Julie London - ain't that so me??

Random Xmas dinner

Went out with the girls last Thursday for Xmas drinks before everyone went to spend holidays with family. I accidentally met in that place a friend of a friend who we went out with about two months ago. After countless glasses of wine on both sides, he invited us on Sunday at their place for Xmas dinner.
What followed was utterly unexpected. We had a proper English Xmas dinner: chicken (well, usually it's turkey, but chicken was better!), roast vegetables, filling, bacon and sausages, gravy and of course Christmas pudding. We had the best laugh in ages, playing drinking games and drinking a queer alcohol (can't remember the name, but will sureley find it out for everyone) which reminded me with equal vigour of anti-freeze liquid and mouthwash. I almost had a heart attack from the bright pink anti-freeze alcohol, but the best time I've had in ages with English people.
That makes me think about stopping to be judgemental once and for all. I have met so many lovely people lately in so many unsual circumstances that I am starting to believe that the most random ocassions turn out to be the best.

PS

Recently I noticed so many handsome men walking the streets of London. Have they not been there before? Have I not seen them? Have I been going about my things with narrowing glasses on my face and selected to actually see only bits of the scenery and did that not include looking at men? Is it the fact that I am now more confident about myself and have the courage to look at people on the street or is it that most good-looking men live/work in this area? I almost feel like a kid in a candy store: I want them all!...

New Year resolutions

Today we went for a Xmas lunch with our Boss, bought him a pressie and started talking about all kinds of random things as we usually do. Then we suddenly started talking about New Year resolutions. I haven't really thought about it, but more than ever, I feel that this year's end truly means an end to an era and next year will bring a start to a whole new dimension in my life. I can feel it.
This year I have finally made peace with a lot of issues that were troubling me. This year I am finishing with my Masters, I've got my blue card, I've moved, I've travelled, I've made a lot of new friends and I started to finally love London. I can now see the London I was suppose to see when I first came, with that naive fresh vision that I had back when I was 23, with that hunger for life and adventure that I then lost along the way. I know I have completely lost myself at some point and I am glad to say that I found myself once again. That feeling of "I am not where I am supose to be" is gone and now if I do wake up in the middle of the night I think " Hell, yeah, I am exactly where I am suppose to be, I'm on my way".
I went the other day to Gloucester Road to the Thai Embassy. God, I know this place very well. I think I came to Gloucester Road tons of times to work or to check the staff at Millenium Gloucester Hotel during my days back at the agency. I do not recall pleasant feelings about the area... Though I remember one sunny day when I was smoking a cigarette on a bench outside the tube station and thought about how maybe my life will be different one day, I would go to University and be a full righted citizen in he UK. Now thinking about it, I am all that. And with that thought in mind, I made up with Gloucester Road as well.

But coming back to New Year resolutions, although I have not really though about it in a serious way (as I usually do when it comes to those things), I kind of have a pretty good idea what I want to achieve for myself in the next year.
Firstly, next year I'll be 30 and as I promised myself a while ago, there are a few things that I probably always dreamt about doing and I wanted to do them before I turn 30. I will make a list and try to stick to that list if it kills me! I could mention a few from the top of my mind: learn how to dance tango, go to Argetina, go to New York and get a ride in a limo and finally write that book I have been toying with. I think I am ready for the biggest challenge of my life: writing. I always had a sense of mediocracy attached to me, but as time goes by I am becoming more confident and things don't happen overnight but they require hard work and many failures before something good is achieved. I know that I cannot bear to be ridiculed as a writer and also prefer to spare myself the disapointment of bad writing, but then again, I owe to myself to try and fail if necessary. At least I won't be longing for it for the rest of my life.
I must say that writing on this blog helped me a great deal to come to terms with the ideas that are always running around inside my head and also getting some kind of feed-back from people gave me a boost and the confidence to keep doing it. Perhaps it is some kind of mental preparation for what it is still to come.
Well, there you go. Quite bold and outrageous New Year resolutions. I remember the times when I was writing down in my diary that in the New Year I will go to gym and lose weight. This is now a part of my life that I don't even think of anymore, I just do it.
Another funny thought I had at lunch today. Aga was saying that she thinks that she must have lived in an Arabic country in another life. All that talk about past lives sprung some strange ideas to my mind: would I ever start over again?... I know we all feel nostalgic about losing chidlhood and adolescence and all, but when I think about it when you are mature you have it all. Plus, at any given age you are probably the best version of a your younger self and you keep growing into a better you until the day you die. Probably even old age has some magic attached to it. You see things with clarity and serenity and gone are the days of struggling to find out who you really are. Therefore I ask, would I ever turn back the clock and start all over again. Hell, no! And that is a crazy feeling. You're not yearning for the past anymore, you just want to embrace the future and what it holds for you... And that is probably a sign that you are happy...

There and back again

I have a feeling that I am finally living the life I have been longing for all my life.
Funny, it had to when I am almost 30. Guess what, this doesn't scare me anymore!

