hello. are these half episodes getting ridiculous? maybe. but i just have this one thing to tell you. my most fun london experience happened to me today. it was so sweet. my friend bahbak and i were hanging about the house, we were waiting to go to lunch with some [of my] friends. bahbak had his bike with him and told me i should get on the front and he will pedal the both of us to lunch. really? we were going up the street to arnold circus to a kitchen that makes the best hot chocolate on this side of the sea and the most perfect fried eggs with sage, about a ten minute ride away. i am feeling a bit nervous but he urges me on with a series of playful nudges. ok! i am sitting like a lady in the space behind the handlebars but in front of the seat. bahbak is behind me, his arms are squishing me into place. we take off, cold wind in our hair, i am squealing like a kid. i feel so free! we zigzag through lazy sunday afternoon traffic, praying for green lights all the way, and i am begging god for no mishaps, hoping my shoes do not fly off. as he pedals, our thighs brush, our warm cheeks are touching and his beard is scratchy. it was so romantic. we could tell people waiting at the bus stops [along the way] were jealous, they all wanted to be us.
sigh.
love
o
30 November 2008
29 November 2008
hello from london [part twenty-one]
hello friends
how are you? i am well. i have lots of news to tell so i will get straight into it.
01/ when i was organising the e k sample sale, aki asked me how much stock i was taking to the sale and i said 40 [as in £40,000]. she asked me how much i think i am going to sell and i said 15. at the last sample sale they made 10, and you know me, i wanted to make more than that. she said realistically we will probably make 8. do you know how much we made? 18! is that not great news? that is more pounds than my annual wage. e k will definitely have to keep me now! you know how i like a tidy shop? i really had to let that go at the sample sale. ladies are hungry here. you would think they do not know what a credit crunch is. they probably think it is a chocolate bar. we had a packed shop most of the first day. it took them a hour to obliterate the space. i really had to restrain myself from tidying because it would have been a waste of time. they bought up big so it was all ok.
02/ i went to see lykke li last night. she is truly amazing [in a swedish pop sensation way]. she is touring australia at the end of the year, you should see her. you know how lykke li, mgmt, and vampire weekend represent a specific time in my life from earlier this year? she covered vampire weekend's cape cod kwassa kwassa. it was so exciting! her show is full of surprises. she starts a song you think you know then she twists it and sings something else. she talks about bad boyfriends [her words] and you know everyone is on her side.
03/ you know the sex-related documentaries shown on sbs at 10pm on a friday night? i watched an english one about three severely physically disabled men who travel to spain to lose their virginity at a brothel that caters for clients with special needs. there i was outside camden town tube station waiting for two friends when a man walks past and i know i have seen him before, but where? oh yes, he is one of the disabled men from the documentary. so random! i wanted to say something to him but i could not think of anything appropriate.
04/ you know in sydney when you go out you are surrounded by kids in their teens to early twenties? it is not like that here. when i go out people are my age or older. at vampire weekend it was like that, same with lykke li, games nights at the bethnal green working men's club, the ponytail magazine launch, everywhere so far. i really like it. it feels good to mix with people who are not teenagers.
05/ warning! this next point is about a boy, stop reading now if you do not want to know about it. my square from last week is now a line between two points. it is a pretty sweet deal. sort of. the universe is totally getting me back because the boy is moving to germany in january for work. is that not cruel? double sigh. at the sample sale aki told me mark asked her if something was going on between the boy and i. she totally caught me off guard. i could not help but smile sheepishly. aki laughs and warns me not to say anything to mark because [in her words] he meddles. she said he will claim matchmaking points. we both laughed.
lots of love
olivia
how are you? i am well. i have lots of news to tell so i will get straight into it.
