Sunday, November 19, 2006
Heath
Me in a tree...
Climbing a tree in Hampstead Heath--a few minutes later I was standing on my head in the tree. I swear. 
Explanation of long silence
Well, blogger seems not to like posting my well thought out blogs lately, which is really a pain the bottom. So, my past two posts have just disappeared into cyberspace. I'm going to try posting without pictures and then posting the pictures separately. Good thing I don't have anything better to do than blog.
SO, this weekend Jim and I discovered a "Jim and Claire Certified Area" to live in--the Hampstead Heath area (Hampstead, Belsize Park, and areas near there). Hampstead Heath is a big, beautiful park with trails and swimming ponds, and hills, and tennis courts, and trees, and lots of people and their dogs, which is frequently featured in movies about London. After we walked through the park, we climbed up some High Hill Street (that's not right) and before we walked through the park, we explored the Hampstead area, which is a bustling, young, trendy, fun area. Although we are enjoying Greenwich, it can be a little rough around the edges and crusty (Jim's word). Hampstead just is our style, even though it's more expensive and a less convenient commute for Jim. Another bonus is that Meg and Dan live there. So, I'm going to check out some flats tomorrow, even though we can't rent anything yet since things are still being sorted out with Jim's work (if we can ever get through the paperwork, they will sign the lease for us...since we can't do it without a bank account. All the logistics!)
Speaking of commutes...we got a taste of what happens when the rail lines shut down on Saturday. Our tube stop (and several after) was closed, so we hopped on a bus, packed in like kippered herring, and saw London from a different point of view. I was facing backwards, so I missed all of the erratic driving that was going on, but we eventually we made it to Camden Town, where we could get into the tube again. There were masses of people trying to get in at once (all having been diverted from the train at earlier stops) so the rail service people were shutting the gate every few minutes to control the crowds. It was chaos...but organized chaos! We got a glimpse of Camden Town, which is artsy and full of mohawks and piercings and street performances and, apparently, great antiques. Some other day we will explore more thoroughly. And hopefully most days the trains aren't so messed up. Later in the day, yesterday, someone was under the train...probably commited suicide. A gruesome way to go...and something that happens pretty frequently here, from what we hear.
Last night Dan came to our neck of the woods--Meg was at a retreat for her school and sorely missed! Jim, Dan and I marveled at the nightlife in Greenwich and then waited for more than an hour past our 9:00 reservations to eat at a tapas place. We had a lively and very biased discussion about why I shouldn't be part of the American Women's Club (mostly based on the pictures of the members included in my packet and some of the kitchy (sp?) descriptions of what they do and also on my inability to become "adorable" and play bridge...and my need to focus on my career! Fortunately, my career does not include golf, bridge, or shopping in the high class retail establishments of London.) After we decided that I shouldn't be in the women's club, we spent some time making fun of the incredibly bad art that is for sale all over our short term flat. Considering that I can only draw stick figures and that my handwriting is practically illegible, I really should have kept my mouth shut about the art work...but it really is funny that it is for sale at such high prices! Thank god for the complimentary post cards that come with the rental! (and I'm so glad that we are all so mature)
Anyway, good times were had by all this weekend. We enjoyed a temporary break in the rainy weather today and walked all over Greenwich and Blackheath. Jim is almost over his cold and goes back to work tomorrow. I am back to my solitary explorations and the weather is back to normal again...currently we are having 70 mph winds and then, tomorrow, rain. We don't have plans for Thanksgiving because Jim has a big deadline the next day (reminder to self: the British don't celebrate Thanksgiving). I will have to be a good wife and cook something Thanksgiving style.
SO, this weekend Jim and I discovered a "Jim and Claire Certified Area" to live in--the Hampstead Heath area (Hampstead, Belsize Park, and areas near there). Hampstead Heath is a big, beautiful park with trails and swimming ponds, and hills, and tennis courts, and trees, and lots of people and their dogs, which is frequently featured in movies about London. After we walked through the park, we climbed up some High Hill Street (that's not right) and before we walked through the park, we explored the Hampstead area, which is a bustling, young, trendy, fun area. Although we are enjoying Greenwich, it can be a little rough around the edges and crusty (Jim's word). Hampstead just is our style, even though it's more expensive and a less convenient commute for Jim. Another bonus is that Meg and Dan live there. So, I'm going to check out some flats tomorrow, even though we can't rent anything yet since things are still being sorted out with Jim's work (if we can ever get through the paperwork, they will sign the lease for us...since we can't do it without a bank account. All the logistics!)
