hello friends
thank you to everyone who saw me or wanted to see me but could not. i really appreciate your time and love. right now i feel far away from the people i care about. you know since jonathon has left and now that rebecca is preparing to move to berlin, i only have one very good friend left in london? of course i have a handful of new friends but there is nothing like a friendship built on years of tears, sweat, and good times. rodrigo and i broke up today. i almost want to come home so i do not feel alone. i had a big cry with one of my flatmates. i feel like such a girl getting upset over something that only lasted four months and when i spoke about it with catherine [my flatmate] i was clumsily spilling cliches all over our kitchen floor. you know what this ride has been like, you know how excited i have been meeting someone so eerily my doppelganger. he is doing the classic boy thing and does not want a relationship. how can i work with that? i am so proud of myself i did not bargain for more time.
i could write more but i will save you the awkwardness. double sigh, major cry.
love
o
5 July 2009
4 July 2009
hello from sydney [part four of four]
hello [again].
one of my favourite moments of the trip happened on thursday night. you know chris morris? he is friends with lily and tadzio, he is a photographer. he kindly shot my final year project [from tafe days] for my portfolio. in return, chris asked for a felt face badge of a man with beard and specs. not that old chestnut! just a little aside, i love that expression. i did not know it until i got to london. rodrigo says it with a wink. like everyone else who asks for a face badge, i thought chris was subtly asking for one of himself so i use his face as my point of reference. almost a year on and i am finishing his face badge in sydney. i show the work-in-progress to lily and she laughs. why? is it hideous? lils informs me chris talked about giving it to his ex-girlfriend. oh. oops. it is too late to change it now though i feel a bit weird stitching "you better look out for love" on the back of the badge like i have with all the faces that have come before. at dinner with lily, tadzio, chris and doris at tapenade [where dave works], i give chris his badge wrapped in tissue paper. he peels back the sticky tape, the badge is face down. he turns it over.
"oh. it is me!"
yes it is. the surprise! the recognition! i felt fulfilled.
love
o
ps this is all i had drafted last night, i still have friday 26 june and saturday 27 june [my last day in sydney] to go but i feel i cannot write more right now. the next hello from london should explain why.
hello from sydney [part three of four]
hello friends
do not be fooled, my cousins are only pretending to be camera-shy.
here they are showing their faces.
who is the cutest cousin of them all? that is right, the baby!
i feel for her parents. how are they going to say "no" to this face?
do you know who these women are? you should be ashamed of yourselves! they are part of team poepke. i met up with millie, grace, and a bicycle-riding amelia on tuesday afternoon for tea and cake at yellow in potts point. after, we visited juliet and her baby, beatrix. i am sure everyone has heard this story already but it still makes me melt a little just thinking about it. in juliet's living room sit a pair of bongos and beatrix is hitting them with her hand and laughing. i am saying something to her and, mid-sentence, she takes my hand and places it on a bongo. i hit it and she laughs. die! it is so silly but for a second there, her acknowledgement of my existence made me so happy.
at the airport [last saturday] doris was totally ribbing me, insisting i was going home. she made me realise london is not my true home, i just live there. sydney is where my family and everyone i love are. it took a while, but i know it now.
ready for a recount of my last week in sydney?
a few stray rays on sun broke through on sunday morning so lils, tadz, and i pile into the car and try for rozelle markets again. we came away empty-handed but no matter, tadzio dug deep and proud to produce this nugget of comedy gold.
i met up with mira and ameli [my mad cortes bosses] and their girls at their house. i used to baby-sit milla and lola from when they were 1. milla would give me a hard time and howl at the sight of me, the idea of her parents leaving upset her. it was such a revelation when she tells me "i like your t-shirt with the horses". why, thank you! i love it when kids talk. patiently waiting for my young cousins to start conversations has been worth it. i cannot remember anything funny they have said but i like it they can tell me what they are thinking.
come evening time, doris and i head to hurstville to have dinner at our parents' with our uncles, aunts, and cousins.
do not be fooled, my cousins are only pretending to be camera-shy.
here they are showing their faces.
who is the cutest cousin of them all? that is right, the baby!
i feel for her parents. how are they going to say "no" to this face?
