September 28

It's been a realllllly busy week this week!  I've hardly been home at all so I haven't had time to write in my blog.

Wednesday - I had my first full day of lectures at school.  11 am to 730 pm.  It was a really long day. Really long.  Afterwards I went to meet Amanda at a bar and we drank a lot of wine.

Thursday - Amanda and I went to lunch at Canteen, then spent the day in Oxford Circus doing some shopping.  We went in a million stores and didn't buy a single thing all day!  We were exhausted by 5 o'clock.  We met Mat in Covent Garden and had drinks at Jamie's Union Jacks pop-up.  Then we went home.

This morning I had an interview for a nanny agency.  I just had to go in and fill out some paperwork and things.  Now I have to wait until I get a National Insurance Number before I can get a CRB check to actually start working.  Annoying.

I've taken about 4 pictures this week, and none of them are that great... but here they are!

Ship on top of the Hayward Gallery.  I don't exactly know who gets to stay in it, but they have dinners there and Mat's restaurant does the food for the dinners.  And people get to spend the night up there.  I want to do it!

Skatepark on the Southbank.  The skateboarders are usually pretty good, and it's legal to do graffiti there (obviously).

Here's a guy doing some graffiti.

Hanna and her friend Brianna are visiting from Dublin this weekend, so we did a quick tour of all the big London sights today (Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, etc.).  Now we're exhausted so they're napping and I'm blogging!

We're going to meet Mat later and walk around Trafalgar Square and maybe have a few adult beverages.  That's all for today! I'll try to take more pictures this weekend :)

"You're okay"

I haven't updated my blog because I haven't done much exciting the last few days.  I went to Hammersmith yesterday for an interview that went okay.  It's not really a job I want but I'm getting desperate.

I've been reading a lot.  And trying to organise my life.  I bought binders, and tab dividers, and a hole punch yesterday so I could get my school stuff organised.  I then realised that I bought a 2-hole punch, and my binder has 4 rings.  Annoying.  I don't have the patience to attempt to perfectly space the 2-hole puncher to make 4 holes.  So I'm going to buy a 4 hole punch today.

I did figure out that I only have class on Wednesdays this term, not Thursdays.  So I'm in lectures 1:30-5, then Research Methods 5:30-7:30 and that's it!  It doesn't sound like much but I'm sure I'll be absolutely swamped with assignments and reading (I already am swamped with reading!).

Mat drank a few too many bourbons before bed the other night and was sleep talking.  Here are the funny things he said to me. :

Mat: Where are today's mashed potatoes? Why aren't they on the list?
Allie: What list?
Mat: The list for shit to go to the pop-up! All the food in the hallway downstairs.. it's not labeled for restaurants.  It just says zone 1 and zone 2.
Allie: Mat you know you aren't at work right?

A few minutes later....
Allie: Goodnight. I love you.
Mat: You're okay.  There are cases.
Allie: What do you mean there are cases?
Mat: Wallets. The 89 wallets I've got that fit.

What I learned from these sleep-talking sessions is that Mat thinks I'm just "okay" and he has a hidden stash of 89 wallets :)

Mat and I walked over by Big Ben and Westminster Abbey the other day and this is the only picture I took.  The weather was great as I'm sure you can see by the grey, cloudy sky.

Lazy days..

This is how our Sunday has been...

He lives such a difficult life :)

The weather's been dreadful today.. it's cold and rainy and dark.  It's been hard finding the motivation to do anything at all!  The Singapore Grand Prix was on, so Mat managed to stay awake for that.  We also rearranged our bedroom.  It looks much better I think!

We've also been cooking up a storm lately.  We made Momma Keys' Orzo with Asiago Cheese and Caramelized Onions last night.  Tonight we're making Beef Tenderloin Steaks with Smokey Bacon Bourbon Sauce.. should be yummy!  I also made chocolate chip cookies yesterday. They're magical.

I've also been reading.. and reading.. and reading! 

Here's my new friend Amanda and I in the photobooth at the Freshers Fair.  We were reliving the glory of our undergrad freshmen days :)

read read read read read read

So it begins.. reading my life away for the next year.  Here's what I'm currently powering through...

They are not quite as dry as they sound :)

I read the UN "Convention on the Rights of the Child" beginning to end before bed last night.  I'm doing pretty well I think!

