March 20th
What a wonderful time of year to be in London. Bulbs in bloom; fruit and nut trees blossoming; air warm enough to walk around with no coat. It is perfectly lovely.
I have been wrapped up with work, but still able to enjoy walks every day. Yesterday, after shopping for shoes, the life was sucked out of me. Malls and large stores do that to me. I got exhausted by early afternoon and took a two hour nap. Felt good until 11pm when I could not sleep. So, I watched TV. British TV is odd. Half the channels on cable are selling things (I think that is QVC in the States?), but the channels are niched by product: cosmetics on one channel, jewelry on another, clothes on another, etc. Then there are hilarious cooking shows, funny reality shows, news shows, and a USA channel. Guess what USA shows? You are right if you guessed: Law and Order and CSI. Ha!
The funniest reality TV includes four people chosen at random to host each other in week at four dinner parties. They score each other based on theme, costumes, menu and food. Very silly show.
To give an idea of how massive the stores are, I was in Selfridge in Oxford Circus (aptly named shopping district—it is a Circus) where the entire 3rd floor is women’s shoes. This would be the size of 7X the whole Nordstrom at South Coast Plaza. And, it is organized by designer—so for somebody like me—argh, where are the cute flats? Frustrated, I tried to find my way out and got snagged by the cosmetic counter where a lovely older women asked to “help” my dry skin. Oh, sucked in again. Trish McEvoy took a large chunk of my bank account—and all the purchase ( I cannot confess the purchase amount) fit in a teeny, tiny little bag. Can’t believe I fell for it.
Today, after a difficult class, where we discussed hate crimes as well as Trayvon Martin and the school massacre in France, I searched out a Middle Eastern market in search of lamb chops. Got very lucky and found neighborhood of ethnic delis, markets and people where prices are much lower than in posh Hampstead. The lamb was marinated in ginger, lemon and other herbs. And, it was, in fact Divine.
Tomorrow, I will spend an inordinate amount of time and almost no money on a Vidal Sassoon haircut. The “advanced academy” for Vidal is here and a haircut takes 5 hours due to the supervision of “experts,” but it costs 12 BPD ($18). So, I am game. Ever since my hairdresser of 38 years died, my hair has been a hot damn mess. Ellis was a Sassoon trained master who for many years kept me stylish and zingy. As many of you know, I turned my head and hair over to Ellis despite his salon’s location in Brentwood. Seriously, he was a big loss to me after all those years. So—I am giving the academy a whirl. Anything is better than what I have going on.
Back to work. Later this evening, there is a jazz ensemble performing down the block. If I can pull myself together, I will check them out. This is another huge difference from home. I would no sooner consider going out alone in the evening to listen to music than to walk to work in Fullerton. Yet here, the pubs are not bars. They are more like a neighborhood community centers complete with children and families. Very comfortable and welcoming.
Nancy is coming Thursday for a London weekend and I hope to show her things that will help her like the experience.
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