Going to watch Volver tonight with a Spanish Group!
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: I Can't Dance (Gram Parsons)
Topic: Internet fun things

So, I signed up to a Spanish Language group through www.meetup.com, and one of the events is to watch Volver with Penelope Cruz, I was planning on watching it anyway, but when I saw that event popped up - decided to go with them instead, since I can't make the next meeting (ecumenical council). This is the first time I'll be meeting them - so, I hope it is fun.

However, I think this www.meetup.com site is really cool - this way can meet people with some of my interest and we can meet like once a month and have a bit of a night out. My social life is a bit lacking - it tends to have the same people (who I quite like : Tina, Cling and Farah) - but I think its nice to meet other people - you know me - love meeting new people :D.

So, I've signed up for movies, dining out, social networking and walking as interests. Hoping there are a lot of people will sign up for the interests and then will form a group (I don't want the responsibility of forming a group and organising events - because it will mean I'll always have to be there - and I don't like that stricture - I like to feel as if I'm flexible, although I may not be :)).

URC Hoole Church
Mood:  cool
Now Playing: Crying in the Chapel (Tammy Wynette) - sort of appropriate :)
Topic: Church

Well, the church that Richard is .. what do you call that?? ... ministering too (whatever) - is a really nice church - well, the congregation were very nice and very friendly - I enjoyed going to that church more than Cornerstone - I think because it is a country church - and I've always gone to country churches - just think of Warrenville and Clarke Rochard Presbyterian.

We also had a Presbyterian communion (the liturgy was the same - I've heard it so many times - I must know it by now) and we sang the three Amens at the end - now that felt so Presbyterian - I really really liked it - felt so homely hearing those things (this actually only happened on the Sunday when Richard did the worship - because the one on the Saturday for his induction didn't sound very Presbyterian - and almost all the songs I didn't know).

And for communion the elders came and shared the bread and we had our wine in our individual glasses (so finally had proper communion in the UK!). I've never drank the wine at Cornerstone, everyone drinks from the same glass - I'm sorry - but no way am I doing that - you can say it and preaching it to me till the cows come that, that is about showing the fellowship and brotherhood (or sisterhood) - but no way doing that - that is just strange and unclean - hey I come from Trinidad Indian countryside culture - we don't do juta - and that's final!

Anyway, some people invited me over some coffee too - so went across and had some coffee - as I said very welcoming and nice people. All the elders at the church came up and spoke to the people from milton keynes - it was nice - I like the people at that church a lot - I was thinking of looking around for a country URC church and see if it is just like that here around MK - but I've been at Cornerstone too long and I don't mind it so much and sort of like it too - but it seems to be changing now - since Beverly left as well. I missed her leaving do since I was Trinidad - and I thought perhaps I would have seen her up at Chester but no - so, wrote her email wishing her luck this morning.

I drove on the motorway!!!
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: Anymore (Travis Tritt)
Topic: Driving

Well, drove up to Richard's induction on Saturday and drove down back on Sunday with Tina ... and I did it - I finally went on the motorway - and it was great - it isn't as scary as it seems - well at least the M1 and the M6 weren't as scary - guessing because they only had three lanes.

 I think my next accomplishment would be when I could drive down to London on the M25 orbital - because that one always look a bit scary .

Chester was a nice looking town - but I got really frustrated on the Saturday we drove up, because the map directions we had from the AA weren't corresponding to the road design - so once we reached into Chester - it took us a hour to find our guest house - which unfortunately didn't have any parking spaces - so I just had to illegally park in a place and let Tina dump all our stuff in the room and then she went across to Tesco near us and got us something to eat - and on top of that it was pouring rain.

 But because of getting lost etc. and not having a park, we had to go to the church dressed as we were, so we looked tired and were quite crumpled - but then we got lost finding the church as well, because the postcode I used for the church carried us somewhere very strange - so we were there driving around for about 30 mins looking for the church until I called Jenny and asked her where it was - well, we found it after I went on instinct and said we will just turn where-ever I felt like it (must have been God guiding me - because I was getting so fed up - I was willing to chuck the whole thing in and just go back to the guesthouse - but since there weren't parking until after 6pm - I think finding the church won out in the end).

But I got so lost in Chester - and drove through almost every road there - I think I know Chester pretty well now - I think I know most of the roads - I was even able to tell one person in the congregation where Queens Rd. and Queens St. were located - and how they were far from each other .

Just posting something :)
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: Daydream (The Lovin' Spoonful)
Topic: Driving

Well, tomorrow Tina and I are going to be driving up to Chester - we are overnighting in Chester at Pennies Guest House, so hope all goes well. I'm going up for Richard's induction (???). However, I'm planning to venture onto the motorway for the first time - so, hoping all goes well, never ever driving on the motorway as yet, I figure if I can drive on the A5 - the motorway can't be much worse than that. I'll just stay on the leftmost lane and pretend the lane next to me is the only one (so, it would feel like a dual carriageway) - well, that's my plan. If I get scared on it - I'm coming off at the next junction and taking the A roads all to Chester (got my map instructions for any situation arising).

Anyway, so tomorrow I venture onto the M1 and if I'm not to scared then into the M6 - hope all goes well for me.

Going to a barbecue
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: P.F.Sloan (The Association)
Topic: Events
So, since I haven't posted here anything publicly in awhile - I decided to post something now ... Well, this afternoon going to a barbecue at the Vicarage in Wolverton, gonna pick up Tina and go there.

