Just a start...

I finally summed up the courage to attend a drawing class...The little signs for Bethnal Green Live Drawing 50 yards-------> Have been taunting me for months...I started seeing them pretty much right when we moved in to our flat. So, it has taken me 7 months to look into it (very scary first step) and another month to coax myself into finally attending... And let me tell you, though artists can be incredibly intimidating with all their pretentious self proclaimed styles and new age ways of holding pencils, they can also be amazingly laid back and welcoming...

I was late for my first class...go figure...Walking up the stairs, slightly sweaty since I had been running around the area trying to find the building, I almost turned around...I personally can't see anything more awkward than walking into a live drawing class with all your stuff falling out of your purse...trying to find an empty chair which of course is directly across from where you are standing, meaning you have to walk half the perimeter of the room, tripping over peoples stuff and asking them in a loud whisper to move, as you apologize a million times...

This did not happen to me...:) I walked in, a lovely lady standing by the door seemed excited to see me again...and was slightly surprised when I told her it was my first time...She led me in, taking half my stuff. Brought me a chair, an easel board, paper, clips and in a normal speaking voice as if we were the only ones there, explained how the class goes, introduced me to the people sitting next to me and patted me on the back as she walked away. For the next three hours we all drew...(with a 20 min break half way through where the nice lady made a group of over 40 people pizza and snacks)...

Even though I have only gone twice, I feel as though I have found a new hobby...even if it is just a start...I like it...So, since I'm being all brave and all...here are some of my sketches...(more on snapshots)

V.

Impromptu Cambridge Trip...

Most weekends are spent in bed, at a market, hanging out with friends or exploring a new part of London...This is all good fun...gives us that feeling as though we have had a semi productive but mostly relaxing weekend which in reality is what we want/need after a long week...
Some days however, we decide to jazz things up and escape...without telling anyone...just go.
Here is a recap of our impromptu day trip to Cambridge...a magical Harry Potter style city...Very British...Very quaint...Very proper.

So, after rolling around in bed and debating our options, we finally decide to just go to the train station and see whats up...
Once there we find out that tickets are cheaper than we expected...zing!
Board the train...with obviously 3 min to spare...No one likes having to wait.
Beside us sits a man with a long grey pony tail wearing a leather jacket...I would say in his mid 60s. With him he has his pal Henry...A black puppy that looks like a lab but is 5 times smaller...And not because he is a puppy...Henry is two years old and fully grown.
T pulls out his planning folder, being the organized teacher that he is...and I sit...secretly wanting to play with the puppy...
Not being able to resist I strike up conversation...just to get me closer to my ultimate goal...
I get introduced to Henry, who remains sitting on his chair, anxiously waiting to go visit his sister and aunty just outside of Cambridge for a week...Grey pony tail turns out to be a magician...with a pin attached to his mean leather jacket that says he is part of the magicians secret magic group...Not joking...So no, I did not get to play with Henry but I did get an hour and twenty minutes of free entertainment from Robin G Magician...Member of Zodiac Magical Society...:)
After being mind blown for over an hour we arrive in Cambridge.
The rest of the day is pretty uneventful. Cambridge is a beautiful little town with a stunning university campus and a lot of old churches. A canal runs through it that offers boat tours in the rain with a bunch of strangers all cuddling under the same blanket...No...we did not participate.
Instead we walked around...took pictures...found a tiny hole in the wall coffee shop that gave us shelter from the unexpected down pour...As well as delish soup, coffees and sandwiches...
That was pretty much it...oh...and I bought a pair of boots...:)....(see more photos on the snapshots blog...)

 
V.

Weekend Jogs...

Ok I'm going to do my best and be honest here...Yes we went running twice this weekend...and No we do not do this daily (anymore) in fact we have not been out together since our trip to Portugal...BUT none the less, T (as usual) got us up and out of the door...
Here are some picture taken after our run...It is Autumn in London and even though not as colourful as back home, we managed to take some nice pictures...I think...(more on our snapshots blog...)

V.

Rainy, pretty London...

