Jason's Daily Notes

It was the big day. The move-out day. Our final day in Wells House. The night before, Maria came over and joined us flatmates in a night of drinking. It was fun and enjoyable.

I was up early, as we had to make several trips to move the rest of our things out.

Mike and I moved luggage to the new flat. He taught me a Dutch phrase, something like “verhausen is neet schlock” (“moving is not fun”). We then returned to the old flat, where Swag was diligently cleaning. There was still a lot of cleaning to do. Dave was helping, helping clean the bedrooms while Mike and I joined Swag in the kitchen. Everything had to go – all the pots, pans, leftover food, unused ingredients, sauces – everything. We loaded up maybe 6 bin bags full of perfectly useful food and stuff. Mike and I scrubbed down the whole kitchen, including the oven, the vent, and all the cupboards. It was truly exhausting. And we were running out of time – we had to be all done and out of the house by 2pm. It was already like 1:30, and Mike and Dave had to leave for work. Swag and I finished, eating a pot of leftover chicken adobo while sitting on the grass outside. I finished mopping, dropped the key through the mail slot, and that was it. We were moved out.

We dropped off Swag’s stuff at Maria’s. Her sister Yohanna was there, and so was Peter. I rested for just a couple minutes before I took the one bag of my stuff with me and traveled all the way to East Ham, where I visited Chieh. We just sat, each with a cup of tea, and talked. It was nice. I felt good talking to her.

It was already past 5pm, and I wanted to be back at the flat when Mike finished work, so I rushed back and took the tube. There were some delays. I was still carrying the bag exhausted. At London Bridge station, I changed onto the Northern Line. The train came, and after all the people got off, I stumbled in and took the first seat available. As I sat, the man next to me said, “Tabuuuzo.” It was Alex, my friend whom I hadn’t seen in nearly a year. Of all the people I could see, in all the places in London, I happened to (completely unplanned) sit right next to him on a crowded rush-hour underground train! Amazing! We caught up for a few stops. He’s now working in Old Street and was on his way to meet some people at Vauxhall.

I got home and Mike was there. No sign of the Aussies. I had the idea of getting a bottle of sparking line for a small celebration with the new housemates, but Mike was hungry and needed to meet his friend. So, he got out his discount map and we went forth on a quest for food.

After getting off at Charing Cross, Mike randomly craved a snack wrap from McDonald’s, which he got. Café Rouge was too expensive for me, so we walked down toward Embankment. We ended up at Walkabout. As Mike and I were at the bar to order our food, a girl sat down at our table, thinking it was empty. She was Laura, from Australia. She ended up sitting with us for a drink and some more food. But, unexpectedly, she just got up and stayed by the bar, chatting with some guy.

Mike’s friend Morgan arrived. He was to sleep at our place. He came with a hostel mate, Daniel, who is trying to find freelance work as a web designer. Then two other kiwis arrived, Mike and Sarah, who were a couple. By this point it was so loud that you had to yell to have a conversation. I wasn’t having any of it, so I lay my head down in my hands to rest for a few moments. Mike was up and dancing, continually prodding me to get up too. I danced a little bit to Gangnam Style. But that was it.

I bought everyone a round of beer as well. Oh man, going out in London is pricey. I need a job. Fuck.

Now that I’m in the flat with nothing to do, no goals in life (and no internet), I have this deep sinking feeling. From now on, it’s all me. It’s only me. It’s my decision, and it’s my time to show the world what I can do. As inspiring as it sounds, nobody tells you how scary it is too.

But, c’mon. What do I really have to be afraid of? I have enough money to survive. I speak the language. I have a good degree. I can easily make contacts. I am smart. I just have to become a harder worker and a more persistent person. I know myself, my strengths, and my interests better than anyone else. I can do this. I just don’t know what “this” is yet. Stay young, go dancing.