I remember last year I was full of anguish and had a sense of my-life-is-not-going-anywhere... How big a difference a year makes... I am amazed...

It's Christmas time and I am trying to recall the Christmases I have spent in London. I don't remember the first one, nor the second... I remember the third Christmas when I was working in Marriott Park Lane and it wasn't actually that bad, I could see the skating rink in Hyde Park and it was probably the first time I spent the night in a 5 stars hotel and indulged myself in a long bubble bath. Then I remember the last two Christmases I spent home in Sinaia with family and friends and that was really lovely but then again I wasn't in London... I have a feeling this is going to be the first really nice and proper Christmas I'll spend in London.

New Year will be on the beach in Koh Phagnan. My first New Years Eve in the UK found me at work in Novotel Hammersmith and we had a brief glass of champagne at midnight and then rushed back to work with heavy trays and trolleys. Then I've had an awful New Years Eve in Cardiff at the Millenium Stadium, arguably the worst New Years Eve in my life.

This year I'll turn 29 on te beach in Thailand and I'll look back and think: " I did allright."

My friend had her first fight with her boyfriend and thought it was all over before it even started properly. I urged her to do her best to clear the situation. She was so depressed. I've never seen her like that. I knew it must have been serious by the looks of it. We spent a lot of time talking about the ugly reality of relationships and misleading behaviour, bad luck and imposibility of love. On the back of my mind I was hoping they would make up. I had to believe that love and relationships are still possible. If that happened to her, why would I have been luckier? They made up and yesterday at a friendly Xmas party I met a man that reminded me of Mr Darcy of Pride and Prejudice.

Is it all then just a matter of time?...

A beautiful day

I've had one of the best Sunday today. Though Magda was a bit upset, we went to the Shoreditch Flower Market on Columbia Road (we actually walked all the way there and the air was full of the Christmasy spirit you usually get on a cold winter day near Christmas time) and discovered the most beautiful place. Secluded somehow, it's a street full of flowers, Xmas trees, wraths and misteltoes and bordered by lovely boutique shops on both sides selling candy, pop art, photographs and interior design.
We went to this precious italian cafe that was so pretty and so small that people stepped on each other's toes to pass through the tables. It was incredibly crowded, but still very cosy. I had left my heart there and promised myself to come back for a nice ciabatta with young gorgonzola and sun dried tomatoes.
Then we bought the Xmas tree and still lots of goodies, candles and heart shaped gigantic tree decorations.
And tonight we went to the Coldplay concert at the O2. I am not particularly impressed with Coldplay's music as I find it a bit soft for a rock band, but I knew they are incredibly good at live shows and was expecting for the best. What I experienced was a not only a fantastic performance, Chris Martin's unbelievable voice and fabulous sound, but also the closest and most honest interaction with the audience I've ever seen from any artist so far. When they came on the stage, Chris said: "Back in London town... It's great to be home! You're the best!" You could see they are having the time at their life and feeling like home, as if every single person in the crowd was a personal friend. And also something that made me think highly about them is the fact that they all can sing and they all can play several instruments. They function like an entity, like a single organism with four heads. Truly amazing. Apart of that, I fell in love with the bassist Guy Berryman :)) And it seems I am not the only one. Check this link out :))

I changed my mind

We will have a Xmas tree and proper festivities.

Sunday we'll go to the flower market and pick a nice tree and have the traditional Xmas drinks with friends and I will be going to Thailand. I am determined to be positive and have a good time!!!

And for some reason I still don't know I feel that 2009 will be great!

Much love!

The Kooks...

...are fabulos!
Have read some bad review on the London Paper about their performance at the Roundhouse, but I went to see them tonight at the Brixton Academy and the rocked!!! I thank God for bands like that that sing live (and what a heavenly voice!!) and can make you feel so alive without any magic tricks, but pure energy, great singing and damn good songs.

I had no clue who was singing in the opening and had the nice surprise to see the Mystery Jets doing a very good job as well. That's what I call good performance!!!

Xmas has been cancelled

This year doesn't feel like Christmas. It might just be the first month in a very long time when I haven't bought any clothes, shoes or even toiletries. I realized I can live without buying a lot of useless things. It's true that my wardrobe seems poorer and I don't feel like dressing up anymore, it feels like everyone is in expectation of something before going about with their usual things.
This year we don't have a Xmas Party at work. Well, they had some kind of lunch and bowling and didn't invite the consultants, but frankly couldn't be bothered to go. I feel like being left alone...
Which is actually sadly happening. I thought I'd finally have a normal Xmas in UK and will probably have a nice and cosy one with good friends, but I also feel that I miss a place of my own with family around. I am getting tired of running in my life. I feel like sitting down on a comfy sofa, sip on good wine and be surrounded by family and friends...
Xmas is always kind of sad. Like summer. I have so many expectation on Xmas and again I'll have a cold and lonely one... I don't even feel like having a Xmas tree... What's wrong with me?...