I hope it is fun ... Joachim stays at the Vicarage and invited me over, it is actually being sponsored by the PGSS - but I don't usually go to PGSS events, but since Joachim told me to come - I decided why not.

Also, Imran invited me and Tina to come along to the same event as well ... (I think after my rant about the PGSS and its events at the Make a Difference conference - he thought I should come and experience one!).

Tomorrow, I'm also going to a next barbecue but this one being held for the church's ecumenical council members. Eric and Judy are hosting it at their place in Walton Park - so, got to pick up Nana and Paul. Going to pick up Nana first and then we are going to see how well we are at maps in order to find Paul's place. That should be interesting!

Iqbal
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: I Put a Spell on You (Manfred Mann)
Topic: Cinema
So, last Saturday went to see an Indian movie called Iqbal ... there weren't any 'real' stars in the show except for Naseruddin Shah ... but the movie was surprisingly quite good. I enjoyed it immensely. I think much better than the stuff that the Indian film cinema has been churning out recently. The movie is about a mute boy who wants to be a cricketer ... and the movie just follows how he become a cricketer for the Indian team. I thought it was quite nice - a very simple concept but a nice movie ... unfortunately I don't think it would be doing so well at cinemas. I was the only person in the cinema for that movie (yup the only person!).

The music in the movie was quite good too - but they didn't provide English translation for the song or is it songs (I'm not certain if it was one song or two). The movie was funded by some British council (I think) - for it to be shown here. I think it is a sweet movie on people fighting for their dream and trying to overcome problems that they are presented with. I think what I love about it - is that it showed a bit more of the 'real' India, with people who look like 'real' Indians rather than the stylicized (alright not a word but sounds better than stylized) Bollywood stars including Aamir Khan.

Its going to be spring!!
Mood:  lazy
Now Playing: Coward of the County (Kenny Rogers)
Topic: Milton Keynes
The weather is going to change finally!! Its going to be a whopping 13oC in MK by the weekend .... finally ... these 7s and 8s and whatever below that is going to disappear forever .. well, unless the weather decides to take a change ...and autumn and winter comes around. Never thought I would be so glad about the weather - you really have to be obsessed with the weather in this country.

I might be able to wear a dress or skirt ... been stuck in trousers for so long ... but don't know how warm a 214oC that's gonna be ... so might wait until it is declared to be a high about 16oC or 18oC before I take any chance :D.

Ecumenical Council
Mood:  lazy
Now Playing: Kasam Se (Jaanwar)
Topic: Lent
Well ... this is really about church - but Lent was the closest topic heading to that (and also now is Lent anyhow!)

Anyway last Sunday, it was vocation Sunday in church (couldn't remember what it meant at the time)- turns out to be finding jobs in the church so on my way out Beverly 'accosted' me and said she had a job for me, which made me very wary and apprehensive at the same time. But then she told me that Richard and her were thinking that I should join the ecumenical council, so I had to plead ignorance because I have no idea what an ecumenical council was but Richard said it was one of the better kind of meetings I could attend to and it is where I basically be myself and share my opinions and then these help shape or guide the church (I'm sure he said it much better than I and he probably actually knew what he was speaking about!). But he did say it is a good phrase to name-drop in church gatherings and I should get respect. Well before he told me all that stuff, I told Beverly yes (because I'm just bored and need to fill in my days) although she said I should go and have a think about it and prayer about it too - but didn't that much time ... :).

I bought a car!!!
Mood:  celebratory
Now Playing: I Won't Dance (Frank Sinatra)
Topic: Driving
Well .. on Saturday I bought a car ... a cheap one ... a black 1996 Renault Clio 1.4 RT ... for 825 pounds ... I thought that was a good price ... did beat down the price from 850 - so that's even better.

Insurance price is a bit of a killer ... given I have my licence for 2 months ... and in this country for less than 3 years ... but got a quote with the AA for 602 pounds ... so that was good - considering the other places on the internet were giving some insurance for me like 700-800 pounds, so I think that's pretty ok.

I did buy this car pretty quick, saw the advert on the OU advert sight on Thursday, saw the car on Friday with Rebecca (agreed to buy then) and got transfer of sale on Saturday.

The car came with a brand new battery and alternator ... so, that's quite alright. I asked the guy, Graham, about the brakes (he said they should be alright) and the cam belt (but according to him I shouldn't need changing that anytime soon - because it was changed - I'm guessing around 60,000 miles he must have done it). He did say there was only one previous owner besides himself (a friend of his), but when I looked up the registration plates it said 4 owners ... got me worried a bit, but when I checked the MOT, they were all at the same place from 1999-2001 ... so guessing it might have just been in the family with transfer of names.

Skimmed milk
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: Blue Bonnet Lane (Don Edwards)
Topic: Pet Peeves
Well, had to drink semi-skimmed milk this morning - because on Saturday and Sunday when I went to Sainsburys there were no skimmed milk ... don't like the taste of semi-skimmed.

People find that strange that I actually like skimmed milk - but I do think it tastes so much better - Angela used to call skimmed milk "coloured water" because according to her that's how best it could taste.

I remember once when we (Amalia, Ritch and I) were staying at Margaret's house, the neighbour came across and I was going through the groceries and was whining that they bought semi-skimmed - and the neighbour she says "I know skimmed is healthier isn't it?" - and I had to explain to her I like the taste of skimmed and she look at me with surprise. So - whadya know in some stuff I actually like the healthy things.