my 1st perm-- in LONDON

*sigh* i knew it was going to be a looong day. i was getting my hair done on a saturday...in a black salon..so, technically i shouldn't be complaining EXCEPT...

i take my ass to south london to get my perm b/c, well, that's where most of the black, or , wha'ever salons are located..now, i went w/ a friend who recommended the salon.

step 1. the relaxer:

ooooo lawd!! the worst part. my head started 'tingling' so i tell dear OLIVIA that it's tingling and maybe she should rinse out the perm. do you know...this b*tch clearly ignored me, and proceeded to comb through the part that was now burning??! so....i moved my head so she couldn't continue...

do you know OLIVIA said, "wha' are you doin'? i'm tryna wurk?"

weeeell, h'excuse me, OLIVIA..but i just told you 2 min ago that my head was burning..i kept hinting to this b*tch, then the salon owner came over and that b*tch OLIViA finally led me to the sink (i was about to cry at this point!) to be rinse/shampoo by dis older lady.

step 2. rinse

what da hell? so, the lady rinsing me was humming some song while the water is splashin all in my ears and face n sh*t wtf? heeello!?? leavin my shirt-back wet

-ok, well at least the perm is out, right? ha.

step 3. style

oh my jeezus! if i only knew...

i asked for a roller-set. what was i thinkin? OLIVIA wasn't havin that apparently.

so she says, "wha'? rollers? wha' yuh wan' rollers fo'?" (my thoughts: b*tch cuz that's what i want!)

the whooole salon stopped..i mean, ppl peeked out from under the dryers, it was like a scene from a movie. i just wanted to leave at this point.

so, after my roller set, the salon owner styled me, and collected 50 raaass pounds for this sh*t.

so friggin unprofessional.

i'm sorry south london, but im takin my ass to the high street...

school daze

this morning:
doo ta doo, walkin' to the tube as usual, and what do i see? this man literally 'scoots' up to the garbage, er, rubbish bin, and starts fishin' around. he was on one of those motorized, seated scooters they give older ppl in the supermarket. wtf?
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ok, sooo...you're really just going to stand there reading 'the london paper' from left to right, slooowly, blockin' the damn tube doors so i can't get off the damn tube?!?

MOOVE..idiot, i need to get to class..cuz if you're late you don't get let in...damn! guest lecturer on immunology today..booo! i completely forgot, and i hate immunology so today's lecture was a bore.
...decided to skip LJ's class today cuz i REALLY couldn't deal with his stutters today...and this is where the fun begins:
i go to meet iris for lunch in chinatown..uuh our badd? AAAALL the restaurants in chinatown were closed b/c they were protesting about migrant workers in london! wtf? this strike sh*t needs to stop. 1st royal mail? now chinese? are you kidding? anyway, we find scrounge for food and then hit up priimark! or "pree- mawk" as they say. ..a fight nearly broke out in the store btw 2 salespersons.

this indian guy drops some clothes on the fitting room attendant's desk..she got mad, picked up the clothes and dropped that sh*t right back on the area indian man was arranging. tsk tsk - he called 'her' a b*tch and damn near started a fight. woops!
i spent 20 quid @ that damn store...then back to the tube to hear polka music and the 'man w/o a face' beg for change. knew i should've taken my ass to class.
p.s- i got my dissertation project title yesterday! and it's bioinformatics- based..well, sh*t i''m excited.

the potion bar

last nite was savernaz's bday..(who's that? - iris' classmate - who's iris? - my flatmate)

so...we go to this spot called 'potion bar' ---ooh sounds trendy, huh? sure was!

aaand they knew how to make cocktails!! sooo i was h'extra excited to be there.

i was eyeing this guy aalll nite - he was fine..tall, indian, bald head<--i think they're makin a comeback?> anyway, he was fyine...i just needed a game plan to talk to him.

plan A - i tried going upstairs to the private party, whizzing by the hella obvious sign that read "private party" ..that didnt work. i got stopped @ the top of the stairs, but i lied n said i needed to pee so... i get inside and there's all these good looking men, and only men, and all this indian food! soo i pee, and go back dwnstrs to the crew.

plan B - indian guy comes dwnstrs and i grab him, ask yyy he's holding all the men upstairs? and soo he invites me, and my girlfriends upstairs. plan b - successful.

we're popping bottles of champagne, free drinks on the house..and..oh, what are we celebrating??? mr.dao, my indian friend, just had a baby..and not his 1st, but 2nd baby! and yy arent there women here? b/c "they're at home taking care of the babies.."...what the hell? i'm telliing you, i felt like we were at a bachelor party!

and yyy did u not tell me, mr.dao, that YOU were married when i first spoke to you? you knew the deal...and get this, dwnstrs where i 1st spoke to him, he tells me "oh, we're celebrating b/c my friend jus had a baby," not that HE just had the baby..

and they didnt even name the baby yet, not for religious reasons, but just cuz they didnt think of a name, so for now, the baby's name is 'baby x'....

ok.back to the party, er celebration...

