new pics

www.flickr.com/photos/ameliakallman. If anyone knows how or where I can post vids, let me know.... and you can see a vid of the whole Bobby Kray/Lily Allen thing too!

Wow...

Where to start.....So last week we went to Amsterdam! It is so beautiful there, all the canals and old houses! There is no space to spare, a lot of those houses are hundreds of years old, they are on long 40 foot poles that keep them from sinking. They have settled though and some strips look like Dr.Suess houses, strangly lopsided. We stayed at The American Hotel, which was lovely. We rented bicycles and it took me a while and a few near death experiences before I finally felt comfortable! We went all over, biking is really the best way to get around, and we totally lucked out on the weather! We did it up that night and had a marvalous time! (The details of this event will appear in my book someday....a few stories I shouldn't share in case I ever want to run for public office!) Then we came back to London, staying at Roge's again, The boys worked on putting up Gaz's Rockin Blues Sound System for the Notting Hill Carnival while I shopped the Portabella market and hung around. The theme was Super heros and they took up a block with Gotham City and the Daily Planet etc...It looked awesome! Then we spent 2 days hanging out backstage there. It was by far the coolest sound system....everyone dressed up, great music blasting....I felt like I was in the coolest place anyone could possibly be at in the world! This is the 2nd biggest street carnval in the world, 2nd to Rio DeJeniero. Hung out with Mick and Paul from The Clash....met lots of cool people. (I'm getting exhausted again just thinking about it!) Such a small world: Gaz (whose sound system it was) is friends with Rog (that's why the boys helped build it and we got to hang there) and Gaz is good friends with our Joey Altruda from LA! AND Joey's sister Judy and her husband Liam were in town Sunday and we all met backstage at Gaz's!!!! So crazy right? These small world stories keep happening! We went to so many parties and were so well looked after by Rog. Rog and and went to Eamen and Sandra Walker's that night (Othello) for a fabulous late night! The second day, Lily Allen made a complete fool of her drunken self, getting up on stage with Bobby Kray, a great white reggae star who had the biggest buzz on him....she was off her face and so embaressing, making fun of the back up singers, Pushing Bobby off the stage! "How dare she!" seemed to be the word and we all wished Eamen had been there to take her off stage. Bobby later poured a Guiness over her head to cheers of the crowd. A lot of our crew know her and her family etc, and they were all mortified. Later that night we were all at the local pub The Cow when lily fell over drunk, flat on her face and no one did anything. Finally someone put her in a cab since her friends had all abandoned her...That's the best gossip I got! So basically, I just had a crazy week! Then we came down here to Bristol and have stayed 2 nights at the Avon Gorge hotel, which is Gorgeous! The view of the old suspension bridge is incredible! I can totally see why people love it here! Yesterday was Norm's birthday! We were both sick though, and so was Rog....we can't quite figure if it is a bug or a combo of the exhausting week etc. But last night we went to H.T.'s for a small gathering of friends with food, drinks, a Lizzie Melling organic chocolate cake (incredible!), and video from summer camp! So funny! I have some vids from carnival too, I'm going to figure out how to post them....We go back to London this evening and get ready to fly to China on Tuesday! I can't believe it is finally here! Crazy! There is a lot I have left out I'm sure, I'll try to go back and fill in. Everyone is being super cool though! Rog is a great host and Norm's a great tour guide. I'm feeling so lucky to be having all these experiences and meeting so many wonderful people along the way! Best to you and lots of love! Amelia

Going to Holland!

Leaving my computer at home....don't have a cell phone....Delightful!!!

A Fantastic Experience!

