Baristas and morning meetings

When I first started working at my new university, my the mornings were chilly and my office was even colder. I would stop on my way to work to get a Starbucks, an upside down caramel macchiato, and drive into work and sip on my coffee quietly throughout the morning. One day, I was extremely hungry and walked into a little market in the morning to get something to eat. The barista inside told me that he could make anything that Starbucks could make. And I told him I would take him up on that challenge and the next day I gave him the chance. I asked him for an upside down caramel macchiato. He tried his best. He really did....but as he watched me try his creation, I could barely stop my face from betraying the bitterness I tasted inside that coffee cup. However, the little market was so boring, and so quiet that the next day I had to go back to keep him from dying of boredom and if not to give him a second chance at the coffee making. And then it dawned on me, if my little barista was so bored and lonely, he could make the drinks exactly how I wanted. He had the time, and the sweet vibe to devote to my particular coffee tastes. So the next day, I went in and offered a suggestion on how I would like my coffee and he did it for me. At times, it was as if I had my own personal barista because no one would come in and he had all the time in the world to experiment with things that I liked or would want to try. Sometimes he reminds me of the guy in the movie Amelie, that is a little off and takes his time picking out the perfect fruits for the customers. My little barista attempts little bar tricks and puts on a show. He is such a character that I walk away with a smile on my face and ready to come back the next morning to watch his performance. It is pretty awesome.

Our conversations grew from coffee to work and life. He found out that I worked in Housing and he asked me specifically "do you get asked a lot of stupid questions?" Me? Asked stupid questions? Only everyday of my life. Each day I bring him a new question or a new story. After a week of not visiting him today was my first day back. It was as if he was waiting for me. He gave me a list of stupid questions he gets asked as a psychology major. This was a new step in our barista/customer relationship.

Even though I didn't get coffee everyday, I used to make sure to get a coffee from my barista every Tuesday for a weekly 2.5 hour meeting. I am not a meeting person, especially when I am on a temp assignment and much of the information in the other 2.25 hours of the meeting do not concern me. During the meeting I drew little doodles to keep myself awake. Coming from another university's housing department I would offer suggestions on what my old university did to perhaps help the new department out. My suggestions were often taken with a nod and with a tone of "let's move on." A couple of weeks ago with my warm coffee in hand, I walked into the conference room late due to working and updating some lists to report the most accurate information. Right after my update, the director asked me to leave and go back to my desk and work. Uh, awkward but very grateful because I had a lot of work to do. The next week, again with my coffee in hand, I walk into the conference room to find it completely empty. The student workers informed me that everyone had gone to the meeting at the student union center. Did that mean if no one told me about the meeting that I didn't have to go? The students all agreed and I was able to catch up on a lot of work. The next week, I asked my supervisor "so since last week I wasn't told about the meeting, does that mean I don't have to go anymore?" My supervisor, who I have a lot of respect for told me "yeah, the consensus is that you should focus on license agreements." I was insulted but pleased at the same time that I no longer was required to attend these pointless meetings where one topic lasted an hour. I have never had to bite my tongue so hard and for so long and keep myself restrained from sharing my thoughts, ideas and acknowledgements as I am during these meetings. I understood the body language from the director that my ideas were not welcomed and I was only here to work. On that note, as it is Tuesday, I will get back to enjoying the silence, my coffee and the company of the student workers around me.

An update after Europe

After I returned from Europe (which I still have posts and thoughts I never finished writing about) I began a job hunt, well more like a career hunt since I had my master's degree and was looking for something permanent. A week of unemployment turned into two,  and two turned into a couple of months. To pass the time, I interviewed and got a job at a retail store for the Christmas season and have now become a permanent fixture until I can find something better suited for me. During the Christmas season the job was fun, fast-paced and always something going on. After Christmas, I never realized what a drag retail was. Now I understood why when you walked into a store so many people greeted you...it's not because they want to provide you with great customer service, or necessarily work off commission...it is because they are truly bored. I would spend my slow days DYING for someone to talk to me. It didn't matter about what, as long as you spoke to me and we had a conversation about anything besides glass, I was the happiest kid in the world. And now when I go into other retail stores on a slow day, I wonder if those poor retail associates would appreciate a conversation as much as I would or if I should leave them to be lost in their thoughts.

