Banana Bread, New Friend, Dirty Dancing

Pictures: 1) with my banana bread, 2) close up bread, 3) ready to go to the show with the scarf grandma made me, 4) pretty building on the way to the show, 5) outside the theater




Sunday night I decided to make banana bread because I had a bunch of overly ripe bananas on hand. SO, I looked up a recipe online, went and bought the ingredients I didn't have, and started cooking. Unfortunately the recipe was in cups and the measuring cup we have is in liters, but I sort of guessed/looked up rough conversions online. I also made it with walnuts and currants (which are dried black grapes - sweeter than raisins and smaller). I was so delighted with the results and the bread was delicious!! One may be wondering why I'm so excited about this, but I have never made banana bread by myself or any recipe that was as complicated as this one, so I'm quite pleased.

Monday I did homework most of the day and then met my friend Matthew's cousin Catherine at the National Theater on the Southbank of the Thames. I was going to catch a bus since it was raining, but it ended up not being a very far walk, and despite the rain, it wasn't too cold. Catherine and I met in the theater lobby then went to Wagamama (a noodle place) for dinner. She gave me a whole list of stuff to check out while in London and helpful websites. She also gave me a list of cities she recommends that I visit. She was very nice and hopefully we can hang out again soon. Interestingly enough, she is in the advertising business and has recently been working on a public safety campaign that sounded really cool. If I do go into advertising I'd like to do something for the good of civilization.

Today I read a lot for my WWII class and then I walked down to the Aldwhych Theater where they are showing Dirty Dancing Live. I passed it on the way home from Wagamama last night and thought I'd try to catch the show tonight. I arrived to buy the tickets at 6:15 and bought a £15 "restricted view" seat (which was the cheapest thing available). It was the very top, very last row of the theater, but I figured I could move down once the show started because the seats never fill up. After I bought the ticket I walked to a coffee shop nearby and read my novel until 7 when the doors opened.

The seat wasn't so bad, but once people sat in front of me I couldn't see very well unless I stood up and leaned against the wall next to me. At the half-way point I moved several rows down and had a perfect view of the stage. The girls sitting near me were from Seattle (which is where my old roommate Casey lives) and so we chatted quite a bit. One of the girls had been here for 6 months and is about to move back and she told me about some shows she'd seen and suggested. Apparently there is a "Rainman" musical that stars Josh Hartnett on the stage. I think I'm going to have to see that! lol

This is how I felt about the show: great costumes, great props, good singing, good dancing, TERRIBLE acting!! They used almost all exact lines from the movie and they sounded so phony! I don't understand why they couldn't watch the movie and act it the way it is supposed to be acted! I was sitting there thinking "I could do this so much better - it isn't supposed to sound like that, it's supposed to sound like this." But, I suppose it wasn't so bad for £15. Now I really wish I had my version of the movie to get that acting out of my head. lol

Tomorrow is class so I best get to bed.