Sneaky LIttle Changes

Wow, they may be taming me.

A friend and I were planning on going to a Da Vinci exposé. Much to our chagrin, we discovered that the tickets were already sold out. For the next 4 months.

I've always been fascinated by him, not so much because of his art, but because of his inventions and his unique and odd personality. How cool is it that he wrote his journal in mirror-image writing? And have you ever seen sketches of his flying machine?

Needing to confirm such terrible news for myself, I googled it. What did people do before the Internet. I never cease to wonder. And when will they add "Google" as a verb to the dictionary? Those little red underlines annoy me.

It was true. But while I was on the National Gallery website, I checked out some of their free talks, and admission (Canada, it's free by the way. As are all of the big museums. And you can actually go right up to relics here. And dogs are allowed on buses, and in pubs. Just a few things we could learn from our mother country.)

I started seriously considering checking out the gallery this coming Saturday. And then I caught sight of a photo of the front of the building. Do you know that I walked right past it my first week here, wandering around Trafalgar Square? I admired the living painting to the side (but only because it was made of plants), giving the front steps a wide birth, shuddering, and thinking "Not going in THERE!"

They're sneaky here. You visit all of these interesting buildings, and they casually strew a few paintings here and there for you to admire. Some of them are ginormous, and you stare at them from the sheer novelty of the size! Next thing you know, you start looking at the people in the paintings, wondering who they are. And then you start noticing how they make the eyes so life-like, the brush strokes, the painting techniques. Sneaky, sneaky.

Christmas Present Ideas

My mum just found the sweetest MacBook skin. It's Snow White, taking a bite out of the glowing MacBook apple. How cool is that? It's from SkinAT.cc

Continuing classroom adventures

I've had a good last couple of weeks. We're getting into the holidays, so schedules are a little bit more flexible, and there's a lot more variety. Lots of Christmas productions in the works. It's a good thing that I've watched the Sound of Music many times... I had to teach "Do, A Deer" to a class of 4 year olds, with no prep. Another day I got to play Miss Hannagan (sp?) in Annie. I still have "it's a hard knock life" playing through my head.
Kids have the strangest memories. I was in a school that I'd visited once about 2 months ago. The kids from the next door Reception class came up to me at playtime to ask me if I could help them draw a spider web. Sure they don't remember the actual curriculum I taught them that day, nor my name (they all think I'm miss "Cones" here, which I suppose is about as close as "Coombs" back home), but they remember some random 5 minute activity I did with a few of them. It's like when the girls at camp, who by the way were NOT in my cabin, wanted to show me their teeth were squeaky after brushing them (the year before, when they WERE in my cabin, I couldn't get them to brush their teeth for the life of me).
Getting side tracked, as usual.
Next week I'm at my favourite school again. I've got a Year 1 class (kindergarten) that I know fairly well. My personal mission is to try to train them not to crowd around me poking me and saying "Miss, miss, miss!" while I'm already speaking to one of them. I'm not sure it's possible. I can barely train my 11 year olds back home. Any ideas you experienced infant teachers?
Well, my train has arrived at its destination. I'm off to see the queen! May have to settle for her castle.

Come and listen to a story about a man named Jed...

One of my housemates complemented me on how well put together I was looking this morning. I answered "I'm a real girl now," referencing Pinocchio. Then expanded with "I'm not a puppet anymore." As soon as it was out of my mouth, I realised the irony of my statement.

That being said, I sure felt small town when we got to Camden Market, and we stepped into Cyberdog. All of my senses were totally overwhelmed. The staff either looked like they were intent on becoming cyborgs, or being adopted into the Jetsons family.

I loved Camden Stables Market... it's built on the site of a Victorian horse hospital, which was used to treat the horses that were injured while pulling the barges down the canals. You could catch glimpses of giant copper horse sculptures through the milling crowds everywhere you looked. And the stalls! You could find anything your heart desires, from retro and vintage, to the exotic and the bizarre. It winds its way under the open sky, through the old arches, and down into the catacombs bellow.

Later on, I creatively found my way to meet Kim at Oxford Circus. WHY they choose to shut down half the tub lines for repairs on weekends is beyond me. Supposedly half of London commutes out of town for the weekends, and it's "dead". I can't wait to see the congestion during the Olympics next summer. Side-tracking, side-tracking.

The Christmas shoppers are out! We wove our way down Regent Street, clutching each other's sleeve or coat collar, finding our way to Hamleys Toy Store... 5 floors of fun for children of all ages! They have hired extra workers for the holidays, demonstrating toys. With all of the people, the toys flying around,the decorations and the Christmas music blasting from the speakers, the place had the distinct feel of Santa's workshop.

Two Blogs Behind

I'm falling behind. There aren't enough hours in the day. Why is it, that no matter where I live, whether it be in a remote Northern community, or bustling London, I end up booked solid? Hmmm.... obviously have not learned my lesson yet about scheduling, and giving myself time off. PS, I still consider myself an introvert.

First blog entry:
I've officially ditched the group fiddle lesson in Northern London. I always try to see things through to the end, but this time I don't feel all that guilty.
As it happens, there is a Folk Club that meets at the White Horse Pub at the end of my street on the same night. My housemate accidentally stumbled upon it, and passed on the information. I went last night, and had a blast. No one there takes themselves too seriously (one lady has a ukelele plastered in puffy stickers), and they're super friendly and welcoming. Very much the opposite of my experience in London.
What I hadn't realised is that it's more of an open mic night with crowd vocal participation than a jam session. So I stood up and played in front of a crowd of strangers. If I keep this up, I might actually get over my stage fright and stop choking in the middle of my songs.
And they loved the infusion of new Canadian tunes! New to them at least. I was even asked to take a second turn. The only problem is that I'm now out... I played Pelican Reel, Log Drivers' Waltz and St. Anne's Reel. Then I played Cripple Creek, which is probably American, but they had never heard either. Can anyone suggest any other tunes that are Canadian and might be a part of my limited repertoire?

Second blog entry:
I was invited to a women's Bible/book study tonight. They're doing a study of the book of James. Tonight's topic was about money. It was incredibly eye opening. Some of the attitudes towards money are the same as in North America, at least in a general sense (disposable society, temptation to live above your means). However, as much as Canada was colonized by Great Britain not that long ago (historical time takes on whole new meaning this side of the pond), there have been different influences on each society. Also, the neighbourhood I live in is a little more strapped for cash.
I certainly felt a little sheepish about my current lifestyle. Quite honestly, I'm on a bit of a joy ride. I'm still working for my keep, and having to work hard, but I'm hardly wondering whether or not I will be eating today, or having to choose between taking my child to the doctor or putting the next meal on the table. Trusting in God takes on a slightly new shade of meaning.

"but I didn't inhale!"

I had an amazing time in Oxford this weekend. I wandered around town gawking at the architecture, highlighted by he Autumn colours for a couple of hours until Jen was finished work. And the window shopping! There were so many nice things.
I can't get over how gorgeous the town is. The colleges, libraries and churches all look like medieval castles, covered in gargoyles. And I loved how almost everyone traveled by bike. There must have been a few graduation ceremonies that day too, because many people were wearing their gowns.
Chris took us to his favourite pub for super. Apparently it was the place that President Clinton didn't inhale. After why I have to admit was good pub grub, we walked out to the Guy Fox bonfire and fireworks. Much better than Halloween.

Today we went for a walk in the countryside. I love how there are public footpaths crisscrossing the country, although I suppose they are the bane of farmers' existence. There's so much to see and so little time.