VIVRANT THING goes to London

Glamorama, Beats, New Shiz

2009-11-09T17:21:00.002Z

Relocating to vivrant-thing.tumblr.com.

Same name, new game.

(I can use Logic now!!)

Change of Story

2009-09-21T18:06:00.005+01:00

"Wanna get like this? Start training!"

Changed my thesis. Now it's a study of Soviet poster art. FUCK YES.

Take it all off!

2009-09-21T03:56:00.001+01:00

Nuni and I finally finished Hunid!! Peep it on Myspace, the link to which is on the left. I just need to fix the volume and danken the beat, and we've got a romaaaaaance!

Making It Happen

2009-09-15T03:51:00.003+01:00

So I won't hire anyone as it turns out I'm going to probably get my summer job back, except this time I'll be

working from home.

It's the 90s and ABOUT DAMN TIME.

I'm hyped to make luchini again.

I've finally sorted my thesis--a book of poems in Russian.

And my environmental rhetoric research projects--the usefulness of and assumptions apparent in conservation programs for inner-city and low-income youth. My client is going to be the Pittsburgh Urban Forest. I'm going to interview leadership at SCA and Grow Pittsburgh to gather a scope of how these programs are conceived, by whom, and with what mission. In order to gain a general knowledge of conservation in Western Pennsylvania, to see where conservation efforts are directed in the region, and to subsequently determine what the greater conservation issues are in this area, I will seek information from the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy.

I wrote like that because that's my homework for tomorrow. Being excited about my work makes life far more meaningful. From here motivation is born.

Pass The Torchie

2009-08-14T16:08:00.006+01:00

What just occured to me:

When Ryan interviewed me and hired me 2 summers ago, he chose someone least like himself. He chose someone who could do well what he could not do as well. Then he taught me the rest and left.

Now I find myself on the last day of my job with the same responsibility. I've written the Craigslist ad and the how-to guide for my job, which I created.

Then I have to interview people and hire someone--me! Hiring. I'm 7 years old.

The other day Kim's niece came in and I got that weird aged feeling. I was giving her advice, taking her advice, and getting hyped at how well she's going to do at college.

The transfer of wisdom, proof of experience. Such a weird feeling. So important and huge a feeling.

Drank absinthe at a bar called Absinthe

2009-08-12T14:51:00.003+01:00

watched this &cried:

Jeremy Scott. Are You Blind?

2009-08-11T14:34:00.003+01:00

WANNA DATE?

Mechanical Wooden Leg

2009-08-10T18:18:00.006+01:00

Koko provided me with a potential life plan the other day. Could be huge.

Weekending hard after hellweek was exhilarating. Redid vocals on Nuni and my song and it sounds phenomenal. Radio-ready.

Then we see THIS:

And that's a gigantic vote of confidence.

I don't know why I spent the last 6 months living in London, reading about Gaga in the paper every day, and just got around to listening to her music (sincerely).

Baby girl, you the shit. That makes me your equivalent.

First Friday

2009-08-07T20:32:00.004+01:00

Tripping out to David Pohl (a local artist) lately...

Unblurred tonight on Penn. Last time I hit this...well, never us mind!

Def hitting Envy (omnomnomnom) and Pandemic (skeet skeet).

Gotta re-up on Slavic culture.
Gotta shake dat ass.

"Hunid" will be finished within the next few hours and the world will pale.

T minus 20 minutes.

Beat Steady Knockin

2009-08-05T18:11:00.002+01:00

Nuni, Mike, and I make music. We've all been having writer's block. My keyboard was collecting dust on Nuni's bed, wrapped up in his clothes.

Yesterday just got better and better. I had post-work SK time in my new place for the first time. It was exactly what I needed to stay intact.

Drew & Chad came to my rescue then we went to my dear neighbor Nuni's house.

The gates swung open.

Beautiful music came to life. O, what music! Nuni sounded like Michael Jackson. I will be posting this song, tentatively titled "Hunid" very soon. I sing in it!

We raged on the keyboard and the mic then invited over Koko, Mike, Ryan, and Mike to hear it. I feel renewed. We put on wigs and sunglasses and went to Mike's where I knocked over a glass of red wine. So much excitement, screaming (mainly me). Mike gets on his piano and lays down illllllll jazz. Ah!

EVOLUTION IS A FACT.

Never Forget

2009-08-04T14:25:00.004+01:00

Don't start the day in tears, and if you do, don't let it ruin your day.

I control my outlook and my attitude.

I choose to have a good day today.

I'm going to walk along the Allegheny River during lunch.
WALK IT OUT.

Home Alone

2009-08-03T21:00:00.000+01:00

WHENEVER I FUCKING WANT!

Movin' Out

2009-07-30T17:10:00.009+01:00

an Andrea Meythaler original

Moving to my new apartment tomorrow! But first, recent escapades:

Sunday, Lazy Sunday done right. Went shopping on Walnut like a bougie little whore then Koko and I chilled ALL DAY. Estrogen party, boy gossip, dish, dish, quiche, feminine hygiene, SEX SEX, treating a girl RIGHT. Throw some yinzer beer on it, and It was almost too Roseanne to bear.

In the evening we went to Doc's as per our Sunday ritual and ate on the roof terrace! which is ALWAYS closed, until I went to London and spring happened and now it's open. Lovely.
"There was a bee."

Nuni and Caitlin had a BBQ in their backyard (which is soon to become my backyard too!) and we had a flashlight and Cutro tried to make barbecuing work. I met an eco-model. A superhot eco-model. We book-flirted, traded authors for music (in this case, one person--Miranda July). Ben (whom I KEEP running into) was there. It's funny how much I know about him from Lydia and my estrogen parties in London, and from video chat.

"Well if you like them red on the inside, then you'll love these." I made out with Gabe's husky dog, Cheyanne. She and I are tight, as we both love to play.

We're all hyped for WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE. It's gonna be so0o0o indie/artsy/postmodern/Squid and the Whale/organic/ironic/neo art house meets post literaria....

And just you wait for the wave of merchandise. Maurice $endak, get yours!

I'm very excited to see a movie that I believe will be "precious", "beloved" and maybe I'll even "feel like an adult".

Monday we threw down hard at the house, didn't go to bed until 2 (WAY past my bedtime!). It was one of those uniquely yinzer moments--you and some friends are at the local pizza joint buying 40s, you turn around and another organelle of your social amoeba is right behind you, back from China, back from DC, everyone hugging and shouting like we haven't seen each other in years (really, days). And of course, I say, "come over!" because the door is always open, literally.

Today is the last day of our house, the best fucking apartment in this town! I am moving, on my own, tomorrow. So excited to decorate and to "make use of the space". Hang my pictures and posters from London and Andrea is going to paint me a snake! A coral and turquoise snake! On 3 square canvases. And she's lending me my favorite painting of hers, "At The Pond" (above).

+Just learned my account balance is $40 HIGHER than expected (&therefore,)

+Just bought this vintage gown ('70s) from Davenport & Co.

CHANELLING DITA

Tomorrow's the big day. Sleeping over at Mike's that night and he's gonna throw a party. I feel well cared for.

The Glamorous

2009-07-24T16:47:00.004+01:00

ripped GLAM a new asshole last night...at 1/2 Price (my first)

it was mad awk because a girl my age was waiting to use the bathroom, and when I came out we had this uncomfortable I-swear-I'm-not-bulimic moment.

I just ate too much Mexican food, since I'm glamorous, and tried to brave a "Big Azz Margarita" (22 oz., ultimately not ok)

I shall apply this ambition to Happy Hour, which should begin at 10am.

Freudian Slip

2009-07-22T15:44:00.002+01:00

When I type "kid" using T9, it comes out as "lie".

Mama's Little Lie

OHMAGOIN

2009-07-21T16:02:00.005+01:00

It started with Happy Hour.

Friday crept by in the most vile way and I dove into a frozen Cosmo right after with Nuni. Chris and Johnny showed up from Philly. Evan and Sarah showed up from Polish Hill. Some of their friends and friends' brothers came...Who's Wild Card? Drew and Chad came. We all sat in the lounge which looked like a harem. Boys reluctantly enjoyed frozen Cosmos ($3).

We ended up back at my house and wilded out for a bit, dancing to "Single Ladies" natch. Some people went out and for some ungodly reason I woke up at 5:30 on Saturday morning and couldn't really get back to sleep. Dropped in on Koko, who was wheeling around her kitchen like a baby invalid, made plans to see LIL WAYNE NEXT WEEK. We brunched in a courtyard underneath old drooping trees. Then Chris chauffered Johnny and me around town. We went to Avalon where the Dollar Sale was happening. I got 12 things for $12, including a perfect bougie little vintage suede purse with a gold tone metal frame. And a lace nightgown/dress for pacing/lounging in my new apartment. After that we did an impromptu tour de hood, Friendship, stopped off at Paul's CDs in Bloomfield and got tea.

