Joe and Dominque and So here's what I have noticed.

... Pictures of Joe and Dominque... Week of Feb 4-10
Joe and Dominique just left today, I am so sad! We
had a great time. Joe even drove the car to Windsor. He loved the Pubs... I think they went to one at least every day. They really saw a lot in their short time here.
On his birthday we went into London, on the train,... visited Buckingham Palace, St. James Park, the catholic cathedral, Westminster Cathedral (very cool), had dinner at a tapas restaurant and went to see the play, Billy Elliot... then back in the tube to the train and home. Next day we drove to Stonehenge... got a little lost, but finally made it there, easy trip home... (you can imagine Joe when we were lost!! He actually did pretty good but we had a navigation system, a map and internet directions and we still got lost.. my fault, really... but now I know where Anover is..) All in all, a good day... On Monday they went into London on their
own and didn't get back until 11:30 (Pub closed...), they went on the London "Eye", a huge enclosed ferris wheel that sits on the Thames and provides fantastic views of London... We went to Windsor for dinner...
expensive but fun (they treated me.) On Wednesday we back into London via the train and tube. We went to the Natural History museum and then to a pub for dinner and then a play at an old theater in Picadilly Circus... 39 steps, a lot of fun.. 4 people do the whole play...
we got tickets at the half price place.. Anyway, fun again. Thursday it snowed!! We were housebound. I worked and they went out for a walk and hit two pubs in the travels... Joe loves those pubs. They had a good day. Yesterday they took the car and rode into Windsor, just missing the castle tour by 10
min...parking can be a challenge.. Last night we
went into Marlow for Indian food...

This morning, we got up, they were all packed and we
drove down to Gatwick airport.. Yes, I did shed a few tears on the way home... It was a good week!

Feb 19, 2007

Well, here we are... mid-Feb... I have already been here six months! My job is very challenging. I am enjoying it very much. The people I work with are great... they think I am a crazy American. Every day they laugh at something else that I comment on or don't understand.. Who knew a "jumper" is a sweater? Who knew that a "jacket" potato is a baked potato wrapped in aluminum foil? What about pronouncing the letter "z" zed? ... and they tell me I don't know how to spell... they put "s" where we put "z," and "u's" for no reason... oh well, we are getting used to each other. They are very quiet people and I think I shock them by being "out there"... I am sure they go home and say, you aren't going to believe what she said today...

My little house... oh sorry, "cottage" is adorable. I am very comfortable, even with guests. It is a cute little place with three floors. Bedroom, bath and office on the second floor, (first floor if you are English). Guest room on the third floor,(second floor if you are English)
...From my front room window I watch people riding horses, walking their dogs, groups of people walking and talking. Most where "welly's" (big green rubber boots) because it is very muddy on the "green."

The neighbors are very quiet. Everyone keeps to themselves except on Thursday's when each of the two middle cottages drag their garbage cans through my backyard (garden) to put out front for collection, and then back in again on Friday. It is so funny, it happen's, but no one seems to run into each other... It is funny to see someone dragging their garbage can past my kitchen window... We just wave to each or nod...

There is a house next to me that is not connected to our cottages. It is called the "Farside Cottage." Bob lives there. He lives alone in a good sized four bedroom house. He is a work-aholic. He has been very helpful to me. He helped me de-scramble my DVD player (it would only play UK movies) and he helped me get my wireless set-up. He is really the only one that talks to me (probably because he isn't connected...) He is actually the only one I have seen outside.. he rides his bike... He has just taken off for a three week vacation to New Zealand where one of his best friend's just moved.

I have been to the local pub a few times. Once with my sister-in-law Shelley and then once with Joe and Dominique. The food isn't bad but it smells like smoke and I don't like having to shower after being there. The people in that pub are not that friendly either, but it is close. There are lots of other pubs, so I am sure I will find one that I like. Joe and Dominique went to quite a few while they were here and enjoyed them. I have actually gone to some really cool old pubs with the people at work for lunch. (usually on Friday's)

Driving is going fine. Only one ticket so far... they have CTTV's every where... no police, just camera's. The biggest problem is parking... the spaces are so small, even my small car is a challenge... I need to lose weight just to be able to get in and out of my car in a parking garage. (I am not kidding!) Parallel parking is difficult from the right side... people are always laughing or honking at my attempts. Luckily I have sensors on my car. I really like my cute little blue BMW. It has a navigation system, bluetooth for my phone, parking sensors and I can play my IPod through the radio. Of course I don' know how to use most of the stuff but it is fun. I only have 800 miles on it... I have had it for four months but I really only go to and from work.