Towards the end of my seasonal employment, I received a call from a temp agency asking me if I would be interested in working at another university in the Southern California area. I jumped at the opportunity! Especially since resume upon resume had been sent out and interview upon interview had started to take it's course on me and my self-esteem. However, the caveat was that it was in Housing. I left another university with the clear purpose of "I just don't want to do housing anymore" but I took the job since I would be contracted to work six months and it would provide me with the opportunity to apply for jobs outside of customer service and housing. I started in March and have been at my post for almost 2 months. One of the good things about my position is that I am learning another aspect of Housing such as contracting and room assignments that I did not have the opportunity to learn in my previous position. I also get to work with a new batch of students, and get to work with other student demographics that I had not had the opportunity to work with in the past. So all in all, I am gaining a new perspective and new experiences with this job. However, much of the politics are the same between this university and my old university. And some of the politics are new, so new and so absent mindedly crazy that it makes me miss my old university, old supervisor and old director and trust me, that is nothing I ever thought I would say. And those that have known me long enough, never thought I would miss my old university or department either.

At my previous university, with the exception of one, it took me a long time to get to know my co-workers. And I learned, years too late, that I am bad at small talk. I am not good at they "hey good morning, how was your weekend?" routine that Monday mornings bring. My old co-workers understood that, recognized that and acknowledged my presence but did not pressure me to indulge them with the boring details of my life. Here, at this university, I do not have that luxury. I have to sit at attention while people tell me about their weekends with their kids and their families while my answer to every question about my weekend is "Fine. I just worked at my other job." I know each place is different, and I have to mold myself to fit into my surroundings but I miss the role of being the knowledgeable wallflower that I once was at a university long ago.

"When you get an idea in your head, you find it in everything." - Victor Hugo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame

As previously mentioned I had been reading books by authors of the countries I have visited. Upon arriving in Paris I bought The Hunchback of Notre Dame for a very reasonable price. I read about half way before I lost it on the plane from Paris to Milan. I am very sad since I had gotten so many quotes that I liked. But moving on....

 I just finished my crepe and am still working on my iced coffee but I am currently sitting at a cafe in the Quartier Latin section of Paris listening to some accordionists play for the tourists in the street. Other than the language, I feel a bit French. The musicians just started playing in the street and I love it. I loved it so much I had to pull out my iPad to tell you all how much I loved it. 

Today I woke up, made myself a hotdog and brie baguette sandwich and was off to see Notre Dame. On the train, on the way there, I read the chapter of the book that breaks down the origins of Notre Dame and what the city looked like all those years ago. I think if I wasn't about to actually experience what Victor Hugo was talking about, I wouldn't have been as interested. I remember studying Notre Dame in high school. In 10th grade to be exact in my World Cultures class but I don't remember why it was so important. I remember learning about the rose stained glass window but don't remember why I had to learn it. Something to look up later. Anyway, to go inside Notre Dame is free. However to climb up of course it is not. Despite how much I wanted to based on the fact that I just finished reading the chapter entitled "A Bird's Eye-View of Paris" I am on a strict budget while I am still in Europe. I walked in towards the end of a mass and took a seat towards the back. As I listened in French (not understanding at all) I took a look around and liked it but didn't love it. Maybe if they had gargoyles inside as well as outside I would have loved it. But let's talk about those Gargoyles. They are super cute. I really like the one that looks pensively out at the skyline deep in thought. I have a postcard I sent home to remember it. Anyway, gargoyles=cute. 

After I went to Notre Dame I read the chapter in The Hunchback of Notre Dame about how the cathedral was filled with life while Quasimodo roamed the halls and rung the bells and (SPOILER!) when Quaismodo left, it was empty and the building itself was lonely. What's funny is that I thought that before I read it. The walls look empty, dark, lonely and maybe because of other cathedrals, the built in enclaves that line the walls are filled with rich stain glass windows or scultupres of scenes from the bible. I don't know waht the reason, but Notre Dame seems more sinister than other cathedrals I have visited.
 Then I went to the Quartier Latin section of Paris. The brochure from the tourist office sold it as an area for bookstores, shops and restaurants. Bookstores? I'm on my way. Uh....I haven't seen any bookstores. But what I did find, was food from around the world. Mexican food? Yeah, it's here. They completely sold it wrong. It should be shops, restaurants from all over the world and tourist items for sale. The area was developed by the university students and personnel who live near by. And it has that feel. I mean I love it and can probably stay here all day. But the area is small and probably won't be here more than a couple of hours. However, I decided to take a break and break my strict budget to enjoy  a crepe. I mean I'm in freakin' Paris. To not have a crepe here would have been stupid right? RIGHT! (and yes I did find a bookstore. I actually found the bookstore that caters to university students so it was fun to see their history books and how they viewed Americans through them. 

