Being laid up

Last Friday I had the very painful experience of having my two lower wisdom teeth removed. Although the actual procedure wasn't painful - I was sedated so happily, have no memory of the actual extraction - I have been cooped up at home for the last four days. I have barely left the house in this time, mainly due to my freakish, somewhat chipmunk like appearance, with quite swollen cheeks, and although I have some lovely painkillers, I've had to find some interesting ways to keep myself entertained.

So here are my top ten saviours of the last few days and would highly recommend them to anyone stuck at home for a few days, for whatever reason.

Smash - considering I fancy myself as somewhat of a decent cook, I don't usually resort to instant things, but instant mashed potato is my new best friend, especially given that chewing is difficult and I can't open my mouth enough to fit more than a teaspoon in there at the moment. My favourite combos are wholegrain mustard with butter and cheese with sweet chilli sauce.
Audiobooks on iTunes - I recently downloaded a book I've been waiting to be released into paperback - a bestselling thriller, so not exactly life altering reading, but good all the same.
Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? Remember this awesome game from the 90s? I figured out how to download the original MS DOS version and have been playing it quite a bit. It's fun AND I'm learning. I was just promoted from Rookie to Sleuth thank you very much!

Source: www.cookdandbombd.co.uk

My flatmates - giving me sympathetic looks, buying me stuff I need while they're out, lending me magazines, feeding me homemade pumpkin soup and letting me have sole ownership of the TV remote - legends!
Skins - a UK television series that I can watch for free online. It's good, if a little disturbing at times - the things these high school students get up to seem a little scandalous, even for someone my age! I'm a bit slow on the uptake though - I just finished series one, which premiered back in 2007!
Ben and Jerry's - enough said. Chocolate Fudge Brownie I love you.

Source: www.mysupermarket.co.uk

DVDs - thanks to my LoveFilm subscription and borrowing from friends, I had quite a stash. I got to watch Boy, as one of my friend's parents sent it to him from home. Such an amazing film and really made me miss New Zealand, and remember fondly growing up in the 80s, in Petone. You egg.
Trivial Pursuit - Family Edition, so you can win quicker if you opt for the kids questions. This is a new discovery in the flat and I am sure will be a good source of entertainment for many cold evenings to come.
Online shopping - I probably got a bit carried away with this one. I bought myself a high vis backpack cover for cycling and some winter boots....as well as four dresses, two tops and a pair of pants.Oops.
Friends - who, although they laughed at me in my drugged and swollen state, also took me home from the hospital, took care of me, checked up on me, brought me flowers and watched DVDs, ate porridge and played Trivial Pursuit with me - thanks you guys!

So suffice to say, without all these things, I would've gone mad - and although my weekend was relaxing and cheap, I am thoroughly bored and hoping the swelling will have gone down enough to return to work tomorrow.

The London Commute

Work has been really busy for me lately - hence my lack of posting over the last month.....ok, couple of months. One good thing about working long hours however, is avoiding the rush on the tube. I've always been a fan of the tube - it's quick, it's easy, it's convenient....when it runs a 'good service' that is. However, I live on the busiest tube line in London, the Northern line, and because of the point at which I get on, the tube is usually pretty crowded - and that's on a good day. On a bad day, someone will push their own mother onto the tracks to get onto the train - even though the next one is only a minute behind. I tend to just keep my head down, my elbows out and grit my teeth for the duration of the journey. Sometimes the trip can make for some interesting entertainment though - some recent events include the driver who came over the loudspeaker to inform us that "someone's got their bits in the door - everybody, mind your bits!" or the drunk who wished everyone many happy returns at 8am on my packed carriage. My favourites are when people get into space fights ("that was my foot!", "move down please!", "there's no more room!") and then spend the rest of the journey having to stare each down with about 2cms between them while everyone else waits for one to swing a punch or call the other a bitch. Hey, you've got amuse yourself somehow!

I have begun to hate the daily commute with a vengeance and usually I find the best way to deal with it is just to zone out and bury myself in my book. However, quite unexpectedly, I have recently started cycling to work.

Cycling is something I've really missed since leaving Vancouver but I wasn't planning on being a cycle commuter in London as, let's face it, it's pretty scary - if you think tube commuters can be rude, try London drivers. A few people I know had been involved in accidents so that made me a bit reluctant. I hadn't got around to getting a bike but my friend was returning home to New Zealand a couple of months ago and offered me hers, with almost everything I needed included, for a tidy sum of £30. So once I'd taken that off her hands, I started to look into how I would go about doing the commute. In London, there has been a recent push toward cycle commuting, with the mayor, Boris Johnson, introducing the Barclays Cycle Hire Scheme, where for an access fee and usage charges, depending on rental duration, you can hire (and return) bikes at various docking stations around the city. As I had my own bike, I didn't need to participate in this, but was pleased to discover, that as part of this new cycling initiative, a new cycle 'super highway' (bright blue painted cycle lanes on major routes into the city) had been launched that ran the majority of the route I needed to take to work. So off I went, on a Monday about three weeks ago, and joined the cycle to work trend - not that I would call it trendy, I've discovered there is no way to look cool in a hi vis cycling vest and helmet! I was initially surprised at the number of people cycling, and found it actually made it easier for me, as I could just join the pack at busy intersections where I was unsure what to do. It only took me a couple of days before I felt comfortable - I guess all the cycling I did in Vancouver made me a pretty confident cyclist - and now I cruise to work in about 25 minutes, with my iPod in ("Danger Mouse!" my friend exclaimed when I told him this) and can even negotiate around the three part Elephant and Castle roundabout in rush hour - go me! So not only does it save me time in the morning, it's good exercise, environmentally friendly and a really enjoyable start to my morning, it also saves me about 60% on my usual tube fares. So now I'm in the process of kitting myself out with a few winter essentials - a high vis, waterproof backpack cover and some good cycling gloves - and converting people to the cycling revolution. Although I must admit, I don't think I'm going to be one of the hardcore few who keep cycling through the winter - I plan on doing it as much as I can until the proper harsh weather sets in and then.....back to the hell that is the tube until Spring I think! Ah well, enjoy it while it lasts I say.