This One Is About Some Thoughts That You Might Not Care For

Sometimes I'll put a picture up that has nothing to do with the current blog, just because I happen to have it on hand. <------ Just so you know, this might be an uninteresting read because it's not about any of my adventures. It's about some reflection and thoughts about making this move, so if you are interested in a surface understanding of me then you wont have a fun time reading this. It's not "deep" or anything, but it's just a lot of talk.

I did it. I made a move across the pond in search of adventure, excitement, knowledge, a fresh breath of something that I could never get back home. Sure there are different theories on why I left St. John’s and moved to London-ish areas, and I would have to say it was a conglomeration of different nudgings and pokes that unsettled my roots. I’ll be home; I love my city, but I’m 26, which is a pretty irrelevant point now that I think about it. My age has nothing to do with the move, but rather the move has more to do with my need to see something before I call it in and start working on a city life with a career and a house and all that rubbish. Some people wish they had taken an adventure, or got outside there cubby hole, while others never left their home town but found beautiful lives and purpose where they were. However, I have yet to encounter someone who made a move, got outside and lived to regret it. Sure some people leave and within the first three weeks they are so home sick that they move right back home, but at least they got outside and discover that, and when they went home I bet everything they loved meant more to them once they knew what life was like without. I would even challenge this group in saying that they didn’t give the outside enough of a chance. When I got here I was unhappy. I don’t want to generalize too much so I will talk about this as a personal account and if you relate to it then maybe you fall into the same category as me. When I arrived it was fun for the first two days, and then some realities started to settle in. I wash showering in a strange shower and sleeping in a room I had never seen before, yet it was my room. Not only did I have a whole new set of stimuli coming in to process, I also had a great massive void where all my familiarities used to sit in my brain. Where once a consistent and routine set of neurons would fire I now had silence. I sometimes find it hard to distinguish between the different facets of my being, but then again I have also been told that I have more understand than some and that I just need to stop doubting everything I decide. I’m going to try describing what I’m talking about in as short a way as possible because the human makeup is not something I care to dissect or claim to understand in whole. However, I will take a little crack at it for descriptive purposes. I am made up of body, mind, soul, and as Pete tells me, spirit. I don’t know the distinction between spirit and soul so I will stay away from that bit and leave it to my scholarly friend. Within my body there are all sorts of facets affecting one another, so the biological affects the biological. The biological also affects the mental, the mind, as what you eat will affect the way you feel. Anyone who has ever eaten one of my smoothies will tell you they feel refreshed, and in the same way, anyone who has ever eaten E pills will tell you just about anything. The mental influences the Spiritual as our choices affect the outcome of our soul. The spiritual affects the spiritual as our battle is not against flesh and blood but against the evil forces and dark rulers of this world (Ephesians 6: 12) http://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/Eph/Eph006.html#12 . This also expresses the influence spiritual has over the mental and the physical, or biological. For those scientists out there who are not concerned with this spiritual bit, you’re going to have to bare with me because this is my blog and I’m talking facts as far as I’m concerned. So what else do we have?... well there are a whole lot of influences and factors to counter in when considering ones personal state.

So, I’m over in London trying to find a job and a life and missing home but understanding why I am feeling the way I am feeling. See, when I went out tree planting I would feel unsettled for the first couple weeks or so and I would often get stressed out and think I should have stayed home. I would be sick thinking about the 3 month commitment I had made to stay in the woods, and how it didn’t feel like the year before. The thing is you need to give your mind time to adapt, and this thing people call being home sick is not what I once thought it was. Though I was in a place that I wanted to be I would wake up feeling odd, not right. By the time I got into the middle of my day i would be fine, but you have to give your brain time to adapt. It’s the mental bit that is being affected by the physical. New stinuli, and lack of old ones is messing with the neurons and in turn is messing with feelings and emotions, state of mind etc. I know at this point in my writing that my mother and father are feeling well anxious, but I understand that these bits of anxiety are just an aside to growth, and that is why I could live with not feeling like myself, knowing it would pass. The thing is I always tend to look for reasons why I am feeling the way I am, and I often I don’t find reasons, or just ow it up to lack of sleep, or even worse, blame my feelings on something else.

