Jason's Daily Notes

Thursday, 30 August 2012. Ok, it hasn't really been a horrible day, but just a lot of things weren't going my way today: I couldn't sleep well last night, largely due to an unexpected caffeine overdose and my resulting desire to just get out of the house (and to just get lost).

I was awaken by loud hammering coming from my ceiling. It sounded like the neighbors upstairs were nailing all of their furniture to the ground. The sound itself was only somewhat annoying, but made worse by the fact that I had an alcohol and caffeine hangover. I forced myself drowsily up.

I simply could not go for my usual jog. My body would not let me. Because I was going to the paralympics in the evening, it was important that I had my US flag with me. But it was still dirty, so I put it in the laundry with a set of clothes. And, on schedule, it started raining. So I hung them out to dry in the damp air. I just missed the bus to take me to the tube station. No big deal, except that I had just checked for a bus from my window 20 seconds prior! The Jubilee Line was experiencing delays due to an alert at Bond Street. Thus, when I got on the tube at 12:30-ish, instead of being mostly empty as it usually is, the train was packed, and there were a lot of people boarding at each station too. Grumble grumble.

I could not make any progress on my dissertation. I proofread a couple paragraphs and read through a few WSJ articles and a research report. But no luck otherwise. Which is not good, considering my self-imposed deadline of tomorrow to get all my writing done! The weather has changed. The air now feels wintry. I can smell the crispness of autumn in the air. Well, here's hoping that my evening is better - sitting volleyball at the paralympics. It should be fun - I hope!

I set a self-imposed deadline for my dissertation: This Friday (tomorrow)! To make this deadline stronger, I've planned a big Monopoly Pub Crawl on Saturday. Making it public helps to enforce the deadline. I have been very diligent about working on my dissertation; I'm becoming more productive each day. Yesterday, I drank a cup of coffee (just one!) that kept me up and focused all day (even though I was still wired and jittery in the evening). In fact, as I was leaving the library, I ejected my flash drive, but it wasn't in the computer! I started to panic, not being able to find it anywhere, and I even thought someone had stolen it... BUT turns out, I was looking in the wrong computer the whole time, it was really plugged into the computer terminal on my right! So my brain is pretty fried in the evenings. Last night was also the opening ceremony of the Paralympics. I watched bits of it online, but the connection kept pausing and there were commercials too (because it's on Channel 4, not BBC). Tonight! I'm going to watch paralympics sitting volleyball with Mike. It should be fun, even though I've never seen a paralympics event in my life. Mike is cool too, he's enthusiastic to hang around (or maybe I'm just enthusiastic to hang around?). He apparently is running his own PR/social media consultancy with his brother. So I'm honestly kind of impressed and inspired by him. Anyway, the games tonight will be Egypt vs. Morocco and Iran vs. Rwanda. I think I'll be the only American cheering for Iran :) Our bathroom drain is still clogged. I emailed Brian, and he says that it's the council's responsibility because they manage the external drainage, where people seem to dump a lot of their rubbish. The weather has suddenly gotten colder. Last night, it was genuinely chilly as I was walking back home. Summer looks like it's ending already! :(

I was up early today. I had told everyone that I was going to go to Notting Hill Carnival today, so I had planned to wake up early, go to the library, and then meet Fernanda and her coworkers/friends around lunchtime there. So was the plan. But honestly, I just didn't feel like it, so I decided to go my own way.

I jogged, showered, and had a veggie chicken burger before heading out at 11:00. Swag was still asleep, and Mike had gone to Tesco. I was itching to get out of the house anyway. (I think jogging everyday has finally given me more energy!)

I took the tube to Notting Hill Gate, which was exit-only today for the carnival, and rightfully so - it was a mad mess trying to get out through the station. I followed the crowds down a few blocks until loud booms of music could be heard. Really loud. There was a DJ playing reggae mixes on the street, and there were food stalls everywhere. Smoke rose from the myriad Caribbean food stalls. I didn't realize what kind of festival this would be - I thought it was just a small, random parade fitting with the posh nature of Notting Hill. But it was a full-on Jamaican/Caribbean celebration. Even though I was there early, the streets were filling up and half of the people were drinking cans of beer (Red Stripe, obviously, being the popular choice).

