Movement

I see you!

As you may remember, I love to watch people….on the sidewalk, in the tube…yeah pretty much everywhere. There’s just so much facinating stuff going on and we don’t know the half of it. Too many people don’t take the time to slow down and check what’s going on in the world around them.

So this weekend, my psychology classes are getting a chance to do some naturalistic observations. It’s their first project of the year. They have a choice of three different things to do:

1. observe a group of people interacting…this will be done in pairs
2. observe children & parents interacting in a playground
3. observe people in school doing their thang

I can’t wait to see what happens in this project…it’s always interesting to read what teenagers have to say about what they observe. It gets you thinking…what would I look for? how would I interpret this differently?

So perhaps today is a good day to think about your world. What do you see? How is your experiences influencing your interpretation of events? Could you ’see’ in a different way? Could this change you…your behaviours…your world?

How to almost have a heart attack

We won!!!

Yesterday, on our Bank Holiday Monday, the ladies cricket team were part of a 6-a-side cricket tourney. We were definitely NOT the favorites by any bit of the imagination. The team that everyone thought would win was the Alexander Palace team (aka Ali Pali). They have a few women who have played for years…and they always bat first. They are just strong & good (somewhat manly, but you know, that’s nothing against them). No one else got a chance to bat for them but these two ladies. Other teams used the day to let their entire team bat…but this team was out for the kill.

So we lost the first game versus the hosting team of Potters Bar (I love English town names!). Then we beat two other teams to get to the semi-final. Let me tell you…these games were close…tense…crazy! Then came our game versus Ali Pali. Previously, they had murdered us in our cricket games. Slaughtered. We didn’t have high expectations. But we had tactics. Our coach, Tom, put us in specific positions so that they couldn’t get high scoring runs (4s). And it worked. We kept them to 41…the lowest score they had for the day. Then it was our turn.

I was up to bat…and stayed to the end. We had ONE more ball to be bowled. And the score was 41 - 41. I decided to just run irregardless of what happened on the other end. So as the Ali Pali bowler let loose the ball, I took off for the stumps. And there wasn’t a hit. The ball bobbled around by the wicket keeper (like a catcher)…and I screamed to the other batter, Lucy, “Runnnnnn!!!!!!”. She took off, I got to the stumps in time and she was not run out. WE WON!!! A score of 42-41. Yup - I had saved the day. And our best win ever…against Ali Pali!

The last game was sorta ridiculous…it was played in the dark. And we won due to the fact that the other team just couldn’t SEE the ball. We didn’t really care about this game…but we won anyway! Woohoo…it was a long, hungover and lovely day!

I can make you do things

Today was the first day of full length classes…all 80 minutes of them. We have a block schedule so we have 4 one day and 4 the next. I have the fun of teaching one Psychology class on the odd days and the second on the even days. It’ll work out well.

So we started out with the kids writing down what comes to mind when they think about the word, ‘psychology’. It’s actually a cool exercise. Most people come up with Freud or ‘mind’ or ‘abnormal’ or something like that. And they did. And it’s a great segway to talk about what happens in the ‘world of psychology’. It captures them right from the beginning. All of a sudden, this class has some relevance. And it does…

• Advertising - they want to know how you think and what you might buy or not and why
• Military - how does the oppo think?
• Police - who might be a terrorist? what is their profile?
• School - how can we get kids to be more motivated?

Etc, etc, etc.

And then they have to think about where the info comes from. Who does the studies? How do they work? Is the information out there accurate? Is it truly scientific? Can someone really control what I do and think? Yup - mind boggling!

And that’s what makes it a great class…every day there is something that will hit you - we studied that, we talked about that…psychology is everywhere. And they don’t know it…but I’ll make them all do something without knowing they are doing it. But I’m not telling you what that is…at least not now.

Inconceivable…

Oh. My. God.

It’s the first day of school and I JUST (at 10:30am) got a chance to check out my fun email (usually it’s one of the first things I do after checking work email). And there it was. You won your Ebay bid. Hee hee.

Here’s the thing. I decided for shits & giggles that I would put in a ridiculous bid for a wedding dress. It’s quite pretty and simple…which I would want in a wedding dress.

But I never expected to win it. I put my total bid to top out at $25 (that’s about £18…which I spend on a meal quite regularly). I truly thought it’d be topped quite easily, as most of the wedding dresses I saw were being bought for $125+ (some even higher). But this one didn’t. I got it for $20.25. Crazy. That is £10.70 for me. That’s almost the price of a movie. That’s about what I pay for a few drinks out. And I bought a dress for that. Unbelievable.

