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06/07/2007
You Know When...
Hello! So, lots has happened since the last blogging entry, the most exciting of which is that I got to meet DJ and Helen! Woo!!!!!!
But first, a little more about my title.
You know when you're trip is drawing to a close when you have to go to Tescos to buy more face wash and hair products. That's right. I said just that. I was quite chuffed to find my regular face wash at the local Tescos (which also happens to be massive, by the way). I was quite tempted to try a product called 'Witch' and for those of you who know me, that should be pretty self explanatory. For those of you who don't, it has a base of witch hazel in it.
Ha! You thought it meant the other kind of witch, didn't you?! Ha!
Nope. I use witch hazel back home as a face product. Its fantastic stuff. Apply it to a cotton ball, spread it over your face and you're good to go. Witch hazel is also a good astringent for minor cuts and burns, so those nasty little paper cuts and slight sunburns are made better by the wonderful liquid.
While I had great luck with skincare products, I wasn't so fortunate in the hair product department. I'm good on shampoo, but I ran out of my curly hair products, which upsets me. My hair is very particular and because I have very particular hair, I had to learn a great deal about it. So, without further ado, I give you a short run-down on what curly hair really is...deep down. Those of you not wishing to immerse yourselves in educational rhetoric, I invite you to skip down past said part.
Curly hair is, of course, curly! Duh. But what makes it so?
Excellent question!
Curly hair is made so by a particular and unique chemical formation within the strands of hair. All human hair is carbon based, which isn't really so surprising, really. Curly hair, however, has extremely tightly knit carbon bonds that produce the curl in what would otherwise be flat, straight hair.
But you can straighten your hair and have it remain straight, yes?
Another excellent question!
The answer is yes, depending on how much damage you want to inflict upon your hair. I occasionally flat iron my hair. What this requires is a handheld 'iron' consisting of two hot plates and a comb. Heat will 'relax' the carbon bonds in my hair enough that my hair will go straight for however long I want it to be straight (the longest has been three days so far). Water, if applied to curly hair that has been ironed, re-animates, so to speak, the hair and wakes up the carbon bonds so that it goes curly again. This is why I don't bother straightening my hair when the weather is overcast. The moisture in the air will wreak havoc on my hair, so I just don't worry myself over it.
Now, there's also a way to make curly hair straight through the application of chemicals. I don't touch anything with chemicals in it with a ten foot pole when it comes to my hair. It is possible to go to a salon and have your hair professionally straightened, at which point you would be strapped to a chair, covered in a tarp and doused in vile smelling sulfur-based liquids that are meant to make your hair straight, but which really, in effect, just make you feel as though your head is on fire.
The chemical compunds they apply to your hair basically break down and dissolve the tightly knit carbon bonds in curly hair. While it makes hair more manageable, it also makes it much more prone to breaking, which in turn leads to all sorts of nasty hair troubles. So really, the question is why would you put something in your hair that actually destroys and eats away at the natural carbon bonds?
I don't know either, thus my hair has remained curly from birth.
Now, those of you who skipped that little science lesson, first of all...shame on you, but secondly, welcome back. We were at the perils of not having my normal curly hair products.
So they didn't have any. I searched the shelves like a mad woman trying to find something that remotely resembled a kind product for curly hair. Matt even helped me. He handed me a product (I won't name it because I have tact that way) that had 'sulfur dioxitate,' which believe me, I have no idea what it means. All I know is that I saw the word 'sulfur' and rapidly returned it to its place on the shelf.
I ended up buying a Garnier product (I'll name them because I have nice things to say about them). My shampoo is Garnier, so I figured I'd stick with what I knew. So far, this serum stuff seems to be working pretty well. My hair is soft, supple and most importantly, healthy!
So why did I tell you all that and why am I going on about my hair?
Again, an excellent question.
Quite simply it's because I need a break. I've been busy all morning with setting up registries online for the wedding and yadda yadda yadda. Matt's taking a break by playing DEFCOM IV or some other world destruction game such as that. To each his own, eh?
As I mentioned earlier, I got the chance to meet DJ and Helen this past Tuesday. It was good fun. I think one of the highlights was forgetting to write down DJ's mobile number so that we couldn't call him when we got to the city, going in search of London Bridge (which is surprisingly hard to find...you'd think the Underground would dump you out right outside the actual bridge with a station name like London Bridge, but no!), calling Matt's dad to go online into an email to get DJ's mobile number, calling DJ, waiting for DJ and Helen on the bridge, getting two more phone calls, one from DJ and one from Helen, asking us how to get to London Bridge and then finally seeing them pass by amongst a crowd of what looked very much like adolescent businessmen.
