bellyacher

Booooo

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 13:55:00 +0000

I wish I could get back to blogging but I don't like all the RANDOM comments I get. (You know who you are!!!) Perhaps I shall blog again soon. We'll see.

Salt and Pepper

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 18:29:00 +0000

Okay...I missed a day or two. Oh well.

DSC03536
Originally uploaded by bellyacher

Darn!

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 18:18:00 +0000

I have a daily photo from two days ago that is still living inside my camera...and I didn't even take one yesterday!! I know, I'm SO grounded. Daily photos should resume tomorrow when I'll have lots of pictures from tonight to share. What's going on tonight, you ask? Well...I'm going out with The Bishop's friends while he's at work. This excursion was planned before I even arrived in England...after this I have nothing to live for. (Just kidding about that...I have to stick around to visit Windsor Castle on Monday.)

This should be a busy weekend for me so expect some photo documentation by Tuesday at the latest.

Sockies

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 16:59:00 +0000

New (hand- knitted) socks from The Bishop's sister in Shetland. Hooray!!

Sockies
Originally uploaded by bellyacher

New Keys

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 14:41:00 +0000

New Keys
Originally uploaded by bellyacher

Church in Wokingham

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 23:40:00 +0000

Taken from the railway bridge at Wokingham station.

Church in Wokingham
Originally uploaded by bellyacher

Red sky at night...

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 19:09:00 +0000

I took this from the front window....and found that I have a really hard time keeping my hand steady. Oh well...you get the point.

Red sky at night..., originally uploaded by bellyacher.

Wants

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 16:06:00 +0000

I've been spending a lot of time surfing the internet today (ahhhh...Saturday) and have found several little items that I wouldn't mind having. Read on...

Mini anchor necklace (YES!!)

Vinyl ship necklace (I love it so much!!)

The octopus necklace (Gasp)

A Squidlet from Sereneonion

Stationery (or anything) from The black apple

I guess that's it for now. (disclaimer: I do not in ANY WAY expect these items to be purchased for me. This was really just an exercise in list making...titled "Wants")

Lamp

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 19:16:00 +0000

Lamp, originally uploaded by bellyacher.

This is my first daily photo...one of the lamps at The Bridge pub.

Home...

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 13:35:00 +0000

...alone. Eek! The Bishop just left for work so I now get to entertain myself for the next 9 hours or so. I figure there will be some web surfing, then perhaps some house cleaning and maybe some TV watching. Oh...maybe I should write some letters too.

Adventure

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 16:12:00 +0000

As promised, we went to London yesterday to see the Terracotta Army at the British Museum. Unfortunately we got to the museum too late to buy tickets to see it so we wandered around and looked and everything else instead. We had a great time even though I didn't want to ask for directions to the museum (getting lost is much more fun) AND I started getting some pesky cold symptoms. Later, we explored the south bank with The Bishop's friend Jon and then caught the train back to Bracknell. Today I'm suffering from a full-blown cold so I haven't done much of anything. Anyway, on to the photos!!

This is the sign at the Bracknell train station (We were on our way out, though)

The train to london

Hungerford Bridge

A view of Waterloo Bridge (with a double decker bus)

The London Eye

On the way towards Parliament

Big Ben

Parliament (and a plane)

Blue sky on the way to the British Museum!

The British Museum

Rosetta Stone

Sculptures from the Parthenon 1

Sculptures from the Parthenon 2

London Eye and Big Ben at night

Oopsy

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 15:47:00 +0000

I didn't post anything yesterday because I didn't do anything worth posting about. It's just nice getting to relax for a few days after all the packing and traveling. Unfortunately, today will be much of the same. We have some errands to run (food is always a nice thing to have around) and that's about it. I think we'll go to London tomorrow, though...that should be fun and I'll try to act like a good little tourist and take lots of photos.

First day

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 18:08:00 +0000

I must say that my first full day here in Bracknell has been rather uneventful. The Bishop and I watched some TV, played on the computer (um...it kind of sucks to be 8 hours ahead of everyone I know) and generally lazed about until about 3 when I decided that we MUST walk to Binfield. I lived in a dorm at Newbold College (in Binfield) for 9 months when I was 20 so I was anxious to see my old stomping grounds.

BUT, for those of you who really, really want to see some photos of where I live, here you go:

This is the view out the front room window

This is a view OF the front room window

A sign that I was pretty excited to see last night

Okay so on to Binfield...

This the pub where I practically lived 8 years ago (the cute little front area didn't exist then, though)

These are some ponies that I used to visit regularly. It was nice to see them again.

This is the back garden at the Victoria Arms pub where we had drinks this afternoon

Odyssey

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 09:33:00 +0000

This is what's been going on over the last few days:

On Monday I slept most of the way to Los Angeles in the car with my parents. Once we got there we lounged around our hotel room and later ate a wonderful dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. After that, we had a couple of pints at The Scotland Yard pub in Sherman Oaks, then went back to the hotel for the night. I must say...my parents are pretty fun to go out with!!