Premonitii

Am inceput sa ma gandesc la o casa a mea... Azi e insorit si placut afara, parca ar fi primavara timpurie... M-am plimbat prin imprejurimi, pe langa Essex Road si m-au incantat casutele pe care le-am vazut in drum. Visez sa am si eu una in care sa-mi creez un birou al meu unde sa lenevesc toata ziua in cautarea inspiratiei creatoare, sa beau Earl Grey, sa am un caine pe care sa-l scot la plimbare pentru a ne dezmorti amandoi, sa ascult muzica din alte lumi si sa iubesc.

Pentru prima data si simt ca nu e un vis irealizabil. Il simt cum se indreapta cu pasi inceti dar siguri catre concretizare. Pana acum, de cate ori ma gandeam la viitorul meu, nu ma puteam decide unde va fi si cum va fi si cum imi voi permite sa-mi cumpar o casa etc etc. Acum viata mea incepe sa prinda radacini, nu mai oscilez in deriva intre doua lumi la fel de straine. Ma impac cu ambele lumi, ma regasesc in fiecare asa cum trebuie... Intr-una sunt acasa, intr-una sunt in vizita si ma simt la fel de bine...

Ieri m-am intalnit cu Adina, care a venit cu Alecs pentru cateva zile. Londra e mediul nostru, mediul care ne-a adus impreuna si unde prietenia noastra e plenara. Am vorbit vrute si nevrute pana tarziu, ne-am dat sfaturi si am emis concluzii despre viata. Ea e mamica, iar eu single la varsta matura. Mi-am dat seama cat de norocoasa sunt ca trec prin toate aceste etape. Stiu ca atunci cand va veni momentul sa ma casatoresc si sa-mi asum o familie, nu voi regreta ca nu mi-am trait singuratatea din plin. O traiesc organic, ma desfat in ea de parca as sti ca nu va mai dura mult... Ca in curand voi avea o casa, un caine, un sot care sa ma completeze si la un moment dat si un copil...

Am senzatia ca varsta de 30 de ani contine o simbolistica magica pentru mine. Ceva important in viata mea va avea loc la varsta de 30 de ani. In 3 saptamani implinesc 29. Numere la intamplare sau semne?... cine stie? Azi zambesc!...

Looking for a flatmate

It's been funny. We started placing ads even before moving into the new flat. We've had loads of people interested and I thought we would find someone in no time.
It hasn't exactly been like that...
We placed an ad for a man to occuppy the spare room as we have lived with men and they can be quite easy going and hassle free and we thought it would balance things up.
In reality, we were living with different kind of men. The ones that are looking for a place in Old Street area are the fussiest people I ever saw. If they bothered to show up for viewing, they complained they had to walk too much to Old Street (15 minutes walk it's not such a terrbile walk I'd say), or the room was too small or I don't know what... They couldn't see the benefits of this flat: modern and clean, airy and close to the city, but still within reasonable price.
I started to worry that we won't find anyone to take the room. I started doubting the benefits of the flats... Yesterday I received an e-mail from a girl and, contrary to what I usually did, I asked her to come and see the flat. At that point, I would have probably taken anyone who was more or less normal and would pay the rent on time.
She came on time, all smiles and playful, acting naturally and not at all weird. We had a conversation as if we knew eachother since forever and she totally liked the place. She said she'd move in anytime, wasn't fussy at all. We promised to call her back, as we had someone else to see the place as well. She said that if we decided to give the room to a tall, dark, good-looking man she wouldn't hold it against us :)
The guy that came afterwards is another story. We looked him up on Facebook and found we have a friend in common. Turned out he was the brother of a guy that Magda and I know. We thought this was hillarious and thought it might be fate! He wasn't such a match though. I suppose he was shocked when we told him we know his brother... He said he's give us a call today but after he left Magda and I looked at eachother and said in the same time: "I kind of liked the girl!" So we called her welcoming her in out crib.
I'm glad we did. She sent us a good vibe and I'm sure we'll have lots of fun together.

But then another funny thing happened. While we were talkig about it, someone knocked at the door. I went to see who it was and I saw a black man with a red jacket. I asked who it was but he kept on knocking. I freaked out and Magda and I hid in the kitchen like idiots. I said we should call the Police and she started laughing. "What are you going to tell the Police? That someone's knocking at your door?" she asked and I bursted into laugh as well. I guess I watched too many episodes of Dexter lately and all I see is serial killers. It was probably some neighbour, or someone from the Council or even the guy from Virgin Broadband, hence the red jacket.

Perhaps a man would come in handy in times like this, when someone is knocking at the door, but then again, if a man is not a man, I'd always go for a strong woman. :)

Housewarming party

I was a bit pissed off with people saying they won't be coming to our housewarming party on Staurday, but to my total suprised we've had a great numer of people showing up (among which some of the Enfield boys around 3am) and the party was wicked.

I was really happy to see so many turn ups and being surrounded by so many friends can't be compared to any other feeling. It's true it took me quite a while to recover, but at least our house has been warmed up now! :)