Table for 11! Huge round table and lots and lots of wine at Abay, food was so good as always and it was so much fun to go with 11 people. And to see Pete and Tyler again! We get so crazy together..We take the party back to my house and throw down loud and hard with about 15 people. Zack and Yooni (whom I see once a year even though we have the same friends) stumbled in wasted around 1:30. Zack has a bottle of rum in his pocket. Tyler starts trying on the clothes from Avalon, thinks he's so cute. He also tried to proposition Johnny and me, hard. We made a huge circle in the living room, Koko with her bum leg wielding a wine glass on crutches. Hobbling out of the room, "can you grab my wine?" Hahaha, everyone becomes floppy and hilarious until it's 3 and I'm retreating to my bedchamber and telling Zack to "let yourself out whenever".

Sleeping in on a Sunday when you don't have to work Monday--delicious. Doing that until 1--the way forward. Took it reeeeeeeeeeeeal easy, played dress-up with wigs and glasses at Nuni's. Screaming and dancing as always, found our alteregos. Watched The Real World with pauses for commentary (this season is scary). WHERE'S AYIIYAH? My gays whisked me off to margaritas and Mexican food so we could dish, and dish we did. Sometimes you need to kick back and rip on everything and be inappropriately loud.

Then Johnny and I found ourselves at Howler's for the whiskey social. It was really cozy and warm and everyone was happy to be around one another, singing to bluegrass and bein a yinzer. What a robust weekend. So much love. We're all really happy to be here.

"So those are my friends."

Secretary

2009-07-17T14:19:00.007+01:00

I look like a secretary today.

It's great being the kid in the office because my co-workers marvel at how "chic" I dress, even when I think I look like an Asian horse's little brother.

Gearing up for the shitshow that's to be this weekend. I'm taking off Monday so we can all die at Howler's. Philly thrillers are on the road now. We always have so much fun.

--------

Check him, Alex Gaidouk:

Simon Sez Get The Fuck Up!

2009-07-15T19:25:00.007+01:00

Thanks to Jo, this is me performing Pharoahe Monch's "Simon Sez" at Hip Hop Karaoke at The Social in London.

It's sore, it's sweet, I have so much documentation it hurts, but at the same time I'm smiling so hard looking at this.

Lawless in da ville

2009-07-13T19:34:00.003+01:00

I look like Monday, but I feel like Friday.

Everyone in the office is talking shit on the Pirates

then a baby came in! Larry’s grandson.

Then the men (boss, his son, Larry, baby’s dad) talked hunting while I rolled my godless left-wing eyes into my liberal arts-educated brain.

This weekend I started to get my act together. Cleaned my room, finally put away the suitcases which I'm going to take back out again in 2 weeks.

I think we're addicted to bowling. And screaming. Sorry, Lawrenceville. (psych!)

Drew and Chad say, "I need a stiff drink."

I like that.

Well That's Nice To Know

2009-07-09T18:58:00.003+01:00

Whatever you decide, we will be here for you.

Lots of love,

Mom

It's The Truth

2009-07-06T16:47:00.002+01:00

Andrew: just wait till school starts lol

me: i cant believe school is eventually going to start...im so ambiv

WHOA

Andrew: you'll be walking a lot

me: JINZ

Andrew: jinz x

yes!

me: and sleeping a little...better eat drink be merry now bc all we'll be doing this year is drinking and crying

Andrew: oh yeah

me: having affairs

Andrew: lots of crying

America N@

2009-07-06T04:16:00.002+01:00

I have no voice. I should lay off the T-Pain impressions.

HOLLA DAY

2009-07-02T17:21:00.002+01:00

It's Friday sticky icky icky (actually Thursday)

3 Day Weekend! We 9to5ers love those.

Maybe I'll throw a party tonight...or go to Lazer Crunk and throw an after-party.

Peep dis:
I love him!!

Stay Out MY MART!

2009-07-01T15:51:00.004+01:00

Nuni, Koko, and I found ourselves rubbing elbows with the postwork gay set around 7 last night. There was a soul singer there. Only mildly uncomf but we'd already resolved to embarrass ourselves.

Doing voices over $3 Long Islands. Koko and I were Lindsay and Sam Ronson, especially her with her kitty sweatshirt!

We met so many characters on the short walk to/from PLCB loveshack. In Unimart:

"I wonder who's gonna be the next Michael Jackson."
Lady: There won't never be another.
"Miley Cyrus? WHEE HEE!"

Take a tip.

2009-06-30T18:18:00.004+01:00

From Adam Lippes

Shaping Up

2009-06-26T15:03:00.002+01:00

That happened this morning and now I look like a kid wearing my momma's office pants. Ha!

Alas, Pittsburgh

2009-06-25T14:51:00.004+01:00

Finally I've made it home.

Wow, where the hell and what was I doing for 6 months?
London<-->Oxford>Amsterdam>Paris>Lyon>Nice>London>DC>
Atlanta>PITTSBURGH.

Got here Sunday, took social calls all day. My friends treat me like a princess. We went to Harris's for frozen mimosas.

on the receipt:

11 @ 7.00

There were only 4 of us...

Kicked it in Andrea and Varun's new gorgeous palace. 2 balconies. Yum.

I got an apartment! I'm moving literally 100 feet away. I have a huge front porch.

Here's to one more year of rolling out of bed and into class.

I can't believe you don't write down your music!

-----

Also, my favorite young designer's collection sucks ass but her costumes are still leginamatic.

#101 well hot damn

2009-06-17T05:57:00.005+01:00

I'd wear these shoes.
And hate myself for it.

Or these, good for street-walking.

I bought a variant of these in Paris at Guerrisol because I'm fabulous.

MARIAH CAREY

2009-06-15T14:35:00.005+01:00

Soo,
2 days after having met Manu Chao I'm on the train to my gate at Heathrow, on the last car. There are about 5 other people in this car.

Foremost,

MARIAH CAREY!!

We stood a few feet apart and I just listened to her talk to her handlers. It was wicked. She's tall. And pretty. And soft-spoken.

I was, hm...surprised.

Got into DC (not Atlanta, unexpected change of plans) last night and as soon as Rex and I spotted each other at arrivals there were screams and tears and bear hugs and I threw my luggage on some unsuspecting little boy.

So now we're sitting on the couch watching some Jewish movie OnDemand while the rest of our nation's capital goes to work. I'll be in Atlanta late tonight--no rush.

This has been the longest journey!

One month:
8 cities,
4 countries,
2 continents

I got culture beaming out the ass!

GO PENS!

2009-06-13T03:14:00.002+01:00

Dear Detroit,

Aha ya burnt!

_____________

hell yeah the Pens are going to win the Stanley Cup

I hung out with Manu Chao tonight at Island Records

Then Notting Hill Arts Club after a month-long hiatus.

Good night London.

Go Pens!

Peace The Spork

2009-06-12T00:58:00.003+01:00

Tonight I kicked it with my 2 aunts, uncle, and 2 cousins in South London. It was a blast, especially listening to Kerabo's endless cavalcade of schoolyard stories.

I revealed to a chorus of laughter,

"I'm scared of teenagers."

But live in this town for 6 months, and you'd be too.

----

My room is nearly sorted back to immaculacy. Tomorrow is my last night in this dorm-issue bed. Then I head to Barking Saturday morrow, then Heathrow Sunday morning and I'm in Atlanta Sunday evening. It's 90 degrees there.

I can't believe I did it. I did it and now I'm done.

And until I can fill my house with live snakes, I'm buying this.

In Paradise...

2009-06-03T10:18:00.005+01:00

found a secluded beach in Villefranche
today I go see where my Daddy lived in Nice
then hopping over to Cannes to scope the plethora of beaches

oh, ocean life.

French Riviera

2009-06-01T15:23:00.004+01:00

just got to the villa in Nice
starving but ready to throw down

missed my train of course
almost got arrested in Lyon for an honest mistake

made 1800 boyfriends my last day of Paris
ridic ass weekend in Lyon
bike rides and boat clubs
too much to tell

gotta eat
gotta scuba dive
gotta hit Monaco in a couple days

I am 21 and RAISING HELL

I got a fat chain, I got a fat whip

2009-05-26T13:46:00.003+01:00

Today I woke up early to leave with Cédric for his interview. Of course it started raining clicks and whistles so I ducked into this video store in this market in Saint-Dénis. Found some great films by Godard and the best finds were Dave Chappelle's Block Party and Les Lois de L'Attraction (my favorite movie, book, everything).

Now it's 3 and we're heqding out again to go on a bike ride in town using Vélib, the free bike network with checkpoints all around Paris. Yay!

Last night:

Make It Rain

2009-05-25T22:49:00.003+01:00

This was the biggest singular cloud I have ever seen in my life. Taken from Pont Neuf.

Today Cédric and I went to Versailles, rented a car, and drove it around the gardens. BREATHTAKING!

