we decide to eat, stopping at a Mexican place and having a whole spread of food!!

TOTAL MILES: 141.19

Day 1 - Los Angeles to Santa Barbara

I arrive in Los Angeles, slightly bedraggled but okay. I have just survived a 10-hour flight with zero knee crushing from the seat in front, so it was a good flight! Jenny greets me (after observing lots of people arriving with surfboards in very large cases) and we head out to the rental car we will be living in for the next week. In a word, it is ginormous! Its a brand new Dodge Charger with the widest dashboard you ever did see. "I was thinking about your leg room" Jenny offered, but it also means I will not attempt on any account to drive the car. Even though I can legally. So we immediately hit the road to Sata Barbara. I don't feel jetlagged. It's weird.

We arrive at the Sandpiper Motel and check in. Well... What happens is that Jenny hands over the confirmation email and the desk clerk looks a little perplexed and then says, "This is for last night. Do you have a booking for today?"

Jenny's face is one of complete horror. She's accidently booked Friday night instead of Saturday night! She explains her mistake and manages to get another room but she has to pay the full price again - another whole $130. The desk clerk says she might be able to get $50 back if she calls the manager on Monday and explains the situation.

We dump our stuff in the motel room, Jenny muttering about the cock-up and the money. All I can offer in my partially jetlagged state is that if this is the worst thing that can happen to us, it can't all be bad. We flip through brochures, leaflets, and the motel's advertisements and find a restuarant on the seafront called Eladio's. I really want to eat there, just for the name. You know? "Eladio! You are El Chupacabra!!"

We head for the coast (initially in the wrong direction) and find the restuarant. Except we expected Spanish or Mexican food and it was Italian. The food was good but the serving was way too big. And very garlicky. I think the burger was more garlic than meat!

All I have left to say about the day was that it was cold. I mean the temperature was good, around 15, but the wind was cold. I'm glad I brought my zip-up hoodie.

TOTAL MILES: 102.55

A Series of (Un)Fortunate(?) Events

So, today was pretty eventful.

1. First up, it's Pete's birthday today. I'm disappointed to hear he's not throwing some wild and lavish bash but that's not the reason I'm not going to see him. We have already made plans to pick up rellies from Purley and take them to Tottenham. A long trip and one we cannot cancel. So, maybe another time Pete...?

2. An email came around saying that Bisi, the long-suffering temp receptionist who faces the sack at the end of the month, has found another job in Homes for Islington (with some colleagues from my college course, funnily enough!) so she will be leaving us shortly.

3. Another email then came around confirming once and for all that my senior is indeed leaving us for Lordship Lane. She said that she knew some of us were glad she was leaving and so was she. I was very very tempted to reply-all on the email and tell her that we were ALL glad she was leaving, not just some!! But I didn't.

4. Dad called me at work and asked if I was coming over today. I said no, I was meaning to come over next Friday, Good Friday, as I'm not here for Easter. He said okay and hung up. Weird...

5. Then, early in the evening, my Dad came over with Pam. It would appear that they're 'thinking' about getting married. But since Pam has a ring and they're telling everyone about it, I'm guessing that 'thinking' is now replaced with 'doing'. They then wanted to know if I was happy for them...

So yeah, eventful day...

Bienvenue d'Angleterre

Reuben's uncle and aunt came over from Mauritius this evening - that is, his real uncle and aunt, not his uncle and aunt twice removed or the cousin of his parents...

Anyway, its the first time they've ever been abroad and Reuben hadn't seen them for eight years since he was last in Mauritius, so we picked up his parents and headed off to the airport. Hugs and air-kissing ensued and everyone spoke French. All evening. I felt like a lemon, catching only the odd word here and there, and by the time I had processed what the words meant, the conversation had already moved on. Wish I'd spent more time listening to Madame Gill now!

And then there were eight

I can't believe Sir Alan voted Jo off in The Apprentice. He loves that woman, only because she's an absolute nutter! The other women can sense her popularity I think, so they bring her into the room at every opportunity in an attempt to get rid of her. From a business point of view, though, she wasn't that much of a threat. She was too hyperactive and unpredictable, not to mention completely unable to sell or haggle for anything. And apparently she trained salespeople for MG Rover (no wonder they collapsed!)...

But I'm sad she went. She was good fun to watch. I was semi-routing for her to win, but now I definitely want a win for Ruth or Paul. Both know about good business practice, get on with everyone, and are straight and direct when it comes to doing their job properly. Next to be voted off? Please be Syed, Samuel or Sharon. Oh, and I promise it's nothing to do with their names beginning with 'S'.