on monday i see samson and delilah on my own. whatever it was i thought i was bracing myself for did not compare to what i got. does that make sense? you should see it.
do you know who these women are? you should be ashamed of yourselves! they are part of team poepke. i met up with millie, grace, and a bicycle-riding amelia on tuesday afternoon for tea and cake at yellow in potts point. after, we visited juliet and her baby, beatrix. i am sure everyone has heard this story already but it still makes me melt a little just thinking about it. in juliet's living room sit a pair of bongos and beatrix is hitting them with her hand and laughing. i am saying something to her and, mid-sentence, she takes my hand and places it on a bongo. i hit it and she laughs. die! it is so silly but for a second there, her acknowledgement of my existence made me so happy.
the late afternoon sees me back at my parents' rummaging through my boxes of clothes [i am so over wearing the same wardrobe for the last ten months] and i take up my mother's offer of new underwear. why are undies so expensive now? we head to k-mart in hurstville westfield to stock up on some bonds and i think the three pack is cheaper than buying singles but it is not really. i can feel myself internalising a tantrum again but then i remember who is buying them and everything is ok. sometimes i cannot believe i am twenty-eight.
for dinner, lily, mayor of dumpling town, makes [from scratch] steamed vegetarian dumplings with chilli soy dipping sauce and stir-fried vegetables.
witness the magic for yourselves.
my uncle, who is a dentist, cleans my teeth on wednesday morning. i open wide, he does nothing.
"what is wrong?"
his silence sounds expensive.
"there is nothing to clean", he sighs.
there is a lesson in there, kids. yes, you can make friends with salad and vegetarians have cleaner teeth.
later, i meet caryl for lunch and we head to chinatown to a new noodle bar. halfway through slurping my hot and sour noodle soup with tofu, dave calls saying he has locked himself out of doris' apartment. he wants to meet me to get the spare set of keys i am holding. when he meets us, dave is noticeably uncomfortable and a little bit sheepish. ok, nothing too strange, i mean, locking oneself out of a flat can be very annoying. when i see doris later that day, she asks me if dave was weird. i nod. she laughs and explains he was in his pyjamas and had not had a cigarette yet that morning. he looked the same to me!
while caryl and i window shop our way to dinnertime, this sign gives us the giggles.
my cousin and her new groom host a dinner for my parents, doris, and i at a seafood restaurant where we eat ourselves silly. this giant lobster was the main attraction.
love
o
22 June 2009
hello from sydney [part two of four]
you again! why, hello!
ready for friday and saturday?
my father accompanied me to my eye exam on friday morning and he bought me a new pair of specs. the shop assistant explained the category of glasses, like this section here is men's, this is unisex, women's, for older people, designer and so on. i choose a big semi-transparent grey plastic pair from the old people's section [only $70]. she frowns at me "are you sure?" she asks. "yes!" i say. she points to a black geek pair, i am not convinced. i really like these grandma ones. i pick them up on wednesday.
after running a few errands for my mother in hurstville and rummaging through the vinnie's there, i head back east to start on some office props for doris' birthday party. she asked me to make a photocopier out of cardboard, not flat but 3d. while i am at it, i make a cardboard typewriter for myself. i must say it was one well-dressed event, the people and the apartment. d stole a giant stapler and shredded paper from her work. she decked out the flat [her friend's, they share the same birthday] with a tea trolley overflowing with coffee mugs and biscuits and instant chicken noodle soup. platters of sushi and financial magazines fed the body and the mind. she had business review weekly's rich 200 issue and encouraged us to see if we could find ourselves in it. the women rocked corporate chic with power blazers, high-waisted pleated trousers, and lace-up oxford heels. some wore a blouse, some did not depending on whether they were busting for a promotion. the men wore suits. adrian dressed as patrick bateman complete with blood-splattered rain poncho. hot. the night dissolved into further hilarity when we settled down to watch one of d's gifts, butts of envy. sigh.
chief executive officers, doris and sophie, on an important conference call.
stacked tea trolley and cardboard water cooler, a happy office makes.
these numbers are not going to crunch themselves!
patrick, is that you?
