going out and staying in

I’m going to try harder at blogging on the weekends, since I never really do.
Friday I went with Claire and Kelly to a pool ‘club’ in Harrow. Kelly has been playing pool/billiards since she was 11 (maybe even younger) and is quite good. This place has the small British billiards tables (with red and yellow balls), snooker tables, poker, and a bunch of big American pool tables. It was nice to play the familiar game for a change… although Kelly and Claire both play by their British rules (which are a little different)… and they don’t call them stripes and solids… they’re stripes and spots. I pumped some money into the jukebox and made everyone listen to my American selections, and we had a pretty good time overall.
Saturday morning I got up nice and early and went with a co-worker (Jon) up to Lakenheath. Lakenheath is a biggest American military base within a reasonable distance… I think it’s even the biggest in the UK… anyhow, it’s a 2 hour drive up, so once a month or so a few of us will carpool up to handle banking, hit up the Exchange, and get some American groceries and American fast food (hooray for Taco Bell!) at American prices. This particular trip was mostly to satisfy my banking needs and to get Jon a new TV. He had recently invested in a big beautiful rear-projection TV in which one of the bulbs promptly burned out. When he investigated the cost of replacing this bulb (there are three total) he found it to be much more expensive than he had expected… now he’s considering just selling the TV as-is, rather than sinking any more money into it. Of course, buying a brand new TV is more expensive than fixing the current one… but boys and their toys… Anyhow, I was particularly useful, having done research on TVs a year or so ago when I bought mine. He had pretty much decided on a 50” plasma when we got there, but I talked him into a 47” LCD… it was a little more expensive, but higher-def, LCD, and a trusted brand. We got it back to his place and tech-savvy Brigid helped him hook it up and get it working. It really is a beaut.
This evening my friend Tristan and his girlfriend Katharina arrived from Germany. Tristan was a German exchange student that I became friends with back in my junior year of HS. We’ve kept in contact over the years (thanks to Myspace) but haven’t really talked much. When I got settled out here I emailed him and told him I had just moved to London and wanted to plan a trip to come visit him in Germany, to which he responded “I’m moving to London in February.” Small world and all that. He got a job at a hotel downtown (he just completed his apprenticeship in hospitality) and Katharina came with him in hopes of landing herself one as well. Katharina has an interview on Wednesday that she is VERY nervous about, as her English skills are a little rusty. We’re working on it…
We had some chicken and salad for dinner (so nice to have help with the cooking and conversation with my meal instead of just TV) and I didn’t have to do the dishes for the first time since December!!
When I moved out here it was the first time EVER that I got a place by myself. Since the first time I moved out I have always had roommates… multiple roommates… and always males (except for a couple months a few years ago). It was a big change to go from feeding 3 grown men (plus myself) at every meal to feeding just myself… cleaning up after 4 people (but having 4 sets of hands to do so) to only cleaning up after myself (but doing it alone)… always having someone around, even when I didn’t want them around to NEVER having anyone around, especially when I wanted someone around… I’m a happier person when I’m living with people than I am living alone… I enjoy everyday ‘relationships’; the good and the ‘bad’.
Anyway, I think I finally got used to living alone… watching TV in my underwear and buying groceries and tp for one… and now I’m back up to a 3 person household and all of the advantages and disadvantages that come with that.
The nicest thing for me about this whole situation is the timing… at work we’re beginning a two week stint of 12-hour days. Without needlessly explaining what all I dislike about this arrangement, I will say I was worried about leaving Dexter alone for that long. Enter new roomies that can let him out, play with him, and feed him dinner. Hooray!
The other awesome thing about having someone around… Saturday night was spent infront of the TV watching a movie. There is something very relaxing and comfortable about just sitting down with some friends, watching a movie, and relaxing. No forced conversation, but a person there if I want to comment… not just me talking to myself.