Sunday 25 January 2009

weekend wrapup

well, and so another comes to a close... but no complaints here... after a great friday night, saturday was followed by the first home-cooked meal at the lofts, courtesy of the brazilian... delicious chicken stroganoff and rice, with wine (courtesy of my favorite neighborhood supermarket)...

after the last bite, darted off across town to the theatre (that's right, -re) to see "studies for a portrait" ... a play in two acts about a dying artist and the struggle over who gets his lifetime work, his current or former lover... it was a bit convoluted, but entertaining... particularly since it was in the back of this old, OLD pub in kennington where a manchester united match was showing in its final minutes.  old fogies, many faggies... you see the humor (i hope).  another highlight had to have been "justin", the 23-year-old boytoy of the main character's partner (following me?)... i was just thinking that this "justin" would be the perfect set up for nycgirluninterrupted when she comes and visits in a few weeks... he's really young, cute and a stage actor.  right up her alley!

today was a little more low key - a nice roast for lunch (including my favorite... sticky toffee pudding), which i promptly worked off with several rounds of tennis and bowling on my NEW WII!  now i'll never leave the lofts...






Saturday 24 January 2009

milk and twinkies

it was back to the barbican with the brazilian last night to see Milk.  the movie just opened here in london (yes, it takes a little while for things to get here... maybe they come by boat still, i don't know), and we were there among a million other homo's to watch.

amazing.

the story in and of itself is impressive.  harvey milk, the first openly gay man elected to a governmental office and an inspiration for gays and lesbians for years to come.  and while sean penn was absolutely fantastic (oscar, anyone?), i really loved the side characters that made up his entourage too.  oh, and james franco is absolutely adorable.  but you readers already knew that i'm sure.

all charged up from some 70s style homo activism, the brazilian and i decided to skip forward to the next decade - the 80s - and hit Ghetto which happens to be only a 5 minute walk from me (god, i love my neighborhood).  on the website, ghetto is described as "a crazy old pub with animal heads" and so i guess it wasn't surprising that friday night was 'kill your pets' night. Which naturally means that dress code of dead animals, disco roadkill, fur-coats soaked in blood and stillettos was de rigueur.  

It was definitely a step back in time, and one of those places you always picture london to look like in the 80s - painfully hip boys and girls with wild do's, spinning and twirling to pet shop boys and culture club. it was great!  door staff, a little rude though... we need to do something about that.  oh, and the fact that i was clearly one of the older people there.  but hey, at least i knew all of the words to the songs...

off to start the weekend.  first stop, gym.  second stop, argos.  don't you dare call me 'predictable'...


Wednesday 21 January 2009

portugal, france and every bite in between

tonight i went with the brazilian for a bit of the portuguese - nando's!

according to wikipedia....nando's is a portuguese restaurant chain originating in south africa (with me so far?) specialising in chicken.  ok, that makes sense to me.  i'm always down for some good chicken.  and i love portugal, so i think we're in good shape there too..

had a nice spicy double grilled chicken pitta sandwich with a bit of ratatouille (no, the tomatoe-y stuff... not that cute little vermin from versailles) and a beer (and a half).  

finished it all off with a nice belgian waffle topped with ferrero rocher ice cream (oy!) next door at patisserie valerie - another new fave...

with about 3000 calories down the hatch, i'm now off to bed... and i have a dream... which is to wake up early, hit the gym and work off the excesses of today.  

yes i can.

nighty night!

Saturday 17 January 2009

housework

pretty much spent all day as your typical english housewife... made breakfast for the brazilian (i have never done this before so you know this is something special), put the kettle on and then got to work.  with some able (and rather fit) assistance, i was able to hang up 12 things at britannia lofts today: a huge mirror and a whole bunch of prints that i brought over from nyc.  even that crazy french postage stamp print that never quite made it on to the walls in brooklyn.  what a sense of accomplishment i am feeling right now!  off to enjoy some indian food before calling it a day...

cheers!

