July 16, 2002

(Tom)Well, another few weeks have passed and we're back. As predicted in our last entry, the last few weeks were ruled by a big demo for a potential client. Important enough to bring in reinforcements from the States and to take over the lives of a few colleagues here as well. It was nice to have some Americans around, especially since they were people I knew and had worked with before. We did work a lot though - so much so that ESRI (UK) was thoughtful enough to send flowers to Toby, apologizing for my absence late into the evenings. We were pretty impressed by that. The project ended last Wednesday, and I am almost back in the normal swing of things.

Of course, that means I missed basically all of Wimbledon - caught little bits where I could, but it wasn't too much. We are going to put our name in the lottery for tickets for next year - we'd both like to go. And, you all know the outcome, so there isn't much point in me going on about it, except to say that the local favourite (note the British spelling), Tim Henman (from Oxfordshire) did not win. Oh well.

(Toby) My job is going well also. I've been working hard, and a lot, although I can't compete with Tom. We are still catching up from months of change and neglect but clearly making progress. On Friday, most of the finance dept. gathered around Clare's (in Management Accounts, one of the 2 who originally interviewed me) pc to check out our website. They were pretty amused. It was an odd feeling, because even though we haven't written anything they shouldn't see, it was like they were reading our mail to someone else. I was sort of nervous about it. Of course when they were reading the part where I wrote that the placement agency told me I was "the best candidate by far" they loudly denied the whole thing. Laughing, I might add! I'll write more about work after Brugge. It's hard to know where to begin...(or what to say now that they'll probably be checking in).

We managed to squeeze in some more pick-your-own fruit - this time it was sugar snap peas, strawberries and raspberries. All very close by and very tasty. Take a look at what we picked. The carrots weren't quite ready, but should be by now. We could've picked a lot more, but we just can't eat 'em fast enough.

And here's a picture of one of the snails we mentioned in our last installment. Apparently, they are really bad for your garden as they will eat it all up. So said our neighbor anyway, as she chucked one of the little critters onto the road.

The 4th of July came and went here without much fanfare. Of course I (Toby) did have to sing My Country Tis Of Thee twice at work. Better that than the Star Spangled Banner (as any of you who have heard me sing will agree to!). We did have our own private celebration at home on Saturday morning. Pancakes! Not very common over here. (They actually sell packaged pancakes here in the bread aisle. I made Tom buy them but they are still in the freezer - I'm scared to try them.)

Last time we told you about the towpath between here and Oxford City Center Tom put in pictures he stole from somewhere else since we didn't bring our camera. Well, a few weeks ago there was a canal festival about 1/2 way from here to there. Here are some real pics of the canal route and of the festival. It was small, but much better than the Arts Festival we told you about in Summertown.

A few canal pictures - click to see a bigger version
A view of the towpath	Canal Festival	A narrowboat

The other cool way to get downtown is to walk along the Thames instead of the canal. You have to walk about 10-15 minutes to get there (via the Trout Inn of Inspector Morse fame) but it is a very nice walk. You walk along the river but there is field on the other side of you. It's not as narrow a path as the canal walk. More cow paddies though. We walked it last Saturday and got to see some boats going through a lock. Kinda cool.

We saw another play at the Oxford Playhouse - this one a Noel Coward play called Hayfever. It's a comedy about a quirky family where the mom is an ex-actress, and everyone in the family is overly dramatic about everything. An odd play, but a fun night. We might become members of the theater to support the arts. OK, and to get discounts.

We just saw Spiderman on Saturday - totally enjoyable summer flick. There are others on the list, including Minority Report (despite Tom Cruise), and perhaps even Scooby-Doo. Mixed reviews, but hey, it was part of our childhood. Toby will add some more to this list I'm sure. (Toby: Actually, not much else out to see in the cinemas right now, but I did watch Citizen Kane on video one night while (whilst?) Tom was working. Might as well catch up on the classics...)

Also went to Blenheim Palace on Sunday. A gorgeous day, and a beautiful palace. The grounds are really lovely and the house is pretty amazing. And there's a butterfly place there (basically a greenhouse that feels like it is about 200 degrees with lots of butterflies flying about). One butterfly landed on Toby's shirt. Blenheim Palace is where Winston Churchill was born (by chance, 6 weeks early) and where the Duke of Marlborough lives. It's only a few miles from here for those of you who are thinking of visiting us. (Where are you all, anyway?) A few pics below.

A few snaps at Blenheim Palace - click to see a bigger version
Blenheim Panorama (big)	Water Garden	Blenheim Palace - a side view	Where Winston Churchill proposed to Clementine

We're off on Thursday to Bruges (a.k.a. Brugge - the Flemish spelling), Belgium for a long weekend (or a 'short break' as they call it here). Everyone has nice things to say about Bruges - it has a lot of charm and beauty and should not be missed. We're taking the Eurostar train through the chunnel. That'll be an experience. Too bad my cousin Nick and his family, who live in Brussels, won't be around - they're off on holiday in Provence. I guess we'll hook up with them next time. Look for pictures from Bruges sometime next week.

Our latest bits and bobs:

• The word 'whilst' is very common here. I am training myself to use it.
• Ever hear the word 'skewiff'? Me neither until Frances Moss used it. It's in the dictionary (at least in the Oxford English Dictionary), I'm not telling what it means, you'll have to look it up.
• When something has gone wrong here, it has gone pear-shaped. As in 'everything has gone pear-shaped since she left'.
• Here's a good word: snogging. Look it up.
• I referred to a bobby stick the other day and got a funny look. Apparently they are more commonly known as batons.
• Advice: Never ask a Scottish person if he is from Newcastle. They don't really like that. However, you might ask the bloke from Newcastle "how ya "deein'?".
• Words we didn't realize would really be so common here: bloke, chap (chappie), quid, mate. There are more, perhaps next time...

And there you have it for this report.