In Sarasota

We are in Sarasota, having arrived on Thursday night. It's taken me a few days to get over the jetlag (Bailey's done much better on this one than I) but I think my mind and body are finally in the same timezone. For that, I'm grateful.

I'm pleased to report we are having a blast. Bailey's been swimming every morning and evening for at least two hours at each session; of course, she's in heaven. Add to this, her doting grandparents and I'm sure she doesn't want this good life to end. Yesterday she had her first gymnastics daycamp session. It went great, which is a huge relief for me because I was slightly anxious that the American kiddies wouldn't be nice to her. I know, I'm weird.

I've been helping the US economy by shopping at Target, Barnes & Noble, Whole Foods, Banana Republic, Gap and Victoria's Secret (where I got fitted for my new brassiere size, 34A... I love it!).

I've also got to see my dearest friend Amanda, and Jamie arrives on Friday morning for a weekend at the beach, including a kayaking adventure. Tomorrow we are having family day at the beach, where I will see both Brother Ted and Brother Allen, sis-in-law Colleen, and nephew Bobby (aka Lobster Boy). It will be a great day and the first time the siblings have been together since Judy's 60th birthday party before Bailey was born.

I've also been able to take long daily walks, thanks to good weather. What a way to enjoy the time off work...

The only bummer to any of this is that Simon isn't here kicking back with us. He is missed, very much so, but we have spoken to him every day so at least he knows what we are doing. I'm also taking tons of pics, so he really won't miss a thing.

Packing, packing, packing

Bailey and I depart for Florida tomorrow and these last few days have been dedicated to packing. I do make a decent effort towards less-is-more but this is very hard in reality. Being gone for over three weeks, I keep on finding that one last thing I may need whilst away.

In other household news, today is Bailey's last day of school. She has had a good first year of school and is very excited about moving up in the autumn term.

In the "huh???" category, what's this all about? It seems like an extreme of Saturday-night behaviour, even by British standards...

In another look at the extremes of British behaviour, check out this article about the protester who tried to glue himself to the Prime Minister...

Lastly, I know this man is bad, to the bone, but I loved his former look, especially his hair. I can't even begin to comment on his post-exile look. I think if I was going into exile, I'd create a disguise/persona based on pure hotness, instead of my current trying-to-be sexy librarian look. I don't think the homeless look is good as a disguise. Maybe I'll think differently when it's my time to hide out.

Enjoying Hitchin

Yesterday after Bailey's last ballet class for the term, we headed to Hitchin. We visited this town earlier in the year and liked it, due to a mix of fine charity shops and general good vibes, and got the same good feelings yesterday. The town offers six very fine charity shops, including Oxfam, Help the Aged, and Save the Children, and we each found some great bits and pieces.

The rest of the day was spent at home, and in the evening the grown-ups watched I'm Not There. I was quite lost for the first hour but things got better for me for the last hour. I don't think Simon came out of the lost feeling at all, but it was a decent film. The use of so many different actors was fascinating.

Yesterday

Yesterday was a sad day. I attended the funeral of Steve Morris, the husband of lovely friend Debbie, who I worked with at WHC, and dad of gorgeous Vicki, who babysits for Bailey. The funeral service was at Our Lady & St Michael RC Church in Garston and the church was packed. I mean, completely full, with several people standing at the back. It was obvious Steve was loved by many people, across ages and areas of life. The eulogies were the best part of the service, provided by Steve's best friend and by Debbie. Debbie's was so dignified and articulate, yet so very loving; there wasn't a dry eye in the church. Atop Steve's coffin were beautiful and simple flowers from the family and his beloved Bolton scarf. His priorities were clear to all.

The next part of the afternoon was at the West Herts Crematorium. I hadn't been before and really wasn't expecting much but I was completely amazed by the beauty of the grounds and buildings. This place looks like a beautiful and very well loved garden park, with colourful flowers and trees everywhere. The chapel is a simple but very lovely building, covered in ivy and with windows of small cut glass. If you are looking for solace and peace, this is the place you could find it and if you didn't know it was a crematorium, you'd simply think you'd come across a beautiful park with loads of places for just enjoying the scenery.

The afternoon ended back at the church, for refreshments. The church hall was again packed and the place to be was the photo display area. Debbie made a huge display of family snapshots, and had family photo albums (including their wedding album) on a table for all to browse. There was an accompanying slide and music show, which was so nice to watch and had many people laughing and crying at the same time. I also heard lots of younger people yell out, "Oh my god! Look at my mom and dad!" when old photos of trips with family friends popped up in the slide show. It was great.

R.I.P. Steve

Delivering the funny

Yet again The Onion drives it home, in this article...

I'm on holiday! and more

Yesterday was the first day of my summer holiday and, man, does it feel nice. I used yesterday to run a few errands but to also visit the local library, where I paid off my overdue fines (imagine the shame! Karen the Amazing Librarian had 60 pence in overdue fines...) and get a few titles for summer reading. I also borrowed some new DVD releases, including Juno which I watched yesterday. I really wanted to see this film because I've heard so much about it. Maybe the hype ruined it for me because I watched it and found it to be a pro-life message with a smart aleck protagonist and a soundtrack performed by the very young; not my idea of fine film.

Yes, I've admitted it before, I am a film snob. I have no right to be. I have no advanced degrees in the study of film or have any experience whatsoever in film making, so technically I should be a film slut. I'm not. I have very particular standards for my films. Hence, the rather frank reviews.

Yesterday's self-centred activities included sitting in Starbucks and reading the paper. That's where I saw this great aricle in The Times, stating sending postcards is where it's at. I've always had a high standard of commitment to postcard writing, taking the selection of the card and the text on it with the utmost care. I sometimes think this way of communication should be phased out, since electronic communication is much faster and can show off your technical and creative ability. I'm glad I read this article because it confirmed my allegiance to the postcard medium, and therefore, dear friends, you can look forward to some fun postcards from our upcoming summer travels.

