Friday, August 28, 2009
Fortune Cookie
We went out for Chinese food last night. My fortune cookie told me "Take a trip with a friend." I think this is fantastic advice. My mom thinks it's a bit outdated, but I think the timing is great. The only problem is that I no longer have any money or time for travel.
Subconscious
Sometimes I wonder about myself. These moments of introspection mostly occur just after I properly wake up and realize what I dreamed about or, in more interesting circumstances, did while I was asleep. Apparently my subconscious self is somebody I would not like to meet.
A couple of weeks ago, my friends and I were at one of the houses in Wales. We were all sleeping except for one of my housemates. When she said she was going back to our house, I asked her to wait for half an hour and then I would walk back with her. So she waited for half an hour. The next morning, I realized what a ridiculous and jerk-like request that was.
Last night, I was asleep on the couch and John was trying to talk to me. I was trying to give the impression that I was coherent, although I'm not sure how well that turned out (badly, probably). At some point, I must have fallen completely asleep, and he thought it would be funny to poke me with something he had made from magnets and rods. Apparently my subconscious is not only a jerk, it's also violent. I woke up to find that I had smacked his spaceship and broken it apart. Oops.
Anyway, if you're ever around while I'm asleep, be afraid. Be very afraid.
A couple of weeks ago, my friends and I were at one of the houses in Wales. We were all sleeping except for one of my housemates. When she said she was going back to our house, I asked her to wait for half an hour and then I would walk back with her. So she waited for half an hour. The next morning, I realized what a ridiculous and jerk-like request that was.
Last night, I was asleep on the couch and John was trying to talk to me. I was trying to give the impression that I was coherent, although I'm not sure how well that turned out (badly, probably). At some point, I must have fallen completely asleep, and he thought it would be funny to poke me with something he had made from magnets and rods. Apparently my subconscious is not only a jerk, it's also violent. I woke up to find that I had smacked his spaceship and broken it apart. Oops.
Anyway, if you're ever around while I'm asleep, be afraid. Be very afraid.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
There's no place like home...
I am officially back in the United States. This is good news, in a way. For one thing, the dollar is a much nicer currency to have prices in than the pound. I love seeing people who have been thousands of miles away for the entire summer. School starts in less than a week, so I should probably be here. I actually have two jobs lined up for the semester, so I shouldn't starve. These are all good things.
On the other hand, at around 7 or 8 in the evening, I start to feel like death warmed over. Last night at around 8:30 my brother was bringing up my belongings from the basement so I can move them down to Provo today. He asked me to help. I said I would help in the morning. Intellectually, I understood that I should probably go contribute. Physically, it felt like 3:30 in the morning, and there was no way I was going to go start hauling things around. Then I wake up early in the morning. Waking up early is fine, when you have something going on. I have nothing to do. So I wake up before 7 and have nothing left to do by 11. If any of you have free time and would like to hang out, I'm going a bit crazy and would love to do something.
On the other hand, at around 7 or 8 in the evening, I start to feel like death warmed over. Last night at around 8:30 my brother was bringing up my belongings from the basement so I can move them down to Provo today. He asked me to help. I said I would help in the morning. Intellectually, I understood that I should probably go contribute. Physically, it felt like 3:30 in the morning, and there was no way I was going to go start hauling things around. Then I wake up early in the morning. Waking up early is fine, when you have something going on. I have nothing to do. So I wake up before 7 and have nothing left to do by 11. If any of you have free time and would like to hang out, I'm going a bit crazy and would love to do something.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Weirdness
Some random stories and thoughts from the last few days:
There was a weird old drunk 50 year old man who kissed my hand. It was disgusting.
Tonight a drunk guy came up to me as I was walking with some friends. He said he had just been arrested, and that earlier a guy had stabbed him in the hand. Then he tried to show us his stabbed hand. I looked away, but it was definitely bloody.
We decided it would be prudent to avoid him, so we waited for a while, until he went into a store. Then we kept walking. A few minutes later, he caught up to us and started showing us his bloody finger again. Gross.
I keep hoping my blog will update itself. I log on over and over, hoping that there will be something new and entertaining to read. Then I remember that I have to write things first. Sigh.