Speaking of commutes...we got a taste of what happens when the rail lines shut down on Saturday. Our tube stop (and several after) was closed, so we hopped on a bus, packed in like kippered herring, and saw London from a different point of view. I was facing backwards, so I missed all of the erratic driving that was going on, but we eventually we made it to Camden Town, where we could get into the tube again. There were masses of people trying to get in at once (all having been diverted from the train at earlier stops) so the rail service people were shutting the gate every few minutes to control the crowds. It was chaos...but organized chaos! We got a glimpse of Camden Town, which is artsy and full of mohawks and piercings and street performances and, apparently, great antiques. Some other day we will explore more thoroughly. And hopefully most days the trains aren't so messed up. Later in the day, yesterday, someone was under the train...probably commited suicide. A gruesome way to go...and something that happens pretty frequently here, from what we hear.
Last night Dan came to our neck of the woods--Meg was at a retreat for her school and sorely missed! Jim, Dan and I marveled at the nightlife in Greenwich and then waited for more than an hour past our 9:00 reservations to eat at a tapas place. We had a lively and very biased discussion about why I shouldn't be part of the American Women's Club (mostly based on the pictures of the members included in my packet and some of the kitchy (sp?) descriptions of what they do and also on my inability to become "adorable" and play bridge...and my need to focus on my career! Fortunately, my career does not include golf, bridge, or shopping in the high class retail establishments of London.) After we decided that I shouldn't be in the women's club, we spent some time making fun of the incredibly bad art that is for sale all over our short term flat. Considering that I can only draw stick figures and that my handwriting is practically illegible, I really should have kept my mouth shut about the art work...but it really is funny that it is for sale at such high prices! Thank god for the complimentary post cards that come with the rental! (and I'm so glad that we are all so mature)
Anyway, good times were had by all this weekend. We enjoyed a temporary break in the rainy weather today and walked all over Greenwich and Blackheath. Jim is almost over his cold and goes back to work tomorrow. I am back to my solitary explorations and the weather is back to normal again...currently we are having 70 mph winds and then, tomorrow, rain. We don't have plans for Thanksgiving because Jim has a big deadline the next day (reminder to self: the British don't celebrate Thanksgiving). I will have to be a good wife and cook something Thanksgiving style.
Friday, November 17, 2006
I am done with Oxford Street
....but I got some cool boots.
I had my first retail experience in London today (besides the horrible Asda)..and it was pretty awful! First I went to the Clark's store, where customer service is NOT a priority. This kind of angry woman was "helping me," couldn't find my size in the shoe, I liked, didn't tell me for about 20 minutes while I sat there, and then said, "go look at some other ones." So I switched salespeople and then, later, she came over and chewed her co-worker out for stealing her customer. Nice.
After I got my boots from the nice salesperson, I went to H&M which I have been so looking forward to and...I liked nothing. I think I may have outgrown H&M (sorry, Jess). it seems like the top thing to purchase on Oxford Street are leggings, which remind me too much of the 5th grade for me to embrace. I'll be glad when that style goes out. I can't say that I won't get sucked into it.
In between shopping, it was pouring and there were huge crowds of people. My great fear is that I'm going to be purse snatched, so I was trying to hold my bag close, hold the umbrella, keep track of my purchases, and manage the crowds. When I got on the tube, an announcement was made that someone had pulled the alarm, so we had to wait for clearance to move. And by the time I got home, I decided that I'm done with Oxford Street and all the people and bad customer service from now on. It's just too much.
I had my first retail experience in London today (besides the horrible Asda)..and it was pretty awful! First I went to the Clark's store, where customer service is NOT a priority. This kind of angry woman was "helping me," couldn't find my size in the shoe, I liked, didn't tell me for about 20 minutes while I sat there, and then said, "go look at some other ones." So I switched salespeople and then, later, she came over and chewed her co-worker out for stealing her customer. Nice.
After I got my boots from the nice salesperson, I went to H&M which I have been so looking forward to and...I liked nothing. I think I may have outgrown H&M (sorry, Jess). it seems like the top thing to purchase on Oxford Street are leggings, which remind me too much of the 5th grade for me to embrace. I'll be glad when that style goes out. I can't say that I won't get sucked into it.
In between shopping, it was pouring and there were huge crowds of people. My great fear is that I'm going to be purse snatched, so I was trying to hold my bag close, hold the umbrella, keep track of my purchases, and manage the crowds. When I got on the tube, an announcement was made that someone had pulled the alarm, so we had to wait for clearance to move. And by the time I got home, I decided that I'm done with Oxford Street and all the people and bad customer service from now on. It's just too much.
I'm back
I had my bottom slightly kicked by some sort of flu/strep type illness yesterday, but I'm back in the land of the living again and ready to blog!Yesterday, before I succombed to my illness, I went to the National Galleries with the wife of one of JIm's co-workers. She was very full of energy and spirit and extremely excited about the art. I, on the other hand, was wondering why my bag was so heavy, and taking every opportunity to sit down...I just didn't appreciate it like I should have, so I'm going to have to go back. There were quite a few pictures of Christ at various stages of his life and portrayed by many different artists, as well as of Greek gods and goddesses. Some were unbelievably huge and very, very old.