I strolled around and thought, "what the hell," and I bought a plate of jerk chicken with rice. It was yummy, and I paid with all the change in my wallet (which meant that I paid £6.94 instead of £7.00 - saving £0.06; haha, deal!). I walked, trying to eat at the same time, and turned the corner just beyond the Notting Hill Bookstore. There was a crowd gathered around a group that was emerging from a church. Some people were on stilts, some were banging drums, some were holding giant towering costumes, and they were all dressed in flowy, colorful outfits with their faces painted. It was random but cool. I finished my chicken and walked around some more, turning north and discovering another center of activity, where the Trinidad and Tobago truck was rolling through and there were more festively dressed partiers. I took some more pictures, then started walking back to Holland Park station, where I caught the tube to LSE.

I ran into Ankit on the staircase in the library, and we caught up briefly. There, at my go-to computer area, was Elena. And so here I am, working on my dissertation, tying to get it organized into something coherent and acceptable!

August is flying by really quickly. I can't believe that I now have less than 1 month left in London!

Saturday, 18 August. Last weekend was warm. On Saturday, the sun was out and the temperatures were up. I was firmly planted in the library. In fact, having arrived there early, I was having one of the most productive days working on my dissertation this summer. Chilango in Angel was giving away free burritos, so I went there at 15:00 to meet Swag. But Swag was at Camden Beach, and Maria was on her way there too. I was hungry so I just ate alone and went back to the library; I didn't want to waste my productivity. I couldn't sleep. Thanks to Trycho and Mike McCartney.

Sunday, 19 August. I was on a bus early in the morning, like 6, which was interesting to see all the muslims going to their morning prayers. I rested a bit and was soon out again, this time to the riverside, by Bermondsey, to again enjoy the day. Swag left his keys in a bag, which he left on a bus! So, he and I are sharing my set of keys for the week at least.

Monday, 20 August. Swag awoke me to tell me that Bridget and Alessio were moving out in 2 days. What?! So I began posting on Craigslist, Gumtree, Spareroom, and Couchsurfing. How annoying. One girl viewed the flat in the evening, but I was out meeting a cousin who was visiting London. I returned to the LSE library (as usual) to make more progress on my dissertation, which didn't really happen. I was browsing Olympics apparel on eBay. But I was distracted anyway: My cousin Aaron was in London (for now at least), so I met up with him and his friend Dan on the steps of St. Paul's Cathedral at 17:00. We grabbed a drink at Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese, where their friend/host Nick (or Mike? Wow, I'm horrible with names) met us. We then traveled over to Marylebone to have fish and chips at The Golden Hind. There were a lot of tourists there, but the fish was really good, crunchy and fresh. It lives up to the hype, even though I don't like fish in general. After that, we headed to Liverpool Street, and we went to a speakeasy, hidden in the basement of the Breakfast Club. We had old fashioneds, which took the bartender like 20 minutes to make as he just kept stirring it, but they were delicious!

Tuesday, 21 August. The search for a new flatmate continues. The dissertation continues. I returned back to Canada Water around 15:30, took the bus all the way. Gary was around.

Wednesday, 22 August. THERE WAS A FREE BLOC PARTY SHOW IN DALSTON. It was a "secret gig" that was just made public last night. I went there with Louise, who was back in London for a week or so before she moves to Paris. We got to the queue around 5, guessing that we were around number 200 in the queue, and within half an hour or so a man announced that all the wristbands had been given out and that no one else would get in. Shame. Anyway, we signed up to an email list. Then, we headed to the Big Chill (by King's Cross) for free cocktails and free burgers, but there were way too many people there; it would've taken ages for us to get served. So we headed to Camden Beach to catch the rest of happy hour. We edged in and made the acquaintance of a nice Italian woman named Anna. We split the 2-for-1 cocktails with her. It was apparently the last day for Camden Beach too, so we were very lucky! Louise's friend from Germany was with us, and I befriended the girl who was trying to squeeze in a drink order next to us. Back home, Alessio's bike had been stolen, and this was his and Bridget's last night in the flat. I was gone, so I missed the police coming to file a report for the bike. (But honestly, there is so much negativity between us now, that I don't really care to see either of them much at all.) The same night, while I was also gone, we had another guy view the room, Mike from the Netherlands.