On pense que

2009-05-25T00:03:00.006+01:00

je suis française.

Today I was approached a number of times by Francophone people asking for directions or a lighter (un feu) and I responded with the ease and finesse of a suave French woman.

I feel like a French-Dutch-British chameleon. Or a fugitive.

Frinstance, now Cédric and I are sipping Merlot and watching the Monaco Grand Prix, and the living is easy. Vintage shopping at Place de Clichy this week, meaning 5 euro dresses and bags and hopefully I won't go shoe-cray.

Today I went to Montmartre (où se trouve le Moulin Rouge) and took the funiculaire up to Sacre-Coeur where I think the best views of Paris are, and where, 5 years ago, I had French Onion soup for the first time. I love all the cobbled alleyways and the pushy as fuck African men forcing shitey bracelets onto everyone who enters the gate to Sacre-Coeur. I gave them a very sassy

<<Laissez-moi!>>

I'm good at Europe.

Paris in May

2009-05-24T10:50:00.003+01:00

Je suis arrivee en France!

The train was so effing uncomfortable so I got wine in order to chill in the bar car aka where the party is at. I am at chez Cedric on his linux computer I cannot find the apostrophe and the A is where the freaking Q is!

I am 21, spent the birthday in Amsterdam in the Red Light District which was like
N O T H I N G I have ever seen before and I still have not found the words to explain it, but lets just say its waaaay too personal to see middle aged men paying for sex out in the open

Might be moving to Europe before California, or maybe after, I belong here.

So far the best things about Paris the 2nd time around=people think I am French, sleeping in, a selection of wine and cheese that put this entire world to shame

I amsterdam.

2009-05-20T22:42:00.003+01:00

I am in Amsterdam. So many bikes. I-I-I-speechless for now.

Tomorrow I turn 21.

Here's a video:

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-05-18T00:47:00.003+01:00

chock full of espresso.

1 hour til I leave for the airport to Amsterdam!!

WOW

really excited. I'll get there at 8am then it's

powpowpowpow

---

ok, now that I'm getting ready to bounce, this fits:

peace&love

Byzantine Dome Face

2009-05-09T16:55:00.007+01:00

So on Friday at 6pm I decided to blow off A-Trak and instead go to Oxford.

Good decision. It was blast-ta-ta-tastic.

I bore gifts, among them a bottle of Jack Daniels, which was consumed wholly within an hour of my arrival. We then did an impromptu late night walking tour of Oxford, all along the way people stopped Johnny to say hey, passed on bikes, drunken stumbling, boys in tuxes.

Best part was reading W.H. Auden's extremely pornographic gay sex poem before going out. I kept SCREAMING. Keep in mind, 4 boys, gay porn, me.

Before though, grocery clerk Africa man and I had this chat, which left me irate and huffing in stilettos to the Oxford Tube bus.

"Can I invite you to church?"
"I don't go to church."
"Well you could give it a try."
"I have. It wasn't for me."

Then he looked at me as if I looked like this:

UGH!!!
I AM AN ATHEIST. According to me, THERE IS NO GOD.
And I'm fine with it. In fact, I LOVE IT!!!

Another thing I love/have been listening to lots of:

I feel so....special!

2009-05-08T00:29:00.005+01:00

Tonight I attended my last ever Hip Hop Karaoke @ The Social. Bonded with an Indian girl who went on a road trip to the States when she was 17! Cray. And also with a Scottish-sounding summer camp counselor who loves Atlanta.

I made a point of introducing myself as from *Atlanta*, appropriate for this milieu. But what I did not expect was:

To have a song dedicated to me!

"Kryptonite", and don't play, that's a legit jam.

But it's weird for me when people either know/remember me in this metropolis London, but it's not the first time it's happened.

I'm down.

Tomorrow I gotta drink some Red Bull or something because I plan on dancing to A-Trak and Radioclit until at least 3AM
. Ye'aint'know.

JD Samson

2009-05-03T23:59:00.002+01:00

All you need is MEN.
So what if I wanted to marry JD Samson tonight?
She is my idol!

Where My Shakers At?

2009-05-03T17:41:00.000+01:00

Full Bloom

2009-05-02T16:48:00.004+01:00

Now's the best time to be in London. It's warm and pulsating.

And this Monday is a Bank Holiday! Get it right. There are warehouse parties and all-night DJ shindigs all around town this weekend.

And I'm going to this next Friday (8 pounds, A-Trak!! Radicoclit!!) I love this town.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of taking in London Spring with Lydia and her mama. Made me miss my own, especially when Ms. Fine advised me to drink my orange juice and take allergy medicine that she gave me, before we went down to the lobby for drinks with Anna. We dined at Shish, and I had the most succulent lamb kebab. Like proper kebab not bloody 2am Old Street dropping chips everywhere kebab! It was so lovely.

Then we hit up Matteo's gig @ Monto Water Rats and let me tell you, Italian boys have the hair thing on lock. Seriously. Phillip, Matteo, and Manuel--cheers to you boys!

SUMMER

2009-04-27T16:12:00.003+01:00

(This is where I go, rather WENT, to school, School of Slavonic and East European Studies @ UCL--7th best university in the world!!)

Just tamed my Russian Oral Exam. No cavities, haha!

---

Tipsy Gypsy, well, I would be if I were to attend that Russian Film Lecture that 2 of my teachers are putting on today because I have not eaten in 24 hours and almost all SSEES talks have "wine to follow". But here's the gypsy reality that's my life in London:

I'm making about 40 pounds this week participating in psychology experiments for my school.

HOLLER AT THAT DOLLAR

Also, moving to California in a year's time.

Have You Ever, Ever Felt Like This?

2009-04-26T23:17:00.002+01:00

Oh, the miracle of globalisation that gave Joe and I a hearty laugh. On completely opposite poles of the globe we both grew up watching this show:

Don't Stop Til You Get Enough

2009-04-26T01:11:00.006+01:00

Thursday night was my last night out with my BU compadres and we did it up rotten in Shoreditch, where by coincidence, is the first area we went out together. We hit Plastic People and it was a rager. Basement, grinding, some dude filming the whole thing.

Ended up walking Jack Kalish home. He's from Brooklyn, was lost in Shoreditch, and speaks Russian. So we hopped into and out of a van, went to a bar that was closing, and at some point he made fun of me for eating bacon. It was nice to get acquainted.

Friday was a trip. I called Jeffrey, Dogstar's resident DJ, in the early evening and he remembered me! From 2 months ago. So he said he'd put me on about midnight. I got there way too early, left, came back, then Joe met me out there. There was a serious party on, including failed salsa dancing Aussies, people on...something, lasers, and my baile funk/Peaches break!

It was a blast. We stayed mad late then today did absolutely nothing. I'm being a really bad student, considering I have to write an entire paper tomorrow and practice my Russian presentation for Monday. But it's been fun and it's been worth it. And I'll never have this kind of opportunity again, so I ain't mad at me.

A Toast

2009-04-23T17:31:00.003+01:00

Last night was so happy/sad. My fellow Americans are leaving tomorrow.

It was our last Death Disco together at Notting Hill Arts Club and it was somehow as mind-blowing and hyphy as the first time they took me there.

All were in attendance, including this 50-person horde of maybe Australians? I got invited to a barbecue in Queen's Park this weekend, but anyway.

When I think of how we've befriended an entire bar staff and about 10 other rotating cast members at this place, I really have to laugh.

Sebastien turned 29, birthday shots and kisses. We hung around late and I learned that my new friend is friends with my old friend, rather friend's friend from Brazil.

There was a photoshoot with my name on it. Goodbyes, hugs, kisses. I can't believe one day I'm going to leave this place too. I'm going to miss walking into a bar and getting hugged and kissed hello by Frenchy, Asian-y, Julian, Neil, brown guy...I told Neil I'd be coming back with Koko, so those wacky Wednesdays aren't over just yet.

When It Occurred To Me

2009-04-21T16:10:00.004+01:00

I went on a 3-hour walkabout yesterday afternoon. It was glorious weather and I wore these:
Needless to say, I was strutting.

Through Tate Modern States of Flux exhibit, down the shore of the river, to the Japanese restaurant where I wined/dined myself, all around Westminster, and back to my home where I fell into my bed until more/less now.

Then it occurs to me,
I had 4 weeks to write 2 papers.
Now I have 4 days. And I'm smiling because it's sunny and 66 degrees outside and I'm gonna run to Hyde Park and lay in it...to brainstorm.

Mind It Races

2009-04-19T15:39:00.007+01:00

It took me until 6am to shut off my brain last night. There are so many things I've come to realize recently and I'm stirring! For one, I still cannot grasp the reality that Koko is coming here then to Amsterdam where I will turn 21. I can't imagine a better birthday present.