Last night I had the good fortune, thanks to Norman's sister Annie, of seeing Shakespeare's OTHELLO at the Globe Theatre! We had the best seats in the house, sitting in the first row center! It was really an incredible experience for me! Othello is one of my favorites, and the experience of seeing it in the space it was actually written for was truely moving. On top of that I know both Tim McInnerny and Eamonn Walker (Iago and Othello), who were both extraordinary, and we hung out with them afterwards at a party. The whole theatre-going experience is one I will never forget! Spent the day cleaning and cutting down my luggage from 2 big/1 small suitcases to 1 big/1 small.... It's strangely depressing and stressful trying to make your life fit into a box! (I spend most of my life trying to stay outside of one!) Going to Amsterdam on Wed. for a few days, Very excited! It's really cold here...really....and people walk so slow here.....Oh my goodness, somedays I feel like such a New Yorker.....Speaking of which, went to the Portebella market Saturday and they were selling "I Hate NY shirts" (In the style of the I heartNY ones! I got really offended....don't worry guys, I set 'em straight.... ; ) email me your addresses if you want a postcard! (ameliakallman@hotmail.com)

...just a bit....

So I went to the V&A (Victoria and Albert) Museum the other day and saw their huge costume exhibit. I love to look at costumes, especially old ones made by hand-unbelievable! (I make all my costumes with glue!) It was funny, they had a "Contemporary New York Fashion" exhibit! There were only 4 decent designers (Zac Posan, Oswald Boetang, Ducky Moore, and the designer for Karen O.) amongst P.Diddy and crap like that. It is an amazing museum! Saw English art, a room called "The Norfolk Room" which was entirely gilded, with Medusa's face emerging out of the ceiling....incredible! That evening Norm and I met up with a friend of his he hasn't seen in 30 years name John and his 2 lovely lady friends at his house for the most exquisite 3 course meal! John has the loveliest voice, like velvet, very pleasant to listen to. His friends were also very nice and it was a great evening. The next night I tried to see the movie 'LaVien Rose," the Edith Piaf movie, but instead got the french movie "Tell No One" a good looking, intriguing film, with marvelous performances. Afterwards though I realized some parts didn't really make sense or weren't explained. (Could have been a translation thing though). Today I am going to the Portabella market to tease myself a little....(I can't believe the dollar went up against the pound on Thursday! That is great news for me! This whole US subprime mortgage crisis is a little scary, but it had to happen sometime I guess).

PS

The new pic that's up is the one they published in the New York Times! (I've been getting messages on myspace "Hey, saw you in the Times, where can I come hear you play?" So funny!

Update!