I also got caught out in the rain in a white tank top and purple bra so to not look like a slut, I sat on the steps of a church with this little old lady taking random pictures of the area in the different settings of my camera. I got some cool shots of the area and myself that way. 

Yesterday, I started my day by going to the train station at Chatelet Les Halles that I knew well as it was my primary station. I knew it was attached to a mall where there was a food court I needed to pass through to exit. I decided to go to this place that reminded me of Chipotle. It was decent but still not Mexican enough for me. But I did have rice which was nice overall. Anyway, I picked myself up a burrito and the plan was to go and eat it next to the river after I had walked to the Arc de Triumph. But from the station that I was at to the Arc it was SUPER far. However, I did walk down "one of the most beautiful streets in the world" per what the travel brochure said and reached the Arc at the end of it. I at my little burrito with the Arc de Triumph as my background. As I was enjoying my bit of food and relaxation this creepy young guy comes and sits down next to me. However, he ignores me and tries talking to the girls sitting on the bench behind me. His creepiness exuded from his pores and all of a sudden I felt like I was in Taken. I listened and watched the whole encounter just in case he was planning on kidnapping these girls. He soon left as they were ignoring him and the three of us watched him walk off and disappear in hopes that he went home and never showed himself to the world again. I promptly left after that. 

Anyway, I started to walk down towards the Eiffel Tower and found myself at a fountain that sat in front of the Eiffel Tower. There were lots of people swimming in this fountain. I found a spot in the sun and filled out my postcards. I didn't go up the Eiffel Tower either. Mostly because my feet were killing me and I knew I would have to walk some more. I then picked a direction and walked and found myself a "la fromagerie". For those of you that don't know what that means, it was a cheese shop! Mmmm the land of brie. I bought some brie and a baguette and was ready to start living the French life. In Ireland my silly friend Kevin asked me "are you still obsessed with cheese?" Yes Kevin, I am and will always be obsessed with cheese. I went back to the Eiffel Tower at night because it lights up once an hour on the hour and watched it sparkle as I ate my brie and baguette. Oh the life! 

I also went to the Louvre. I spent all day there. ALL DAY. I even ate inside the museum to be sure not to waste time and see everything. The Louvre gives  you a pamphlet too with a map and the top 6 things to see in each section. I used that as my primary guide but saw most of the museum. Most of the museum you say? Yes, most of it but obviously not in great detail. My favorite parts were the sculptures, the French and Italian ones to be exact. I could have stayed there all day, just in the sculpture area. I got a picture with the Mona Lisa too and that was super crowded. However, I might be crazy but it wasn't my favorite thing. I think its another famous thing that I just don't get. Maybe because I think sculptures in general are just more beautiful and difficult so I appreciate them more but the Mona Lisa cool to see but....eh. 

I also went to Moulin Rouge. I did not get tickets to see a show despite wanting to because it was soooooo expensive but the area was fun if you like sex shops and random sexual art. There is also an exotic museum on the street (no I didn't go in) if you are so inclined. But if you want sex toys or films of any kind, they are there for you to choose from any number of stores. They are also gay and lesbian friendly which made me a little happy to know that they do not discriminate. 

There was so much graffiti in Paris by the way. I think more than any other city. I didn't see any in Ireland and if there was, it was not good enough for me to take a picture. I would complain to Kevin about it and he apologized for his country's delinquents and that they weren't delinquent enough. London there was none but I think that is because they cleaned it up for the Olympics. I also heard that they had graffiti parks too but didn't see any to confirm that all the graffiti might be in a park. 

Paris also has a basilica which isn't super impressive in the inside but I loved the outside and the surrounding area. The area is very artsy with people painting pictures of Paris or portraits for you to buy with restaurants and cute little shops. It was really cool to watch these artists work or to see their interpretations of the city in their art. I think that was my favorite part of Paris and made me feel like yes, this is the Paris that everyone talks about. That area and the basilica had some amazing views of the city. 