Traffic is the same as the US... too many cars, too many trucks... rrr trucks, I hate them!! They drive even faster here! The funny things are the roundabouts on the "dual carriage ways".. it is like being on hwy 17 and then you have to slow down, go through a roundabout then get back on hwy 17. Wierd. They even built overpass roundabouts... Oh well. They are very considerate drivers unless you go too slow, then they pass you like it is the Indianapolis Speedway... The freeway signs are very big... with large arrows so you can figure out where to go... I guess there are a lot of old people driving around!

The weather isn't bad... a bit gray at times.. Not too cold. It snowed the week that Joe and Dominique were here. We were told not to drive anywhere that morning so we didn't... Oh my God... the news was ridiculus..They cancelled school that day and you would have thought they cancelled school for a month... they had big interviews and discussions about it. It was only one day!! That is how boring a news day is here!

TV... hmmm, I am fairly happy now. I don't watch that much, but now I can watch the new episodes of American Idol, Lost, ER, Boston Legal and "Dr. McDreamy.." so I can't complain, oh also, "Ugly Betty" (watched it for the first time tonight) anyway... they have soap opera's on at night. I haven't gotten into watching them. The nice thing is that they run their commerccials in a very sensible way. You get to watch whatever for at least 30min before commercials and then commercials go for about 6 minutes...

The food... not bad. Fresh vege's and fruits at all the stores, pretty much anything I would want. I have figured out what most things are...chips are called "crisp's" candy is "sweeties" and cookies are "biscuit's."
Take-out is called "take away"... Indian food is referred to as "Curry" and as yet, I have never had anything that I would call curry at an Indian food restaurant... Only food that is so hot, I can't eat it!!

Wine is about the same price over here. I have started drinking white wine (acid reflux...) anyway, I like the Australian Chardonnay. I thrill at the site of a California wine. I even found a bottle of Ironstone (Murphy's) at a local grocery store. I do drink a lot of G and T... (gin and tonic)... and they do ask if you want ice and/or light tonic (diet)... not me, if you going tonic, go for the good stuff...

There is big concerns with obesity here. Jamie Oliver, you know, the "Naked Chef," has made a big thing about school menu's. This year they instituted healthy foods at the school cafeteria's... When one boy was interviewed he said, "... I don't like vege's and fruit and I really don't like Jamie Oliver!!" Out of the mouth's of babe's..

I see a lot of people walking, jogging, riding bikes. You would think it was California. Whatever one might think, these are very active people...

Well, enough for tonight.

I have been loved...

I have been loved…

If there is anything I have realized this year… that is it. I have been loved… by so many. I can’t even begin to thank everyone who has showed their love for me and my family. So many people have helped to make this life after Steve’s death so bearable.

I know Steve would have been very surprised to know (and also very proud and happy) that over 400 people attended the service last year to honor his memory. But even more than that, the love and caring that we have experienced over the past year has been amazing.

Our family, our friends have been awesome. I have been humbled by the attention.

A lot of things have happened in the year since Steve passed away. Nick graduated from college. Tony and Joe both coached winning football teams, Steph helped me move to England… I live in England… Kelly got her AS degree, Adriana is potty-trained, Dakota and Sadie both sleep more than ever!! So… yes, life goes on.

The kids gave me the best gift for Christmas. My niece-in-law, Sara Noce, took a fabulous picture of the family. Whenever I look at it, I see Steve. His persona is so visible in all of them. Even Adriana, whose outward appearance is so much her mother. Her expressions, her personality, reveal the Noce side of her. She has the charism that Steve had, the sense of humor, the compassion and the desire to learn. She is all that her grandfather was, inquisitive, happy, determined, stubborn, funny, and compassionate. She is the gift that has helped all of us get through this sad time.

I thought I would share this letter that Steve wrote to me the Christmas just before Joe was born.

Kathi,

I was thinking of our relationship together the other day and for me to just say, “I Love you” is insufficient. Our life together encompasses so much more. When thinking of all the different factions of our life, a picture of a strong, sound, tall ship came to mind.

The hull of the ship is the love we have for each other. It is the base of the ship, and our life together. The sails are the children we have borne. Even will all the trouble, work and problems, the sails are to maintain and keep strong, they still help the ship move in the right direction.

The wheel and the rudder are you and me. These two parts of the ship must work together to guide the tall ship throughout the waters of life. The ocean currents and winds are the trials and tribulations of life which we have not control over. But with the hull being sound, the sails being strong, and the wheel and the rudder working together, our tall ship can withstand any storm life has in store for us.