Thursday, 23 August. Had veggie burgers for breakfast. Then headed, as usual, to the library. They had replaced the chairs in the library, so now they were ergonomic and new, instead of the hard painted wooden chairs that were there before. Mike (from the Netherlands) came over to pay for the room - DONE, booyah! Swag and I went to Tesco to stock up on some essentials. We also bought drain cleaner, because our shower and sink drains have had an inexplicable block. The dran-o didn't really work

Friday, 24 August. Went jogging in the morning. Made eggs for me and Swag. Spent the day at the library, staring into a computer screen. I met up with Fernanda who was having drinks with coworkers in Canary Wharf. They are all young and international. I only remember some of their names, Larissa (from Austria), Rafael (from Brazil), Jennifer (from Austria), Alexandra (from Poland). They tried to pass me off as one of their coworkers too, because they have such a fast turnover that hardly anyone knows anyone else in the company.

Saturday, 25 August. The email list we signed up for (see Wednesday) provided us with a free ticket to a Bloc Party show in February! Awesome. Guess I have to return to London for this. Spent the afternoon at the library, working on my dissertation as usual. It rained in spurts of downpours, heavy thunderstorms. Claps of thunder erupted above the library throughout the afternoon. It was a very unusual weather pattern. I thought I was lucky to go home in a dry spell, but as I emerged from the tube station, the rain was pouring down heavier than ever. I trudged through with my umbrella, but it was useless. The rain had drenched my jeans and my shoes, all the way through to my socks. Yuck! Swag cooked spicy chicken, soya sauce, vinegar and chilies. It's almost like chicken adobo. Lance Armstrong has been stripped of his Tour de France wins as a result of doping controversy. Neil Armstrong died.

I stayed home today. I'm in the midst of hosting a bunch of different people through Airbnb, and since Swag left for Italy late Tuesday night we have a second bedroom to rent out. Tai and Rebekah were here for three days, until today. Tai was Vietnamese-German, and we spoke in German. Rebekah was mostly silent and seemed to be aloof and uninterested in interacting with me (or anyone in the flat for that matter). And this wore off on Tai: They cooked their own food, they went to the bathroom together, and they browsed the internet together while barely acknowledging my presence. (This is the main reason why I prefer Couchsurfers to Airbnb guests - they actually are interested in you!). Around 11 this morning, the French people arrived - Eden and Jerome. They seem nice and were friendly to talk to. They were also tired, so I pumped up the bed and let them have a nap, while I relocated to Swag's empty room. I tried to get some work done on my dissertation, but it's really slow going. Really. I could barely eek out a paragraph. (I just need to break this inertia and get some momentum going.) But it's also sooo hard to concentrate with all the Olympic excitement going on! Eden and Jerome left in the afternoon, Tai and Rebekah stopped by again, then left to finalize a few things. I decided to cook a big pot of chili, making use of all the lentils we had and being able to feed all our guests (it's a simple recipe and hard to mess up)! The Germans returned to cook (they had bought a lot of food from Tesco, and they cooked it all and took it with them instead of sharing it with me), pick up their stuff and leave. It was a curt and odd goodbye. I watched some Olympics swimming, watched another episode Breaking Bad (my current obsession), and spent nearly an hour talking with my mom and uncle (I had just bought my flight back to LA!). Now I'm just waiting for Eden and Jerome to return, and for Tiziano and Carlotta to arrive (probably will be around 2am).