I’m starting to get tired of writing now and I would rather stop then continue on with something that is missing pieces. I’ll just sum up a few things I was thinking when I started to write this. I’m glad I came, I know I’m not going to find all the answers to life over here, my age is not significant because I could have done this right out of high school, or I could do it in my 60’s. I just know that right now I had no reason not to, and no commitments that I felt could not be passed on. I don’t have any babies or wife or mortgage, and I know for sure that I would not feel content settling into my city without getting outside of it first. I’m not a big fan of regret so I try to make sure it doesn’t interfere with my life too much.

So that is what was on my mind tonight, and if you were brave enough to stick around until the end, well, I hope it was a fun time. I’m not into reading blogs, but maybe I would be if something caught my interest, or maybe I just haven’t given them a chance. Thanks for coming out kids.

Pictures for Skateboarding and Chocolate

This is a bad picture of the roundabout which has a U shaped sidewalk on it that would be sick to manual up and around

Dream Last Night

August 26^th 2008 Tuesday

Dream last night

I believe that God can speak to us through our dreams, and if you want a reference for that you can check out www.blueletterbible.com (http://cf.blueletterbible.org/search/translationResults.cfm?Criteria=dream&t=NKJV&page=3 ). The NKJV give numerous examples throughout the Bible. The word Dream, itself is found in 13 books, and the word Dreams, is found in even more. There are accounts of God speaking to people directly in dreams, God sending “The angel of the Lord”, and dreams which require an interpreter, because they are not always clear to the one who receives them. I had an interesting dream last night, and I remember it in great detail, but it didn’t feel like anything significant. Sometimes you wake from a dream where you are left with more feeling than memory, and those are the dreams I am most curious about. This dream was interesting, but I don’t see any message in it, and I don’t like to make something out of nothing. If it strikes a chord with you let me know, but for the most part it is just entertaining to see what the mind can come up with.

Dream:

I’m with a group of people, and we are sort of like a team or a group of soldiers who live in a city that is much like War of the Worlds, or 28 Days Later, or Resident Evil, or I am Legend. It feels sort of post Apocalypse, but I’m not really in the know. I feel like I’m figuring things out as I go along, that I’m reliant on this other guy who I think is head of my team. We are all in these trailers, or metal compartments like the ones found on cargo ships. The leader is describing things to me when all of a sudden we have to all stay still and pretend we are dead. Like in war of the worlds when the alien machine is scanning the house for life forms and Tom Cruse is hiding, staying still. I am facing the back of the room we are in, but there is a dirty mirror in front of me so I can see the front door. There are demons coming into the room, and they look like something out of the movie Aliens, but I know they are demons. As one comes in we all sort of lie still, but I scurry a bit to stay face down. At this point I can see everything happening to me as if I am watching a video of myself, shot from over the shoulder of this demon. The demon pokes around at all the bodies on the floor and when it gets to me it flips me over and checks my pule. In my head I am thinking, “How could a demon be fooled by live bodies lying on the ground, pretending to be dead? Obviously they would be able to check a heart beat or see the slight movement of breath.” As the demon checks my pulse, grabbing my neck I open my eyes, staring up at the demon and the camera, the camera being my focal point. I role over and start to climb out over the top of this tanker/house as everyone else begins running too. I’m running through these tankers, through them as if they are set up like a little slum town. Eventually I meet up with my team leader again and we are at a rail station where thousands of people are getting on these trains to be taken somewhere else. I’m pretty sure it’s a plan of escape to somewhere safe, but I don’t expect there are too many safe places in a world where demons are running around hunting humans. So we are watching these trains and waiting on a platform to take us across the tracks. The platform is on hinges and we are waiting for it to rotate so we can get on and move across the tracks. As we are waiting there is someone conducting people, telling those who are closest to get on the newly arrived train. This conductor tries to usher us on a train but my team leader tells him, “No no, we have a mission”. So we are exempt from going on the train with all the others. This is the last part I remember as I fade into waking state, watching small trains, and big trains take people away.