Merry Christmas ’79… Love Steve.

…As Steve said then, with all of us working together, “our tall ship can withstand any storm life has in store for us…”

… I have been loved

Macklin James Steven Langridge

home for the holidays -- highlights

It as great to be home for Christmas. As hard as it was to be celebrating our first Christmas without Steve, I think we did pretty good. Neil and Di had the Kelly Christmas party with everyone on the Saturday night before Christmas.. great food, good people, good fun. It was especially fun to have the cousin "girls" there! Like old times...

For Christmas Eve, Tony organized a dinner at Scoppazi's, our favorite restaurant in Boulder Creek. All of us, my nephew Justin and his wife Sarah, and the Brook family, Lara, Arwin, Lisa, Chana, Teya and mother Janet,(they also lost their father this year) enjoyed our favorite dishes. Adriana and Teya entertained us with Christmas carols and both Janet and I enjoyed the family time. It was great, as it turned out, half the restaraunt was filled with old friends and more family. My nephew Jason, his wife Karen and their kids and Karen's mom and dad, the Knights, the Greene's,the Livingston's and others. Our wonderful nephew and niece Justin and Sarah treated us to our dinner! They are the best.

Christmas morning was a kick!! Every present Adriana opened, she would say, "Oh my goodness!" It is so fun to have children around on Christmas day... It helped us all through a tough time. The best surprise for me was a fantastic portrait of my children, daughter in law and granddaughter, framed and beautiful... taken by my lovely niece-in-law, Sarah..(the best!)

Highlighting my week off was a day with my friends Emily and Larry, where we headed to the city to see the musical, "Jersey Boys." It was awesome! Also, several days with my darling Adriana who kept me running... One day we took a walk on West Cliff with my friends Sally and Linda... They walked, we ran. I had Adriana in the stroller. In order to satisfy her "need for speed," I ran while pushing the stroller, much to her delight! We went so fast her new tennis shoes "burned rubber" and are permanently damaged!! Next baby, Grandma needs a jogging stroller!

I was also able to celebrate my mother's birthday with her and the rest of the family... she was 79 on Dec 30..hard to believe. I only hope I am as active and attractive when I get to be that age!

New Year's Eve was going to be hard... Ok, so what to do...Have a dinner party!! (Tony and Kelly went to the city with friends for the night..) Steph, Lisa, Arwin, Chana, Adriana and Teya..We had a girls party, complete with hats, horns, champagne, artichokes, prime rib and twice baked potatoes..yum, yum. We let the little girls stay up until midnight and blow the horns in the back yard. Adriana said Hi! to Pop, pop, who, as you know, is now the "man in the moon..." It was fun..

The absolute best part of the visit home was the birth of Macklin James Steven Langridge, Colleen and Michael's second child and our first boy grandchild. He was 9lbs, 6oz - 21"...and adorable! On January 12, 2007, Nick and I accompanied Steve, Chris and Jessica to the hospital, expecting to wait in the waiting room...amazingly, we got to look through the window into the operating room where the baby was being born by cesarian section...I saw them pull the baby out!!! Well, only the head, but... it was so cool. We got to see him when he was just 5 minutes old. Colleen did great and Mike was all thumbs up and smiles! It was so awesome to be able to share the family experience. Colleen's sisters' MaryKate, Maureen and her neice Colleen were all there too!! Good times..

The trip back was fine. I now have two house guests, my sister-in-law, Shelley and niece Vanessa who are staying with me until Jan 29. We saw the Tower of London today and next week we are heading to Paris... I think I can be a tour guide now!!

It has been a while...Istanbul before Christmas

Istanbul...quite a surprise! First of all, this is one of the oldest cities in the world. It sits on both sides of the Bosphorus Sea, that separates Europe from Asia. So I was expecting a lot of people in robes, turbins and scarves. On arrival at the airport I was totally surprised to see a very modern airport, clean, easy to manage and not too crowded and most everyone dressed in modern, up to date clothes. As we drove to our hotel, the lights of the city where spectacular. There are mosques everywhere.

In the daylight I was also surprised. It could have been San Francisco. The weather was cool but clear. It is four times as large and has two or maybe three bridges that look like the the Golden Gate, only not orange! It is quite a cosmopolitan city. Big difference, at noon and dusk, prayers are broadcast city wide over loud speakers. Surprisingly no one stops (at least that I could see)... everyone just keeps going about their business. Really a very interesting place.

Seagate is going to have a customer event there next September... Should be fun.

