~ ANNE! ~

So guess what - I have Bacterial Conjectivitus. Oh joy. This is apparently the culmination of weeks of minor eye irriations due to living in London. Got some bacteria in there, and now I have (quoting the doc) "a thin film of bacteria under [my] eyelid and covering the surface of the eye". Lovely eh? Yep, time to move out of London.

I woke up this morning actually unable to open my eye, but since seeing the doc and using the ointment he gave me it has been much better. On the downside, that little visit cost �50. On the upside, I got a day off work (although didn't enjoy the sunshine much - my eye is extremely photosensitive) and may be able to claim some or most of that back on my travel insurance. So this means a week of sticking gross-feeling stuff on my eyeball and not being allowed to wear contacts.

Haven't been having a great week, so I guess this was sort of the culmination. Nothing disasterous happened, just been sort of down. Diana, the German flatmate, moved out last Thursday. Too bad, as she was pretty cool. We went out with her Tuesday night as a leaving party, and ended up in this really great club (one that I pass every day but never thought to go in, on the assumption that it looked "cha-chi", as an Onoway person would say). They played tons of swing music and great stuff from the '50's and '60's. The crowd was good too - very happy and wearing some strange and cool clothes. I will definitely try to go back there on a Tuesday (apparently it's not so good other nights).

I started repping flights on a regular basis this month. This makes me happy as I'd much rather be out at Heathrow reassuring scared 18-year-olds than stuck in the office. I will be doing this every Wednesday. I got a surprise trip to Heathrow last Tuesday as well, though - a group of Ghanian participants came in and the department that normally looks after them was far too busy. Canada Anne to the rescue! It was actually quite fun, although there was a two-hour wait for them all to get off the plane. Also, they looked upon me as the source of all knowledge - but I couldn't understand half of what they were saying! They would look at me with their big brown eyes and ask a perfectly simple question, and I'd have to get them to repeat it 45 times. I think my facility with accents has improved since moving here, but it obviously has a long way to go!

Watched the Euro 2004 game between England and France last night (with Nicolas, who is back from Kenya and was loudly cheering France). We went down to a pub near Covent Garden. It was mad - packed to the brim, all eyes fixed on the screen, everyone screaming and chanting and singing. It was pretty cool though. Didn't see much evidence of hooliganism, which is quite a big problem here. I'm a bit surprised, as England lost in the last TWO MINUTES thanks to two amazing goals by the French. Anyway, despite having to keep one eye closed and squint at the screen (my eye was already starting to be infected) I'm glad I went: it's a very British thing to do.

This week is looking quiet, as I will have to be careful of my eye. However, I will start looking for jobs and so on for July. Canada Day is coming up, too - I got a large package stuffed with maple leaf clothing from home, so I'm all set!