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mr.dao and his male entourage invite me and my crew to the basement for hey, another party - there's lil caves and a dance floor and everything..more free drinks, like real drinks- cocktails, beer, shots...whatever u want..so we're all partyin it up w/about 20 guys, who by the way, most of which are married/dating...?!? ugh, whatever, by this point, their status doesn't matter.

jammin to that indian/hip hop...fun times!

then mr.dao hailed us some cabs home, but didnt pay for them..what a gentleman? i guess he was REALLY trying to tell me there he's married...then we go for kebabs @ 3am to just be harrassed by some guys that don't get the point that IM NOT INTERESTED!

..but mr.dao has my #..eh, i dont expect him to call, but fun times were had by all =)

p.s - dao owned the club, probably drives that red porsche that was sitting outside, and owns 9 properties on ocean drive..daaaamn!

chocolate.beer.wafels.

before i start, let me just say that the biosciencces director sat in on mr.lumberjack's lecture last thursday since sooo many ppl had been complaining about his "sheep-like" lecture style. i say sheep-like b/c he 'baaa's' or 'uuum's' between saying 'actual' words...but, i guess his sit-in meant nothing because he is STILL my professor! *sigh*

ok...now on to belgium 5-7 oct!!
brugge:
a little romantic city of cobblestone streets and cyclists everywhere..not many drive unless necessary... i stayed in a hostel while there, not too bad - but, the girls in my room were a bit...hmm..dull?!? they were younger than i, and got home early both nites(1am ish) and got drunk on beer? aaah, lightweights!

anyway, on the first day, as soon as i leave the hostel, walkin down the street...this african man pulls up alongside me in his car, shouts to me "WHAT'S UP MY SISTER?!" ..i'm like..what the ---?!
he continues on asking me if i want to hear some black music, i should go to his club - doowop he owns..uh, wow?! (meanwhile, cars are honking cuz he's holding up 'traffic' - only 3 cars on the road)
p.s- i knoow he's african b/c of the accent...and i am not 'ur sister'...
i guess it wouldnt have been that bad, but i was the only black female in my group..embarrassing?
that night my flatmate and i hit up this club -pretty cool-house,techno, dance..
the 2nd nite- we actually set out to find the doowop club.i know..but we happen upon this hip-hop club that played str8 dancehall?? and the DJ was congolese/belgian..wtf? but he had the patois down though..and, yea, they played current tunes...

brussels:
gr8 for shopping, more my speed than brugge, NATO headquarters, notre dame cathedral...
but the highlight of this trip has to be one of two moroccan waiters i had!
the man spoke 8 languages..and i'm not even joking..
so, delia and i sit down to order..he of course speaks english, then asks wbere we're from..after delia replies mexico..he busts out with spanish..ok, im not impressed yet... then he's trying to pull ppl into his restautant and spots this couple who speak deustche..he starts with the deutsche..ok, 3 languages...then korean..then italian..french..arabic...
then , this deaf couple walk by, and the man speaks sign language too?!?! heeell nah, but he was pullin ppl in though!
the waiter even hooked us up with a free tequila shot. =)
aah..belgium was lovely, but i am not eating fries w/mayo ever again! uuugh.

not everywhere you want to be.

visa logo my ass!
i was starving so decided to go into friendly subway 2 steps across campus.
i know i didn't have cash, but it's subway.. now, you know i stood in that loong-ass-lunch-hr subway line, took my time 'creating' my sub when the indian guy at the front tells me they are cash only. EXCUSE ME? this is subway, and i'm starving. he says, "natwest bank, a 2min walk, yah.." - in that lovely british accent. dont 'yah' me.
uugh.he was lucky i was starving..so i walk to natwest bank on the corner -- all ATMs outside are out of order. ok, i go inside..um, out of order too? whaat..it's ok, ill just stand in line- 4 ppl in front of me.. cant take long, right? HA..not in london.
(let me set the scene: this lil nice-british-woman-chime comes on saying "cashier 4 is ready, please proceed to cashier 4") REALLY? seeing as how that's the ONLY damn cashier open at lunch - wtf? there can't be any other cashier to proceed to.
so of course the lady in front of me is withdrawing 39472700 pounds and she only wants 5 and 10 pound notes. b*tch! my subway sandwich is chillin @ subway. grr..

yes! i get to the teller, she tells me i coulda done this outside, i said, well the tellers were out of order.
she says, "o, they are, hmm.didnt know," -in her lovely british accent sounding all concerned. lying ass. she knew they were outta order..and she made me stand in that damn line, just like everyone else behind me...a
oooh...and then she tells me she cant do MY TRANSACTION..oooh so after alla dis, i go across the street from natwest to hsbc, pull my funds, and head back to subway.
at least the "nice" man at subway gave me a 50 pence discount for my troubles.