Knock-Knock

After my two blog posts yesterday, I spent the day buying a printer (that weighed a million pounds and was huge) and carrying it home from the store (my arms are really sore today).  Then I went to the library on campus to check out some books.. only to realise that all the books on my reading list have already been checked out (fantastic).  Then I met Mat and Paul and we went for a drink, then came home.  We hung out and watched TV for a while, Paul's friend came over. Mat and I went to bed around midnight.  About an hour later, we get a knock on our bedroom door - not the front door, our bedroom door. At 1 am.  I assumed it was Paul, so I said come in. And who comes in? ....................... 

a London Metropolitan Police Officer.

Awkward.

Apparently when Paul's friend left he didn't close the door to our apartment all the way.  The police were going to our neighbour's house for a domestic disturbance call or something (so the neighbours opened the outside door for them), saw our apartment door open, and came in.

Such a disconcerting experience.  

I'm now going to triple-check the door every night before I go to sleep.

House pictures

Here are some pictures of our house.. they aren't great, but I did my best.  And it's not really clean, so ignore all the clutter.

The shelf after we re-organized it for the millionth time.

Couch, chair, and our new picture :)

Other wall (that picture is Paul's contribution to the decor)

TV and stuff.

The cutest little corner of our house :)

Messy kitchen with zero counter space and only 1 drawer (who builds a kitchen with only 1 drawer?!)

Kitchen again.

Roof terrace (that door goes into our kitchen).

Back garden.  I've never actually been down there because it's really overgrown.. but it's pretty!

Our friendly neighbourhood pidden and Mat's herb garden.

Beginning of grad school..

Holy cow what a crazy busy week!  It's been absolutely nuts.

I can't even remember what I did on Monday to be completely honest.  I did go meet Mat, Paul and Daisy for a drink after they finished work.  Then we all went to Wahaca for dinner (and it was magical, like always).  I took these lovely pictures of Mat and Paul in the tube station :)

Arguing about which route is the fastest way to get home from Waterloo Station.

"Oh you're taking our picture?  We'll like each other now."

Being boyfriends.

Tuesday I had my first King's College event!  We had international student orientation at 10 am.  I went alone, scoped out the situation and found a friend!  Her name is Amanada and she's from New York.  I also met a girl from Milwaukee, and an Italian girl.  We didn't stay for all of orientation because a lot of the stuff they were talking about didn't necessarily pertain to me since I've lived in England before.  In any case, it was a long day.

Wednesday I had registration for classes.  You basically just go in, prove you're a human being, get an ID card, and then leave.  Easy peasy.  Afterwards, I had to walk over to the Waterloo campus (where most of my classes will be) for an induction into the International Child Studies programme.  I met the director, a few lecturers, and most of my classmates (who were all very nice).  We spent all day getting information thrown at us.  Then, we actually had a lecture!  I didn't know actual class was starting, because no one else start until next week.  Good thing I remembered to bring a pen and paper!  After the lecture we had a little social hour to get to know each other.  There are 3 other Americans on my course - 1 from Georgia, 1 from Texas and 1 from New York.

After that crazy long day, I ate with Mat at Canteen, came home, and had to go to an interview at 745 in Highbury.  Here's the difference between being in America and being in London.  I googled instructions from my house to the lady's house I was going to for the interview and it was 2.6 miles.. and I legitimately thought "I should probably just walk.. it's only 2 miles."  Then I looked at the tube stations between here and there, and decided I could take the tube halfway there and walk the rest of the way.  So I did.  In America, I would never walk a mile or two miles to get anywhere!  I would definitely drive.

My interview went well!  It's for a nannying job for two little boys on Tuesdays, which would be perfect with my school schedule.  Hopefully it works out!  The mom seemed really nice.

Yesterday, I met Amanda at Barbican Station so we could go to the King's College Fresher's Fair at the Barbican Centre.  We are technically "freshers" since it's our first year, but we are definitely on a different maturity level than the actual "freshers" who are only 18.  We walked around, got loads of free stuff, signed up for a million clubs, then left!  I went to meet Mat in Covent Garden and we did some shopping - he needed new t-shirts so we ended up buying 2 pairs of shoes and some new dress shirts.  We are not good shoppers. 

When we got back home, we decided to go bowling.  When we got to the bowling alley, it was just going to be so expensive!  It costs £1 per person to get into the place, £1 per person for shoe rental, and £4.70 per game per person.  Ridiculous!  So we played pool instead.  And raced cars on those stupid arcade machines.  It was actually pretty fun :)  Then we went home and made homemade pizzas and ate them.  Mat attempted a stuffed crust pizza but it didn't turn out very well.  Not enough cheese!