There was a weird old drunk 50 year old man who kissed my hand. It was disgusting.
Tonight a drunk guy came up to me as I was walking with some friends. He said he had just been arrested, and that earlier a guy had stabbed him in the hand. Then he tried to show us his stabbed hand. I looked away, but it was definitely bloody.
We decided it would be prudent to avoid him, so we waited for a while, until he went into a store. Then we kept walking. A few minutes later, he caught up to us and started showing us his bloody finger again. Gross.
I keep hoping my blog will update itself. I log on over and over, hoping that there will be something new and entertaining to read. Then I remember that I have to write things first. Sigh.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Homecoming
So, I am coming back to the States on Monday. This makes me kind of sad, because although I am excited to see people again, I am not excited to get back to regular life. While I have been here, I haven't had to worry about real homework, or tests, or school, or money. Food money was given to us each week, and I had saved spending money for over a year. What say you all just come visit me in Wales instead of me coming home?
Friday, August 14, 2009
Hamlet
The reason my group and I were hobos was to get tickets to Hamlet, starring Jude Law. Every morning they give out 30 standing tickets to the show, which has been otherwise sold out for months. So, we were first in line, and got our tickets to the matinee showing, because after that night, none of us were up for a 3:00 am return to Cardiff, which is what we would face if we went to the evening show.
The play was amazing! The acting was very powerful, and Hamlet gives a lot of scope for powerful acting. It captures human emotion, relationships and problems beautifully and portrays characters who are complex enough that you can relate to just about all of them. It was actually the first Shakespeare play I read that I actually enjoyed, and this performance was even better. It was worth the night as a hobo, which is saying something.
The best part? The director somehow heard that we had stayed out all night to get standing tickets, and he was impressed enough that he decided we needed more reward than the play. So, he invited us to come backstage when the play was over, meet him and some of the cast, and see the set. So cool! If you ever have the chance, take it!
The play was amazing! The acting was very powerful, and Hamlet gives a lot of scope for powerful acting. It captures human emotion, relationships and problems beautifully and portrays characters who are complex enough that you can relate to just about all of them. It was actually the first Shakespeare play I read that I actually enjoyed, and this performance was even better. It was worth the night as a hobo, which is saying something.
The best part? The director somehow heard that we had stayed out all night to get standing tickets, and he was impressed enough that he decided we needed more reward than the play. So, he invited us to come backstage when the play was over, meet him and some of the cast, and see the set. So cool! If you ever have the chance, take it!
Hobo, part 2
So, in case you have been dying to hear about my hobo experience, here it is.
First off, Leicester Square, where we were staying, is apparently one of the seedier parts of London. This was evidenced by the abundance of drunk people we encountered. Our very first experience was actually with sober people, who invited us to come get drunk with them. When we declined, they told us we would be very cold that night. OK, thanks for the heads up.
Next, I went for a walk with my friend Camilla. As we were walking back to our group, an old man stopped us and asked us to please dumb down our conversation. It was far too late for the kind of intelligent things we were saying.
Several of the drunks seemed to think we were in need of charity. One gave us a piece of pizza with a bite taken out of it, which we were to share among all 17 of us. Another gave us £5. Another gave us a sandwich.
Everybody was very curious about what we were doing in front of the steps. Tom, our teacher, stayed up all night long to field their questions, and also make sure we were safe. This was partly because we had a half-threat of robbery. While Tom had stepped away for a minute at the start of the night, a man came by and informed us that we would have nothing left when we woke up.
My favorite drunk was the girl who shouted profanities at a group of men across the street, broke off to ask Tom what we were doing, returned to shouting profanities, and when the group of men came across the street, became their best friend. They went off arm in arm singing about how they were friends to the end. Meanwhile, and old man was listening to her and talking about her foul mouth. "She has the foulest mouth I've ever heard. She said the f-word 13 times. She should say *$@! instead! She should say *$@! instead!" However, when she and her former enemies went off, he got a taxi and left as well.