I had a dream the night before about a train as well. I was hanging out with the tr park boys and we were running from the police. I kept getting away but I was never far enough away to completely escape so they kept on me. I hate dreams where I’m running form things that I can never get away from.

Put that in your pipe now.

Skateboarding & Chocolate

The chocolate over here sure is good, and I think it is the reason I don't look malnourished like all the other foreign adventurers who find themselves away from their mothers cooking. I've been all over this town and I think i found the best deal on Cadbury Dairy Milk and Snickers bars. Want to know a secrete? I wasn't sure how to spell Cadbury so i went and checked the label. Then I figured I might as well eat the bar! True story. So I've been 171-185 lbs for the past 6 years or more, but thanks to Cadbury's delicious blend and assortment of delectable I am now approaching 215lbs! Perhaps this sedentary job isn't helping me any either. I went from walking 2 hours to get anywhere to blogging and talking to people on facebook that I don't even like. Somehow I think this will all make sense in the end. So I went out for a skateboard today and had a good time out of it. I went to a few spots I had seen in my walking around and gave things a go. Maybe tomorrow I'll take pictures and add them to make things more fun like. There are these flower pots, or tree pots, and they are brick, shaped like a cut off funnel, more open at the top than a regular funnel. There is a 2 inch glitch at the bottom of the funnel so you can't ride right up it, but if you lift your front wheels and lean back you can ride right up. So I did a rock-and-roll on it and then I road up and down along the side for a good time. After that I skated down the sidewalk, which was really smooth close to the shopping centre, and found these brick hips that are really fun to play around on. I was warned by my client that people get kicked out of this area, but it was late sunday night so not many people were around and I didn't over stay my welcome. These were just like little flat banks, really steep; not much too them, but I really like them and would like to be able to try some tricks, or just ride them. The mall is interesting because it is very open in some parts so you could just skate right through parts of it, but I didn't push my luck. At the bike rack there was a low flat bar, about 1.5 feet high, 8 feet long, and 6 inches wide, but it's in a high traffic area and I was alone, if that means anything. There's a nice parking lot right across from where I'm staying so I can always practice my tricks on the flat. I enjoyed my night out skateboarding. It's 10:30pm now and I'll probably read a bit of the good word, and watch a movie or two from the endless collection of japanamation and kung fu this client owns. Remember how I said it will all make sense in the end? Well, I tell lies, or stories, but I always confess one way or another and this is my confession; I'm not over 200 lbs, I'm my normal weight. Though I've been in the house a lot I have decided I might do some exercise while I'm here so I made use of the weight set and chin up bar the other care taker left in his room. It has been a good time, and I wish I could talk more about "My client" because he's a really great guy and he makes me think about how easy it could be for life to change forever. If you read this let me know, and feel free to tell me about your day to day adventures, I've got a bit of time on my hands now and then. fa-darn

