Superheroes

I'm not a fan as such but I saw The Script perform this song at the Pride of Britain Awards and loved their performance. And isn't Danny just so cool in his coat? And with his cute Irish accent...

The good old days

Haha - no, I am not actually one of THOSE people who think everything was better in the past.

I was catching up with a couple of friends this week who I've known for (more than) a decade and it was nice to reminisce.

Cabana Brazilian Barbecue - 2 for 1 on tastecard; Westfield Stratford

Jake

A free cinema ticket thanks to my Time Out card - this time for an exclusive pre-screening of Nightcrawler which opens in cinemas on Friday. Jake Gyllenhaal is just amazing. Not the film I'd usually watch, but absolutely loved it!

Loving the accent

London is amazing. I feel a bit embarrassed and ashamed that it took me a few years to really and utterly fall in love with this city.

On Sunday night, I went to the Literary Death Match, episode 43. I'm not on twitter but I 'follow' a few people, including Rick Edwards - who was one of the judges last night. And that's how I found out about this really cool event which took place at Concrete - the events space in the basement of ueber-cool Pizza East. 

Principle is simple: two rounds where two authors read from their work and the three judges - Suzi Feay, Rick and Alex Edelman (I now know the name of Simon Amstell's warm up comedian!) - decide who goes through to the final. The finalists then competed in a game of literary pictionary. I was very impressed with the courageous volunteers who had come up on stage not knowing (at least I assume they didn't know) that they would have to draw in front of the whole room. 

I loved all four authors:

Nicci Cloke read from her new book Lay me down.

Janina Matthewson read from Of things gone astray

Robert Auton was very funny, did some stand up and read from Petrol Honey

Chris O'Dowd and Nick Vincent Murphy read from Moone Boy: The blunder years

Everyone was brilliant. Janina and Chris & Nick made it to the final, which the boys won.

I still can't quite believe that I was just a meter from Chris O'Dowd!!! If you don't know him (and his lovely Irish accent) you really should look him up and check out the TV series Moone Boy and of course the IT Crowd.

Butternut Squash, pancetta and fontina on a delicious pizza!

Pink and short

This polish is as neon pink as it looks in the photo. So, I decided to add a bit of navy to balance it out. Not sure I actually like it... I think I should have stopped dotting after the ring finger. 

Nevermind, I certainly cannot be asked to do my nails all over again.

Fame and fortune

I've been invited to speak at an Association event next year. I actually got a similar invite when I had just started in my current role - so no worries it hasn't gone to my head ;-). No idea how they decide who to target - seems like a random process to me. Either way, I'm sure it will be a good experience.

Needless to say that I am of course terrified of public speaking nor do I have a clue at the moment what I even want to/can talk about. I will need some kind of draft title/topic by ... tomorrow, and I will worry about the rest nearer the time. It's also a smallish event, so probably a good opportunity to ease myself into it.

Das Geheimnis des Kӧnnens liegt im Wollen

I saw this written on a postcard in the Albertina museum in Vienna. Google tells me that it's a quote by Giuseppe Mazzini, an Italian politician, journalist and activist for the unification of Italy (no, I'd never heard of him either...).

I'd translate it as:
The secret of being able to do something lies in wanting to do it.
Seems pretty obvious. Maybe it's the reverse that I need to consider: if I am not able to do it, is it because I don't really want to? Quite possibly so...

360

Altitude was hosting a showcase evening last week. Altitude is a collection of venues housed in the Millbank Tower near the Tate. And they put on a great event! Starting with Beyonce and Amy Winehouse tribute acts we then moved upstairs where you have stunning views (360!) all over London and where they had set up a silent disco. For those who never heard of it: you get headphones and can pick your own music (in this case from three different options). Coloured lights on the headphones indicate to others what music you are listening to and then you dance away like in a normal disco. It's good fun :-)

Next we moved down one floor for some food. Burgers and hot dogs and popcorn and candyfloss. And cocktails. And I met my target and met one new person. Of course I can't remember his name... I didn't catch it when he introduced himself and as I knew I wouldn't remember it anyway I didn't bother asking again (Is that really bad?). Very posh guy (even I could tell!), working and living in Hampstead, in financial trading and something to do with advising people on buying art.
So far it's going well with my resolution!

London by night - how can you not love this city?!

Cut and sew

The New Look patterns I ordered online arrived a while ago and only yesterday did I actually open the package... I also still need to finish the polka dot dress. Hopefully I'll at least get the zip in this weekend (it's noon and I am still sitting on the sofa in my PJs - it's a lovely lazy Saturday!).

sorry for the terrible quality of the photo...

