just very bad bloggers.

hi all, i've gotten quite a lot of comment on how the blog posts have ground to a hault. i knew this blogging thing raised expectations...

here are a few headlines for you and some photos - think of it as the top ten or so things that happened in june and july.

1. i rode my bicycle A LOT for bike month. people on facebook are probably sick of hearing me go on about cycling, but it took over my life in june because i was the promoter of all things bike at work. i ended up riding 250 miles in june and feeling really good as a result. i highly recommend it.

2. chris wore my backpack after i rode said 250 miles with it strapped to my back. not a nice idea. smelling like someone else's sweat is a tough lesson to learn.

3. lesson learned. purchased panniers, should arrive tomorrow. we went for the highly functional ortlieb as i gave up hope of finding any that were beautiful and functional.

4. my softball team won a game. i wasn't there for it, but they did win. softball is still fun, but i am definitely the most casual player on the team. oh well!

5. the red coats beat us at our 4 of july kickball extravaganza. we hosted a dozen+ friends and played kickball. team USA was more concerned with beer than running after booted balls. a truly fantastic day for all (from what has been pieced together retrospectively)

6. we found a new flat - moving day is around the corner. anyone got time to come over and pack a box? this time we've only got about 10 boxes, so it should be a snap. movin on up to a two bedroom flat on the hill. come see us.

7. went to slovenia for five glorious days. amazing how far you can get with three words: pivo (beer), hvala (thank you) and dobra dan (hello!). seriously, go to slovenia. you may ask where the hell it is, but believe me, you won't be able to forget it once you've visited.

8. running short on 10 fabulous things...how about, our dog went on holiday without us. yep, paco went to cornwall with his dog watcher. strange? you may think so, but to us, not so much. a week without the dog might be just what the doctor ordered every once in a while. he even sent us a postcard.

9. we booked tickets to dublin for october with the strebs. they will be our first visitors to the new flat (unless one of you smarties books a swift visit).

10. received dress for sister's wedding in the mail and it fits like a glove...this only to say - we'll be home in a month!! wow! seemed like so far away, but really looking forward to seeing everyone and making time go in slow motion while we are there. NOT looking forward to six flights in 14 days (i've got some serious carbon repentence to make up).

TEN. i made it. my neck hurts oh, 11. chris went home for a wedding (bano's wedding, had a great time, i'll make him write about it) and picked me up a pillow, i know, random, but mine was crap. this one was great for about a week until my arms started falling asleep almost every night, which apparently was because i was sleeping weird on my 7 vertebrae according to an OT friend...too much detail...now i just can't figure out how to sleep on it. maybe i will go back to the arms falling asleep thing. hmm. that just doesn't seem right.

done.

will try to do this more often...maybe not the top ten format, but the writing.

xojo

a paris

in paris.

ahhh. this has been on the list for a long long time.

chris is fending off swine flu, the butlers are fighting jet lag, the french is incredibly rusty. bring it on paris. 

the train ride was joyous. champagne popped at 9:40am, bottle deux (2 for all you non-frenchies) around 10:25. clearly giggles and merriment followed. such a great way to travel. civilised and efficient. now it is time to explore the city of lights. eiffel tower tonight? oui oui

i don't think chris really hates learning french.

just to set the blog record straight, i think he is kind of enjoying it and he is good at it. 

right now i am avoiding doing my taxes and wondering about the mechanics of snot making...how does a relatively small nasal cavity produce so much stuff? i'm kickin' it's ass though. but i wish i had those kleenex with the greasy lotion in them. there is something sort of disgusting about them, but they really do save the snoz.

chris didn't mention that we joined a softball team. it has brought back a lot of really good memories. and a sore shoulder. the team is great fun & i look forward to telling you about the all star moves we bring to the field this spring.

over & out

All things French

Part of the reason we moved to England was to explore Europe and have a bit of adventure before we get boring and old. 

The hard part with that is we're both typical Americans and don't speak any other languages very well. Jo had french in HS and has it in the way back of her brain. I took Latin. A dead language. Don't ask. I have a bit of spanish in my head but not too much.

