Coming home

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

We did a little backing and forthing on this trip. At the moment we’re back at JFK waiting for our delayed red-eye to Heathrow. Previously we were in Manhattan after being back in New Jersey (Franklin Lakes and Fort Lee), and Manhattan again before that, and New Jersey (Fair Haven and Fort Lee) before that! I think. More or less. Pretty much. Maybe.
Anyhow, this picture was taken at the new New Museum cafe. It’s a great building (loaded with venustas) and an interesting institution - glad we went. We also checked out the recent Renzo Piano-designed renovation/addition to the Morgan Library - another worthy trip.
Our flight should be boarding soon, hopefully, so we’ll be back in London in a few hours!

London fog

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

After lunch with Suzette & Jeff at Le Cafe Anglais (do believe the hype) we walked down Queensway searching for sage (to no avail). Then we crossed Hyde Park and had a look at the Serpentine Gallery’s current misty exhibit by Anthony McCall. The park was stunningly beautiful. Despite London’s foggy reputation, we haven’t experienced anything like this in our three years here...

Wow!

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Makes you want to get on a train... just to go... anyplace!
This was my first visit to the newly refurbished (and re-christened) St. Pancras International station, which has replaced Waterloo International as London’s Eurostar terminus. I must say it’s very impressive. See? The Brits really are good at stuff! I had to resist strong urges to buy a ticket and board the next train.
I was, however, disappointed that there isn’t any kind of Eurostar memorabilia (“tat” in local parlance) available for purchase. The platform-level WH Smith had one post card with a picture of a speeding train on it. But sans context, it looks like any not-so-old train. You’d want a picture of it pulling into this magnificent Victorian shed, whizzing past a country village church steeple, or passing something Parisian... I thought it a bit odd that they sell models and plush toys of BA & Virgin Atlantic planes, but nothing Eurostar-themed. Seems like they’re missing a major merchandising opportunity — kinda surprising in this day and age, don’t you think? Hello! Gimme an embroidered patch, a keychain or a fridge magnet at the very least! Is that too much to ask?

TreeQuest ‘07

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Any of you (Maggie, Suzette, Lauren?) who’ve experienced the joys of prior TreeQuests will appreciate what a special experience the first reconnaissance outing in a foreign country must have been... I won’t go into too much detail here...
Suffice to say that this picture is false advertising. Sure, it’s charming as heck, but this was just the first stop, and, well, let’s just say that the gloom and cold rain matched the mood of certain members of our party (ok, member). Chris, our driver, had mistakenly passed the closer place (the one that didn’t pre-net their trees) - but we tried to put on a good face and say we really wanted to see the reindeer, the bull, the pigs, the chickens, the medieval abbey ruin, the pretty Gothic farm buildings, and stuff.
Since we had already traveled so far, we decided that instead of dropping Steven at the Farnham train station (at his request, don’t ask), we would proceed to Alice Holt Woodland Park (under darkening skies). WHEW! Thank goodness! Supposedly it’s a very pleasant park with scenic walks and things, but most importantly, we found ourselves deciding between three equally lovely specimens, any of which would have made the perfect Christmas tree.
Note to expats: bring your own rope or bungee cord - they don’t help you here.
Or get your friend to borrow the scuba school Jeep (another disaster narrowly averted - thanks again, Chris!).
After that it was pretty much smooth sailing. We stopped for a lovely cuppa with Jane, David and Charlie. Much to David’s chagrin, Chris mesmerized Charlie by getting 99 points playing Bopit (Chris also happens to know that Bopit only counts up to 250).
The tree is now up and mostly trimmed. Stay tuned for pics.

Oh my!

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

We just got back from a hyper-extended weekend in Gran Canaria. Even though we planned the trip WAY before our CP (that’s Civil Partnership), it wound up serving as a honeymoon of sorts - just a coincidence, I guess. Miraculously, Steven relaxed almost instantly and only talked about work for 2 or 3 minutes on our last day. As Neil - one of our hosts - commented: it’s the kind of destination where “you can leave your brain at home.” I’d actually say best to leave the brain at home, because you wouldn’t want it to get dirty or for anything bad to happen to it...
Why did we go to a trashy place with zero culture and bad food? SUN. Yup, when you’ve got about 7 or 8 hours of daylight and the sky is relentlessly gray, a four hour flight that lands on a warm sunny island in the same time zone becomes rather appealing!

