Wednesday evening we found ourselves in Trafalgar Square with a handful of Canadian ex-pat friends for Canada Day.

Thursday evening I shared a day of training with my co-workers, followed by an evening of team building festivities on the river and at the National Gallery Cafe for a posh dinner.

Friday evening Drew and I attended farewell drinks for his colleague Lin, of whom we had grown quite fond.  She was like an extension of our family the way she looked after us as we settled in (and even after).  It was the second Friday in a row that we raised our glass to say goodbye to peeps leaving Ticketmaster.  There must be doors being thrown open somewhere…

On Saturday Drew and I joined some American ex-pats and their families for a picnic at Tooting Bec Common.  It was quite laid back and informal with babies as entertainment.

When we tired of sitting in the park, we wandered through the crowds in the West End.  Gay Pride festivities were in full force in Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, and Soho.  I had hoped for more music and less blatant drug use.  Perhaps I had hoped for something more familiar, like a backyard barbecue.  Silly rabbit, London is for parties.

The Marksman was privately booked on Sunday (maybe for the owners’ anniversary, a Fourth of July party, or for their daughter’s birthday) so I will have to wait quite a while to enjoy the next vegetarian special…  Sad.  Still, we managed to get quite a lot done before making our way to the Millenium Pier where we boarded the Thames Clipper for the O2.  Drew surprised me with Madonna tickets!

When we visited London in May to decide whether or not we could make it living here, Madonna and Justin’s “4 minutes” was being played everywhere we went.  There was no way that I could have at that time imagined that we would eventually be watching Madonna perform it live in London.  Granted, Justin was projected onto moving stage screens, but the deja vu of it all was enough to give me chills.  It’s just another moment that seems to bring us full circle.  My daydreams feel like a smear of something you see on the Tilt-a-Whirl; I am dizzy from it all.