Cheeseburger in a bun

I would be starting work on wednesday the 20th, so on monday I went into London with Joel to do some skatebaording and see what we could see. I had spotted this interesting looking setup from the bus and so when I met up with Joel we went back to check it out. It sure looked ice from the bus, but cobble stone is not only hard to ride on but also dangerous, thus we were a little limited. We skated this coblestone bank for a while but you really couldn't get enough speed into it, and I ended up hitting it headlong rather than riding up it. Some old guy was yelling at us, asking us where our pads were, but from his dimeaner I would expect that most things in his life are padded, including his walls. I thought he was yelling "Satan!" but when I questioned him on this matter he said, "No no! Safety!" I entertained him a while, but there was no end to him so we eventually skated on to the next spot as his voice trailed off in the background. Joel and I headed down along the tams where all the tourists were flocking, as well as quite a few street performers. I was approached by Mace Windu who asked if he could use my board. I told him he could if he used the force to retrieve it. After telepathically ripping it from my hands he proceeded to push like a Mary and road 5 feet. Apparently all this flying around in hovering vehicals has maimed the Jeti of their primal abilities, which include anything involving a wheel. I accepted his £5 voucher as a peace offering and went on my way. It was starting to rain on and off all day so we ended up doing more walking than we had bargened for. However, as we passed a few headless individuals we saw a small ginger with a skatebaord in his hand. Joel suggested we should ask him where a good skate spot would be, but I shrugged this idea off as the child was wearing Nike Air's. 3 minutes later we found ourselves under a bridge or something, in a concrete skate park, sort of like the burnside skatepark under the freeway in Philidelphia, except more ghetto. The park was good fun and we stayed there well long. After Skateboarding we went for icecream and water before meeting up with Joels mate Steve. The three of us went to an Italian restuarant for supper, not too pricey now. Now I know it was an Italian restaurant with a whole Italian family working there, but I couldn't help but order # 27 Cheeseburger in a bun. I have had many cheesburgers in my day, but never had I the opportunity to order one in a bun. Needless to say it was very good, but it was no cheeseburger. It was a sausage round, much like a breakfast dish. Post cheeseburger in a bun, we parted ways and went home for the night. This was around 7pm and I was heading to a hockey practice from 1015-1215. I had a vitamen and energy drink on the way, as I was quite tuckered out at this point. It helped muchly in time of great need. Many drills and laps were taken, and we even had to dumb down the drill on the "advanced" side of the ice because everyone was screwing it up. It was a little complex, but for the Russians the language barrier would be king, taking into account the difficulty most had with the scribbles of a marker and white board coupled with an understanding of the english language. The next day, tuesday, I took Isaiah ice skating and one my my team mates who works security there let us in for free, the end. Here I am at my new job in a town called High Waycombe. It's a nice town with a new shopping centre and downtownish shopping area, oooooooo. Yeah there are a few things to buy, but I really don't need anything and I find there is always something to buy if you go out and look around, so I might as well wait until I need something before I go looking around. The client I'm working with is a great individual, but for confidentiality purposes I cannot tell you all about that. Just know I am happy with this position. I guess that is it for now as I probably wont have a whole lot to report in the next wee or two. fin

Stank Hockey Gear

I’m at the cafe uploading pictures. Just finished playing my first game of hockey with my new team, the Streatham Night-Wolves, probably named so for our practice times running from 11:45pm-1:45am Friday and Saturday nights. I’m not at my best without my own equipment and stick, but I’m getting along pretty good. You just always want to be at your best and give yourself every advantage you can. Our game was today from 4-6pm. I had a good time and enjoyed the contact along the boards. However, the chap who I nailed into the boards head first wasn’t too hot about the idea so he attempted to pull off my helmet. There was no blood as I talked him down and pointed out that he turned in, which he did. I hit his shoulder with my shoulder at the moment he was turtling, this directed him headlong. There was no penalty called, due to the high cement content of this blokes skull and everyone affirmed this with me. I got an assist and was a target for the rest of the game, along with my American team mate who too was dishing out some jive. I took a few hits and I gave a few, but I was never off my feet, being a champion and all. I also got an assist and gave out some very nice passes, along with a few panic moments of dumping it up the boards, which are much like St. Bonds, very unpredictable. All in all I did alright.

Oh yeah, they play by international rules over here so I was awarded a penalty in the practice last night for shooting it over the glass in my own zone. I thought only goal tenders got those?

Hereeee

Here I am, up to the present date. August 15^th 2008. I am back in South Norwood and I have hockey practice tonight for the game tomorrow night. I’ll make my way down to the internet café shortly to check the weeks mail and send off some blogage. If I could give a few shout outs. Those of you who pray to the God of Jacob please throw one up there for my sister as she awaits giving birth to a baby girl. I would also ask you keep in mind a friend named Matthew who is in hospital, though I do not feel enough liberty to explain his situation any farther. Those who are friends and don’t care too much for this Jesus racket are going to have to put up with my words, or, if you wish, feel free to tune into the writings of Perrez Hilton to hear some real news.

That’s enough, get back at me.