"For good and evil do not exist in themselves, each is simply the absence of the other." Jose Saramago

Jose Saramago is a Portuguese author. I picked up his book "The Gospel of Jesus Christ" in Lagos after walking into the bookstore and asking for a Portuguese author. In Italy I hadn't had time to read, but in Ireland I read James Joyce's the Dubliners, in England I read Sherlock Holmes so I thought that reading from a Portuguese author in Portugal would be a great idea. I wanted a Portuguese author to write about his travels or experiences in Portugal but I am enjoying this book. It won the Nobel Prize of Literature a few years ago so I had always known about it. It's difficult to read because the author does not break down the conversations and keeps them in very long paragraphs but it's still interesting. That is where the quote comes from for my blog post.

Riding into Lisbon on the bus we were in traffic. While in traffic I saw 2 car accidents. I felt like I was home!

Lisbon. Lisboa. I loved it. So in Faro and Lagos I mentioned that the streets weren't regular cement but were smaller smooth stones that created a pattern around the streets. Lisbon is much the same. They are super slippery so if you go, get shoes that have good traction. Anyway, much of the streets are lined with white stones and the black stones create the pattern. White and black are also the colors for Lisbon so it all fit. 

Coming into Lisbon from Lagos I kept thinking "this totally reminds me of San Francisco. Oh this looks like the Golden Gate Bridge". I later found out that the designer of the bridge in Portugal also designed the Golden Gate Bridge. Hmm no wonder it looked familiar. Anyway, Lisbon apparently is one of the oldest cities in Europe if not the oldest because of its location on the Atlantic. It was used as an advantage point and many a ships sailed from the Belem Tower for their Portuguese expeditions. I went by the Belem Tower and it was kind of cool and not what I would have imagined had someone told me "that's where they sailed all their expeditions from." I can't describe it but I liked visiting that area and realizing, they made history here. They literally made history by looking for something new. 

Lisbon's graffiti was pretty cool too. For those of you that don't know, I really like taking pictures of graffiti from the different places I have visited. Either it is significant of the city, beautiful and someone should notice it or completely random. Well in Lisbon it wasn't full on graffiti but they had paintings that covered the whole side of a building that were just beautiful and made the city feel beautiful. Also, I did not know this but Lisbon is known for their tiled buildings and tile as art. I have pictures as samples and brought a couple of pieces home. 

For those of you that don't know, I went to Portugal to try and discover my roots. My last name is Americanized Portuguese. Hundreds of immigrants that came through Ellis Island had their surnames changed or "Americanized" so that Americans had an easier time to pronounce and spell them. Many Americans assimilated and embraced this new identity. My family was amongst those hundreds of thousands that did. We believe that my great, great grandfather was illiterate and didn't know how to spell his last name of Amaral and it was Americanized to Emerald. I did some research in Italy to try and find out where my Italian family was from only to discover my Portuguese side was from Azores, the islands off the coast of Portugal. It was then decided I was going to Portugal. To travel to the islands was EXPENSIVE. No thank you madam, I do not have 700 euros (which would be about 1200 dollars) to travel for 4 days to the islands. Off season for me please. Either way, I would still travel to Lisbon to experience Portugal. 

In Lisbon, at my hostel, I told two guys of my quest to get my family coat of arms or a family crest. One guy who's name I never learned was really interested and wanted me to succeed because he wanted to do the same. He told me that John Emerald was probably João Amaral. But because Amaral was so common I should see if there is a second name like De Amaral or D'Amaral, etc. So with this new information I went back to looking and found that there was a Joao Amaral who sponsored a man and woman to come over from the islands and was born in the same year as my great great grandfather so it could be him. I tried to go to the registrars office in Lisbon to see if I could get a birth  certificate but alas because I did not speak the language no one was able or wanted to help me. So I will soon put my sister's Portuguese to use and have her inquire further once I return to California. Although I did not succeed in my quest for my family crest, my search is not over. 

