Relearning The Mother Tongue
In Southampton now, staying with Nicky.
We had a very nice walking tour of the area today, including the local used-book shops, where i discovered side by side such fine titles as Marine Steam Boilers, Advanced Taxidermy, and Know Your Oscilloscope. Last night, in possibly the greasiest meal i have ever had, we consumed massive amounts of cod and chips and then lay around groaning periodically on the couches and floor. My pea fritter and battered sausage (they just seemed to go together) may have added somewhat to my intestinal discomfort. But it was worth it. My principle on experiencing new cultural foods is basically buy now/pay later. I find that this lets me have a lot more fun in the end. Maybe not three-quarters of the way through, but nearly always in the end. I did begin to doubt this on one or two occasions with Mercy Ships - particularly one time in Honduras, for about six weeks or so, which i can recall even now in fairly vivid detail - but really, the Vermox always comes through. Fine stuff, that; i highly recommend it. Nice fruity flavor. Chewy, too.
I am also being reminded how much i enjoy the fine British sense of humor. If anyone doubts the existence of such a thing, in my opinion all one needs to do is look at the street signs. In the United States, a short Keep Out might suffice, but not over here, where nothing less will do than a very tastefully printed standalone post bearing the legend No public right of way exists over this land. Particularly when the area in question seems to be a normal lawn like any other. It would seem that the people at the Royal Highway Ministry or whatever they call it are nothing if not polite. This was not my personal experience when working with the equivalent organization in the City of Brookfield, Wisconsin. But i generally like politeness. Especially because it establishes such wonderful opportunities to have great fun by being impolite. More on that later.
We had a very nice walking tour of the area today, including the local used-book shops, where i discovered side by side such fine titles as Marine Steam Boilers, Advanced Taxidermy, and Know Your Oscilloscope. Last night, in possibly the greasiest meal i have ever had, we consumed massive amounts of cod and chips and then lay around groaning periodically on the couches and floor. My pea fritter and battered sausage (they just seemed to go together) may have added somewhat to my intestinal discomfort. But it was worth it. My principle on experiencing new cultural foods is basically buy now/pay later. I find that this lets me have a lot more fun in the end. Maybe not three-quarters of the way through, but nearly always in the end. I did begin to doubt this on one or two occasions with Mercy Ships - particularly one time in Honduras, for about six weeks or so, which i can recall even now in fairly vivid detail - but really, the Vermox always comes through. Fine stuff, that; i highly recommend it. Nice fruity flavor. Chewy, too.
I am also being reminded how much i enjoy the fine British sense of humor. If anyone doubts the existence of such a thing, in my opinion all one needs to do is look at the street signs. In the United States, a short Keep Out might suffice, but not over here, where nothing less will do than a very tastefully printed standalone post bearing the legend No public right of way exists over this land. Particularly when the area in question seems to be a normal lawn like any other. It would seem that the people at the Royal Highway Ministry or whatever they call it are nothing if not polite. This was not my personal experience when working with the equivalent organization in the City of Brookfield, Wisconsin. But i generally like politeness. Especially because it establishes such wonderful opportunities to have great fun by being impolite. More on that later.
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