Part 2: London , the rest of the weekend.

We all agreed that we wanted to go to the British Museum. Lindsay went on a Starbucks run and brought us all coffee to get us going. We stopped at the concierge on the way out to see if could get tickets to a play. She was surprised to find that there were three available that evening, third row orchestra, for The Phantom of the Opera. We were thrilled. So off we go to find our way to the museum. The Marleyboned station is located directly out the back door of the hotel. Karina acted as the tour guide, figuring out the correct trains to get us to our destinations. Only two train changes and we would be where we wanted to be. Ok, it was a Saturday. and it was Christmas time… a zoo! People were pushing, people were hurrying, but generally in polite mode. It was easy to get caught up in the hustle. I like moving fast, and you definitely had to move fast or get trampled. Once on the street, we found walking on the outside of the sidewalk, sometimes on the curb, was the best way to move ahead.

The museum was surprisingly non-descript from the outside. Inside, it is amazing!! A main feature is the Rosetta stone:
http://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/compass/ixbin/goto?id=OBJ67

Also, the Egyptian artifacts are impressive. Like Karina said, “pots, pots and more pots!”

We decided just to stay downtown instead of returning to the hotel before the show. So… off to Harrods (with a Starbucks stop, of course..) where I purchased a Harrods ornament, supposedly something one must do every year… It was fun moving through the store that is about a block long and three stories high. It is very garish inside but it was decorated for Christmas, so very cheery!

The play is performed at Her Majesty’s Theater located in the Picadilly area of London. The theater was designed in 1896. It is ornate and very intimate. We sat in the third row, off center to the left. Awesome seats!
http://www.londontheatre.co.uk/londontheatre/westendvenues/hermajestys.htm

After the show we went to an old pub about two blocks up, off the main street. It was very bright and festive looking so we went in. It was just a little after 10pm and they had stopped serving food :(

We were ok with that, but they stopped serving drinks at 11:30… some kind of law. It was OK because we wanted to walk around and see all the lights and the people hurrying from one place to another. As we got up to leave the pub, we noticed a happy group of people standing at the bar, enjoying their last drinks… It turned out to be most of the cast from the Phantom. The very cute boy who played Raoul, the smitten boyfriend and the girl who played Christine… and other cast members. We engaged in conversation, telling them how much we enjoyed the performance. To make my night, the cute boy asked if I had been sitting in the first row, I said no, the third row. He said, Oh, I remember you, we made eye contact! I was thrilled. I didn’t know that they really did make eye contact. Anyway, quite an exciting end to the evening. We then walked for a long while checking out all the lights and activity. We got ourselves back to the hotel about 1am. Fun, fun.

The next morning we slept in, took leisurely showers and decided to have breakfast in the lovely atrium in the center of the hotel. It was almost 1pm before we headed for the British Library. This a newer building, opened in 1998. Despite the modern outside, it houses some of the oldest and most amazing things. The original Magna Carta, the original Handel’s Messiah, the first written bible, many, many other old documents. It also holds a display of more contemporary artifacts, such as some of the Beatles original song lyrics written on napkins… not kidding! Anyway, a WOW!

http://www.bl.uk/about/history.html


To complete my goals for the weekend, we made our way to Paddington train station and located the correct train to get us back to my house. The Maidenhead station is about a 10 min cab ride to there. The girls were carrying two bags each since they had been traveling throughout Europe for almost three months. We purchased our tickets and had five miuntes to make the train which was at the furthest most track, of course. So, off we ran, Lindsay hauling two big suitcases and Karina and I with the rest. We were comical at the very least. We made the train though with less than a minute to spare. Lindsay used the suitcases as a seat, I found a seat and after a few stops, so did Karina. Again, fun, fun! We made it successfully to the Maidenhead station. It was dark, we had no idea how long it would take and we gotten on the train that stops at every station on the way. After about 45 minutes we reached our destination. I was thrilled. Not only had I gotten a good taste of London, I also was able to make my on the tube and train routes! Yeah…Goals completed!


…More to come ---- London, the “drunk train” and.. a weekend in Istanbul!

Discovering London

London – it is quite a city.
I was invited into London for a charity luncheon at the Landmark Hotel on Friday, Dec 8th. This seemed like a great opportunity to stay for the weekend in London. I have not really spent any time in London since I arrived in England. This coincided with the return of the Scarborough sisters, Lindsay and Karina, from their travels through the rest of Europe. They willingly agreed to “hang out” in London with me. So the adventure began. I had two objectives, one, to begin exploring London and two, to learn how to use the underground and train system.

