I'm listening to Pandora, Pearl Jam radio. They've included Guns 'N Roses' Mr. Brownstone in the same selection. I've never seen similarities between PJ and GNR. I like this song though. "I used to do a little but a little wouldn't do so the little got more and more. I just keep trying to get a little better, said a little better than before".

When I compare my life in London with my life in Rio I can't help thinking that this city is sucking my energies. Or that I getting old. Or both. I remember when I lived in Laranjeiras, worked in Barra da Tijuca, went everyday to work by bus, after work I used to go to gym - from Monday to Friday - then I decided I could also attend a three month course in between work and gym, and left around 22h to get a bus back home. Every Saturday I used to go religiously to the beauty saloon very early in the morning, so I could spent my weekend feeling gorgeous. Between 2003 and 2004 I also did a post graduation course every Saturday. I was always looking for something to occupy my time.

In London I just go from home to work and then home again. I try to do something after work just not to feel so bad about not doing much, but I have to confess that sometimes I can barely breath. I feel awfully tired, suffocated, sleepy, legs in pain...

The weather doesn't help much. This is the first time in my 30 years of existence that I don't have summer. The temperatures didn't go above 20°C since April. Nobody is dying because of the heat. People still stinks in the tubes, but this is a hygienic matter. It is unbelievable that the temperatures here are the same as in São Paulo - but it's winter there! Anyway, I'm getting used to the cold, I just think that part of my lack of energy can be because of that.

The thing is: if you don't do things because of the weather here, you won't do anything at all. We went to London Zoo one of these days. It rained cats and dogs while we were there, but we decided to make the most of it and we even manage to see almost everything. I so wanted to see the Komodo dragon. I couldn't see the adults, but I saw the baby that was conceived without sex. Nature has its funny ways to surprise us. The pic on the right is Cipri buying ice cream! As Vodafone says: make the most of now.

Some of you know that I have a new job since June 6th. It was supposed to be a temporary contract, for a couple of months or so. But on the 20th I received an offer to work permanently and I accepted. I was enjoying the job, the company, the people, it was a good opportunity to learn new stuff, the proposal was good and - although I enjoy popping from a place to another - I wanted to get a perm job so I could plan my life. Now that I know how much I will be making per month and where I will work, I can plan better my holidays and where to live. Oh yeah, because when you are on a temp position, it is almost impossible to predict when you will be able to get a couple of weeks to travel somewhere and choosing the perfect location is a tough task. I forgot to explain the photo on the left. It was the first time I wore those shoes and the bag. I'm not a huge fan of yellow or golden things, but I bought those for special ocasions, where I would probably have to dress as and look like someone I was not. This day I was going to an interview for a job that I had great expectations. I wanted to wear something new to bring me good luck. I've never made it to the interview, because I received the offer this very same day and accepted it almost straight away.

And because I think I am a bit masochist, I think I've "chosen" this job because there I am working like a slave. I don't think I've worked that much before, not even in Brazil. Maybe in Brazil yes, for a small period of my life. Same period I was having problems to sleep and having loads of stressful nightmares. It's all happening again. I brought some work home because I don't have time to do everything at work. But I don't have much time at home either. Today I decided to download the photos from my camera and surprise surprise: photos from Munich and Oslo(May) still there. The photo on the right was taken in a park in Munich. Check out the size of the 'pint' there: one liter. I wanted to bring the glass with me, but I didn't have space in my luggage. Next time.

The photo on the left shows how Germans - unlike popular belief - know to make the most of life. I was quite surprise to see how they were playfull and looked so happy - as opposed to the grumpy people living in London, myself included. This is a sort of canal/river where youngsters practice some surfing. It's for free (and forbidden) and you just need to take your surfing board - or rent one - and give a try. We spent one hour or so just looking at them. Did I ever mention that when I was younger (hmmm, 12-14, I guess) I wanted to marry a surfer. I thought their life style was so cool, so relaxed and at the same time to exciting. And they are all fit, fearless, ecologically correct,...

Believe it or not, I was a bit disappointed with Oslo. I guess I was expecting something that would transport me to the Vikings era. The city is ok, cute, but not lovely. People don't look Scandinavian - talk and blond - on the contrary. Loads of homeless people begging on the streets, everything so pricy, nothing really great to do in town. If you plan to go to Norway, go to the coast. I saw pics and some friends said it is like living a dream. Gorgeous. One of my favourite programms in Oslo was visiting the cemitery (Ibsen and Munch are buried there - but it is also quiet and cute) and the Munch Museum. I admire some of Munch's work, but learning about his life made them even more special. You can almost feel the pain, live the traumas, see the tragedies in his life. First time I saw one of the versions of The Scream, I thought I was looking through my soul. It is exactly what I feel like doing sometimes and that way.

We are trying to catch up with the films that are screening. We missed so many films that I can't even remember which ones I wanted to see. These last weeks we saw The Fantastic Four 2 (it was ok, I loved the silver surfer!), a chinese film I can't remember the name (but it was good), Ocean's Thirteen (nhém), the Shrek 3 (I laughed loads - specially with the donkey and the cat), new Harry Potter (it's Harry Potter, waht else can I say?), Die Hard 4.0 (awesome!), Transformers (great special effects, some funny moments, but I almost threw up with that the-humans-deserve-a-second-chance-because-they-know-love-and-friendship bullshit - where's the mute buttom?) and The Simpsons movie (funny, like the TV series, and maybe because of this, we could have seen it on DVD).