saturday was washed out so a trip to rozelle markets was sadly ditched. instead, lils, tadz, and i went to the fish markets, bought fish and ate an early lunch.
my gracious hosts, lily and tadzio.
am i the only pleb who does not know this is off a sonic youth album?
i pick up a last-minute shift at poepke [with juliet, catch-up city!] before heading to viola's apartment for a roll-your-own-sushi-roll/ boardgames night with the girls.
viola with a plate of omega-3 goodness.
ok that is all i have for now.
love
o
ready for friday and saturday?
my father accompanied me to my eye exam on friday morning and he bought me a new pair of specs. the shop assistant explained the category of glasses, like this section here is men's, this is unisex, women's, for older people, designer and so on. i choose a big semi-transparent grey plastic pair from the old people's section [only $70]. she frowns at me "are you sure?" she asks. "yes!" i say. she points to a black geek pair, i am not convinced. i really like these grandma ones. i pick them up on wednesday.
after running a few errands for my mother in hurstville and rummaging through the vinnie's there, i head back east to start on some office props for doris' birthday party. she asked me to make a photocopier out of cardboard, not flat but 3d. while i am at it, i make a cardboard typewriter for myself. i must say it was one well-dressed event, the people and the apartment. d stole a giant stapler and shredded paper from her work. she decked out the flat [her friend's, they share the same birthday] with a tea trolley overflowing with coffee mugs and biscuits and instant chicken noodle soup. platters of sushi and financial magazines fed the body and the mind. she had business review weekly's rich 200 issue and encouraged us to see if we could find ourselves in it. the women rocked corporate chic with power blazers, high-waisted pleated trousers, and lace-up oxford heels. some wore a blouse, some did not depending on whether they were busting for a promotion. the men wore suits. adrian dressed as patrick bateman complete with blood-splattered rain poncho. hot. the night dissolved into further hilarity when we settled down to watch one of d's gifts, butts of envy. sigh.
chief executive officers, doris and sophie, on an important conference call.
stacked tea trolley and cardboard water cooler, a happy office makes.
these numbers are not going to crunch themselves!
patrick, is that you?
saturday was washed out so a trip to rozelle markets was sadly ditched. instead, lils, tadz, and i went to the fish markets, bought fish and ate an early lunch.
my gracious hosts, lily and tadzio.
am i the only pleb who does not know this is off a sonic youth album?
i pick up a last-minute shift at poepke [with juliet, catch-up city!] before heading to viola's apartment for a roll-your-own-sushi-roll/ boardgames night with the girls.
viola with a plate of omega-3 goodness.
ok that is all i have for now.
love
o
hello from sydney [part one of four]
hello friends
i am in sydney, i have been here a week. how are we going to do this? it might take a while.
my parents picked me up from the airport last sunday night. i was a bit disappointed my mother did not greet me with tears on her lashes. for someone who always manages to slip in a "i do not understand why you are in london. when are you coming home?" in every phone call, she was very composed. i did feel a little guilty when i spied my father dab dab at his eyes. we went to dinner with doris at chat thai in chinatown. you know, it is easy to find cheap bad food and expensive good food in london, but cheap good food is a diamond in the rough. i miss sydney for its culinary delights, thai and japanese on every corner. one can eat out twice a week here and not break the bank. the upside to being food poor in london is that it forces one to be a creative cook. back at d's apartment, dave comes over and we watch the 1984 hit, splash. remember? daryl hannah is a mermaid and tom hanks falls for her. i forgot what it is like to watch a film with doris. five minutes in and the questions start.
monday late lunchtime sees yvette, dave, d, and i scoffing vegie rolls, pizzas and tarts down bourke street bakery way. i can already tell this sydney trip will be my own personal food safari. i am staying with lily and tadzio for the rest of my trip and lily kicks off with a delicious vegetable broth. i am not sure what it is called but it has greens in it. so good!
doris, at the surry hills vinnie's, stocks up on party supplies for her office party themed birthday do.
dave does his bit to boost the economy.
