Hiya! Back again with news from the old world.
The past nearly two weeks have been smashing! Absolutely SMASHING!!!
Last Tuesday, Dan and I met with his friends Pete and Lily at a tiny local pub prior to going to the RADIOHEAD concert. The concert was in a huge open field. When you first walk in, there are loads of booths set up and you immediately smell Chicago festivals! Or, your back yard barbeque. Inhale. Love/miss the smell of hamburgers on the grill! The concert was great! I was so grateful to be there listening to one of my favorite bands and having the Dan at my side (he REALLY didn't want to go...).
Next up, I went to Wimbledon! Finally satisfied the dream I have had since I was around the age of 13. Went with Kevin Foy (a.k.a. "#2" to the Foy family, my "brother" to everybody else) and Ryan (one of Dan's friends). What an amazing experience!! First, we waited in "The Queue" of which you are handed a queue card and a 20 page pamphlet about "The Queue". We thought we were going to wait for an hour and a half, but luckily, it was only about an hour. Granted, we were there on a shady day where the weather looked iffy. We think a lot of people left the queue when there was a slight sprinkle of rain. Lucky for us, that was the only sprinkle of rain we saw all night. Once you get to the front of the queue, they make you go through airport-like security.
Since we were there after 5pm, we got super cheap tickets for £14. I was jumping up and down and squealing like a little girl for about the first 5 minutes. And then I bought a program for half the price of the admission and I stopped jumping. We walked around the grounds and checked out a couple of the men's doubles matches for a minute. We also saw the new Court 2 that will be open for next year. I was on my way to get some Strawberries and Cream (a MUST at Wimbledon) and we see this man close to the gate scanning tickets as people leave. Ryan inquired and then I asked the guy if I could have a couple of the tickets he just scanned. He said, "They are worthless after I scan them. Ask any of these people if they want to keep their tickets. If they don't, you can have those." Ok. Easy. A couple of ladies that were leaving, gave us a couple of tickets. Problem is, we needed one more. Ryan asked a couple and they gave him theirs. Sorted! Our tickets were AMAZING!! We sat right in the middle about 2 rows from the front. I'm SURE we were on tv! I kept telling the guys to wave! Anyway, we watched Ancic upset Ferrer. We got in around the end of the 2nd set. On the 3rd set, I was hoping for one more set.... and I got it! Hurrah!
Saturday, I was suppose to go to the Bon Jovi concert, but Kristine got sick and had to go to the hospital. Instead, Dan and I went to the park and I laid out in the sun while he skateboarded. Then we came home and spent 3 hours cooking a vegetable lasagna for Damien and Julie and Damien's brother and girlfriend. It was delicious!!! I was so knackered after that, though. Went straight to bed.
Sunday, I woke up super early and went to visit Gerard and his family in Adderbury... which is outside of Banbury... which is about 1.5 hours away by train. It's in the sticks. But a very beautiful and peaceful place to be. Gerard's family is so much fun! He has a 7 and 14 year old. They are both so smart and extremely entertaining. Rebecca, the youngest one, amazes me with her memory and wittiness. Natasha has grown up so much since the last time I saw her. She is so mature for her age and is constantly looked up to by Rebecca (a.k.a. cheeky monkey). Caroline, Gerard's wife, made us a lovely lunch with little finger sandwiches and a delicious dinner... lasagna. :) Yummm. And Gerard, to my surprise, made us a really lovely desert with berries, filo, and lemon curd. I'm so glad I was able to spend some time with them. It has been in the making since December 29th!
This Tuesday, I went after work to meet up with Sharon to play some tennis. Sharon is a doctor and a Kiwi. She's very pleasant and so sweet! We didn't get to play, unfortunately, because the courts were already reserved. Poo. We're going to try again next Tuesday.
Tonight, I met up with lovely Claudia. Poor girl. She was working as a bartender at the bar next to where Dan works, which is how I met her. She said she was working anywhere between 60 - 80 hours a week. Before her boss went on holiday, she told him that she didn't want to work any more than 50 hours a week and he replied telling her to go find another job. She gave her 3 weeks notice. But it was a little more complicated than just leaving the job, she also lived upstairs from the bar. She was kicked out of her room as well! She and her boyfriend just found accommodation and moved in last night. Claudia has found another job, luckily, but her boyfriend hasn't (he used to be a manager at the bar). Such stress! On her last day, she found out that other bartenders were making a little more than a pound more an hour than she was. I get the impression the boss was taking advantage of her! What a jerk!
Where one door closes, another opens... so they say. I know she will do just fine. She's very strong and is staying positive about the whole situation.
Today, I took my computer in to the office as I had a selection of photos for Mark to choose from. He ended up choosing 18 pictures from my little collection. Not bad! :) I'm curious to see how he gets them printed (if he gets them printed) and where they will go. I'm leaving all of that to him as I have spent enough time on the pictures themselves and I'm not getting anything out of it... financially. :(
Until next time...
PS - Going to Brighton again this weekend. Am SO excited!
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