We decided that it was time we both learned a language, but which one? Jo knows a bit of french, I know a wee bit of spanish. French it is then.

One motivating factor is that we can get to Paris in 2 hrs by train. In fact our wonderful friends Brian and Tricia from Portland are coming for a visit in May and we're heading to Paris for a few days. We came to the conclusion that if we visit anyplace multiple times while we live here, chances are it'll be to France. 

So now we have these audio lessons that we listen to. We're supposed to be good and listen to them every night and practice with each other as well. I hate it. I'm no good at languages. It's too abstract for my brain. Plus I'm sort of lazy in general.

Listening every night has turned into my listening on the bus ride into work and on the way home. It's perfect because I'm stuck on the bus anyway and it's either that or read the newspaper. Might as well force feed myself a new language. The one problem is you have to talk a lot using these lessons, which means I'm talking to myself in french, saying things like, " Do you want to have lunch with me at 3 or 4 o'clock?" or "I would like to buy some wine and some beer." Mind you all in french. 

At the very least I'm as annoying as those loud cell phone talkers. At worst I'm the crazy self talker in the back of the bus.

I'll let you know how learning a new language goes for a guy who's brain doesn't work well in that way. 

To get in the spirit of all things french I made some crepes. That's what you get a picture of today because I couldn't really take a picture of me sitting on a bus talking to myself.

Paco's second big adventure

We figured since Paco is no a bona-fide world traveller he could handle a trip on London's world famous Tube.

Our destination was Hampstead Heath. It's a wonderful old park to the north of London. It has all kind of history that I can't even begin to describe. I can tell you in that movie Notting Hill that's where Julia Roberts character is shooting a movie. Don't ask me how I know this.

If you're excited to know more about the Heath read up on it here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hampstead_Heath

So the plan was to meet our friends Melinda & Aaron with their dog Sassy up in the Heath for a walk and a stop at a pub. To get there we had to brave public transportation with Paco.

I'll say this. He did really well taking the bus and the Tube. I'll also say this. Escalators freak him out and he starts bucking like a bucking bronco. He hates them. Same goes for those moving paths that they have in airports....they have them in a few of the train stations and Paco doesn't trust them one bit. He nearly took Jo to the ground he freaked out.

But once on the train the biggest worry was that Londoners generally don't like or are afraid of dogs. They sort of stare at dogs like some weird alien that only exists on TV. We literally saw kids scream and jump out of the way of Paco. This is Paco we're talking about. Not some mean foaming at the mouth dog, but our big fluffy muppet looking dog.

Anyway we got to the Heath and it was a fantastic day. Warm and sunny. Just what we needed to help bring spring our way. 

As we tromped around the park we noticed that there were flocks of people running in the hills. We had apparently stumbled upon the UK Cross Country nationals. Interesting to see all these people running in giant herds. Looked like a flock of birds when you saw them in the distance.

I won't bore you with too many details of that fine day.

I do want to end on one quick item. 

We ended up going for lunch and drinks at this great old pub called The Spaniard. It opened in something like 1530. I ate at a place that is older that my country. Hell it opened only 40 years after the the Americas were stumbled upon my Columbus. It was a great afternoon in the sun and finished off with a pint and some good grub.

On our walk back to the tube stop Paco spotted something one the ground and picked it up. Dead rat. That's right. My dog had a dead rat in his mouth. I had that...holy crap I'm going to have to wrestle a plague infested dead rat out of my dog's mouth....moment. Then he shook it like it was one of his toys and I yelled for him to drop it, and kindly he did. My dog is gross.

Jo celebrated her first birthday in London just a few weeks ago. It fell in the middle of the week so we had a nice quiet night at the house. I tried to convince her that we should have a huge party or go to a Rave or something like that but alas she vetoed my attempts. In the end I cooked up a great meal (Jo requested prime rib since she was turning 31 and was once again a prime number) and we had cupcakes for birthday cakes. 

I think we (I) have an obsession with cupcakes in places of adult sized cakes. As a side note cupcakes are called fairy cakes here. Who knew?

As part of Jo's birthday we're heading to the mineral hot springs in Bath. We just haven't gotten off our butts and made it there yet. Maybe in the upcoming weekends. Jo needs a good soak!