Like I said, good fun!
By the time we met up, which was aaaaaaaages after we thought we would due to the false advertisement of the Underground (*holds up angry fist*), we were all starving so we went in search of someplace to pick up some food. Believe it or not, we found sustenance in a Boots shop. I had been under the impression that Boots only sold skincare/haircare/bodycare products, but no! Alongside cosmetics (which DJ offered to try with me :p), Boots also sells medicines, food, drinks, condoms and funniest of all, chlamydia medication. Seriously. It was on a side aisle near the registers, big as sin. Matt spotted it, pointed it out to me and we both laughed heartily.
We partook of lunch on the river Thames. Those that haven't been to London, the greater part of the river is flanked by 'riverwalks' which are really nice in some areas. Where we had lunch was one of those nice places. There was a jet fountain in the middle of a circle of stone circular benches. Helen and I sat next to one another, DJ settled in on the ground and Matt sat kind of behind me. The wind, however, was not with us. We kept getting sprayed by mist that was blown off the fountain, so DJ and Matt aborted their mission and moved away. Helen and I stayed.
After lunch, we walked along the riverwalk past a boat that once belonged to Sir Francis Drake, which was put to rest by Queen Elizabeth the I. From there we walked along and saw the Globe Theatre, which I totally geeked out over. It's the only building in London allowed to have a thatch roof on it. All other buildings are forbidden by law from having them because of fire danger, so there's an interesting little factoid for you. Of course, from the Globe, it's just a hop skip and a jump to the Tate Modern, so the four of us ducked inside there and wandered around for a couple hours.
Originally I was promised slides as part of an art exhibition, but DJ lied to me. There were no slides. There weren't even things remotely resembling slides. My animosity towards DJ dissolved, however, as I made my way through the galleries. I got to see original works of art by people I've studied. The list includes, but is not limited to:
Shiele
Monet
Pollock
Warhol
Kandinsky and
Calder (you know, the guy who makes those really cool wire mobiles that hang from the ceiling?).
All in all, I had a great time, which is surprising considering I'm not a huge fan of modern art.
From the Tate Modern, we walked across the Millenium Bridge, which isn't as impressive as it sounds. Upon closer inspection, it looks as though it would snap into several pieces with a tremor from back home. Of course, the end justified the scary means of getting there. St. Paul's Cathedral is directly across the river from the Tate Modern, so we wandered over there and looked around. Our luck wasn't with us, though, since when we got there some guy from the church came out and announced that it was closed to the public and would re-open the next day.
Well, all of us were kind of bummed out, so I decided we all needed an afternoon pick-me-up. Leaving my friends behind, I crossed the square and went into a Marks & Spencers where I bought some water, some packaged slices of melon and pineapple and some chocolate. I then returned to my little group, we sat down and consumed said items and then continued on our merry way. By merry way, I mean we walked along the riverwalk on the north bank of the Thames and it was here that Helen sadly left us. She went home early, so we said our goodbyes and then there were three.
Now, I have to say that DJ was in a prime position for me to throw him into the Thames. He was sitting on the wall that looked right out over the water, but I was well-behaved. I didn't push him in. Well, the three of us remained on the wall of the Thames for a few minutes longer discussing what it was we wanted to do next. Matt was being a wimp, complaining that his legs were sore and that he didn't like walking around big cities. DJ was 'good with anything' and I was rolling my eyes at them both. Boys are hopeless.
Matt wanted some coffee, but he refused to ask anyone for directions to the nearest cafe, so DJ did the asking and the local pointed us in the direction of a Starbucks. We retired there, only after happening across Samuel Johnson's house. I was ecstatic with such a find! Neither DJ nor Matt knew why I was so happy or who S. Johnson was until I explained that he was a famous English author that I studied in school. So, that was another delightful perk of the day.
Starbucks was fun. We sat around and talked for about an hour before Matt and I decided to head to the coach station for our coach home. DJ was wonderful enough to escort us there and I think I surprised him a little by overcoming my fear of double-decker buses by going up to the top of ours and settling in. While on the bus DJ asked who won the Battle of Waterloo and I happened to know that it was the Duke of Wellington. I was playfully prodded at after that for being a 'boff' by Matt and DJ laughed and agreed. Stupid boys.
Arriving at the coach station, we bid farewell to DJ and went on our merry way. All in all it wasn't a bad day. Good food, good art and excellent friends will make just about any place worth visiting, even the big, bad city of London. I shall have memories of that day for a very long time indeed.