The last few days in London have been amazing: The weather has turned AMAZING. Warm and brilliantly sunny everyday. I have been wearing shorts for the last 3 days! Felipe, my good friend from Brazil, has been in London since Sunday. It was really great to see him, and to meet his girlfriend Luiza, and to hang out with them the last few days. Yesterday, I went to pick up my Olympics tickets, near Edgware Road. I thought it would a quick stop and pick up, but there was (of course) a queue. It took over an hour waiting before I could go up and pick them up! Amazingly inconvenient - way to go, London! Right when I finished, I met Ragnhild (don't even try to pronounce her name correctly), who is a girl visiting London from Denmark but wanted someone to hang out with in London. We then headed over to Westminster/St. James's Park, to meet Felipe and Luiza. There, they were sitting in a pub having food with a couple other Brazilians, whom they had met on the free tour - Bruno, Lia?, and R--?? (god I'm horrible with names). We then decided to go to Abbey Road, which took some time (for them to figure out Oyster cards, etc). We hung around there for a while, awkwardly trying to maneuver between tourists and cars passing by (we didn't really get many good pictures). Then, the afternoon was passing so we had to decide whether to go on a pub crawl. Answer: YES! We chose to meet in Camden at 8pm (allowing everyone to go home and freshen up) and join a pub crawl there. Ragnhild and I went to Angel to get some frozen yogurt (yum), and then she came home with me, since it was closer and easier for here to just leave her stuff at our flat. I let her shower really quick, while I power napped. We were slightly rushed, but knew that we'd be meeting Brazilians, so we didn't really stress about being on time. We got there around 8:45, meeting Bruno, the two girls, and two new girls: Gabi and Daniela. We decided not to pay the £12 pub crawl cost, instead just buying our own drinks. From Belushi's, we headed to the Blues Bar, which had a couple of female blues singers busting out some amazing hits. We jammed there, with the loud (mostly obnoxious American college girls) pub crawlers around us. Ragnhild began to chat with a drunk Swedish guy. We then left, following just behind the pub crawlers, who were led all the way to Proud, a club in the Camden Stables. We debated whether to go in, and we did, paying £8 each to enter. It was laughably empty on the dance floor, so we all sat outside in the back patio area, which was more populated. The smell of sauteéing cheeseburgers filled the air. The girls left to catch the last tube back to their hostel. The table next to us was reserved for "Asia McLaughlin." We left around 1, stopping to get some fried chicken (which I resisted!) before taking a night bus to Trafalgar Square. There, we split up - Ragnhild going south, Luiza and Felipe west, and Swag and I east. But our bus wasn't scheduled to come within 30 minutes, so we walked to Aldwych to try our luck catching the 188 or N1. We waited maybe 10-15 minutes before the N1 arrived, which meant we had to walk across the Tesco lot to get home. Sigh. it was about 3:15 when we arrived. I took one of the "recovery" fizzy drink mixes to ensure I could wake up fresh :) Today, Thursday I had planned to meet Ragnhild at 1pm at the British Museum, and I arrived there just about on time (ok, 2 minutes late), but she was even later, and she (yet again) couldn't find her way around! In the meantime, a woman had given me a card for a private airport taxi. Sigh. After showing her around, we walked to Oxford Circus, where we met Felipe and Luiza, who had just done some shopping and browsing at Hamley's. We then walked all the way over to the Hard Rock Café, where they wanted to eat. Apparently the president of Brazil was visiting London (for the opening of a new embassy). We sat downstairs at the Hard Rock and stuffed our faces with mediocre American food. We sat there for a while, digesting, before finally getting the energy up to go out. Stopped by Boot's to get them some sleeping pills, then walked up to Oxford Street (stopping again by a posh purse store), where we waited to see the Olympic torch! We waited for maybe 20 minutes, the crowd pulsating with anticipation and pushing into the street, various police officers pushing the crowd back. The guys next to us were cheering for every random bicyclist or taxi driver that went past. Finally, the festival-laden buses drove past, and then came the torch. But wait - the torch was on top of a bus?! It wasn't being run down the street, it was just being driven. Aaaagh! Slightly disappointing. The crowd dispersed, and we went to Primark, chilling for a while while Luiza bought some shoes (and counting how many Olympic host cities I had been to). Then we went to find some frozen yogurt. Putting blind faith in my iPhone, I was led astray! We walked past the Pinkberry, which was in Selfridges, and had to double back to find it. It was crowded, but Felipe saved us a table. We enjoyed our yogurt, but it was soon time to go - Felipe and Luiza had to pick up their stuff and head to the bus station by 9. But guess what, Swag arrived looking to eat (d'oh). Felipe quickly bought a souvenir Big Ben and a book, and as they headed into Forever 21, we said our goodbyes. I guess I have to go to Brazil next.