Paris '07

Below is a slideshow of my trip to Paris.

We left England in the evening, on the Eurostar. It's so easy compared to flying. We arrived at our hotel around 10:30pm and went out to find something to eat...we were really quite hungry as we hadn't had dinner. We walked a bit too much, but it was nice that we could find a place to eat so late in the evening. Poor R was pooped once we returned to our hotel, Royale Magda Etoile, as he was still sick and suffering from shingles.

The next morning we went in search of food and coffee (France is a great place for good coffee!). We found our coffee (une cafe s'il vous plait), but had a tough time getting food. And then found the boulangerie...aka, bakery! Pain du chocolat is lovely. R had never had such good bread products. We were happy!

The day was basically all about going to the Eiffel Tower. We found our way there, waited in the line and then went up, waited in more lines...but it was great. The view was amazing and pics were fun to take. I've posted a few pics, but not all of them. R took a ton.

We had dinner reservations at Le Train Bleu. It is an amazing restaurant set in the Gare de Lyon train station. You felt like you were going back in time there. The paintings, sculptures, etc. were wonderful and breath-taking. And the food was very good too. Had one of the best steaks of my life there. And of course...wine.

The following day we had plans to meet up with my friend, A. and her mom (who was visiting from the States). We went to the Latin Quarter for lunch and to purchse tons of wine. Yummy! I think R & I picked up about 8 bottles, 2 for his parents and the rest for us. We got to taste all the wines we chose, and they were much less expensive than buying in London.

We then went on a boat trip on the Seine. It was warm (no jackets while the sun was out), sunny and with the three of us in a small space...funny!

Our final meal was seafood. Mmmmm. I had oysters on the half shell. Probably the most fresh oysters I've ever had. R had a shrimp risotto. It was amazingly rich. And we decided to go with beer this time as we had been drinking our share of wine...plus seafood just felt right with beer.

We had a relaxing last morning and breakfast at the hotel (it was okay...not great...just okay) and then off to the Eurostar to head home. We didn't do a huge amount, but it was relaxing. Just what the doctor ordered!

Paris Slideshow

Southall

I went to Southall today with my friend, A and her mom (who was visiting from the States). A and her mom had never been to Southall. It's the Little India of London. It's a great place...food smells, inexpensive clothing, expensive and very nice clothing, music blaring...it's just so different and cool.

I bought an outfit to wear for my henna day (mendhi)...it's really gorgeous. It cost way more than I was hoping to spend, but I liked it so much. I'll wear it a ton more for a bunch of different events. Here's a few pictures:

The colours don't come up perfectly here. It's a bright pink coloured top with lots of gold bits and the bottoms are goldish with the bright pink flower patterns. It's very fitted up top and looser down below. Quite wonderful!

Umbrella weather

It's a rainy day. Blah. The kind that makes you want to stay in bed or watch t.v. all day long. And the funny thing is that I could have done this. But I didn't.

See, it's a vacation at my school. Half-term as they call it in England. And so I have the week off from work. So today, I could have easily done nothing.

But I hate doing nada. So I've partially cleaned the kitchen (it could use the floors being cleaned but I can't be bothered). I've done some wedding planning. I figured out my wedding finances (let me tell you...that's a ton of fun). I took a long hot bath. And I went to my friend, A.'s place, cause I left my Oyster card there after dinner last night (R. drove).

I'm not going to the gym, as I'm meant to go to hockey training tonight...in the icky rain. And if I go I'll get quite the workout.

The plan for tomorrow...getting my roots done (darn grey hair), sending out the final invitations (I hope they're it) and picking up my dry cleaning. Maybe I'll do my nails or something. Who knows. Oh...and go to the gym for once.

Vacations. Gotta love 'em.

Get your groove on!

