Day 19 - Repetition

We all find comfort in particular places, people, things, memories.
Something 'comforting' by definition, is easy to be around and experience.
We enjoy the repetition and sameness of such experiences;
knowing that the experience will be the same as the last, positive, one.

I don't do it often, because i don't like getting complacent,
but i spent day 19 repeating things that i'd already done.

I watched this for the third time in the IMAX, with a third person.



And i went on a first date with a man here 11 weeks ago.


I won't see him for another 11 weeks, and so i think eating here again, 11 weeks on, was a nice full circle sort of experience.

Circles are good, and very repetitious. We'll eat there again in 11 weeks, and we'll be sure to have the same waitress (also extremely knowledgeable on San Francisco - person 48!), and i will most likely go to watch Avatar again. Maybe i'll repeat the trend of dragging a new person along every time?

Day 18 - Generational Differences

This is Kio



Whilst very handsome and youthful, he grew up slightly before me, and is so not part of the facebook generation.
I met him virtually before i met him physically.
I found our physical convergence to be somewhat unnerving.
We came to the conclusion that this is because i developed two separate personalities as i grew through puberty - one normal one, and one for to deal with the social environment of the virtual world. Anyone currently over the age of 24, i have calculated, has no such split personality.

A generation of Schitzo's has been born.

Also, in an almost separate coincidence, Kio is the 47th person i've met this month that has been, or is going to San Francisco. Small world indeed.

Day 17

Again with the Julie & Julia references, i don't want this to be too boring.
Again with the failed plans, my day did not go according, and i am still yet to ever see Laura Chambers (one of my closest friends) in the daylights.
Again, Louise Hemmings cooked an incredible dinner.
Again, we all ate it up.
I said Goodbye to Laura, as she was off to Saudi Arabia. I warned her not to be as Racist as Carrie Bradshaw whilst in that part of the world, gave her my love, and told her i would see her in three months!

A life lesson - Day 16

Some drugs make some people paranoid.

Some people use the wrong Oyster card, and the beepy machines don't let them into the underground. These people should be reminded that everyone on the train is not a secret agent of the Oyster Card Police.

Today i learned not to ride the underground while Stoned.

Race For Life - Day 15

I don't have a picture of her, but her memory is quite preserved.
My dear Yiayia mou, Loukia, died in February 2007 from Cancer.


A few months ago my Mom and Sister signed themselves up for the 'Race for life', in memory of my grandmother. I'm eternally proud of them both.

So, the race was today; day 15. The location was Hampstead heath. The plan was to turn up, watch my mom and sister race, then hang out with friends.

But we all know what happens to plans.

We woke up two hours late, severly hangover. Turned up late, and my WHOLE family (seven members... not to say that tehre are only 7 people in my family, but you get the point.) were sat in a circle.
We joined the circle and awkward moments ensued.
My dad, then began to reminisce about Vanuatu. Me being hungover, and exited about my coming trip, then began to cry. Even more awkward.

It was only after that situation ended, that i realised what a difficult situation it was!

A curry picnic was then consumed, and was followed by some food that i found absolutely repulsive. Gulab Jamon.

Gulab Jamon

It sounds like something Demonic. It tastes like crap.
This is them. Don't be fooled by thier looks.



One internet website describes them as follows:
"Gulab jamuns are an Indian version of donuts immeresed in the warm sweet syrup."

Not a warm sweet syrup, but the warm sweet syrup. I don't know what point this proves other than bad English (which doesn't prove anything, because they're Indian anyway).but my point is, don't try them.

Instead, Have the greek version. Loukamides. The name sounds like a flower, or a God, and they taste like heaven. Everyone wins.

THE SWISS

This was also on Day 14, so part of me wants to take back that last entry, but we should not take things back.

I'm aware that this blog is fast becoming a diary, so i have deleted everything i just wrote and will tell you the following 5 things.

1. The cab driver had 2 GPS's and still succeeded in going the completely wrong way. The Australians in the car, in true fashion, shouted him down. The Englishman in the car, in true fashion, got out his map and directed us to safety.

2. THE SWISS

3. Before this night i had never before seen Tower Bridge with my own eyes.

4. Until this night, i believed Tower Bridge to be hundreds of years old. I was informed it was about 90.

5. Quite profoundly, while looking at Tower Bridge, i recited that "Going away for a long time is like pressing a pause button on your life, except nothing pauses and everyones lives still go on. The pause button is broken."

Day 14

So day 14 was on a Saturday. I had a wonderful day with Max. We went to Victoria park and had a picnic. There was even a wedding. We made a cake. And some people swam through poo.

This is the point, where, if i were Julia, in the film 'Julie & Julia', i would begin to doubt my capability at doing this for 100 days. Just like when she has to make that wierd upside down Jelly thing and it doesn't work; going to the park, however wonderful an experience, doesn't make for the most enthralling blog entry ever.

But i promise, by day 20, things will have picked up.

P.s
I've been notified that i wasn't quite clear on the fact that Day 13s point of interest was in fact watching 'Sex and the City 2' and not just racism.

Day 13

"What did she just say?"

" 'Bla bla bla bla bla Muslim women' is all i got."

Day 12

On this day, i woke up in my bed, in my grandparents house, un-alone. And had to sneak mantings out. It was quite joke.

And then i stayed up all night with Chambers and Ward and read poems.
One of the favourites of the night was Hungry Mungry.

Here is the picture Google provided:

Maybe it's not the picture for the poem. I can't really work out what the hell that picture depicts. But the poem is about Mungry who eats a lot of food, then ends up eating the world, the universe, and then himself, and then nothing is nothing is nothing is nothing is nothing to eat.

Day 11 - People!

Ok, so what shocked me about this day of my life (Seriously?).
Ok it wasn't shocking. It was nice though.
So i saw Max in the morning.
I then went to see Theo.
Theo, however, was hungover. So i improvised and knocked on the door of an old friend. Emily. Emily and I hung out for about an hour. It was fun!
Then i went out side, and who is sat on a bench just there? None other than Robbie! So i sit with him for a while and meet all his friends. Then i go to see Olivia. While i'm waiting for Olivia on Oxford street, who should i run into, but Kilian! Who i'd not seen for four months, but had now bumped into three times in one week. Chatted to him, and as he left, Olivia arrived.
Walked around with Olivia for a good while. We made friends with a man who served Mozerella, and who was drooling a lot, but noone with a name. As she was getting ready to go home i get a call from Max again. He's just outside. So i have a beer with max at Midnight, and who should stumble past our pub, but Lauren! Who i went to summer camp with when i was 10 and hadn't really seen since. It's wierd though, that just last week i approached her on facebook chat to ask about life, and then smack. She's having a beer with me in a touristic pub.
The day played out like a lame episode of a lame TV show, and it made me feel really popular. Thanks guys.