I’m having it sent to the US (my dad’s address) so that I can try it on when I visit in Dec. I may wear it to part of the reception….not sure yet. Or perhaps, may not wear it at all, if it’s not too great a dress or it doesn’t work with my bod. For that price, it doesn’t really matter!

Here’s to Ebay…now we’ll see if the seller actually sends it to me!

Survival…meetings…and food

I survived the first day back at work. And what a day it was…

6:30am - woke up for the first time in ages at this time (on purpose at least). Body went into shock. Why am I doing this? Oh, yeah, to be able to live in London…and because I’ve done it at every other school job I’ve had. This is normal. This is okay. You’ve had tons of vacation…it’s time to get back into the swing of things. Okay. Shower.

7:30am - catching the train. I forgot about the hussle and bussle of this. I forgot about getting crammed between the guy in his painting clothes that clearly haven’t been washed in a while and the businessman who is okay with jamming his briefcase into your right thigh.

7:50am - pull out teacher ID to show to guards at the front. They’re still in their “I must be stern” mode. You laugh and say ‘hi’. Then they smile.

8:00am - get your cup of tea. You have 1 hour until the first meeting. But you have to pull out all your stuff, organize your desk, remember the password to your voicemail, check emails, etc, etc, etc.

9:00am - you are sitting in the gym. You got there early to get a back of the bleachers seat…cause it’s painful otherwise. Woohoo…it worked. But then you have to sit there for 2 hours. They tell us that kids ought not have to sit for a full 80 minute class…why not allow us to at least stretch. I’m losing concentration.

11:00 - next meeting. This one is in the commons. Ahhh…seats with backs. And it only lasts one hour. It’s not so bad. But still…it’s the first day.

Noon - you are hungry, but know the line in the caf will be huge. So you go up to your office, and do the work that is needed. Typing up lists of kids is so exciting, but necessary. You’ll check them over tomorrow for typos and missing kids. Fun, fun.

Next meeting is at 1:30pm, so at 1:00, you are rushing to get a sandwhich (roasted veggie in a wrap), yogurt and apple. Good on you for being healthy.

1:30pm - another 2 HOUR MEETING. This one about retirement. Yes…YAWN! But you realize that you have more knowledge (or at least the ability to make connections) than most of your similar aged colleagues. Hah.

3:30pm - still have work to do. Stay for 1-1/2 more hours to get it done. It’s not finished…but you work at a school and so you are used to it…work is NEVER done!

5:00pm - get on tube, then train…run home and grab workout gear. Meet R. at gym. Do a bit of cardio and a bit of weights. Healthy again. Hmmm…is this a trend?

6:30pm - run home after showering…with R’s help, finish fixing the fridge. Wait for grocery delivery. Decide that since fridge has no food that you should eat a bowl of Japanese noodels. Mmmm. Oh. Answer door and get delivery of groceries. It’s good to have food again…and the simple things, like mustard!

10:00pm - go to bed. You have another big day ahead of you!

Light sleeping and a loud boy

I love my guy. R. is amazing. But sometimes he makes noises during the night that make me want to punch him in the face.

Last night I was tired. Very, very tired…and we had stayed up to put in our new fridge & try to make it fit in the box that the stupid people who had lived in the flat before us had installed. It didn’t work well and so we kept trying and trying…thus staying up a full hour later than I hoped for.

R. was exposed to dust and had been drinking heavily the night before, so his throat was a bit rough. I was hoping though, that he’d be okay during the night.

No such frickin’ luck.

I can’t even describe fully the noises that came out of his body at 3:30 a.m. Grinding throat things, snorty nose things and mumbling were all on display. I tried, but it was just not going to happen…nudging him just made him make more noise. So up I got, gathering bedding along the way, and pulled out the newly delivered futon in hope of some sleep. And if I didn’t have to get up for a cricket game that ended up being cancelled, I would have slept in like a teenager home from college. I can say that our new futon mattress is lovely to sleep on, and the room temp was comfy. It’s easy to open the thing up while in a hazy fuzz, so I know that I’ll be spending quite a few nights there in my years with R.

I’m still unhappy that I had to do this and would love to get my revenge (I won’t cause I’m a nice fiance)…but if it’s the worst thing about R. then I think life will be hunky dorry with him. I can put up with a few nights on ‘the couch’.

Winner

I went to see the England Ladies’ Cricket Team play against India yesterday. It was a great game…and we won!