I had so much fun last night. The Ladies' 1st team put together an evening out (and as it looks as if I'm going to be their goalie for the rest of the season, I was invited). We started out at a pub near King's Cross station. It was a sweet small pub that wasn't too crowded and had good wine and food. We all ate there. And then people changed into their outfits. Yes, outfits. Cause we were going to the rollerdisco...fun on four wheels!

Most of the ladies wore tights with shorts or short skirts...and everyone put on a pair of leg warmers. Remember those? Yes, we now all own a pair of 'em. The eldest of us (me included) decided against wearing a costume and did the jeans and top thing. But we still looked rockin'.

It felt as if I was back in 4th grade again in some ways...though in those days I wouldn't have been drinking wine while skating! The music was classic 80s cheese and rock. "I Love Rock 'n Roll"..."We Will Rock You"...sigh...it brought back memories.

And ya know what? I wasn't half bad. I could spin. I could go backward. I could do the cross-over when going round bends. Yup. I kicked it.

The only downside to the whole evening was when some bitchy twenty-something girl decided it would be oh so cute to knock her male friend over...and into me. Which resulted in an entire plastic cup worth of white wine going all over my clothing. Did either of them apologize? No. Even when told that he had knocked wine all over me. Did he get me a napkin? NO! And even when asked if he was going to buy me a new drink, he replied, "It wasn't my fault I knocked into her". So neither the bitch nor the ass helped me or apologized in any way. Karma has it's way of coming to bite you in the ass...she got knocked HARD and ended on her bum during the fast skate and he got tripped up and fell embarrasingly on his face. I hate people who have no manners. Can you tell?

So, now I'm sitting here, a bit tired (didn't get home until 12:30am)...but it was so worth the lack of sleep. What a way to end the week!

SNOW DAY!!!!

Don't know what I'll do today...but there is snow outside and it's really, really pretty! If it doesn't melt before I go outside, I'll take a picture or two...

Will it never end?!

It's amazing how expensive weddings are, especially if you have tons of out of town guests. Almost everyone who is coming to the wedding will be at the rehearsal dinner, which makes it another quite expensive meal!

I just went and figured out how much more money we ought to be spending on this wedding...what is left to pay all the vendors, what I'll need to budget for the rehearsal dinner and other odd expenses that will come up that week.

It's a bit stressful, to be honest. Trying to save money for this. Trying to work out who is paying for what. Stress! And I'm sure my mom, who has offered to pay a large sum and yet who doesn't make very much is also quite stressed. Poor thing. I hope it doesn't really put her into any debt, as I wasn't planning on having any at the end of this whole thing.

But it's coming together. I don't have much more to do. Let's see...what's left?

• hair & makeup trial
• actual hair & makeup
• henna day/night for a bunch of us (mendhi night)
• build a mandap
• meet up with the minister
• meet up with the event planner
• meet up with the photographer (or at least talk to her a bunch more)
• figure out a few more songs - like our first dance
• mani/pedis with the girls
• order food and drink for the rehearsal dinner
• get waxed (enough said)

I think that's it. And while the list looks a bit long, it's a heck of a lot smaller than my original list. The boys still have to get measured for their tuxes and will have to pick them up the day before. But boys are lucky that they don't have to worry about doing a lot of stuff (though they'll have to put together the mandap on the Saturday while I'm getting all pretty!).

I'll survive this all. And who knows...it might be seen as the small town PA wedding of the year! ;-)

Rah rah, sis boom bah!

It's "Spirit Week" here at school. Kids are encouraged to dress up in odd ways, there are colour wars going on between the classes and the seniors just see this week as a blow-off in some ways. As a faculty member, I actually enjoy doing the dressing up part a bit. I didn't take part in pajama day (though wore something utterly comfy), but am doing 'sport day' today with R's long sleeve cricket shirt & a pair of track pants. I'm so comfy and enjoy the possibility of having to talk about cricket.

I tried to think back to my high school experience and figure out if we had something similar. I think Homecoming was as close as anything else...but my class was so apathetic that we lost our senior year in all categories of spirit. Sad. Very sad. Even if I wasn't into school all the time, I still got into making a cool float...but I was one of the few.

