Friday 3rd March

I didn't achieve much today. I spent most of the morning faffing round trying to decide what to send home in the post and what to try and squeeze into my cases. In the end, I lugged two big boxes down to the post office, one of books, the other of T-shirts and stuff I bought from Crate and Barrel. Cue Homer Simpson voice- "Ahh-hhhh-hhh... Craaaaate and Baaaarrellll..." It's a seriously nice shop. And so cheap, dudes. It's a bit frightening how far yer shekels go over here. You end up buying things just because they are cheap. So if you have the honour of being invited to Thrush Street in the next year, bring some sunglasses, cos everything in the kitchen is now brightly coloured rubber or plastic. Don't say I didn't warn you!

Anyhoo, at the post office I spent a cool 100 bucks sending stuff to me back in Sheffield. Imagine my surprise when I pick them up from the post office down in Hillsborough... " a parcel?... for me?... what could it be?... gosh, what a surprise... let's see... oh right... loads of books and some T-shirts... great. Which loser sent me this load of tat? Ah..."

After that, I went to the Henry Art gallery at the Uni. I had been earlier in the week (forgot to blog it) to see the Lichtenstein retrospective, which I enjoyed, although not quite as much as I had hoped. I think I am used to seeing his stuff alongside other artists' paintings, and it tends to blow away whatever it is exhibited next to- BLAM! A bit like this one, called...



















"Blam"!

But it was still great to see his stuff brought together. I think he's spot on (geddit) and anyone who thinks that Pop Art is rubbish knows next to nothing about art, in this writer's humble opinion.

Today, I saw the James Turrell Skyspace. Now bear with me folks. This is basically a small room, built outisde the gallery, with a large oval hole in the roof where you look up at the sky. Sounds naff. But is brilliant. The sky looks very different when it is brought into a small frame. Birds fly over, Coulds drift past. It starts to do strange things to your mind (had you noticed...?) I wasn't meant to take photos so don't tell anyone about these...




It's definitely one of those things you have to see yourself. I think he has got something at the Yorshire Sculpture Park. Meet you there for a picnic this summer.






















After that, more shopping over at the Mall. Oh yes. Back to Crate and Barrel for a kick off. Now that I have sent som stuff home, I need to buy loads more things I don't really need to overfill my cases with! Then I went to Sephora, which is a girly shop really, but me being such a metrosexual, it was no sweat to go in and ask about my skincare regime. Good grief. I've changed, haven't I? Well, deperate times call for desperate measures- I have two weddings approaching and need to be looking my radiant best. On to QFC where I bought a mango, just because I could. And some pancake mix and maple syrup- that's how breakfast should be over here. None of this Cornflakes and cup of tea nonsense! No, pancakes hot off the giddle and cawffee fresh off the stove. Outside QFC, some little girls were gathered in a rather intimidating group (it won't be long before my nieces reach the age where they can look at me, whisper furtively to one another and start laughing and it will scare the living daylights out of me!) The girls in question piped up as I walked past "Girl Guide cookies? Girl Guide cookies?" One of them, seemingly the saleswoman, belted out the line,
"They're yumm-ee in your tumm-ee..." while her partner in crime, without missing a beat, yelled "What she said!" I thought it was funny, but not funny enough to risk stopping and engaging them in dialogue.

Rich and Becky have finished their four week course. Perhaps that will coincide with them a) cheering up a bit and b) realising that playing their radio at 2 am or 5 am or even 7 am is not big or clever. Of course, standing outside my door and shouting down the stairs at any time of the night or morning is perfectly fine. You go for it.

I watched a film tonight called "The Station Agent" I had seen it before in Sheffield with Keri and Shaun, although I fell asleep right at the start and missed the first 10 minutes. So it was good to see them properly! But it's a great little film, about a guy who inherits an old run-down train station house in the sticks of New Jersey. Not a whole lot happens, but it is still brilliant. Not unlike this blog, if I may be so bold.... Oh suit yourself.