Tomorrow I register for my last fall semester at Carnegie Mellon. Sad. I need to be back in yinzer land. Stomping the gravel, running across bridges, laughing while horiztonal. Now that there's only 1 week left in Easter Break, time seems to be picking up speed. In 3 weeks I'll be done with exams, packed, ready to go on my vacation. And to the beach! The freaking Cote d'Azur!! And then back to London for what I expect to be a sad week, then to Atlanta for 1.2 seconds then to Pittsburgh--my love! Drew's living at my place for the summer, so that means the roof is on fire.

And I've finally sorted my next year's apartment dilemma. I'm living in a studio in Cathdral Mansions (on the same floor as Rex!!) and Koko and Drew are living across the street in Fairfax. Let the good times roll. We're going to groove out North Oakland!

Below are some works from my sister's leading man, whom I learned of in a life update e-mail that made me smile around the face.
Courtesy of Marlon Sagana Ingram.

As for the near future, going on a picnic with BU friends tomorrow. Writing up my presentation for oral exam today.

I feel alive! I wrote my boss telling him to please give me my job back please, and applied for some freelance writing gigs in Pittsburgh. I seriously feel like the next 4 months are a love song to me. 21, Amsterdam, Koko, France, parents, Pittsburgh, summer! Senior!

So here it is, my trajectory of jetsetting:
London>Oxford>Amsterdam>Paris>Lyon>Avignon>Nice>Atlanta>Pittsburgh>San Francisco?

What's next? BRAZIL!

___

My last dream was about a baby horse (colt?) walking out of the ocean and only 2 other people saw it happen and we all looked at each other in awe. Rebirth is a trip.

???

2009-04-18T04:24:00.002+01:00

What the WHAT??

Went to a club named after my best friend. Insulted a Brit about his lack of national cuisine in Subway. Snake eyes. It's 4:20 am and the bus diverted to my doorstep. DJing in a week. Cheers.

I Live Here:

2009-04-17T17:47:00.005+01:00

It looks like Pittsburgh outside!

And the building I can see from my window looks exactly like, well:

On the up and up, I'm less freaking out about my Russian Oral Exam because I actually have things to say about student life in Russia compared with that in the United States.

Life's too short to pay lip service to anyone or anything. Ever.

Unwell

2009-04-15T17:42:00.005+01:00

I have to keep reminding myself that hugely wonderful things are going to happen in a month:

1. Koko's coming.
2. We're going to Amsterdam for my birthday.
3. I'm going to France for a couple weeks.

And try not think about being:

1. anxious
2. depressed
3. tired
4. hungry
5. unprepared
__

6. homeless after July
7. unemployed until August

1-7 are very difficult to be overseas. I can't relate to people right now, I need to spend more time in the park, curled in a ball, in the dark, I dunno.

I've decided to make a tough, probably stupid decision. And I'm going to drink more coffee. Times like these I wish I smoked ciggs.

Queen Mary

2009-04-14T19:13:00.005+01:00

Respect:

Eley Kishimoto Fall/Winter '09
I want to make (really tight) jeans out of this. I'm backpacking to Amsterdam and around France for a few weeks and for my birthday. My lady love is coming to visit and chill. There's always more Russian to be learned.

I live here:

And I dig this:

Cocadisco

2009-04-03T02:31:00.003+01:00

Soooo, I ventured out to Shoreditch to Favela Chic to see Gringo da Parada again. That was alright. I ended up jus talking about skiing with a gorgeous businessman named Gary. I very rudely asked him if when he had to go "was his bedtime" when in fact it was his business. Anyway it was nice to have The London Paper as a conversation piece.

So then I went to The Social for CocaDisco, a night which has seen the likes of Aphex Twin and Simian Mobile Disco. Tonight Richard X was on the decks and it was SO MUCH FUN!!! It's funny meeeting the British versions of people I know in Pittsburgh, but it happened. And this one guy, Paul, managed to do an American accent that was both grating and hiariously accurate. It hurt a little. But the dancing was fab. And I made some new friends, always good. And I high-fived my bouncer friend on the way out. Holla.

££££

2009-04-02T18:47:00.003+01:00

I got a job!

I'm going to participate in a research focus group by a vodka company with other American girls. And I will be compensated in cash and, you guessed it, vodka.

HA!

Catharsis

2009-04-01T16:51:00.003+01:00

Muslim children tried to feed pigeons bread their little beaks could not chew. I looked at two dogs, one sitting on the other, and when they saw me see them they both looked away. I wanted to sit on a bench next to a boy who was rubbing his face but I did not want to surprise him. A shed stood on the shore of the lake. It had no floor, just water where the floor should be. Someone left a hat on the dock but I would have had to walk on the lake to get it. This made me think of Jesus. An Asian boy in a tanktop was dancing by himself. He looked like a cricket. A bird almost flew in my face. Maybe it wanted to teach me a lesson.

_____

From my Skype chat w/ Rex

Rex Garrell
8:34 PM
when do you want to do this again

sassyjones
8:34 PM
i was kinda thinking this was a 1 night stand
8:34 PM

um...ill call you?
8:34 PM

i had fun

Heavy Boots

2009-04-01T04:25:00.003+01:00

It's 3:25 a.m.

I have about 20 pages left in Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close.

I've shed a gallon of tears in the last 2 hours, so I have to stop. And this is the sad part of reading books, this point where you know if you keep reading you'll finish it, so you have to put it away to keep it alive and unknown for a bit longer. Maybe that's also why I was crying.

The Realest Streets

2009-03-31T16:39:00.006+01:00

It's crazy how inspiring not having class can be.

I'm tearing through Extrememly Loud & Incredibly Close, I'm working out for hours each day, and I'm seeing so much of this sprawling madness town. I feel weirded out not having a bike, and walking on flat ground, and today I realized when I was leaving the park I was walking really fast, like being chased fast, I think in an effort to mimic a bicycle. Ha!

I should probably set some goals for myself, like get a 6-pack, but there are more important things than hot bods, like hot minds. So yeah, one goal is to expand my mind and dig deep into these streets.

Noise Annoys

2009-03-30T22:29:00.002+01:00

I just watched the effing cutest film by Sam Taylor-Wood @ 1001 called Love You More

I don't want to give it away, let's just say boy-virginity, Buzzcocks, hilarity! It was touching, really.

But yeah, it was really quite alright to just hang around on the floor, and on couches watching short films by Brits. And it's a weekly thing which I'm so glad to have found out about. That's Monday sorted.

Sunshine Lovely

2009-03-30T19:39:00.002+01:00

Welly welly well.

Today was my first Monday without class, and let me tell you, it was fabulous. I walked to Hyde Park then walked around the park looking for the right spot to settle in. Then I read more of Extrememly Loud & Incredibly Close, which has sucked me in. It makes me so uncomfortable but in a necessary way, and now I know I have to finish it within the next 2 days. So that's fine. Anyway, I also bought sunglasses today on the way to the park, a detour, but they're my traveling sunglasses, you know.

Traveling!! I cannot wait to execute my Amsterdam plus Tour de France plus probably Geneva. Alas. But until then, I'm just learning my Russian vocabulary and getting super excited for when Koko!!!! my love, comes to visit me. Spring is life.

And now I'm going to a short film screening on Brick Lane. This is magic.

SENIOR!

2009-03-28T08:48:00.002Z

Et voila, no more class until August.

So I'm sitting here at 9 am, listening to Beat Happening and drinking OJ in my bed without pants on.

I'm a senior again...let the apathy take hold.

Working My Core

2009-03-23T22:25:00.003Z

And writing my essays, and doing it to it.

Never felt more extreme, but it's good.

It builds character, and it builds abs.

Secret

2009-03-22T19:20:00.004Z

Went to a record label party at a secret location in Whitechapel and danced my ass off until the apartment owners had to go to bed in the morning. I met some lovely DJs, including Jane Fitz--girl power!--who has been a resident DJ in Hong Kong for years and is so admirable and kind.

Talked about the Ottoman Empire w/ Okan, the Turk, and once the high school kids bounced everything was quite fun. Johanna left soon after we got there because it was weird with them around, but as the night wore on the crowd grew older and more chill.

I also met a girl who went to school in Pittsburgh! And the most adorable Irish girl (also suffering from babyface syndrome), 2 Russian girls and a gay? Bulgarian bartender. These people were so educated and interested, lots of engrossing convo so I was happy. Also, I don't think I've danced for so long consecutively ever. It feels good to shake it out.

Brass Tacks

2009-03-19T11:24:00.000Z

Dear ______,

You're the better person, and I'm sorry.

2 Weeks Left

2009-03-16T15:39:00.005Z

I can feel myself shrinking.

Where Fabulous Lives

2009-03-14T13:45:00.006Z

I'm conceptualizing a line of lingerie, evening wear, and otherwise sensual fabric creations.

