An excerpt from one of my many newsletters sent from London to friends and family in South Africa...
Date: 25 February 2001
Subject: Greetings from snowy Surrey!
Months in London: 2
Age: 17 years and 11 months
"Well, today I 'wrote' my first A-level mock exam. I use the word 'wrote' loosely because it was an art prac. I painted for 8 hours today, I have 6 hours of class time and 8 more hours next Sunday to complete my painting. Its really exciting cos' I'm enjoying it and the time flew, although I suspect I got more paint on myself that on the actual canvas :) !
English weather is really confusing, one minute its warming up, the sun's shining, blue skies and all that jazz and then before you know what has hit ya' its snowing while you amble down to the train station... the novelty of snow is wearing off, it tends to be really unpleasant at 8am in the morning after 4 hours of sleep, and Murphy's law dictates that the day you leave your lovely fur trimmed gloves at home, it's gonna snow and the winds gonna blow and the huge blank canvas you're trekking with is going to act like a fan and attempt to fly away with you. My quest for transportation this morning was interesting to say the least...hmmmmm...I think I'm gonna have to invent collapsible canvases that can be reduced to the size of a lip gloss container.
I can't believe I've been in the UK for almost 2 months already, time flies when you're having fun, places to go, people to meet, tube strikes to conquer. I'm looking really forward to coming to SA for 2 weeks in April, though, even SA's autumn might give my pasty looking skin some much needed colour. Yip, my December tan is but a distant memory and I look like a pommie (yikes!) frightening thought isn't it? And then there's hearing the good old 'native' accent, after seeing African people and hearing perfect pommie accents for weeks, it'll be refreshing to hear 'eh-tekksee' & 'the sun she is eh shunning'. It's strange the kinda things you begin to miss... (I know I know, "straight jacket for Miss Kemp, please, and then straight to cell G, the one with the extra padding on the walls")
Anyways I must be off, I'd love to type for longer, but I'm craving my pink duvet and the next chapter of my book (third one this month actually. Three books, aren't you impressed?)"
Date: 25 February 2001
Subject: Greetings from snowy Surrey!
Months in London: 2
Age: 17 years and 11 months
"Well, today I 'wrote' my first A-level mock exam. I use the word 'wrote' loosely because it was an art prac. I painted for 8 hours today, I have 6 hours of class time and 8 more hours next Sunday to complete my painting. Its really exciting cos' I'm enjoying it and the time flew, although I suspect I got more paint on myself that on the actual canvas :) !
English weather is really confusing, one minute its warming up, the sun's shining, blue skies and all that jazz and then before you know what has hit ya' its snowing while you amble down to the train station... the novelty of snow is wearing off, it tends to be really unpleasant at 8am in the morning after 4 hours of sleep, and Murphy's law dictates that the day you leave your lovely fur trimmed gloves at home, it's gonna snow and the winds gonna blow and the huge blank canvas you're trekking with is going to act like a fan and attempt to fly away with you. My quest for transportation this morning was interesting to say the least...hmmmmm...I think I'm gonna have to invent collapsible canvases that can be reduced to the size of a lip gloss container.
I can't believe I've been in the UK for almost 2 months already, time flies when you're having fun, places to go, people to meet, tube strikes to conquer. I'm looking really forward to coming to SA for 2 weeks in April, though, even SA's autumn might give my pasty looking skin some much needed colour. Yip, my December tan is but a distant memory and I look like a pommie (yikes!) frightening thought isn't it? And then there's hearing the good old 'native' accent, after seeing African people and hearing perfect pommie accents for weeks, it'll be refreshing to hear 'eh-tekksee' & 'the sun she is eh shunning'. It's strange the kinda things you begin to miss... (I know I know, "straight jacket for Miss Kemp, please, and then straight to cell G, the one with the extra padding on the walls")
Anyways I must be off, I'd love to type for longer, but I'm craving my pink duvet and the next chapter of my book (third one this month actually. Three books, aren't you impressed?)"
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