Promised Update

Hello everyone,

The Internet is back on in the flat (it has been for a few days now, thankfully!). Knock on wood though because you never know when it might mysteriously disappear again. I'm not sure what all to include in this entry, so it might be a little scatterbrained.

You know I got the shoe store job. Still stoked about that. I have to be go through a training day with Selfridges, but they only do those on Wednesdays, so I wasn't able to start today like I had hoped. I assume I'll be doing that on this Wednesday. I should get a call tomorrow to find out for sure. I'm just ready to start working because I need a routine. I've had a lot of free time these past two weeks, which is nice, but it also means I have time to think too much. I'm realizing thinking too much can make you depressed, so I want this job because it will get me on a schedule.

I suppose one big piece of news that I haven't mentioned on here yet is that Maggie and Matt have decided to move from the flat to a hostel. I'm bummed out about it, but I understand their reasons, so it's alright. However, it means I've had some stress and frustration about finding their replacements. Luckily, Maggie has been replaced by Kim, a sweet German girl who is interning with the Mayfair Hotel. She's going to move in tomorrow. I hope that goes well.

Matt hasn't moved yet, and we haven't found a replacement for him yet. Hopefully, we'll get some calls this week in order to make that second transition. Honestly, I wish Matt would stay here, but once again, I understand. I'll just be really happy when all of this gets panned out. Then, I can relax.

Another source of stress (and don't get me wrong, I'm not at all depressed or anything) is me being homesick. I know, I never really get homesick. When I was at college, I could go home anytime. It was just a 2 1/2 hour drive to Evansville. I think it's the sheer distance and inability to visit home whenever I want that is making me miss home right now. As a friend said, the honeymoon stage of this London experience has worn off, and now it's real life. I'm loving it, so that's a good thing, but...

I do miss a lot about home. Family, friends, my house, college, all of that good stuff. In fact, I just started a Moleskine notebook entitled "Memories and Misses." I'm just going to list fond memories and things I miss. It's actually quite comforting instead of making me sad. I had one nice memory on my walk home from dinner tonight. It's starting to cool down in London as Fall approaches, and I immediatly had a nice thought of UE soccer games and warming up under a blanket with mom, drinking hot chocolate. (This is the part where my mom starts to tear up; sorry mom!)

Like I said, this entry is a little scatterbrained, so in summation so far: I'm excited to start my job, the flat is going through some transitions, and I'm a little homesick, loving the things I miss back in the States.

Moving on, what have I done lately in London. Well, the biggest thing that sticks in my mind is this weekend, going to Loud Tate. It was a really neat, free youth event. We attended workshops on art making, watched a powerful play about knife violence, and coolest of all, got to see Metronomy live. They were so much fun! Here's a video:




The next day I went to Brick Lane for their Sunday street market. It was pretty amazing. I got some cool vintage and home-made clothing. More importantly, I ate a lot. I had a plate of noodles and chicken curry. A little later I had a tuna empanada with two different salads. A few minutes later I had a huge crepe with bananas, nutella, and dark chocolate flakes. It was all so delicious. I don't know what came over me, but I couldn't resist eating everything I saw. It was a nice day. I walked home from there, and it only took about a half hour. It's nice to be a short walk away from such a cool area.

I just realized this is a pretty long post. Sorry. Luckily, that's about all I have to say for now. The next update will include info about the new job once I've gotten into that. Until then, I miss and love you all very much!