And now, Matt wishes me to go into town with him for some shopping or something. It's his mother's birthday this coming Tuesday and his sister's not long thereafter and he's trying to figure out what to get them. As far as the rest of my week goes, tomorrow we should be going to Winchester so Matt can practice the organ and so we can cook up some Mexican food for some friends. Mmmm...Mexican food. Saturday, if the weather is alright, Matt wants to take me to Plymouth for the day, which I'm thrilled about. I love beaches. Sunday, Russell is coming over again for dinner along with Rosie (a girl from Matt's church), so Sunday should be good fun too. After that it's just Monday and then I'm off home again. *sighs*
Oh, and Sunday will also be a family meeting. By that, I mean that my uncles, my brother and possibly everyone else will cram themselves onto Mac cameras for a conference chat. We did that last week and it was a hoot, so we're repeating the pattern this coming week.
I'll see if I can blog again before that! Until then, kids!
Later Days,
Arty
06:23 Posted in Blog | Permalink | Comments (9) | Email this
Comments
Witch hazel!! I grew up with the stuff. It was, and still is, a panacea, ever present in our medicine cabinet.
Thanks for blogging about your special trip to London.
Love you lots. Besos y abrazos a mi nieta favorita.
Ganda
Posted by: ganda | 06/07/2007
Witch hazel .... does it help the complexion? Hmmm. I've been using Jergens' Natural Glow face cream for about a month now, and I'm amazed. It's really cool stuff.
I did read your science lesson. Very interesting indeed! I would never get a perm for the same reasons ... Although it's interesting to note that our hair is already dead.
And I've really enjoyed reading about your trip. You're having some really fun times and getting to do so much!! I'm so happy for you. I wish all my memories of London were that good. :p
I didn't get in the Tate Modern ... I'm not big on art museums either, but I would have enjoyed seeing some more Monet. He's my fav. ;) (Aside from Andrew Wyeth, but who not from Maine has ever heard of the Wyeths.) I too wanted to push someone in the Thames. It's SO tempting, isn't it?! Did you see the Traitors' gate on the Tower of London, and the sun dial sitting right where a guilotine used to be? :p
Posted by: Margo | 06/07/2007
Margo, when Matt first came to meet Arty, she was tempted to push him into the San Francisco bay as they strolled around the Embarcadero. She held on to her senses, though. It's a good thing, or she wouldn't have been in London meeting new friends.
By the way, witch hazel is a very cool remedy. My father used it as after-shave. It's good as a skin cleanser and toner for your face. The list goes on and on....
Posted by: ganda | 06/07/2007
excuse me arty but you promised you would arrange to meet me when you were here and did i hear anything - no!
how dare you ignore you lover... ummm i meen me!
now come on up to market harboorugh in leicestershire or else!
Posted by: morety | 06/07/2007
A very wonderful blog about the science behind curly hair, and our day in London!
I'm sorry I left early by the way... I was utterly rubbish! I was also strangely quiet, so I'm sorry about that too! I didn't represent myself very well at all I didn't think.
Anyway - I really enjoyed meeting you and Matt, it was excellent, I'd definitely do it again ;-)
Much love! x x x x x
Posted by: helen | 06/07/2007
* sniff *
I wanna meet arty and helen!
Posted by: Margo | 06/07/2007
Stuff did NOT go down how you say it did! lol.
And I was as dissapointed with the no slides as you were! Perhaps even more! I went to accost official people standing around about it afterall! And that stuff about that Thames? ~~my idea to push you all in the thames~~ so HA!
And the cosmetics thing?! "DJ offered to try it on with you?!" It sounds like something I'd say, but I don't recall saying that, lol. I do recall you saying "I'll try it if you do," however.
Pfft. And you accuse me of misinformation! Well, the boots on the other foot now, buddy, and it aint kickin' my ass!
Posted by: dj | 06/08/2007
hey margo!
What's wrong with me? I smell or something? :p
Posted by: dj | 06/08/2007
"...Boots also sells medicines, food, drinks, condoms and funniest of all, chlamydia medication. Seriously. It was on a side aisle near the registers, big as sin."
Sobrina, when your Prima Segunda and I were in London last October, we happened upon a Boots in Piccadilly Circus. Alf and Karen were with us as well and the four of us spotted the Chlamydia medication too. And like you, we were guffawing like crazy. It was also about 11:30 at night so we were all pretty punchy to begin with so it only added to the humor.
I LOVE Tesco and Boots. As much as Target! I was at Target tonight with your other Tio and Doug. I picked up Season 7 of Seinfeld for $17.99. Not bad.
Anyway, I'm really looking forward to seeing you next week at home. Have a great last weekend in the UK.
Tio
Posted by: autopia500 | 06/08/2007