Had a great weekend! Friday I went over to Siri's for a small dinner party, which ended up being a nice group of girls which felt really good to me! We had a delicious Danish-inspired meal and lots of good laughs to go along with it! It has been so nice to see Siri (We haven't seen each other since high school) and she's been very cool and welcoming. Also, all the girls have just graduated from an arts college in ceramic design, so I got to see their final pieces! Siri's was most impressive to me, my favorite piece was a 'bling'-style necklace/whistle that is ceramic with gold faces on it. After dinner though, I felt dizzy and had to lay down. I realized I probably had what Norman had coming on. I came home and the next day still felt a bit ill, but we got picked up by one of Norman's best friends, Mister Andy Beales, who is so cool and sweet...We had lunch at this adorable old-fashioned diner "The S&M Cafe." Sefvice at resturants here takes forever!! London is so spread out too, most of the time it doesn't feel like a city at all to me. There is a lot of surburban aspects inside London, and I guess because it is so spread out....I've decided I can't compare it to NY, shouldn't try....it's very different. Parts remind me of DC too, but then again it is so obvious this country is so much older than ours. It was funny (well, not at the time!) I went to meet my friend Mikey and I was supposed to get off the tube at Oxford Cicus, but it was closed, so I got out at the next stop and conjectured walking because I'm still in the mindset of "It's like walking from 34th st. to 42nd st." But because I didn't know my way I took a cab instead, and thank goodness for that! It would have been about a thirty minute walk! At least! And cabs aren't nearly as convenient here. Anways, so after lunch we went by friends of Emma's to borrow something. Liz and Theiry live right down the street from us in an adorable 3 story apartment with a lovely roof deck....Bringing me here was a mistake. I'm almost hyper-ventalating just writing this! They design and make shoes! Not just any shoes, but the coolest shoes I've ever seen! He designed all Elton John's and Bowie's platforms in the 70's, Marilyn Manson's famous spikey, tongue platforms, you get the picture. He showed me the shoes I've been seeing Amy Winehouse in on stage- Ahhh-dorable! Them another pair that made my eyes pop out of my head, I think I wouldn't be able to wear them, I'd have to put them in a glass case! Okay- stop talking about shoes. (It has now become my goal to own a pair!) Okay, moving on! Then Andy took us on a car tour of all the sites in London, which was a fabulous way to see everything! Went to Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Parliment, Horseguard's parade, Saint Paul's etc. It was really neat to see that stuff up close! That is one big house for a little lady! Then we went over to the Beales' house where Helen (who I had met at the CHelsea Arts club for dinner before) and their two adorable daughters, Evie and Daisy (8 and 5). When we came the kids immadiately took me out to their back garden which joins with the neighbor's and showed me the kiddie pool with a slide, and a climbing thingy, and a trampaline...I broke my foot once on a trampaline, so I passed, but it was a lovely set up they had out their and the neighbor kids are the same ages. Daisy had her false eyelashes on to show me! So cute! We had a lovely chicken dinner and stayed up talking and laughing with Helen and Andy for hours! They are really great people! Oh, and it was interesting to me, everyone here is talking ART. It's very exciting what is going on here with artists like Banksy (a grafitti artist who is now the leading man in the art scene, currently going head to head with Warhol in his latest exhibit), Damian Hearst of course, and Fale, the new guy making a big splash....and we just the night before the girls who I had dinner with were telling me all about this stuff (they work in galleries) and so, I walk into the Beales' house and they have a Banksy Kate Moss (Done as Warhol's Marilyn), original Banksy's and Hearst....unbelievable! And Warhol's Mao....I was blown away by seeing these in my friend's house. He got them years ago before the big bang hit, now they have quadrupled in price! The next day they picked us up and we went to the London Eye, which is a giant ferris wheel basically. You go around in it and can see out over London in every direction. The girls were fighting to hold my hand all day, I felt very cool, they are such sweet kids. Then we went back to their hose for an afternoon snack and nap and then an amazing lamb dinner, with tons of delicious vegetables! Delightful! And Roger joined us too, brought a great bottle of wine...an all around very nice weekend! Monday I got into the creative spirit and made earphones....I know what you're thinking, but wait till you see them! They are the opposite of those dinky ipod earphones, these are more like accessories....they are going to be huge in Japan!!!! :) Then Tuesday we went to Roger's where the boys reclaimed his sprawling garden and I made another pair...I'll post pics in a bit! Then we went to The Cow for a great cozy meal. Slept good last night! Norm and I are obsessed with this game Blokus- the travel 2 person one....OBSESSED! We get pretty competitive about it! Today we are going to a museum (which one is still in question) then to someone who I haven't met yet for dinner. I don't know what is all over the papers back home but here, everyday it's Lily Allen and Amy Winehouse, and I said to Rog the other day, " I think Lily Allen has such a slight voice over decent beats, and she's only famous cause of her dad and for shooting off her mouth, what do you think about Lily Allen Roger?" He said "as a person or a singer? I'm her godfather you know..." I bit my lip. Left it at that. opps... :) Signing off, big hugs all around! xxxxx

Yea! I did it!

I am so technically challenged, this was a big step for me! My London Pics are now posted at http://www.flickr.com/photos/ameliakallman :) xx

...Sorry it's been a bit....

