Life in Dulwich

2008-11-19T22:40:00.003Z

Watched Burn After Reading with my mate, Bert, tonight. I enjoyed it! But they were a bunch of the most awful people one might ever care to watch. A whole nest of self-centred, manipulative and yet strangely watchable people.

Very excited - Bert has tickets for Bill Bailey tomorrow and has asked me to go with him. I will be looking forward to it all day.

Busy busy weeks ahead, I'm out almost every night for two weeks catching up with friends or choir or something. I guess better busy than moping around at home...

2008-11-19T06:03:00.002Z

My niece, Curly, was six on Sunday. Big sis' family and I, without Larry, went to have a pub lunch at Curly's bequest. (Larry had gone Laser Questing at another birthday bash.) Then back to the new family pile for party preparations and frolics.

Big sis had made a porcupine shaped cake with much love, labour, marzipan and food colouring and it was most excellent in every way. Her hubby commented on its passing resemblance to Marty Feldman - not an easy feat in the arena of cake making.

I think fun was had by all the six or nearly six year old girls - well there was a lot of screaming. Although Curly had a bit of a panic before it started because the Happy Sixth B'day banner wasn't up yet when the guests started arriving. She hid behind the door all stressed like. Entertaining doesn't run in the genes of our family.

I brought the family the largest bottle of chilli oil seen to mankind as a sort of house-warming present which we duly ate with the party sausage rolls.

2008-11-16T09:39:00.002Z

Went to see Damon Albarn's Journey to the West at the O2 with my uni buddies and S. Haven't been to the Dome since it was the hub of entertainment that was the Millennium Dome.

It was heaving. Who would have thought so many people would schlep all the way to beyond the Isle of Dogs for a bit of light entertainment? I had no idea how much it had been transformed.

Leonard Cohen seemed to be a big hit with great crowds of people packing the restaurants and passageways pre-show. It's surprising there is a Gaucho Grill - all the other restaurants are more pack 'em in get them out quick. We had a disappointing meal at Water Margin, although at least they put a sprig of mint on the curry laksa.

As to the show - well, it was a spectacle. But that was about it. Didn't think much of the music which was neither tuneful nor experimental. The acrobatics were good and I am always impressed by people who can sit on their own heads, but the storytelling was poor, as was the characterisation. It was dull but visually fairly interesting.

The meal offer at the venue is a rip-off at GBP28. And the transport system is manifestly unable to cope with the great crowds of people leaving after the show.

And that's really all there is to say.

2008-10-17T21:35:00.002+01:00

What a busy week. Monday had our second choir practice which was fun. It's clear that many people have been in choirs before - everyone watches the MD and listens and can sing harmonies and everything. We'll be doing carol singing around Dulwich at Christmas which I'll love. When I was working at McKinsey last December I joined their carol singing thing and enjoyed it so much. Singing is definitely good for the soul.

Tuesday I had my last PT session at the gym and it was a corker. Quite sad because my trainer is a really good person and it's been fun but I'm sure I'll see her around and about. Wednesday went to see How to Lose Friends and Alienate People. It was okay - they'd obviously geared it into being a bit of a rom com. Simon Pegg is extremely likeable though and the young up-and-coming starlet in it is sickeningly gorgeous and young.

Yesterday I made use of my new found status as solo climber and went up the wall at the gym... literally. I only climbed for 45 mins but actually fell off the wall, my arms were so tired. It's such fun using the self-belaying device - you can just jump off willy nilly - it's like flying! There's a difficult bit which is my nemesis - it overhangs, so you have to kind of climb upside down and get over the sticky out bit on the wall. I was gratified that the bloke who was climbing at the same time couldn't do it either.

Glad to be home today - have something every night next week too. Phew...

2008-10-11T06:21:00.002+01:00

Watched Flamenco Flamen-ka last night, courtesy of my agent and good friend, R. As dance shows go, it was not bad, and the experience was greatly enhanced by the hunky, yet snake-hipped men, stamping their feet and brandishing daggers with wild abandon. Sadly, the one that caught my fancy was probably the least accomplished dancer, which dampened my enthusiasm for looking at him slightly. His shoulders seemed permanently around his ears and his hands were like little planks of wood, but he did have a passing resemblance to Hugh Jackman.

Like other Latin dance based theatre extravaganzas I've seen, they tried to incorporate some kind of dodgy storyline and then proceeded to sing in Spanish something not all together related and quite incomprehensible to about 80 percent of the audience. But the dancing was very good and the tango bits were sublime. I must take up tango again.

Today my best friend's baby sister gets married. When I first met her she was about ten. How time flies.

2008-10-09T16:18:00.001+01:00

Why people find it necessary to stand on the bottom deck of the bus, thereby precluding anyone else from getting past them to sit on the top deck of the bus where there is often a plethora of seats, is beyond me. Even worse, it stops some people from even getting on the bus at all because the driver won't open the doors.

And yet people do.

2008-10-08T23:31:00.004+01:00

Had a post birthday party on Saturday which was meant to be a picnic but the Indian summer I predicted didn't materialise. Cooked a big pot of noodles, lots of turmeric roast chicken, masquerading as Malaysian fried chicken and chilli clams. Big sis brought Indian sweets and samosas from Ambala and everyone else brought a lot of crisps, dip and chocolate. I no longer have to stock up for Christmas.

My friends, Eric and Ernie, made me one of the nicest presents I've ever had - a compilation of all the number one singles on my birthday from the year I was born. I am quite pleasantly chuffed to find that 'Those Were the Days' was number one on the day I was born. Now that's a mix tape and a half.

2008-10-08T22:39:00.005+01:00

We had our first rehearsal for the new funky Dulwich Choir on Monday. And good fun it was too. Somehow I've found myself amongst the sopranos for the first time in my life. Although I could give the tenors a good run for their money too. The music de jour is Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol, which I've heard but couldn't have named to save my life, and something musical-ish which I suspect was written by the MD. It was such fun - I haven't been in a choir for such a long time.

I also got signed off to climb on my own at the gym today. And I chested a high E Flat in my singing lesson. "Mini wave in celebration of me!", as Chandler would say.

And most importantly...

I've got broadband again, all wireless and everything. It was like I was blind and now I can see. Sigh.

This is a good week.

2008-10-06T18:24:00.002+01:00

Watched Tropic Thunder last night. It was really funny. I'm not a big Ben Stiller fan, although Dodgeball is pretty good. But this was really laugh out loud, non-stop guffaw funny - with a whole range of humour from toilet to wait-a-minute-I-have-to-think-about-that-for-a-second-oh-that's-quite-clever funny.

And much as I hate to say it, Tom Cruise was very good. Really funny. I didn't even recognise him till halfway through. There was no falling back on his I'm such a cocky, loud annoying git with crazed eyes acting mode.

I hope he doesn't build on it by doing some duff comedy like that de Niro/Crystal hitman/shrink film, the name of which escapes me.

No, got it - Analyse This.

2008-10-02T06:19:00.003+01:00

Just had my 40th birthday. It's sort of weird because I really don't feel forty - at most thirty but, really, more like 27 or 28.

Spent my birthday eve at the Inside Soap awards held at Gilgamesh in Camden on the last minute invitation of my university pal, L. It was most gratifying to find I could fit into the black cocktail dress BB bought me when we first started dating. I couldn't get into it at the time but now, hey presto, I've miraculously either worked out how to squeeze it on or I've lost a heck of a lot of weight. A combination of the two I think because I don't think I'm thinner now than I was then.

Anyway, I digress.

Suffice to say, as I'm really not much of a soap watcher, I knew nobody at all. Not one person. Shame Babs Windsor wasn't there because I would have recognised her - or at least some of the longer term Eastenders stalwarts. Didn't even know any of the Hollyoaks bods. Apparently Duncan from Blue was there but I think I would probably only recognise Anthony Costa - mainly from his appearance on Never Mind the Buzzcocks.

So, we entertained ourselves by making disparaging remarks about the drag act that followed the awards and lay in wait for the extremely good trays of food emerging from the kitchen.

There were bucketloads of soft shell crab, fresh Vietnamese rolls, duck spring rolls, prawn fritter things, mushroom and chicken dumplings and gyoza. I actually got stuffed on canapés and had to turn them away at the end - that's no mean feat. Then onto the chocolate fountain, which is actually a much more exciting idea than the reality - way too sweet and sickly. Ended up skewering all the fruit and eating it au naturel. As if that wasn't enough, little mango sorbet cones and lychee granitas followed to freshen the palate. This was washed down all the while with raspberry champagne cocktails, mojitos and other such concoctions. And it was all free! That's why D-list celebrities turn up to the opening of an envelope - who wouldn't for all that free food and drink?

Then, there was a goody bag at the end. It was a pretty good bag too. Beauty products, booze, snacks, Haribo, silver jewellery and Hollyoaks perfume. The world of soap summed up in a bag.

On birthday proper, had a karaoke party for a few select friends and family, chosen on the basis that they aren't diva singers and not likely to stand around secretly despising the ineptitude of all those trying to sing around them. Chose a slightly peculiar venue - the Bloomsbury Bowling Lanes, which has a slightly down-at-heel, grungy feel about it.

We had a blast! Well, I did. Once we got going, it was hard to stop and having booked 3 hours, I thought we would flag, but no, we squeezed every last minute out of it. We sang everything. Carpenters, Dolly Parton, Monty Python, Stevie Wonder, Mariah Carey, musicals, Christina Aguilera, 1980s stuff and the obligatory I Will Survive at the end. My throat hurts but it was worth it. I think it would be good to invest in a karaoke machine. And a soundproof room...

2008-09-29T09:26:00.003+01:00

Franklins' new farm shop has opened at last in the old tyre shop, opposite the Franklins restaurant. It's still new and sawdusty with a select display of goods. There are unusual species of fruit and veg, juices and sauces from small local producers, homemade sauces and meals, organic household products, freshly baked cakes and patisserie, local organic ales, big hunks of local cheeses and the like. A most tasty addition to East Dulwich.

A new bakery and teashop called Luca's opens a few doors down quite soon. The neighbourhood is on the up and up.

2008-09-27T10:01:00.004+01:00

Still no broadband. All due to the pig dog old provider who wouldn't provision the telephone line to my new provider. I have to wait until 8th October now. I hope they fold under the weight of the economic crisis - that's my modern day curse for you.

Went to see Emmanuel Gat at Sadlers Wells. Apparently an up and coming young contemporary choreographer and troupe from Israel. They could all definitely dance but I'm afraid dull was the order of the day. There was also far less musical accompaniment than I usually prefer in a dance offering. That's the problem with a low budget - sometimes you are pushed to finding new heights of creativity, other times it just looks like you couldn't afford music.

Have started climbing again at the gym. Need something else to do now that I can no longer afford personal training and they've cut another dance class, again. Or there's Budokan, which is the replacement class which seems to involve yoga and animal movements. Could be interesting or could be just like a session of Grotowski at drama school when you don't quite know what you're trying to achieve but attempt to look pained and full of angst anyway.

