And...

it's the 1st of August.

It really doesn't feel like we are on the downslope of the year. I can recall it being new year's, with the fireworks happening on the horizon, looking towards central London. I can think back to when Jassen and I went to Dublin for a few days, back in early Spring and got rained out alot of the times, especially sitting on a double-decker opentop bus! I can remember Jassen's birthday and wrapping a bunch of gifts, a lot of them from firebox, in bright red paper. It was exciting when my parents came to visit for a week, minus the 3 flights that were delayed, that instead of arrving 8am in the morning, we picked them up close to 10/11pm at night at Heathrow. I note the bus/coach journeys not only to Brighton via Southampton( i think), but the bus to Salisbury and Stonehenge.

I reminisce traversing across London on a London pass with my folks, going to the likes of Ben Franklin House, Trafalgar Square, up to Westminster, along Southbank near the eye, to Big Ben, and walking along Parliament to the Jewel House and around the Westminster Abbey, where Princess Diana and Charles were married in 1981, then to 10 Downing Street. We hitched a boat ride down the Thames towards the Tower of London, went inside and also saw the Crown Jewels(very pricey!) We went to London Bridge and then to eat at a Wagamamas, past the Southwark Cathedral, and that's all I can recall, since I think at that point, we were really tired.

I recall Bank Holidays and I remember my birthday and the nice presents I received, from my parents and from Jassen, who got me an aeropress expresso coffee handheld maker that works wonders! And a rainbow projector that is really quite good.:-)

My friend Carol came to visit for less than a day before heading back to the states from a boat trip around Scandinavia and Russia. She met me at work had a 30 minute break at Caffe Nero and then met up with her later to head back after rush hour, then manage to get some kebabs and chilled at home. She was also the first to give us a wedding anniversary card(early) along with a gift card for my favourite place, WHITE CASTLE!

Salt and Pepper, my kits, turned 3 this year. And they are growing up fast!

Jassen won tickets to see Coldplay at Brixton for free and I was his date! That was fun and then the next week, I won tickets to a preview of Prince Caspian at the Empire in Leicester Square. I was sick as a dog that week, so it would have better if I hadnt been. We got free popcorn and water though!:-)

Jassen and I celebrated our 1st anniversary as a married couple on 07-07-08(4 years together on the summer solstice). We gave each other cards, I gave Jassen an origami set(since 1st anniversary is paper) and Jassen gave me a gift voucher to go float. Float you might ask? Well, its a not-so-new concept in which you go to a facility that has floatation tanks. You can either have a bathing suit or go in the nude, as you have the room and tank to yourself. You shower, then step into the tank. When you sit down, you float back up to the top of the water, as there is a bunch of epsom salt in the tank, which causes you to float. You can either close the tank door, have the lights on or off, you have a call button if you need it, and a spray bottle of water if you get salt in your eyes. You also have to wear earplugs upon getting in. They give you a choice of music to listen to for the first 10 mins to ease yourself into relaxing and letting go as well as when your hour is up!

All I can say was that it was an experience and maybe not one that I will try again. It was good for about the first 15-20 minutes, getting use to letting go, but I could feel the stress in my neck and feet alot of the times and when it got past the 20-25 minute mark I was just pushing myself along the sides in the dark. hehehe. When I got out, Jassen was sitting in the hallway in a chair in the corner. He too had done the floatation, but got nauseous half way through and got out.:-/

A few weeks later, we got free tickets to go see Wall-E, which is wonderful and I highly recommend it!

I won tickets to see Man on Wire but declined since I looked at the email that was looked at by me at 5pm, it was sent at 3pm, and the show started at 630pm. Not really enough time to get in the mindset of a movie and travel out maybe 50 mins each way.:-p

I've had my elliptical machine for a small while and after being sickly for a week, I attempted to use it more often. The computer bit of it was out of commission for a while, but really all it needed was a battery or two.:-p So, I've been exercising close to religiously for a few weeks.

Although, I need to will myself at the moment. I am doing a late shift at work, so I still have 3.5 hours of freetime.:-p

I've been listening to the music artist, Sam Sparro, which is quite a lot like Jamiroquai, so highly recommended if you are in the mood for new music that sounds like it was manufactured in the 80s.

It's a bit windy at the moment, since it was soooo warm the past week and temperatures are plummeting. I look forward to the cooler weather.