Theme Song: "Ante Up" - Busta Rhymes feat M.O.P. (just because I like this song)
On the Telly: Glee Marathon on Channel 4 - right now its the episode where the Acafellas meet Josh Groban - and Josh Groban loves a blowsy alcoholic. ;)
After a wee bit of a lie-in this morning (British for sleeping in), I got up around 10. I managed to take a shower without injuring myself, which was a great start to the day. Since it takes about 5 hours in total to wash and "dry" my sheets, I stripped the bed and popped them into the washer/dryer first thing. After giving the kitchen floor a much-needed mop and realizing that the reason why there are waterspots everywhere is because I live in an area with VERY hard water, I decided to head out and explore Canterbury town. Thus far, I've only walked to the area around the bank and Tesco - I wanted to just wander aimlessly around to get the feel of the area.
It was a beautiful day for walking. Although it was a bit chilly outside, the sun was out and shining. Oh, how I have missed sunshine! I wandered around for about four hours in total, stopping to pick up a few things.
- Oxfam Bookstore - a really neat and unusual little gift for my sister. Her birthday is Tuesday, and since she may read this, I'm not going to post what it is until after she gets it. I had a great conversation with the guy who was working there about his trip to North Carolina. He apparently experienced some problems because he didn't wear shoes. He made a comment to the effect that "it's not like I had any choice" - which I chose not to explore. I really didn't want to know why he felt he had no choice but to run around NC barefoot and British.
- Noa Noa (www.noanoareigate.com/) - an awesome Danish clothing and accessories store. I picked up something for my sister as well as an awesome ring for myself (it was only 13 GBP! Oh, and for those of you who don't know, GBP = Great Britain pounds. I haven't figured out how to get the actual pound sign into the blog yet).
- Monsoon (www.monsoon.co.uk/) - they had a 70% off sale and so I picked up a really pretty floral bra/underwear set for 12 GBP. Those of you who've known me for awhile will understand why this was so freaking exciting for me to do.
- The Works (www.theworks.co.uk/) - this is a discount bookstore, and I was able to pick up the manuals I need to start studying for my UK driving license. And let me just say this crap looks hard. I can drive on my American license (along with my International Driving Permit I got from AAA) for 1 year, but I'm going to start studying NOW since I've heard that the UK tests are super hard. Apparently they put you on a hill in a manual and make you drive halfway, stop, and then continue along without stalling out or rolling too far backwards. Stuff like that makes me sweat just thinking about it. Especially given my rolling-down-the-hill accident in downtown Seattle (*wherein I was driving up a hill, had to stop a red light, and stupidly freaked out when the light turned green. I had a 6 speed and instead of putting the car in 1st gear I kept putting it into reverse - and then not understanding why I kept going backwards. The more this happened, the more freaked out I got, until I was in a real tizzy. It got worse when this van pulled up behind me. I tried to signal that they needed to get in the next lane and get out of my way, but they just sat there and honked their horn. I got pissed and decided to just get the hell out of there - and promptly went backwards. Their car wasn't damaged at all, but the back of mine got a really nice dent in the shape of a license plate. The bright side was that the van was chock full (and I'm talking packed in like sardines) of various persons who no habla the ingles, and they wanted nothing to do with exchanging any kind of paperwork or involving any kind of authorities. Seriously, I never thought I'd see a minivan burn rubber like that up a hill.)
I have been looking into getting a UK mobile phone, but I haven't been able to figure out how to get the best deal for international calls. It's not like it is in the US where you can buy plans that give you unlimited international calling. They charge you per minute - as much as 20p (cents) per minute in some cases. I did find out that if I buy a UK mobile, it is free if someone calls me (no matter where they are) as long as I am within the UK. If I'm in Europe/Asia/Australia/Canada/US and my phone rings, roaming charges apply. Also, there's no plan I can get that gives me unlimited text messages. Again, if I'm in the UK, I can receive unlimited ones for free, and send them for free to UK numbers, but it will cost to send to anyone outside the UK. I'm a bit confused by it all, frankly. Why can't there just be one "worldwide" number system with a "worldwide" plan? Make it 14 numbers or something, and then no matter where you are, there's a flat rate for someone to call/text you. It was funny talking to the salespeople because they kept talking about a "tarriff", and I kept thinking they meant a tax. But in the UK, tarriff is just a charge. So what we would call our monthly rate (for our cell phone plans), they would call a tarriff.
On the way back home, I stopped off at one of the local hair salon - www.rush.co.uk/salons/canterbury - to make an appointment to get my 'fro cut. It's getting a bit unruly and I'm starting to look like Sideshow Bob again. I am so excited because the salon closest to me is a Kerastase Salon, and I'm addicted to their products. They are pricey but I have not found anything else that is so good for my hair. I struck up a conversation with the two guys at the appointment desk - one is from Portugal and has been to California and Key West, and the other is British but who has been to Houston because his mom used to live there.
Something I've found is that as soon as people hear my accent they ask "Where are you from?" - and by that, they usually mean what state in the U.S. am I from. And then after I tell them, they proceed to tell me how much they love America and what places they've been to. I've been surprised by how many Brits have been to Texas, of all places. In terms of absolute culture shock, I can't think of a more jarring place for a British person to go - well, except maybe the Deep, Deep South. I mean the UK is all about small spaces, old buildings, stiff upper lip and all that. Texas is all about being big, new and owning AND USING a firearm. LOL.
On the subject of my accent, I've been told several times that I don't "sound American". I don't know if its because I have a habit of adapting my speech patterns to my environment (i.e. speaking more quickly when in New England, slowing down when in the south) but it seems there's some danger of me returning to the U.S. sounding like Madonna. Regarding this, I'm torn. Yes, I think it would be fun to have an "international" accent that confuses people and marks me as a world traveler. However, since being over here I find myself feeling fiercly patriotic towards my home country - and I almost want to wear my accent like a badge of pride.
As in Hell Yes, I'm American! From the land of the free, home of the brave! I'm from a country where mayonnaise is OPTIONAL! Where toilets only have one flusher! (*in the UK and Europe, toilets have two buttons - a big one for #1, a small one for #2. One gives a shallow flush, the other one a deep one. Saving the water and the earth and all that) Where roads have clear signage and streetlights! Where expressing your displeasure is almost a national sport! Where we know how to say "vitamin" (over here they say vitt-a-min". To quote something my brother learned in 2nd grade, the "i" does not say its name). Where bubble and squeak are two separate things - and in no way represent food! Yes, world, you can thank us Americans for such great things as - high fructose corn syrup! McDonald's! Rampant obesity! Telemarketing! QVC!
And with that, I am signing off. Just noticed that "The Terminal" is on BB2. You know, sometimes I feel like Tom Hanks in that movie. Although I'm still waiting to find an airport that clean, well-lit and friendly.
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