2008-09-14T23:47:00.002+01:00

I did my first ever treasure hunt today. It was Monopoly themed and I was invited along by my old university buddy, L, and his boyfriend. It was such fun!

I came equipped with two pens, a compass, a Maglite (in case we had to read something in a dark place), an A to Z, water, chocolate, an umbrella, a list of all the Monopoly properties and a notepad.

L and man turned up late (as usual) with no pens and a gammy leg.

We started down by the river and charged about looking for answers to clues and discovering lots of plaques and beautiful architectural detail, finding out lots about London that we didn't know and showing off about the stuff we did know. The city was beautiful today in the gorgeous sunshine and there was a lovely festive atmosphere due to all the concerts and processions and stuff that was going on. Even the feckless tourists were not a bother.

We were, of course, highly competitive and tried to look nonchalant whenever we spotted the answer to a clue.

And best of all...

...we won! We got back to the finish with six minutes to spare and wiped the floor with the opposition. Spent 30 mins gloating in the pub and then spent half of our winnings on a slap-up tapas meal.

A near perfect day.

2008-09-07T08:39:00.003+01:00

I forgot to add, I am without broadband for THREE WHOLE WEEKS. I might die. It is like living under a rock - bereft of my hotline to all the information I could ever wish to know (and much more that I couldn't care less to know). I am reduced to a paltry 56k dial-up connection. It's like the Stone Age I tell you.

2008-09-07T08:21:00.004+01:00

My CGI wizard friends and I finished the Polymath crossword in the Weekend FT for the first time! (Well, since I've started doing it with them). It's a most pleasurable ritual - Saturday afternoons in Franklins with the FT, good food, drink and company and a bit of confounding ungeneral knowledge to keep the old brain cells scraping along.

I have just heard about the Hadron particle accelerator and its potential ability to end life as we know it. Although I think the big sis did mention it a while back. I must have been living under a rock. Perhaps I should just crawl back under it.

2008-09-04T17:07:00.003+01:00

We climbed up here...

...and we didn't die. 800 metres above sea level. There was a secret lake high up in the hills which you could only see if you dragged yourself up there.

Snowdon was wild, wet and windy with a bit of sun when we arrived to lull us into a false sense of security. We were caught in a North Atlantic squall and I heard fighter jets flying overhead at five in the morning.

But it was a big adventure and we were fortified by bacon, sausage and fried egg sandwiches on good old white bread with lashings of ketchup, steaming plastic mugs of tea and chilli and spag bol. All worthy of a modern-day Enid Blyton novel.

Will we do it again? Damn straight.

On another note, I had an exciting e-mail telling me I was shortlisted for the Guardian Travel Writing competition but sadly it came to naught and I didn't even make the runners-up list. Ah well.

2008-08-27T20:42:00.002+01:00

Going camping on Snowdonia this weekend with the middle sis and family. Like mad people.

I have my sleeping bag and airbed which arrived courtesy of Amazon today. Also, my new rucksack and sleeping bag liner from the most excellent and reasonably priced Trespass, which I got at the weekend. Have also pulled out my skiwear which I bought to do an ad on a glacier many eons ago and haven't worn since - I expect it to be chilly and wet this weekend.

Still, it'll build character, if it doesn't kill me first.

2008-08-22T23:02:00.002+01:00

I actually heard someone on the bus own up to the fact that she thought Parisians were from Persia today. I would despair if it didn't make my brain want to explode.

2008-08-09T13:56:00.002+01:00

Hog roast! Now that's an exciting development in East Dulwich market on Northcross Road. There's a man with a stall and a whole sizzling roast pig covered in gorgeous herbs and spices. He slices it before your eyes and serves it with delicious apple sauce, green herby leaves and salty, crispy crackling in a fresh cushiony soft bun.

It was raining so I took my pig bun and sat at the bus stop to savour every little bit.

Ah, the life!

2008-08-07T23:30:00.003+01:00

Today I asked myself the question, 'What would I want to do if money was no object?'

I stopped in my tracks because I couldn't think what. Aside from the usual vague notions of giving some money to family and friends and some to charity, spending more time with family and friends, travelling, learning stuff and generally bumming around, I couldn't think what I really want to do - I mean to make me fulfilled. I guess when you're busy plodding through life, where money is most definitely the object, you forget to ask yourself - what do you WANT to do. I love acting and dancing, it's a release, it's stimulating etc but would it be enough to fulfil me if I didn't have to earn money? I'm not sure.

Anyway, that's my aim, to find out what I want to do...

...and try not to let money worries distract me from doing so.

2008-08-06T04:49:00.002+01:00

Back home for the past week. It's been very hard adjusting to being alone in the flat after nine years with someone. It isn't like we did anything particularly special together all the time but it was just nice to have the presence of another person around or knowing there was someone to share your thoughts with.

I had an EFT session with a nice local practitioner to help me release some of the negative emotions and crap I've been going through. I wasn't sure it was going to work but I do seem to be less weepy. Went through a couple of days of being mopey instead. I guess that's better, if not altogether that proactive. The good thing is I know a bit more about the technique so I can practice on myself when it all becomes a bit much.

Quite excited by the idea of a new choir possibly starting in East Dulwich. Another step to getting back into singing and stuff. If there are any prospective male singers out there, I believe they are short of tenors and basses, so get out there and sign up! Also, any budding musical directors I think would be greatly appreciated.

2008-07-29T12:49:00.002+01:00

Phew... well the weather cleared up and we went out in the slightly dull late afternoon air for a dip in the pool. Dad sat nearby for a spot of birdwatching and a snooze. The resort kindly brought out some curried vegetable samosas and feta and spinach samosas for a complimentary afternoon snack. Ah, the life!

Then back to the house for a massive tiramisu birthday cake and champagne. It turned out to be a very pleasant day after all.

However, that night big sis and I were plagued by a small fruit bat that kept hurling itself at our mosquito net all night. Both were too scared to go to the loo and were trapped until morning came.

Oh, and ma and pa's room flooded again...

2008-07-24T03:25:00.002+01:00

So. Several hours later the rain showed no signs abating, so big sis and I ventured out in the sheets of rain to seek out my aunts and uncle who were staying in the new (still being built) part of the resort. On the way we saw a poor fish, about the size of a large carrot, flopping about on the driveway trying to find a puddle to revive itself in. Big sis tried to pick it up but couldn't hack the squirming and I was equally pathetic, unable to hack either the squirming or the sliminess. Fortunately, it found its own way into a puddle where it sat sighing heavily through its gills.

Onward ho - through ankle deep water with some pathetic planks laid strategically in a manner so as to sink as soon as we stepped onto them. Well, sodden and bedraggled, we saw Australian aunt in the distance about to embark on the trek in the opposite direction. Finally made it there and sheltered for a bit before we all made the trip back to our villa.

And that was our first morning. Lunchtime, torrential rain and nowhere to go.

2008-07-22T15:05:00.002+01:00

Langkawi was eventful - no other word for it.

Arrived late on Saturday at the resort to find the villa we were staying in, which was a century-old restored Malay kampung house on stilts, had incredibly vertiginous stairs to the main bedroom and living area and even more vertiginous stairs leading down to the master bathroom. So, big sis and I swapped rooms with the parents so they wouldn't have to risk life and limb climbing up and down in the dark during the night, and the parents had the ground level living area instead. Less glamorous but so much more practical.

On Sunday, we woke up to torrential rain - the heaviest monsoon rains they've had all season. Curly and Larry braved the rains to hot foot over from their villa to ours. Curly was wearing her nightie á la all the best dressed people in China (or so I'm led to believe by ChinesePod). Some time during the morning we decided to play Hide and Seek with them. Big sis and I proceeded down the stairs to the lower part of the house where my parents were staying to find ... not the girls but a river of water flowing from the bathroom into my parents' bedroom. Aaaaaarrrrrghhhh! The drains were blocked and the girls were blissfully hiding, oblivious to the water about to drown my mother's suitcase and ruin the carefully woven ikat rug artfully placed on the floor by the hotel.

So, rapidly adorning appropriate attire i.e. not my PJs, and a pair of waterproof flip-flops, I plunged out into the storm in search of assistance (no phones in the rooms). In typical understated English fashion, I spoke to the on-duty manager thus, 'Sorry to trouble you, but we have a bit of a flood in Cahaya (our villa). Could someone possibly come out and have a look?', when I should have been going, 'FLOOD, FLOOD! Aaargh!'

Anyway, they came, looked, fiddled around with the drains outside, mopped endlessly (a bit like Sisyphus) until the rain stopped, disinfected and left.

So that was our morning but there was so much more to come...

To be continued (as they say in all the best serials - or in any old serial)

2008-07-19T01:59:00.002+01:00

Bro-in-law: Curly, you've got dhal in your hair. You'll have to tie it up if you're going to get food in it.

A few seconds later.

Bro-in-law: Curly, what are you doing? Stop putting roti canai on your head.

Curly: But I'm trying to mop up the dhal.

Middle sis: It makes sense...

General merriment all round.

2008-07-19T01:56:00.002+01:00

Today I did the Lotus position for the first time in about 10 years. It may not seem like much but, man, I felt elated. My ankles hurt, I held it for about 2 seconds but I did it. And I did it again later in the day. It’s the little things...

The movie du jour was Red Cliff Pt 1, John Woo’s historical epic. My favourite Chinese actor, Tony Leung Chiu Wai, was in it playing Viceroy Zhou. There was a lot of fighting and blood and gore (unsurprisingly for John Woo). But there was also great characterisation, a feisty but unannoying princess, some nice dialogue and a plot that was simple but you can just see is going to turn into great tragedy and betrayal in Pt 2. And it sure was epic. Can’t wait to see the next instalment.

Did a yoga and upper body workout today, giving my poor calves some respite. Then swimming with sister and family at the Lake Club. I did my auntily duty by reviving the old game of Marco Polo and handing it down a generation. Also, showed off with a graceful (in my head) exhibition of diving, somersaulting and standing on my hands in the pool. For good form, did a couple of laps and then between us tried to drown my youngest niece in the cause of teaching her how to swim. Whilst I am gratified that I can still wear my swimming gear from when I was sixteen, I am not so happy to find that it is slowly disintegrating from the chlorine abuse over the years. A new outfit is in order I feel.

Today’s eating was roti canai (for the 3rd time this trip), chow kuay teow, grilled skate, rojak, nasi kandar, Ipoh fish ball soup, clams with chilli and garlic washed down with the company of my lovely family.

Tomorrow, off to a sunshiny beach paradise, for three days, staying in lovingly restored Malay kampung houses to celebrate my Dad's 70th birthday.

2008-07-18T06:49:00.000+01:00

I saw a firefly tonight for the first time in my life. I was outside locking the gate when I saw a tiny pinprick of light floating around over the tops of the trees in the garden. It made me smile.

We were in Esquire Kitchen again today partaking of their set lunch. RM55 for 4 dishes which we topped up with a tofu dish for RM9 and flower buns and rice. We had cashew nut chicken with dried chillies, French beans with minced pork and dried prawns, double cooked pork with chilli and fermented yellow beans and a seafood casserole brimming with exciting things like sea cucumber and abalone, as well as prawns and octopus and asparagus. A feast for five for the princely sum of about RM90 all in.

