Onwards....

For a woman with limited socialising time I've certainly made the most of what's left.

I've been to a BBC PROM, where everybody's (bh)aiyya Nitin Sawhney put on a superlatively disappointing performance. I'd like to know why the maestro chose to play acoustic guitar despite being over-qualified in the skill of instrument-swapping through his competence and persistence.

I'd also like to know why he chose to serve sub-Shy FX dirge to an audience of music lovers; it's wrong to assume a sea of white faces meant the Independant macrobiotic apologist crew were in attendance. Very little experimentation was done, meaning Reena Bhardwaj and Akram Khan were left to provide whatever 'flavour' was required to get things interesting again. Unfortunately, Reena's moments were brief, so I ended up heading off to the pub.

I get sick and tired of paternalism, where people of colour are held to 'lower' expectations, creating a double-standard. What tires me more is the assumption that other brown people are going to be less critical of a product made by yo' brown self as they're supposed to rate you for 'trying' amongst a sea of apathy. Mediocrity just fuels more self-pity and the aforementioned 'low expectations'. Who's going to hold you to task if your own people don't, eh?

Rant over. Or should I say 'onto the next rant'? I think I'll leave Rant2 for a while; you want to hear about where else I've been aside from academic meetings and tutorials, don't you?

I made time to meet a few lovely non-medic friends, which was lovely. We kept running into various medics at Chelsea, so a catch-up drink at one pub stretched out to another!;I think I'll definitely be heading out to the Hook again!



My last weekend consisted of a post-take ward round (attended to be quizzed by wrinkly Prof with hot voice), face and body waxing, a two year old's b'day party (where I met Priya Basil's grandparents and, in a previous year Claire Hafner) and a girlie lunch for K and N's birthdays.

A lovely lunch (at the Prince Regent) turned into tea; SATC cupcakes, which turned into drinks on the Kings' Road.

In between confronting people with suspected eating disorders and watching Saxondale, I found myself treated to lunch at DeMartino. Stunning stuff (pasta al dente, chillis piquant, veal tender and savoury) - 'tis a real shame about the surly staff and rushed service!

I also made time to check out the Proud Galleries (London's biggest lunchtime sunbathing 'terrace') and their Razorlight exhibition, in addition to tabloid fave 'The Hawley Arms' , The Lock Tavern (home of Field Day) and Camden Lock. I have to admit very little star-spotting took place; they were clearly too trollied from the night before to rock up in the afternoon!

I shall be off to check out the Warhol vs Banksy PopGraffitiArt exhibition, in addition to Donkeybox's new album over the next week.

Stay well!

PS Rant2 is about the lack of affable female role models in science. Believe me, it's on it's way ;)

The wedding...

My dears, it has been too long - I hope all is well with the lot of you.

Since we last spoke my life & my brain have gotten fragmented. I'm in a different location every day, making meet-ups with friends nigh-on-impossible as 'friend resident in that location' is most often not there on the days I turn up. There's no regular pattern, which makes the last-minute aspect of any social meetups planned ALL the more tantalising.

Life at home obviously sucks. I'm sure quite a few of you are more than aware of why you choose not to share an abode with parental types for more than a fortnight! Needless to say, we're off to a family friend's wedding on Sunday. The wedding is at Asian Location Seven as (I suppose) the Park Lane Hilton, Rembrandt Knightsbridge, Mandarin Oriental, Radisson Heathrow, Clay Oven Banqueting Suites and Brent Town Hall were already booked.


I have a feeling the wedding isn't going to be as fun as the one Darwin just mentioned; those I know there are acquaintances a little strait-laced for my liking - as conventional teetotaller UK SL medic girl (fair, skinny, no extra-curricular or rebellious instincts) met conventional beer-drinking SL medic guy (chesnut brown, not so skinny, speaks in fake Sri Lankan accent around parental types to appear more cultured, follows the crowd) and conventional medic family with rebellious (sic) non-medic father are proud they've gotten one over the rest of the conventional SL medic/dentist social circle. Needless to say, this couple serve as reminders as to how yours truly has failed her mother. Those who have met me can attest to my not being skinny and smiley, 60% not work-orientated and not loved up with a decent professional SL boy (or any similarly upstanding 'boy', for that matter!) and enable her to serve me up a nice dish of guilt on the way home.

Hopefully the Nintendo Wii they left on their wedding registry will keep them entertained!

'You're IT'

..thanks to the tagging from Rhythmic, it looks like you lucky people are going to get my seven facts. Without further ado, here you go :P

1. I like to sink before I swim; I find I learn quicker when I'm put in the deep end and forced to concentrate on learning by doing! Kinesthetic is the word for people like me; we get very bored when forced to read/listen to dry material. It's a shame there's very little in the way of kinesthetic medical revision aids for the ADHD kids out there ;)

2. Whilst I'm in agreement with Rhythmic and Roshan Gunasekara over the power of the stringhopper, I have to take Child of 25's side and name my favourite SL staple as the hopper. What I wouldn't give for a crisp, bowl-shaped pancake or three with oodles of prawn curry gravy and freshly-fried onion sambol...

3. My favourite SL food (Butterfried Cuttlefish aside) is Malu Ambul Thiyal (Sour tuna curry). Proper Down South food. I like making Onigiri with it instead of sandwiches for packed lunch.

4. Growing up as a chocolate-face in rural England has made it's mark on me. I've always had to prove myself harder as an outsider as I've never arrived through the conventional route to anything. Hence, I get very cross when others capable of winning everyone over choose not to give their very best. Like Nitin Sawhney and his sub-ShyFX performance at the PROMS on Friday.

5. My favourite authors are fellow Londoners. Romesh Gunasekara, Shyama Perera, Preethi Nair, Ben Elton, Hari Kunzru and Stephen Fry. There's a fascinating dichotomy between naivety, adventure and cynicism in the way we see the world :P

6. My dream destinations are Cape Town, Barca, Seville and San Francisco. I'm definitely a sucker for good food and sights <3

7. My dream date is Hari Kunzru. I bet you knew that already ;)