On my first night back from England, I settled in for my usual dose of Sex and the City and the episode playing was Sex and Another City. It's the one where the ladies take a trip to Los Angeles and by the end of it all, Carrie decides that it's better to be back in NYC where everything is what it seems whereas everything in L.A. is a facade. She's so relieved to be back in the city but I, on the other hand, practically had to drag myself back from London.
I don't think that this is just a simple case of greener grass on the other side. Just need to wait for the right time, or a reason...
Oxford is absolutely breathtaking and awe-inspiring. I'd definitely try to go back soon. It's enough to make a girl want to go back to school. It got me thinking about what would have happened if I had taken the opportunity to study abroad during my undergraduate years but then I quickly realized that if I had done anything different, I wouldn't be where I am today.
One of my biggest strokes of luck was to plan this holiday during the off-peak tourist season. This way, there were no long lines or crowds or obnoxious behavior from annoying tourists. Note to self: never travel between June and September ever again.
The biggest stroke of luck was not only to be able to go to Fifteen before my flight back, but to also have Mr. Oliver there doing his thing while I was enjoy my breakfast!
Great scenery, great company, great food, great time.
After months of interruptions, I finished reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (warning: there are spoilers in that link). I'm still crushed by the death of one of the major characters who had such a pivotal role in Harry's life. Naturally, I kept thinking, "Rowling will bring him back before the last page with some ancient and powerful magic because there's no way that she's going to deliver such an enormous blow before Harry even comes close to confronting Lord Voldemort for the last time." But she didn't. That's quite a risk for her to take--hats of to her for making such a ballsy move. He was such an unique and inspiring character, the kind of person that everyone wishes existed in their own lives. It's going to take a while to get over this loss.
I hope I'm not scaring anybody by being so affected by a fictional character but that's what good literature does. It gets you to invest in these make-believe people and their causes.
Just as I was giving up on the idea of going on a vacation any time soon and instead deciding to do my best to keep it together until the annual trip back home to Singapore next year, a barrage of e-mails were exchanged in the middle of the night and the next thing I know, I've booked a ticket to London! The holiday that almost never materialized will begin in five days (and not a second too soon!). I seriously almost threw myself into some sort of violent seizure as I realized that I'd be in London and Oxford in less than a week and my mind went insane with anticipation--taking the tube, hearing the accent, scenes from Love, Actually, heck, even just being on a plane was enough to make me giddy! Now I just have to get through a week of work.
Crash is one of the best movies that I've seen this year. As much as it offends one's sense of what is tolerable in this world on the most basic level, it also comes full circle by the end of the movie to bring about some self-redemption. Watch it and let it change the way you live.