01/ when i was organising the e k sample sale, aki asked me how much stock i was taking to the sale and i said 40 [as in £40,000]. she asked me how much i think i am going to sell and i said 15. at the last sample sale they made 10, and you know me, i wanted to make more than that. she said realistically we will probably make 8. do you know how much we made? 18! is that not great news? that is more pounds than my annual wage. e k will definitely have to keep me now! you know how i like a tidy shop? i really had to let that go at the sample sale. ladies are hungry here. you would think they do not know what a credit crunch is. they probably think it is a chocolate bar. we had a packed shop most of the first day. it took them a hour to obliterate the space. i really had to restrain myself from tidying because it would have been a waste of time. they bought up big so it was all ok.
02/ i went to see lykke li last night. she is truly amazing [in a swedish pop sensation way]. she is touring australia at the end of the year, you should see her. you know how lykke li, mgmt, and vampire weekend represent a specific time in my life from earlier this year? she covered vampire weekend's cape cod kwassa kwassa. it was so exciting! her show is full of surprises. she starts a song you think you know then she twists it and sings something else. she talks about bad boyfriends [her words] and you know everyone is on her side.
03/ you know the sex-related documentaries shown on sbs at 10pm on a friday night? i watched an english one about three severely physically disabled men who travel to spain to lose their virginity at a brothel that caters for clients with special needs. there i was outside camden town tube station waiting for two friends when a man walks past and i know i have seen him before, but where? oh yes, he is one of the disabled men from the documentary. so random! i wanted to say something to him but i could not think of anything appropriate.
04/ you know in sydney when you go out you are surrounded by kids in their teens to early twenties? it is not like that here. when i go out people are my age or older. at vampire weekend it was like that, same with lykke li, games nights at the bethnal green working men's club, the ponytail magazine launch, everywhere so far. i really like it. it feels good to mix with people who are not teenagers.
05/ warning! this next point is about a boy, stop reading now if you do not want to know about it. my square from last week is now a line between two points. it is a pretty sweet deal. sort of. the universe is totally getting me back because the boy is moving to germany in january for work. is that not cruel? double sigh. at the sample sale aki told me mark asked her if something was going on between the boy and i. she totally caught me off guard. i could not help but smile sheepishly. aki laughs and warns me not to say anything to mark because [in her words] he meddles. she said he will claim matchmaking points. we both laughed.
lots of love
olivia
22 November 2008
hello from london [part twenty]
ok peeps, today you are all honourary girl friends because this new installment of hello from london is about men. if you do not want to know about this aspect of my life you should stop reading now.
ready?
i have a penpal who is american but lives in london [we only exchanged two letters each so we are not really penpals anymore but that is how i think of him]. when i got here we arranged to meet and i was very excited to finally match the letters to a face. he is handsome creative and young. we all know what that spells. trouble. we had a one-weekend-only opportunity and it was fun. except, you know me, i really liked him but it did not work and i was left a bit broken. after that i was not interested in anyone for weeks. i was so over it. i did not want to get involved. it has been two and a half months.
did you know i am going to run the eley kishimoto online store? our website producer, let us call him s, came in last friday to show me how the online store works. he snapped my resolve in two, i fell off the wagon. tall, red hair, stripe tee, the best smile ever. after the briefing he tells mark eley i am very bright. oh my, thank you! on sunday i made dinner for my friend, b. whenever i go over to his house we make dinner, drink wine, play board games. it is a sweet set up. i have known this boy for eight and a half years and we are the best of friends. at dinner he mentions s. i ask how he knows him and he says his friend, k, is s' housemate. i met her once at a club. she is a stylist and the friendliest person one could meet on the mean streets of london. i squeeze him for more details and apparently s told k he finds me funny and intelligent. oh oh oh!
love
o
ready?
i have a penpal who is american but lives in london [we only exchanged two letters each so we are not really penpals anymore but that is how i think of him]. when i got here we arranged to meet and i was very excited to finally match the letters to a face. he is handsome creative and young. we all know what that spells. trouble. we had a one-weekend-only opportunity and it was fun. except, you know me, i really liked him but it did not work and i was left a bit broken. after that i was not interested in anyone for weeks. i was so over it. i did not want to get involved. it has been two and a half months.