tuesday i venture into the city before my lunch date with caryl. maybe just maybe i was a bit awestruck by kinokuniya [london is a bit chain store crazy so it is easy enough to find borders but a design book wonderland is harder to come by]. my knees melted at the sight of an a5 sized book featuring japanese wood prints categorised into seasons, isetatsu collection. then i made the mistake of peeking into incu and my knees melted, again! i have never been a fan of lover but there is this black sleeveless number with a white double collar, generously draped top, cinched in waist, and pencil skirt. die! it is sort of a tuxedo dress, sort of sexy novice nun. if you want to see it, take me out.
arm in arm, caryl and i head towards this vietnamese eatery we used to lunch at when i still worked in sydney. it is not there anymore, replaced by a new vietnamese eatery. an old man standing out the front waves us in, a good sign. i end my food tour for the day at dinner with andy at the chinese dumpling and noodle place in potts point. again, yum!
do you know jonathon has left london and is returning to sydney by way of san francisco and los angeles? sigh. you are lucky to have him back. before he left, rodrigo, kt [r's friend, my new flatmate], and i made him a goodbye film based on actual events. i showed it to andy, he watched it about five times rolling on the floor laughing. i thought he was going to die.
wednesday i had lunch with dominik at the korean cafe on the side of the metro theatre, afternoon tea with doris and my mother at the tea room, and dinner at din tai fung with the girls. when i warned rodrigo i might come back roly poly, he drily suggested a gym membership.
afternoon tea with my mother and doris, before
and after.
dinner at din tai fung with brides-to-be, viola and cass.
i sat next to caryl and staedtler at dinner. the dumplings and noodles fueled my fight against their wave upon wave of love energy.
i worked my first of four shifts at poepke on thursday. do you know what has been such a comfort about being back in sydney? its familiarity. of course this can be a curse and that is why i needed to stretch my legs in london but it is good to know i can come back and sydney will still be her usual charming, laid-back self. the life here is so good. it is certainly easier to be poor here than it is in london. back at poepke, i slipped into my old shopgirl self. spacing the hangers evenly, straightening the shelves, folding and refolding tshirts on the bassike concession stand [i say that lovingly], attending to customers, and having a dance in front of the mirror when no one is looking. i tried on a pair of dries van noten heels and a bernhard willhelm jacket. die!
love
o
i am in sydney, i have been here a week. how are we going to do this? it might take a while.
my parents picked me up from the airport last sunday night. i was a bit disappointed my mother did not greet me with tears on her lashes. for someone who always manages to slip in a "i do not understand why you are in london. when are you coming home?" in every phone call, she was very composed. i did feel a little guilty when i spied my father dab dab at his eyes. we went to dinner with doris at chat thai in chinatown. you know, it is easy to find cheap bad food and expensive good food in london, but cheap good food is a diamond in the rough. i miss sydney for its culinary delights, thai and japanese on every corner. one can eat out twice a week here and not break the bank. the upside to being food poor in london is that it forces one to be a creative cook. back at d's apartment, dave comes over and we watch the 1984 hit, splash. remember? daryl hannah is a mermaid and tom hanks falls for her. i forgot what it is like to watch a film with doris. five minutes in and the questions start.
monday late lunchtime sees yvette, dave, d, and i scoffing vegie rolls, pizzas and tarts down bourke street bakery way. i can already tell this sydney trip will be my own personal food safari. i am staying with lily and tadzio for the rest of my trip and lily kicks off with a delicious vegetable broth. i am not sure what it is called but it has greens in it. so good!
doris, at the surry hills vinnie's, stocks up on party supplies for her office party themed birthday do.
dave does his bit to boost the economy.
tuesday i venture into the city before my lunch date with caryl. maybe just maybe i was a bit awestruck by kinokuniya [london is a bit chain store crazy so it is easy enough to find borders but a design book wonderland is harder to come by]. my knees melted at the sight of an a5 sized book featuring japanese wood prints categorised into seasons, isetatsu collection. then i made the mistake of peeking into incu and my knees melted, again! i have never been a fan of lover but there is this black sleeveless number with a white double collar, generously draped top, cinched in waist, and pencil skirt. die! it is sort of a tuxedo dress, sort of sexy novice nun. if you want to see it, take me out.