To the left, are a few pictures of the National Galleries and Trafalgar Square. The top picture is only a portion of the Galleries, which is HUGE and can't be fit into one picture. The second is a fountain in Trafalgar Square (there are two like this), and the third is a huge mass of pigeons, surrounding a man. It was raining and there was pigeon poop everywhere, which made for treacherous walking conditions. It was pretty disgusting.
In other news, I have offici
ally put my feelers out for potential jobs and so far haven't gotten any information back from anyone. So, next week, I will be getting more aggressive.I have also started the process of volunteering for a young women's resource project in Lewisham, which is one town over from where we are living. I'll be meeting with woman next Thursday to see how the group is and whether it is something that I would want to do. They are a group of special needs girls who meet on Thursday evenings. I was kind of hoping to do more than just one evening a week, but I guess that's a start. I'm not sure that special needs kids are the group I am looking to work with...so we will see. At least I will be doing something.
The other thing I'm considering is the American Women's Club in London. Jim's friend's wife says the young women in the group are "just adorable," which leads me to believe that I will probably not be the type of person they have in this club, because I am not typically described as "just adorable." These women also seem to be pretty rich. One of them lives in Lady Di's old flat...sheesh. Anyway, the club goes out for walks around London, goes to the theatre, museums, plays bridge (HAH! Can you see me playing bridge?!) , has book clubs, cooking classes, visits the auctions, etc. There were a few things that looked interesting to me, but I'm not sure if I can really swallow it. PLus it costs 100 pounds! I could be spending that money joining the British Association of Exercise Scientists who post jobs once a week!
Tough decision: pay for friends or pay to have the priviledge to job hunt? It would be nice to spend time with other people during the day. Sometimes I get tired of myself.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
I hate banks
So this morning, I decided I would go shopping. "I've put it off long enough," I said, "The time has come!"
Right before I left the house, I got an email from our bank saying that they had frozen our account due to "suspicious activity." That would be Jim and me running from ATM to ATM attempting to withdraw enough money to pay the rent for our flat and then, last night, running from ATM to ATM so that we could get enough cash to pay for cough syrup and lozenges for poor sick Jim. (The place wouldn't take either of our credit cards, because they don't have chips in them).
To call the bank in the States from my mobile (that's what they call cell phones here. It's pronounced Mo-BILE...long I) it costs about $5 a minute. So, I can't do anything about it until Jim gets home with his phone, which we don't pay for. "Not to worry, " I said to myself, "I will use my CREDIT CARD!!!"
Happy with my decision to continue my plan to go shopping, I went to the post office, where I mailed a package and a letter and then tried to pay with my credit card, which was promptly rejected--they don't take American Express. So, I scrounged up enough cash to pay for it and then, spirit crushed, decided that maybe shopping wasn't such a good idea after all, and came home to the comfort of laundry to be done and my computer.
Fortunately, this day is not completely a wash, because I plan to go out tonight, damnit, and by then, hopefully, we'll have the bank situation resolved. Please note that all of this drama could be avoided were we able to open a bank account here in the UK...but that requires a permanent address, which due to other completely avoidable restrictions, which I am not allowed to discuss in this blog, we don't have yet. I promise my next blog will be written when I am in a better mood!
Right before I left the house, I got an email from our bank saying that they had frozen our account due to "suspicious activity." That would be Jim and me running from ATM to ATM attempting to withdraw enough money to pay the rent for our flat and then, last night, running from ATM to ATM so that we could get enough cash to pay for cough syrup and lozenges for poor sick Jim. (The place wouldn't take either of our credit cards, because they don't have chips in them).
To call the bank in the States from my mobile (that's what they call cell phones here. It's pronounced Mo-BILE...long I) it costs about $5 a minute. So, I can't do anything about it until Jim gets home with his phone, which we don't pay for. "Not to worry, " I said to myself, "I will use my CREDIT CARD!!!"
Happy with my decision to continue my plan to go shopping, I went to the post office, where I mailed a package and a letter and then tried to pay with my credit card, which was promptly rejected--they don't take American Express. So, I scrounged up enough cash to pay for it and then, spirit crushed, decided that maybe shopping wasn't such a good idea after all, and came home to the comfort of laundry to be done and my computer.
Fortunately, this day is not completely a wash, because I plan to go out tonight, damnit, and by then, hopefully, we'll have the bank situation resolved. Please note that all of this drama could be avoided were we able to open a bank account here in the UK...but that requires a permanent address, which due to other completely avoidable restrictions, which I am not allowed to discuss in this blog, we don't have yet. I promise my next blog will be written when I am in a better mood!
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