Harajukucat’s posting of Yorkshire vs. London got me thinking about my own priorities. Being a thorough and through city girl, it has been hard for me settling down in Yorkshire where the sheep baa and the cows roam free.Well,not really roam free, but any city/town centre that you can reach all ends within 20mins by foot is not really a city city per se.

I miss the buzz of being in the city. I miss the weekly happenings, the special sales, the wide variety of food, shops, the rude people.I used to wonder what do people in places like Kuantan (an east coast town in Malaysia, akin to Whitby) or Alor Star (town north of Malaysia..akin to Barnsley in the UK)do during their weekends. There are but one shopping complex in the whole town. And obviously you won’t see the likes of Armin Van Buuren playing there – I think in Kuantan nightclubs are even banned..complete with entertainment of any sort. Heck, I could not even imagine myself living in Penang, which is probably considered the second biggest city in Malaysia after KL….even having being born there

And fast forward a year and here I am, in a tiny hamlet of a town (apparently the fastest growing city in the UK!) and UK’s third biggest city. Then why do I feel like a sheep in the city? I feel I stick out like a sore thumb…catcat’s observation of getting lost in London’s crowd but not being able to do that at Leeds stands true. I had not grown up knowing discrimination, and this is probably the first place I’m living in with such a small population of ‘ethnic minorities’ . On the plus side, people usually remember and recognize me and bacon….we went back to homebase two months after we paid for the bed, and the sales guy serving us not only remembered us, he remembered which bed did we order.I doubt that he just has a good memory.

On the plus side, this IS exordinarily ordinary,and I’d rather be anything other than ordinary.

I still sorely miss the buzz of a big city..but hopefully one day I will grow up and my priorities will be reset to a more relaxed lifestyle,where everything is at a slower pace = living longer. At the moment, given half a chance, I would move back into the city – despite coming back with an inch thick of soot on my face every day.

You can take the girl out of the city but not the city out of the girl.

Changed sidebar to add on two additional link sections – one of random posts from the past and another one on various travelouges that I’ve blogged about previously.I like looking back and reminiscing – like last christmas

Not sure that I like the look of it..a little too long winded methinks.whaddaya think?

I miss the sun…

Today’s a rare day of sunshine @ Leeds.I’m going out to take pictures for lunch

Update: It is now 12.22 – lunchtime. And currently pissing it down tiuniamachauhai..

Its’ thanksgiving today, if anyone care. An all american holiday – this is usually celebrated hard core in the States. The day where you give thanks for the bounty that was reaped from the autumn harvest (also known as the Harvest Festival)..and also signifies the arrival of christmas…the day after thanksgiving has been historically the busiest shopping day of the year in the States where everyone go crazy on their plastics in the commercialisation that is christmas. One little note: I think its fairly strange that I still celebrate and love all holidays american style – 4th of July, Thanksgiving, Halloween.I also celebrate deepavali and merdeka..if I can I would be celebrating all year long. Since Deepavali I had Indian food, Chinese New year I had scottish haggis (don’t ask) today I shall have the traditional roast turkey complete with sprouts and spuds with the addition of a Yorkshire pudding. Not many people have tried this, but I actually make a dead mean turkey.Moist on the inside, crispy skin on the outside, I stole my recepie from Whole Foods – and never looked back ever since.MaybeI will pop one out after xmas and serve it to the outlaws

I had also used thanksgiving as the marker day for christmas…therefore this scrooge did a headcount of presents yesterday – and I am doing suprisingly very well. Most people on my list have two gifts ‘assigned’ to them…and most of them probably need another one. I’ve lost the mil and the granma il’s presents….purchased them at Camden when I was last down at London and of course, left it to Bacon to safekeep = dissapeared! I am having problems buying for men though…I have the ignorant accountant, the bro in law, fil and step fil. Then there is the assorted people that Bacon call friends.I had been asking around work for ideas…aftershave is a good one and some other guy suggested remote controlled car/helicopter/rocket. I’ll probably pop over M&S and grab some man toys…compass,keychain sudoku ect.Bacon keep telling me that he don’t care if I don’t like Christmas, HE does. My reply was that it was because I was buying all the presents on his behalf – he has not bought one single miserly present…therefore = no stress. And it’s his family and friends that I’m buyin for. If I was him (sit back, relax and let the presents roll in without spending a penny) I would love christmas too! But anyone with any ideas for xmas gifts – let me know!

(at the moment everyone is getting candles/incense/soaps, or all three. Bacon’s family and friends are going to be one fragant lot)

Ding dong the scooge is dead, the scrooge is dead!