sea shells Brighton

So I am talking to Helen in Brighton, England and she is at work and not that busy. It is summer and she has, I think one of the best be side the seaside jobs ever.
Nope, not working in the Ice Cream Van, selling Fish and Chips, postcards, rock (candy), or deck chairs but she is actually working in a 'tongue twister'. Nope not that kind although I am sure there are those places in Brighton, Helen correct me if I am wrong about that bit, but she is working in a sea shell shop.
So the truth is : She sells Sea Shells from the sea shore. The shells she sells come from the sea floor. Yes she is working in a little shop on the sea front selling all things sea shellly (if that's such a word, if not it is now). When I get the link to her flickr then I can add it. But for now I am smiling about the job and how laid back working there would be.
And here is the link........... http://www.flickr.com/photos/helenthedestroyer/4724846358/in/set-72157624117211588/ 
Keep it up and good luck when you return to University.

So what's with the weather still.....El Nino and its pushing warm air around. According the Globe the weather is almost the same as it was in 1998, extended rainy season and shorter dry season with rain throughout. Almost as accurate as the British weather. Clear with the chance of showers, Max temp 35 min temp 1.
Mind it is still very hot here and that bit is always nice.
The Summer Academy is finally over, all the teachers are back (although is in Kupang at the moment) and next week normal service starts again. So no more 12 hours teaching days and more time to review, observe and plan things and push it all along again. Almost happy with that.
I managed to find some time to get the bike serviced and at 8.30am in the local Yamaha service station you get immediate service and it took only 30 mins to be sorted out so that meant I got to be at work early again whoo hoo!!!
Being awake so early is one, being observant is another and I managed not to notice the fact the sky was black, there was a strong wind and 200 metres from the service station, the heavens opened and down came the rain.
By the time I got to the school I was drowned despite the poncho. My shoes are still at school drying and the socks took 2 days to dry. The roads flooded out and the traffic ground to astandstill although that was mainly due to the fact the motorcyclists all congregate under bridges to keep dry causing bottlenecks.
2 cups of coffee later and wearing no shoes for the rest of the day I was fixed and ready for work.

The service was free as the bike is still under some sort of warranty. After 7 months I have done a staggering 2560 km on it going nowhere each week and not worrying about it. I like the bike more and more now as it is run in and seems to get me out of trouble and the fuel is lasting longer which is always a good thing.
A few scratches and marks but it still shines when it has been cleaned.

Saturday was a holiday which meant no school and no work and chance of rest. However it was the 10 7 10 which is lucky out here apparently and so that meant, yes... a wedding on Saturday morning.
Great.
Actually it was. My manager was getting married and so I felt honoured to be there, one of only 2 western guys there. It was also my first Muslim wedding which apart from the very big sound system and sitting around is very much the same as any other service.
We got to the place in Tangerang and the wedding was being held in the home so the whole street was closed and the place was turned into a big marquee with lots of chairs and a area for the bride and groom. I was sat in the front of someones house and no one seemed to mind. The sound system was far too loud for the area and actually I could not see anything but could hear the prayers etc as the service was carried out.
The couple exchanged rings and then shared food. I am not familiar with the rituals of the service but they both looked happy and my manager, well she looked amazing.
After photos and some talking, time for food. Then as the music started we left.
I had been there for about 3 hours in the heat so it was a good time to leave.
We got back to Puri mall and then went for a wander around the mall.
I am looking for a new sofa as mine is well rubbish and I need a new one. In Index I found a nice sofa bed for less than 2 million as it was in the sale. After being told it could be delivered on Monday at 1 and that they had new in stock, I said yes and wanted to buy one. Then I was told that would mean 200k delivery charge as it as was under 2 million. The sofa was in the sale and was originally 2 million. No flies on them!
That was still ok, so we got taken to the cashier. I mentioned the fatal words, this is never going to work and something has to go wrong when I pulled out my Permata card (Permata is the No2 bank in Indonesia) and was told they don't take Permata.
What kind of a national chain of stores would refuse a card from the number 2 bank in Indonesia and think nothing of letting the sale go?
I got up said bollocks to you and left. Index need to sort themselves out.
To calm down Starbucks.

After Starbucks I met Steve and we headed off to the Marina for the usual Saturday get together and beer up to gossip and relax in good company. The beer always makes things better.
One of the guys there had his parents over from England so that was a welcome diversion. Esia a phone network was also having a 'gathering' (company event) and were all wearing pirate hats and went off for a cruise to watch the sun go down.
Got home drunk and passed out.

On Sunday, woke early as that is always something free from drinking. I was meeting Yovita to see a movie today and decided to ride across the city as it was not too hot and the city would have less traffic as it was a holiday weekend. 30 mins to go across from here to Mampang which was nice. Parking the bike in the bike wash as it is the safest place to leave it for me and it gets a good clean, I met Yovita and headed to FX mall.
We were going to see Eclipse. My review. Too much love and short scenes, not enough vampire fighting. That said it was a good way to waste a few hours and she loved it so thats the main thing.
More coffee after to enjoy the sunset and then back to the bike and home.

The AC has been leaking all week and that has been annoying me. However after some searches on Google I went and looked at the drainage pipe and found it was dry, so after some fiddling inside with a coat hanger and screwdriver, the blockage was cleared and the water flowed again, no more dripping :D Yeay.

Busy week really with lots of little things happening and that makes for more stories and adventures. Number of malls visited this week....2 so that's better.

Finally some photos of the city taken from the FX mall City Deli which has some great seating views of the baseball park and skyline.