Travelling Mercies

Monday, August 11^th I woke at 6am to begin my travels to ENA Training Camp. 2.5 hours later I arrived at my destination after the transition from bus to train, to tube to train. In my journey I did not completely understand the travel arrangements because there are some places you can end up without proper travel ticket while others are impossible to get to unless you have done things right; in this case I had not done things right. For my last train I had gone down to the platform to get on and before I did I swiped my oyster card, though I didn’t have to, I could have walked on without swiping. I swiped my card in anticipation of ending up at a terminal where I would not be able to exit without swiping and then waited on my train. The train was delayed due to a sister train broken down on one of the tracks, meaning my arrival at my final destination was also delayed. When I got off at Hatfield station I made my way into the station where I could see my ride waiting for me outside. Once in the station I noticed there was nowhere to swipe my oyster, only a ticket reader. Simultaneously I noticed a gentleman in front of me who was receiving a £20 fine for incorrect ticket. As I waited in my turn to speak with the gate manager I received a call from ENA asking if I was attending with them this day. I assured them I was and that I could see the van across the street waiting for me. As I waited my turn I noticed the van drive away, I also took note of the fact that I was not on the van but was still waiting eminent doom. Another gentleman on duty was there and I explained my situation. With some pitiful pleading from a Canadian boy who had only been in the country for 3 weeks I was granted the grace of paying for the ticket I should have purchased at my previous stop at a price of £7.40. I made my way across the street and called the office who informed me that a car would be by to pick me up, along with two other late arrivals. This was a relief but I was a bit deflated, considering I had initially scheduled myself to arrive 30 minutes early.

So training was a good time. Had some great sandwiches, met good people and learned a thing or two about caring. At the end we all were granted our own special powers to save the world through the illumination of our bellies. I’m Unpredictable Heart, with the power to smite evil-doers with care one minute and induce K9 urination the next. I didn’t find I clashed with anyone there, and we are all starting our own facebook group so I can’t really tell you a whole lot about how I really feel about everyone, but it’s pretty safe to say that Jim is the nicest bigot I know. After every day I went back to the house with the two girls who were staying there as well, along with Dave from the office. We cooked a dish which I would liken to Chicken Amatriciani, which I can’t seem to spell and SpellCheck is giving me grief. It’s served at East Side Marios and it’s pretty good. The second night we went out and I had fish and chips. On the way we got caught in the rain, and we laughed. The end. The second day we got to test our driving, but I didn’t think I was going to get a chance because I am an automatic driver, however they found someone and away I went. Driving on the left side of the road, sitting on the right side of the car, on roads I would liken to the sidewalks back home (called the pavement here). It wasn’t a test, but it was a test. I was driving with a driving instructor who was critiquing my every move. It was so strange because it was like I was being tested again, except with a different set of norms, on roads with roundabouts, which I don’t like at all. They may even have two lanes, but there are no lines to indicate this. You just know there are two lanes because some is drive beside you. I passed, and that is that. I rubbed the curb twice because I was not sure about how close the other side of the car was. You would think it would be no different than estimating how much car is on your right side in North America but it’s not.

On the last day, I was assigned a client. Most people have 3 month positions but because I don’t drive stick I have a non-driving position for 12 days, starting August 20^th. I like this because it will give me a taste of what the job is like while they find a more permanent position for me. On lunch break I received a call from one of my Hockey mates who is Married to a girl from Grand Bank, Newfoundland, Canada. He was inviting me to show up this coming Saturday for one of their games as a defenseman. I like playing D more these days because I feel like that is where I perform my best. I always played defensively as a forward and I loved being a play maker, but I would have stood out better on D. When I was at the rink with Isaiah it was interesting to watch him learn, and for me to explain with words and direction was not enough. I know the same applies to so many things. You can show someone the series of keys to press in order to play a piece, but practice and teaching the brain takes so much out of you. Again, I digress.

After the course was complete we all went to a pub by our station. Some interesting conversations were had, and I was among the final three who stayed until 10:30pm. I would love to say more about this time, but I will leave it vague. Much is understood between the minds of those who came. From there we went into London and had pizza before setting out in separate ways to make our way home. I didn’t really get lost this time, but it did take me until 3am to get home. On my last walk up the hill I saw a fox who I followed for a short time until it disappeared into someone’s backyard. Travel here is a lot of walking and a lot of sitting. It doesn’t feel long to go somewhere if it’s an hour journey; quite a contract to home where I drive anywhere in the city within 15 minutes or less.

Every night I went to bed with thanks, and asked God to make use of me the following day. He never failed, and sometimes I was blessed enough to see my utilization first hand.