Four things (as requested by Omouse)

Four...

Siblings
1. Anna
2. Heather
3. Christopher
4. Rosemary

Places I've lived
1. Bush Hill Park
2. Enfield
3. Canterbury
4. Cheshunt

US states I've stayed
1. New York
2. California
3. Kansas
4. Pennslyvania

Alcoholic drinks
1. Jack Daniels and Coke
2. Cosmopolitan
3. Strawberry daquiri
4. Sambuca shots

Things I can't live without
1. Coffee
2. Purse
3. Nokia 3330
4. Ka

Games I can play reasonably well
1. Scrabble
2. Monopoly
3. Black Jack
4. Bowling

Fave music at the moment
1. Green Day
2. James Blunt
3. Hard-Fi
4. Kaiser Chiefs

Films I've never seen (oh, the shame!)
1. Goodfellas
2. Alien
3. Pulp Fiction
4. Lawrence of Arabia

Films I should never have paid to see at the cinema
1. Batman and Robin
2. Message in a Bottle
3. Armageddon
4. The Avengers

Cars I love
1. Ford StreetKa
2. Lotus Elan
3. Madza RX8
4. Hyundai Coupé

CDs in my car
1. Green Day - International Superhits
2. Savage Garden - Truly Madly Completely
3. Britney Spears - My Prerogative
4. The Beatles - 1

Dinner Party III

We invited my Dad & co. over for a buffet-style get-together, in hopes of endearing my father a little more to Reuben, and so we have have my other relatives around for dinner or whatever without offending my immediate family.

So there we were: Reuben and myself, plus Dad, Pam, my Nan, Anna and Rosemary, Chris and Cem, and Pam's kids, Lynne and Ian. Somehow we all managed to squeeze into the lounge and have a bit of a laugh. The chocolate fountain was another success, although a lot more was left over this time - about half. It was okay, though it started off a bit awkwardly, not to mention that my Dad said he hadn't received my text so hadn't picked up my grandmother and he had go to back!

But I think it was a success. Reuben wasn't ignored... so that's good. And when my brother left early to go to the pub to meet some mates, Reuben went forward to do the continental 'cheek kissing' as a laugh, and my brother just grabbed him and gave him a full cheek smacker!! Rosemary was horrified and said that I should start to look for a place of my own!! She's all so innocent, the cutie!! So yeah, success I think.

Needed vay-kay

Due to work transfers it's common sense that all my holiday time this year may not get carried over into the next financial year (end of April) so it's best I take it all. However, I have 11 days left, and with day release to college every Wednesday, I haven't been using all my holiday time due to the endless game of catch-up I'm doing at work. So I decided that since I don't have college during the two weeks of the Easter break, I might as well take one of those weeks and have a holiday, unfortunately sans Reuben since he only has about 5 days. Being at home all day (or all week, rather) would bore me so I might as well go away.

Then I had another thought. Instead of taking the holiday alone (which doesn't really appeal to me anyway) I could hook up with a friend or two. And then another thought: Jenny works in a school. Schools have Easter breaks. I should hook up with Jenny 'Stateside' and make use of the brilliant flight deals.

So, whaddya think?! Ooh, and if Mel has the holiday too, that'd be even better!!!

BTW, a very happy birthday to Tara, Heather and Lynne. What on earth happens in June?!

My first ever!

Yep, first ever St V's day when I'm not single. Hoo-yeah! It must be noted that Reuben and I don't 'do' the mushy thing and tend to send people funny cards on their birthdays/anniversaries/etc rather than sentimental ones that make us heave. However, this is a one-off. We did give each other cards but they were funny and cutesy rather than flowery and mush. He got me chocs, while I got him Million Dollar Baby, not romantic but I knew he wanted it and I didn't want to get anything predictable. I did unexpectedly get flowers in the evening though. He's pretty soppy at heart I think... (and he'll probably kill me when/if he reads this!)

BTW, thanx Jenny for the card. Don't feel bad about being single at the mo. In my 25 years of being single I think I'm experienced in these situations, and there's nothing better than a grande white chocolate cappucino with sprinkled vanilla and chocolate dust to make it go away. :) Calorific heaven. :)

Restructuring

My workplace are carrying out yet another restructure but this time it is for an actual purpose! As a service, we are transferring out of the local government and into our own company at arms-length from the Council, known as an Arms Length Management Organisation, or ALMO (or Alamo as Reuben calls it!).