I've been looking at one shoulder dresses in the shops. And might start with that one (bottom right pattern, with a 3/4 sleeve) to get it done for our annual dinner in December. I'll just have to decide which tattoo I want to show off - back or front! :-)

I love the dress (rather than the top) and I think I might leave the jacket for next winter...

Why are you so sad? :-(

We are getting close to our annual event, and at times this week, I've been feeling a little pressure. I'm not worried about the event itself (not yet anyway...), but there are so many other projects that need to be managed in parallel and I am sightly regretting not having had a longer holiday over the summer...

Anyway, it was one of THOSE Friday afternoons... when I got that email from my colleague. Which was so sweet that it made me smile instantly.
And I wasn't sad, just a bit frustrated.
But all is good and now it's the weekend!

And just a random photo of the O2 because I think it's pretty (taken last Sunday)
The clouds look like they are painted

Say hi

A work colleague sent me a link with an ironic post about networking the other day. Can't find it anymore... But it was basically taking the piss about what networking events are often about (boring conversations...). Networking might well be a hollow buzzword, but I certainly think it can be fun. So, I set myself the objective to meet at least one new person every time I go to a networking event. Very often I go with friends/colleagues, and it's of course very easy then to stay within your group.

Last Wednesday, Sadler's Wells - London's Dance House - was hosting a showcase event. The theatre is close to work and I've been to shows there a number of times and we also hosted a committee meeting there while our offices were being refurbished. When I left the office after a long-ish day, I already started to regret my new resolution... I didn't feel like socializing but decided to go anyway. And had a very nice evening!

The venue is great - the theatre massive and the canapes were delicious! AND I met not one but three people! The first woman I got chatting to happened to be from Melbourne, so I got excited talking about my holiday. When her friend (also Aussie) showed up, I decided to leave them to catch up (I was actually quite proud of leaving the conversation - I often get 'stuck' with people, as I don't know how to move on...). I then went up to a couple of guys and ended up talking to one of them for the rest of the evening which was very nice. The three glasses of cava might have helped - they certainly made me feel quite tipsy...

I also got excited about the Nails Inc nail polish!
And a CD - not a bad goody bag :-)

What started in Paris

Just finished 'Just one year' and after I really liked 'Just one day', I have to say I was rather disappointed with part two of the story. 'Just one year' basically tells the story from Willem's point of view*. And maybe it's the fact that the ending of 'Just one day' already indicates where this story is going, I found myself just rushing through and wanting to get to the end. I somehow didn't warm to Willem the way I did with Allyson. The fact that Willem's search, despite all his efforts, remains unsuccessful, just became annoying.

I haven't yet decided what to read next, but bought a couple of books in Austria. Will be nice to read a German book for a change.


* very brief summary: boy meets girl, they spontaneously go to Paris for 24 hours, fall in love (of course), due to 'accidents' they lose each other, Allyson returns to the US, pines for Willem, tries to find him until she finally meets him again a year later

Time is flying

It had been more than a month since I last met up with C - and it's always nice to catch up.
But also a reminder how life can be tough. And really tough rather than just mildly annoying like the tiny issues I occasionally have to deal with. And I know I am lucky in so many ways.

onglet steak and buttermilk panna cotta at The Modern Pantry

Sausages and no mash

Cherry beer - perfectly sweet for non-beer drinkers like me; and a pile of sausages at Katzenjammers near London Bridge

6:0

Not as good as 8:0 - but hey, it was a Champions League Match! Chelsea vs Maribor
Also not as many goals as in the Roma vs Bayern Munich game (1:7)...

Rosamund and Ben

Yes, I went to see Gone Girl. And was rather disappointed. I really enjoyed the book and I appreciate that it was basically impossible to put it all into a film. Unfortunately, the bits that I liked most about the book seemed to be missing from the film: basically the nature of Amy's and Nick's relationship. I wonder whether I would have liked the film (better) had I not read the book. Knowing the story with all its twists, there is of course no suspense either.

Nevermind - I still enjoyed looking at pretty Ben :-)

Mysteries of the Unseen World

A little while ago I bought a Time Out Card which was (and still is) on offer for £24.50. You get discounts at restaurants, for theatre tickets, on every Time Out offer booked and invites to exclusive cinema screenings and competitions.