Walking today during my lunch break, I had a bit of an enlightenment. It was raining (as it usually does) but it didn't depress me today. It could have been that I had the afternoon off in terms of teaching, but I all of a sudden appreciated what was happening around me.
I started noticing little bits and pieces of images that were spellbinding. My iPhone was whipped out of my pocket in the light rain, and I began snapping away. Beautiful scenes started to unravel before my very eyes. Maybe it was a coming to terms, a new-found appreciation of some things rain related.

To see more from today's walk, check out our photo blog at tvsnapshots.blogspot.com

 

 

T.

Trying out something new...

Always wanted to try drawing fashion sketches...This is my attempt. It was fun to plan the outfit on paper and then see how it actually looks when on... :) Obviously I am no pro and therefore have no concept of proportions or how all this is supposed to be done but by the outcome of my google search on 'fashion sketches', all bodies seemed to be stretched and exaggerated...

V.

Homemade Popcorn...

In spirit of Canadian Thanksgiving and overall cozy food...We are posting a recipe...I know we don't do this often, and this is not a food blog in any way, shape or form but...T decided to put this whole challenge thing on us WITHOUT consulting me first, so here is my first post of the month...

 To be honest, I feel super guilty for not posting lately. Being back at work and having little to no time for anything really exciting or out of the ordinary to happen, makes it hard to get inspired. We considered doing a daily blog post of 'how we feel about what we are thinking'...but the thought of that makes me want to...well...its not going to happen.

But just for kicks here is a recap of Thursday 4th September 2012...

6:15 alarm
a snooze sesh till 6:40, at which point T's alarm clock rings and he magically jumps out of bed...(I continue snoozing until the guilt kicks in/I start smelling the coffee...)
7:00 - Barely awake we eat breakfast...and what T likes to call 'lolly gag'...Because by 7:15 we find ourselves still in pjs...
7:30 we are dressed and out of the house..I can't tell you how it happened...The last 15 min are a blur*

* This is a well developed routine that somehow works out every morning without fail...we leave the house by 7:34 (LATEST) all ready to go. (except when I forget my phone...watch...tube card...)

I wont get into the work day...Kids are kids...A morning of Maths/ Literacy...an afternoon of sewing with 8 year olds and before you know it, school is done and you have 90 books to mark...yay!

At home...T is pissed because his indoor soccer shoes have once again not been delivered...

side note...We are dealing with a bit of a conundrum...Our main door downstairs has been fixed and is therefore locked unless you have a special key thing. This is great for security purposes no doubt BUT, it makes it impossible for the delivery guys to get our online shopping to us...:S..Two weeks now and 6 attempts.

So, to brighten the mood and to give us something to munch on we decide to make popcorn...and well, document the process for blogging purposes (lame...)

I hate reading recipes that exclaim how SIMPLE AND FUN the recipe is because frankly all I really want after reading the appealing title is the final product...not a kitchen covered with flour, egg shells and random sticky liquids that were absolutely necessary for the simple and fun experience.

SO...with no false promises...This is how we make popcorn.

One Year...

No posts were put up in the month of September. An all time low for us. Never have we had a month pass us, whereby we didn't find the time or the inspiration to post. There are first times for everything.

It's been a year and a week (roughly) that we've been keeping our blog. Our way of sharing the impromptu affairs happening in our lives. Never did we necessarily imagine where life would take us, and as a direct result where it would take our blog as well. We've had the opportunity to visit five countries, and to call one of them our home. Meanwhile our more adventurous blog has made its way to the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania (or Australia); quite the traveler.

At times it hasn't been easy to post, blaming things like work, lack of inspiration or desire, and our obviously very busy social calendars. But posting has never felt like a chore, or a burden. It's always something that we look forward to when we get that little light-bulb upstairs going off. The anticipation of seeing how many people have viewed the post, and more interestingly from where they've viewed it always kept us going back for more. And despite the recent dip in posting frequency, our desire to share our everyday occurrences with those that care to take the time to read about them, is as alive as day one. We just don't quite have as much free time as day one.

But! With October 2011 being our most successful posting month in terms of sheer number of posts, I propose a simple challenge for both V and I; to match last October's output. A total of twelve posts. Cheers to our one year, and know that you can look forward to at least eleven more posts (hopefully).

T.