In the afternoon we went to watch Wanted which was a rollicking shootout fest with lots of blood and car chases and destruction on train action thrown in. It was full of plot potholes and practically requires you to suspend any semblance of belief whatsoever but was still excellent fun with plenty of eye candy for all and coolness in spades. Makes you want to run out and be a super secret assassin or at least a shady double agent type. But I’ll settle for renewed impetus to workout more and dressing like Angelina Jolie in an effort to look super cool.

After that it was home to homemade Suzhou pork jiaoji courtesy of my aunt who has come to visit.

Oh – I found the watch I want online. It’s a lovely 50s styled watch in matt silver steel with a black leather strap. I will have to wait till I’m back in the UK to buy it though, but I’m glad I’ve found it.

2008-07-17T02:43:00.002+01:00

02:00 am

I am awake again just two hours after falling asleep – a combination of jet lag (no doubt) and sadness. Fortunately, although the mosquitoes have been biting, I don’t seem to feel the itch so badly. It’s also pleasantly cool and so the heat hasn’t been bothering me.

It’s the second night in a row without sleep, probably getting six hours sleep in total a day including naps. Good thing I’m on holiday.

We went to Esquire Kitchen yesterday, purveyor of Shanghainese cuisine and excellent dumplings. Lovely preserved vegetable and pork noodle soup and crisp wor dip with all the trimmings. We’ll be back for the flower buns, cashew nut chicken and pork belly stew another day. Sadly, I’m still not eating so much but I guess that will come in time.

My calves are in agony. Did a forty-five minute workout yesterday and have found that a hard terrazzo floor (even with a thin coating of carpet) does not make a satisfactory cushion for one’s legs. I shall have to do yoga and strengthen my arms tomorrow instead.

Spent much of today’s shopping trip trying to choose a watch. The watch BB gave me many years ago fell off early this year because the catch broke and I lost it. Now we’ve split up, it’s very difficult to find another watch to replace it. I saw the same watch in a couple of shops and it was hard not to want to go for the same one again. But I need to get away from it, I think.

Choosing a watch is a difficult thing. As bro-in-law says – a watch says a lot about a person and you have it for such a very long time. There was a very nice Fossil watch but perhaps a bit dressy and will probably date. It was similar to my original watch but with wood detailing on the strap. Sounds tacky, I know, but actually looks very nice. Or I could steer away from the contemporary styling altogether and go for something more classic. The bro-in-law pointed out a couple of nice watches – classic round face with numbers around the face and black leather straps. I liked the Victorinox one, but now I quite like the idea of a 1950s style, square faced watch (well with slightly rounded sides) and squarish 50s numbers in a matt steel finish. I think I might wait until I find one that I really like – by which time I might have saved up enough to buy it, whatever price it is.

I wish I hadn’t lost my watch so I wouldn’t have to think about it.
Last night, when I woke up at 1am I made lists. A list so I wouldn’t keep running through my head why I am sad and a list to help me remember what might make me happy. The sad one went on for pages but now I don’t have to run the items on it through my mind anymore.

The happy one may be full of pipe dreams and things that may never happen but it gives me something to aim for and aspire to:

1. I want to travel. China (for my heritage), West Coast of the US (I like the idea of San Francisco and what kind of actress would I be if I never went to Hollywood all my life), hiking in Mount Rushmore Park (because you learn that it’s there when you’re little but, really, it must be spectacular to look at – plus the scenery looked amazing in a film I saw on the plane), Colorado(for my friend Noriko and to go skiing), Australia (for my relatives), bits of Europe I haven’t seen in a while or that I’ve never seen, somewhere spectacularly expensive and beautiful in the Indian Ocean (just so I can experience it in my lifetime).
2. I want to master Mandarin and German – and now I’ve got plenty of time to do it.
3. I want to finish writing my book. I’ve started and now, no matter what, I’ve got to write a bit a day – even if it’s just plot outline or a scene or two or a bit of characterisation.
4. I want to act more.
5. I want to sing more.
6. I want to play the piano more and learn the violin properly.
7. All made possible by earning enough money to retire by the time I am forty-five.
8. I want to build my beautiful dream house to live in with the babies and to call my own.
9. Go hiking – a lot.

We went to see Kung Fu Panda. I loved it. From the moment the film opened it was happy, funny, sweet, feel-good and all the characters were great – even the baddies and the serious ones (well Angelina Jolie’s character was a bit bleh to begin with but loosened up). The panda stayed true to his character, even after he’d trained and become Kung Fu Panda. The wise old sifu was funny and wise and sweet and the scene when he left was beautiful and poetic. He also said something which I’ve heard before and is a typical monkish thing to say – and, yes, is probably corny – but it would probably do me good to remember:

“Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift which is why it is called the present.”

I loved it from beginning to end and will be getting it on DVD with all the extras as soon as it comes out.

2008-07-15T13:49:00.002+01:00

Just about over the jet lag now. It's been pretty rainy in KL but cool, which is nice.

So far we have managed to fit in crabs cooked Singapore chilli style and Kam Heong style, Kong Fu Chow Mai Fun (twice), Fukien mein, ham choi tau foo tong, roti canai, thosai, tenggiri and fried chicken with dhal, fish curry and coconut chutney, curry mee, Penang lobak, Penang rojak and fruit juices of all kinds. We are replete and planning our meals for the days to come.

The pa has intimated that he would like a car for his birthday. While we would be happy to oblige I feel that none of us can quite stretch to chipping in for one right now. Still, at least he is open to the idea of changing their car which scrapes the ground going over a bump every time there are more than 3 small children in the back seat.

We went to see Journey to the Centre of the Earth 3D version today. It was not bad at all - good family entertainment. It was pretty frightening in parts too. The cinema was freezing. Good thing I had bought lots of tops just before to use as cosy layers.

The Megamall is in the midst of a Megasale which is all good. I shall be back to purchase more clothes, a suitcase, flip-flops and a watch.

I valiantly did 45 mins of aerobic, endurance and weight training this morning and then felt slightly faint, but soon fortified myself with roti canai. I think I shall have to do a lot of running on the beach.

2008-07-12T21:13:00.002+01:00

I am back in the bosom of my family in Malaysia for a couple of weeks. After the events of the past month which have uprooted my life completely and cast me into turmoil, I am so happy to have my home and family around me now.

I have left the flat uncharacteristically tidy for my return. And my usually tidy mind now needs to be calmed, composed and I need to rebuild my life and my reasons for living.

The flight home was via Dubai with a three hour transit. It wasn't as bad a trip as I remember it from doing it in 2001. Dubai Airport hasn't changed much, as far as I can see, but it was much busier than before. The shopping mall sells expensive stuff but it just looks like some tacky bazaar. The airport is under renovation so we parked up somewhere that felt like it was in another country or something. It took the bus almost half an hour to get us to the terminal.

Anyway, we landed late in Dubai, so the turnaround was quite quick and it was good to stretch the legs. Looked for a duty-free watch to replace my lost one but, honestly, they were all horrible. Really shiny and covered in tacky gold, diamond stuff.

The food on Emirates was not bad. The chicken curry biriani was tasty and there was lots of green stuff and fruit. The breakfast fried noodles are to be steered clear of - they were gloopy and covered in some kind of radioactive sweet and sour sauce goop.

First meal in Malaysia:
Crispy garoupa in soya sauce (Yau Jam Sek Pan)(the Lee family fish of choice)
Silky aubergine with dried prawns
Spinach soup
Gold coin tofu with crab sauce and black vinegar
Deep fried salt fish
Rice
Barley water
Red hot chillies and little killer green ones

All for the princely sum of RM$58.60 (about £9.15) for four people.

Welcome home me!

2008-07-12T21:07:00.002+01:00

I have found an excellent singing teacher in East Dulwich. Having given up the whole singing lark, the trauma when auditioning and the general unpleasant sweatiness that accompanied the whole singing in front of people thing, I finally remembered after 10 years that I actually enjoy singing, even if no-one else likes listening to it.

So, I've started singing lessons again. Just for fun, for my own pleasure and to preclude any feelings of abject terror if forced to sing at the odd casting or two.

With trusty Google as my tool, I found a few singing teachers in East Dulwich who wouldn't break the old bank and took the plunge.

Well, what luck....

As it happens my teacher is really good. He is thorough, has great musicality, understands technique, expression etc but, most of all, he inspires confidence in his pupils. I don't feel like a putz when I am singing and I don't forget to breathe or feel my throat seize up like I've gone into anaphylactic shock. And that is the best quality of all.

2008-06-22T22:33:00.002+01:00

Haven't written in a while. Bad things happening in life.

Today was a good day though. Spent the day with my big sis and family, generally pottering about, having a Sunday roast, strolled to the pub for an aperitif and then went to purchase all the media items I could possibly desire from PC World at Merton. It seems that the world shops online and the stores are just now giant showrooms. It was almost impossible to find anyone to help us at all. There were 3 staff operating in this massive store. Anyway, when we finally got someone to help after mooching about after them and looking pathetic he was quite helpful.

I got a good fast CPU, a 22" monitor that will double as my TV, surround sound speakers, a printer and other bits and bobs.

With all this at my disposal, I can hold my head up high in the world of fast-paced internet technology.

2008-05-20T08:55:00.003+01:00

Some pig dog stole my trainers from the gym. I left them there by accident and went back the next day and they were gone. How desperate must you be to want to wear someone else's skanky trainers?

Met up with some of the old Saigon bunch after not seeing most of them for about 12 years. It seems like another world. Everyone looked happy and healthy so that was good but they were loud. Acting people are just plain loud or excruciatingly introverted and trying not to be. I fall in the latter category.

Went to Alan Yau's new venture twice last week - the long awaited Cha Cha Moon. I'm sure it was going to be a Szechuan restaurant originally but now it's a Chinese noodle bar type place.

The decor falls between Wagamama and Busaba Eathai - long wooden benches but darker, more subdued lighting. The venue feels subterranean although it's not and the cooling system, which lets out a menacing hiss every now and then, kinda makes you feel like you're in a gas chamber - not so conducive to a casual meal out.

The menu is short at the moment and the prices are low for a few weeks - £3.50 for all food dishes. I'm sure they'll tinker with the menu as they go along. Noodle dishes hail from everywhere which hasn't been covered by Waga and Busaba - so China, HK, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore - not Vietnam. Zhajiang mian was an interesting inclusion and is pretty tasty, although not a patch on good old Esquire Kitchen's version in Malaysia - I've never had a proper Shanghainese version, so can't comment there. It came with a small bowl of soup which was a nice touch and an extraneous dish of chill oil - I like my food spicy but that was one step too spicy. Chow kuay teow was decent with pieces of lap cheong (Chinese salami they call it)and fishcake but not the clams that were advertised in the menu. Guo tie were juicy and flavourful though a trifle chunky, lobak ko tasted okay but a bit squidgy and the Chinese flowering chives were a little old but tasty and extremely garlicky.