So for inspiration I'm going to take myself and my sketchbook on a date to Victoria and Albert Museum to check out the Magnificence of the Tsars exhibit and the jewelry and fashion and accessories galleries. I'm salivating. I will soon be in the presence of these:

Vivienne Westwood c. 1993

Knuck If You Buck

2009-03-14T01:34:00.000Z

I did a brave, brave thing.

I went out by myself. All by my lonely. To Cafe 1001.

And had a gay ole time.

"You got the moves." -rando Indian dude

"I couldn't stop watching you." -Sailor, Spanish girl. (Me: Like Sailor Moon??)

Before we all get the wrong idea, let me remind you that I was flopping around, almost literally, because drum and bass promotes that kind of movement. I was soaked after less than an hour of dancing. And duh, I can Crip Walk, because I'm from Cali.

Don't get it twisted.

So in the end going out alone was hella fun. The only people I would have liked to be there were Rex and Netta because D&B is a sensitive genre and most people would be turned off right away, unless they had their own "internal groove". Ha. Good night.

2+2=4

2009-03-13T10:10:00.000Z

So Vladimir Putin and Dmitri Medvedev had a late night one night, and they fell asleep in the Kremlin. The next day they woke up and Medvedev goes,

"Vladimir Vladimirovich, I want to make sure of something."

And Putin says, "What? Tell me, Dima."

And Medvedev asks, "2 plus 2, that equals 4, right?"

To which Putin responds, "Right, Dima. 3 for me, and 1 for you."

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!

Freelance Gynecology

2009-03-10T22:53:00.000Z

Pats on back:

I made brussel sprouts for the 1st time in my life today! They were good. And they're invited to my eat-darker-green-things diet.

Today at school a female taxi driver (the first I've ever seen) let me cross in front of her car, then she went down a one-lane road and found herself blocked by a male taxi-driver and then a line of cars. I'm not sure who got there first, but I stopped to see who would back down. She refused. It was freaking awesome to watch 5 or so cars reverse and pull over to let her by.

Gon' head girl!

I made a funny/gross (surprise):

Girl: So what do you do?
Boy: I'm a FREELANCE GYNECOLOGIST.*
Girl: Um..
Boy: And I think it's time for the breast exam!

*SLAP*

*for my gays, "freelance proctologist"

Drink More Coffee

2009-03-09T18:58:00.001Z

because I took a 30-minute nap in the Junior Common Room and had a nightmare (yes, at 1:30) during which I was driving a huge van home (to my parents' house) but instead the road led to a Wal-Mart where I ran into a pyramid of blue and white crates, killing (I presume) 2 fat women in the process. One of them screamed, but not like you'd scream if you really got pinned between a huge van and Wal-Mart crates.

Point: drink more coffee.

Action!

2009-03-08T20:32:00.000Z

This was a weekend of extremes.

The Le Corbusier exhibit at the Barbican Gallery was EXTREMELY thorough and inspiring and it made me miss Pittsburgh and my archie droogs so much. A lot of the pieces were on loan from Fondation Le Corbusier and they included postcards to his friends, sketches, plans, scale models, drawings, furniture, built art, paintings, and best part was that everything was in French so I had a little ticklish moment in the museum. Makes me yearn for Paris again, as does a certain message from a special friend. It was super cool to see how Le Corbusier translated his appreciation for utopian socialism into his design for the Centrosoyuz headquarters in Moscow, a design that was realized in 1928. All in all I kept making sex sounds because his works were so damn sensual and trippy and it was a mindgasm.

And the area where the Barbican Gallery is, in proper London, is SO WEIRD. It's like being in 1984, the book. Or the Soviet Union.

Then that night I shelled out 7 quid to see where the least attractive people in all of London (&maybe all of Great Britain) rub up on each other, where balding businessmen go to score poon. So gross. But I'm probably going to back there in May to see Clem Snide, so...

Anyway that was a bust, but Saturday was much better. First I met Lydia, Sarah, and Johanna at Broadway Market in Bethnal Green, a place I would not want to be alone at night. But I realized I like rundown sort of shady areas during the day because there are certain lonely elements that make for interesting images, such as:

After Broadway Market I went with Sarah and Jo to Primark at Oxford Circus. Big mistake. Worst timing ever; the place was like if H&M and Forever 21 did meth and got into a catfight. Nothing short of hell on earth. My anxious mess left after about 10 minutes.

Then in the evening we were invited to Martin/Anders's place for drinks, an outing (inning?) which inevitably finds us still at their apartment when the sun's coming up, Martin turning to me and asking, "Sooo what should we do? Should we go out? Get some bears?" This time the Norwegians were actually outnumbered! I met a Frenchman named Basil who said I had a great accent (merci) and an Italian named Mateo who actually had an American accent and was so typically Italian. As in, contentious, pompous, emotional, etc. However, he was a great singer and gave Martin a boygasm with his guitar playing. At 5 a.m. I ate a ton of egg whites and tried to make people jealous, but no one was really interested in the egg whites, just me.

Woke up at 1 to a text from Sarah so I met her on Brick Lane, where we accidentally went into a supersized opium den/coffeshop/bar. We ate burgers and lounged on the couches while the DJ played reggae and dancehall tunes from Jamaica. The event is formally called 100% Dynamite and the place, Cafe 1001.
After a while we got depressed from looking at all the gorgeous men and their slightly less gorgeous girlfriends. Makes me hate London a little bit and worry about how I'd make friends if I came back here to live/work. Oi vey.

Somehow I managed to exhaust every second of this weekend doing something enlightening or funny or just stupid, so London, cheers.

Note to self:
-Write this story
*Mistaken for something of monetary value, a suitcase full of film reels gets stolen from a departing film crew in Morocco. Filmmaker(s) return to try and get it back. Adventure!

PBJ

2009-03-06T16:27:00.000Z

So last night was Peter, Bjorn, and Johnny. Punny!

We saw PBJ @ Scala in King's Cross, which is far less well-kept than the name would let on. I stepped in vomit. Then a scalper made fun of us for drinking an unlabeled bottle of cider across the street from Scala. One self-deprecating moment after another.

Man: "He's a good date!"
Johnny: She brought it! It was her idea.
Man: I've been there, on a park bench with my girlfriend and a cheap bottle.
Me: Hahahahahaha. (Swig)

The concert was so much fun. Like being at a Swedish prom. Other highlights included cheese, awkward conversational moments with strangers, and rocking out. Also, I was given a wristband because I look 16. I made a minor scene, but with good reason. I'm 20!!!

Now I'm going to Barbican Gallery to see Le Corbusier--The Art of Architecture. I'm excited!!

Deerhoof is my xanax

2009-03-04T14:48:00.000Z

And Offend Maggie is my hot hot sex.

Sassy Jones on the decks

2009-02-28T15:29:00.000Z

So much fun last night at the Dogstar. Brixton is just a really chill place, exempt from the posh nonsense you find in places like Victoria, where I live, and South Kensington, where these kids live. Mellow cats.

Yesterday evening Johanna suggests I just call the Dogstar since I hadn't heard back from them on DJing Friday night. Novel idea, I introduced myself to the resident DJ who was super nice and then he says he would set me up with his friend who runs an all-girls DJ night in town.

I played a really fun set, some of my mashups, some baile funk, some hip-hop, and my entourage and I had a blast. The room was packed with people getting crunk, singing along, it rocked! I have never DJ'd at a real club before, but I like it. And the Dogstar guy wants me to give him a demo, which would be "Beaster Eggs" from 2007.

Flashing. Lights.

Celebrity Syndrome

2009-02-26T14:56:00.000Z

Walking down Queensgate last night in South Kensington, I hear

"SASSY!!"

It's Alyssa, wielding a wine bottle, we cheers. I meet 2 people who already know me. This keeps happening. Monica says I have a fan club. I say thanks, but please don't stroke my ego.

There was a queue last night @ Notting Hill (?!?!) because some big shot band was there. Luckily Sarah spotted Dominic and we jumped the queue.

The band finishes. Everyone inside is so skinny. Highbrow crowd. I keep expecting to see Kate Moss. Meet a director named Raoul who's making a gay zombie movie called Mr. Right. He throws me over his back and somehow I land on my feet.

Dancing on couches with my 60s soul sister who looks French, but isn't.

Lights go up and we're dancing on stage. Get a lollipop from a baby. Keep saying thanks to compliments. Too many. Top form.

Rolled everyone cigs after they finish cleaning the bar. There's a girl with holes in her sweater. It's awkward.

Then I read everyone's palms and people actually believed that shite. The bartenders were sticking their palms in my face, lining up. Turkish people. Jules and Dre, Dr. Dre.

"I'm going home." This keeps happening. We're all sitting around the table talking about fortunes and street names and pearls and England. All the boys have cool shirts. Sometimes I'm standing on a bench, always laughing.

Then it's 5 and I'm trying feebly to unlock a door so Levi lets me out. Dumb smile, thanks, and I throw myself onto a bus.

Wake up at 12:34!!! For my 1pm class and stumble in on time. My eyes are so red. I think I'm going to a party tomorrow but now I need a nap.