arm in arm, caryl and i head towards this vietnamese eatery we used to lunch at when i still worked in sydney. it is not there anymore, replaced by a new vietnamese eatery. an old man standing out the front waves us in, a good sign. i end my food tour for the day at dinner with andy at the chinese dumpling and noodle place in potts point. again, yum!
do you know jonathon has left london and is returning to sydney by way of san francisco and los angeles? sigh. you are lucky to have him back. before he left, rodrigo, kt [r's friend, my new flatmate], and i made him a goodbye film based on actual events. i showed it to andy, he watched it about five times rolling on the floor laughing. i thought he was going to die.
wednesday i had lunch with dominik at the korean cafe on the side of the metro theatre, afternoon tea with doris and my mother at the tea room, and dinner at din tai fung with the girls. when i warned rodrigo i might come back roly poly, he drily suggested a gym membership.
afternoon tea with my mother and doris, before
and after.
dinner at din tai fung with brides-to-be, viola and cass.
i sat next to caryl and staedtler at dinner. the dumplings and noodles fueled my fight against their wave upon wave of love energy.
i worked my first of four shifts at poepke on thursday. do you know what has been such a comfort about being back in sydney? its familiarity. of course this can be a curse and that is why i needed to stretch my legs in london but it is good to know i can come back and sydney will still be her usual charming, laid-back self. the life here is so good. it is certainly easier to be poor here than it is in london. back at poepke, i slipped into my old shopgirl self. spacing the hangers evenly, straightening the shelves, folding and refolding tshirts on the bassike concession stand [i say that lovingly], attending to customers, and having a dance in front of the mirror when no one is looking. i tried on a pair of dries van noten heels and a bernhard willhelm jacket. die!
love
o
24 May 2009
hello from london [part thirty-two]
hello friends
how are you? i am well and happy. we have had three long weekends since easter. luxe, no? the english really like summer. it has been so hot i actually thought i was going to melt this weekend, dripping all over the pavement like a scoop of ice-cream in a cone with a flake stuck on top. i had one of those today, it was good.
i had the best day ever yesterday. this best day involved my friend bahbak, both of us riding bikes [on the road for the first time, no less], a guy bourdain exhibition at the wapping project, and a lazy wander through the surrounding 'burbs. have you been to the wapping project? let me take you, it is a diamond in the rough.
the wapping project used to be a power station but it has since been converted into a cafe/ bookstore/ gallery/ theatre space. it is amazing. we went to see 'unseen', a collection of previously unpublished photographs by guy bourdain. the room is very dark but the oversized prints are hung in back-lit frames which make shapes on the astroturf floor. the work shown carried bourdain's signature featuring high-fashion clad models [he did a lot of work for french vogue and advertising for charles jourdan] with a sense of humour [and with that comes intelligence], all well-framed. i mean, who am i to say anything about guy bourdain but w o w !
biking through the back of wapping, it is a bit ghetto and there were groups of young men about. b rode ahead of me and when i whizzed past a young dude by his car he yelled "hey sexy! i like a girl with glasses!" i giggled. i called out to b "did you hear what he said?", bahbak turned around "i knew he would say something to you!"
i finished the catcher in the rye yesterday morning in bed and started sylvia plath's the bell jar whilst lazing in clissold park today with my friend dave. i did not know both books are new-york based.
it is my birthday next saturday. we are going for drinks at the bistrotheque and then a dance at dalston superstore [the new club in town if you believe the hype]. guess who will be wearing her new bernhard willhlem dress [purchased from poepke]? me! i cannot wait to show it off. wheee! also less than three weeks before i see you. double wheee!
love
o
how are you? i am well and happy. we have had three long weekends since easter. luxe, no? the english really like summer. it has been so hot i actually thought i was going to melt this weekend, dripping all over the pavement like a scoop of ice-cream in a cone with a flake stuck on top. i had one of those today, it was good.
i had the best day ever yesterday. this best day involved my friend bahbak, both of us riding bikes [on the road for the first time, no less], a guy bourdain exhibition at the wapping project, and a lazy wander through the surrounding 'burbs. have you been to the wapping project? let me take you, it is a diamond in the rough.