The shibuya lychee martini cocktail thingy is a must. Very refreshing.

Portions were small the first time I went but were bigger the second time. I kind of wish they would keep the portions and prices small, then you can try a whole lot more stuff.

Will go again in a few months to see how it develops.

Oh - must mention the queues. I went on the first night and got in fine. Second time a few days days later, there was a massivo queue out the door. If you just want to eat and not socialise, go on your own and you'll be seated straight away (pretty much).

2008-05-04T19:38:00.002+01:00

I have a goopy cough and cold. Why does it always happen on long weekends?

London is, however, pleasantly quiet. Drove over to the middle sis abode and there was hardly any traffic. It made the roadworks everywhere practically bearable.

I was just thinking on the bus the other day that it must be quite nice being a bus driver in London at the moment. They don't have to stop at any bus stops due to them all being Out of Use due to the roadworks that have sprung up everywhere. Our bus stop is out of service indefinitely even though there are no roadworks around it for at least 30 yards.

I really wish I would win the lottery....

2008-04-18T08:52:00.002+01:00

I now have two good reasons for having put on weight in my later years.

1. I don't shiver so much when it's cold.

2. I had an audition yesterday in which we had to play a game where whilst reading the script, I had to hold onto the other actor while she tried to get away simultaneously. The actress I was working with was insane and hadn't seemed to grasp the idea that when acting, you should try to avoid killing your fellow actors by generally kicking, punching or bashing them on the head in an effort to fulfil your objective of getting away. So I used my superior weight to sit on her...

2008-04-15T23:26:00.002+01:00

The world's local bank sucks.

I had to get a bank letter stamped today so I could open our new business mobile phone account. Just to check, I phoned my branch which is in Canary Wharf to check if I could take the letter into any branch to get it stamped. They said any branch would do it but if there were any problems, I could take it to them.

So, I went to the Covent Garden branch which is the nearest to the office. They said they were no longer authorised to stamp documents but I could get it stamped at the Oxford Circus branch. 'Is that the closest branch that will do it?' I asked. 'I don't know', was the reply, 'but they'll definitely do it'.

So off I traipse to Oxford Circus to find the branch is closed for refurbishment until the end of August.

Okay....

Then, I call telephone banking to ask them where the next nearest branch is where I can get it stamped. The guy pulls up a list of branches. Are you near Edgware Road? No. London Road? No. He says that he has a list of London branches but can't tell me which is near me. I say that I know where the nearby London branches are but I need to know which will stamp my letter. He asks which is the next nearest to me. Regent Street say I. He puts me on hold so he can call the branch.

5 minutes later I decide it would probably be quicker to walk to Regent Street. He finally gets back to me just as I reach the Regent Street branch. Sorry, I can't get through. Never mind, I'm outside there now, I say and politely hang up as I have little time for his apologies.

Regent Street branch says that company policy is that they no longer stamp letters. Is there anywhere else that will do it, I say. No - no branches are supposed to do it.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!!!

I stay to see a customer relationship manager to see what else I can do, even though they tell me I have a 22-30 minute wait. I've come so far, 22-30 minutes means nothing to me. I could do with the rest.

The customer relationship manager tells me the same thing. I have a rant and then phone the telephone provider. They tell me that they checked with their head office and because I had provided them with all the other paperwork so efficiently, the requirement to have a stamped letter has been waived.

At that point, if I had had a gun I might have shot myself. Or possibly everyone else.

2008-04-14T19:25:00.002+01:00

I had a captive audience of five to nine year old boys on the bus today. I was playing BrickBreaker on my BlackBerry and the boy next to me exclaimed, "Oh my gosh! She's got a game that my Dad has on his phone!" At this, about five other boys crowded around trying to see.

From thence on the first little boy kept advising me to catch things, punctuated by "Oh my gosh! My dad has reached that level!", "Oh my gosh! My dad hasn't reached that level!", "Oh my gosh, she's good!"

One of the mothers commented that if she had been on the bus experiencing these children, she probably wouldn't have had any. I didn't feel I could agree without offending her.

The smallest one must have been going through his 'just discovered his mouth' phase. He tried to eat one of the other one's shoes, some old chewing gum off the floor and my bag. It was very funny.

2008-04-13T22:55:00.002+01:00

I'm being coerced to write my blog.

So....

1. Went to New York ages ago. Ate in very good restaurant and so-so restaurant. I'm halfway through writing about very good one but we had the 10 course tasting menu, so I'm bracing myself - although BB says I don't need to write about every course.

The so-so restaurant was okay but didn't leap out at us and the waitress lied to my friend, P, who wanted their special churro-type dessert and was told it was sold out and then we blatantly saw the table next to us get four portions of it after we'd finished and paid the bill.

Our hotel, The Dylan, was not bad, cheap for New York and ideally placed for Midtown (right by Grand Central Station and 5th Avenue). It was also near an authentic diner which wasn't horribly touristy and pricey. The diner was sort of nearer the W Hotel around the corner on 7th I think. They were friendly, service was great and cheap, cheap, cheap. Apparently the diners are dying out due to rising rents. I hope ours is still there when we go back because it was much better than Pershing Square at Grand Central.

2. I've started in my new job. We're in lovely offices just off the Strand, near Chinatown, Covent Garden, my gym and cuts about 1/2 hour off my commute each way. Hurrah!

3. I have sciatica, tendonitis in both ankles, a dodgy knee, a bit of arthiritis in my big toe and very tight calf muscles. This could be because I have been to the dance class 5 times a week for the last 3 weeks. I think I have to swim all next week to let my legs rest a bit.

4. I listened to ChinesePod for 7 hours everyday for the last month before we got into our new offices. My Mandarin, I think, is better as a result. I wish I could listen to ChinesePod all day in the office.

5. Eek, I forgot - I have an audition tomorrow and I haven't got my outfit sorted out and it's nearly midnight.

6. We had Polish food for lunch today. I like beef stroganoff and pancakes.

7. We went to the China Now! exhibition at the V&A. I bought BB a soft toy AK-47 in camouflage fabric. He is now trying on all his army gear. I got a mug.

8. We ate at the restaurant in Whiteleys, which I've meant to try for ages. It was so-so. Chicken was dry apparently. The starters were good though.

9. Black Cherry, our local favourite haunt, does fantastic specials at the weekend. I've had the fish and chips, skate wing with capers and black pudding with poached egg. All good.

10. All the Chinese delivery places around East Dulwich seem to be closed on Sundays. I phoned 5 before we found one that was open. Obviously they make a good living from the good burghers of East Dulwich.

11. We ate minced pork that was about 10 days old from the local butcher which always has long queues outside it. It was perfectly good and didn't smell bad or release a lot of water. That is why there are long queues outside it all the time.

And that's all I can remember from the last month. Oh - I've played over 1000 games of Scrabulous on Facebook. That's how sad I am....

I was champion of the league I'm in in our first tournament though!

2008-02-29T21:29:00.003Z

Why is it beyond the ken of at least 50% of TripAdvisor contributors - and I have no doubt more, as I'm being kind - to spell the word 'definitely'?

I know it's defenetly irrational but I definately find it hard to trust a person who can't even get a simple thing like that right. Tscheh!

2008-02-29T18:24:00.003Z

I've long been aware of Phat Phuc, the Vietnamese noodle bar just off the Kings Road, near Chelsea Farmers Market. However, I'd never been there because it's not in my usual hunting grounds and the name kinda put me off as I thought it was a bit gimmicky.

Well, recently, I finally went there as I was working in the vicinity and felt like trying something new (having been to the Chinese Canteen at South Ken station about a billion times).

What a revelation! It's great! Far from serving up greasy fried bog standard pseudo Oriental fare, the noodle soup or pho (for that's all I've tried)was fresh, fresh, fresh and tasty. The stall is a charming affair, located in a courtyard down some stairs off Sydney Street. Apparently shipped in from Vietnam by the owner, it was a little corner of Asia. The staff are smiling and amenable, allowing you to choose whether you prefer meat or vegetable stock and giving you the option of adding as much or as little chilli as you like to the dish. The day I went, they were out of change and were offering £1.50 off the £6.50 price tag. I had the right change so gave them lots of change but that is definitely the way to do business.

They only have outside seating, so best to go on a sunny day, or they do takeaway.

I will be back.

2008-02-16T20:45:00.002Z

Went to a Cats dance workshop at Push Studios in Dulwich today. It was great fun and we all held our own, I thought. Well, I didn't drop down dead which is a big plus.

We had brunch at our age old favourite, Black Cherry. They are having problems obtaining planning permission to extend at the back, which means they'll have to close as they don't have enough space to keep going. Oh no! Where will we go for brunch? If there's anyone local who would like to keep the Black Cherry going, you can lobby Southwark councillors (i.e. sign a petition) here.

There's a great painting of a gun-toting panda in the window of Mrs Robinson, a local gifty/furniture shop. I am quite tempted to go buy...

2008-02-10T22:59:00.001Z

I have had toothache for some several days now and it has been making me very disgruntled. It's going away now and I'm jolly glad.

Went down the road to the newly reopened Lane caff. Had their Medium breakfast with sausage, egg, beans, fried slice and some bubble, instead of bacon. All downed with a strong cup of tea and orange juice from a carton. Yummmmy!

Watching the BAFTAs and feeling about as un-actressy as I have felt in a long time.

Tore a ligament in my left calf about a week ago. Fortunately, it seems to have been healing quite nicely, with the aid of lots of glucosamine, chondroitin and arnica rubs.

I can't believe I only have 9 more days working with my boss of five years. It's quite sad but exciting to be moving to pastures new. Problem is, I don't know what to give her for having me work for her all these years, despite all the running off to act and such shenanigans.

2008-01-31T14:53:00.002Z

Vauxhall station is becoming altogether more civilised by the week. Not only is there Wagner piped through the tube station to calm the ragged nerves of the average London commuter, but while driving through the tunnel that leads to the bus station, I noticed someone has made big paper cranes (someone took a picture of them here) and hung them from the roof of the tunnel, which is quite soothing when you're on the top deck of a double decker bus.

I don't think it's an art installation or anything. I like to think someone just thought it would be nice.

2008-01-15T21:59:00.000Z

I have, stupidly, just realised that the Dashboard link brings you to the home page for Blogger. All this time, I've had to find the home page by some long convoluted route. Sometimes my brain feels very small.

I was recognised in the checkout queue in Somerfield at the weekend.

A large, big bearded bloke behind us in the queue kept looking at me in a dogged fashion and I was thinking, bloody hell, why is this guy staring at me. Anyway, just as the electronic voice said, 'Please go to till number one', he said, 'Were you in Miss Saigon?' Turns out he used to work in wardrobe. I'm stunned. How can he recognise just another Chinese hoofer after ten years, whereas I can't remember a large, big bearded bloke? There weren't even that many people in the wardrobe department.

2008-01-14T20:23:00.000Z

While walking along in South Kensington today, I had to sidestep someone coming in the opposite direction, and we did that awkward thing where we both stepped the same way. However, the awkward moment passed when he just stuck his arm out and pushed me out of his way.

