You guys! I got a poster today at the poster sale! And I'm really jazzed about it. It says "Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world".
I'm a fan of both knowledge and imagination, but also just a fan of pictures of space. They're so captivating and beautiful.
As lovely as the poster is, it's not the only excitement of the last few days. Last time I updated I was on my way out to St. Paul's and the Tate Modern. That afternoon was absolutely beautiful. When I got off the tube at St. Paul's it was up the stairs and out into a gorgeous, warm, cloudless afternoon. The cathedral was basically right outside the tube. I took some pictures of the outside and sat on the lawn for awhile just appreciating the sun and warmth and watching the other people that walked by. Then I went in and found out that it was £14.50 to take a tour! No thanks. I don't understand how all the museums are free, but the churches, the places that allegedly everyone is welcome should cost a decent chunk of money to get into. Fortunately, there are a few spots that you can go inside that you don't have to pay for, so I did that.
Sightseeing in London, especially when you're going to very popular places is, thankfully, a really easy process (mostly). There are numerous maps and signposts directing you to the sites. From St. Paul's to the Tate was a very simple journey. As I walked toward the Thames and finally made it to the bank I just had to stay there for a little while before crossing to do some more people and nature watching. I think we all just feel compelled to appreciate the 80 degree October weather as much as we can before it goes away for what feels like forever.
While crossing the Millennium Bridge I saw a woman that looked exactly like my friend Laura except she was French and playing an accordion. I hope I find more doppelgangers. I miss my Minneapolis crew. I also thought about the fact that that bridge is in the sixth Harry Potter film and if you know me at all you know how about Harry Potter I am.
The museum was great! It just felt good to be there. I definitely enjoy seeing the sites with others, but sometimes it's nice to go to a museum alone. You can go at your own pace, wonder through the gift shop as slowly and as disorganized as you want, and be so enamored by certain pieces that you don't walk away for twenty minutes.
It was really just one of those days that you realize how amazing it is that you're even alive, that you're here and get to see all this beauty. That this world has so many amazing things to offer and that no matter how long you live there will always be more than your eyes can see, more than your ears can hear, more than you could ever possibly imagine. But, that's wonderful because no matter how mundane or spectacular, you will never run out of life to live. Walking out of the museum, standing on that bridge and realizing all this, I had a feeling of such obnoxious contentment I could hardly believe it. That was nice. Not even waiting through five too-full trains could change my mind.
This weekend Jess invited me to her house in Essex. I had a lovely weekend. On Saturday we went to Battlesbridge and walked around some antique and vintage stores. I even made a few purchases! The first things I bought are gifts for friends, so I'll keep the surprise to myself ; ) I will tell you about the spectacular dress that I got; vintage '60s backless black dress. Gorgeous. Apparently they'd only gotten it that morning, lucky I got there when I did. We went to two different pubs because I'm trying to go to a bunch. At the first, I had a (half) pint of Guinness, because it seemed obligatory. And then I just couldn't finish. At the second, I had a tasty meal of falafel and pita.
On Sunday we went to Southend. To see the sea and the longest pier in the world! Again, the weather was crazy good. 80 degrees and sun. The beach was so packed you could hardly see the sand. The view from everywhere was gorgeous. On top of the simple beauty of the sea there was a theme park 'Adventure Island', complete with the sixth steepest rollercoaster in the world! We rode the rollercoaster and that was exhilarating, except it jostled my neck all over the place. Sometimes life is hard as a taller individual. We made it back here by around nine Sunday night and I started re-reading one of my favorite books (Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close), the perfect end to a great weekend. OH and I learned that Rastamouse is a thing, a children's show actually. Too good.
Yesterday I was on a mission to find tapes. I thought to myself, 'how hard can it be, I'm sure there are loads of places in London where you can buy tapes'. That might be the case, but finding them is not as easy as one might think. Unfortunately, there's no Cheapo: London Chapter. What a great store. Plan; I'm going to Cheapo the day after I get home. Shockingly, Googling various combinations of the words 'buy' 'cassettes' 'tapes' and 'London' did not achieve the massive list I was hoping for. I did find one place though. I bussed over to a part of town that seemed a bit sketchier than I'd anticipated and walked in the store only to find a tiny bin of 75% classical music cassettes. Not that there's anything wrong with classical I love a little Beethoven, some Brahms, but a bit of a wider selection would be nice, especially when your website advertises the 'wide variety' that you have. Long story long, I didn't find anything worth buying. BUT I've been asking around and I got a decent lead today, so I'll give that a shot and report back.
Today I bought that awesome poster and made friends with a girl in my Modernism class. She introduced me to a few of her friends and we just sat and talked. It's definitely fun and exciting to meet new people, but it makes me miss my well-established easy friendships too. It's strange to have hardly any history with anyone here. It's like how every other country has got hundreds or thousands of years of history on America. We just can't compete with that. The takeaway here is that I love making new friends, but the act of forging new connections makes me miss the ones I've already made.
I just got back from the Queen Mary theatre club's improv night which happens every Tuesday. It was a good time. There were scads of people there and we played fun games with each other. I'm all about that playing aspect of improv. You get older and you forget the effortless ease that you played with when you were young. It feels good to just let it happen and forget about being an adult. I miss HUGE Theater. If you're unaware of HUGE do yourself a favor and go see a show any night they have them seven days a week!
And now, having brought you up to speed on my life I will talk your ear off no longer and wish you all a glorious evening. I hear it's over 80 at home.
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