I think it's tough to support a school. To have 'school spirit'. It's much easier to be all 'rah rah' about a sports team or a fun group. School. Not so much. So it's interesting to see what happens here. And from what I can tell...there's a lot of kids who would have fit in with my high school class. Sigh. It won't stop me though. On twins day, my friend A and I are going as Thelma & Louise. How cool is that?!

Food and Bollywood

I had quite a busy weekend. And fun to boot for the most part.

Friday night, I cooked R. dinner. He's been working like a crazy man for quite a while. He has a project due a week from Tuesday and he's bringing all his work home with him, so I haven't really gotten to spend any quality time with the boy. I made a few small steak and ale pies (pre-made so I didn't have to do much work) and then the actual cooking part - made homemade potato hash browns ala The Barefoot Contessa. I received one of her cookbooks for my wedding shower and it's been GREAT! The recipe was easy to use and to make my own (I added a few different things). And it worked out. Made far too much, but knew I would use the leftovers for breakfast on Sunday.

So we ate our yummy meal, watched a bit of Star Trek (yes, I am marrying a Trekkie) and relaxed a bit together...which we really needed.

Saturday, I played for the Ladies' 1s. The field hockey game was fun to watch as I didn't touch the ball once. Sometimes as a goalie it's nice to not have the pressure...it came close, but our defense was much stronger than their offense. Kinda cool.

Then I rushed home, showered quickly and headed out to meet the 'Bollywood Girls'. This is a group of women from work who have made it a mission to enjoy Indian/Pakistani food, movies and culture. We have gone to Ealing Road to get threading and buy stuff. This time we headed down to Southall for food and a movie. We saw 'Salaam E-Ishq'. It was loosely based on the English movie, 'Love Actually'. I really enjoyed this 3-1/2 hour long movie. We even had an intermission. It was sad, cheesy, romantic and funny - everything you look for in a RomCom Bollywood film. And of course there were hot men in it, which always makes for great watching! ;-)

Sunday morning I reheated the hashbrowns while R made an omelet for us to share. Have to say that the hashbrowns were better the second time round! We relaxed a bit and then I went into cleaning mode while R. worked. I did get him to do a bit of cleaning, but I was on a mission. We were having a friend come over for dinner and the place was a mess. But I got it all done in time when Ali (the woman who introduced us) arrived. R had made a shrimp curry which was very yummy. We ate, joked, drank a few beers...it was a good night. And I was able to show her all my wedding stuff, which made it even more fun!

So, yeah, a good weekend. I needed it. And next weekend will be the beginning of a week long vacation. Woo hoo! Love half-term!

Opening your eyes...

Almost every weekday morning, I take a train one stop. I tend to stand by the door as it's a quick two minute trip. Not worth the energy of sitting down and getting up (my poor knees!). So I tend to take notice of the things that I pass by. And some days, it gets quite interesting.

There are windows without blinds into some of the flats near the train. And there have been days where I've seen fat hairy bellies being patted, ladies with face masks & hair up, and people locked in a tight embrace. It's a small little window into someone else's world.

Other times I'll see a dog running and barking on the walkway behind the flats. I'll see a young man running in vain hope of catching the train where I'm getting off.
Graffiti all around.

A toilet seat.


Barbed wire on the fence to someone's back garden.

Glimpses of a world outside my own. A story that I can't even fathom. What do you notice on your way to another place? Or do you close your eyes to the wonders around you?

Life goes on...

I got my jewelry the other day and I took it in to show my workmates. And I am pleased to say that the jewelry looks exactly like the pictures did. I'm so very happy about that. It'll make it so much easier to not have to think about this part of the wedding. One more thing 'down'. And to be honest, there's not much more to do. I'll have to pay a few bills (already have the money for that), organize a few things more - like babysitting...but overall, I'm pretty much finished with the big stuff. Woo hoo! It's amazing how wedding stuff can take over your life. If the FILs decide they want something here, then I'll have to go through it all over again...but at least I'll know what to look for!