Hang Loose

2009-02-25T00:46:00.000Z

Been rolling with an international crowd these days. Norwegians, Australians, you name it.

I went to hip hop karaoke, going again for my birthday.

We took a cab to the corner store, made it wait, took it back to Martin's.

When he says beers, it sounds like "bears".

Me, upon re-entry: We got BEARS!

I am a woman.

2009-02-18T17:58:00.000Z

And as such, I bloom, wilt, curl into a shell, then burst forth again, like the seasons.

I just figured out this paper, 1 of 2. I'm quoting Mikhail Gorbachev himself and using his words against him. So naughty.

Last night I designed a gown, it's really sexy. I can't wait to get back to my studio in Pittsburgh and go nuts this summer. Living with Drew!

Also, t-shirts:

SKINNY WITCH (Halloween)

THEY'RE REAL (across the chest, w/ glasses)

and

NO HARD FILLINGS (pie)

CAN YOUR URETHRA DO THIS? (baby) haha, maternity line

Twenty Years Old

2009-02-18T00:57:00.000Z

If you are 20 years old in America, the you are missing OUT!

Johanna put it so simply, "I will never be 20 years old and in London ever again." So true.

This opportunity is highly time-sensitive, and it's becoming more and more evident.
Par exemple,

Earlier tonight I attended a lecture on the Russia-Ukraine gas conflict which concluded with sandwiches (I had 4) and wine in the senior common room of my college. I mingled with my Soviet and Russian Foreign Policy teacher, Pete Duncan, while he tipped back a glass of white, and implored him as to where I should seek sources for my 10-page paper for his class, due in 1.5 weeks. He gave me good--and appropriately erudite--advice, "the primary source". Well, duh! Also, I should note that today Georgia taught me how to use her espresso machine so I've developed an intimate, and timely, relationship with that thing. For example, it's 1 A.M. now and I am likely going to brew myself another shot and dig into the wealth of said primary sources (statements, contracts, press releases from the CIS and its constituents) then toss back a hot glass of mulled wine and call it a late, sexy, Russian night. Does this mean I'm officially 89 or just saucy and cultured?

I vote cultured.

And also, I call mad bullshit on the grody feathered creations from this year's Lunar Gala. Try harder, please.

Russia's Next Top American Model

2009-02-17T12:40:00.000Z

is smarter than a 5th grader. Pilot?
This is my sole inspiration as I research the tits off Russia-Ukraine relations. 10 pages starts... NOW!

Holy Hella

2009-02-16T17:47:00.000Z

"In short, he was also good. And they looked very good together. Their dance was imbued with something lasting and unforgettable."

-Vasilii Shukshin, Snowball Berry Red

A wave just swept over me. I can't stop reading this.

WOW!

2009-02-16T15:57:00.000Z

I am drinking Alka-Seltzer for the first time in my life. How exhilarating. It was in the care packages that my parents sent me last week. Care packages are my jam.

I've been sustaining myself on a diet of hot chili peppers since my cold started on Saturday, and while they make me cry like a dumb schoolboy, they really do the trick.

I'm not letting nasal congestion slow my roll, right now I'm going to Scala at King's Cross to buy tickets for Peter, Bjorn, and John also my jam. All the while reading "Snowball Berry Red" for Modern Russian culture. Reading Week is shite.

Single Ladies on Repeat: Anti-Valentine Valentines

2009-02-15T16:19:00.000Z

In the end I had about 10 valentines. Lydia, Sarah, Isabelle the German, and a lot of Norweigans who hosted the party we attended last night.

Highlights:
-"jelly" shots, which we really just cubes we stuffed in our mouths
-"Single Ladies" on repeat and the whole room doing the dance while playing find-the-tranny-in-the-video
-gun shows
-Ray Charles
-speaking Russian! They're taking over "Londongrad"
-Underworld's "Born Slippy"
-51Fifty's
-hearing a Scottish boy say "Hawla!" then advising him against going to Detroit, ever.

Lowlights:
-sick
-2 10-page papers have to be done this week, Reading Week
-Russian grammar take-home test needs to be studied for
-Russian in general outside of a party setting

Silver linings:
-No classes this week
-Sunday sick day, watching more documentaries in bed
-Lecture on Russia-Ukraine gas conflict=3 pages of my paper
-Getting a Vday text at 4am while walking from the bus in the cold=inner warmth

And when you're the last to leave the party, expect to be horizontal.

Brixton, Kill 'Em With The Flow

2009-02-11T00:41:00.000Z

If Sex And The City has taught us anything, it's that all you need to have a good time are your girlfriends and some decadent music. These are truths.

I just got back from the Dogstar in Brixton, where Johanna, Katherine and I shook our moneymakers to all the highschool-era hits, including "Crazy In Love" and some reggaeton-pop single whose name I do not know. And while creepies gave us lecherous looks and one tapped Johanna on the shoulder, none of that mattered because we were having ourselves a gay ole Independent Women Part II time, as Sarah would say. Most importantly, I left the house in my rags and sneakers, which are proof that this is my town, where I can go out looking like shite and feel completely comfortable. What a lovely feeling!

I might be DJing at the Dogstar on February 27th, but til then, we're looking for an anti-Valentine's Day activity, of which there are many around town, mostly raves. I can hear shrieking from across the hall where Georgia is waxing Mojan, who is going to visit her boyfriend in Berlin. Being a woman is a uniquely anguishing experience, just ask Sylvia.

Milk Man Ballet, North Haven, ME

2009-02-09T21:47:00.001Z

This has made my day and possibly even my life. We all know Deerhoof is my favorite band, my e-mail, my eccentric inspiration, and these crackpots in Maine have the right idea. On an island off the cost of Maine, a group of teachers rounded up a band, choreographer, conductor, arranger, and cast from within and without North Haven and put on this sold-out show, Milk Man Ballet, whose score was Deerhoof's 2004 heart-tickler, Milk Man. I salute thee.

If all else fails, alas, a calling.

2 Days, 2 Celebrities

2009-02-05T21:14:00.000Z

Just ask Coolio here, the past 2 days have been a whirlwind.

I probably had too much fun, but I only live once, right?

Right.

On Tuesday a group--no, a gang--of us from Goldsmid went to Ministry of Sound, this multiroom dance club at Elephant and Castle. We didn't get there until 1, and Shehnal's
boyfriend's friend Rishi lives with one of the DJs, so it didn't really matter.

This place was insane, you would enter one room and then be borne from it into another. All very uterine.

So this kept happening and then Rishi leads me into this large performnce space and none other than Coolio is rapping onstage, pictured above in the white tee.

Then last night we went back to Notting Hill Arts Club, where halfway through the evening a buzz sweeps the room and Johanna shrieks, "The guy from Twilight is here!!" Granted, I've not nor will I ever see Twilight, but I did learn that he was also Cedric Diggory, the one who dies in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. A sad moment in Harry Potter history. Here's Sarah talking to him, Robert Pattinson:

Everyone in this tiny underground hovel was on his nuts, and I felt kind of bad for the guy. I didn't approach him to take a proper photo. Either way, he looks like an Alaskan dog and he looked well shite in that grungy shirt. I wonder if he took home a Debbie Harry type, or just left with his less attractive (sucks for him) male friend who looked very, very bored.

Today I was nearly hit by a bus while I ran from an overly friendly giver of directions. Why should directions end in, "Do you want to get coffee?" Why can't people just be nice, and then leave you the hell alone! First the construction worker, then this fellow--enough is enough. I am but a child, okay fine, I'm a very busy young adult for the time being, and I'd much rather have a nice we're-both-from-Africa convo on the street with someone who's clearly too old and should know better. I don't want to get coffee. Coffee is a drug that should be taken to the face while getting dressed or running to catch the Tube. I'd rather read or watch a Russian movie. Yes, I am that girl.

But this was nice, the right kind of nice, and where I'd have least expected it:

"I hope you end up with someone who deserves you."

Not followed by, "like me. Wanna bang?" Just simple sincerity. The way it should be.

It's good to be around obscenely loud people, makes me miss my Pittsburgh droogs:

We're all part gay...in the dark.

Words, to your mother.

2009-02-03T19:35:00.000Z

Epic moment this (late) morning: I was struck with what I like to call "the beat". Words came to me before I'd even gotten out of bed and I began writing a story that I cannot wait to finish. Such an exhilarating feeling.

Then I thought I lost my keys, credit card, licence, and student ID, but I just found them, at 7:30 p.m., in my kitchen. I sketched into the building, the intrepid that I am, while a boy was leaving. He gave me weird eyes.

London lost an estimated 700 million GBP from yesterday's complete infrastructural failure. And the transport chief says, "We did the best we could." Weak.
Just watched Elem Klimov's Добро пожаловать, или Посторонним вход воспрещён (Dobro pozhalovat, ili Postoronnim vkhod Vaspryecyhon) which is a Krushev-era Russian film about kids at summer camp and it was hi-larious. In one scene the boys dove into a poison ivy grove so that they would not have to see their parents at visitor's week. Adorable! I could watch Russian films all day long.