The Landmark hotel is a historical hotel located next to the Marleybone tube station in a busy area of the city. It is a beautiful old building built in the late 19th century. It is famous for it’s atrium center. It is a place where people have weddings, gala events, company parties and charity events. It is a five star accommodation.

Before the girls arrived, I accompanied one of my co-workers on a manic trip to the industrial area north of central London after the luncheon. She was in search of the perfect wedding dress for her second marriage. (so not white) A friend of hers had recommended a designer who sold dresses wholesale. Only glitch was that you had to go to the “factory” where they were produced to try one on. We left the hotel about 16:00 (4pm) for a 16:30 (4:30pm) appointment. We purchased our tickets for the underground, heading for the (Can't remember the name...)station. This meant two stops, a change of trains and then four more stops before we made it to our desired station. It is very similar to the New York system, only ten times more crowded! There is no crowd control, people just keep piling in until there is no room to breath!! I don’t think I could do that every day… Anyway, once we reached our stop, out of the ground we go, running up an escalator (yes running… we were late , of course) bringing us at least ten stories from what I think must be the bottom of the earth…( so far down…) Once above ground we notice a brass plaque proudly displayed at the entrance that stated something like, “… in memory of 143 women and children who were killed during WW11 by a bomb that hit this station as they were heading underground to the bomb shelter...” Makes you think…

We called for directions from there and were told to walk about six blocks on the right, turn at the water, go under a bridge and look for the iron gates with the number 43. We made it, in the dark and past questionable characters by 5pm. Unfortunately, the dress was not the “dream dress.” However … the adventure for me was well worth it. I got a good feel of what it was like to work and live every day in London. We made it back the same way we came, arriving back at the Marleybone station at 7:00pm. My friend took a cab to the Paddington station where she caught the train to Windsor, her stop for her home in Sunningdale. I checked into my hotel.

The girls arrived about 20:30 (8:30pm). Being the helpless (yeah, right) females that they are, a young bellman from the back door helped them up with their luggage. Our room was huge. It had a very nice bathroom, appreciated by the girls, who had been in a small apartment in Barcelona for a while. There was plenty of room for them to open their suitcases and show me all the “goodies” they had purchased in their travels. Shopping seemed to be a major part of each city they visited. They filled me in on all that had gone on since I last saw them which was in mid-October. Boy did they have a great trip. Day 1, part of objective achieved.. more to come...

Been in the states...

I was back in the States for Thanksgiving. Once I was home, back in my familiar surroundings, around my friends and family, I asked myself, "What have you done?"...
Returning to the UK was not easy. Once I got here, I have found that it is OK. I still miss all my familiar surroundings, familiar faces, familiar life but it is not bad here. We do what we must do... I am going to spend this coming weekend in London so I will have lots to write about then.

Here are two pictures from our Thanksgiving... 80 people, pretty much all related!

Brighton Beach - SF, Santa Cruz - combined

new car

Nov 11, Armistice Day

I was surprised to learn that we share the "Veteran's Day" remberance with the English. They call it remberance day and they honor veterans of WWI and WWII at 11:00am on Nov. 11th. This year the Queen dedicated a memorial to New Zealand for the 1800 soldiers they lost in WWI and I can't remember the number in WWI but the % was very high. Very few people lived in New Zealand during those wars. Anyway, the memorial looks a little odd on TV, but I am sure it is cool in person. The design includes chards of metal sticking out of a grassy mound with some sort of insignia on each one... I will try to get to see it in person. Anyway, people wear these cute little red poppy lapel pins that old people sell for some charity. It is good to know that we aren't the only ones who appreciate what our veterans have done for us and the rest of the world. (of course, England, Ireland and Europe have way more veterans than we ever thought to have... hello... the Crusades!! oh I could go back to BC with the list.

Anyway, a very cool thing, my cousin shared a piece from letters that my Grandfather wrote to my Grandmother on Armistice Day, Nov 12, 1918, while he is was stationed in France... this true history, albeit my Grandfather's opinion...

AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES

November 12, 1918
My Dear Annie,
The old French expression “C’est la guerre” will soon have to sink into oblivion, for the Armistice has been signed and Germany given thirty days notice to sign a peace treaty or have their country devastated the same as they themselves ruined Belgium and Northern France; and no one can conceive of the German people, who, at last, are free agents, wishing to renew hostilities.