Obviously, after all, I am Canadian

I get up on a Friday morning and check my email, finding a reply from this guy in Strathem who has a Hockey team (Ice Hockey) who hold open practices and provide equipment. This is great for me, considering I only brought my skates over. So I go out to this practice Friday night from 11:45-1:45am and practice with them. We do about half an hour of drills and then have a scrimmage. Now, I’m the type who does not perform well with other peoples equipment. I can’t skate your board, shoot with your stick, or drive on the other side of the road through roundabouts. However, the stick was not too different than my own, and I made due with the equipment. I had my own skates, which is the most important part. I always have fun, but when you are in a group of new people you want to be on top of your game. Needless to say I was asked to return and join their team. I would love to but I can’t commit to it long term as I will be starting work soon as live in carer, this means I wont be as available for anything. All-in-all I had a great time and I look forward to playing again.

The next day I went ice skating with Peter’s son Isaiah who is 9. This boy can talk and talk and talk, with all kinds of questions. You could easily exhaust yourself answering him, and I made a valiant effort to respond to all I could. I find most people begin to tune kids out after a while or don’t give them enough respect in conversation. Another problem is that we often treat kids with a sense of childishness, using belittling tones of voice. I remember being a kid, and kids know the difference, even if they don’t tell you. I had a school teacher when I was 10 who used to always say “OK boys and girls…..” and I still remember how “boys and girls” felt like a belittling, derogatory term for which I was embarrassed on her behalf. So I kept up with Isaiah’s conversation because I know his 9 year old mind, brain and soul are developing at an accelerated pace and I was given the opportunity to contribute to this so I did. This conversation was extended by a 15 minute walk in the rain, a 25 minute ride on the bus in the wrong direction, and a compensatory 40 minute bus ride to the ice skating rink. Isaiah has never ice skated before but he has done roller bladding, and he also tends to pick things up quite fast. This was a learning experience as I was responsible for insuring he didn’t hurt himself. He started off gripping the boards and making short strides along and grabbing the boards again. As the day went on he began to leave the boards for longer periods of time, but I was always behind him to catch him if he slipped backwards, and sometimes forwards, but in this I was not very successful. I was looking at the day as a lesson. I felt very parental, knowing he was depending on me to break his fall, and I had to remain focused and very close with arms stretched out in preparation for his next spill. I found myself looking away for a second or two sometimes, and every time I did Isaiah would fall down. Focus was the word of the day. At the end he didn’t want to leave and couldn’t wait until next week. We are going to try making this a regular Saturday activity. I hadn’t spent time with kids in so long, and it reminded me of the fun times I had at home with all my cousins.

After skating we went across the road for some chicken and chips before taking the bus home.

The winds of change are changing

Did I say anything about my interview yet? Yeah I had an interview with ENA, European Nursing Agency. It went very well and the loved me. The only problem is that I don’t drive a stick so there is less opportunity for me to work with them as most people over here drive manual. They wouldn’t usually take on a male without standard driving as there are fewer opportunities for males. My B+ in Women’s Studies is throbbing at this fact but I guess that’s just how she goes. So I was asked to come back for the training the following Monday and because I lived 2.5 hours away from the training facility they decided to put me up in the local Ritz Carlton for the duration of my 4 day training. No, not really; I tell lies. I spent the 4 days with 2 other trainees in the company house which is kept for such as we. When I left the interview I went to Russell Square and ate a sandwich while feeding the birds, Mary Popins style. From here I got lost on the way to a museum which I eventually found some hour and a half later on foot. For those of you who are wondering, I have been doing some decent compensation for walking by indulging in the odd box of fried chicken, though I do try to keep the temple in working fashion. The museum was interesting but I get this exhausted feeling when I start looking at artefacts with alleged dates posted on them. I have little faith in the knowledge of man when it comes to dating systems, such as carbon dating, so I look at the items and think, “That’s a nice old piece.” But I don’t entertain too many of the dates, though the descriptions of use are often quite reasonable. From the museum I left to meet up with Erin in Trafalgar Square for supper. We went to a Chinese restaurant which I knew was legit because we were the only Caucasians in there. Then we went back to Erins to enjoy her birthday cake…… which means I did not tell you about going out for Erins birthday. Paul had bought her a cake with a dinosaur on the top, a very thick, solid sugar dinosaur. We ate cake, watched tv and I went home out of it, good times were had by all.

