Ups & Downs

I’ve done it again… another ridiculous all-nighter, going to bed as the sun rises. The previous 12 hours or so have been another roller-coaster ride. I woke up some time after noon, took a bath to soothe away some of my anxiety, enjoyed having the ability to eat in the bedroom once again, and returned to my previous anxious state, with extra nerves to spare (almost to the point of being nauseous) before it all went away, replaced by a silly kind of bliss for a while until I was merely excited, in a calm sort of way.

Perhaps this needs some explanation.

Cristina is at large once again. Fearing she will fail to return our deposits as she did with Oscar, Janice, Giulia and I have peaceably requested that she accept our deposits as rent in lieu of this, our final month’s, payment. She angrily declined. Janice moved out yesterday morning into a single room on Queensway with a “big bed” and a “verrrry big wardrobe”. More texts and phone calls with Cristina… more stress, more ridiculous claims and insulting statements on her end… She announced a day before that she would be arriving at 8:30 PM. I talked with my dad on the phone. I told him about the situation, and he warned me not to hand over any more money to Cristina. Abby, Agneta, Giulia and myself chatted in the kitchen, anxiously watching the minutes pass. Cristina called Giulia some 15 or so minutes after the appointed time (another messy conversation ensued); her accountant would be in the lobby soon to collect payment. No go, there. Giulia and I wrote a letter for the accountant to pass on to her, but the rotund fellow would not take it; she would be coming the following evening anyway.

At 10 o’clock, Janice suggested to Agneta (via Skype) that we all meet her at the Black Lion pub. Ryan, Giulia, Agneta and myself went, and Janice brought her German boyfriend (I still can’t remember his name… we all still refer to him as “German guy”, though). We all had a great time – perhaps all the more because of our stressful encounter previously. It was just what the doctor ordered. The atmosphere couldn’t have been more perfect, right down to the ancient oil paintings and leather lounge chairs. It’s a shame the kitchen was closed already, though. The place is less than a minute away; we really should have visited it a lot more often during these past several months.

Next stop for Agneta and I: Subway. She, with her classic veggie sub, and I with my regular Italian B.M.T. No chocolate chip cookies, this time. By coincidence, we saw Janice and the German guy there, too, but we separated after that. At home, Agneta and I indulged in all manner of goodies (edamame beans, pretzels + Nutella, Allsorts, and our sandwiches) and watched Dirty Pretty Things.

We talked for hours after that… About her new job, Cristina, the past, the future, Disney World, etc. Both of us have some pretty grand goals, but things aren’t looking too peachy at present.

Cristina has promised to come meet today, at 8:30 again. This time, however, I’m pretty sure I will ask for my deposit back so I can leave London a few weeks earlier than previously planned. I’ve spent a lot of my money here for lack of a job (and it’s not as though I haven’t tried my damnedest to get one). I won’t find a job in the time I have remaining, so I may as well move forward and use what money I have left towards a little traveling before I head back to California. I will challenge myself to spend as little as possible while making the absolute most of it. Can I do it within $500? Paris and Barcelona are musts. I’ve begun a list already, which I intend to make quite thorough. I’ve also got a few places left seeing in London that have been put off.

That said, I should see if I can get by with just a few hours of sleep – I would really like to check out the Royal College of Surgeons of England today.

Oops, I can already hear the horses on Bayswater Road…