Work is going well. Busy with teaching and grading things. Trying to meet up with a few kids and have my regulars who pop in every so often. It's neither crazy busy nor boring most of the time...which is a good thing!

Life with R. is usually wonderful. He did go out last night with a friend and bumbled around the room while trying to get ready for bed...I'll have to ask him how much he drank last night. If he did drink, he better not have been in the car. I'd give him a swift kick if that was the case.

Anyway - life is going. Nothing too dramatic at this moment. I have weekend plans, which I'll talk about later. Yeah. Nothing to complain about. How happy am I?!

Money, money, money. It's a rich man's world.

R's parents asked if we'd be willing to have some sort of ceremony here. Noooooo! I just did not need that sort of stress. Cause what this means is that we won't be able to just have a small little drinks night with friends...it means we'll have to figure out how to have a wedding here for a very small budget. It may mean that we have to have a sit-down dinner. And it means that I can't invite as many people as I'd like. Ugh!

But we're not sure what they mean by this and whether they'd be willing to pay for something. Cause R & I just won't have a ton of money to put toward another whole wedding.

We're still going to have a drinks evening...we'll probably have it at the hockey/cricket club. We'll just put some money behind the bar and tell people that drinks are on us until the money runs out.

Now the whole reason that R's parents are asking for this is that his dad probably won't be able to make it to the wedding due to ill health. He can't travel easily. So I do understand why they want this. I just hope that it's doable and not too much expense for us. We still have to finish paying for the wedding, a honeymoon to pay for, I'm the matron of honor for my best friend in June...it's going to be an expensive time.

A Message from the Future

This was previously posted on the Grrrll Genius board on I-Village, but I kinda liked what I wrote. We were all writing letters to our younger selves...and this is what I wrote:

Dear L. at age 20,

I know you were a late bloomer and so excited to get into the game. But don't be afraid to let go of someone just because of your fears of 'dating'. Dating is a great way to figure out what kind of person you want. And you don't have to go out with anyone again after a first or second date. It's okay to say, "Sorry, this isn't working for me."

A lot of the time you'll be worrying about whether or not someone likes you. But the bigger question you should be asking is, "DO YOU LIKE HIM?". Really, it's so much more important. What do you like about the guy? What don't you like? Would your dad get on with him? (Cause really, dad has good insights on this stuff).

Don't worry if you are not in a serious relationship by 30. You're still learning about yourself and learning to make good decisions about guys. Oh, and if a guy tells you that he's cheated on a bunch of his past girlfriends...believe him...he'll do it to you too!

Enjoy your time on your own. It's a great way to learn about who you are. And seriously, you get to eat what you want, when you want. Celebrate it and enjoy your girlfriends. They are much more important than any guy.

Be excited because you'll learn to take risks. Sometimes they'll bomb, but that's okay...you can survive! And you'll have lots of cool stuff to look forward to. While you'll make some mistakes, as long as you learn from them, they're okay.

Self, you can deal with pain. Really difficult pain. And it makes you stronger and more capable. So bring it on! Don't live your life in fear of emotional pain or you'll lose a lot of LIFE.
That's it self. Oh, and begin to eat healthier and enjoy being fit. It gets harder as you get older.
Finally - be you. YOU are wonderful. And don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

Love ya!
Your older, slightly wiser self

Planned Out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ugh! So much has been done so far in regards to the wedding. I felt almost done. And then the reception over here was brought up. I thought I could have something nice and simple. Perhaps a cocktail hour - some drinks, some friends. But R and his parents have something more in mind. And yet, I, the planner of the US wedding, seem to have to plan this one as well. So it means that I need to find a venue that will serve not only drinks, but the possibility of a sit-down meal too. And then there's the question of who is paying? I think it's us. But with the wedding expenses, I don't see how we'll have a wedding party over here for around 80-100 people for the amount of money I want to spend and the type of party they seem to want.