So I was writing my blog earlier today, and I had just finished writing, "I am so happy, I finally got my computer back out of the shop!" ....And then it crashed again. AHHHH!!! I had to take it back in....after the guy looked at it and decided something is very wrong, something he's never seen before etc (and they can't just replace it because it was purchased in the US) I said, "Just one more question: WHY ME!? Why MY computer!?" Moving on.... So I've moved into a flat in Islington/Angel, which is a very cool part of town for the next few weeks. It has been nice to be able to cook in, stay home, and relax. I went to The Tate art museum Friday night. It was lovely. They had food, wine, live music, and some of the most amazing art I have ever seen! I loved seeing The Lady of Shallot, and was excited about seeing the Turner watercolor collection (but it turned out it bored me). There was a lot of modern stuff that surprised me, and it surprised me even more that I liked a lot of it! A man who was protesting the war outside of Parliament for years had a huge protest display that eventually got taken down, had it up as an exhibit inside the Tate, which I thought was interesting. Saturday I went to a lovely BBQ at my friend Charlie's house. Turns out he lives just around the corner and has a lovely garden! It was a very nice gathering with a lot of very cool people. Then we went to see Roger's film at the Portobello Film Festival, and ended up back at the BBQ. I'm dog-sitting Luca Momo Beans (the sweet as pie collie dog) for a few days. Sunday we went to The Bricklane market, which goes on forever and has very good (cheap) deals on everything! I got a shirt for 3 pounds that is absolutely like nothing I have ever seen before-the weirdest/cutest shirt....it must be Japanese... it says "RADIC COLOR" Then there is a "Rad Chimp" with a gun to it's head wearing a t-shirt that says "Can't live without Banana!!" The other writing reads "Stimulate your brain" "Bad Max Edition" "We face in the next geration. And we Must Leave Something" "Destruction is the means to begin to be the latest" and finally, "Vibelation get you stimulation" Crazy huh? I couldn't believe i got it for 3 pounds and it fits like a glove! (Thanks for humoring me reading that, but it made me really happy!) Today....I had a lot of plans....unfortunately I spent the day at the apple store....on the tube. At least I got to read some of my book 'White Lotus.' It is a fictional tale by John Hersey (Hiroshima) about whites being enslaved by the Chinese. My friend owns the film rights, and I am getting really into the book. I got to wear my original P.Burstin boots out the other day! My favorite going away present, my friend took a pair of my white, patent leather gogo boots and wrote 2000 words about me going to Shanghai etc in capital black letters that circle around telling the story! Big hit! Yesterday I met up with a friend from middle/high school Siri Betts! She is doing great! Just graduated with a degree in ceramic arts and is very happy in London. It was so nice to see her! Also, she introduced me to an 'All you can eat' Indian place that is only 3 pounds fifty! It was my birthday Wed. It was kind of a bummer because it really made me miss my friends-family, but I am 24 now...hard to believe I know! ;) Well, I have to get on to dinner. I am going to figure out how to post my pictures some place so I will keep you posted! Thanks! Love, Amy

sick....

This week wasn't that excited, though it wasn't bad. I got to look after Luca the dog for four days, which was brilliant! We went on plenty of long walks, made lots of friends, and became very fond of each other. I'm still pouting that I had to give him back! I didn't realize until he left how easy it is for ones life to become revolved around a dog! I saw Mikey here in London (My old roommate Scrappy's boyfriend). He was in town for a few days and we went out for a pint. It felt refreshingly like NY for a little while! On that subject, I heard the subways got flooded in NY...that is bad. I can only imagine....everyone begins to remember it really is a tiny island... I don't miss NYC much or the states for that matter. As time goes on the list of people I really miss is becoming shorter...and growing more precious... No luke warm water here-only hot and cold..(random observation). I stayed in a lot this week, with the dog, and then Norm got sick....Then last night I went out to a perfect little dinner party at my friend Siri's house, and I got sick... :( Boo. Today I still don't feel well, but Andy Beals is coming to pick us up and take us around, so I'm doing my best! The I.D. Magazine is out now, it looks awesome! I have been asked to perform next week for a private event. Norm and I are working on material and stuff. I am getting very anxious to go to China! Hopefully next week I'll go to Paris and Amsterdam!!! This sick thing is supposedly a 3-day stomache bug that a few people have said is going around....It might be what Rog was so sick with. Okay. I feel really boring now, don't want to waste anyone's time. I swear, I'll get more interesting soon!