As a result of the restructure, I get a pay rise (not much, but enough!!) and I don't get to be managed by my current senior, but by the surveyors I support. So two good things came out of today. Restructures are usually pesky things involving office moves and title changes. But this one just involves a new ID and being managed by the people I should of been managed by in the first place. Yay!

Hippy bathday

My brother turned 20 today. Finally out of the terrible teens. Only Rosemary to go now...! I didn't get him a pressie because Christmas has only just gone and he's probably bought everything he wanted but didn't get. He says he'll let me know if he thinks of anything.

Birthdays scare me. Especially when they involve my little brother and my sisters. Seeing them grow up and remembering celebrating my birthday at their age makes me realise how old I am and how fast everyone is growing up. I remember my 20th birthday. I was in 2nd year at UKC and Peter and I played pool in Rutherford bar for a couple of hours. Dad came down at the weekend with the siblings and we went to Pizza Hut in Margate. Exciting huh?

Happy birthday Chris. Enjoy it while it lasts!! Heheheheh!!

New Year's party

Yeah, we're thinking up every excuse under the sun to host a party! Since the success of the first one, we decided to hold another party with a different group of people. We were a little bolder than before and put out a bigger spread which included the chocolate fountain as the centrepiece.

We invited Amanda and Steve, Suzy, Bruce and Jason. Suzy didn't know that Bruce and Jason were coming and hasn't seen them in years. Screams of delight ensued when they arrived and the whole party was definitely a louder affair than the last one. The food almost disappeared completely and the chocolate fountain was the highlight of the evening. We did prepare sponge fingers and fruit for dipping (satsumas, apples, strawberries and bananas) but found that people were happy to dip anything in - breadsticks and nacho tortilla chips being the favourites.

Yeah it was kinda wild and weird and I met some more new people along the way. Again it was really late before everyone left and Reuben and I were left with about 200g of solidified chocolate in the fountain base. Considering we melted down 800g of it thats a lot of chocolate consumed within a short space of time! No wonder everyone was bouncing off the walls!!

War of the Worlds

Contains spoilers about the film!!!

I bought Reuben a War of the Worlds DVD for Christmas (among other things!) and we finally sat down tonight to watch it. It was okay but I was a bit disappointed that they just died out by themselves and didn't need some sort of gung-ho American hero in the form of Will Smith. Well, it did have Tom Cruise but he spent the whole film running away or hiding in a basement.
Me: "So they just died by themselves?"
Reuben: "Well, because they were eating and drinking our food. We're dying, what chance have they got?"
"But they weren't really eating food. They were killing people and feeding off their blood."
"Well that's the same."
"I guess aliens have AIDS and bird flu too then...?"

We laughed a lot. I think we're tired... This isn't as funny as I remember it being...

Again...?!

I won Employee of the Month for January. Again.

Yeah, people at work are becoming suspicious since no one has ever won it twice. And I've won it twice. And when it came to the Employee of the Year awards I won for the department.

The bad thing was I was nominated by my line manager, the one person I really do not like very much and am currently undergoing proceedings against (secretly, of course). Reuben thinks it is a way of putting the cat among the pigeons: my manager suspects that her staff are petitioning against her removal so she awards one of them to make it look as if we're lying and she actually does appreciate us. Which is a lie. If you appreciate someone, do you yell and scream at them? Treat them like dirt? Be short and curt with them? All the time? Exactly.

So its hard going. I didn't want to throw the award back in her face although it was tempting (despite it being a bottle of champers). But now everyone thinks I'm her little model employee and I'm being teased about being her bodyguard. Ugh! It's tough.

Happy New Year?

Reuben and I had influenza over the New Year period. We were okay Boxing Day and a bit sniffly on the Wednesday but by Friday evening we were not happy bunnies. Saturday we were determined to stay up until midnight but after that we were bushed and went to bed in a mountain of tissues, coughing and sneezing. Well, Reuben was coughing and sneezing, having the sinus variety. I had a head cold and a stomach bug. My legs felt cotton woolly and all my joints were seizing up.

So neither of us were well and we were sick with different things so we were desperately trying not to cross contaminate our germs. It was bad. Possibly the worst New Years ever. Not as bad as that party I went to in an old converted country house where the ceilings were so low I couldn't stand up... but nearly!