And I've already won two tickets to the London premier of "Mysteries of the Unseen World" at the IMAX at the Science Museum: "We invite you to take a closer look at a universe of creatures, processes and phenomena you never even knew existed; where the naked eye perceives only a fraction of what there is to see on earth, surrounded by things that are either too fast, too slow or too small for us to observe."

Great 3D movie, great images except for the slime mould, the rotting mouse and the mites that live on our eyelashes - I could have done without knowing about those!

 

To Be Free

I had booked tickets for Simon Amstell's show To Be Free months ago. Partly as a thank you for J who had helped me with my dying laptop. Time is flying at the moment, we last Thursday, together with A and J, I went to the Leicester Square Theatre (it's next to the Prince Charles cinema) - and absolutely enjoyed the show! Not only was I laughing throughout but there was a lot of stuff that was resonating with me. Let's all be a little more free! :-)

I didn't actually know very much (anything, really) about Simon before that night. I'd seen him on Never mind the Buzzcocks a couple of times, so I can't really remember what made me pick his show. His warm up act (and it's a shame that I cannot remember his name) was also really good. As per usual, I won't try to summarize the show - you can read the Guardian review and here's a youtube clip from his stint on the Letterman show which also has some of the material he uses in his show:



And another great one from last year:

And some more food

The other day, my Mum was asking me what I do in the evenings. And I said, eating out. And she was like: Eating out EVERY SINGLE EVENING? And I of course don't eat out every single evening. But as it happens: I haven't eaten at home for the last eight days. Which also means: no washing up for eight days - brilliant!

Last week, we had a committee meeting. As we all know, they can be a little (or a lot) tedious. But I have to say that this particular committee, who I've worked with over the last three years, is a little different from the rest. A bunch of nice people and what makes them especially nice (for me), is that I feel very much part of it - rather than just the administrator who does as she's told. It's generally great to feel that one's opinions and recommendations are being taken seriously.

At one point, we were discussing the risk register for the organisation and one of the risks was a note about key staff leaving. Which prompted the chair to invite everyone to be nice to me (I happily take that, but bribes would be equally welcome...).

In the evening a colleague and me went for dinner with one of the committee members whose train didn't leave until later that night. Picking a restaurant always makes me a little nervous, as I worry (yes, yes, I worry too much!;-)) that people won't like what I like. As his train was leaving from St Pancras, I decided to take them to the Grain Store. And I'm pleased to say that both of them really enjoyed it. Plus had never been to the newly developed square around there: always nice to show people new places.

Squid steak - it might not look it but it was absolutely delicious and served with divine roast potatoes and pumpkin puree; the rice pudding was a bit too fatty for my liking (cooked with double cream, I wonder....) but nice nonetheless

8:0

I would have loved to watch that game: Southampton 8: Sunderland 0
Nice little boost to Southampton's goal difference.

simply cool - more from Vienna

This really is the last Vienna post. I've already mentioned what a great airbnb place we stayed at. The hosts are clearly into music and besides the mixing deck and guitars, the toilet was tastefully decorated with song lyrics. Very cool.

And some more Vienna shots

the central cemetery

Views over Vienna from the Ferris wheel at the Prater

Art in Vienna

The staterooms at the Albertina - I would love to live like this...

Some of my favourite pieces at the Albertina; also check out the Miro exhibition that is still on until January

MUMOK: Museum of Modern Art in the museums quarter - a great square to hang out at, too, with some nice cafes

Cosima von Bonin at MUMOK: Hippies use side door - on until January, too

Vienna - food. Of course

Famous Cafe Central - and I was too full to have any of their delicious looking cakes. A real tragedy!

Fleischkaese, meatballs, Schnitzel (I'm a little embarrassed that I nearly managed to finish both these massive pieces of Schnitzel...), Nockerl and Gulasch

Breakfast at Wirr and A's massive Kaiserschmarrn with plum compote

Wien

Vienna had been on my list for many years and I FINALLY managed a weekend trip: the city is as beautiful as I had been told. Absolutely stunning architecture wherever you go. Great food, of course, a cafe culture that I still miss here in London and an accent that - for some reason - makes me laugh.

Once again we were staying in an airbnb place. Bigger than my flat, with high ceilings and just really cool and quirky. I was a little worried I'd fall out of the bunk bed that they had built to make better use of the space in their corridor...

Seriously? That's how students live in central Vienna...

Stephansdom

Voilà

All healed and I love it. Very much. The pain is of course all forgotten and I am thinking about extending it to the left of my back. That will probably have to wait until next year though.