I'm a total slacker at this

In my mind I just wrote a blog entry a couple weeks ago.

I just checked in I last wrote the first week of January.

That's just laziness people. Pure laziness.

I work well with lists, so here's what I'll go over today in a few posts to break it up:

- Middle east relations

- Jo's birthday

- Paco and the train

- learning french and making crepes

I haven't talked about work at all on here, and I'll try to keep it that way for the most part. But when work takes me to the Middle east I'm going to spend a few minutes on it.

So, I'm

 working on a project in the UAE that involves restoring this old mud fort and building an exhibition space and cultural centre on the site to celebrate the life and culture of the Emirate people. Cool project and cooler that I got a chance to go down for a few days.

When I think of the UAE I think of Dubai and Abu Dhabi and there ultra skyscrapers and crazy development. I was staying in Abu Dhabi and I definitely saw some developements that were outragous and amazing all at the same time. I passed one site that was being built at once...which included 27 towers, 7 hotels and a conference center. In essence they we building something the size of Pittsburgh in one go. Amazing.

My project is in a town called Al Ain which is an oasis town on the border of Oman.

I'll not bore you with project details, but here are a couple pics from that trip....

neglected blog...

sorry everyone, we've really been neglecting the blog thing lately. 

we're working to find our balance here - jobs, dogface, exploration, and rest. 

chris has started to add fitness to his "to do" list. i'm still relying on the old dog walk to count for that. 

i know i've told everyone i've spoken to at home this, but i'm really enjoying some of our new habits. 

first, living small. this actually feels really good, even with paco here. there are definitely times when we want another room so we can do things like workout or watch a movie without claiming the shared space for that, but so far it has been very rewarding to live in a scaled down environment. 

we are also cooking a lot. the food box that we have delivered each week is very satisfying. it has forced us to get creative, eat our veggies, and eat at home. i'm pretty sure that last part is playing a big role in keeping us on budget, which is another thing i hope we keep around. we've been so good about staying true to our budget. it is probably the first time either of us has had such discipline in our wage-earning years. and finally, the carfree lifestyle. chris i think disagrees, but i'm pretty sure that i could give the carfree thing a shot for quite a while (in the right cities). we also use a car-share membership for when we absolutely need a car, but that has only been three times so far. 

so, those are the habits that i want to keep and that i've developed a little pride for creating. right then, time to take the dog for a walk. more soon. we've got a bit to say about the last month...(and the photo is just random, but a reminder about how integrated cemeteries are into the urban fabric)

Snowy goes it

So the first day of work was interrupted by the snow a tumbling down. Last night I took a pic of the yard before I went to sleep thinking it would be the end of it - time for it to melt away in the morning. Nope, photo 2 is what it looks like now. And the snow just won't stop. It's nice for today, but I hope it melts tomorrow. My love of snow has melted, and I prefer it stay in the mountains. 

We did tear up the park this morning though. Yeehaw!

My favourite advert yet

This has has to be my favourite advert yet.

Apparently all natural. No performance enhancing drugs or anything.

Paco arrived - tuckered out...

Just wanted to let everyone know that Paco arrived today - safe and happy. It took him a few seconds to recognize us & then he turned into his usual bad dog self. He is totally tuckered out right now - not unusual, but I would guess that he really hasn't rested well since sometime Sunday morning. He definitely seems a little mad at us, or maybe just disbelief that we actually didn't abandon him. 

I'll let him rest today, but tomorrow, we've got some serious terrain to cover. 

Last one for today. Smallness.

smallness is going to be a series that we create here in blogworld, documenting all the funny small things we see here. the first two items are cars.

Sunday musings...

Last Sunday we finally walked to Battersea Park. A large, well-done park about a mile or so from our house. Sounds ridiculous that we haven't been there yet, but we kept finding other things to do. I think that is how it has been for us - we've got so much to see around the city that we have sort of neglected our little radius. So, here are some of our photos from our walk along the Thames to the park. We also walked right by Foster+Partners offices. They were having a raucous party up above. I have always liked the building next door to them, which I called the "rocket bubble". And now that I've done some scouting, it seems that they designed it. We're feeling pretty lucky to live in this area.