Tuesday morning was spent taking my mom to a day-long appointment with David Robin where she learned some kick-ass video editing techniques. After we dropped her off (and had a nice chat with Mr. Robin), my dad took me shopping (yay shopping) in Pasadena and then he dropped me off with my great-aunt. She took me to lunch, then took me shopping and then out to dinner (even though I was still full from lunch...eek)

Wednesday was pretty weird. My parents met us for lunch in Pasadena and then I said good-bye to mom and dad...in a parking lot. I won't be seeing them for at least 5 months so it was strange to just hug and say, "see ya." Believe me, there were some tears but we all held it together pretty well. My aunt then took me to run some errands and before going back to her house where I shoved some last remaining items into my already VERY full suitcases and zipped them up. Luckily, I was able to take a short nap (yes, I take naps and I'm proud of it) before the airport shuttle came to take me away.

I got to the airport 4 hours before my flight so there was absolutely NO wait to check in and get my boarding pass...then all I had to do was wait...so i hit the bar. Here's the deal...I HATE FLYING! I'm always convinced that my plane will crash and I will die a violent and fiery death. So getting slightly buzzed is a must.

The flight itself was rather uneventful. Our plane was strangely not full so I didn't feel AS cramped as I normally do but I sat next to a very nice lady who had just spent 17 days visiting her daughter in L.A. There was quite a selection of movies and TV shows to watch so it wasn't that boring either. The first movie I watched was Superbad...which was stupid but I still laughed out loud...a lot. After that, I watched some TV shows and tried to sleep. Unfortunately, sleeping was hard due to babies crying, people talking (loudly), not having enough room, and a sore tail bone (yes...my butt was hurting). I still managed to get a little bit of rest, but not much. Finally, after being given the wrong time by the people in front of me, I decided to wake up and watch another movie. This time I chose The Darjeeling Limited which I loved. Another unfortunate thing happened during this time, though...TURBULENCE...and lots of it. It was actually so bad at one point that the lady next to me grabbed my hand in fear. Fun stuff.

Anyway, blah blah blah...the plane landed, we all had to walk forever to reach immigration and the baggage claim (which caused me to work up a sweat), then I finally emerged in a room FULL of people standing behind barriers waiting to claim their friends and loved ones. Let me just say that this was, by far, the weirdest point in the whole journey. It was like I was on display..."Look at me! I just spent 10 hours on a plane and I feel and look like crap!! Hooray!" Oh...and the whole time I was trying in vain to locate The Bishop (not his real name) amongst the sea of people...luckily, since I was on display, he found me first and waved his arm (thank goodness, because I wasn't wearing my glasses so everyone was blurred and scary).

Two things...(at this point RIGHT NOW I've realized that this silly British keyboard DOES NOT HAVE a number sign!! It's been replaced with THIS: £) Number 1: Remember how I just told you that I had worked up a sweat while trekking across the airport?? Well, I was actually HAPPY to walk outside to the cold and rain because I was so hot inside. Number 2: Remember how I told you a while ago that I hate flying and that I am always convinced that my plane will crash. Hmmm...um...so right after The Bishop found me he informed me that THIS had happened at Heathrow about 2 hours before I landed:

I don't even know what to say...oh, except, THANK GOD THAT WASN'T MY PLANE!!!! Luckily, nobody was seriously injured...but still...

Okay, where was I? Oh yeah...went outside, got into a taxi with all my heavy bags, took a train to Bracknell (may I say that I might just be the only person to actually be excited about arriving in Bracknell...it was familiar yet different all at the same time - oh...I lived here 8 years ago, in case you didn't know), took another taxi to get home and that's it. Now I'm lounging around on Friday morning, safe and sound.

Ready...set...

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:24:00 +0000

In just a few minutes I will be leaving for L.A. with my parents. It's really odd to know that these are my last moments in sunny Fresno. Ho hum...

The next time you hear from me I'll be across the pond. (Expect photos of my last night out in Fresno as well as photos of my first moments in the UK)

Bye!!

YEP....

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 08:41:00 +0000

I have a very expensive little sticker in my passport now which means I am free to move about the UK.

Uh huh....I HAVE MY VISA!!!

Good news...and other news...

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 17:12:00 +0000

Well...here we are at the 9th of January and I am not preparing to fly away today. Due to some minor gliches, I had to postpone my great escape until next week. Good thing too, because I am NOT ready to go (anyone want to help sort stuff...and does anyone want to tell me how ended up with SO MUCH JUNK!?!).

Anyway, the good news is that Virgin Atlantic called off their strike so everything should run smoothly for all of those who WILL be flying today. Hooray!!

Well, that's it for today. I wish I had something fun to post...or at least something halfway interesting...but I don't. Check back in the next couple of days though to find out what stress can do to a person right before they move out of the country. That should be interesting....right?? RIGHT???

Small fruit from not much labor (Christmas, pt 2)

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Tue, 25 Dec 2007 21:24:00 +0000

Lauren on Christmas from bellyacher on Vimeo.

Day of the mimosa

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Tue, 25 Dec 2007 20:01:00 +0000

Merry Christmas everyone!! I hope you're having a wonderful day. Our family is relaxing after a morning of opening presents and sipping mimosas but will soon have a house of full of guests to celebrate with. The mimosa thing has become quite a tradition in our family on Christmas morning...nothing says "holidays" like drinking at 9am.