Still here

Has this actually been the longest that I haven't posted since I started the blog? Not sure, but possibly. Quite a few posts to catch up but have been too busy during the last week.

Here's a start: after dinner at Wahaca (no photos I am afraid), I had a wonderful piece of Kipferl's Haustorte: nuts, chocolate, jam and marzipan: in short the perfect cake! Ironically, I didn't have a single piece of cake in Vienna, as I was overeating on savoury deliciousness instead. 

Luckily, I live in London! :-)

And some more

movie music night

on my German local radio

Today

I finally gave in and wore my winter coat. The weather has been pretty bad: grey and rainy and obviously getting colder. And then it's of course dark really early. Yesterday I went to bed before 22:00 cause I was so tired!!! (I generally don't go to bed before midnight)

On the upside, it's also time to get my beloved boots out of their shoe boxes. Overall, I like my winter wardrobe better than my summer wardrobe. So, it's not all bad.

Not very clever of me to pick a summer dress for my latest sewing project...

Two months

Two months ago they discovered the leak in my bathroom (and other bathrooms in the building). It took them until last week to patch up the corridor on the ground floor and wallpaper over the damage. Just for them to realize that the water leak has returned (or maybe maybe it never stopped leaking. One would think that's easy enough to monitor...).

You might imagine my delight when I got their call yesterday. As it turns out: it was a blessing in disguise! In order to be able to let them in (cause no, I will not leave my key with reception if I can avoid it!), I worked from home. First of all, that meant not having to get up super early for a 8am telecall. Secondly, I managed to get two documents done, that I've been meaning to finalize for weeks. And last but certainly not least: the leak is not coming from my bathroom!

So, after my random grumpy day yesterday, it was happy day today :-)

Be nice

Just read Ricky Gervais' 'Nine commandments of being nice'.
Wouldn't you agree?

Short, shorter, bald?

When I had my drastic haircut (not that long ago), at first, I didn't like it much. After a few days though I got used to it and the positive comments from others probably helped, too. In only five weeks, my hair had grown so much. And because it's so thick, too, it was difficult to manage.

So, I decided to get it cut EVEN shorter. And of course, I am now thinking: what was I thinking?!? But hey, I know it will grow back quickly. We'll see what I do next!

Amazing people with amazing stories

S very kindly took me as her plus one to the Pride of Britain Awards ceremony which took place at the Grosvenor House in London last night (and is being broadcast on ITV today). Dress code was 'lounge suit' and I was of course massively underdressed... I also hadn't realized just how many celebs would be there! I only got one selfie though - thanks to S - with a very handsome Frank Lampard. Otherwise I have some bad quality shots of celebs - to be admired below.

More importantly though, the evening was celebrating Britain's unsung heroes. It was a very touching, inspirational and certainly humbling event. I was especially touched by Cissy Adamou's story: At only 15, she had to go through a heart transplant, a kidney transplant and tumours in her spine and brain. She has been fundraising money and also runs a blog - helping other kids and teenagers who go through similar experiences while being so incredibly upbeat and positive. 

I take so much for granted and make tiny issues into big problems way too often. It's good to have a reality check once in a while. Or more often.

Great food, too - salmon starter, lamb main and one of the most delicious desserts ever: cherries, ice cream, chocolate

Peter Crouch and Abbey Clancy, Jamie Oliver,
Christine Bleakley (I was actually trying to get Frank Lampard when she turned around...), Chris Hoy

Phillip Schofield in action and Jimmy Carr with Jason Donovan

The sewing continues

I've started my next project. Originally, I had planned to make a top out of the fabric (which I'd bought in Hong Kong back in May) but then noticed that I had enough for a dress.

Given my history with darts, I decided to simply not bother with the bust darts. The dress is not yet finished, but I do hope that it will work without them.

I also didn't gather the skirt properly which means that I need to significantly shorten the right side in order to have an even seam. Next up is the zip and I am a little terrified. If I get it wrong I don't think I can undo it again, as the fabric is really delicate. I'm glad I asked T for advice: I will hand sew the zip and hope for the best. Looking at the photo, I also need to do something about the waistline where the bodice is sewn to the skirt, I think...

When I stared swearing at my lovely sewing machine, I knew that I'd done enough for the weekend.

To be continued

And this is what it is meant to look like eventually

1 October 2014

Second tattoo done. And boy, did it hurt!