IT'S FRICKIN' STRESSING ME OUT!!!

Tonight, R. will actually be home to talk about these things instead of going out to play football or be with the boys or with his parents (who complained that I wasn't there last night amazingly enough). And I will communicate my stress. And then perhaps we'll be able to have something a bit less crazy. And less expensive. Unless his mom & dad want to plan and pay for it all. Then go for it. But there's a lot of people to invite. It's just a fact.

Brainless

I know. It's been a while. I just haven't felt any creative spark as of late. I think the weather turning to cold, the demands of the end of a semester (grading and figuring out grades) and a fiance who can't sleep very well has all taken it's toll. I even had to take a sickie yesterday.

But I've gotten just about everything done. Grades are in and onward. I wrote a college rec for a kid. Did my attendance. Taught my class. I only have to make a quiz for the next class. And that's it.

Boring, eh?

On the positive side, I did go out this weekend on Saturday with a bunch of women from work. Two of them are new this year and one came along around the end of my first year. Very nice and lots of fun. We went back to Ealing Street to do threading & waxing stuff (not for me), and just to look around. Then off to dinner for dosas, which are kinda like a filled pancake. Mmmmm! It was so much fun! And good to connect with some new people without talking shop at all.

Another good thing is that I seem to have my groove back in hockey. While we lost on Saturday, 2-1, I have to say that I made some awesome saves. The goals against me were worthy goals - the first was in a one-on-one with moi (stopped the first attempt but not the second) and the last (very frustratingly) was in the last seconds...I made an amazing split save which hurt like the dickens (that's how hard it was shot), but a person got the rebound and flicked it over my leg. It was frustrating as we were definitely playing well. They just got the luck.

So overall the weekend went well. And I'm feeling a bit better. Still lacking a good thought process (poor kids), but trying.

Cha-cha-cha-changes

I have always had kinda crazy eyebrows. Not out of control once I started plucking them, but they'd definitely end up all over the place if something touched them.

I wanted to get them shaped, but hated the thought of wax near my eyes. Heat, burning...yeah, not really a good idea. So I kept away from the idea and just attempted to do my own. I'm sure it looked fine, but just not 'groomed'.

Yesterday, I went with another teacher to meet up with the Admin Asst. to the High School Headmaster. She just went on maternity leave and so wanted to get out of the house. We met in Wembley and then took a bus to Ealing Road...it has a very South Asian feel to it with sari shops, Asian food stores and jewelry shops featuring 22 ct gold.

As we were looking at bangles and the like, our colleague mentioned that there was a small salon where she typically got her eyebrows threaded. Now, I had heard of this but wasn't quite sure about it. She then mentioned that it would cost between £2.50 and £4 to get it done depending on where you went. Wow! That's CHEAP. So both the other teacher and I decided to try it out.

It didn't really hurt. A bit of a sting at first and then fine. And it was quick...5 minutes max. I came out and I had much smaller brows. Instead of the comma, I had a single line of approximately the same width going across my forehead. I looked like I had them 'done'.

I definitely see a difference and I'm not sure my face is meant for dainty eyebrows. But I'm letting them be. Seeing what I think. Maybe I can carry it off. We'll see. But it's making me want a skinnier face...perhaps that will be the motivation for me to eat better...need to see cheekbones to fit the eyebrows. Hah!

The Look of....

I didn't mean to do it. Really. It was something that just happened. And if you happen to be the guy who I gave "The Look" to...I'm sorry.

"The Look" is something that I used to always fear in high school. A teacher would turn it on you and that would be it. Toast. What I didn't realize is that it is something that is bequeathed to you upon teacherhood...that it comes with the territory. I thought I'd never get the look down...that kids would continue on in my classes in bliss, never feeling the blistering heat. But no...it came. And it works. I imagine that "The Look" will come in handy if I also have kids of my own, though maybe that 'look' is something slightly different...perhaps parents are given a different style to use.

