The Adventures of Nic

Dead pigeons?

I keep seeing dead birds everywhere. I hope it's not bird flu and rather a side effect from the unnatural (but certainly welcome) UK 'heatwave'.

posted by Nic @ 11:17 PM 2 comments

2 weeks of sunshine...

...and I feel like I'm walking on air.

So much expectation. So much potential. I feel so alive!

Those summer clothes I never thought I'd wear in the UK? I've now worn everything THREE TIMES. And yes, I washed them in between. :p

posted by Nic @ 3:50 AM 0 comments

Tricked

When it comes to dating, I like to be totally in control. It's always my choice.

I just got tricked into a date with a rich older man. Cr@p.

posted by Nic @ 2:59 AM 2 comments

Fabulous quote:

"Being friends with the opposite sex is great, but most guy-girl friendships need to be clarified at some point. ...in every guy-girl non-dating relationship, one person or the other at some point wants the relationship to go further than just a friendship. Think about it, if it’s not you, it’s probably them."

From here.

posted by Nic @ 1:51 AM 0 comments

Of BBQs and Ice

It's been ~30 degrees for the last few days. No rain for an entire week. Wonderful! And it seems in this weather, the English go BBQ-crazy. I have been to three in the last week and am starting to turn into a burger myself.

In this hot weather, one also needs ice. When it's in a great big frozen block of it, inspired individuals decide that the best way to break it up into usable pieces is ... to throw it off the balcony.

Great in theory. Great in practice, if you get the angle just right and wrap it in 4 plastic bags so you can drink it once it's smashed. But when you don't throw it properly it and it just kind of skids across the courtyard... it makes sense that you would throw it down again, right?

Of course, this depends on having a person in the courtyard with the throwing ability to get it back UP to you on the 2nd floor balcony.

And if their throwing arm isn't too good, it's more than likely that they will actually throw a block of ice onto your neighbour's balcony. Smashing against the glass door.

Oops.

posted by Nic @ 8:38 PM 0 comments

Girly

It's hot in the city (almost 30!)... and I get to dress like a girl. Skirts and cute shirts and open-toe shoes and jewellery and ponytails and it's wonderful. This is one of the reasons I love summer. I can dress pretty instead of hiding under 5 layers in an an attempt to stay warm.

Last night I wore a tank top and tiny skirt that I've only worn once since I left Brisvegas. And boots. I LOVE that outfit. I feel tough, like I can kick things, and I danced all the way down the road to horse riding 'cause I felt ALIVE! Tiny, tough Nic. Who cartwheels.

Some people think short skirt+ankle boots = BAD but I love it. :) I make my own fashion statements and don't care what the world thinks.

posted by Nic @ 8:28 PM 1 comments

Corporate Nic

From the outside, I'm the girl that appears to have it all. Fabulous career, travel opportunities, lifestyle, family, looks and confidence. A girl for whom opportunities just seem to drop out of the sky.

In the last week, the Canadian Visa came through and now it seems London will too. They seem prepared to do almost anything to keep me on. I networked with the company VIPs and was treated as the 'golden child'.

In a world where everyone struggles for jobs, it's always been far too easy for me and I've never quite understood why. I don't even really LIKE what I do; I just happen to be good at it and it pays a lot of money. Yup, I've sold out my soul for $. (Well, £.)

I wonder when I'll be brave enough to change?

I am REALLY wanting a cat lately. Something to come home to and hug. Maybe I should buy a stuffed one. Shouldn't I be stronger than that?

posted by Nic @ 2:11 AM 1 comments

The Giant's Causeway

Dear everyone I know:

If I am ever proposed to, it has to happen at Fingal Head, northern NSW. It's Australia's version of the Giant's Causeway and it's just BEAUTIFUL. So, my dear friends who are reading this, remember this so you can tell the guy in question when he someday needs to know.

I love headlands. I love the ocean. Black rocks and crashing waves and the blue so deep it's almost black. When you stand upon the cliff edge and feel the roar of the icy wind. I spent hours hiking around Northern Ireland last weekend, from the sea to the glens (such beautiful forests with waterfalls!) and back to the cliffs again. It's one of the most beautiful countries I've seen in a while.

I had intended to spend some time in Belfast but it just couldn't compete with the headlands, beaches and ruined castles of the northern coast. Nature. REAL STUFF. Real air. It lets me breathe.

Manchester is killing me

posted by Nic @ 12:43 AM 0 comments

Yoho!

So I was a 'teensy' bit excited about the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Let's be honest here, I've had a love affair with pirates ever since The Secret of Monkey Island and its sequels; incredible adventure games that used up a lot of my free teenage hours. There was just something so magical about the quest to become a pirate, sailing between mystical islands, romance, danger, intrigue... and some of the funniest lines you'll ever hear. Elaine remains one of my heros and I was always a little in love with Guybrush Threepwood.

Flash forward to 2003 and hey! It's a Pirate movie! I knew I was going to love it even BEFORE the world discovered how good it was. With characters like Captain Jack and the delicious Orlando Bloom, not to mention the fiery Elizabeth, it was like STAR WARS for a new generation.
Which is why my friends and I had to celebrate the new film. Yes, there were costumes. Yes, there was a party. And then there was the movie itself. SO MUCH FUN! Especially when you're catching the tram through Manchester and people keep trying to figure out just why you and your band of friends are wearing eyepatches and carrying (plastic) cutlasses....

If anyone's hesitating about seeing 'Pirates', don't. It made me laugh and it's rare that a film does that for me. Yes, it was a bit dark in places, but how awesome to see a movie that's an adventure! With sparkling characters and humour! And the sea....

(It's no secret that I love the ocean.)

But that's a story for another time.

posted by Nic @ 12:42 AM 1 comments

Been huntin' hobbits

I'll confess. I thought I was over it. Friends of mine camped out for the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' premiere in London and yes, I was tempted (especially afterwards when I saw the photos of them with the stars).

Yet I'd done the 'mature' thing. Gone to work instead. Put that kind of fannish behaviour in my past.

Until last night, 10:30 pm, and a friend texted me to say she'd just seen Elijah Wood on Oxford Rd, which is literally 2 minutes from my apartment. (He was at the performance of his girlfriend's band.)

And there went my night. ;) Okay, we never actually found him, but it was FUN. Sure, I could've been sleeping. Sure, I knew there was little chance of seeing him (and even if we did, what were we going to do anyway?) But that wasn't the point. The point was doing something a 'bit different' just because I could.

posted by Nic @ 7:10 PM 0 comments

2 days of Summer

There's heat out there and I can hear 'IT' which is that low thrum of the planet earth. It's not something I can quite explain but it's a deep breath, a sound of... the alien beauty/rush/magnificence of life. Everything moves with perfect beauty.

I imagine I can hear the ocean in the distance but it's only the motorway.

posted by Nic @ 8:57 PM 0 comments