bloody sodding blighter

other good britishisms:
they're always calling me dear, love, love, poppy
as in, "all right, love?" "cuppa tea, love" "cup of sherry, dear?" (at 1pm).. less awesome britishism is 'sorry'. Every other freakin sentence, people say sorry. if you pass them and say 'scuse me' they say sorry. I stepped on a girls foot in the underground and she said sorry. ..so I fed her to the crocodile I conveniently had in my wallet.
On Tuesday I went to a pub that's been around since before the great fire of London, in 1666. Its on fleet street in central London, called ye old cheshire cheese. poosa recommended it, and me and my cuz Becky walked there from Trafalger square. which is going to look like the picture on the right in 50 years. We didn't climb on the lions at Nelson's column, but we were featured in about 45 other people's vacation pictures. Didn't go to Camden Market either, cos it burned down about 6 weeks ago. I only have very splotchy memories of Camden, having only really been to the head shop that sold magic mushrooms out of a deli case, but I know lots of people really loved it, and its a fucking tragedy that its all ashes now.
The next day Becky and I explored the Indian markets in Whitechapel, passed up the hash cafe and parted ways at the Mile End tube station. I headed East to Kensington to visit an old friend, Joe, at his work. I followed the directions he'd given me over the phone, from the tube station left to the med kitchen, down Evanston Place to Queen's Road. Then down to #41. Easy.
I felt awesome and in awe of the gorgeous buildings under a tumultuous grey sky, except when I got to #41, it was under construction. There were men in hard hats carrying sheetrock into the building and buzz saws screaming, and saw dust everywhere. And that was just the front steps. Bemused, I asked a man standing in the bed of a pick up truck if the building was all under construction. Affirmative. My heart did a little hiccup, then i asked if there were any architects around. A construction worker named Gianni guided me through a maze of scaffolding and cat walks, to the back of the long building, where a little office incongruously sat.
I love hugging people for the first time in 4 years! Joe is as awesome as always and currently designing an underground swimming pool. We stuck our heads out the window to look at the workers digging 50 feet below us, and giggled maniacally. I swear my life is a spy movie.
Sat outside a cafe and drank coffee and caught up for a couple hours. Last time I saw him was at an outdoor music festival in London, when I was 19. He's been in South Africa a lot recently, and is getting married in a few months.
After , I went to The Natural History Museum and looked at dead things. Like kangaroos and a civet. And climbed inside a huge fake human womb. Creepy but soothing.