You take the grey skies out of my way You make the sun shine brighter than Doris Day Turned a bright spark into a flame My beats per minute never been the same (Wake Me Up Before You Go Go - Wham)

You make the sun shine brighter than Doris Day.  I love that line.  I guess the clues were there all the time, if had bothered to look for them.  Not that it matters.  I used to joke with Andy that me and George would be a lovely couple. I could swan around his house at Highgate, which is such a beautiful property and certainly my kind of place, and he could go for a walk on Hampstead Heath and all would be well!  Alas, as if it was going to happen it most certainly will not now.  So enjoy my friends.

Tuesday (I think):  Cold and frosty morning.  I made my way to The Tate an upgraded my membership to admit myself plus one other.  I first went to see the Rauschenberg exhibition.  I have said before I wanted to be muse and today I saw what I could be a mud muse.  Rauschenberg's work is like Marmite; you love it or hate it.  Bits of it I loved; others I did not.  That aside I really enjoyed looking around.  

As I am now a member I am entitled to go to the Member's Bar and so I did to grab a coffee and some quiet space before I set off to the exhibition I really wanted to see - The Radical Eye.  This was an exhibition of modernist photography from the collection of Sir Elton John and what a treat this was.

I have never seen such wonderful photographs.  Some of them just took my breath away.  If I could get just one, one photo of me looking as half as lovely as some of the women in the photos, I would be delighted.  I had a few favourites but the work of Man Ray was amazing. Those eyes. That contrast. Amazing.  I will definitely be gong back to see this exhibition again. I had such a lovely time and this was one of my better ideas buying an annual membership.

Back home and the fun and games did not stop there.  I went on the Qantas website and checked the prices again and bingo.  Flights booked to Wellington for November 2017 for three weeks and a really good price.  I was delighted and booked it.  Just need to get my passport changed now as that is still in my old name.  I resent having to pay just to get my name changed but I also want to reclaim my identity and my passport is the remaining document that needs to be changed; so it will be changed.

We all think we have time, yet time is the one thing we really do not have. We all have an invisible date stamp on us somewhere and when that date is up, that is it.  Yet so many of us still put off what we want to do for another day.  Like that Spanish guy said to me on Christmas Day - manana is the busiest day! Don't give yourself the privilege of time, just do it and live!

Wednesday:  Slept well, well well for me.  When Grayson stays over or I stay there I sleep well and when Andy is in the house I sleep better.  This was half the problem of when I was living on my own; I just did not sleep, hence the 3.33 thing.  We both had a lazy morning then I got dressed and out and took myself off to Oxford Street.  Goodness knows why I know, but the bus when on a wild goose chase and I ended up at Russell Square, one of my favourite parts of London. * Amendment - the bus was no re-routed, I got on the wrong bus. I actually had got on the Hampsted bus - obviously still thinking of poor old George. I should have got on the Marylebone bus! Still, I got off and found myself at the British Museum.  I was going in then saw the crowds and crowds of tourists waiting to be bag searched and though, stuff that.

Wandering around I then found a lovely Oxfam bookshop, needless to say I had to go in.  What a little gem. I ended up buying a travel book on NZ and then headed for Oxford Street.  I managed to get all the way down to John Lewis without killing anyone but by the time I got to Debenhams it was too much. Quick trip into Boots for some hair stuff, Wasabi (again) for food and home.

London is really cold tonight and I sat in the lounge watching The Glenn Miller Story.  I love this film and music.  I remember when my friend Jackie come up to spend NYE with me three years ago, we sat and watched this film. Lovely memories.  However, I just could not get warm so decided to go and snuggle up in my bed and watch TV there.  All good.

Thursday:  This morning London is so cold.  It is like a scene from Frozen! Andy said it was icy last night when he come home and that he had almost slipped a couple of times.  This is not good.  I had no intention of getting up early and I am so pleased that I decided to take today as annual leave.  So here I am, still in bed, typing this.  I have just booked two tickets for Andy and I to see the new Star Wars film later on this afternoon.  I heard something amusing on the radio this afternoon.  The Jeremy Vine show were talking about a recent survey about over 50s having more sex! This, apparently, is news. They were interviewing a guy who was 79 who said that him and his 85 year old wife have sex, every Saturday morning. Jeremy Vine said something which I thought was hysterical.  He asked the guy if he could not surprise his wife say on a Friday instead!  Priceless.

I am just looking out of my bedroom window at the lovely blue skies.  A big plan has just flown over The Shard; what a view those passengers are having. London is full again.  People have returned from their Christmas trips to family and tourists have arrived to celebrate NYE and London is getting ready for the celebrations.  Personally, there is no place I would rather be right now than living here.  I love this city.

Friday:  Another grey, foggy day in London.  So much so, that I have not been able to see The Shard all day again.  Lazy start then off to the Post Office to change my passport.  My passport, which is so dear to me, is the only thing left in my old name.  The reason being was I had only just renewed it and the good old UK government wanted me to pay £80 to renew it just to change my name. So it never got done as I was too tight to pay it. However, New Year; new start and the passport is being done.

Once again, whilst I was out, I turned into the TFL tourist guide to complete strangers asking me for directions.  Please do not get me wrong, I do not mind helping people, but when you actually give them the advice and then they question it, my patience do start to run a bit thin.  London life my friends; London life.

As always, with my love x