On with the show...

A view of Chelsea from the Battersea side of the Thames.

Prince Albert Bridge (what I always thought was Chelsea Bridge).

rocket bubble.

Below...Peace Pagoda in Battersea Park & view from its steps.

Harrods...the overwhelming shopping experience

Harrods. Not much needs to be said about the British icon. Here are a few photos from our visit. To say that we were overwhelmed does not really even begin to cover it. We did score a delicious croissant before we left. 

This is the map---->

And let's be honest about one thing here, we actually didn't get out of the Food Hall...

<-------

A bazzillion kinds of dates and other sweets from 

afar that looked absolutely incredible. I bet the dumpster divers go crazy at this 

place.

------------------------------->

Bling encrusted olive oil. It's serious.

Liquors sold by the milliliter...only the finest baby.

Harrods...the Grand Finale

It brings a tear, doesn't it?

The grandest of grand finales, the Dodi and Diana Memorial. 

There is a huge diamond ring in that pyramid. They've got it secured pretty good. People thought I was nuts for taking this photo...I just hope that the CCTV didn't flag me for being a poser.

Shiny new job - even better than a shiny new car.

Just wanted to let everyone know that after exactly two months of Londonhood, I finally landed a job. Thanks for all the good thoughts everyone put out there for me. I knew if I could get someone to just TALK TO ME, I could make it happen. I will officially be the Sustainable Transport Officer for the Borough of Ealing. (Aaron, am I one step closer to Capt. Sustainable now?) 

This role is completely different from my most recent, but will be a great chance to really take ownership for a project or programme, depending on how you look at it. The hardest part, I think, is going to be leveraging folks from their cars. As I walked out of the interview, I saw a flyer calling Ealing, the "Queen of the Suburbs". Me

rcy, this is going to be tough. It appears that there is a lot of executive support for the process, but I think I should still dust of "Getting to Yes" and sharpen up my negotiation skills. So, there you have it. Employment never felt so good. 

The other good news is that we have decided to stay in our flat for another 6 months. It seems that since I am working west of central London and Chris works east of it, that our place is just about mid-point for both of our commutes. Paco comes in eleven days, so that may also play a role in future decisions about sticking around here, but for now, this is home. Plus, I don't think either of us can stomach the thought of moving right now...as it is definitely on my top ten least favorite things to do.

New post coming soon about our trip to Harrods. Sorry we've been such lame bloggers lately. Hugs all around...

I've had blogger's block.

I've had bloggers block the last month. It's not that we haven't seen and done some pretty cool things the last month, I just haven't felt inspired.

Well today I'm inspired and before I forget what I want to write about I'm going to make a list. Please hold me accountable if I fall short:
1. My new romance
2. Crackling
3. Lost and Found
4. Guinness
5. How I'm Indiana Jones
6. Accidental Stonehenge

1. My new romance is with Harry Hall. Harry Hall is my new used bike and I'm in love.

Having lived in Portland I relied on my bike(s) a great deal. Commuting, groceries, meeting up with friends...all can be accomplished from my last bike. She was Bianchi and was near and dear to my heart. She was an older steel lugged frame from the early 80s. Something about the older bikes that I just like so much. The ride is so smooth and not jarring like aluminum. Plus there's just an elegance about them that doesn't exist with the mass produced carbon jobs today.

When I finally started looking around here, naturally I was looking for a wonderful older lugged frame. I thought that since we're so close to Italy and France that there must be Bianchis or a Peugeots for sale at every shop. Not true. Haven't seen one old frame like that. I turned towards the once proud English frame builders and found a mid 80's Harry Hall in sky blue. Harry Hall owned a bike shop and built frames Manchester during the 60s - 80s. From what I understand a pretty accomplished frame builder who retired to race at the age of 62. I like this guy already. I'm lucky to have purchased my Harry Hall from the original owner. Harry is a bit of an odd one though...Shimano, Suntour & Campy all grace his frame. A bit odd, but he rides like a dream. All he needs is some new tires, a new saddle and bike lights to be safe and I'll be in heaven. Heaven to me is not having to ride the Tube.