Shite Me Sideways, It's Snowing!

2009-02-02T02:13:00.000Z

I got charged 22 quid for an 11 quid cab ride because..."The minimum is 50 quid, love."

LIAR!!!!

I started watching the Super Bowl at Crofton, where Sarah and Johanna and their friends from BU live. Chatted Russian Jewish ancestry and African civil wars with those kids while looking up tickets to Amsterdam.
Also, I was doing my Russian homework the whole time. Katherine made bean dip that made me weak in the knees. Then the buses stopped running because there's nearly a foot of snow on the street. Now it's 2:30 a.m. Also, this:

Talk about great American heroes. I see why Rex hates Olympians.

Also, the Steelers are winning the Super Bowl, "no duh". But there will be rioting in Ahrn City tonight!!

Trainspotting at Notting

2009-01-29T21:58:00.000Z

Words cannot explain.

Portobello, Hello! BYOB Orchestra, and Tamed!

2009-01-28T13:34:00.000Z

Saturday Lydia and I went to Portobello Market and looked at clothing which I could not justify buying then continued down a narrow cobbled lane to the produce stalls where we found an abundance of 1 quid bowls of fruit, vegetables, and 3-for-a-quid brie!! It was so rewarding. I came away with 2 bunches of bananas, a bowl of apples, a bag of mushrooms, and a brie wheel for 3.30 GBP. And we saw George Orwell's house!

We came upon an antique bookseller and I saw something that I want more than anything in the world--a 2nd edition copy from 1926 of The Sun Also Rises. It's hard to summate how important that book is to me; it's shaped my world view and I have written a lot of criticism about it. I could never run out of things to say about it. The copy the guy was selling was 40 quid (yoikes!) and came into existence when an error was discovered on pg. 118 of the first printed edition ("stoppped"). So to cancel out the anguish of not being able to buy it I got a bratwurst instead and then on Monday I bought:
I cannot wait to get into Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, which is about a young boy who loses his dad in the 9/11 terror attacks then searches the 5 boroughs for the lock to which a key his dad left him fits. I've read page 1 and I had to shut it fast or else I would not have gotten anything else done. It's gripping. Introducing Wittgenstein is a sort of graphic novel biography of the linguist-philosopher and I could probably read it in one sitting. But first I have to read Solzehnitsyn's One Day In The Life of Ivan Denisovich, which is about political prisoners in the gulag, for my Making of Modern Russian Culture class. I'm excited about that one. I love the oppressed!

Saturday evening was a lot of fun. Johnny came in from Oxford and we went to this really cozy pub in Soho, The French House. The people were really nice and chatty and warm and for a while we couldn't even get a seat until this couple got up and offered us their table. We stayed there until they closed then went to Shoreditch where we found another corner in another pub, and we sat in this 1.5-person chair propped against a bathroom door, which was weird to some people but not so much to us. Engrossing conversation about Heidegger, set theory, and quantum physics ensued. Got back late, apples, slept late, all in all a great time.

I'm GOING TO KILL the construction workers who seem to be doing more damage than creation to the building adjacent to mine. I've learned to sleep through the morning ruckus, but now I have to circumvent the entrance to my flat by about 100 metres because there is a moat coalescing. Blergh. And this one dude, he's from Ghana, now thinks we are best freaking friends when really I was just being polite and rarely have the time to chat in the mornings when I'm trying to make it to class, which means trying to make it to the Tube, on time. Ack!

Best thing EVER happened in Soviet & Russian Foreign Policy today. This one girl, who is either Russian or Ukrainian and kind of a brat, would not stop whispering to her friend and the professor had already asked her nicely to stfu. So then this kid raises his hand and I thought he was going to ask a question about Crimea, but instead he turns to her and says in a loud, stern voice:

"Stop talking. You're being rude and I don't think you get it. If you can't be quiet then don't come at all. He's lecturing and you're disturbing the entire class and insulting everyone in it."

My jaw dropped.

So then the girl looks completely injured and tries to defend herself feebly to the very professor whom she had previously disrespected, then other students chimed in telling the girl she really just needed to stop talking, and it was GREAT. I have never seen someone get tamed so hard in my life. And the best part was that everyone was on the kid's side because the girl was really being a brat. At one point she even tried to tell on him, she said, "Ever since I put down my bag, he's been rude to me. There are ways to be nice about it."

And he said something to the effect of, "There are also ways to shut up."

Then Dr. Titov returned to the lecture, but not before saying, "Kind of resembles Russia-Ukraine relations."

BURN.

Last night we saw the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment at Queen Elizabeth Hall. It was awesome. We sat on the stage behind the orchestra and they played Handel's Arrival of the Queen of Sheba, a Vivaldi concerto in D, and a cantata with a real-life soprano in a hideous dress. And they used baroque instruments! It was only 4 quid, super lax (you could BYOB and come and go) and there was a bar for students and the announcer was an offhand comedian and the whole thing was refreshing. Makes me want to dust off my violin and go at it.

Fly By Night

2009-01-24T00:34:00.000Z

Friday has a unique quality, and while it isn't my favorite day of the week (Saturday is), I can't help but appreciate the unmatchable pardon that is Friday. Shakespeare said it best:

Love goes toward love, as schoolboys from their books, But love from love, toward school with heavy looks.

Too true, Billy!

Another great lesson I learned this evening was, as convenient as it is to leave Shoreditch before midnight and catch the Tube on a Friday night, the trouble of drunken bastards mobbing the train almost makes waiting for a bus worthwhile. Almost. Ew, I'm not okay with that sentence but not enough to change it. I saw the most horrific thing on Old Street, a girl pulled down her stockings and underwear IN FRONT OF A CLUB and peed on a wall. It was disgusting and embarrassing and people came out from inside to behold the grotesque spectacle. It was as gross as Girls Gone Wild is totally so much fun!

Next drunken annoyance--violin player on the Tube. His bow had about 4 hairs left and he was wasted, so while the other passengers winced and made vomit-faces I cranked up baile funk on my iPod. But I did notice that he took the change he'd collected from his violin case and put it in his pocket before starting up again on the Tube. Capitalism in action.

Speaking of capitalism, true London reveals itself at night in the backstreets like Brik Lane, where Lydia and I navigated through a series of Pakistani, Indian, and Bangladeshi restaurateurs, each vying for our business. They'd jump out at us, offer us "drinks on the house", and one dude even did a little dance. The hand wasn't quite invisible.

Amidst all this hustle and flow, I did observe a lovely simple grace while riding the Tube back home. A guy helping his wasted girlfriend (she looked like she had been retching &/or crying earlier) stuff her sweater into her purse, then zipping it up for her, and just sorting her out and making her feel comfortable in her apparently semi-conscious state. He tucked her in, and it was considerate and sweet, like he'd been there before.

Weird dream from last night--I said:

"Profanity, for writers, it's our naked lunch."

???

Post-Weave Consciousness

2009-01-23T00:49:00.000Z

Tonight Lydia and I went to the FOUNDRY which is basically a grungy hangout with a bar and a bunch of couches and art everywhere. Television sets abounded, and the crowd was real chill and friendly and welcoming. It was like being in Pittsburgh except the people, we'll call them British yinzers, seemed far more involved, whether they were students or working artists or just hangers out. I guess they didn't seem as grungy retarded (not to be confused with lovely retarded) in that caring-is-for-sellouts, my-bubble-is-better way. That's to say the exhibits had agendas, and those agendas were relevant to the world beyond Old Street.

WHAT AN IDEA!

I met Shepherd, who wants to do a project where he covers a wall with weave, but he wasn't sure if it was too offensive. "The more offensive, the better!" I told him, then showed him my shaven head, which he proceeded to massage with veneration. "I should take pictures of you!" he said. I'm down, and not just because I'm a narcissist, but because my participation is precisely in tune with the message he wants to convey. "I HATE WEAVE!" he shouted while a guy named Sam rocked out some blues guitar from inside a house made of trees.

Tomorrow I'm going to the squat (which made the front page of today's paper) to learn how to protest-dance.

And now, a poem inspired by Shepherd and Romeck, the writer:

Get that weave out your hair so your brain can breathe, girl
Get that weave out your hair and go see the world, girl
Get that weave out your hair
Throw that weave in the air
And say, Holla back, jack
Weave will not hold me back!

Pressure Drop

2009-01-21T20:08:00.000Z

I didn't do much of anything today EXCEPT skanked in my room to The Clash.
And something about it felt poetic and present and alive because I am here in London and I can see the places Joe Strummer's growling about. And the history he recounts, and the social tension that is unique to England's cultural history.