Blummin' 'eck!

The cheek of it. I was so stunned it took me a good five seconds to be affronted, by which time he was long gone.

BB was in a lift with Richard Hammond today. He was totally star struck and blurted out, 'I love Top Gear!'. Richard Hammond said thank you and said it was a lot of fun doing it, although sometimes it was very hard work. BB said, 'I really feel for you' and RH said, 'You're not buying it, are you?'. Apparently, he's around my height - short for a bloke, average for a girl.

2008-01-11T00:16:00.000Z

Someone at work today asked me if I was brought up in Scotland.

Eh?

That was what came a-tumbling out of my mouth.

Apparently, the whole week she's been thinking that I sound Scottish. How bizarre. Perhaps I picked up the Scottish burr over Christmas.

2008-01-09T21:32:00.001Z

Had a look at a reference that was written for me today. The comment made to the question 'What is this candidate's weak point?' was 'Could be more outgoing'. It was like my school report card all over again.

I got offered another job yesterday. I thanked them profusely but said I already had too many choices to be getting on with. He laughed and said if none of them worked out, to give them a call.

2008-01-01T01:30:00.000Z

Happy 2008 one and all! I hope this year does not continue the way it has started, which is with a stinky cold and flu. I have but a very small nose but it seems to produce one heck of a lot of mucus. All clear and fluid, so I'm not very nearly on the mend either.

We had haggis for our New Year's Eve dinner, which we were supposed to have had middle blister's house with middle blister's family but I didn't want to give them all the lurgy and I would have been miserable company, coughing and snivelling everywhere.

2007-12-27T11:15:00.000Z

We did all fall ill for Christmas. BB was struck down during Christmas lunch and missed out on the trifle. He also managed to avoid getting drunk and sliding under the table and being quoted football statistics by his small football slipper clad nephew.

Panto tonight with Stefan Dennis as Abanazar. I have toothache and a snuffly nose.

2007-12-20T21:34:00.000Z

Hurrah! I'm on holiday - at last! I SOOO need to sleep in and not have to worry about anything. I'm torn between two job offers - one which gives me bling jewellery a go go and the other might possibly make me passably wealthy in five years time. What to do? Both parties are throwing possibilities, benefits and everything I could possibly want or need at me. Aaaaugh... although... it is good to have this dilemma than no dilemma at all.

I was walking too fast today and slipped when I stepped up onto the pavement. I grabbed the pedestrian crossing post to catch myself and ended up bashing the side of my head against the post very hard. There was an almighty clang which stopped everybody in their tracks. My ear and side of my head were ringing but, being of stoic peasant stock, I just rubbed it briskly, assured everybody I was fine and walked stiffly off (taking care not to get run over on the way).

Progressively, during the day, I started feeling stranger and stranger. I don't think I have mild concussion but I possibly have slight whiplash, as my neck and shoulder on the other side feel a bit frozen. Sigh....

Nonetheless, I dragged myself to the last dance class of the year and comported myself very well methinks.

2007-11-26T09:47:00.001Z

No internet at home for nearly a week. What a disaster! Who would have thunk that one was so dependent on the internet.

I have temp work at the moment which is a relief. The company I'm working for provides free food. Hurrah! I couldn't be happier. And it's only 5 mins from the gym, so I can work off those excess calories.

My accountant is threatening to cut me off because I haven't sent him my receipts for my income tax return yet. I hate this time of year. It's so tedious and a little depressing working out how much money I've not earned this year. Ah well, needs must, and I must get my tax done.

I tried signing on for the first time in my life, as the Insolvency Service said I wouldn't get my Late Notice of Dismissal money if I didn't. It took so long and was so long-winded that I found work before the claim was complete. This is why I've never bothered to sign on before.

We've had new doubleglazing put in. The house is now toasty warm. This is a good thing as the boiler is now playing up and all our electrics are giving up the ghost, bit by bit. I think the house is determined to eat up all our cash this year. Sigh...

2007-11-10T22:09:00.000Z

A whole new shop has sprung up in East Dulwich without my even noticing it - a clothes shop called Sugar, which I wouldn't have known about if it wasn't for the trusty denizens of the East Dulwich forum.

It stocks some pretty nice and affordable stuff. Had a quick browse, but as I'm mainly in the market for work clothes, and they have mainly non-work related type clothes, was not persuaded to part with my hard earned cash.

Had a quick look in Mrs Robinson's new boutique also. Some great stuff there too, but not tempted - mainly because I prefer to be working before I spend great wads of cash.

2007-11-10T21:20:00.000Z

On Wednesday, when the news leaked out that the company wasn't to go ahead, there was great unrest in the office. The phone rang constantly - people from the office, people stranded on business trips, people trying to confirm appointments that were no longer needed but I couldn't tell them why. L, my assistant, and I, just kept our heads down and started packing and throwing things away. It's funny how suddenly piles of paper become irrelevant.

The sales director went off and came back with his car, packed it up and drove off - all in a couple of hours, while the rest of us were still wondering if it was true. He left a big metal map of the world in the hall because it wouldn't fit in his car. He left his security pass on my desk - I guess he didn't know what else to do with it.

We stayed until the end of the day, while my boss spoke to everyone individually. It was all very sad.

I had to get a cab for all the junk I had accumulated over the year. All in a rush, madly trying to finish off last minute things, changing flights for the stranded people in China and booking hotels, rushing the boxes out to the taxi and hurried goodbyes. Then, ran to the cab and, then, quiet.

My driver was a strange kettle of fish. He sounded American - possibly Californian, but wouldn't say much about himself. He just kept saying cryptic things like, 'I'll tell you what I do for a living when I drop you off', 'I've only been with this company for three weeks', 'Please do tell me how I do, as I'm just winging it' and yet he knew all the back routes and road names immaculately. He talked a lot about the government, British society and how it's changed, City Hall, Westminster Council and the best hotels to stay in and how to get a good deal on them.

Anyway, he was very courteous, undercharged me, helped me with all my boxes and took a very good route home. His card, which he gave me at the end, was not very revealing - Tour Organiser, Life Coach, Personal Security Agent and other such vague job titles. Intrigued, we Googled his name and phone number. The results were a comment on an Irish University website and a number for a chauffeur company in South London. The world is full of interesting people.

2007-11-09T08:08:00.000Z

So, I find myself out of work for the second time in two weeks. The whole new company venture has gone down the pan and I'm registering with recruitment agencies and hoping someone will take me on as their PA extraordinaire.

So far I applied to work with Google, but got fed up after the 3rd interview, when they called me back to interview for a different, more menial position for the 4th time. Now I am waiting to hear from a hedge fund CEO who needs someone to start a London office from scratch and a key industry figure who needs someone to travel, run projects and attend impromptu engagements. Strangely, I haven't heard anything from the role for the luxury brand, which I thought I would have been particularly suited to.

It's nice to have a couple of days off nonetheless in which I can please my accountant by doing my tax return and please BB by tidying up the bedroom. Mostly, I've just been playing Scrabble on the computer.

2007-11-06T20:45:00.000Z

I had an almost perfect brunch on Sunday. Potted shrimps with crunchy brown toast and a lightly cress salad, with cream of celeriac soup. It was very tasty and leisurely. It would have been perfect if I had followed it by treacle tart and Jersey cream, but I got bored waiting for the waiter to take my order, so I got my bill instead.

The sun was shining and I was reading my book and all was right with the world.

2007-11-03T08:58:00.000Z

At the East Dulwich post collection office on Silvester Road the other day, this woman came in and asked them what she should do about a DHL parcel she was expecting that hadn't arrived. The postman told her to contact DHL.

She said, 'But will the parcel be with them?'. He said, 'You should give them a call'.

'They didn't leave a card. Where is their depot?', says she. 'I haven't a clue', said he. At this point she left.

I thought he showed great forbearance. If it were me, I would have thrown something at her. The worst of it is that she's probably the kind of person who would go off and complain about how unhelpful he was for not being able to give her more information about a company that he doesn't have anything to do with.

She also probably is the kind of person who holds everyone up at flight check-in because she's either late and missed her plane, holds a ticket for another airline, has too much luggage or is just plain stupid.

2007-10-28T08:12:00.000Z

Watched Brat Camp last week, swiftly followed by Henry Perkins: Bolshoi Boy. Both programmes about 15-year olds - but one was a feckless, spoilt 15-year old with a feckless, spoilt mother who both thought the world owed them a living.

The other was about a thoughtful, discplined 15-year old who, in an effort to improve himself, was prepared to travel halfway across the world to study for two years in a place where he doesn't speak the language and has completely different training methods to those he was used to. Generally, he displayed all the attributes to which one would hope we would all aspire. I am glad to see that shouting and the odd sharp tap on the leg are techniques that have not gone astray at the Bolshoi. Never did me any harm and Henry Perkins certainly seems to come out none the worse for wear for it. Anyway, he's still sticking it out for the next year.

Both were pretty riveting TV. Brat Camp is a tour de force. I love seeing pathetic excuses for human beings forced to endure the travails of living in the 'wilderness', with nowhere to run or hide and not being waited on hand and foot, for once in their lives. I can't wait until 1950's School comes back, where you get to see present-day kids forced to re-live 1950's educational methods.

I like being redundant - shame I have to start work again on Monday.

2007-10-21T09:05:00.000+01:00

Against my better judgement, went to see The Dark is Rising yesterday. I was pleasantly surprised early on to find that it is set in England as per the book, as I had read somewhere that is was set in the US but that was just about the last pleasant surprise to be had. I suppose if you have not read the books it was watchable, but if you have read the books, it is an absolute travesty.

They might as well have set the film in Japan for all the relevance it had to England. All reference to English paganism and the Arthur legends was completely erased. The Old Ones were the most ineffectual, pathetic individuals and one could only wonder how they had managed to live outside of time all this time due to their uselessness.

There was also some weird plot addition where Will, the main character, is the 6th sign, rather than the fire sign. He also ends up rescuing a long lost twin brother at the end. What?????? Utterly disappointing. They'd also taken out the rhyme about the finding of the signs, which was always an important part of the books to me.

Anyway, the way it's been done, doesn't look like they're going to do any of the other books - thank god.

There were only about twelve people in the cinema, mostly single saddoes like me, who had gone to see it on their own and who were all, no doubt, as disappointed as me when they came out.

2007-10-20T09:45:00.001+01:00

I'm officially redundant. Please let the new job start soon.

Just recorded a voiceover for an Indian performance arts company. Having not spent much time in the company of other thespians for a while, I was struck but how bizarre they are - oddly pretentious, this particular bunch were. Not all of them and not all of the time, but sometimes. Anyway, the good thing is we whipped through it very quickly, so I don't have to record today. Hurrah!

2007-10-14T07:45:00.000+01:00

Now I'm nervous at the thought of starting a whole new company from scratch. The administrative details alone seem to be a bit of a nightmare. No infrastructure in place at all - just a bunch of willing employees, raring to go.

But no e-mail, headed paper, couriers, taxis, telephones, stationery, computer server... And also shortly, no office.