One of the owners of the hostel kept trying to get me to talk to the other people at the hostel and kept introducing me to everyone. The group that she made me sit with were talking about smoking, tobacco and other drugs. Uh....I have nothing to contribute to that conversation. Anyway, at the hostel I did make a friend, Pedro. His second name is Tiago and I was like "Oh can I call you PT?" And he said "yes....but don't you think it sounds like pity?" "Oh....yeah Pedro it is then." Anyway, he was very cute and very nice and I enjoyed talking to him and getting to know him. He was asking me about things he had seen on TV and if it was true or not. Don't worry, we exchanged information and plan to be Facebook and emailing friends. And I have a friend to visit next time I'm in Portugal. He also made a special Portuguese meal for the people at the hostel if they wanted to contribute. It was really good with bread, clams, prawns, olive oil, salt, cilantro and I think that's it. We made a deal that when I returned to Portugal, he would then cook a special Portuguese dish with crab. He loves cooking so I was ok with that deal. Especially since I have already tried his cooking. And seafood is involved. I wish I could have taken a picture of him smelling the cilantro. I have never seen anyone so in love with the smell of fresh herbs in my life. After the owner saw that when Pedro wasn't working he would come and talk to me, she was like, ok I get it. So the moral of the story was you don't need to have a lot of friends, just one is enough if its the right person. I appreciated the time he took out to talk to me and keep me company and am glad to call him my friend. 

Anyway, he also was telling me that he came from Coimbra which is where there are 3 universities. I did not get to go, but as I was driving through at 2 in the morning, I wished I had. It looked so beautiful and just so like the college town that I would want to work and live in. I wish I can go back when they are in session and experience the Coimbra culture. 

Anyway, my trip to Portugal ended with me traveling up north to Porto and flying out of Porto to Paris. Oh Portugal you have a special place in my heart! 

Ancestors, ancient stones and Daleks oh my!

So before I left for England I did some research on my family history and found out that one of my great grandmothers down the line was from Southampton so on one of my days in England I made a trip out there. I spent most of the day just walking around and enjoying the sights. Southampton is known for two things, the Titanic and having the longest perserved walls from the Medieval period. Traveling around Southampton I walked part of the wall that is still in place. There was much of the wall still up that surrounded the whole city. Although a lot of the cities Italy that I was in were walled, much of the houses inside the walled city had been replaced with more modern ones. Southampton had a good amount of the houses still intact so you got the feel of what it was like all those years ago. It was kind of cool to walk in the footprints that my great, great, grandmother walked.  

I also made the mistake of going into a bookstore in Southampton. Me and bookstores get along well, almost too well. But as I was walking through this particular bookstore, Waterstone it felt familiar. As I looked around, it dawned on me, it's almost like a Barnes and Noble! Oh I'm home! And I unfortunately looked around. I found my Harry Potter book, a special edition that was only released in the UK and the lady after listening to my story of collecting Harry Potter books from different countries gave it to me half off because it was there last one and had been there for years. Thank you random Waterstone lady. I also found books that I would never, EVER have found in the US. Like for example, Kiah are you ready? For example a "Where's Waldo" spoof of "Find the Meerkat". AWESOME! And so many other random Meerkat books. Who would have known!? Not me that is for sure. I could have stayed there all day. 

Another day I traveled to Stonehenge. Stonehenge is such a weird idea when I really stopped to think about it. Yes it is a mystery as to why the rocks were brought to that location and why and I'm sure that is what attracts millions. But really they are just giant stones. I mean in the grand scheme of things, they weren't really carved, cut or rounded to build mosques, pyramids, or bascillica's; they are just stones. And they are just out in the open so if you just want to see them and not pay you can drive up and stand outside the fence. But if you want to be next to them, you have to pay. Since I don't have a car, I paid and took a tour out there. It also provided me with a tour of Salisbury, one of the cities next to Stonehenge. I went to the Cathedral of Salisbury which I really liked. I liked looking at the old sarcophogi and who got chosen to be buried there and with such elaborate detail and the side plaques of the history of who those people are. My favorite inscription was "John Blyth Bishop 1494-1499. Sometime Chancellor of Cambridge University." You kow, he was the chancellor only sometimes. They also had choir practice for the service so it was nice to listen to that and relax before I had to catch my train. 

I also went to King's Cross. (I will explain the significance of this in a second if you don't already know.)  I only went to transfer to another train at first and then...you know what? I'm here I might as well go look at the tracks. I went looking for Platform 9 3/4 from Harry Potter where the students from Hogwarts catch the train. They lovingly have put a sign that says "Platform 9 3/4" and half of a trolley sticking out of the wall so you can take a picture with it. I of course did. But it is not near that actual platform, it is off to the side for tourists such as myself to take a photo. Smart. I didn't even bother looking for the real platforms, no point after I got my photo right? 