the wapping project used to be a power station but it has since been converted into a cafe/ bookstore/ gallery/ theatre space. it is amazing. we went to see 'unseen', a collection of previously unpublished photographs by guy bourdain. the room is very dark but the oversized prints are hung in back-lit frames which make shapes on the astroturf floor. the work shown carried bourdain's signature featuring high-fashion clad models [he did a lot of work for french vogue and advertising for charles jourdan] with a sense of humour [and with that comes intelligence], all well-framed. i mean, who am i to say anything about guy bourdain but w o w !
biking through the back of wapping, it is a bit ghetto and there were groups of young men about. b rode ahead of me and when i whizzed past a young dude by his car he yelled "hey sexy! i like a girl with glasses!" i giggled. i called out to b "did you hear what he said?", bahbak turned around "i knew he would say something to you!"
i finished the catcher in the rye yesterday morning in bed and started sylvia plath's the bell jar whilst lazing in clissold park today with my friend dave. i did not know both books are new-york based.
it is my birthday next saturday. we are going for drinks at the bistrotheque and then a dance at dalston superstore [the new club in town if you believe the hype]. guess who will be wearing her new bernhard willhlem dress [purchased from poepke]? me! i cannot wait to show it off. wheee! also less than three weeks before i see you. double wheee!
love
o
17 May 2009
a long overdue hello from london [part thirty-one]
hello friends
every time i think to write to you, i feel i have nothing. i feel i have nothing now but i should say something, if only to let you know i am alive and well. the countdown is on, you know, less than four weeks before i see you. hurruh!
ok let us split this into threes. one, work. two, me. three, the boy.
so, work. a few weeks ago mark called me to the back room where we keep the printed fabric archive, online store stock, excess stock, and i sometimes keep a desk in there for when our sales agent is in.
"olivia, this room is a mess!"
"oh. sorry. i will fix it later today." [please do not hurt me!]
"just kidding!" [laugh]
"ok..."
"do you want to stay?"
"where?"
"here."
"oh. yes."
"ok."
so there you have it. e k is sponsoring me. you know how fickle fashion can be, i mean, this is true for right now but fingers crossed it will still be true in october when the "working" part of my working holiday visa is over. i am excited and happy and i hope it happens.
the other reason mark likes me, other than my ability to pay my own wage with sales from the online store, is that he considers me his walking spell check.
mark asks the room in general "how do you spell eduardo?"
he swivels around to look at me.
"umm e-d-u-a-r-d-o."
"yeah that was what i was thinking."
"sure you were."
"shut up!"
we both burst into giggles. next he is on the phone to someone calling himself a welsh wizard.
ok, me. so what do you want to know? i treated myself to a haircut. the right side of my head is cropped very short and blends into a long left side. i look a little bit eighties. rodrigo has offered to maintain the cropped side for me with a pair of clippers but i do not trust him. what else? oh yes, i am moving house. it is a little bit sad because i love where i live but i am only moving five streets away to a proper share house with two other girls. my new room is bigger and the rent is cheaper. do not fight it, just accept it. i am not sure the area is as safe but it is in shoreditch proper and there are less house rules. one of the girls is rodrigo's friend and studying film, the other girl finished her film studies and just directed a feature. excitement city! fingers crossed the flat will be the creative hub it promises to be.
now, the boy. i will not bore you with too many details. if you can date a music journalist, i highly recommend it. i try not to milk r for too many favours, but he always manages to wrangle a +1 from somewhere. we went to camden crawl [a two-day music festival in camden] and saw the yeah yeah yeahs [w o w !], the big pink [new english band, ok], and echo and the bunnymen. we went to see hot chip play a secret show in shoreditch. i liked hot chip before but, if possible, i like them even more now. their live set was amazing and there was a lot of love in the room when they started a song with the line "i want to be your one-life stand" [obvious play on the concept of one-night stand] and i turn to r and say "oh they are ridiculously romantic." and he explains two of them got married recently [not to each other]. my phone ran out of juice that night but when i charged it the next day, r had sent me a message while we were dancing to hot chip's dj set to say he thinks i am cool and is very happy to be here with me. die. we are seeing the horrors on june 6. i wonder how big i can make my hair?
