Summer in the city

There's something quite magical about summertime in big cities. Everything and everyone transforms. People are happier. The grass looks greener. Ugly residential blocks of concrete suddenly glisten with pride.

And suddenly, the days are longer, the nights are shorter, but you don't need the nights anyway because you remember how good it feels being in the sun. Suddenly, you realise that maybe you already have what you need. A terrace, a paddling pool, a group of friends, music and drinks. Dialogue-free scenes from a Sofia Coppola movie, with nostalgia quietly at work.

Time slows down, it's not your enemy anymore.

Then Monday comes. Every Monday feels like a small death. Every weekend that passes, a mini-lifetime that went by in flash. How could you have spent it differently? Could you have done more? Did you waste it doing nothing, or did you make the most out of it?

Snapping out of holiday mode, you make your way to work only to sit indoors and dream about being in the sunshine again. But it's not a bad feeling, because you know this time, summer's here to stay.

For now.

Caves and Fires - an exercise in ongoing writing while working

I'm having a Nick Cave/Arcade Fire morning. No deep basslines for now, no repetitive rhythms, no pads... Just 'proper' music. Sometimes a girl needs lyrics.

This blog post will be an exercise in ongoing writing while working. I will take you through my mind. It will be like Being John Malkovich, but without going through tiny doors or meaningless repetition of words.

So, another Friday and plans for the weekend are - to say the least - exciting. I am tempted to say 'eggciting' because of an inside joke that has been going on in the office, but  I won't. I'm lucky enough to have a 2pm finish today, which means I get to enjoy being in the cold for a little bit more.

It's 09:48 and Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains) comes on:

Sometimes I wonder if the world's so small,
That we can never get away from the sprawl,
Living in the sprawl,
Dead shopping malls rise like mountains beyond mountains,
And there's no end in sight,
I need the darkness someone please cut the lights.



Moving on. There's something about Fridays. Like you can achieve something, your time is here. Although small achievements come on an everyday basis.

Achievements of the week:

- Made great cake as therapy for having broken my iPhone's screen (RIP)
- Reached 1,000 words in my book of short stories (est. publication date: 2041)
- Made great soup on Monday, and great soup on Wednesday
- Remained calm in times of challenge
- Went to the gym despite having the excuse of a swollen ankle (entirely my fault)

Anyway, Fridays. There's something special about Fridays. Going out on a Friday night means you wake up on Saturday morning with a feeling of fulfilment and without the pressure of needing to 'do something' for the weekend to make it meaningful. I acknowledge that a lot of people are not like that, but in the world of twenty-somethings, the weekend is that special little chunk of the week where your time is not being controlled by the hands of a clock but by how you would like to spread it out.

A taster of tonight (in a large scale version). Ellen Allien doing her thang at Fly Bermuda Festival: http://www.be-at.tv/brands/bermuda-berlin-music-days/fly-bermuda-festival/ellen-allien.go?0

So. Excited. This is what Fridays should be like.

And, tomorrow I've got my first 'solo' gig in London. 5 hours of playing the music I like (you gotta be selfish sometimes) to my friends and hopefully other people with a taste similar to mine.



Midday. Usual lunch time, but as I leave work in a while I'm going to have late lunch. For now, it's CAKE TIME! With the amazing aforementioned therapy cake.

12:37 - Armed with tea and a sugar high, it's time for that final push towards the end of the working week.

Malkovich Malkovich.

Peeping Tom

I always had a thing about looking to see what's in other people's private spaces. The inside of bags, the inside of houses, the inside of their heads... I guess it's a natural curiosity. So, I was pretty thrilled when I stumbled upon Freunden von Freunden.

As they put it in their own words, We are an international interview magazine that portrays people of diverse creative and cultural backgrounds in their homes or within their daily working environments. 

This, in very simple terms, means hours of fun and inspiration. Flats in Berlin, lofts in New York, houses in London and everything inbetween. 

Here are a few of my faves (pics taken from the site):

  

Gastrorgasmy: Burger & Lobster

I finally made it. I have been to exclusive London clubs, I have been to expensive London restaurants, but I have never felt a place to be so close and yet so far away from me. The monstrous waiting times (my first attempt at going was cut short when the lady at the door told us we'd have to go back 3 hours later - and that was at 8pm) and the fact that I have a full-time job meant that I would probably have to wait for weeks, maybe months, until I'd make it.

Patience is a great virtue though, and so is willpower. Armed with these, and a good friend, we went, we put our names down, and headed to the pub. We were told we'd have to wait for at least an hour, so after two hours and two glasses of wine had passed without receiving the telephone call we were so desperate to get, we took our chances and headed over. Luckily, our table was just getting prepared for us, so we sat down straight away.

There is no food menu; just one for drinks, with a good selection of cocktails, spirits and beers, and a rather limited selection of wines. I was a bit disappointed with the small choice we were given for wine, especially given Goodman’s amazing wine list. You can only famously eat one of 3 things (or all of them if you feel like it) once you’re in – burger, lobster or lobster roll. We went for a lobster roll and cheeseburger, split in half. They were great. Good food makes me happy. I was definitely happy once I started eating. The food also arrived very quickly, which kind of made up for the two hours wait. The burger was fantastic, although my bun was a little bit crunchy and I would have preferred it softer. The lobster roll was delicious and highly recommended. Looking back, I’d say go for the lobster or lobster roll. They feel a little bit more ‘special’, plus you can get good burgers in many places around London, with about a quarter of the waiting time.

The wonderful lobster roll

The sexy burger (with the slightly crusty bun)

There's always a little 'but'. Despite the food (and atmosphere) being fantastic, waiting for two hours when we were diplomatically told ‘at least one’ was a bit frustrating. What was more frustrating, however, was that despite the service being excellent and our waitress being very friendly, we got the feeling we had to get the hell out of there as soon as we finished our meals or else we’d be getting kicked out. Pushy yet polite, our waitress gave us the dessert options and when we said we didn’t want any she brought us the bill because our table was about to be given away. This meant we spent two hours waiting for one hour of dining, which was not disastrous but it made the experience feel a little bit less special, which is a shame.

Was it worth the wait though? Definitely? Would I go again? Of course, but I’d give it another week. I need to hit the gym now.  

Food: 9/10
Atmosphere: 9/10
Drinks List: 8/10
Service: 7/10

Overall Rating: 8/10

London by bus

London Bus Tour from moritz oberholzer on Vimeo.

Watching the world go by from a London bus window. Just a reminder that it's not a bad idea to enjoy the journey sometimes as well.

London in 3D

An attempt to make London look much more beautiful than it actually is, whilst making an accidental homage to SimCity 3000.

This is surely fake. Where did the sun come from?

I know this great little website

'cause London's a big, scary city, and sometimes you need to know where to go:

http://www.greatlittleplace.com/

(Also, Timeout reviews mostly suck.)

Good idea, maybe a site redesign once enough info is gathered will make it more user friendly.

Wikitime?