Quite a packed weekend, by my standards. On Saturday, I went into town to the British Museum, hoping to view the new exhibition, The First Emperor. Sadly, the first available ticket slot was almost 10pm, so that was basically out of the question. Instead, my companion and I mooched around some of the other exhibits, including the carefully retitled Elgin Marbles. It was all rather inspiring, in so many ways... Part of me was tickled by the thought of Sleepy Cat being unearthed in centuries to come, and being put on display in a museum... Perhaps sparking a belief that the people of Perivale in the early 2000s were cat worshippers. One other display struck me, and has stayed with me as an idea for using in one of my stories - there was one display of a set of gates upon which was carved a story... history, in fact. Interesting concept, as visitors would have a better understanding of the people behind the gates before they even opened.
After that, we were considering mooching around the Seven Dials/Shaftesbury Avenue area, but got distracted by The Cartoon Museum. The first part of this museum (once you get past the gift shop and pay your entrance fee) is all about political cartoons... making for a rather drier introduction to cartoons than the book I was reading about the origins of comics in the USA. Not that it is in any way an inaccurate portrayal of anything - cartoons over here did start with the political variety. Upstairs was another section, but we had no time to look there as I had another pressing engagement in the late afternoon/early evening.
Yes, I was viewing a flat.
I had arranged to view two flats in the same block, but the agent was only able to gain entry to one - the other has the tenant in situ, but they were out when we arrived, so the agent didn't want to barge in unannounced. The place I viewed (with parents in tow) turned out to be pretty good, though smaller than I'd expected. I guess I can't judge sizes that accurately, based on measurements. It's probably large enough, though fitting in all my toys might be a squeeze... Then again, I could stand to lose much of the later Gen1 stuff. After they'd milked Diaclone for all it was worth TransFormers went rather odd.
But back to the point. I
f it weren't for a few unanswered questions (service charge, ground rent... who's supposed to fix the entrance/stairwell lights and when) I'd almost be tempted to make an offer straight away. It's only a one bedroom, and I'd prefer two... but there are several ways to make it work.
The kitchen and bathrooms are larger than I have at home with my parents and, while neither the bedroom nor the lounge are particularly large, they're not terribly small either.
Sunday was more straightforward. I popped off the Shepherd's Bush with Paul to see No Country For Old Men, the new film from the Coen Brothers, starring Tommy Lee Jones. It's very quirky, and quite funny at times... I really enjoyed it, but was disturbed by the way it ended. So much was left unresolved... but, in some ways, that's the Coens' style. Many of their films seem to be stories unfolding however they're 'meant' to unfold... as if the events would be happening whether the cameras were there or not. It's a curious effect.
Not quite sure what to expect from the coming week at work. My troublesome senior designer wishes to leave early as often as possible. That should be no problem, as long as he gets his bloody work done. I have a nasty feeling that he's going to kick up a fuss, but it really is all in his hands. With his magazine going to press on Friday, he has to ensure that the editorial and features are done, because Friday is the one day he cannot leave early otherwise.
Tomorrow's mag is in a bad enough mess, frankly. Although the editor put through more work early on this time, there's still a whole lot to sign off, and I had two designers on sick leave by Friday meaning a lot of advertising didn't get touched. We are a tad behind, but - as was pointed out by one of the Sales Managers - I usually manage to pull it off in the end...
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