I met the captain of my cricket team at Lord’s. It is one of the best known cricket grounds in the world…and a really cool ground to boot. We were lucky that her mum knew a member, so we were invited to go into the Pavillion. It’s an amazing facility. It reminded me some of the buildings at Princeton with the old polished wood, the pictures from the 18th century…the ‘old boy’ feel!

We went to the top of the Pavillion and watched the match. What a view! It was a great experience as I was able to see how the players moved their feet, what they did with their bat and how they watched the bowlers. I learned quite a bit.

Had to leave before we actually won, but it was looking good around 6:15pm (there was a late start due to rain…shocker).

Met up with my old flatmate, A., for dinner downtown. We went to one of our fav’s, Belgos (which I believe I’ve talked about in the past). Mussels and beer are a great combo!

Then headed home to see the guy. As per usual, he gave me a huge hug upon seeing me. Isn’t he the best?!

I had such a great time walking around Southall and looking at bridal outfits. I forgot my camera (doh!) and my mobile phone is on a fritz, so I didn’t take pictures. But there is a lot of gorgeousness going on for Indian brides.

I saw one young woman in her early 20s trying on a beautiful orange lehenga choli with LOTS of beadwork. And that’s one of the potential issues with these dresses….they are frickin’ heavy! Here’s a few examples of things that I did see…or at least something similar:

And as you can see, these types of outfits are quite sexy! I found one online that has less beadwork, thus lighter, though I’d have to have the neck-part removed (wouldn’t look so good in my opinion - you can see the full picture by clicking on the smaller one)…I may bring this pic to one of the places in Southall and see if they could make something similar…but only at a certain price.

And that’s one thing I definitely was in awe about. Sticker shock is not the word. These gorgeous pieces of work were amazingly expensive. I do understand it, but I’m not willing to pay it. For a dress I’ll truly wear only once, I can see paying over £1000…and in some cases, MUCH MORE. So we’ll see. I know it’s supposed to be a special day…but I want to also be practical.

Terror and a normal day

Happiness is not flying. I woke up this morning to find out that security alerts have gone up to their highest in both the UK and US…glad that I did all my flying earlier in the summer, glad that my old flatmate, A., arrived back in the UK on Monday and glad that I don’t have any other trips to go on for a while. Yes, I could still fly, but who wants to have to check in all your baggage. I love having handbaggage, just in case my bags get lost. I love bringing water with me as I can never get enough on the flight…now even mothers bringing milk for their babies will have to drink some of it to prove that it’s not an explosive. I feel like I’m back to the 9/11 time…similar restrictions.

No, today, there will be no flying. Instead I’m getting my hair done (roots done & highlights…getting old is a bitch). And after that I’m meeting A. for lunch. I’m working out with R. after he arrives home from work and then we’re going out for Indian food. And hopefully going to bed early (again, that aging thing). Nothing too exciting…but necessary for body & soul.

The more fun day will be tomorrow…I’m heading to Little India to look at potential wedding outfits. I’m joining a new friend I made through an web board, who is Indian and will be a great host in this search. So not only will I be shopping, but I’ll also meet a cool chick for the first time. I’ll take pictures so that you can see the cool things I looked at too!

A simple life

Have you ever had to live without a fridge? I don’t mean while camping or anything like that…I mean while living in a normal house or flat. Well…it’s been over 3 days since our fridge packed up and let me tell you - it’s NOT fun living without a fridge.

I was very sad throwing out all sorts of food. All the chutneys from Borough Market, the grape jelly specially imported from the States (they don’t have it here), the cheese and all sorts of other things that I had just recently purchased in a big shop. Sigh. Having to replace all of that will cost quite a few quid…having to replace the fridge will cost even more.

So we’ve been shopping for a fridge freezer. And we came across a few problems. We have a built in fridge that is no longer made…and the dimensions are not like any other fridge on the market. So we’re having to make do with the weird ones that we can find. And we’re trying not to spend a huge amount as we plan on selling the flat in about 3 years. Several nights and daylight hours have been spent online. We finally found the ‘perfect’ fridge…and it’s on backorder. Ugh! We have a little mini-fridge that fits a pint of milk and our butter but just barely.

I was hoping to eat more fruit and veg, but without a fridge it’s a bit hard to do so. We can’t cook anything that has leftovers or that needs refridgeration beforehand. It’s crazy. So we’re eating out a lot or doing things like making baked beans from a can (today’s lunch). Sigh.