uuuugh british ppl are a trip!
..but that sub was good though. =P

the elbow room & tigertiger

pic #1-it's me and everyone in iris' major!

pic #2 -pat, iris, me

(more pics via fcbk)

...so 'the elbow room' is where we went..a chill-out pool hall with a small dance floor..that of course we eventually overtook after a couple rounds of tequila shots n beer.

quotes of the nite:

"is that your GF?" - pat's stalker while giving dirty looks to iris ALL nite (iris BTW has a BF)

convo in trying to get my #:

"i need to find my coat!" - cute-but-drunk welsh guy

"y?" - me

"it has my phone..i NEED my coat. do u have ur phone?" -cute-but-drunk welsh guy

"no, do you have a pen?" - me

"no...but just kiss me!?"-cute-but-drunk welsh guy

"whaaat? i'm not kissing u! i dont know u!" - me

**mind u, this convo took about 15 min and the bouncer was gettin a good laugh outside the club before welsh guy's friends nearly left him.**

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bkgrnd: mr.wales was supposedly going to come up to me when he saw me near pat* but chickened out... pat is someone that's makin' me say hmmm??? right now. he's a friend of iris' who is interested in me, but i hear he has enuff girl drama already. soooh, we'll see. i know u guys were waiting for some juice/gossip/sumpthin' sumpthin' but u're just gonna have to wait..just like me.

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tigertiger.- 29 sept.

whaaaaaaaack! club. it's kinda like spirits..HUGE..mixed crowd...but plays house music mainly all nite, tooo many ppl, de whole of london, and can't make COCKTAILS worth shit..

(note to self: i have sincerely given london 3 different drinks to make on 3 separate occasions and they can't seem to get it right. tigertiger is noo exception. ) i simply asked for a grey goose and vodka. yyy camille yy?!? now, this whack bartendress added a 'clear liquid' to cranberry juice. i taste it. nothing, no buzz.nada. i asked if she can add more vodka, she looks at me like i'm crazy? tastes my drink, and tells me there's vodka in there. c'mon now?!

grr..im done. i can't take this whack non-mixology skills.

the lumberjack before the elbow room, & tigertiger.

now, really, the only way i can describe this professor is as a lumbjerjack. yes, lumberjack..he's tall, stocky, tight-pants wearing, and just odd. but, YOU WILL NOT give a 3 hr lecture on molecular diagnostics saying 'um, uh..um.' for the ENTIRE 3 hr period!! i was hella pissed, rightfully so, but i couldn't leave the damn lecture. anyways, during his "presentation" the lumberjack uses his kid as some genetics example.(hold up- your kid? u mean u have a child? u really mean that someone actually..?!? ok, that sounds harsh..but uuuuuuh.MAYBE she can explain yy u are up here lookin like an idiot?!) and besides your damn "um..uh", and being unable to answer simple genetics questions, YOU have the nerve to SQUINT @ the damn powerpoint slides? are u shittin' me? DEH GLASSEES,or SPECS as you say in the UK, are in your hands.PUT THEM ON! i don't get it..@ induction 2 wks ago when all the professors were 'selling', yes, 'selling' their modules to us students you FORGOT your specs and kept apologizing to the crowd for not being able to see..but you're CLEARLY holding ur specs while u lecture NOW and dont want to wear them?! heell nah..
p.s- i wrote a letter to the course director. dr.pam letting her know that you are a hot mess and need to be replaced. dr.pam needs to find someone else to fill in for her lectures since she is unavailable.
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ok. continuing with friday - 28 sept...
soo..waaay back at induction 2wks ago, similar to enrollment in the US..i was pretty sure i didn't have lectures on fridays...but on thurs. nite i check blackboard and it states i have lecture..so, like an idiot, i wake up EARLY tek train n transfer n ting to arrive RIGHT ON TIME, to meet face-to-face w/ someone else's professor...damnit, coulda slept in late, but it ended up ok seeing as how i took the opportunity to chit-chat w/my course director..dr.pam =)

so, 15 min into our convo, i was like, oooh sh*t!, she's going to remember that i was the one who wrote her the email.YEP. now she can 'put a face with a name' damn.

oh well, dr.pam was cool..she's looking out for jobs for me, told me about this bar made of ice?! in oxford circus, and told me all the cheap indian/chinese/thai spots to hit up. we're mos def on good terms.

ON MY WAY HOME: "MADNESS! This is SPARTA!!" only in london...i am tryna make my way thru oxford circus when *BAM* these fools are dressed up in full SPARTA attire. wtf? yyyy are u blockin' the footpath? aka sidewalk? they are takin pics w/ppl and their kids-- this IS NOT disney world. and they were pointing their spears at ppl. wow?? but u know, i had my camera phone so..ill upload that pic soon. never leave home w/o your camera in london.

home.rest up n pre-drink b4 going to 'the elbow room'