new hair

I finally caved into my itch for short hair...

Bank Holiday weekend

This weekend was a long weekend in the UK. I'm not sure what the occasion is, since everything is just called a "bank holiday" but I enjoyed a day off work anyway! As an added bonus, these were the first sunny days in two weeks! Saturday I headed to Cambridge with a friend. We enjoyed punting on the Cam river, shopping and exploring the various colleges. You can check out some pictures here.

Sunday we went to the Notting Hill Carnival. It happens every year on this weekend and is apparently the world's second largest street party. I didn't want to go initially because I'd heard it was just a huge crowd. However, Sunday is family day so a little more tame and less crowded. It was definitely a fun experience and now I can say I've been there! Here are a few pictures from the day.

part of the paradeErin and Antonme and ErinThe public toilets had a 20 minute maximum...darn! I was hoping to spend 30 minutes in one!

sweet

For those of you addicted to The Office and who also have an iGoogle homepage you can now add a random quote from The Office to your homepage! What a good way to start the day.

milestone #3

Happy Anniversary to me! Tomorrow I will have officially been living in London for 1 year. Whoa.

More on this later when I've had time to process my thoughts.

Let's share

So I hear it is around 101 Fahrenheit in Cincinnati. Well, it's about 65, windy and rainy here. How about you share some of your sun and heat with us in rainy London??

Movie review: Bourne Ultimatum

I analyze data for a living so I don't really like to analyze my movies except to say that I know when I like one, and this one is good! It was even more action-packed than the other two- in fact I'm still catching my breath. Even more important, it completes a trilogy where you actually want to own all 3 on DVD (like LOTR, maybe like Pirates of the Caribbean and definitely not like The Matrix).

It was really cool to see the scenes they shot in London and Madrid. I could see several places in Madrid I recognized, like the famous bull fighting ring that I stayed near. In London there was a big scene shot in Waterloo station where I go almost every week. In fact, if you listen closely you can hear them announce the "Southwest trains service to Chessington South." That train stops at Wimbledon and I often take it on my way home from Central London. Pretty cool!

So that's my review - Go see it!

multiple bogeys

The weather may not be great but I learned something that helped cheer me up. When I was a kid my Dad could say "booger" a certain way and I would crack up every time. Well, it turns out that the British don't say booger, they call them "bogeys." I'm not sure how it took me a year to find this out. Probably because most normal adults don't use the word "booger" in every day conversation.

Top Gun is never going to be the same again. "[Darn] it- this bogey's all over me!"

a sign

While we were out running tonight we got caught in the rain. We stopped under a tree to get a little shelter and parked right in front of me on the street was my red Mazda3. Mazdas are not very common over here and I've never seen one exactly like mine until today. It's gotta be a sign.

awww man

I woke up this morning to my alarm at 6am. The first thing I thought to myself was, "Oh no, it's darker than it has been recently outside." That means one thing - fall is approaching! It's also beginning to feel like fall. It's cool, rainy and windy today. People showed up at work wearing jackets and carrying umbrellas. Fortunately I think it's only supposed to last a couple of days for now, but walking back to my flat from the train station I was reminded of what I wasn't looking forward to: October through March. The only good thing about it is getting new fall clothes! Plus it's football season.

Recommended download

Ray LaMontagne, Trouble. My personal favorites are "Shelter," "Forever My Friend," and "How come?" Check it out. I've just gotten his newest album Til the Sun Turns Black. I haven't listened to it much but if it's as good as Trouble then it's definitely worth getting.

Hey, you, with the loud cell phone ringtone...

Turn it off!

One of my pet peeves is loud cell phone ringtones at the office. I'm not perfect but I try to keep mine on vibrate whenever I'm at work. It's not such a big deal if you happen to be sitting in your cubicle when the phone rings. But, if you are away from your desk and someone calls the ring goes on and on...and on. I mean, the Super Mario ringer is cute (if somewhat out-dated) but no one wants to hear it for 5 minutes while they're trying to work. Similarly, I like my Justin Timberlake ringer but I wouldn't subject the entire floor to hearing it.

There's an added bonus if the person calling doesn't get that you aren't able to answer the phone so they repeatedly call back. Or if I'm slightly luckier they'll just leave a voice mail and your phone will continue to beep to let you know you have a message.

Won't you be embarrassed when you get back to your desk and everyone is staring at you? It might take you a minute to realize they've had to listen to your favorite pop song sounding horribly electronic, but hopefully then you'll learn your lesson.