Last Saturday night the news reached here that the Armistice was about to be signed, and everyone was excited as only the French can and, from then on, until 11 o’clock yesterday morning, thousands upon thousands lined the streets in front of the News Agency anxiously awaiting some more news, but nothing encouraging came over the wires until about 10 o’clock yesterday when it was announced that the Armistice had been signed and at 11 all fighting would stop. Then the fun commenced and I don’t expect to see such a sight again if I live to be eighty years of age. Everyone nearly went crazy.

Men, women and children were running around kissing each other and shouting, “Vive l’France, Vive l’Amerique”, and waving flags and, every once in a while, a bunch would get together and sing the Marseillaise. Our band started to parade through the streets but they were nearly taken off their feet and, in an hour or so, they returned looking as if the battle of the Marne had been fought all over again. There was as at least four or five thousand people following them, and they surely went crazy when they got within the Headquarters grounds. It was an hour or more before the crowd could be dispersed. All the sirens and church bells and every other contrivance was utilized to make known the good news and it was impossible to talk, much less hear, so about 3p.m.we closed up the ‘shop’ and all went downtown. It was the greatest crowd I want to see, Americans, Frenchmen, Englishmen, Scotsmen, Canadians, Algerians, Brazilians, Japanese, Russians, Greeks, Serbians, Belgians, Italians, Portuguese, Chinamen, and Lord knows how many more, all celebrating the downfall of one nation.

I guess every man, woman, and child in this city turned out, for it took us about an hour to walk four blocks. All the stores, restaurants, cafes etc. closed up and even the streetcars had to stop, for they could make no progress whatever
within the crowds.

Around six o’clock the crowd began to be more jubilant than ever, so, in order to show up favorably, about eight hundred of us marched in columns of squads all through the principal streets. We got the reception of our lives and we had no trouble in securing flags. Everybody was willing to give up theirs and, of course, it wouldn’t be polite to refuse them, so, at the end of the parade, every one of us had at least one flag. The streets were all decorated in bunting and flags and, to our delight; we found that the Stars and Stripes was second only to the Tricolor. These French surely appreciate us and, take it from me, they know how to celebrate. It was our first opportunity to be with them on such a day and, believe me, it will be long remembered. I thought the Fourth of July celebration was great, but it couldn’t hold a candle to this one.

No doubt the States went crazy also yesterday, but I don’t believe that they show it like these people. They are naturally excitable and, given the chance to show it, they can’t be beat. Of course they have much more to be thankful and joyful over than our folks, for it was their soil that was in danger of occupation by the enemy and, yesterday practically meant the ceasing of such dangers, as menaced their country for the last forty years, forever.

This armistice, of course, does not necessarily mean peace, but it is a long step toward that goal, and I don’t believe that the German people, now that they have the government in their own hands, will ever permit hostilities to break out again, for, if they do not accede to the allies’ demands now, nothing short of entire occupation of Germany will satisfy us. The peace conditions are hard pills to swallow, but it is their own medicine and they must accept them.

Who in this wide would could have foretold five months ago what was to happen yesterday? The end came about as quickly as the affair started, and to-night report has it that the Krons-prinz has been assassinated. Now how about the Kaiser?

Everything is going along the same as ever, and this morning found us back on the job as the last of our celebrations was last night, although the French extended the holiday to to-day.

I received your letters of Oct. 13th, 11th, and 10th last night upon my return and, as usual, I was glad to hear that you were all in good health and pray that this letter still finds you the same. We hear a great deal, over here, about the Spanish Flu in the States, but I hope that you and the folks will be spared the ordeal of this sickness. Some of the boys up the line have been hit pretty hard, but it seems to have been checked, thank God.

I also received your clipping showing the pictures of the crowd at Golden Gate Park on the day on which the big affair in which you participated took place. It surely reminded me of the good old days of a year or so ago, but I hope that, before another year passes, I will be able to again look the old familiar spots over.

We are having some fine weather here and yesterday especially was warm for November. To-night it is a little cooler but just enough coolness to make the air fresh and brisk. Up north the weather has been rather cold, but nothing like that down here. Do you wonder why I consider myself so lucky?

Give everybody my best regards and tell them just because the war is almost ‘finis’ they shouldn’t think that no more letters are interesting. Keep us supplied with news and things will along better here.

Hoping that the peace which is about dawning will have risen in all its glory by the time that this letter reaches you (as we now have accomplished our purpose) and that you are all enjoying the of health, I will close.

As ever
Joe

Corp. J. A. Bosque

Pretty cool, this was written almost 90 years ago... he was so descriptive.

Nice Ride...new car.