The drunkenness went on all night long, although Tom says that at about 4:00 it changed from mostly drunken people to mostly early workers. There were, indeed, very early workers. At 2:30 in the morning some constructions workers decided they needed to work on a project across the street from us. Also, at 5:45, some other workers decided they needed to tear up the sidewalk right next to us. In case you hadn't gathered this yet, we didn't get a whole lot of sleep, but we did have a wealth of strange experiences.
Do I feel the need to become a full-time hobo? No. Am I glad I was a one-night hobo? Definitely.
First off, Leicester Square, where we were staying, is apparently one of the seedier parts of London. This was evidenced by the abundance of drunk people we encountered. Our very first experience was actually with sober people, who invited us to come get drunk with them. When we declined, they told us we would be very cold that night. OK, thanks for the heads up.
Next, I went for a walk with my friend Camilla. As we were walking back to our group, an old man stopped us and asked us to please dumb down our conversation. It was far too late for the kind of intelligent things we were saying.
Several of the drunks seemed to think we were in need of charity. One gave us a piece of pizza with a bite taken out of it, which we were to share among all 17 of us. Another gave us £5. Another gave us a sandwich.
Everybody was very curious about what we were doing in front of the steps. Tom, our teacher, stayed up all night long to field their questions, and also make sure we were safe. This was partly because we had a half-threat of robbery. While Tom had stepped away for a minute at the start of the night, a man came by and informed us that we would have nothing left when we woke up.
My favorite drunk was the girl who shouted profanities at a group of men across the street, broke off to ask Tom what we were doing, returned to shouting profanities, and when the group of men came across the street, became their best friend. They went off arm in arm singing about how they were friends to the end. Meanwhile, and old man was listening to her and talking about her foul mouth. "She has the foulest mouth I've ever heard. She said the f-word 13 times. She should say *$@! instead! She should say *$@! instead!" However, when she and her former enemies went off, he got a taxi and left as well.
The drunkenness went on all night long, although Tom says that at about 4:00 it changed from mostly drunken people to mostly early workers. There were, indeed, very early workers. At 2:30 in the morning some constructions workers decided they needed to work on a project across the street from us. Also, at 5:45, some other workers decided they needed to tear up the sidewalk right next to us. In case you hadn't gathered this yet, we didn't get a whole lot of sleep, but we did have a wealth of strange experiences.
Do I feel the need to become a full-time hobo? No. Am I glad I was a one-night hobo? Definitely.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Hobo
Tomorrow is going to be an interesting day. It will start at the ungodly hour of 5:45 in the morning, when I will catch a train to London. We're going to spend the day in Cambridge, then come back to London. You are probably thinking, "Nice, but not too interesting. And it certainly has nothing to do with hobos." Don't worry, it's coming.
In the evening, I'm probably going to a movie, and then it really gets good. We are going to spend the night in Leicester Square, which apparently is one of the seedier parts of London. To mitigate the problem this causes, we are going to have watches, and somebody will always be awake. Furthermore, because London tends to be cold and wet, we have each been issued a piece of plastic foam and two garbage bags to sleep on and in, respectively. At this point, you may be asking yourself why. This is a valid question. The answer is: Because we can.
OK, the answer is really because we want to get tickets to Hamlet. Jude Law is playing, and this apparently is big news. So, my life's goal list now looks like this:
Go to Wales [X]
Try sushi[X]
Sleep on the streets as a hobo []
etc.
But after tomorrow, I will be able to check off the hobo box too. Pretty sweet, isn't it?
In the evening, I'm probably going to a movie, and then it really gets good. We are going to spend the night in Leicester Square, which apparently is one of the seedier parts of London. To mitigate the problem this causes, we are going to have watches, and somebody will always be awake. Furthermore, because London tends to be cold and wet, we have each been issued a piece of plastic foam and two garbage bags to sleep on and in, respectively. At this point, you may be asking yourself why. This is a valid question. The answer is: Because we can.
OK, the answer is really because we want to get tickets to Hamlet. Jude Law is playing, and this apparently is big news. So, my life's goal list now looks like this:
Go to Wales [X]
Try sushi[X]
Sleep on the streets as a hobo []
etc.
But after tomorrow, I will be able to check off the hobo box too. Pretty sweet, isn't it?
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