Tuesday, June 8, 2010
serious trouble....
We have snails or slugs or some such creature in our new plants!!! M is FUMING....
Friday, June 4, 2010
What a Day!
It's been such a picture-perfect day, and we haven't posted in a while, so I thought I'd do it now. B is finally done marking his exams after a long and energy-zapping time of it! He is smiling again:)
Once a month, there is a Farmer's Market downtown, with all local produce, organic meats, cheeses, etc. We went this morning and found some great stuff--great bread, chorizo, homemade curry sauces, seasonal jams...yum! We also picked up a couple plants and more pots for our garden. I've managed to not kill my tomato plants, basil, chives, and lettuce, but R.I.P corriander (aka: cilantro) and sweet peppers. I may still try and replace those. Our yard is actually concrete, so I have to keep everything in containers. We're starting our composting system. The city council sells them, so we're going greener! We've got a patio set which I've been using a lot. Its been 70 degrees and sunny (I actually have a bit of a burn--but I AM NOT complaining!). I usually sit out and read the paper in the morning and try and soak up as much as I can. We've been warned that it doesn't stay for too long. It's motivation, however, to use the sun and time wisely when we have it. After shopping downtown, we ran some errands back in our neighborhood--finally framing our pictures from our honeymoon and fun things like that. We had lunch, outside at an Italian deli called Adriano's. The menu is more like a guideline rather than set-the owner added/deleted things he thought we'd like or not like. We had great paninis, followed up by gelato:) I've been trying to organize the garden, and B is playing soccer with his friends.
We're also gearing up for the World Cup match between England and the US (where I will quiet my accent as much as possible because people are crazy here)! Every car here is covered with the flag of England, everyone is sporting shirts, hat, everything! It should be an exciting match. That's pretty much all I have to report in the soccer world, I am sure B will handle the rest. I miss baseball. I'd give anything to go to Dime-a-Dog night at the Clippers game, or an Indians game. I miss my tribe!!! I try and keep up as much as I can online, but its not the same. We went to County Durham a couple weekends ago. Its a small village that has a beautiful cathedral, and really gorgeous countryside. Cricket is a big "country" sport, while football tends to be a "city" sport. There was a cricket (game or match, not sure what the lingo is), and our friends explained it to us. Its pretty interesting, but certainly doesn't replace baseball--there's really not as much in common as I thought.
Overall, we are settling in more and more, and we've made a nice spot for ourselves here:) Things aren't as foreign as they used to be.
Funny little snippet: I was teaching a class at a local school, and the caretaker was locking up the doors and cleaning up and we were chatting. He says "Did you come far?" I said, "No, South Gosforth" (which is my neighborhood). He replies "Well, that sure doesn't sound like a Gosforth accent!" It hit me, that we aren't sharing the same accent, and I had to explain to him that when we say 'did you come far', we kind of mean it in the immediate sense. It's pretty telling that I am not as aware of my "not from around here" as I used to be.
More soon...
Once a month, there is a Farmer's Market downtown, with all local produce, organic meats, cheeses, etc. We went this morning and found some great stuff--great bread, chorizo, homemade curry sauces, seasonal jams...yum! We also picked up a couple plants and more pots for our garden. I've managed to not kill my tomato plants, basil, chives, and lettuce, but R.I.P corriander (aka: cilantro) and sweet peppers. I may still try and replace those. Our yard is actually concrete, so I have to keep everything in containers. We're starting our composting system. The city council sells them, so we're going greener! We've got a patio set which I've been using a lot. Its been 70 degrees and sunny (I actually have a bit of a burn--but I AM NOT complaining!). I usually sit out and read the paper in the morning and try and soak up as much as I can. We've been warned that it doesn't stay for too long. It's motivation, however, to use the sun and time wisely when we have it. After shopping downtown, we ran some errands back in our neighborhood--finally framing our pictures from our honeymoon and fun things like that. We had lunch, outside at an Italian deli called Adriano's. The menu is more like a guideline rather than set-the owner added/deleted things he thought we'd like or not like. We had great paninis, followed up by gelato:) I've been trying to organize the garden, and B is playing soccer with his friends.