Today, Sunday, Nov 12, I took a drive to Brighton. I felt the need to see the sea. (No pun intended.) After a frustrating morning with my network connection, I decided a nice long drive in my pretty blue new car was just what I needed. By the time I left the house it was 2:00pm. I set the "Nav" system to the "Kings Road," Brighton.

In my reference book on England it is referred to as the place where Victorian men would take their mistresses for rendevous. When they wanted a divorce, they would also bring photographers to be able to verify infidelity. Seems a little odd..

It was a very easy ride... south M404, east on M25, southwest M23... about one hour and thirty minutes. After the freeway experience, like Hwy 17, it dumps you into the town of Brighton. Unlike Santa Cruz, this is not a sleepy little beach town. It is very much like San Francisco, the Marina district to be precise. Parks, shops and three to six story buildings, all facing the sea. The buildings all have bay windows, similar to those in the Marina, but I am sure much older. There was some sort of 10k race going on in one park and every field had a soccer (football) game being played.

You wind down through the city until you notice in front of you an open area that is blue... oh there it is, the sea!! There is a wide promenade overloaking the beach area that seems to stretch for miles. A pier supports several buildings, restaraunts, amusement rides, and game areas, similar to the Boardwalk in Santa Cruz but much older and smaller. Down the center of the pier is a covered area painted white, lined with black painted iron benches. Old style street lights line the pier as well. All of this lights up as the sun goes down. As you look back at the city you see rows of hotels, restaurants, stores and apartments all lined neatly across from the promenade.

You can just imagine the Victorian couples strolling along, enjoying the sea breeze, planning the evening, stopping for ice cream or a cold drink.

The wierdest thing of all was that the beach is not sand, it is rocks or I guess big pebbles, like Johnson's Beach at Russian River! That was a surprise.

The sun goes down about 4:30 and everyone was heading towards the beach or the pier to enjoy the sunset. I have to say, it was as beautiful as any I have seen in Hawaii, the Caribbean, Australia, Greece, Spain or yes, in the US... although I will say Kansas has some amazing sunsets!

A nice drive for a dull day... I hate Sundays... and Sundays alone are the worst!!

Guy Fawkes Night

I forgot to detail my first "Guy Fawkes" celebration. Well, at about 5pm I arrived home from a shopping trip in Maidenhead...(when in doubt, SHOP!) to find a mound that was at least 12 feet high in the big field about 40 yards from my front door. The neighbors were taking trip after trip of garden cuttings and other burnable, non toxic items to the mound. I went over to get a closer look. On the top of this mound was a scarecrow looking thing supported by a makeshift pole. The "head" was a paper maiche pumpkin looking thing with a hat on it. (The kids down the lane had made it and painted it orange and black.) Anyway, I approached the mound and introduced myself to the two neighbors, John and Rob who were preparing the mound for burning. They said, well, welcome to the neighborhood and to our celebration of burning the Catholics... (at that point I decided to remember not to discuss religion with any of the neighbors!) Anyway, all in all, quite an impressive mound! I returned to my cottage to prepare the brownies and garlic bread that I had volunteered to bring.

The official bonfire was to begin at 6:30pm. (or 18:30 if you are on 24 hr clock)... I left my house just in time to see the whole mound go up in flames... the Guy Fawkes efagy burned quickly, and the rest of the mound kept going. It was quite impressive. We stayed out there until almost 9:00pm, drinking wine and eating off the pot luck table set under a makeshift light. All around us individuals were setting off fireworks, and I mean fireworks...big bursts of color in the sky. Evidently, on any occasion they will shoot off fireworks. People have fireworks at their weddings! Our neighborhood didn't do fireworks because there were too many little kids. Anyway, it reminded me of our neighborhood Fourth of July parties, only with a bonfire.

I was invited back to my neighbor's house were a number of the bonfire watchers were invited for baked potatoes, salad and desert. It was very nice, good conversation and good wine. I found a Califorinia wine from Ironstone Vineyards Cabernet Franc at a local store and brought that as my contribution. Of course, I had to tell them all about the vineyard... Yes, I talk a lot, even to people I don't know... Anyway, it was a great night out for me. I haven't had many since arriving here. Not sure whether they will invite me back... I did give my opinion on Bush and Clinton... (I remembered not to talk religion but I forgot about politics.)

I am still trying to download a picture of the mound... soon to come.

Today, I am whole! ... well, almost,

Today was a convergence of happenings. First thing this morning, BT, the ever friendly, non-customer focused telecom company, as promised, delivered an engineer who walked through my house in his socks, (because I have white carpet and live in a mud puddle...) and connected phone lines (oh, not free, mind you...to the tune of GBP 46.00, equivilant to USD 90.00 per line) so that I can pay Sky cable to connect my tv's to channels other than BBC 1,2,3, or 4... God is good!!

