purlewe | Entries tagged with travelling shoes

so we are starting to settle down here on Spruce St. We got in on Tuesday afternoon, called the appropriate family members and friends who were worried. Checked with the cat sitter that Lehnen had not destroyed her house and went to bed. Neither of us were tired, but we thought that an early start the next day might be in our best interests. Sue's boss gave her the day off, thinking that she might need a day to recoup. We used it to get errands done and laundry too. I went to work and received the pile known as end of the year annual updates. In fact there were so many they moved them to an empty desk to fill it up and not completely scare me (in fact if I turn just right I can't see them and therefore they don't exist, right?) I started on them immediately, but as with anoyone who has been away for awhile, everyone stopped buy to chat a few times during the day. Since I have so many updates I am guaranteed some overtime the next few weeks. Actually if things go as they normally will, I'll probably catch up in the summer. The thing about mail and books, they keep coming in.

Dan had his birthday and I got him some chocolates that looked like the simpsons. he loves them and i wanted to get him something he would like. I got most of my folks postcards. sue got her folks some nice presents. her dad gets the fly fishing flies and her mom gets soap and tea. my sisters will get marmalade. and my mom will get something from the queen's gallery shop. sue and i got each other mainly the trip altho we did find a shop that had loose gemstones for a decent price. so we got some to make into necklaces or rings to remind us of our trip. we will have to wait to do that though as right now we are both tapped out.

i haven't knit anything. i have tried but it wasn't quite right so i frogged. for several reasons actually. i thought the needle size was too big but then i noticed it was already starting to mobius. that is what i get for starting it on a bed in a hotel... i bought some really nice yarns in london but i'm waiting until i get the things i have in my head out a bit. plus i need to start working on the baby things. yes the baby things. i have 4 friends having babies at the same time. and i need to get some knitting done for them. plus i have the mousies to do.. little catnip mousies. i never have enought time for myself. and yesterday i completely slacked and read a book when i got home. i finshed the book today at lunch but now i feel like i'm falling behind.

i've started to jog. i promised myself that if i can do this jogging thing and get my stamina up then i'll sign up for a triatholon with my friends sharon and john. i started yesterday. i want to job tomorrow too but we leave to goto the poconos to pick up sue's car. her car had a slight problem the day we were supposed to leave for london. the window switch broke. in the down position. we couldn't drive it home and leave the thing open for 2 weeks while we would be gone. not in the city (an personally not anywhere) so we left it up there and supposedly it is fixed. we have to rent a car to go get it, but we need it back. poor sue and her driving every day. i miss the public transit of london for her. she deserves better than living so far from work.

so tomorrow, up bright and early and on to her folks. i'll try to finish the lining on the purse and hopefully get that given to her mom. i wish it was done already. i don't really feel like doing anything but sleeping again. i think that i was really refreshed the first few days back, but the thoughts of all my things i want to do and the type of time i know i have to do them wears me out mentally. talking to cassandra today reminded me that i need to find some quiet again in my life. in london i think spending time with sue was great. we found that quiet time. but when you go back to your life at home things crowd in begging to be taken care of and you can lose it. somewhere i need to find it and hold onto its tail. maybe it will drag me out of this.

happy new year everyone!

Current Mood: cold
Current Music: oumou

Well, we are now in London as I type. In an internet cafe and trying to figure out what the heck to do next in this town. Too many choices make for a dizzy set of decisions. Anywho. Had a lovely time in Stratford. Saw all 3 houses down town that had to do with Shakespeare: Nash's house and New House Garden, Physick house and the Birthplace. Enjoyed the history we learned and then went to a play. Got tix for All's Wll with Judi Dench. Went a bit overboard and got the extra pricey ones to make sure we felt like we had really been there. (they were Sue's christmas present late, which she rather enjoyed- so she says) Then we had a lovely New Year's Eve together with champagne and fish and chips (and something called a battered sausage that Sue insists was quite good, even though it clogged my arteries to look at it). YUMMY! then we got up late, got on the train and got to London on the 1st. Yesterday we did the touristy thing, but loved every minute of it. Westminster Abbey (saw Newton's tomb -just like the Davinci Code and Lord and Lady Baden Powell's graves), Buckingham Palace and the Queen's Gallery, Big Ben, rode the Eye (huge ferris wheel that takes about a half an hour to go full round. And we went 430 ft in the air. Saw the whole city's lights and everything.) Stopped at the Royal Festival Hall and got last minute tix for an acrobatic proformance of the Chinese State Circus. Sue had never seen anything like that and it was very entertaining. Got home late and woke up this am to goto Liberty's and meet a KR correspondent: Michelle. She was great fun. We met at Oxford Circus tube and went to Liberty's which was having a HUGE sale on Rowan and some Jaeger. (they only sell these 2 types of yarn) Bought some for 2 sweaters. Went on the John Lewis and looked at their yarn. While their assortment was better, the prices were not as good as Liberty's and the people were staggering. We ended up at Selfridges for brazilian tapas lunch and said goodbye to our new friend. Went on to find Sue's dad a lovely present of english fly fishing flies. Had tea (and here is where Sue would like me to say a LOVELY mousse cake) and walked up to Charing Cross road. if anyone out there has read 84 Charing Cross road.. I knew the store was gone but was not prepared for the devastation known as a freaking pizza hut in its place. Went on to Foley's (proportedly the largest bookstore in the world) and spent considerable time there. Was on the way out and got caught in the vortex known as Ray's Jazz Cafe and bought more things (several jazz CDs). Ended up here on our gad about town and hopefully will do some more walking and find dinner before all the places roll up their sidewalks. (had a great dinner quite by accident last nite, but luck is not always so kind)

Thoroughly enjoying my adventure. No colinette was bought sadly as I found NONE anywhere. Finished a very very short scarf of fruit loopy color. But I might change it into a purse and someone next to me here might not wear it (it is really really short). Finished 3 whole books while on trains and am thinking about the next one I want to read (Stroud's first children's book, which you can only get here in the UK. But i am not liking it as much as i thought. I will say though that I am only in the first few pages and I am sure it will get better.)