did you know i am going to run the eley kishimoto online store? our website producer, let us call him s, came in last friday to show me how the online store works. he snapped my resolve in two, i fell off the wagon. tall, red hair, stripe tee, the best smile ever. after the briefing he tells mark eley i am very bright. oh my, thank you! on sunday i made dinner for my friend, b. whenever i go over to his house we make dinner, drink wine, play board games. it is a sweet set up. i have known this boy for eight and a half years and we are the best of friends. at dinner he mentions s. i ask how he knows him and he says his friend, k, is s' housemate. i met her once at a club. she is a stylist and the friendliest person one could meet on the mean streets of london. i squeeze him for more details and apparently s told k he finds me funny and intelligent. oh oh oh!
love
o
9 November 2008
hoot hoot from london [part nineteen and a half]
hello [again]!
i hope you do not mind this extra communication. it is sunday night and my housemate pippa and i were just down at our local, the dove. there is a lot of talent there if you know what i mean. nudge nudge wink wink! my new favourite drink, after vodka and cranberry, is pear cider. so good [if you like your drink sweet]! i can feel my face is one big spot of blush.
what is new, you ask? let me tell you! i bought art and craft supplies today to make a thank you card for the tatty devine team [because they were fun to intern for]. i feel my creative drought has broken!
i hope you do not mind this extra communication. it is sunday night and my housemate pippa and i were just down at our local, the dove. there is a lot of talent there if you know what i mean. nudge nudge wink wink! my new favourite drink, after vodka and cranberry, is pear cider. so good [if you like your drink sweet]! i can feel my face is one big spot of blush.
what is new, you ask? let me tell you! i bought art and craft supplies today to make a thank you card for the tatty devine team [because they were fun to intern for]. i feel my creative drought has broken!
i made them an owl card. be warned, i am on an owl card making spree so do not be surprised if you receive one for christmas [even though it is blatantly not christmas-themed]. super knee-melting, no?
now that i am sobering up, i do not have much more to say.
these are of two tea cosies i saw today.
now that i am sobering up, i do not have much more to say.
these are of two tea cosies i saw today.
a cupcake!
a pineapple!
the wind is making a whooshing sound down the chimney and out the fireplace into my room. you should see my bed, it is a mountain of doonas.
right now, i miss you and no owl can make the ache less.
love
o
the wind is making a whooshing sound down the chimney and out the fireplace into my room. you should see my bed, it is a mountain of doonas.
right now, i miss you and no owl can make the ache less.
love
o
hello from london [part nineteen]
hello everyone!
it has been a bit quiet on the east london front. i work monday to friday, come home, eat, read my book, sleep. on saturday and sunday i scour the markets for treasure. amelia groom stayed with me last weekend, my first visitor from home. we had an amazing market day on sunday. we wondered down a side street off brick lane and stumbled on an open warehouse that looked a bit rough.
it has been a bit quiet on the east london front. i work monday to friday, come home, eat, read my book, sleep. on saturday and sunday i scour the markets for treasure. amelia groom stayed with me last weekend, my first visitor from home. we had an amazing market day on sunday. we wondered down a side street off brick lane and stumbled on an open warehouse that looked a bit rough.
we ventured inside and found a great stall that sold 1950s 3d porn magazines [complete with 3d glasses] and charles and diana commemorative mugs. gold!
back on the street i found a mirror with a very kind message [great for the mornings].
we went to a little tea house called a time for tea. it is all wooden and dark inside with dance hall records playing and bric-a-brac for sale. it looks like a tea house from post-war london times.
after a luxe session of sipping and eating, we had another flea sale rummage down the street at the george and dragon. the bar is dank and musty with hand-written letters, buttons, and clothes strewn all over the floor and little round tables stacked high with knic knacs. the place looked like it had just been robbed. i think if i ever settle again in sydney i want to run a place that is a flea market, bingo hall, disco, tea house, and life drawing class all rolled into one.