Tuesday 13 January 2009

top 5 reasons why i like my gym

ok, those of you readers from my GPS days probably know that one of my favorite leisure time activities is going to the gym.  i've been hooked on it since mike and i moved to california and suddenly found ourselves with lots of free time and fewer people to spend it with.  :(  but, hey, there are far worse things to do to occupy your spare time, right? (though i hope to find time to get into some of that mischief here as well).

anyhoo, i just joined the Virgin Active gym that's right down my street... it's amazing.  shims and i discovered it when he came over for christmas and we both instantly became smitten.  so many things going for it beyond the obvious benefits to my well being (which i will certainly not downplay... particularly as i learn more about this country's healthcare system... YEESH!)... that i thought i'd just list a few so you can see why i'm so hooked:

5) it's near a pub!  well, that's pretty obvious, most things are in this country... and i haven't gone in yet, but i have seen a few gym-goers leave the gym with tinges of sweat on their brow, gingerly cross the street and pop into the Artillery Arms for a cheeky two or three... thumbs up in my book!!  and it's not just any pub... it's right across the street from a historical burial ground and army training field.  cooool.

4) they have a tanning bed, a cafe and free internet access.  i am trying to figure out a way that i can use all three at once, so let me know if you have any ideas.  

3) hot trainers.  compared to my last gym, these guys look like they actually have gone to the gym in the last few days... as i told shims, the best way to describe them - marky mark circa 1991 meets jude law.  oh yeah.

2) it is EMPTY on the weekend.  brilliant.  because it's located near 'the city' (which is similar to NYC's financial district), there's hardly anyone there on a saturday or sunday... though i am noticing that we are right in the middle of the january rush crowd so there are a few more people on my days of rest that i'd like to see.  but like any new years resolution, just takes a little time before we're back to normal, kids.

1) and the final reason why i love this place... it just so happens to share space with the royal army barracks.  yeah.  exactly.


so look for a future post coming to you live from the gym as i plan to spend a lot of time there ... goggles on, smoothie in hand and jaws on the floor.

cheerio!!

Sunday 11 January 2009

song heard everywhere

gym, soho, vauxhall... oh, and about 12 times today from my music-on-demand on my tv...

LOVE it!  it's very american gladiators meets let's get physical...




new discoveries, part deux

ok, now for something a tad more low-brow... but still a sweet find nonetheless.


no, it's not some greek god that i met out in vauxhall last week ... besides, you know that i'm much more into a certain brazilian these days :) ... it's this funky little retail joint that is most definitely a blast from the past and something that i'm also now a big fan of.

well, for some of you, you may remember when you were little, you and your mom sat down at the kitchen table sometime in early august, opened a thick catalog, thumbed to the boys section (and tried to see if she noticed if you kept thumbing back to the underwear section), and picked out your new "back to school outfits."  what, you didn't do this with your mommy!?  oh, i totally loved it!! let's see, what color rugby shirt do i want this year?  a yellow and navy?  a blue and navy?  what about a GREEN and navy?!?!  write down the catalog numbers, called the 800# number and sat back and waited for the UPS guy to bring me what would we walking down the hallway at cashman elementary in the fall...anyway, i digress...

well, it's this same espirit de catalogue that you get when you enter argos... now, it's nothing fancy to look at from the outside, or inside for that matter, but i think that's part of the appeal.  you have two choices to get your stuff... 1) you can sit in the comfort of your own home and go online, pick out your stuff, and then go pick it up at the store or 2) which is my preferred option, you go to your local store, find the corner of the store where they have stacks of laminated catalogs, look up your item and then enter the item number on a little machine that looks like across between a solar calculator and a speak-and-spell.

once you've ordered, you pay and then you go to the pickup counter.  but you don't get your stuff right away, that would be too easy.  you actually need to look at the TV monitor above the desk and wait for your number to be up.  the screens actually look like those KENO screens you see at racetracks or betting parlors, and i guess it's the same concept really. once your number is called, you win!

and boy did i!  look what i bought:


1) my very first kettle.  isn't she lovely? apparently, every boy needs a kettle in this country, and i definitely "heart" mine.  i think i shall name her chrissy, after my mom.  i feel like i can tell my mom anything, and so shall the bond be between me and chrissy.