So this morning, as I'm getting off the train, a guy is pushing from behind. But I don't give it another thought as it's a packed train and someone else is probably pushing him. But when the same guy tried to push his way in front of me to get up the stairs, I guess I gave him "The Look"...cause he stopped, looked a touch shocked, and let me pass in front. I didn't mean to give him the look. Didn't realize that it becomes part of the non-school functions...but it certain worked.

So. Yah know. I take it back. I don't apologize to the guy. I was in heels. And no one should try to push a woman out of the way just to be one step on front. He deserved the look more than most of the kids in my class (though not all). Beware people of London...The Look could get you too! ;-)

Welcome

Yesterday was one of those days that you don't think will ever happen but it does. For the past year and a bit, since R. told his parents that we were seriously dating and then engaged, they have waged a war against me. Things have slowly gotten better, but I never imagined I'd be welcomed the way I was quite yet.

I was invited to the house (yes, their house) to meet his mom's brother. We arrived, had a drink and chatted. Then lunch was served. It was great! His mom is a wonderful cook, and has made a prawn (shrimp) curry and a spicy pasta dish. Mmmmm! The conversation flowed. I actually had some fun!

At the end of the meal, before we took off to go grocery shopping (had to get out or we'd miss the shop hours), his mom presented me with a few things. First was a long gold chain. It's not something I'll wear a lot as it's not my style or length. But I'll always wear it around her. And then a cute gold ring...it is in a flower pattern with the petals having small diamond chips and the middle a dark stone. In addition, she gave me a pretty blue top (I'll wear it with trousers I think) and a red shawl. As a friend said this morning...'I'm in'.

And the question is...

Last night was the annual quiz night at the hockey club. I decided to head out as I needed a night out. R. decided to stay at home. Secretly, I was happy, as I haven't gone out without him in a while. And later on, he told me that was one reason why he didn't go out. We are on the same page, aren't we?

Now, having only lived in England for 2-1/2 years, there are many questions that I typically can't get. For example, as soon as I heard that one of the topics was going to be kiddy shows, I knew I was out on a limb. But our team consisted of 2 Brits, 1 Canadian, 1 New Zealander & me, so we figured we were covered.

Suprisingly, I got the first question right. Who is the Minister of Education who recently was in the news for sending her son to a private school? And having read the news and watched the news over the past year, I knew the answer...which is below... A few other areas I was good in were the food and music categories. Quite happy I have to say! I felt like a contributing member of our team.

We didn't win or even place, but we also didn't end up last. Out of 14 teams, I believe we were 8th or 9th...not too bad for our lot, team name: Draggin' (we were tired as it was our first game that day).

And to make the day even better...my hockey team won the game on Saturday! '2-0' was the score. I had a 'clean sheet' in the goal and did quite well. Not being modest at all - I rocked! Yup, it was a really good game against a good team. Very pleased to start off the year so well. Hopefully, we'll be able to keep it up.

Answer to first quiz question: Ruth Kelly

There be gold in these here parts!

I ordered my wedding jewelry online yesterday. The pictures are so pretty that I'm hoping that they'll turn out to be at least close to as nice looking in person.

While I'm not naturally a yellow gold person due to my skin tone (white gold and silver looks best on me), I felt that with the dress having yellow gold thread through it, that I ought to stick with yellow gold.

So I found some 22 ct yellow gold plated jewelry (fully 22ct jewelry was well out of my budget)...and bought it.

I think the colours will go perfectly with my outfit and with the plunging neckline will look awesome in these jewels. No they aren't true rubies, but red crystals. But I'm okay with that...if I was wearing a white dress I wouldn't expect diamonds on my neck either!

So here's to hoping! I'll let you know when they arrive...they do have to make it through customs (and so far my packages from the US have not arrived!!)