On the postcard topic, The Guardian offers this cool and quick history of interesting postcards. Have a look...

Happy Sunday

Yesterday was a fantastic day. It was my godchild Ben's christening so we all attended a really lovely and fun church service at St Paul's Langleybury, then retired to John and Shelley's garden for afters. The cool think is their garden is attached to ours so we just left the gate open and the kiddies could play in two gardens instead of one. To make all of this perfect, it didn't rain. This might not seem like a newsworthy comment, but we've had rain every day for weeks.

So it was indeed a happy Sunday. I got to meet Ben's other godparents/goodparents (for those not into organised religion), a very fine mix of friends and relatives who will all provide Ben with the support and love he will always cherish. And I'm honoured to be part of that for Ben.

Here's a pic of him with his christening candle, in church yesterday. What an angel!

Staff away day

On Monday the entire Learning Centre team had our staff away day. As I previously wrote, this was a trip to the Apsley Paper Trail. The day started with a lovely group coffee at Woody's Cafe, an organic homey eatery in the Apsley Marina. Actually, the day was supposed to start with a group trek down the canal path leading to Woody's but Monday's weather was awful; heavy showers, wind, lightening, thunder, and dark skies. Walking along the canal for the morning was not an option, so coffee at Woody's was perfect. After Woody's, we had lunch at the Paper Mill pub (as you can see, staying well fed was at the top of our list for staff away day accomplishments). After lunch, we took a canal boat to Frogmore Mill for our paper tour.

This mill tour was fantastic. We learned this mill had been producing paper from recycled materials, first rags then old paper, for over 100 years. We got to see how hand-mand paper is created, and got to see all the extras you can add to it to make a unique product (my favourite was the shreaded £5 notes, making the paper look like it was embedded with confetti). We also saw how old paper is pulped and made into new, and got to walk through the mill and see each step along the way. It was fascinating.

Thankfully the day included the opportunity to purchase some of the hand-made paper. I got two lots, one with grass cuttings in it and one with banana peel. And I was thrilled to hear the mill is opening a large shop in a week, full of all their paper products. I shall be visiting that outlet on a regular basis...

The day ended with a short but very wet canal boat trip back to the carpark. All in all, a fun day (and what day out of the office, regardless of the weather, isn't better than sitting at a desk all day??).

Relieved

I am very relieved the Church of England synod voted in favour of women bishops yesterday. I was really upset by the opposing views, first as a woman myself but also as a mother of a daughter.

Klimt in Liverpool

We spent a rainy weekend up north, getting to see my lovely in-laws then heading to Tate Liverpool to see the Gustav Klimt exhibit. This was one fab exhibit, with the hype all being spot on. I didn't know all his mediums of work would be on display, stupidly assuming it would be all about his paintings. We also got to see furniture, fabrics, household ornaments and the most beautiful set of cuttlery I've ever seen. The exhibit also included photographs taken for the work on some of his more famous paintings, which was a great inclusion.

When up north I am always surprised at how friendly everyone is, especially with Bailey. It's such a welcomed change from the sullen faces we see around Watford...

Happy July 4th

Happy Independence Day to all my co-patriots. Although the American spirit is very alive in our house today, we won't be doing anything specific to celebrate the day, just because it's an ordinary busy day around here. I did put a small US flag in our front window this morning, so at least we've made an effort.

As for the independent spirit, I'm relieved to report the bronchitus seems to finally be fading. I'm starting to feel alive again!

In addition, I'm thrilled to report my year-long nutrition overhaul has been successful thus far, resulting in a weight loss of 97 pounds. Talk about freedom!

Enjoy the day, everyone.

Bronchitis in July

Feeling like a tragic character in some Bronte-era novel, I start the month of July with bronchitis. Yes, I am feeling a wee bit sorry for myself since not only do I feel pretty crummy, I now have a week of horse-strength antibiotics to add to my routine. I just wish I could convalesce in my bedchamber whilst my servants bring me cups of tea and triangles of toast.

Alas, back to reality and some random thoughts...

Since neither grown-up at our house has had much energy due to illness, in the evening (after Bailey has gone to bed) we've been watching the BBC's production of To Serve Them All My Days. Based on the novel by R.F Delderfield, it's about life in an English boys' school in-between the wars. Although the production has moments of serious over-acting, the story itself was interesting and I'll admit, I got hooked. If you have the time, give it a watch.

End of term is quickly approaching her at WHC and we are having our Learning Centre staff away day next week. This year we are visiting the Apsley paper mill and taking a canal boat ride. One of the activities on the tour is getting to make our own paper. I hope we have time to do this!

In the news, a young man with a criminal record has had his offer to medical school revoked. Fair? I'm not sure, but it certainly is food for thought, and a delicious cautionary tale to tell wayward youngsters...don't mess up now because one day you'll want to go to medical school but they won't have you because they will think you can never be trusted again!

And on the family front, bro Ted and his bike did a 100-mile trip at the weekend. We've been talking about this amazing accomplishment all weekend at our house and now Bailey is inspired to do everything for "100 miles" herself. I can't wait for Thursday's swim class when Bailey tells Teacher Jan she's ready for her 100 miles of swimming.

For those of you who have been concerned about the very squeaky front seats in my car, I have fixed the problem! In the course of being poorly, I have some pockets of disturbed sleep but this isn't a bad thing because I've had some fantastic ideas for solving some niggling concerns. The other night I had an idea about how to try to stop the squeaking and tried it on Sunday. It worked and now I don't have to explain the squeaky seats to any guests in my car.