I'm going to Manchester to scope out Ian Curtis's old flatblock and look at the places where Anton Corbijn took pictures of Joy Division like this one.

Amsterdam next month and Dublin (for 5 pounds!!!) in March. As for tonight, Notting Hill Arts Club.

Free Wax People

2009-01-21T10:51:00.000Z

My president is black and my throat hurts. I'm going back to bed.

I'm the best dancer in this country

2009-01-18T14:06:00.000Z

I'm a foreigner and everyone knows it.

People keep knocking on my door, saying they've "heard about me". I'm the new girl, the American, the gringo. No, I just added that one for effect.

Hans asked me if I was into baseball, Georgia asked me how America felt about Obama (And I got so emotional and proud that I almost started crying), and Arron remarked about how "random" it was that "you're a black girl from Pittsburgh studying Russian in the UK." How curiously astute a comment it was, given the paucity of black people in my part of Pittsburgh. But anyway, everyone I've met in Goldsmid House is very interested in learning about what it's like where I come from.

Culture shock #1: Celsius
So I was baking in the flat's kitchen and did not turn the oven, only the fan, on. That's why it took 2 hours to cook chicken. Chicken cooks at 220 degrees. Thanks to my flatmates for understanding that I'm actually not retarded, just foreign.

(°F - 32) x ⁵/₉ = °C

Culture shock #2: Humour
While American audiences turn to the deplorable Dane Cook (who makes me embarrassed to be an American) and other kiddults who can't assimilate into the mature and responsible sphere, British people seem to appreciate a deadpan, potty mouth sort of humour. Case: my Russian translation teacher explains to us what a phrase with some words left out means, lit. Fuck your mom, but it takes him nearly ten minutes because he skirts around it with a series of dustups like, "Goodness gracious me". My teachers are hilarious though, especially Pete Duncan, my Soviet & Russian Foreign Policy teacher who is far too polite to be that damn funny. Maybe that's the joke.

Culture shock #3: Scenes
Because the drinking age is 18 in this country, kids can start clubbing as early as 16. On Tuesday I went to PACHA with the freshmen from my building and I felt like a geriatric. So not my scene. Everyone, still stuck in that "look at how much fun I'm having!" stage was Facebooking themselves to death. The grossest boys were photographing girls dancing, none of whom could actually dance, and the music was so outdated, as in late 2008 Rihanna. The DJ didn't even have "Single Ladies". Seriously, brush your game up Pacha.

Why I love it here #1: Great DJs
On the other hand, I seemed to have walked into an orgasm the following night when Mojan and I went to Favela Chic, where Gringo da Parada was spinning hip-hop, pop, breaks, and funk carioca, which is my favorite thing in the world. During an interlude, I found myself doing the Charleston. Only in England, really. Gringo da Parada finished off his set around 2am with "Ante Up (remix)" so of course I had to find a ledge and completely rock out while screaming the lyrics. I caused a bit of a spectacle, and afterwards three girls came up to me as said, "You dance really well!" Such lauding, and the video below from CARGO last night, may explain the title of this post:

Finished off Wacky Wednesday with virgin Bloody Marys in the hall kitchen at 3am. Mojan put Tabasco and pepper in them so the whole thing was quite off, but lovely nonetheless.

Why I love it here #2: Everyone knows someone in Georgia.

One would assume that on a different contienent thousands of miles away, one would not encounter people who had even heard of Georgia. False. Shehnal's boyfriend was visiting on Wednesday and they came into the kitchen while I was eating. I mentioned I was from Atlanta and, of course, her boyfriend's cousin goes to Georgia State. So we chatted about Atlanta, which he really likes, and Lenox, the mall. Too funny. Proves that no matter how far you go, you'll find something that reminds you of home.

Why I love it here #3: My legs look great.

By Tuesday I thought I was going to need medical attention for the searing agony in my legs. Then on Wednesday I met up with Lydia at Favela Chic and we had a screaming sesh about our first few days in London, after which we were nearly crippled by leg pain. Coincidentally, we had both been wearing rain boots, which are very heavy, for days and walking everywhere in them. Today is Sunday and my legs have adjusted to the intense hoofing I've been doing, and in fact they look damn good. I'm gonna have some ill stems by the time I leave town.

A Complete Stranger

2009-01-16T15:04:00.001Z

I'm meeting Lydia at a mansion that people squat in and do workshops so I will expand (expound?) later. I'm finally sorted out and the luckiest girl in the world.

Week 1: Finally Sorted Out

2009-01-16T14:22:00.000Z

My class schedule is as follows:

Monday
11:00-12:00 Russian Short Prose
12:00-1:00 Use of Russian: Grammar
2:00-4:00 Cinema in Eastern Europe Lecture
4:00-6:00 Cinema in Eastern Europe Film Showing

Tuesday
11:00-12:00 Comprehension of Russian: Listening
12:00-1:00 Making of Modern Russian Culture Lecture
4:00-5:00 [every fortnight] Soviet & Russian Foreign Policy Tutorial
5:00-6:30 Making of Modern Russian Culture Film Showing

Wednesday
11:00-12:00 Soviet and Russian Foreign Policy Lecture

Thursday
1:00-2:00 Comprehension of Russian: Translation

Friday
11:00-12:00 Use of Russian: Speaking
1:00-2:00 Use of Russian: Writing

This means the weekend starts on Wednesday and ends on Sunday. Yeeeah!

A girl walks into a bar...

2009-01-12T15:20:00.000Z

asking for directions and befriends a UCL philosophy student, Charlotte, a Scotsman, Thomas, and about 6 other people. Turns out I was a block away from my destination, my house, Goldsmid. Same zipcode as Her Majesty. Uhh...

Prince of Wales, the pub, was cozy and everyone seemed to live there like one happy drunken family.

Everyone is finishing their finals and freaking out!! in the Computer Cluster in the library. Two dudes were ON MY NUTS behind me because there aren't enough computers for this volume of freaking out people. I'm glad that Hell was over in December. What a kick in the groin to have to do finals the first day you're back from break.

Gotta go meet with my affliate tutor. I already love SSEES. Everyone has been profusely helpful, cheerful, and kind.

We discuseed "fuck your mom" in my Russian class in the most thoroughly polite terms. Brits.

Lovers and friends

2009-01-11T18:09:00.000Z

I have arrived! I came to the UCL main site after trying to get wireless at 2 coffee shops in my borough of South Kensington, which I cannot afford! Somehow I found my way here from my flat with my woman's instinct. Of course I left my phone top up card in the flat so I am going to get on the payphone to Lydia and see if she wants to get "tea". I am clueless but confident, the best way to roll. British airways was amazing, especially the food and wine. Speaking of wine, I could and can since the legal age is SIXTEEN!!! go for a glass right about yesterday. Having trouble telling who's gay, as expected. Cheerio!

Pissborg

2009-01-10T04:39:00.000Z

It’s important that I write this, so that I can look at it and try to decipher it.

As Michael Bluth says, “You certainly have a type."

While Pittsburgh seems to shrink, the job market corrodes and academia seems to expand and swallow me. Thus, I hole myself into this triangle, where the going is good, the sun never shines, and life is comfortably…comfortable.

I get why some people never leave Pittsburgh: because they can get away with being dirty losers (type 1) or, as a local entrepreneur told me, “big fish in a small sea”.

But the Steel City is hardly a sea, more a tributary, and the fish are more like shrimp. I learned this from my first college boyfriend and the company he kept. While at first I was entranced by his hipster entourage, the more I saw those people, the sooner I realized that most of them didn’t even have vocations. A lot of them were crusty and lame, and only in their little 412 micro chasm were they important people—to themselves. And while I’ve since learned to respect the music his band makes, I’ve also learned that it’s really easy to be a star amongst idle and inert hangers-on.

The factors that allow a young person to sustain himself in Pittsburgh are simple: low cost of living, ease of alternative transportation, and prevalence of college-aged fellow travelers. You can buy a house for less than $10,000 and fix it up, ride your bike everywhere most months of the year, and buddy up with kids you went to elementary school with—and never ever leave. For some, this is a respectable living, for others, this is a choice of immense economic reward, and for me, I’m really conflicted as to when to say “When”.

Two roads diverge in this yellow wood—attend graduate school at Carnegie Mellon and get a Master’s in Professional Writing. Then, make thousands more dollars when I enter a job market that, hopefully, will not be as dismal. This is option 1. Option 2 is, move to Hollywood and write for TV, the bravest and possibly most suicidal thing I could do. But this is something I know I could do. I love TV; TV raised me. What’s more, I write well, I’m damn creative, and I’m funny. And right now, if anything, people need to laugh. They need their faith in good television restored, by renegades like Tina Fey, and equally ambitious young bloods like me.

But at the end of the day, you gotta chase that paper. And at the end of the night, you’ve got to be happy. So somewhere around cocktail hour, you must strike a balance between profit and joy. Alas, Pittsburgh.

I certainly have a type.