After that, I received an email to my work email, stating that my broadband connection (yes, another BT adventure) at home was now up and running.(How you would ever know without a work email is beyond me.) I am happy to say, after almost three months of not having internet access at home, I AM CONNECTED!!

Then, to top it all off, I was delivered my brand new (Seagate provided) car. A gorgeous, metalic blue, 320 si, BMW, salon style, four door with all the bells and whistles... blue tooth phone, sun roof, heated seats, parking sensors (yes, I need them!), "lovely" as the guy who delivered it said, beige interior. Also, a big plus, tires that don't go flat... can you imagine! What will they think up next? Oh, yeah, I have a "Nav.. system as well... no more excuses for being late to work. Anyway, I was only able to drive 10 minutes home from work, but I am going for a long ride this weekend!!

All in all, not a bad day for a Monday. I feel so lucky to have had such a day. What can possibly top this!!

Well, tomorrow is another day!

The English Lifestyle

Just a quick note so that I don't get out the habit of updating.

I have actually spent almost an entire week in my new place alone. It isn't creepy or anything. I am quite comfortable. I enjoy coming home at night to my cute little cottage with the white picket fence and nicely trimmed hedge. The kitchen is where I live because I don't have a TV in the living room yet. It is a brand new kitchen so I feel very "cosmopolitan" as I heat up my weight watchers dinner in the microwave and sip a glass of white wine. (No, I haven't lost any weight, and the reason I am drinking white wine is because red wine is not good for acid reflux...rrr it is a bitch getting old!) Anyway, I generally get home about 8pm because I talk to the states on the lease line at work and try to get caught up on the stuff I didn't get done with all the conference calls, meetings, etc. Don' t feel sorry for me though. One of the nicest things here is that we don't really start work until 9-9:30am. If you know me well enough, you know this is perfect for me!! Anyway, I have met a few of my neighbors and they all seem very nice. This weekend the "hood" is having a pot luck bonfire to celebrate Guy Fawkes day http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_Fawkes_Night. Evidently this guy had planted explosives in the basements of Parliament, way back when, but he got caught. They burned him at the stake (thus, bonfire) and also exploded all the explosives so they also celebrate with fireworks... Hmmm, Fourth of July - Independence from England, Guy Fox day - England burns one of their own... Correlation?? "Don't be silly!"

I will report in after the event...

Bye for now, keep those comments coming, I love to read them.. keeps me connected!

PS: Any of you English teachers, (and you know who you are..) Don't be too critical of the writing... I am in a hurry...

another milestone

Well, we hit another milestone yesterday. Oct 26 would have been Steve's 56th birthday. Damn him! Now I will always be older than him! It was a wierd day for all of us, I think. Nick was on his way to Mississippi with his friend Cody. He and Kirby are on a break... Steph went on a job interview that looks promissing and had to celebrate her birthday without Dad... Joe and Domique are formally unattached... Tony and Kelly seem to be doing OK... Tony is coaching football at Scotts Valley High School where the team is undefeated, Kelly is taking four classes at Cabrillo in order to get her AA degree by January...while working full time... yes, she is insane! Adrianna is learning to talk, more and more and more. Every time I speak to her on the phone she seems to have improved language skills. Today she said, "Hi, What are you doing?" When I said I was at work, she said, "Oh, at your desk?" anyway, on and on she went but it was definetly a conversation. How fast they grow up.

English people have got to be the most patient people in the world. I have been waiting over a month to get a line for a broadband connection. Do you know that they came out today, but I don't have it yet because, all the guy did was put in a line. Some where else the connection will be processed. Hopefully I will have it before it is time for me to move back home... Ridiculous!

The weather was very nice when I came in to work today. The sun was shining, there were bright skys. By the time I leave tonight it will be dark, raining and cold... Welcome to England they all say. Not to worry though, my mother and daughter set up lights on timers for me so that I don't go home to a dark house. They are the best.

I have no plans for the weekend, except maybe get the grey out of my hair... I have noticed that when the grey starts to show through, my skin starts to sag as well... got to stop that!! Now I know what they mean by "turkey neck" and "flabby arms..." God, it is a bitch getting old!

Well, if anything exciting happens, I will let you know... off to the cottage... Ta Ta!

Jess and Steph... Windsor (yes, the sun is shining...)

Mom on the train to Paris

Stonehedge... the beginning of the journey!