Twittering with the Aussies

So I made a rash promise on Facebook this week, to write a blog update today.  I do miss writing my blog, because I love just talking about what I think, see and do. It’s almost like having an imaginary friend or a diary, with whom you can just chat or just twitter (in the literal sense, if such exists? ‘Twittering’ could easily have just been a term introduced by my father, grandfather, great grandfather etc which I’ve used for as long as I can remember…) I digress. Not unusually. Anyway.

So, I’m sitting in the kitchen at home – home now meaning Putney – and am chatting to Kari (my flatmate) about nothingness. L;ike the fact that we both think we need new kitchen knives (it’s been bothering me since I moved in, on one hand because I know I have an expensive knife block in my lockup in York, complete with sharpener to keep them in good shape (also good for Geena Davis moments* and letting off steam); and on the other hand, because most of our knives here are serrated, making the simple option of buying a sharpener, pointless.

Our conversation moves onto sport – not unusual living with two Australians! – and I smile as I’m asked who’d won the rugby yesterday. In the interest of international peace and relationship management, I pointed out that, in the first half the ref had played by Southern Hemisphere rules, giving the Wallabies the advantage, so the unfortunate slippage causing them to miss the final (match-winning) kick was only fair justice, and made for a more even game / result…) The conversation moves swiftly on.

It’s that time again

So on Thursday, I have my best mate coming to stay. Very exciting, it’s that time again… The sun isn’t anywhere to be seen, yet strawberries are on sale, Pimms ads are appearing all over the place and quite appropriately for Sarah and I, there are also more Spritz ads this year too…? Yes, my SW19 partner-in-crime and I will soon be heading towards the All England Club.

This year, however, we won’t be camping in ‘The Queue’. We usually do this on the Sunday/Monday between weeks 1 and 2, it’s become tradition, and even if we get tickets for another day, we’d want to camp anyway because it’s such immense fun! Calls of “let me out!” and the fizz of people in the next tent opening another Stella before the sun’s even up, all add to the attraction. However, whilst Sarah’s husband usually has no choice but to accept me kidnapping his wife on the night of his birthday every year. This year is his 40^th and therefore sacrosanct.  Luckily, we got Centre Court tickets through the public ballot, and therefore won’t miss out on the tennis. Any because I’m now living in SW, we have accommodation and can both drink, as neither of us have to drive back to Yorkshire – bonus!

So Kari and I are discussing buses. Living at the bottom of Putney Hill, the route to SW19 should just be up the hill and across a couple of blocks, I think? So getting there must be a doddle, right? We’ll just jump on a bus up the hill. That said, this is me; I rarely leave the house without a plan of action! It’s not that I’m obsessed with planning, we just live up eight flights of stairs, so you kinda need to know what you’re going to do before you leave, as the prospect of having to come back upstairs when you forget something, is far from appealing!

So I’m going on a recce of South London.

Avoidance tactics

It’s worth noting here, that my original plan for today was to find a gym I will actually use. My Fitness First membership expires in July, and I joined the gym at work over a month ago, but since moving to London I haven’t used either. The closest FF I can use is either Victoria or Hammersmith, neither of which is in the right direction or close enough to easily just go. The work gym is in the basement of our building in Canary Wharf, making it close enough, but after work I just want to get home and hit the sack. In the morning, I get up at 6:15 as it is, so getting up any earlier so I can go before work is a non-starter! Also the treadmills there are no good for interval training, which is what I spend 90% of my gym time doing. So whilst I’m currently paying for two gym memberships (both subsidised) I’d rather pay for one I know I’ll actually use! However, every time I say I’m going to sort this, something more exciting comes up, hence I’m still paying for two gym memberships and complaining about the strange disappearance of my toned stomach…?!

So correction; today I’m going on a recce to find a gym and play on the busses!

Laters, Rxx

*the Long Kiss Goodnight