I wish I could spend more time pottering about East Dulwich and less time slogging away in town so that I can afford to potter around East Dulwich. Spent a pleasant afternoon wandering around the shops and seeing if I could spend any money to celebrate still having a job. Only came back with household essentials but the fun was had in the pottering.

I love that JL's new food hall does ready made meatballs in pork, lamb or beef, so you don't have to faff around with rolling up the mince yourself. Then you can just pop them into noodle soup or make meatball and tomato sauce linguine at the drop of a hat. Made lovely tomato sauce with a ton of tomatoes from Pretty Traditional, the greengrocers, and a satisfying full and leafy bunch of flat leaf parsley. And the best thing is there's some left over for tea today.

2007-10-13T07:27:00.000+01:00

My best eating buddy has gone back to New York for good. I am very sad. We used to try out new restaurants together and revisited old favourites - mainly Malaysian places. Sigh.... Never mind, at least we have someone who can show us NY's best eateries when we go. Last time we went, we only found about 2 good places to eat, even though I went armed with food guides and reviews from the internet.

I'm still in a job. The new company is about to rise from the ashes of the old, like a phoenix. The deal will be signed on Monday and we will hopefully be open for business from Tuesday. What a relief.

We've had a sad palm plant of some description in the corner of the living room that has been valiantly trying to stay alive, despite not having been watered for about 3 months. It's finally started to turn yellow. I have murdered a plant.

2007-10-10T00:08:00.000+01:00

I met my first Russian oligarchs today. They came to view our office property. They flew in from Russia, came straight from the airport, saw the property and flew straight back. I suspect they are probably the richest people I will ever meet.

I am told a VIP is coming to view the property on Friday. He is coming at 18:00 - I said I was happy to stay, as long as he didn't make me wait till 19:00. Oooh, who could it be...?

2007-10-07T14:53:00.000+01:00

There's a new Foxtons in East Dulwich - we were in need of yet another estate agent. I am glad they have seen fit to blend in with the other shopfronts on the street with their great big neon sign and acres of glass.

On the bright side, I've been foraging in John Lewis' brand new food hall this week. What a pleasure to have somewhere new to buy tasty food. I stockpiled our snack selection at work and bought lots of dried meats, artisan breads and other choice comestibles for a food filled weekend. All good. I shall be going home that way more often.

Just had dim sum at Dragon Castle with the blister's family. We ordered far too much as always but it was all very tasty. The nieces and nephew are doing well at school and are all settled in nicely, so all is well.

2007-10-05T12:32:00.001+01:00

My company has gone into administration. It has been a very sad week.

2007-10-02T21:01:00.000+01:00

I've twisted my flaming ankle again. I thought I would be healthy and get off the bus early so I could have a brisk stride to work and then went over on a bit of uneven pavement. Spent all day with my foot on an archive box and a cushion. Luckily I had a trusty ankle bandage in my bag as I, sadly, carry one around with me all the time. Sigh...

Saw 2 Days in Paris at the weekend. Not a first or second date movie... or even one you might want to see if you've been dating a while and things aren't quite hunky dory. Not depressing as such, in fact fairly funny, but could be unsettling.

2007-10-01T19:58:00.000+01:00

We went to a very nice restaurant called The Forge in Covent Garden yesterday for my birthday. It's owned by the same people who run Le Café du Jardin on Wellington Street. The setting is just off Garrick Street on Floral Street, very quiet and tastefully decorated with bare brick and nicely judged turquoise leather upholstery.

They are having a £25 for 3 courses and glass of Kir Royale offer and it's very good value for money. I wanted to go because they had spaghetti vongole on the menu, but sadly they had changed their menu just before we went. So, I started with 3 Colchester oysters, followed by a massive Lancaster pork chop and an onion stuffed with chestnut stuffing. BB had an excellent haddock tempura and a retro reconstructed chicken Kiev bursting with garlic butter. The sides were roast potatoes cooked in goose fat and nice crunchy French beans. For pudding I had tarte tatin with vanilla ice cream, inspired by watching Saturday Kitchen, which came with a vanilla stick and apple crisp for decoration. BB had creme brulée liberally laced with Grand Marnier. It was all very good and we were the only people in the restaurant for most of the meal, so we had exemplary service. All in all very enjoyable indeed.

My boss and my best friend both gave me earrings for presents and were aghast to notice that I don't have pierced ears. Who doesn't have pierced ears these days, my boss did cry, as she went off to think again. BB's ma and grandma gave me the exact same birthday card. Either they are scarily alike or BB's ma buys the cards for both of them.

2007-09-26T09:21:00.000+01:00

Watched Tribe last night. The mad Bruce Parry was in Sarawak with the Penan people. The Malaysian government came off very badly. How disappointing... they always try to make out that it's the Indonesians who are driving the tribal people out by chopping down the jungle, but it's sad to see that it's the Malaysians too. What ever happened to them stopping all the logging and palm oil plantations and saving big swathes of primary forest for future generations?

2007-09-25T17:06:00.000+01:00

Back from the Lake District. BB was ill all weekend, so not much fell-walking was had. We had a jolly pub lunch in Caldbeck where BB's mum and family lived for a bit and met some of his Grandma's old friends and saw their old house. It was very picturesque and wholesome. They leave their front doors wide open and crime consists of their rare begonias being filched by unscrupulous plant thieves.

I notice The Dark is Rising has been made into a film. I can't wait. I hope it's a good adaptation, although it seems strange that a sizeable proportion of the cast seem to be Canadian.

2007-09-17T22:15:00.000+01:00

Ah well, didn't get the commercial job. So we're off to the Lake District this weekend. Hurrah! I hope the car starts. We haven't driven for a while.

I've just received a bucketload of wooden coathangers which I bought from Ebay. I have gradually become weary of wire hangers and the way they tangle up against each other, get misshapen and are altogether flimsy and unsatisfactory in the hand. We are limited to hanging 36 items because I thought it would be greedy to get more.

2007-09-16T07:49:00.001+01:00

That's weird. I just posted the last entry and in the page that came up the instruction was in German - "Blog anzeigen (in einem neuen fenster)". Bizarre!

2007-09-16T07:42:00.000+01:00

Why is it that, almost without fail, whenever I have a holiday booked (which is rare), an acting job comes along (also rare)? Only away for two days next week and have just been pencilled for a commercial. Sigh... Now, whichever way it turns out I can either be chipper because I either get to do an ad and earn lots of dosh or go on holiday or I can be pissed off because I don't get to do an ad or don't get to go on holiday.

I've taken a sudden liking to the shoes of Terra Plana. Mainly the shoes from last season. Unfortunately, this season's shoes are now in the shops and not half so nice. Their collection is very small - I wonder how they survive with probably less than a dozen styles in Ladies' and the same in Men's?

2007-09-11T19:26:00.000+01:00

I've been brushing up on the German recently as it had fallen by the wayside, due to the Mandarin learning. Have been using Deutsche Welle, which is a really great website. They've got the news read slowly daily for those of us who are slow on the pick-up and just slow generally.

Then, the FREE courses cover a whole host of things about Germany like history, politics, religion, nature, industry etc. It's SOOO interesting. I like it! The beginner's lessons centre around a journalism student who has a mystery elf companion who is invisible - bizarre but strangely compelling.

2007-09-07T23:52:00.000+01:00

Had a good audition today for the role of a Canadian Inuit. I spent a scant few hours trawling the net looking for videos of Inuits talking. It turns out that if you try a bit of American, with a few "aboots" thrown in and then mix it with a bit of Filipino, that's kind of the accent you're looking for.

Anyway, the casting director was happy enough.

I have another casting tomorrow for a children's programme. The breakdown is quite vague. I just need to turn up kinda smart casual and be good with children. Don't know if it's a drama or a presenting job or anything. Nothing like being totally unprepared. At least I know where I'm supposed to be going.

Went to the newly reopened Le Chandelier for tea last week. BB remarked that there only seemed to be women and fathers there. It is quite girly. But they do a nice French tarte, lots of loose leaf teas and kedgeree. I am partial to a nice bit of kedgeree.

2007-08-31T10:51:00.000+01:00

Malaysia is 50 years old today. How time flies. I'm going to celebrate in true Malaysian style with my favourite foods from C&R. Can't find any celebrations happening in the UK but I can't believe Malaysians abroad would pass up the opportunity to eat food aplenty.

Merdeka!

2007-08-30T23:30:00.001+01:00

My assistant is on hols again and I am left in a sea of overwork and tedious tasks. The lift at work has been out for 4 weeks and I am weary of electricians and lift engineers. The mention of them makes me curl my lip in disdain.

We went to see the Bourne Ultimatum again and despite seeing various anomalies which appeared on the second viewing - it's still a cracking film.

Have a casting tomorrow for a Boots ad for which I am not to wear any make-up. Eek. I hope it's not one of those 'real women' in vests showing off their charms in white underwear ads. The humiliation would be too great.

An exciting teashop has opened down the road. Le Chandelier, formerly purveyor of antique-type goods and furniture, is now a French style tea place with particularly sugary looking confectionery in the window. Choux pastry covered in a sugar glaze features strongly.

2007-08-20T21:08:00.000+01:00

Lord of the Rings was good. It's had to grow on me a bit, but actually we quite liked it. The music wasn't toe-tapping or anything, but it was very atmospheric. The hobbits jigged and the elves did funny head and arms movements while warbling in a Gaelic fashion. The set was the star of the show. It was amazing. The whole stage was a giant revolve divided into 3 concentric circles which moved independently of each other. Then, the middle section was split into about 6 segments which all went up and down individually. The lighting was beautiful. The acrobats were thrilling. They got the whole story in. Galadriel was great, as was Gollum. Some of the rest of the acting was a bit duff but nonetheless we might go again.

We went to Blind Light at the Hayward on Sunday. That - we weren't so keen on. I think I'm not really inclined towards visual art. We went into the Blind Light installation which was a large box which you had to queue to go into, full of steam. Then, you wandered around bumping into people until you're thoroughly damp and have to go out because your eyes are watering and your nose is burning.

The Bourne Ultimatum on the other hand was great. I want to go back and see it again straight away. There was an anomaly in the story though. They changed Jason Bourne's birthdate from the last two films by one year.... Da, da, dahhhhh! He is one year younger (born in 1970) than in the last film (1969). Bet they didn't think anyone would be so geeky as to notice that.

2007-08-11T12:11:00.001+01:00

Work has been quiet, although the boss lady has been e-mailing me at nine in the evening, even though she's supposed to be on holiday somewhere that is eight hours behind us.

We've booked tickets to see Lord of the Rings - The Musical. I am fully expecting to be disappointed on the whole music and how the heck are they going to cram 3 booksworth into 3 hours front, but also hope to be completely wowed by the spectacle, as that is what everyone has been talking about. We got four tickets for £100, so have not spent too much for the privilege.

I am currently addicted to Scrabulous on Facebook and am playing about ten games concurrently. In between, have just bought Life of Pi because I couldn't wait for middle blister to unpack.