We're also gearing up for the World Cup match between England and the US (where I will quiet my accent as much as possible because people are crazy here)! Every car here is covered with the flag of England, everyone is sporting shirts, hat, everything! It should be an exciting match. That's pretty much all I have to report in the soccer world, I am sure B will handle the rest. I miss baseball. I'd give anything to go to Dime-a-Dog night at the Clippers game, or an Indians game. I miss my tribe!!! I try and keep up as much as I can online, but its not the same. We went to County Durham a couple weekends ago. Its a small village that has a beautiful cathedral, and really gorgeous countryside. Cricket is a big "country" sport, while football tends to be a "city" sport. There was a cricket (game or match, not sure what the lingo is), and our friends explained it to us. Its pretty interesting, but certainly doesn't replace baseball--there's really not as much in common as I thought.
Overall, we are settling in more and more, and we've made a nice spot for ourselves here:) Things aren't as foreign as they used to be.
Funny little snippet: I was teaching a class at a local school, and the caretaker was locking up the doors and cleaning up and we were chatting. He says "Did you come far?" I said, "No, South Gosforth" (which is my neighborhood). He replies "Well, that sure doesn't sound like a Gosforth accent!" It hit me, that we aren't sharing the same accent, and I had to explain to him that when we say 'did you come far', we kind of mean it in the immediate sense. It's pretty telling that I am not as aware of my "not from around here" as I used to be.
More soon...
Friday, May 14, 2010
hard to believe....(B speaking)
....that as of Thursday we've been married six months. Thank God we took it nice and easy over that time period, certainly not doing anything crazy like moving to a new country or starting a new job or something like that.
We celebrated with a bottle of red and dinner at a French bistro near the Quayside in Newcastle's city centre. I had a Northumbrian sirloin, and M had pan-seared cod with fresh clams and potatos and leeks. The destroyed plate was the lemon cheesecake that we split for dessert. Then a pint at the Crown Posada, which may be one of my fave pubs in the city. And...in bed by 11. Yep, we are married.
Little bit of a letdown after posting Malta pics, I suppose, but we thought we'd share anyway. ;)
Another milestone of sorts--taught my last classes (which are called modules) today, after which I permitted myself an exhausted if somewhat satisfied sigh of survival. However, the grading (which is called marking here) is piling up already. Which meant that I had to postpone reality by playing in a pickup soccer game. Scored two goals, but don't let that fool you into thinking that I'm actually any good....
Friday, May 7, 2010
Election
NB--from Ben. Check out this image from David Cameron's newspaper supporters. He is the Tory conservative candidate, and thus fundamentally opposed to Obama--and yet....:It's an exciting time in the UK! Last night was the big election, and there is now a hung parliament (first since 1974). B was at our friend's house watching the results come in until around 5.30am. It was a really critical election for the country. I was trying to stay awake on the couch and woke up only to cheers when the Labour party secured their constituency. Obama has been referenced over and over, and it was interesting to watch the politicians here "lift" his strategy (or try to...). Change was the major theme! It's very interesting to be learning a new government, and watch the energy around the UK grow.
We're settling in after our exciting excursion to Malta, Sicily, and London. I know the volcanic ash situation was a problem, but I really couldn't complain about being stuck in Malta. It was so warm, and sunny:) It was nice, however, to get back to Newcastle and have it feel like home. I was really wondering if it would feel like that! I hope the pictures are enjoyable! It was such an amazing trip--even more amazing than I expected!
The weather has been pretty nice. It's not warm, but it's sunny and pretty mild. We are starting our garden! I already accidentally drowned two pots of herbs, but I have 4 left, so not too bad!
Cinco de Mayo was this week, such a fun day in America, but just a regular day in England. In order to compensate, we are having friends over and I am making a yummy mexican dinner on Saturday!
My classes are still taking off, I have over 60 people in some classes! I taught my first zumba class in the pool (sounds crazy, but it was actually fun!), and I am starting a kids camp soon.
More soon...
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