in the corner of the pub were two small boys, joe and duke, with their own stall. amongst the mess were six glass animal figurines. one of the boys announced they were £60 for the lot or £1 each, also some of the things on the table were free. oh those boys are shrewd businessmen!
i am still in love with work. sometimes i feel i am a bit quiet and they might think i am boring. oh slowly slowly! this week i sent off all the patterns to the grader and now i am organising a sample sale for the end of the month. aki is letting me organise it all by myself. do you know what that means? i am the first to go through the eley kishimoto archive and excess stock. oh die! heaven! but i am being restrained and sensible, setting myself a spending limit because i just blew my first london pay on a bernhard willhelm dress. so naughty! i have to live poor for the rest of the month now.
my very exciting news for today, though it may bore you to tears, is that i bought an emerald green woolen beanie that has a turban knot in the front for £4.50 that looks exactly like a balenciaga one i have been contemplating buying for £115. i found it in a vintage shop. bargain central!
now just a quick word on music. at work we listen to commercial radio, it is very repetitive. i know all the words to the hits of beyonce and rihanna. karaoke, watch out! but what i am really loving is old broken social scene [especially gang bang suicide] and new port o brien [who are currently calling themselves port obama and are touring sydney in december and you should go see them]. hackney central library is a strange place. the person who buys their music must be a real indie kid because there are lots of cds there i would not expect to find in a local library, like cocorosie, bright eyes, broken social scene. it is goldmine! but i went there today looking for the diary of anne frank and two librarians did not know what it was or how to find it on the database [which made me really sad] and one person waved me to children's non-fiction. i could not find it there either. sigh. i am seeing lykke li play on 28th november. wheee!
ok just one more funny story. i need to have a dance so bad! amelia needs a dance too. someone help her! we were at a second-hand warehouse called beyond retro and they were playing some dirty hip hop song and we were both trying very hard to keep the dance moves contained. we looked at each other and giggled knowingly. i went there today and tried very hard not to start dancing between the rails of clothes but a toe tap and some shoulder managed to escape. where is good to dance here? i look on timeout and there is nothing! i follow djs home and there is nothing! help.
lots of love
olivia
i am still in love with work. sometimes i feel i am a bit quiet and they might think i am boring. oh slowly slowly! this week i sent off all the patterns to the grader and now i am organising a sample sale for the end of the month. aki is letting me organise it all by myself. do you know what that means? i am the first to go through the eley kishimoto archive and excess stock. oh die! heaven! but i am being restrained and sensible, setting myself a spending limit because i just blew my first london pay on a bernhard willhelm dress. so naughty! i have to live poor for the rest of the month now.
my very exciting news for today, though it may bore you to tears, is that i bought an emerald green woolen beanie that has a turban knot in the front for £4.50 that looks exactly like a balenciaga one i have been contemplating buying for £115. i found it in a vintage shop. bargain central!
now just a quick word on music. at work we listen to commercial radio, it is very repetitive. i know all the words to the hits of beyonce and rihanna. karaoke, watch out! but what i am really loving is old broken social scene [especially gang bang suicide] and new port o brien [who are currently calling themselves port obama and are touring sydney in december and you should go see them]. hackney central library is a strange place. the person who buys their music must be a real indie kid because there are lots of cds there i would not expect to find in a local library, like cocorosie, bright eyes, broken social scene. it is goldmine! but i went there today looking for the diary of anne frank and two librarians did not know what it was or how to find it on the database [which made me really sad] and one person waved me to children's non-fiction. i could not find it there either. sigh. i am seeing lykke li play on 28th november. wheee!
ok just one more funny story. i need to have a dance so bad! amelia needs a dance too. someone help her! we were at a second-hand warehouse called beyond retro and they were playing some dirty hip hop song and we were both trying very hard to keep the dance moves contained. we looked at each other and giggled knowingly. i went there today and tried very hard not to start dancing between the rails of clothes but a toe tap and some shoulder managed to escape. where is good to dance here? i look on timeout and there is nothing! i follow djs home and there is nothing! help.
lots of love
olivia
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