2007-08-04T07:06:00.000+01:00

Transformers rocks! Went to see it last weekend and liked it! It was funny and the effects were great. 'Nuff said.

Also tried out a Singaporean restaurant called Kiasu on Queensway with BB and a friend, P. It was pretty darned good. We had four starters - ngoh hiang (pork stuffed bean curd thing), oh jian (oyster omelette), roti paratha with curry sauce and otak otak (fish paste grilled in a banana leaf). It was all good. The oysters were big and tasty, the otak otak good but small, the curry sauce excellent.

Main courses were Nyonya laksa for BB which was pronounced tasty and not too coconutty. P and I shared Nyonya chicken curry and stewed duck and pig's trotters with tofu and hardboiled eggs. The duck and pig's trotters were excellent and presented in such a way that there wasn't a bone or trotter in sight, all neatly sliced and laid out on the plate. The sauce was rich and sweet and the thinly sliced tofu was soaked through with the sauce. It was goooood. The chicken curry was the only thing I wasn't so keen on. There was way too much cumin in the sauce, but it was okay.

A great discovery and we will be back to try all the other stuff we didn't manage to try.

2007-08-02T06:00:00.001+01:00

One of my fellow bloggers has asked me to post this link to save Central Street Market, Hong Kong, and pass it on to other bloggers. I've only been to the market once, but I love markets and all the interesting stuff that inhabits them, so I'm all for it. After all, Hong Kong wouldn't be the same if it was all high rises and confined spaces, without all the hustle and bustle in between.

http://www.savethestreetmarket.com/

So here it is folks. Please sign up and keep the Central Street Market going.

2007-07-29T08:02:00.000+01:00

We went to see Take Flight! at the Menier Chocolate Factory, a new musical about the pioneers of flight - Wright Brothers, Earhart & Lindbergh. It had all the right credentials - produced by a reputable company, good solid West End actors, seasoned creators including David Shire, John Weidman & Richard Maltby Jr and put together by the creative team of Sunday in the Park with George, which was a triumph. This, on the other hand, was an unmitigated disaster. It was dull, had no overlying story arc, unhummable, didn't move you in the slightest and the conclusions reached were what? Who knows? That it's better to die than to compromise your dreams? The songs were derivative (BB's comment) and nothing seemed new. The direction seemed lazy. The set was quite good but you never once felt that anything took flight or felt like you were seeing people actually fly. Dull, dull, dull and too flaming hot. Actually, Sally Ann Triplett was good, and Clive Carter.

The most exciting thing was that Imelda Staunton was in the audience. I told BB this when we were in the foyer waiting to go in. When we sat down (free seating), BB said, 'So where's this famous person then?' quite loudly. 'She's behind you', I hissed in return. There was a slight pause and then we both got the giggles.

2007-07-22T22:11:00.001+01:00

What a lovely sunny day it has been! It has been a lovely weekend, all in all. The middle blister and family Chakra(ex)hongkies came a visiting. We went to see if the fish and chips in the Sea Cow were as good as the Guardian review said or if standards were going off as I said. Actually, it was pretty good.

Then, we all piled back to the homestead to avoid the intermittent downpours, sadly missing out on fudge from Hope and Greenwood. Not one bookshop in East Dulwich was selling Harry Potter, so I didn't manage to support local business by spending way over the premium for my edition.

Middle blister spent the next two hours reading Harry Potter. The rest of us fought over the X-Box to see who could crash the most in Colin McRae's Dirt. Curly was not impressed and wanted to be taught German from my Usborne's German for Beginners.

Today, we went to town to buy new shirts for BB and Harry Potter for me. Lunched at Canteen, which still has pretty decent food, but the service is no better at the new Southbank branch than it is at the Spitalfields branch. The waiter didn't know the specials, tried to flog us carton orange juice passed off as freshly squeezed, asked us about three times what our order was, brought us the wrong bill and when we asked for the bill said, 'Why? Are you in a hurry?' The mayo was also slightly curdled. I know they do well, but they really shouldn't rest on their laurels.

By the river there were some new sculptures of people who looked like they were emerging from large lumps of poo. One of them looked like he was projectile vomiting water. Anything passes for art these days...

2007-07-21T07:57:00.000+01:00

Went dancing at the Shadow Lounge on Thursday night. This is the first time I've been dancing for a very long time (and on a school night too). My ribs hurt. Who would have thought jigging up and down, sort of on the spot, would do that to you?

We've discovered another Chinese restaurant/takeaway in East Dulwich called Gold Lee, that actually serves 'not bad' food. And they don't take six years to deliver. Hurrah! Their egg foo yung is particularly good. The menu is pretty standard British Chinese takeaway fare but beggars really can't be choosers in this neck of the woods.

2007-07-16T22:20:00.001+01:00

I have just realised that I have been tagged to provide 8 autobiographical facts. Will need to ponder...

...but in reference to middle blister's facts, I was also tested for my IQ at a tender age and found to have one of 180. Sadly, it has definitely declined since then and hasn't done me a fat lot of good. Proper autobiographical trivia to follow anon. Don't think I know 8 other people to tag.

2007-07-16T22:02:00.000+01:00

We had our annual rooftop barbecue at the weekend. Spent Friday night at our newly refurbed Sainsburys. One can do a lot worse than go shopping for food on a Friday night. Everyone was out boozing so the supermarket was virtually empty. We barely bought any booze, relying on the premise that everyone else brings a bottle to parties. We were right. We also shouldn't have bothered buying any food because everyone brought some of that too and we ended up with more food than when we started.

Saturday was spent going to the dump, where an extraordinarily helpful dump attendant showed us where to put the right sort of stuff in the right place and even helped us a little with the dumping. There's a turn up for the books.

Saturday night was spent grinding, blending and general machinations to make satay marinade. Then up bright and early on Sunday to make satay sauce and skewer little bits of chicken and beef onto skewers.

Anyway, all the food went down well. The satay was good, if I say so myself. I've never made it before and I was pretty darned impressed.

Now we're pooped, have far too much food in the fridge and need a holiday. That's why we only ever do one barbecue in a year. Maybe next year there'll be railings on the roof so there's no danger of anyone falling off.

2007-07-08T07:52:00.000+01:00

Further note to my post about the new White Stuff that will be opening shortly in East Dulwich and the graffiti that their hoarding has attracted. I notice that on their signs they have misspelled neighbourhood by omitting the 'u' in American fashion. I would welcome anyone who decided to graffiti the sign by correcting the spelling mistake.

2007-07-08T07:41:00.000+01:00

I had a superlative seafood linguine at Black Cherry yesterday. The prawns were the size of my head (well not quite) and the pasta was liberally scattered with fresh clams & mussels. It was all tossed in a light cream, chilly, parsley & garlic sauce. It was also not too salty, which is a complaint I usually have with the food there. The new menu looks good and I'll definitely be back for more pasta. I must add that the service was also excellent. An all-round good visit.

We went to the Bishop on 1st July to celebrate the advent of non-smoking in public places in England. Sadly, things were not so smooth there. Our food took 45 mins to arrive and when we enquired about it, they said that the kitchen was very busy and we would just have to wait (which we were already doing, fairly patiently, I thought). It was heaving in there, but nonetheless... Anyway, the food was tasty but a tad on the tepid side when it arrived.

The Seacow has not been so heaving as it has wont to be in the past. I suspect this is because the standard of the cooking has been drifting steadily downhill. Either nobody has been filling in the comments cards at the till or they just haven't been paying attention.

I am glad to report that Buddha Jazz has started opening during the day and are offering a discount on food between the hours of 12 and 3. The service there is always superb and food always tasty and consistent, as it was when we went two days ago. The menu has also expanded and includes venison and other culinary delights.

2007-07-01T08:24:00.000+01:00

We went to see Into the Woods at the Linbury Studio last Saturday. It was all going along nicely, with seats in the second row, able to see all the mechanics of what was going on up close and everything. The Baker was about to stab the Wolf and then suddenly the stage manager walked on stage and stopped the show. It turned out that the strange dripping noise we had heard from under the stage for about 5 minutes was the dock flooding and the orchestra was being slowly saturated and in danger of being electrocuted by all the microphone wires lying around. So, sadly, we were all turfed out in an orderly fashion and told to get a refund. Ah well, I didn't think the staging was that good and a couple of the performances were decidedly dodgy.

Went to Harlesden the other day to try and discover what the moving company at work had secreted away. Just before we left, the project manager jokingly said, 'Have you got your stab vest?' 'Ha, ha, ha', was my response. We got up there and there were about 15 police (and pseudo police) officers milling around the platform and bridge over the tracks. In the ticket hall, the police had set up a metal detector scanning portal thing due to the 'excessive knife related crime' in the area. Outside the station there were several recalcitrant youths being searched by more police officers. And I thought the project manager was joking. So did he...

What with all the car bombs in London and Glasgow, the UK is becoming increasingly less attractive as a dwelling place. If the myriad CCTV cameras in the West End don't produce some kind of tangible result, I shall be very disappointed in our surveillance society.

I read BB's mind twice yesterday. Now he thinks I'm a freak.

2007-06-21T22:40:00.001+01:00

Tried out a new Indian delivery place this week. They dropped their menu through the door and it was soooooo pretty. The graphics were lovely, the dishes sounded exciting using nice things like green mango, fresh curry leaves etc. Ahh, they promised so much.

And delivered so little.

Firstly, it took one hour and twenty minutes for the order to arrive, and I had to call them three times to find out where our food was. We had both been late back after a long day at work and ended up waiting till 23:15 for our food to arrive. Then, it was horribly cooked.

The lamb chops were tough, overcooked, bland and unattractive in everyway. The coconut rice was rice with dessicated coconut sprinkled over it. The dahl was bland. The korma was a funny colour. The prawns with green mango were actually prawns with overripe regular mango.

The only pleasant thing was the aubergine, but it wasn't cooked in the manner advertised, and the okra was okay. The popadums were also okay. Naan and chapati also passed muster. Gulab jamun neither here nor there.

Anyway, we're never ordering from there again. That's the New Dewaniam in Camberwell, by the way.

2007-06-21T22:23:00.000+01:00

BB & I went to the new restaurant Skylon, refurbed in honour of the Festival of Britain attraction, for BB's birthday lunch. At the same time, we had a look at the whole Festival Hall development at the Southbank. BB went around muttering, 'bad finishes', 'poor detailing', 'it's not even finished' and things to that effect.

I just thought it was weird that the entrance outside the building looked like a fire escape and you kind of enter through some side door and have to walk around the edge of the restaurant to get to the reception.

Still, the view is spectacular and they're probably hoping that it'll distract you from the fact that one of the walls has 3 different shades of white on it in patches. Altogether, it is a very airy and pleasant space on a Sunday sunny afternoon.

The very large room is divided in two by the bar, into the Grill and the Restaurant. The Restaurant is supposed to be more formal, but the Grill was pretty formal enough for us. The menu is also larger and has brunch items on it too. I was torn between the Sunday roast or the crab risotto and went for the latter. We both started with the pea and mint soup with a ham tartine. 'What's that?' BB asked. Minced ham on toast apparently. It was pretty tasty though, although BB found a small ball of polystyrene in his bowl.