For Erin’s birthday I went out with her friends in London. Met some cool people, got in a few scraps, and spent the night on the street. Just kidding mom, Erin’s friends are pretty dull. But in all of my adventures, going out is only half the fun. I left the party people at 2:30am and began to make my way toward where I thought they told me to go, I’m still not sure if I set out the right way but anyways. After a half hour of walking… no, probably a bit longer, I found the bus which would take me home. The night buses are different routes and different schedules so I couldn’t just get back the way I came, and the trains and tube shut down at 12am or so. So I find this bus which is headed to Crystal Palace; Crystal Palace football stadium is right by my house. When the bus makes its final stop I realise I have no idea where we are as I have not noticed anything familiar along the way. I get off, because I have to, leaving the comatose chap in the front to stay at the bus corral. Mind you I did call out to him from a safe distance, not knowing who he was or what he was capable of I wasn’t sure if I wanted to wake him up, nor what he was capable of. I told the bus driver but he knew, from there I travelled on foot, in prayer, in a direction I thought made the most sense based on the bus stop map. After 5 minutes or so I am approached by a guy with a beer in his hand who is crossing over from the other side of the road. I’m a little uncomfortable about the engagement but I don’t have a whole lot of choice in the matter, and running for it does not make much sense just yet. He asks me for a smoke, which I don’t have. Then I ask him the location of Crystal Palace Football pitch, to which he replies in some middle-eastern, British accent, “Wow, it’s that way (from which I came) but you can’t get there on foot, pffff, it’s way too far.” I thank him and begin to walk, occasionally jogging. Nothing is looking familiar, and I still don’t know if I’m going the right way because I had hit a three pronged fork in the road. After 20 minutes or so I flag down a cab who as it turns out is not from the area but agrees to help me in my search. £11 later I am home as the cabbie had a pretty good idea of where to go. As the birds begin to sing at 5:30am I enjoy a bowl of Shreddies and retire for the night, safe and sound in my bed.

Jesus This and Jesus That

Did I tell you about going to spend a day with Mrs. Henderson? Well there’s not a lot to say other than, it was a lovely day. She is the Mother of Matsy, and they, along with Mr. H, Attend my church. I went over to spend the day with her, i.e. use their free internet, and we had some good talks about God. She lent me a book called “23 Minutes in Hell” Which I recommend if you are either into theology, interested in the supernatural, or find yourself lacking interest in eternal damnation. I’ll give you a peek. The book is about one mans account of how one night God sent him to Hell for 23 minutes. The first 40 pages or so are a detailed account of his experience and a bit of biography, which gives the reading an understanding of where this logical thinking, well organized, none charismatic individual is coming from. The best part is after the description when he says. “You may not believe me, if I were you I would be very sceptical too, but that doesn’t matter.” The next 100 pages are all based on biblical references as he makes the point of highlighting what the Bible has to say, even if you don’t believe him. It’s a good read, well done, give her a look.

That night I stayed for a lovely dinner with Mrs. H, Matsy and Alex. Free food tastes so good. Although some of you are thinking how much you appreciate a meal after you know the time it took you to prepare it. Much like how I enjoyed the berry’s I picked in my back yard. Food is good, Amen.

Ecclesiastes 3:14 Is the 3^rd law of thermodynamics is it not?

Ecclesiastes 8: 5-6 There is a proper time for everything.

Ecclesiastes 8:1617 man cannot discover the work which has been done under the sun.

I flick back through the pages of my journal of July’s events and find words like sickness, anxiety, home sick, glory, faith, and independence. It is not always easy to determine what hurts and troubles we build for ourselves and those we have no choice in, but maintaining focus and not giving up are cliché words I have a hard time avoiding.

