Looks like I got out just in time

http://www.businessinsider.com/wall-street-psychopaths-2012-2

Some news of a Friday

Got a mail saying I was getting moved to group 2. No reason. Feck it anyway, there was a pretty sound group of people in group 1. One of the best reasons for going back to college was hopefully to get in a good group of mates. Plus with all their arty backgrounds I could probably learn a thing or two from them. And sure I was the first one to sign up while they were all at the open day speech, what a load of old shite.

Walthamstow Market

I headed out to Walthamstow market to have a look around. This was my first time there in the day time. The first time I was here was just after I arrived in London. It was around 4.30am. Give me a few drinks and put me on something that moves and I fall right asleep. This time I woke up in Walthamstow central and didn’t have a clue where I was. I’d been texting just as I was nodding off and someone yoinked my phone right out of my hand. I obviously didn’t understand the bus system too well cause I thought the next bus I got on would bring me home but the driver let me off at a different stop and told me the get another bus. I did this 3 more times and finally got to bed for 8.30am.

It’s a different place in the day time. Theres a tube station, which I didn’t notice the last time, and the market is fairly lively. Even though I can barely do a couple of basic hand stitches this market is just so cheap that I had to buy enough material to make myself a Mr Bean style coat someday. You need 2 and a half meters to make a coat so I got 3 to allow for mistakes, all for the not to be sniffed at price of £9 Pics of Walthamstow. There is plenty of cloth for £1 a metre though.  

Paper Chase

Afterwards I headed into Paper Chase in town. We were told on Tuesday that we would need to make two swatch books at the end of our first 6 week term: one with 20 fashion swatches and one with 20 tailoring swatches. I already had the genius idea to make my own Japanese style book to put the swatches in and was going to get some card and paper for it in Paper Chase. There were just too many types of paper though. I must have been in there for two hours trying to decide which ones to get. By the time I went up to pay my eyes were doing that thing where they go blurry and make me see things differently.

The guy was scanning my items and he scanned my card first. Card was easy, no decisions to be made there. Then he scanned two A3 pieces of dark blue paper. But I’d only wanted one; I must have picked up two by mistake. Then he scanned my A1 sheets of watercolour paper. There were 6 of them altogether. 6! I’d only wanted 2, how the craic did I pick up 6? They’re hardly small. He’d have to put them back too. Then he scanned my £10.25 paintbrush, shit I thought it said £1.25, there’s no way I’m spending a tenner on a paintbrush. He was just about ready to end me and Darren was falling asleep on the couch waiting for me so I made my exit.

Power trip

Thursday morning it was back to reality and signing in at the dole office. The last time I had been 10 minutes late and the guy had a little rant about it. I just figured he was getting on a little power trip so didn’t pay much attention to him. This week I would have made it on time but I stopped to have breakfast and that left me 3 minutes late. Once again he gave me some grief. He said he was going to report it to someone and they’d make a decision. They never tell you anything, he could have said last time if you’re late twice in a row you get reported but he didn’t. He asked what my reason was.
"I stopped to have breakfast."
"Anything else?"
"Nope that’s it."
Of course he didn’t tell me he was writing this down in his report. Feck it anyway, let him have his little power trip, I’ll probably just get a warning and I’ll be on time the next time.

You're a tailor Harry

I really should be looking for a job around now but I met my tailor friend in town and we did the tailor experience tour around Soho and Mayfair. It was brilliant and very informative. First we went to a shop called Morplan link and bought all my supplies for school. He is big and burly and has man facial hair, while I’m a bit scrawny and could pass for a schoolboy, so it was a bit like Hagrid bringing Harry going around Diagon Alley, except I was looking for shears instead of a wand. I picked a pair (or should I say the pair picked me?) of mundial shears, 9 inches, from Brazil, nickel plated, japanned handles, unicorn hair. Then we bought a load of other bits and pieces and I got it all on student discount for the first time in 5 years - that felt good.

We went around to Soho where a friend of his has a workshop above a brothel. The woman who works there is like 80 years old which is pretty sick but you have to admire her work rate. We passed by number 3 Savile Row where The Beatles had their last ever gig on the roof top and which the Simpsons parodied in the B-Sharps episode. Check out all the clips of the Beatles in the Simpsons and check out the placards at 1.17.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9P7eVjGBrWU&feature=related
 
Just across the road Abercrombie and Fitch opened up a store a few years ago. This sparked a lot of controversy at the time and featured in this interesting documentary about Savile Row.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WD9XVpaRcZU


That first episode is definitely worth a watch but the next two aren’t as good. A&F is a scary place: its jam packed with ripped lads walking around with their tops off and its pitch dark, who knows what you might put your hand on when you’re trying to find your way. I found my friend and we got the hell out of there and walked around a few other streets in Mayfair that have tailors on them. It’s such a ridiculously nice part of town, really looking forward to working around there someday.