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Sitting on the Victoria line (one of the underground train lines, aka the tube) this morning, like a chump, riding up to oxford circus when this woman sitting beside me turns to me and shows me this map she’s printed out and asks me if I can help her make sense of it. I look at the map and realize, I actually CAN help her make sense of it b/c it’s a map of the Royal College of Physicans…..!!! the very same place I have to be next Monday, the 13th. I had a really brief heart attack moment when I panicked thinking I’d entered the twilight zone and was actually supposed to be there today. But no… just another bizarre coincidence! It just weirds me out the most b/c I just borrowed ‘the davinci code’ from brian and apparently there is no such thing as a coincidence….. (cue: twilight zone theme song)

Anyway. Fabulous weekend! Had a great dinner Thursday night with the gang before brian and tomasz headed off to south Africa! This time Michael cooked and it was DELICIOUS! J I’m just afraid because at the rate we’re going, it will quickly be my turn to cook and that is dangerous ground…….

Friday was the big UEMO conference… my company hosted a debate Friday afternoon… UEMO is basically like the UN for healthcare in Europe… every country has a representative, and they’re all very very important people. The main room of the conference, where the debate was held, looked like an Olympic judging panel, with every third person wearing headphones that translated English into whatever language they speak. I’m about 99.9% sure I was the only American there… which was great when our debate started (the topic: obesity), and nearly ever single panellist started bashing Americans!!!! Not sure if everyone back home is aware or not, but Europe, especially the UK, is terrified of becoming like America…. Literally! We’re the fattest nation on the planet and we disgust just about everyone. They love to blame it all on mcdonalds and the fact that America worships the TV above all else. I was like, what about the fact that you guys get 40 billion more holidays than we do??? It’s easy to be active if you have every other Monday off from work. Oh well, couldn’t really argue too much. The most ironic part was that just outside the doors of the debate, in the hotel lobby, they served coffee, tea, and trays upon trays of King Sized Kit-Kats. Hahahaha. Now THAT’S healthy!

Friday night came home, placed the obligatory birthday phone call to Nadine…. Had a definite senior moment when I called Stacey thinking she’d be on her way to the DMB-Chicago show, only to find out that the show was the night before! Oops! Passed out like a champ before 10pm even!!! Too exhausted after a great week.

Saturday met up with Nicola and the amazing South African Crew!!! Dinner and drinking and a crazy round of 30 Seconds in Wimbledon before Nicola and I made the long march home to Earlsfield where we saw about 14 billion foxes running about. We stayed up late late late talking about family and boys and the vastly different situations we grew up in. I felt like a completely ignorant American as she told me about the circumstances in South Africa right now, and Zimbabwe. I just kept thinking about Americans…. “so much we take for granted….”

Sunday I headed up to Melrose Place (knolly’s house) to have traditional Sunday Roast with Michael and Phil, and Murphy!…. Sooooooo good! (and, now that phil has cooked, it’s getting REALLY close to my turn!!!! Yowza!) we talked nearly the entire day away, …life, love, sex, … the whole shebang. Raj made a late appearance…. And I think we went through 3 bottles of wine total! Not too shabby. I’m becoming obsessed with wine. (except red wine, that makes me loopy. – ironic then, that my favourite drink is also red, vodka & cran… I digress….) After dinner I stopped off at the computer lab on my way home and got a big smile from a chat to NYC. Hehe.

Anyway, big week ahead. Very stressful at work til the big event next Monday. Then it’s smooooooth sailing til concert festival season and the big trip!!!

~courtney