Bits & Bobs

Brief update: Moved into my new apartment (flat) this past weekend! It is lovely: spacious and light. I have a lemon plant growing on the balcony, performing a few Googles to figure out how to prevent its untimely death.

I've investigated the West End a little bit, the equivalent of Broadway in New York. Last minute tickets seem to be inexpensive. I think the TKTS booth might be the best possible option, but since I don't have all day to wait in line, I'm looking at lastminute.com, timeout.com, and most recently londontheatredirect.com for tickets within the same week. Michele, Steve & I went to see Wicked last week Thursday through this method, and it was really terrific. Great performance, back row seats but still visible, and a cost of £19.50/seat.

I just booked a ticket to see Beautiful: The Carole King Musical tonight for £15, plus £1 service fee. This is cheaper than most dinners in the area! I had previously thought I'd head straight home this evening, but booked this instead. My ticket is in the back row. I'm excited to become a "theatre person," or something that vaguely resembles one.

In other expenditure news, we're looking at booking a hotel in Bath, England for an upcoming bank holiday weekend. We'll expect to experience the Thermae Bath Spa! Looking at what packages are available that weekend, and hopefully looking forward to some R&R.

I've also recently booked flights to Oslo, Norway and Bordeaux, France, and the only legwork I've done there was an unavailable AirBNB, so I'm back to square one. Fjords and wine!! And I guess I have to figure out how to request time off (~2 days and ~3 days, respectively.)

April 12th will be the day that my TV and Internet *maybe* gets set up, something else to look forward to (especially as I am already paying for both services.)

Also arranging to go to the doctor (GP) to get onto the National Health Services system.

We've also got Paris in 10 days, wow! I was feeling a bit of a void like I wasn't doing enough or making enough use of being here yet, since I more or less spent the last 3 days at IKEA and surrounded by heaps of clothes. I set up a bunch of mirrors so I can try on all of my clothes at some point and decide that everything has to be donated :). (Or, some things. Or a few.) The planning for Paris that remains is figuring out itinerary with maximum use of Paris Pass.

My mind is a bit occupied by what feels like a galaxy of tiny things. All smallish projects, and all really great things.

I strolled through Shoreditch at lunch today & went to the Cereal Killer Cafe, or rather, the outside of it. Looks cute, but also daunting since I didn't want cereal, and apparently a popular tourist destination where things move a bit quickly. It is on a very hip side street which will require deeper investigation. Lots of vintage-y shops selling clothes you would buy if you were performing onstage. My singer alter-ego Laura was intrigued, but reality Laura was reminded of the heaps of clothes back at the flat that require homes. I also wandered through Boxpark, a shopping center made entirely out of shipping crates. Very hip. The only thing intimidating here is that to wander into the small space makes it appear like you are somewhat committed to making a purchase, which if you're me, you're not. But I think it is also aimed at drifters like myself, seeking inspiration maybe for the interior design of their new apartment (true.)