OK, I need to leave. Keep good thoughts for me and I'll be home by Tuesday. Maybe another post- perhaps not.

Current Mood: chipper
Current Music: lionel hampton

hello everyone! it is dinner time in london and we have taken a break from filling our faces for a bit. We did lunch at a pub... darn if I can remember the name. Yummy roast beef and a tuna melt plus chips! but I should not have had lunch. My muesli for breakfast was keeping me full. We had breakfast and went for a walk to the RSC (royal shakespear company) to see if they have any returned tickets to All's Well. And found out why they are still sold out. JUDI DENCH is reprising her role. OMG!!! so no return tickets yet, but we can get in queue tomorrow for tix as they release 7 seats on the very last row of the top level at 9:30 am. I'll be in line. They also sell standing tickets for #5. it is like a 3 hr play, but if I cannot get a seat, I'll buy one of those and stand to see judi. She is a goddess! wish good thoughts for me. We went past trinity church (we plan on going in but really just walked about today) and past the physcians house (which we also plan on seeing tomorrow) and we went to the Nash house and the New house gardens. New house was William S' last house and where he died. it had a beatiful knot garden there and we met a nice man from houston and we helped him take a picture of himself and he took one of us. Very nice. then we went to tea at the hathaway tea room. Lovely lemon bun and chocolate muffin with enough tea to make me float back to the states. so we are calling it quits at the moment and trying to let ourselves stop eating long enough to digest. Sue is reading a book and I am knitting up either a scarf or a change purse (depends on if sue likes the look if it by the time I am through) with the wool that Amy gave me for my presy. It is such a lovely colored kool-aid wool. Sue thinks it looks like fruit loops. We both affect accents when we talk. I always do that. it is habit. I feel bad about it but they say imitation is the best form of flattery! and i do love things here. just wish it didn't cost so much.

i'll post new stuff when i can. hopefully there will be a lovely post about judi tomorrow.

Current Mood: bouncy
Current Music: simpsons show is on in the background

So you are closing up shop at work. Cleaning out all the files. Expecting to take a long vacation when BLAM! Life smaks you on the ass.

*sigh

So i am working on getting out of here, really I am. And I plan on bloggin if I can from hotels around the UK. But just a mere hour ago things were very different...

Sue called in near hysterics. She was on the phone with British Air. They had, um, cancelled one of our tickets. Actually, they were in the process of maybe cancelling both?? WHA? so she started saying things to me on the phone that were just not kosher. This involves an emergency trip home. I left my desk and ran home to find poor Sue in tears telling the guy on the phone that she couldn't afford to buy 2 tickets at 1400$ a piece and this was just supposed to be a nice vacation. I told her to ask for the manager. A couple minutes later she did. And then she told her story again.. and this woman said for her to wait... several minutes and much crying later. Well, we are still going. I was all for telling them to refund the money and going on a drive around the country. So the vacay is still on folks. I know some of you didn't want us to go, but we foiled you again!

Tomorrow is the holiday. We are driving up to Sue's folks and spending a few days there. Needless to say the schedule for tonite is bumped a bit (we should have left already) but we will get showered and packed and on our way. Poor Sue got so overwhelmed nothing got done today. And sadly, the emergency made me leave the felted puddle purse at the cobbler's who is now closed. No puddle purse for her mom this holiday. I hope they hold it until we get back.

We are leaving the country on Saturday. Keep your fingers crossed and think UP!

Current Mood: surprised
Current Music: silence

Sad but true: I've been humming holiday songs to myself when I walk to and from work. And they are not the "usual favorites" but ones that have sneaked into my subconscious. But this just came from a friend online and now I have a new obnoxious song to hear in my head. (and it *was* my favorite holiday tune until this version got stuck there like the adam sandler Hanukkah song)

http://load.pquinn.com/binaries/fries/

Before I forget!! My boss called me on Tuesday to relate this story. I thought it was hilarious enough to share. The local TV channel was interviewing people on the street about Dubya. This is what they asked and this is what she said.

reporter: What do you think W stands for?
boss: what does the initial mean or what is his middle name?
reporter: whatever you would like ma'am.
boss: W stands for "wanker"
reporter and camera man collapse into a fit of giggles.

Needless to say she was not on the news that evening.

Got us rooms in Stratford. I am looking forward to going. You can see the B&B here:

http://www.ardenparkhotel.co.uk

And finally, last nite was our holiday party at work. They held it in the old PSFS building. GORGEOUS architecture. Nice foodstuffs. I had the best of my holiday meals there. The entertainment was very.. entertaining. The CEO and the prior CEO with an associate and a family member played some jazz that was quite good. Then the lip-syncing was on and it was quite humorous. Mind you this was NOT to be karaoke, but some people were too drunk to remember that. I like Gladys Knight and her Pips, and Bob made a great Dolly Parton. (although I preferred his "name game" version he sang last year. Him and Fierstein should hook up) But of course, the drunkest and funniest was a Milli Vanilli one where the guys on stage forgot that they were not supposed to sing along in their mics. WOW they were bad, but they had alot of heart to make up for it. By the time people started dancing I got the heck out of there. Usually I would stay but I wanted to go home.

Knitting: I am at the neck of the chocolate sweater. Tonite plenty of time to knit. YIPPEE!