After London, I made a special trek to Cardiff. I met up with a girl I had met in Florence at the bus station in London and then we were off. Cardiff for you none nerds is the home of Dr. Who. It is where Dr. Who is based and filmed. So being so close I had to go since they just recently opened up the "Dr. Who Experience." It totally made you feel like you were in an episode with the animatronics and timing and the sets. I really liked it. I don't think it should have been 15 euros though but I had a lot of fun. What was also cool was that walking to the building, as you were following the signs, they had signs of Daleks, the mortal enemy of Dr. Who, pointing you in the right direction. Don't worry, I have a picture. 

The next day we went to Bath. Bath is beautiful. It truly is. It is also the basis of a lot of Jane Austen books which I have never read. I can't get into her books, I get lost in the language and the drawn out points she takes forever to make. The architecture of Bath is beautiful. And it is so unique. Bath is where the expression a man's home is his castle. So the exterior of the buildings in Bath have a castle like feel and each apartment within the larger building is completely different. The architects at the time just had to have the facade one way but had full range to do anything else they wanted so when you look at the back of the building, it is just a hot mess. Another area has a round park in the middle. Around the park are three large curved buildings that create this cool look and gives you this feel of like being in an intimate surrounding that you shouldn't be. I can't really describe it but it's totally the trip out there.  Bath also has Roman baths. So it's these baths that  Rome put around the natural hot springs and it's totally intricate and detailed. The problem was that whoever invaded after (I forget who) covered them up and they were rediscovered in the 1700s and now is a tourist attraction. I didn't love the Roman Baths. I appreciated the walking tour put on by the city much much more. On the walking tour I found out that much of Bath was bombed in the Second World War because Britain had bombed Berlin. As revenge, Hitler researched all the historical cities of England and bombed them making Bath a prime target. Isn't that just messed up? I really liked Bath much to my surprise. Thanks to my sister for making me go! 

Sometimes I spend longer trying to think of the post title than the actual post!

I went to the British museum. Based on my friend Hayley's recommendation but I have to admit William from the bar is the person that actually sold it to me. He put it this way, "You know why the British museum is the best museum? Because they stole all the good shit from everyone else in the world and put it all in one place." I have to admit it, but its true. I mean at that point I was tired of museums but when you put it that way, I'd have been an idiot to not go. It was pretty gnarly. And the British museum anticipated people like me that would be all musuemed out and put together a top 10 list of things you have to see if you are short on time. I wasn't that short on time but the blister in my foot did not want to go to the museum at all. 

I did go up to the specialty floor for the drawings and etchings and saw their Picasso exhibit. Looking at the etchings, it made me think of a friend that I haven't spoken to in 10 years. The only outing this friend and I went out on in the few years we knew each other was to see a movie about Picasso and his drawings. So Picasso always makes me think of this person. The not talking to him for 10 years did not make me sad, but the reason that we no longer talk is what made me sad. I kind of know what he is up to because my LinkedIn asked me if I knew him so I kind of saw how he was doing. Despite us having mutual friends, our friends don't talk about us to the other person. And I always come to the same conclusion that is stupid that we don't talk anymore but I have made my peace with it. But thinking about this person, did not help my homesickness blues that started to creep up in London.  

But also let's talk about Picasso. I think he was a little into bestiality. He would draw himself as a Centaur engaged in passionate embraces and more with his mistress or model in the pictures. And I mean the rest of the etching wasn't symbolic so it leads me to believe that him being a centaur wasn't a symbolic gesture and leads me to believe he was into bestiality. I could be wrong but that's just me. 

Oh yeah, and the British museum has the Rosetta Stone. Kind of a big deal. But it didn't move me as I thought it would. I mean it's awesome that it unlocked so much history but....it just didn't move me. But I would still advise people to see it. 