Today I'm going to catch up on stuff.  I have so many things to register for and so many people to email back and call!  I also need to go to the library for the million books I need to be reading for class (I stayed up last night reading the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child - it put me right to sleep!).  And I have another interview tonight at 7 in Putney, so I need to get everything done by 5ish!  

Some final pictures - we have a cat who lives next door and comes onto our roof terrace sometimes, which is fine.  He's a nice cat.  The other morning, I look out the window and there's a fox on the roof terrace as well!  The cat sat on the steps and wouldn't let the fox go down the stairs.  It was really funny to watch, actually!

Fox trying to figure out if there's an alternate escape route.

He decided sitting in the sandbox was the best option.

Cat gave up, so the fox left too.

Alright I am off to be productive!

Picture post

I'm not going to write a long post about the last few days because there's just too much to write!  So I'm just posting pictures from the Olympics and other miscellaneous things today.

Walking into the Excel Centre to watch Boccia/Sitting Volleyball.

China v. GB - Sitting Volleyball

Warming up.

Boccia.  The GB player did not win.  Seriously, China is good at EVERYTHING.

Waiting for the train home.

Walking into Olympic Park in Stratford.

The boyfriend.

Us with the Olympic Torch.

Javelin.

After they threw the javelin, the volunteer would get the javelin and put it in the back of this mini Mini. The Mini would drive it back to where the athlete was. AWESOME.

Just an American getting a gold medal :)

Wheelchair racing.

Mathew with Olympic Stadium.

Union Jack with the Olympic Torch.

Mat.

So cool to see in person.  It radiates a lot of heat!

Visually impaired runners with their guides.  This year, the guides got medals as well.  They do all the same training and put in as much work as the athletes.

The guides line the runners up in the starting blocks, keep them in their lanes, and talk to them throughout the race.

Olympic Stadium.

They had so many things going on at once!  While we were there we saw triple jump, javelin, shot-put, wheelchair racing, running, and a relay.

Me with some cool architecture outside Olympic Stadium.

That's all for Olympics pictures!  Now onto the other stuff...

Evie (Mat's niece) and I. We're best buds.

Just hanging out in the garden.

I'm sure you're as surprised as I am to see Mat sleeping.. ALWAYS sleeping!

We went to Somerset House to get wine/food at this little tapas place just inside only to realise that London Fashion Week was going on inside Somerset House.  Needless to say, we stuck out like sore thumbs in our normal jeans and a shirt outfits.

Somerset House + London Fashion Week.

We went back to Covent Garden and drank Prosecco (our favourite!) outside a restaurant instead.

After drinking, we went to eat at Jamie Oliver's pop-up restaurant Union Jack's in Covent Garden Market.  We went last year to a different location and it was awful.  This time it was actually really good!  They do British flatbread pizzas, and mostly seafood for main courses.

<3

Covent Garden is busy on a Saturday night!

Waterloo Bridge - it was really windy! 

Here's our newly decorated bed :)  Mat still doesn't understand the need for decorative pillows, but I talked him into getting them anyway.

Finally, Portobello Road Antique Market in Notting Hill.  Mom, you would LOVE this place.

So crowded!  It's basically a HUGE antique market every Saturday.  All the antique stores have booths on the sidewalks, and there are tons of walk-through markets with stalls. 

Here's what I bought:

How cute is that!?  Mat and Paul were even impressed!

I also bought some old keys that I'm going to do something crafty with.

Some other tidbits about the last few days:

1. I tried to bake Mat a belated birthday cake.  It turned out okay, but I took some shortcuts in the recipe so it was a little weird.  And fell apart.  Frosting was good though!

2. I bought a CD from a street performer in Covent Garden.  It was £10, which wasn't too bad.  He was amazing.  The CD is not as amazing though.  Lesson learned!

3. I don't have a job yet.  Wahhh.

4. I'm going to International Student Orientation tomorrow at King's College!  I don't really need any of the information they're going to give, but I thought it'd be nice to go and get acquainted with some of my new classmates!  Then registration is on Wednesday.

5. Mat's back at his old restaurant today (in Royal Festival Hall).  It's a bigger, busier site, and he'll be managing that one and overseeing things at Covent Garden.  It's not as easy of a journey on the tube for me to come visit him in Waterloo though!  I guess they weren't thinking about my convenience when they made this decision :)

6. I've started doing yoga.  By started, I mean I did it once. This morning. An hour ago.  Hopefully I'll stick with it :)

That's all!