For the main, the crab risotto was nice enough. I kind of think crab is wasted all shredded up, instead of having it in nice big meaty chunks. BB had lamb chops and they were big and meaty. I thought they were done just right, but they were a tad overdone for BB. They were very tender though.

Dessert was sticky toffee pudding for me (tasty, but too much for me) and BB had chocolate mousse with creme fraiche - pretty good, but we didn't think it was dark chocolate as advertised.

Overall impression - pleasant, staff were good (although they wouldn't give us a window seat) and we left overstuffed. Space is nice (but they seem to have a bit of a dust problem), food good but not spectacular. It's great for brunch, but as you have to book to get a table, it's a bit hard work for what should be a leisurely experience.

Oh - they had a model of the original Skylon by the reception, and that was pretty cool.

2007-06-13T20:05:00.001+01:00

I'm so thrilled to be back in London, having to stand all the way to work on the bus, changing 3 times on the way and enduring smelly stupid people and interminable inexplicable roadworks. Hurrah.

I wish I could just loiter about at home and mosey about the environs of leafy Dulwich. Sigh. I see White Stuff is finally doing something about their shop lot, much to the chagrin of the local anti-chain louts who have graffitied all over their hoarding. Nice to see the neighbourhood is going downhill - on all accounts.

I'm glad that the local Thai, Sema Thai, which has good food but had a bit of a cockroach problem, is getting a makeover. About time too. May venture back in there for a bit of a Phad Thai. However, am sorely missing good ol' Malaysian food. Wish someone would open a Malaysian restaurant (or a good Chinese would do) - or even a stall in the market would do.

BB's birthday tomorrow. I've bought him a small radio-controlled helicopter. Wonder if he'll read this before I give it to him.

2007-06-06T02:14:00.000+01:00

We are now safely ensconsed in the comfort of our Philippe Starck room at the newly appointed Jia Hotel in Hongkers. The hotel is so new that taxi drivers look puzzled and a bit bemused when you ask them to go there. Luckily, I had a map all printed out when we got to the HK Airport Express station. Unfortunately, there is another brand new boutique hotel around the corner called Lanson Place which the cab driver took us to first. The nice doormen took our bags out and were still helpful, even after I asked timidly, 'Is this the Jia Hotel?' They put our bags back into the boot of the car and gave the taxi driver directions to our hotel (he had helpfully left the meter running).

Anyway, we arrived and there were no nice doormen at our actual hotel, typically. Still, it's nice, I'm eating Chickenator flavoured Twisties and pondering going down and partaking of the all-included continental breakfast.

Lanson Place looks quite nice. Maybe next time...

2007-06-03T02:15:00.000+01:00

Holiday has been spent happily eating far too much and sleeping in equal proportions. We've watched all of Heroes again and I've been catching up on the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise in order to catch the last of the trio in the cinemas.

Shopping for software is not half as much fun as it used to be in Malaysia. Now you have to ask surreptitiously around for software and then they say they can get it to you but you can't test it and it will take an hour to procure. It's all too scary now, which I guess is the idea. Sigh...

The bootleg luggage market is also sadly not very engaging. The designers for the knock-off suitcase companies just aren't a patch on how they used to be.

Fortunately, one can find solace in a mocha walnut cake from Bread Story or a large bowl of curry mee for a paltry figure. 10 days just isn't enough to eat everything one would want.

2007-05-21T05:42:00.000+01:00

We leave for hols in 4 days. Hurrrrrahhhhh! I just don't know how I'm going to have everything done at work before I leave. I don't want to be one of those people that leaves a lousy handover so that everyone who is left behind to do my dirty work has a rubbish time of it, but I suspect that this may indeed happen.

(I've just noticed Blogger Autosaves now - wah!)

I am so looking forward to the holiday part though. We get our new laptop tomorrow onto which we will download all our holiday entertainment and about a gazillion lessons from Chinesepod.

Watched Over the Hedge and Fearless over the weekend. Both entertaining in their own right. That Jet Li can sure do a mean fistfight (not to mention the myriad other weapons he bandied about). What will the serious historical wushu genre do without him?

2007-05-13T23:13:00.000+01:00

British Airways have excelled themselves once again. It's not often we fly, and even less often for us to have the opportunity to go Business class, which is what BB did today on his whirlwind business trip to Zurich, Düsseldorf, Köln, Düren, Saarbrücken, Pforzheim and Stuttgart. British Airways have lost his luggage.

BB thought something would probably go amiss when the lady at the fast bag drop checked his luggage through to Düsseldorf, even though he was übernachting in Zurich tonight. When he pointed this out, she retagged his bag with the correct tag but his luggage has gone astray nonetheless. At Zurich airport, they announced that all those who hadn't received their luggage should go to lost luggage and about 12 people peeled off and headed that way. From one flight. Sheesh.

Tomorrow I play in a comedy sketch show for which we've had seven rehearsals. If I can make it through without completely seizing up or falling off the very small stage, I think I'll have done well. Any semblance of acting is a bonus.

Spiderpants 3

2007-05-12T00:48:00.000+01:00

The sheer awfulness of Spiderman III has inspired me to put fingers to keyboard once again. How can I begin to illustrate the complete terribleness of this film? What an absolute cheesefest this movie was. What was Sam Raimi thinking? And it went on and on interminably with the actors churning out cliché after cliché - you're my best friend, I believe in you Peter, I don't believe we have any say over who should live or die, I love you as I loved your father, and as your friends do too, blah, blah, blah. Aaargh, slit wrists, vomit, fall into coma from interminable boredom... the end.

2007-03-22T05:23:00.000Z

It has dawned on me that I seem to have slipped into some kind of a work vacuum. Every day consists of schlepping to work, dealing with stupid people in high quantities and then schlepping home again. This week, particularly exacerbated by my spectacularly dull and ineffectual temp who has some kind of verbal diarrhoea. She spends the day giving me a blow by blow account of everything she does while she's doing it - only stopping to ask me inane and annoying questions like 'Is the Park Hyatt Saigon in London?' or blathering on about the weather, her journey to work, her inability to find a fulltime job, blah, blah, blah...

This all has the effect of making me unable to do or think about anything else due to complete mental fatigue. I must forcibly quell the urge to just eat and fall into bed when I get home and actually go to the gym a bit more frequently or write my blog. Still managing to squeeze in a couple of gym sessions and several Chinese lessons so all is not lost quite yet.

2007-03-18T08:00:00.000Z

Watched the first 18 episodes of Heroes on the computer last weekend. It was great! I ,so, want to be in an American Sci-fi cult TV series. Now the show is on hiatus till April 23rd, there is nought to do but play Sudoku online and go back to listening to 5 Chinesepod lessons a day.

I wish I could bend the space-time continuum. Although a hero shouldn't use their superpowers for their own benefit, I'd be able to give my boss a few hours more in the day to fit in some work which doesn't involve meeting with people. Then, maybe I'd sneak forward to April 23rd and watch more episodes of Heroes as my reward.

Saw a great film on DVD yesterday - Riding Alone For Thousands of Miles. Finally purchased a copy with English subtitles. It was all funny and sad at once.

A new 'fusion' Malaysian restaurant has opened in town called Suka. Why must they mess around with Malaysian food, when the kind that comes from the street is perfect as it is. I mean, Malaysian food is already a fusion of several cultures, so why fuse it with anything else? They have oyster omelette with caviar and ikan bakar with sambal foie gras, which no doubt will make both dishes hideously expensive and I suspect is a waste of perfectly good foie gras.

2007-03-03T06:20:00.000Z

The refurbishment at work gets underway on Monday. Hurrah! I will be in building contractor hell for the next 12 weeks. The guy who is changing the emergency switches came in yesterday to get his quotation signed off. In the meantime, he said there was some problem with some of the emergency lighting coming off the electrical circuit from the basement kitchen and did I think they needed to switch the ring to which it was connected or should the guys who were doing the electrical testing. I said, I don't know, go and ask our project manager. He said, 'Can I just have a look at the area again to make sure'. So, I took him down and then he proceeded to try and explain the whole thing to me again. I said, 'Don't ask me. Go and ask our project manager. I don't know'. He said, 'Yes, well, it's obvious isn't it. That you don't know.' I restrained myself from punching him. A lot of vicious and uncharitable thoughts were going through my mind at that point, but far too many to list here.

We had KFC for dinner last night. It's just beyond me why they don't do mash at KFC here. So, I bought lots of chicken, some coleslaw, a bucketload of gravy and two corn cobettes and came home and made mash. Mmmmm! Now, that's a good old plate of finger lickin' Southern Fried poor white trash food.

We have a fantastic new 32 inch flat screen telly of the Sony Bravia variety. It's a thing of beauty. We come home and sit open mouthed at the pretty clear picture. We also have an extra seventy-something channels as it has an inbuilt Freeview tuner thing. There's still nothing to watch on telly though. It does mean I can watch University Challenge and the Antiques Roadshow a lot more, which is no bad thing.

My TV viewing of choice at the moment is Never Mind The Buzzcocks which has been lifted to the level of must-see cult watching due to the introduction of Simon Amstell as host. What a revelation! Although, should I ever become any kind of a celebrity in future, I'd definitely avoid being interviewed by him.

2007-02-22T20:41:00.000Z

I have nothing to write about. My life is an endless parade of working long hours and ranting at useless people.

M-A's wedding was nice. It went by very quickly. It's amazing how many months agonising has gone into it and then - poof - it's over like a flash. We drove 3 1/2 hours to get there and back. Still, she looked radiant and the important thing is they're off for a well-earned holiday.

I've signed up for a Mandarin course in April. Optimistically, I've gone for module 3 in the course as I have fulfilled the requisite being able to recognise over 60-80 characters and can make simple conversation about everyday things.

Yesterday, in the space of 5 minutes, I had a conversation in Cantonese with the proprietress of my fave Vietnamese café about why I hadn't been there so long and about moving office, then, was collared by a woman in the street in Mandarin about a place called Beijing Ding something something, which she couldn't find and I managed to squeeze out a quick 'Sorry, I don't know where it is' back. I feel quite the linguist!

新年快乐!

2007-02-16T07:04:00.000Z

Xin Nian Kuai Le everyone! Have a very happy Chinese New Year of the golden pig.

Off to M's wedding this weekend near Cardiff. Nothing much happening here except hard work and heel pain. Wearing my orthotic lifts does help but, gosh, doesn't that make me sound like a decrepit old person?

Notice Moxon's the fishmongers has opened down the road. Must go and get some fish next week.

We went to the Bishop for their roast last Sunday again. Third time running and it was consistently the best roast we've had in East Dulwich. My meat of choice is lovely rare roast beef and BB went for the belly pork with crackling again. Perfectly cooked meat, a little jug of gravy, great roast potatoes, lovely al dente broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and french beans, a great whopping Yorkshire pudding and horseradish cream for me and apple sauce for BB - all homemade. Perfect! And they do good English puddings like jam roly poly and rhubarb crumble. Yum!