Thursday, January 31, 2013

Travelogue: London - Poetic Justice


Those of you who know me know that I am the last to think ill of anyone. (Or to paraphrase Douglas Adams: If I am not the Very Last, I did so as recently as this morning…)

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Travelogue: London - And In Health


Okay, the rant yesterday was because one of my coworkers had to be coaxed into staying home when they were sick and not passing it to the rest of us. I was suffering a bit of a frog in my throat, but that was only because I missed my allergy pill yesterday morning and, until found I still had some in my briefcase, I was suffering – but at least I was suffering in a purely non-contagious way.
National Inane Answering Message Day

Sunday, January 27, 2013

Travelogue: London - Camden Town


One of the many places that visitors to my home in Surrey wanted to visit when I was living here was Camden Town. I had heard of Camden Town and the Camden Town Locks, I had even visited them back in 2004 during my first visit here as a part of the tour of places that I took based on Douglas Adams' Dirk Gently novels. But the markets never impressed me.
Thomas Crapper Day

Saturday, January 26, 2013

Travelogue: London – Not Seeing London

Well, It was a lovely day… But that was the morning. The clouds started to build around lunch time. Then the rain came; a drizzly, drippy, cold and sloppy mess! On an afternoon like that, there is nothing for it but to curl-up with a few friends and a roaring fire; a place to be catered to among friends.

Travelogue: London - Seeing London

It's Saturday and my colleagues have all made their plans. In a limited way, they overlap with mine. The weather gods have grinned on us and are allowing us the favor of an absolutely beautiful day. The sun is out; the skies are a nearly cloudless blue. It is a great day to get out there and see some of the sights.
Australia Day

Friday, January 25, 2013

Travelogue: London - Turkish Food

With the classes over, and my entire team collocated for the first time since the team was established, we decided to celebrate and go out to dinner at a Turkish restaurant. (Another ethnicity with which I was previously unfamiliar...)

Happy Birthday, Mom

1936 - 1980

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Travelogue: London - Right As Rain


The forecast was, at least in that one respect, accurate! They had been saying for a couple days that the snow would be quitting some time around sunset to be replaced by rain shortly thereafter. I do not know when, exactly, things switched over, but by the time I left the office it was, indeed, raining.
Happy birthday to my friend Mary

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Travelogue: London - Snow


I do not remember it EVER being this bad for this long here! Granted, I only lived here for a few short years, but still! It has been cold, wet, and miserable here for the past four days! I do not believe that I have seen the sun since shortly before landing at Heathrow back on Sunday morning. Add to that the very short days this time of year and it makes it a lot easier to understand Seasonal Affective Disorder!

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Travelogue: London - Dining



The neighborhood we are staying in (on the border of Kilburn and Maida Vale) has changed a bit since last I was here. I had to look this up, but it has actually been about a year! The nice little gastro-pub in the next block is now a night club of some sort; at least, I assume that it is a night club. I have never actually seen it in use, but then I do not go out late in the evenings as much as once I did.
Happy birthday to my friend Ford

Monday, January 21, 2013

Travelogue: London - Snowfall

I've seen worse, but the city is practically at a stand-still! But, then, this is London and THIS is how they react to weather. It took us nearly two hours to get to the hotel from the airport yesterday morning. The trains and busses were running disrupted schedules, and the car service had to deal with the snarls of traffic that were the impact of 1/2" of snow that fell throughout the morning hours.

London Snow Bunnies
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Sunday, January 20, 2013

Travelogue: London - Sleep


Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time. Of course, after years of making this trip, you've have thought that I might know better. I should have taken the experience of years as fact and just given-in to the fact that I cannot sleep on planes.
Innauguration Day

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Travelogue: London - Time Dilation


I understand the artificial sense of time dilation that flying give me... and it's not just the flying through the time zones that I am talking about... it's the comparison to other forms of travel that caught my attention. Allow me to explain…

Double-Take Redeaux


Okay, I promised that I would not do anything more about Gun Control Today’s rant is about illegal immigration. Here’s a short one for you: What is so wrong about calling an illegal immigrant an “illegal immigrant?”

Friday, January 18, 2013

Double Speak – Double Standard – Double Take

Okay, this is my last second amendment column for a while (I PROMISE!!!) but I just heard a news report this morning that I need to comment on. The cognitive dissonance it set-up in my mind was interesting because the speaker seemed to be completely oblivious to the logical false equivalence he was drawing. The double-standard it drew on was so deliciously dissonant that I had to rewind it to make sure I had not imagined it!

Off To London

Happy birthday to my cousin Stan
Happy birthday to my cousin Leona

Monday, January 14, 2013

Mr. Smith Is Rolling In His Grave!

The big news this weekend was the attempt by the majority in the Senate to limit the use of the filibuster. All the stories referenced the movie Mr. Smith Goes To Washington and all of them talked about how the filibuster had been used hundreds of times recently to prevent the senate from doing practically anything.
National Dress Up Your Pet Day

(The kennel I use - Best Friends Pet Care in Wheatridge, Colorado - dresses-up Saga for me...)

Monday, January 07, 2013

The USA Under The FSM


Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...
Happy birthday to my aunt Elaine

Tuesday, January 01, 2013

Resolutions


Wahoo! I will have to do some research, but I think this may be a personal best! It is nearly noon January first and I have yet to break any of my New Year's resolutions! Yippee!
New Year's Day