2) a toaster.  yeah, yeah, trying to minimize my carb intake and all that, but can i just tell you?  i'm REALLY excited to go buy my first pack of crumpets and pop those babies in!
 




and 3) for something truly decadent (and unnecessary), a sandwich maker.  look, after a while, i know i'm going to sick of seeing sandwiches in plastic triangle form, unrecognizable among all that mayo, and will have a panini craving sooner or later. this maker will make me very happy, i'm sure.


well that's about it... i'll leave you know so i can go log back onto argos and see what other household treasures i can find... hmm... I KNOW!  a mop!  

see ya...


new discoveries, week of january 5th, part one

well, i'm sure you all remember the fun i had with mister washer-dryer... we had a row when we first met, but after when we went out for a cheeky two and had it out, it was all water under the london bridge... and i think it's little victories like that are what life is all about for me here in this new land.

and this week was full of 'em!

like the barbican. well, for those of you readers who remember me from my gayparkslope.com days, you'll note that i lived really close to the brooklyn academy of music... it was, as they say, a divine institution. there was nothing better than taking a quick stroll down flatbush, stopping at target for some toothpaste and then hitting BAM for a dose of cul-cha. movies, shakespeare, ballet... you name it, they got it.

and i think i found the same thing at ye olde barbican as well... picture a city block of pure concrete colossa and brick behemoths, but once you weave you way into its lair, it's like an underground encyclopedia britannica. they've got everything- a huge concert hall, restaurants, shops, a bar, a cool light installation we checked out... did i mention the bar? anyway, needless to say there was a lot to look at. DN and i actually partook in a movie, and while our choice was eh.. the venue was so cute! assigned seats, wine and beer served... all very civilised! and then it was just a hop, skip and a jump homeward to the lofts. will definitely go back to see MILK there next week!

barbican and cheeky pint, new BFFs!

Tuesday 6 January 2009

back on the grid!

hello my faithful friends from across the pond and beyond - 

well, after a minor delay, we finally have what the london underground would call "good service."  good service is what we would generally refer to as "normal service" but here normal is good.  got that?  

anyway, it's not just good, but GREAT that i finally have internet service at my flat and can get back to telling you all about my adventures here.

starting with christmas... yes, it's ok to say "christmas" here as apparently everyone celebrates it... christians, jews, agnostics, retailers, taxi drivers who legally can basically triple your cab fare on christmas day when the tube is closed... you get the idea.  but an otherwise series of silent nights turned in a week long stay on santa's lap when my dear friend shims came and visited...

now i'm not going to get into whose laps were sat on, where they were sat upon, how much said lap sittings were paid for, etc. etc. (hahaha... just kidding, kids), but needless to say, it was a lot of fun.  

highlights included:

1) finding the only (and i mean ONLY) pub open on christmas day... molly moggs... where it is considered "VERY RUDE" to tip... but not so rude, apparently, to put one's grubby hands and boozy breath over you.  drag queens were actually pretty good, have to say.  free champagne that keeps flowing and flowing?  even better...

2) mastering the london bus system... the 55 line connects directly between my flat and soho, which is fantastic for quick jaunts for splurges on oxford circus or quick escapes after some subway 6-inchers... just make sure that if anyone tells you "ok, we can just take any bus home"... don't listen.

3) making new friends... i go, you go, tiago, diego...

4) discovering new talent... sure, you guys have whats-her-name knowles and that timberpond guy... but what britain's got is pure talent!  shims and i discovered "connie"... connie talbot that is... and we both instantly agreed that "christmas with connie" is destined to go right up there with "the night before christmas".. a yuletide tradition that will keep you going for hours and hours and hours.... 



5) lastly, ringing in the new year with a very good friend... who i hope had as much fun as i did this past week, capping off a year that had it's ups and downs, it's g-f-y's and p-c-d's... setting us all up for the year that is going to be our year..

2009 baby!!

xoxo