This Is Not A Democracy

Back home. Sadly.

Want to go back.

Anyone want to have Tapas in Covent Garden tomorrow? Julie will be there.

So, thanks to Gabe, I'm really excited about my holiday and the trip down to St. Louis. It's going to be amazing.

The itinerary is as follows, so far:

21 November, Wednesday: Julie flies in from Waterford, arrives c.10.30pm; I get hair bleached and re-dyed (same as now, but my roots will be fucked)he - my hairdresser is calling me from the airport to tell me she's back in the UK for this, and to set off. Helene wins.
22 November, Thursday: Leave house c.7.45am to reach Heathrow for 9.00am. Fly at 12.15pm. Arrive in Chicago around 3.00pm - on Thanksgiving (right?)! Will anything be open?
23 November, Friday: Drive down to St. Louis (five hours, according to Google), hopefully arriving around 1-2pm. See Cobra Starship/The Academy Is... show. Stay at motel just outside town.
24 November, Saturday: Drive back to Chicago. See the last date of Sleeping With Giants. Aftershow? We have no clue.
25 November, Sunday: No plans for day; getting out tattoos by Jay Redden at The Tattoo Factory, at 10.30pm (I know, right?).
26 November, Monday: MY BIRTHDAY!! Plans only include dinner, so far.
27 November, Tuesday: Last full day in Chicago. Will probably involve shopping.
28 November, Wednesday: Fly home at 5.15pm.
29 November, Thursday: Arrive in London at 6.50am. Sleep. A lot.
30 November, Friday: Hang out.
1 December, Saturday: I can't remember whether this is when Julie flies home or not. But whatever. I'm back at work on the Monday.

If you would like to insert yourself in this intinerary, please let me know! XD At some point we might catch up with another friend over there, but I don't know when he'll be free.

During the holiday, we should both be taking our laptops so you can follow the trip on bandrdocanada, although it's obviously not Canada, this time.

In conclusion: Eeeeeeeeeee!!!1!!

Holiday is booked.

We leave London on 22 November at 12.15 and arrive in Chicago around 3pm.

We will be staying in a hostel in Lincoln Park, which is an area that Liberty and I really liked when I was out there. It's pretty, it's close to the lake (although, y'know: NOVEMBER IN CHICAGO!), and close to downtown. Perfect.

We fly back on 28 November at aroun 5pm, getting into London the next morning.

MY 25TH BIRTHDAY IS ON MONDAY, 26TH NOVEMBER!

I will be out there for that, obviously. The only person who has booked any of our time, so far, is Jay J. and I think the guys and girl from the band (Jay R. has also been contacted about our new tattoos, though). If you Midwest kids want to meet up, let us know!

♥

We're going!

Sleep, then train to Heathrow.

See you soon.

And don't forget: bandrdocanada

So, I totally posted new pictures on my Flickr, yesterday, if anyone fancies laughing at the emokid.

I look SO. FUCKING. WHITE. But my hair is cool. Sometimes I swear it really is the only thing I have going for me...

What else to say? Oh yeah. Not coming to coffee this evening, after all. Too tired, too busy. Too much packing to do. And I'm chatting to fadefromblack, so nur.

Obviously, as of Friday I will be away. We're leaving for Vancouver Saturday morning, and I don't know if I can use my phone there, but I should have internet access - although of course, I will be in a different timezone.

People who wanted to meet up, let me know asap. You will probably have to decide when and where and give use directions.

Don't forget you can keep up with what we're doing at bandrdocanada. It probably won't be that exciting.

Not much else to say, except I am actually looking forward to the Fall Out Boy gig on the day I get back more than the holiday. Yay.

Expedia currently has holidays in Vancouver March for under £500.

I have about that in savings already. But no passport. My boss is off work, next week, but I'm going to get him to sign my passport forms the moment he's back in the office.

The Howard Johnson Hotel in Yaletown looks sweet, and nicer than the Bosman - I'd have preferred the Ramada Downtown, which is all art deco, but it's not a huge difference.

If my dad sends me any Christmas money (it got lost in the post, last year) I am going to go if it means going on my fucking own! It'd be about six weeks after Pegasus 2, but I don't plan to spend much for that.

I know Julie was interested in going, and Ashe as well - but I'm not sure she'd be ready to go so soon.

But the main thing is HOLY CHRIST, CAN YOU BELIEVE HOW CHEAP THAT IS?! It's flight AND hotel.

I really want to go - really, really, really!

Well, the appraisal at work didn't go too badly. I was reassured that they have no intention of sacking me and that I've done nothing to warrant such things, so that was nice. My supervisor wants to get us all an NVQ in Customer Service. Not because we need it, but because it looks good.

Julie and I have been discussing visiting Vancouver in October, as well, which has made me feel better as I was somewhat hormonal and maudlin, earlier. We're planning on going for ten days and staying at the Ramada in Gastown, which looks like a pretty good hotel for the money. It's also the area that I would like to move to, one day (poverty or none!) so spending time around there would be useful.

We're also planning on driving up the mountains (or, Jules will - I don't drive) because I haven't been up a proper mountain since I was eleven and visiting my grandparents in Sicily. They live on one, so I didn't have much of an option.

Oh - I saw Jarhead, on Wednesday. Instant fandom. I completely fell in love with the film - maybe because it's so centred on Swoff's story, rather than the war. But I also geek over the military (I watch the Discovery Wings channel for the plane porn, for pity's sake - and when I say 'plane porn' I am not talking about the mile high club). Perhaps it's a little worrying that I'm more interested in the combat gear than the muscle-bound boys wearing it, but such is life.

But coming back to the film, I really felt for Troy. He was such an endearing character - acted a lot like Swoff's wife or mother or something in places, which was quite sweet - and I really was relieved to see a marine not being portrayed as a thick-headed moron, for a change. And the same applies to Swoff, actually. He may have been cracking up, but he was quite the intellectual on the quiet, as well.

I'm reading Anthony Swofford's autobiography now, and he's a good writer. I'm about to go and curl up in bed and read some more. I'm still awaiting that first mention of Troy. I'm such a fangirl. I suppose I'd better make myself a new icon, now, hadn't I?