First presentation: an organized mess, a little bit like doing (British) dental work on cats. Included - clever, minimistically designed Power Point slideshow (with animation!); tactful strong-arming (i.e., "stage management"); last-minute unforeseen crisis navigated; and sacrificial falling-on-metaphorical-sword to make sure we didn't go over the time limit. It's so EXHAUSTING to be me, sometimes. ;-P
Second presentation: laid-back. Probably should have been more stressed. Odd combination of teamwork and every-man-for-himself masquerading as teamwork. (Interesting structure, that.) Accidental group outfit color coordination - check. (Done - now to actually work on putting up the show that was proposed.)
Project proposal: technically three days late, but it's not being assessed (counted towards our grade) and even though the course leader obviously really wants the proposals TURNED IN RIGHT NOW he SAID there wasn't any rush. Working on that this afternoon (have actually been collecting angles, options, and contacts all along. *Pflggbtfft*).
Second essay: due in 2.5 weeks. Have slated full day tomorrow to work on it. (I've said it in public - IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN.)
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In other news, I went running on Hampstead Heath yesterday (if by "running" you mean "walking briskly and occasionally accidentally breaking into a jog", which I do). I am both allowing my in-house chocolate supply to get low/run out, and planning to start running more often and on purpose (TOMORROW, before knuckling down to the second essay) and those things should mean I'll shortly have more clothes in my wardrobe I can wear without feeling like a sausage (an unfashionable sausage, natch). Once again - I've said it in public, it will be so.
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I'm starting to feel a little Charlton Heston-esque as I write. I wouldn't have imagined my blog would ever acquire that much (imagined or otherwise) gravitas.
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Speaking of walking briskly (it's there - go back and re-read), Saturday I took myself to the matinee of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Clybourne Park. (Good production, funny and unsettling, but not the point of this story as, far from walking briskly, the entire second act happens with nearly every character sitting in a chair the whole time. That play's another post.) I arrived early to get my ticket and then wandered around Leicester (pronouned le-ster) Square. I stopped at a restaurant and got a cup of mango gelato and then, wonder of wonders, found myself doing the "London saunter".
The "London saunter" is a walking pace adopted by 95% of the population on any given street in the city at any given time - roughly, about the speed of a very determined early-stage toddler. You don't need to actually HAVE a toddler with you while you walk, but you are required to PRETEND that you do. It drives me nuts - millions of people who apparently don't have much of a need or desire to actually get to wherever they're going! I'm constantly snaking around other sidewalkers - I don't generally saunter, I usually "really need to scoot because I'm 10 minutes behind and 2 minutes away from being late and could you lazy people just MOVE!", but fortunately that's my feet talking, not my mouth. Anyway, I got my mango gelato (which wasn't Schwan's but wasn't bad at all) and decided to stroll down to Trafalgar Square (the home of the Lord Nelson statue, the Olympics countdown clock and many, many pigeons), as it was sunny and I hadn't realized it was so close. For the first time ever, I found myself falling into pace with the other walkers. I and London perambulated along, enjoying the weather and the downtime and the gelato (I was, anyway), and I realized that ice cream (or it's cousins, at least) makes all things possible. I, like much of the rest of London, hung out in the Square (seriously, you've never seen so many people just sitting around in public), took a few pictures, and headed back to the theatre.
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| That's Big Ben in the middle, way in the back... Just look at all my new friends, chillaxin' and not going anywhere! I'm betting most of them are actually still there. |
And you know what? The minute that gelato was gone and I had somewhere to go (even though I had plenty of time to get there) I took off like a shot. It was inadvertent - the saunter evaporated. Maybe it really was the treat - if there's no sweet frozen goodness on the trip, let's get through it in the hopes that there will be some at the end, right? And, after all, they DO sell ice cream at intermission in the theatres here. Next time I buy some, I will make sure I saunter back to my seat.
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