My favorite exhibit in the British museum was the Gallery of Clocks and Watches. There was a clock that was created as a ship and it would sit on the table of kings and the mast would launch when it hit a certain time and people on the ship would walk to announce that it was dinner time. It was sooooo cool. The British museum also had a gold medal on display so you could see what people were wearing around their necks. Another cool part of the museum was the African part. I noticed that much of the items in the museum were only a century or two old which made me sad since Africa has had the oldest civilizations in the world since that is were human beings originated from. However, in the middle of the display is a tree, The Tree of Life that was made from recycled guns that were collected from a drive in Mozambique. They would trade their guns from their war for farm equipment. The tree that they created is very breathtaking, at least for me. I was very moved at the art that they made from the collected guns. It is reported that 7 million guns are still hidden within the landscape of Mozambique. I would recommend seeing that Tree of Life in person. 

There are 2 things I wanted to do in London that I did not get to. I didn't get to go to St. Paul's Cathedral but at this point if you've seen one you've seen them all right? Probably not but I'll see next time. The other thing I didn't get to go do was go to Portobello Road. Now, many of you won't know what this is so let me explain. Portobello Road is just a road that has shops and a market. Nothing spectacular really. But the reason I wanted to go was based on the movie "Bedknobs and Broomsticks"which isn't a great movie, nor is it new or fancy but it's very special to me. When I was little, it was the first VHS (I'm showing my age here) that I owned. I actually remember the day that my dad brought it home for me as a present and I watched it a 100 times. My friend Jessica who grew up with me, HATED that movie. I for whatever reason liked it. But anyway, in the movie they go to Portobello Road and buy a knob. I wanted a knob from Portobello Road kind of as a keepsake and souvenir but didn't get a chance to go. Next time it is on my to do list! 

"What's meant to be will always find a way."- Trisha Yearwood

So this is part of a William update. He did not email me despite my hoping but I knew it was a long shot. That night and the night after it was a nice to feel pretty and popular. In LA, it is very rare for someone like me, who I consider myself to be perfectly average to stand out. Sometimes I think I'm so averagely average that it's boring. I've always felt like that. I even mentioned it once to a friend in high school and he turned to me and said "Do you know how many people would probably love to feel average?" And then it took some years and I realized that I have moments of averageness but in the grand scheme of things I am not average and it's a roller coaster of being on my A-game and sometimes not. But this is my long winded intro to the following post: 

Sometimes I feel that when I'm feeling really down about not meeting any guys I get these signs like my nights in London that kind of tell me to hold on, the person I'm supposed to be with is coming soon, don't give up yet and he'll be there. But when?! My friend Janet and some other people have accused me of being either too picky or not picky enough. But you know what? I'm picky because I know what I want. And when I met William and talked to him I recognized that this is what I want. He was smart, really smart, worldly, gentlemanly, interesting, interested and I found him to be really sexy mostly because he was so smart and smarter than most people I know. OH and he loved banter. He made it a point to point it out. And I love banter and we could have had adorable banter together if the music hadn't been so loud. And was he the person I am supposed to end up with? Probably not because I wouldn't be writing this post if that was the case. However, I recognized what I wanted when I saw him. The problem is I don't meet many men that fit into what I like. 

How hard is it to find someone that fits what you are looking for? Apparently the hardest thing in the world. But I'm ready. I am ready to meet someone. This trip has been years in the making. I have done the partying, the going out, the socializing I should have been doing when I was in my early 20s but do to an emotional stunted growth period, I waited until now. True, I am a little behind when it comes to some life experiences but I've had more than enough to make up for the ones that I am only now having. Am I doing it all a little backwards? Probably. But I think I can recognize it more now and reflect on it as an older person. But now that I have those life experiences that other people have, going abroad, being abroad and experiencing life abroad I am now ready to meet someone and have different types of experiences. 

Friends reading this, if you have an idea that I am asking to be set up with any random guy. I AM NOT! I know that when this idea pops into your head you find some random guy but that only shows me that either A) you hate me because they turn out to be losers or B) you don't know me at all and both cause me to be sad and upset at you. I would only set you up because I have put some serious thought into it and think you and this other person would hit it off. Please show me the same courtesy. Put some thought into it. 

I have come to the realization that currently, that I surround myself with men who offer me a little bit of what I want from the person I am supposed to be with so together, parts of all the men in my life morph into my perfect guy but only one comes close. And even then he's missing some things. Up until this point though, I have been comfortable to settle with my male friends making up for what I am missing. But no more. I am ready to go out into the world and let my guard down....I just need to meet the right guy to let my guard down. 

Everyone tells me he's out there....but I think he missed his train, plane, boat and car.