r is away in san francisco on a road trip with two friends. do you know what that means? my weekends are free! i cleared three jumble sales yesterday [one in a church hall, one in a design studio, and one in a community centre]. i love going through people's junk. i came away with three books [sylvia plath, woody allen, j d salinger], three melamine plates painted with paris street scenes, a plain canvas bag [no logos, rare!], a necklace with a macaroon pendant, two japanese magazines with e k on the covers, and another painted plate i won in a raffle. treasure galore! i had afternoon tea twice in two days. this weekend has made me realise i miss my own company because i spend much of the weekends with r. if i were with him now, i would not have gone to these jumble sales or had afternoon tea adventures with the girls, things i love. there is a lesson in there somewhere.
love
o
every time i think to write to you, i feel i have nothing. i feel i have nothing now but i should say something, if only to let you know i am alive and well. the countdown is on, you know, less than four weeks before i see you. hurruh!
ok let us split this into threes. one, work. two, me. three, the boy.
so, work. a few weeks ago mark called me to the back room where we keep the printed fabric archive, online store stock, excess stock, and i sometimes keep a desk in there for when our sales agent is in.
"olivia, this room is a mess!"
"oh. sorry. i will fix it later today." [please do not hurt me!]
"just kidding!" [laugh]
"ok..."
"do you want to stay?"
"where?"
"here."
"oh. yes."
"ok."
so there you have it. e k is sponsoring me. you know how fickle fashion can be, i mean, this is true for right now but fingers crossed it will still be true in october when the "working" part of my working holiday visa is over. i am excited and happy and i hope it happens.
the other reason mark likes me, other than my ability to pay my own wage with sales from the online store, is that he considers me his walking spell check.
mark asks the room in general "how do you spell eduardo?"
he swivels around to look at me.
"umm e-d-u-a-r-d-o."
"yeah that was what i was thinking."
"sure you were."
"shut up!"
we both burst into giggles. next he is on the phone to someone calling himself a welsh wizard.
ok, me. so what do you want to know? i treated myself to a haircut. the right side of my head is cropped very short and blends into a long left side. i look a little bit eighties. rodrigo has offered to maintain the cropped side for me with a pair of clippers but i do not trust him. what else? oh yes, i am moving house. it is a little bit sad because i love where i live but i am only moving five streets away to a proper share house with two other girls. my new room is bigger and the rent is cheaper. do not fight it, just accept it. i am not sure the area is as safe but it is in shoreditch proper and there are less house rules. one of the girls is rodrigo's friend and studying film, the other girl finished her film studies and just directed a feature. excitement city! fingers crossed the flat will be the creative hub it promises to be.
now, the boy. i will not bore you with too many details. if you can date a music journalist, i highly recommend it. i try not to milk r for too many favours, but he always manages to wrangle a +1 from somewhere. we went to camden crawl [a two-day music festival in camden] and saw the yeah yeah yeahs [w o w !], the big pink [new english band, ok], and echo and the bunnymen. we went to see hot chip play a secret show in shoreditch. i liked hot chip before but, if possible, i like them even more now. their live set was amazing and there was a lot of love in the room when they started a song with the line "i want to be your one-life stand" [obvious play on the concept of one-night stand] and i turn to r and say "oh they are ridiculously romantic." and he explains two of them got married recently [not to each other]. my phone ran out of juice that night but when i charged it the next day, r had sent me a message while we were dancing to hot chip's dj set to say he thinks i am cool and is very happy to be here with me. die. we are seeing the horrors on june 6. i wonder how big i can make my hair?
r is away in san francisco on a road trip with two friends. do you know what that means? my weekends are free! i cleared three jumble sales yesterday [one in a church hall, one in a design studio, and one in a community centre]. i love going through people's junk. i came away with three books [sylvia plath, woody allen, j d salinger], three melamine plates painted with paris street scenes, a plain canvas bag [no logos, rare!], a necklace with a macaroon pendant, two japanese magazines with e k on the covers, and another painted plate i won in a raffle. treasure galore! i had afternoon tea twice in two days. this weekend has made me realise i miss my own company because i spend much of the weekends with r. if i were with him now, i would not have gone to these jumble sales or had afternoon tea adventures with the girls, things i love. there is a lesson in there somewhere.
love
o
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