No bloody idea what was different - but the first one definitely didn't hurt like this. And no, it's not that I forgot about the pain. I told everyone how it was really good pain at the time. I must have been on some natural highs due to the excitement at the time. This was most definitely painful pain. But while I was asking myself why on earth I was doing this during the inking , I'm pretty sure I will have more. I am loving the result!!!!

Photo to follow. The one I currently have was taken straight after and it's all a bit red. It's been healing well so far, even though it does feel a bit sore still, a bit like a bruise does. And it's also a bit tricky to reach it to put the cream on. My darling colleague very kindly assisted on the first day.

It's been a bit of a wait (since late August) and E kept postponing the appointment, but it's been well worth it :-)

Letting go

Being a manager (of people rather than just projects) is still something I am learning to get better at. I do feel that the coaching and communication training I've been having is helping a lot with this.

Last week, I've had another meeting with my mentor where R taught me one of the Sedona release techniques. Imagine holding a set of keys in your hand. You can feel the sharp edges of the keys. Squeeze your hand a bit tighter and it will start hurting. What to do for it to stop the pain? Yes, simply letting go of the keys, loosening the grip or even dropping the keys (by the way, that is not the technique - that's just the analogy he used to explain it).

Instead of holding negative feelings in your mind - let them go. Sounds simple enough, doesn't it? I do think I've gotten a lot better with this, too. But more works still needs to be done. After I've had a bit of a tricky and draining experience in the morning, I left R's office feeling so much calmer, relaxed and light. A good start.

And I know that I've said this many times before, but I am very grateful for the wonderful people who are part of my life and many of whom have stepped into it just over the last year or so.
Thank you.

What's with the shouting?

With the girls travelling so much, it is proving difficult to meet up these days. But last Thursday, at least T, A and I managed to meet up for Vietnamese at Cay Tre in Soho. I was clearly too busy catching up and forgot to take photos.... But I am sure you all know what a classic pho looks like. And it was yummy! But it was super noisy. Always reminds me of my first months in the UK, up in Hull. My ability to understand English in noisy places (like pubs) hasn't improved over the last 15 years (15 years... makes me feel old...).

After dinner we headed to Muriel's Kitchen. They have three branches across London - Soho, Leicester Square and South Kensington. Again, I didn't take photos - but go and check them out: lovely, quirky, homely design and they let us sit and chat over just a coffee for hours. Great place!

Cloudy

To and from Jersey

Weekend is here

And started with dinner with B at my place. It's so cool having somebody just living across the dock - no long journey home after a lovely evening of chatting for hours in the comfort of my (tiny) living room. We of course didn't even get round to watching a movie. So, movie night without movies - seems to be our thing.

Hopefully more to come until she moves to the other side of the city again.

Jersey shore

... this side of the Atlantic.

Fam(iliarisation) trip to Jersey (the largest Channel islands off the coast of Normandy) on Tuesday. Just an hour from City Airport with Blue Island airline - in a tiny plane. I'm pleased to say that flying is not an issue these days. Previously I would have been fretting over getting on the plane for days.

To be honest, I still don't quite its special status of not actually being part of the UK, but still ruled by the Queen. I also didn't know that the Germans had occupied Jersey from 1940-1945.

The day was way too short to see it all - despite it being a small island. We had great weather and being anywhere near the sea makes me very happy. A lovely day, well organized by Lydia. I hope to be back - either with business or a weekend break!

Gorey Castle

Inside Gorey Castle

Durrell Wildlife Park - seeing monkeys obviously made my day!!!

LOVED the pink chairs and art at the 5* Grand hotel in St Helier

Seaside loveliness

her gaze is following you wherever you are in the room (exhibition at Gorey Castle)

And some more

Forget what I said a few weeks ago: New Look patterns on sale for just £2.95 - I HAD to shop!
Eight new patterns are on their way to me.

Thanks for forwarding, T! :-)

mingling

Do you also like certain words just for their sound? Mingling is one of mine (precious is another ;-)).

On Monday night, it was time for an evening of professional mingling. To be honest, I hadn't exactly been looking forward to this particular event. For once because I find it difficult when it comes to sharing responsibility in a work context (or quite possibly in general). I haven't yet worked out how to best manage a project, when I am not in charge 100%. Secondly: who likes to work evenings?

But I had a great evening in the end - mingling with some lovely people. As an added bonus, I was chatting to one of our members who recently went to Vienna. So, after I's fantastic itinerary for Copenhagen, I now have some (more) recommendations for my weekend trip to Vienna!