23 July, 2006 | Leave a Comment

I’m circling the airport of Meltdown City. Not sure if this puppy is gonna land yet. We’ll see.

The power is out in a large part of London today. My neighborhood is dark right now. I’ve had no electricity or internet service or hot water for almost the whole day. I’m not sure how/why these things are all linked and went kaput at once. For whatever reason the phone is working, I guess so you can call people and complain about how bad the day sucks. I really wish I knew what was happening — there have been tons of sirens all day and helicopters flying overhead.

It’s already been a loooong hot week and now this! I’ve been trying to get packed up over the last few days and the heat has sapped the little energy I have to devote to this project in the first place. Today is the last day I have to pack everything that’s being shipped to France and what a day it’s been. No fan to keep me even a little cool, no ability to cook anything, having to take a freezing shower in the darkness, having to walk up six flights of stairs every time I need to go out. Forgive me for admitting this, but I really just want to cry. I’m at Starbucks right now because I had a hard deadline for my web-based job. I can’t be without the internet, not even for one day. Lucky me! I’m using up the rest of my connection time to write this sad, sad post, which really serves no purpose except to spread misery and bum people out.

I’m not just being a whiny brat. Everyone I encounter is pissy. It really has been a nasty week. On my way over here, I saw a young Australian woman. She was outside the Russell Square tube station, which is gated shut (as is King’s Cross, Euston, etc.). This woman was obviously hoping to catch the Piccadilly Line to Heathrow. When she realized the tube was shut down, she dropped all of her luggage in the street and screamed: “I hate this fucking city! I want to go home!” It was quite spectacular. While I don’t agree with her sentiment, on presentation alone I must give her ten out of ten.

[This guy has just sat down next to me. He asked me a question, heard I was American, and now he wants to know why i'm living here. Uh, I'm a student. Now he wants to know what I'm studying. Literature. Now he wants to know what newspaper I read. WTF? Can't I have my rant in freakin' peace?]

So anyway, I am about to venture home into the great unknown. Let’s hope for the best, shall we?

1. Comments RSS

1. SpliceGirl Says:

   July 23rd, 2006 at 8:35 pm

   you think it’s hot there? Oh, wait till you get here.

2. William Says:

   July 24th, 2006 at 12:31 am

   God- it’s been SO hot here on the U.S. east coast. Thankfully it’s been cooling down a bit now. And who says there’s no such thing as global warming???

3. Anglofille Says:

   July 24th, 2006 at 10:05 am

   I hope the US heatwave subsides before I get there! But at least a/c is more common over there. That’s something to look forward to (besides seeing y’all, of course).