Football, Fish and Chips, and Double decker buses

I’m told I will not be able to escape this country without choosing a football club as my own. One of my flat mates is a Liverpool supporter and the other is…. I can’t remember, but I think it’s East London or something like that. I’ve enjoyed watching football on tv, however I have never known who to chair for as I had no reason to choose; often I would just end up chairing for the team who was loosing, you know, being meek and all. Fost has been a Manchester United fan so I hear this and that about them, and we always seem to be Man U when we play video games so I’ve gotten to take some interest in them. That and it upsets my flat mates who are both die-hard.

I’ve been doing a lot of reading and writing since I’ve been here, and the lack of screens to turn on has meant I get to sleep at a better hour. You know all those things people tell you about how your life will be if you get on a proper sleeping schedule? Well, they are true. I have energy all day because I go to sleep around 11pm, and if I go after 1am my body knows it the next day. Last night I went to sleep at 1:30am and had a good sleep in, but I was dragged out because I had been on the computer for about 2 hours, here typing out my blog. If you don’t know what I’m talking about you should ask Pete Laing who told me that steering at a screen before you go to sleep upsets the natural course of your brains shutting-down-process, or something like that. So this one night I’m writing and reading and doing some prayer too and I get a hankerin for a walk outside, so I go for a walk at around 10:30pm and after about 5 minutes I run into Malcolm my flat mate. He’s on his way back from the pub and asks me if I want to go for I drink. I tell him I don’t drink but I’ll go along, so he buys me a coke and orders a beer for himself. But when he orders the bartender points over to his right and says, “You have a beer sitting right theyr”. Sure enough there is a glass ¾ full which Malcolm had not been able to finish some 5 minutes past when he had first decided to leave the pub. We sat and chatted a bit, watching a bit of telly before making our way home. The walk was hilarious as Malcolm was telling funny stories and analogies of his weeks events at work. On the way home we stopped in for some fish and chips, however I was too full to eat any because I had eaten shortly before I set out. Malcolm had a fish and chips which was cooked in one long piece about a foot long at least, and three inches across. The fish stays in such a long piece because it is deep fried with the skin still on one side, but this means you are eating a skin that is a bit slimy and not crispy like its illustrious cousin, the pan fried. When we got home Peter was still up so we chatted in the kitchen and had a few laughs. Malcolm ate his fish and chips with a punkin pie (I think that’s how it’s spelled) on top, which is much like the meat pies of Sweeny Todd. I had to enquire about this habit and Malcolm replied with, “This is why I’m strait Cockney”. What else has happened?..... I’m starting to forget what I’ve told and what I haven’t, which is why it is important that I get up to date.

This was on my usb drive so I thought I'd throw it up there. Double nose, no pose. First snow fall all The Lump back home. We really shouldn't have been up there with all those rocks, at least that is what my knee tells me. I Love My City St. John's after the first snow fall Snails over here are massive. They are sure to give grandmom a run for her money. Sorry, I thought I had rotated these before I saved them to drive Westminster Abbey Some birds out on a rock I thought this tree looked cool the way its trunk is compressed National Art Gallery Trafalgar Square Preachers On The Monument Rickey Scanes In Effect This is the tribute to Asland A Piece of a Roman statue, of the Palioorthic Erra, some 18.27436164 Billion Years Ago. Egyptian Wall/Door thing Description of above Walt Disney, awaiting revitalization This is an ancient relic from Mr. Dress-Up. I was told be a man in a hat and pants that the literal translation of the engraved text is Ta-wit Ta woo, Ta-wit Ta woo I thought this was funny. The stone told the history of Egyptian Lore, but they could not translate it all due to the damage you see, ie: that square and those lines out from it are not supposed to be there. Whoever found it in later years had been using it as a mill stone. These are the new condows going up on water street east, just past the war memorial. I tell lies. Ever drink Baileys from a shoe before? It was actually as funny a moment as it looks. We had spent the previous week looking for an Old Greg costume for Paul and had bonded over our love for Old Greg and the Mighty Boosh. As you can see, on Erin's birthday she ordered a Bailey's, carelessly, and so I made her drink it from a shoe. if you don't know what I'm talking about then go to www.youtube.com and type in old greg. it's worth your time. This was on my drive so I thought I'd throw it up. Bowering Park, Dave and Bob