2. Here they call pork roast "pork joint". The biggest difference is that the roast comes with a big layer of fat and skin. Apparently the skin once cooked is called crackling and is wonderful. So I'm told.

About a week before Christmas Jo & I had purchased some pheasant for our Christmas dinner, but we came across something I couldn't pass on. A beautiful 2kg, free range, organic pork joint straight from the pig farmer. We happened upon a market at closing and the price was right....%50 off. Long story short we decided that we could roast it up a few days after Christmas and have some great leftovers for sandwiches... Anyway I roasted the joint per instructions from the farmer. Score the skin, pack with salt and rub in olive oil. Bake till delicious. I did as told and I have to tell you it was awesome. And the crackling was like pig candy. I kid you not. It was amazing. What I did learn is that you have to eat the crackling hot. Cold crackling is not that good.

3. Jo's present to me for Christmas was tickets to a show called Lost & Found Orchestra. It's from the creators of STOMP. In STOMP they mostly stomp. In L&F they've created instruments from all sorts of things. I'd love to explain but it's easier to take a look. I was in awe of the creativity some people have. If the show goes on tour I would recommend it to anybody.

4. When you head to the pub you can get a Guinness two ways; normal or extra cold. Normal means room temperature and naturally carbonated (flat), while extra cold means...well normal to most of us. It comes carbonated and cold.

When Jo and I were at the pub the other night having a few drinks before dinner. I ordered a local ale and Jo asked the barkeep for a Guinness. Here's the conversation as I remember it:

Jo: I'll have a Guinness
Barkeep (in thick accent): Normal or extra cold
Jo: (looks a bit sad) Oh. I'll just have an ale too...(As she motions towards my drink)

Barkeep and Chris look at each other confused...

Chris: Why are you getting an ale? He said normal or extra cold.
Jo: Huh? I thought he said no more extra cold...
Jo: I'll take an extra cold Guinness...

For some reason I though this was highly entertaining. I might have wasted precious moments of your life, but I think it's funny.

5. I'm just like Indiana Jones but without the hat, leather whip and Nazis chasing me.

Jo and I went to Devon in the SW of England for a few days to take in the coast & countryside. What I didn't originally know is that we where staying near an area called the Jurassic Coast. Apparently on this section of the coast you can walk the beach and find fossils in the waning tide. The town has a half dozen fossil shops with fossils taken right from the beach. I was instantly excited by the idea of finding fossils. So much so that when we were in town the night before I bought a hammer to smash rocks and find the precious fossils. I also bought this little guide titled, "Fossils in Lyme Regis; How to see, find and understand the fossils of Lyme Regis". I figured with this book and my new hammer I couldn't lose. I was bound to find some new species that has never been discovered by man.We decided to have a walk in the morning while the tide was going out. The best time to find the newly washed out of the mud fossils. The coolest part of the walk was this area called "fossil pavement". It was a large slab of limestone with hundreds of fossils imbedded in the surface. It was a truly incredible site to see.
After a long morning of looking at rocks, smashing rocks with my hammer, and breaking my hammer while attempting to smash rocks I came out with a handful of fossils. My prized find was a fossilized sea urchin or Echinoid. I feel pretty good about this one since the book says, "Echinoids are not very common in the Lyme Regis area." See I'm practically Indiana Jones.

6. On our way to Devon Jo was driving and I had a wee bit of a nap. Driving makes me sleepy. While I was deep in slumber I was awoken to Jo slapping me in the arm and exclaiming, "Look! Stonehenge!". And as I looked, there by the side of the road was Stonehenge. Weird that we just happened to drive by it. We decided it was worth a look, but on the return trip.

On the way home from Devon we did manage to stop. It was an odd experience. There's a large car park with a half dozen coach buses and maybe a hundred cars. The whole thing is fenced off and inside the fence roped off yet again. You can gaze upon Stonehenge from afar. Just sort of strange.

I've written way too much so hopefully you're still with me...
Cheers,
Chris

Disturbing (or maybe just puzzling) UK Commercials Part 2

Fancy this one. So very odd.