I Want to Be...

Your Sledgehammer! Why don't you call my name?

Lyrics from the most fabulous Peter Gabriel. But do you think that he sang that iconic song during the concert in London on Sunday night? NO, HE DID NOT! Are Paulster and I angry about that? YES WE ARE!

We're getting over it, but how in the world can a musician who was defined by an album get away with doing 2 songs from that album during a concert? The songs we wanted to hear...In Your Eyes, Red Rain, Sledgehammer, Big Time...you get the idea...pretty much anything from the Album So that was released in 1986.
It's like Michael Jackson doing a concert without singing Thriller, or Madonna without Like a Virgin--what the heck?!

Before I go on too much of a rant, I must say that on the whole, it was a good show. He had the "New Blood" Orchestra with him and some great female backing singers. I guess it's a sign I'm getting OLD, when I enjoy having rocking 80's tunes set to orchestral arrangements. Whatever. It was pretty magical at some points.
Here's a sample from Salisbury Hill:


Admit it, it sounds pretty darn great, doesn't it?!

Here's a pic of Mr. Gabriel on stage:


And another of a cool backdrop.


So, iTunes, here I come--there are some songs I still want to hear!

Quality Time

It's been a VERY long time since my twin brother and I got to hang out and have a significant amount of quality time. But last weekend, we made up for lost time. Clinton came to London to look at an airplane for some colleagues who were considering the purchase.
Having gotten business out of the way during the first 10 hours after he landed, we had all day Saturday and Sunday to play.
First--stock up with Starbucks. Check.
Second--stop on the Jubilee Bridge and take pictures with your iPhone. Check.
You are the ultimate American tourist!


And I join in...with my Starbucks cup! (You can take the girl out of Texas...)


Here's a shot of Paulster, Drama, Blondie and Clinton on the Jubilee Bridge.


Cyn's Standard 48 hour First-timer Tour includes a River Cruise, "flight" on the London Eye, and a visit to the Tower of London. So...true to form, off we went.
Here's a self-portrait from the deck of the cruise. It was sooooo cold--but beautifully sunny!


A shot of Clinton and the girls...before we all retreated to the warmth of the inside of the boat!


On to the Eye...


Blondie...


And everyone...


I never get tired of that view...


Day 2: The Monument to the Great Fire of London (1666)...you can almost see Clinton down there.


Clinton modelling his Howls for Haiti shirt at the Tower.


On the walk back to the Tube...City Hall and a look back at Tower Bridge.


Long overdue, but what a great visit!

The Miracle of the Internet

It is with laptop running wirelessly that I inform you we have successfully re-established the Miracle of the Internet in our home! Well, I can't exactly take credit for it...I did unpack the new router and plugged it in...it was Paulster who made it work.
I had accidentally plugged something in wrong, so Paulster had to call tech support who diagnosed the problem. Doh! Oh well, so I did it correctly the last two times...getting it wrong once isn't so bad. In my defense, I was on a conference call at the time of assembly--so attention divided. Excuses, excuses! ;)

While it was nice to have a technological break on some fronts...on others, it was just down right inconvenient not to have it.

So, pictures from the weekend in Sheffield for Dora and Paulster's birthday are currently uploading for blog posting soon. Among other activities that we need to catch up on! Stay tuned!!!

A Trip Back in Time

Well, I can't actually remember when the last time was that my house did NOT have an internet connection. But that's the condition we find ourselves in at the moment.
A not-so-funny comedy of errors is to blame, I'll spare you the details of administrative "issues" at the phone/broadband company and communication problems that spawned this whole thing.

So, it's not that we haven't done anything fun in the last month--in fact, we have. I just haven't had a way to upload photos and post on the blog from the homestead.

Yes, I could've done it from the office, but suddenly, I find myself pretty busy--so haven't taken the time to use the office connection to post.
So...apologies. This little problem should be remedied at some time tomorrow--but it will likely be the weekend before I catch up on a few posts.

Later!

National TV Awards

On a school night, Hachie Gal, Budman and Paulster and I ventured off to the O2 arena in East London. Paulster had secured tickets to the National TV Awards. Essentially, like a small version of the People's Choice Awards in the US. There are only 11 awards given--so it wasn't a long programme--but it was fun. Everyone votes for their favourite shows and viola...award given.


The show opened with a song from the XFactor [think American Idol] winner. It's the resurrected "Don't Stop Believing" from Journey.


And a truly hideous performance "Under Pressure" from the doofus twins, John and Edward (Jedward) with a special guest appearance by Vanilla Ice. Jedward "failed out" of XFactor...but they were kept in far longer than their talent warranted. Those two look like Pee Wee Herman's love children. Wherever did they dig up Robert Van Winkle, that mug. A couple of years ago, he was on the UK "reality" show Big Brother. I guess they just keep dredging him up for the freak show value.


The outgoing Dr. Who (David Tennant) won a Best Actor award and the show won as well. He's a personal favourite of mine, so I tried to get a snapshot of him from the Big Screen. Turns out, I managed to get every contorted, terrible shot of his handsomeness...






I was not gifted with the timing that night on the photos...

One of our favourite shows, Gavin & Stacy, won, so we were happy from the start.

Most of the people were dressed like they were going to a cocktail party with tiny dresses, tuxes and LOTS of sequins. Not all age-appropriate or body-shape appropriate--so the people watching was at least half of the night's entertainment.

Another fun night out in London!

Makeovers!

On Friday, it was time for Drama and Blondie to shed their locks and take on new looks for 2010! My hairdresser, Miss D comes to the house and we turn the dining room into the beauty parlor. I just got a trim, but Drama and Blondie went for much more dramatic new styles!

Here are the before pictures:
Drama


Blondie


And After!


The locks that are now history!




Lovely!!!

Happy New Year

Well, better late than never, I guess...but I wanted to wish all my blog readers a Happy New Year. I know you're out there, even if you're just lurking and never post a comment (although I'd love to hear from more of you!)
It's hard to believe that 2009 is over and 2010 is in full swing.
I'm sure it will be an eventful year!

Paulster and I celebrated in our traditional way (except last year when we went to a party)--which was make our way to a pub on the Southbank of the river Thames in London, claw our way to the bar a couple of times--wow, it's crowded--and then wander out into the street to watch the fireworks from just below the London Eye.

It's always a spectacular show (the fireworks, I mean)--and people watching in the pub is always a hoot...one of my favourite past times.

Here are a few photos of the evening:




Something new for the blog this year...a video!


And the happy revellers ringing in the new year with a self-portrait! [Special Note for AC: Note the hat...just like yours!!! Surely did keep my head warm on that cold, cold night!]


Wishing you and yours a very healthy and happy 2010!!!