Anyway, my little sister received a neat little video camera so we're going to try it out. Perhaps we can share the fruit of our labor here later in the afternoon. I would love to hear about your holiday traditions so feel free to share.

The waiting game...an update of sorts

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 18:33:00 +0000

Last week I finally inhaled, exhaled and said goodbye to a large sum of money (well, large to me) in order to apply for my visa. It was a weird feeling...a "no turning back" feeling, in fact. Now I'm waiting for some paperwork to arrive from across the pond so I can properly send in all of my supporting documents and then hope for a speedy decision to be made. EEK!

OH...and this fabulous article was brought to my attention today. Let me just say that I am scheduled to fly on Virgin Atlantic on January 9th...does anyone else see a potential problem?? Sheesh!

Anyway, tomorrow is my last day at work. It was supposed to be next Friday but I think I should spend as much time as possible on finishing up packing, selling and donating. I wish this was easier but I suppose it's a "character building" experience. Oh yeah, last day at work...we're having an employee lunch and secret Santa gift exchange so everything will be bitter-sweet and weird, I'm sure. I just hope I don't cry. Yeah...so I was told that I need to work until next Friday. Okaaaaaay.

Well, I guess that's it for now. Since I'll be unemployed starting ~~tomorrow~~ next Friday at 5:30pm, expect that I will start my new full-time job as a blogger soon. God help us all...

Ever closer....

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 03:21:00 +0000

So I actually had my yard sale yesterday instead of last week. Even though I didn't post it in the paper I was able to sell quite a bit of stuff. Unfortunately, I STILL have more stuff to get rid of....mainly books. I don't know how I ended up with SO many books. They really reflect my various intrests though....philosophy, origami, religions, sci-fi, literature....you name it, I have a book about it!

Anyway, I think I'll have a book sale. I really wish I didn't have to get rid of them but freighting them to the UK would be waaaay too expensive. Oh well, I can build up my little library again once I'm there.

Also, I'm nearly finished with my visa application. Because I have to pay an enormous (non-refundable) fee for my visa, I'm not in a huge hurry to finish it up....I need to make sure that everything is correct, take a deep breath, and pray that I'm not rejected. Wish me luck....

YARD SALE

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 19:53:00 +0000

I know I've already mentioned this but...

WHEN:
Saturday, December 1st
8am - 12pm

WHERE:
934 N Poplar
Fresno, CA 93728

Off of San Pablo, South of Olive....in the lovely Tower District.

Here is a map (because I'm nice)

You KNOW you want to check it out!!

p.s. don't worry...that's not MY address

Slowly now...

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 23:07:00 +0000

Today's quote:

"Do not fear going forward slowly, fear only to stand still"
Chinese Proverb

Yeah...So I have no problem with going forward slowly...in fact, slow seems to be the only speed in which I move. Oh well.

These are the things I slowly took care of last week

* Paid $127 dollars to have my passport renewal expedited. It only took two hours of standing in the BUSIEST passport office in Fresno!! Grrr...too bad they can't expedite the line.

* Went through every single box in my storage, sorting everything into catagories like, throw away, sell, donate and keep. Sadly the 'keep' pile is WAAAAY too big so I will be resorting it sometime this week.

By the way, there will be a yard sale this Saturday (December 1)at 8am. Here is the address:

934 N Poplar
Fresno, CA 93728

Anyway, I guess that's it for now.

No progress yet

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 20:25:00 +0000

Well...it's Saturday and so far I've done a whole lot of nothing. I SHOULD be doing something...ANYTHING to put me closer to being ready for the big move. ARG!! Anyway, I've been spending my morning checking out some of my favorite blogs (time for an update to the sidebar, if you ask me...)

Finslippy
Dooce
Inside a Black Apple
Fluid Pudding

And of course....
Go Fug Yourself

I heart Go Fug Yourself!

I think I will go look for websites on how to move out of your homeland with ease. Wish me luck!!

I'm back

noreply@blogger.com (the bellyacher) — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 03:24:00 +0000

After a loooong hiatus I have decided to start posting again. I'm sure that the small readership I may have had before is gone but it's time to rebuild. From now on this blog will be focused on life, art and my experiences as I learn to make a new life in England starting in January. Of course, for now I will probably write about the woes of relocating to another country BEFORE I go....and the process of completing all the necessary paperwork on time. Oh....not to mention the amount of STUFF I have to sort to sell or pack. My head hurts just thinking about it.

Here are things as they stand:

* I leave on January 9, 2008 to go to Bracknell
* That leaves 8 weeks and 1 day to get things done (ouch)
* I can't find my passport at the moment and I need it in order to get a renewal....and a visa (ouch again)
* I have a 5 x 10 foot storage unit that is FULL of stuff that I have not seen in 7 years. Unfortunately, I have to keep some of it (triple ouch)

Let's just end the list there because to go on would be too painful.....or stressful....whatever.

Anyway, I should start looking for that passport NOW. Check back soon for more details.

Ha! Now I really am a bellyacher!!