Culture Vulture

So Monday see me off to the British Museum, a stop over at Pret on the corner of George St for breakfast then into Selfridges. I've got madames camera today to see how it goes. I really cannot be bothered with my big camera, too much of an incumberance. Aaaanyway I get a few selfies in Selfridges, ooo poet and dont know it. The upshot is that it is difficult to keep the camera straight using it one handed but I'll just convince myself they are a bit arty-farty. It is one of things if they are slightly off it looks odd and you don't know what you are doing but if you make it a long way off it looks intentional.

So there I am on the bus trundling along Oxford St and we get to Oxford Circus, masses of people innit. It is not until much later I find it was all for the Balmain clothes at H&M, ah well. We get almost to Tottenham Court Road and the inevitable traffic comes to a standstill and some moaning Minnie who wants to get off starts having a go at the bus driver to let her off. I'm late she says. Well dear you should have left earlier then you wouldn't be would you. After a fair bit of arguing he lets her off so we can all have a bit of peace and quiet. Goodness that Tottenham Court Road is drafty so its down the side streets and into The British Museum via the rear entrance, just where I want to be.

Soon its time to go home so I wend my merry way back to Portman Street and the bus home. There I am stood standing there, as you do, waiting. My bus doesn't figure in the first 10 but not to be dishearted I've learnt that as this is the first stop on the route it could turn up any time. So there I am and I can 'feel' someone looking at me. I half turn and sure enough there is. Some bloke, eyeing me up. So as his attention is focussed on my legs I can see who can't I. Oh my! Is he a looker? Hardly. But much to my amusement I know him, well used to, a long, long time ago. We were childhood friends, he lived on the corner of my road, we went to junior school together, played football together. Yes I know but at that age I didn't know any better. Then he went off to grammar school and... I didn't.

Been having a clear out this week. The dump that was our son's room needs to be cleared as madame wants it to be a sewing room and all his stuff has been making the room damp. So skip hired we start. We are taking a breather and next thing we know a van pulls up and some guy starts nicking stuff out of the skip. Well he gets told to go forth and multiply for not asking first. It is on my property therefore it is still mine, if the skip was in the road I could understand but it isn't. He feigns no-speak-English, yes right but I bet you can speak it when you come to argue a price when you sell it.   A few days later while I am out another van arrives. According to madame a nice, polite Irish guy comes to the door and asks if he can go through the skip and take stuff. Madame says of course, help yourself and he does. See that is how you should do it.

In no particular order

So whats-a-bin-happenin'. Saturday night saw us off to The Magic Theatre in deepest darkest sarf Lundun innit. A slightly lower attendance than usual but a good sized crowd. I do wish the DJ was better and knew at least something about sound levels. Nothing sounds good when its so high you get distortion and I suppose they think its the average age of the punters but old cheesy pop is not my thing. The band were good once they had warmed up and yes I did like their style of music. With the odd exception the costumes were below par, it really is amazing how some people think they look good in a mish mash of tat.

Our journey there was, shall we say, fraught. Roadworks and closures made our through London 13 mile journey take two hours and the journey home via a different route, well past midnight, take over an hour as we got caught up in the traffic mahem caused by the Lambeth illegal rave that saw us stationary as seven police riot vans went sailing past. All in all we got to bed about 3.00 a.m.

Sunday was London Alternative Market day, so after three and a half hours sleep I was up and about, just. Suprise of the day, although I didn't know it at the time was two totally delightful maids. One trans and one female. After complimenting them they told me that they had them made and were considering getting more done and selling them but were unsure of their market and pricing. The next day I saw, on Farcebook a picture of the two outfits on mannequins, they had been made by a friend Andy of Stichin' Business, what a coincidence !

Chatting with David, who runs the market he asked if I had been shopping recently which begged me to say, why? Apparently he had people phoning him from America asking why I hadn't been posting about my shopping trips on Farcebook and how only David could know anyone called Ann Drogyny! So not only London fame but international fame!

Oh yes in a previous post I said I'd got new boots.......

Exhausting

My goodness this retirement malarky is exhausting !! Off out Friday night to our friend Marnie Scarlet's 40th birthday party at the Resistance Gallery and get to bed gone 2.00am. Fabulous to catch up with people we hadn't seen in more than ages.
Saturday is a foray into the deepest darkest recesses of South London to The Magic Theatre at the wonderfully kitch Rivoli Ballroom. We leave there gone midnight which of course coincides with the clocks changing so is now 1.00 am. I drop madame off in Camden Town at what is now 2.00 am to meet up with our daughter and they disappear into the Black Cap and get in at around 6.00 am.
Sunday sees us off out again for a mothers day lunch at the Black Cap and their "Dragged up by your mother" event. madame, daughter and I get a free makeup session and eventually get in around 7.00.
Off out again with Stephanie and Sara today, a visit to the British Museum and a wander. Nothing more for a few days, thank goodness, just a trip to the Tower of London on Friday with Claire and Conrad. Well it will only be the second time I have ever been there. Then its off out again on Sunday, its the London Alternative Market.

Monday - Tuesday

Another two days of here there an everywhere. Monday sees us bussing it up to the West-End and onto the British Museum. I know two culture vultures out and about, again! We wander in wonderment. We really should plan our visits to these places. We purchase maps and floor plans but do we follow a plan? Of course not. Its feet ache that drives us out. We really need to do this properly, wear silly shoes going there, change to flats whilst we are there and then back into silly shoes when we leave! Ah well lesson learnt. Suitably shod we wander along New oxford St and take a late lunch in Pret. Re-energised we pop into Primark and get ourselves bargain cardigans and wander off up Oxford Street. As we get to Great Portland Street we make a diversion up to Mortimer Street to a shop filled with sparkles and glitter. Frocks and outfits covered in sequins and glitter, we ring the bell and venture in. An Aladins cave, so much to tempt us and I'm driven to enquire of prices. Not bad actually considering. we take our leave with intentions of returning with the necessary money :-) Not satisfied with all this walking we continue on foot to John Lewis to gather provisions for dinner and then walk all the way to Cumberland Place to get the bus home and by the time we get back its gone 5.000 pm ! Where does the time go? Tuesday is a photo morning and a Brent Cross afternoon. A stroll around the shops, oh for the money to buy everything that takes our eye, so many frocks, so many shoes. It never crosses our minds of what we do and where we go, not until it all sadly comes to an end. We are so lucky we can do what we do.