The deed is done

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

There’s me, Gülay, Steven, and Jane in the Registrar’s office at Chelsea Old Town Hall. Gülay and Jane had to wait outside while the Registrar reviewed all the details (Does Patty have a middle name or doesn’t she? Steven’s an Advertising Director, correct? Etc.) and we looked at our ceremony options:
A) The Short Ceremony: I, ______________, promise to share my life openly with you, ______________.
B) The Full-Length Ceremony: I, ______________, will go antiquing with you, _______________. Then we’ll move to the country, open a B&B, adopt a couple of Guatemalan babies, and live in connubial partnered bliss civilly and happily until death do us part so help me God amen blah blah blah etc. etc.
C) The Very Short Ceremony: Yo! We’re civil partners, dude!
We chose D) None of the Above.
Then the Registrar had to copy lots of stuff into the Register while we all sat there. To while away the time, Jane explained why she and Gülay were dressed the way they were to the Registrar and her assistant. Steven had a difficult time explaining it all to me, using the blanket excuse of “after X glasses of wine, ...” Lots of signing ensued, and then we were done.
After inspecting the Bridal Powder Room, Steven & I exited the building and our wititnesses pelted us with potpourri (apparently confetti is a no-no in these green times) while a poor, unsuspecting Italian tourist was conscripted to snap a couple photos for posterity.
We then hopped in a taxi and headed to a secret destination for lunch. The only clue was that Steven & I had to wear jackets & ties. Somehow this must have compensated for the ladies’ extreme cleavage, as we were actually admitted to (and served at) the R.A.C.
And, you know, that’s pretty much it. Now we’re hitched!

Where it all started

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

(well, sort of). The story goes that one summer day Steven was sitting on this bench when I came out of the RISD mail room (which was across the street at that time), saw him, and went over to say “hi.” We had previously been introduced at an ID class picnic (he was going to go home to New Jersey but stayed in Providence when he heard I’d be there). I don’t remember whether we were already working in the BEB (me in the now-obsolete DAS office, he painting desks in the studios) or if that was still to come. Somehow the trash can and PVC pipe weren’t there in my mental picture of THE BENCH. Maybe I’ll Photoshop them out...
The reason for this trip down memory lane, for those of you who haven’t been paying attention, is that we’re about to do our Civil Partnership ceremony. Trying to keep the whole affair low-key, so not making a big deal about it. I mention the CP for information purposes only, just so you all know and don’t feel left out...

My home town

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

This is about five minutes from where I grew up. It used to be the A&P, but now the A&P is across the street and ten times bigger. The image is a little bit deceptive, because if you walked five minutes in the other direction you’d be in a park with big beautiful trees and very tall cliffs along the Hudson River stretching all the way up to New York State. The forecast for the duration of my journey is cold, grey and drizzly. I’ll be taking the train up to Providence on Saturday morning, then making my way to Boston on Monday for my flight back to London...

Car for anorexics...

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Sorry. Bad joke. But seriously, this is pushing the whole motorized wheelchair thing a bit far, don’t you think? And while it’s so diminutive the driver could have pulled right up to the till at Tesco, they didn’t. Got out and walked into the store. To me it seems like something out of Wallace & Gromit. Or France...

NSPD 51

One of the reasons we don’t live in America right now...
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/05/20070509-12.html
Think it could only happen in Burma or Pakistan?

Two days later

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Gone. Almost without a trace. And I never even got a chance to take a picture of the “hardware store” window at the Progresso coffee shop. Oh, well...

A vague recollection

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There are a couple of things on Portobello Road these days that aren’t real. Across the road from the HSBC ATMs, for example, is a strange and wondrous window display of vintage items with vintage price tags. When Steven and I first saw it, we thought it was some kind of art installation. Turns out, like this corner café (oops, I mean appliance store), it’s just a film set. Today there was a whole fake Portobello Market, and Steven says he saw hippies over the weekend (the movie, starring Sienna Miller, is called “Hippie Hippie Shake” and takes place in the 1960s).
It all reminds me of when they were shooting a movie in TriBeCa and they built something for it that everybody loved and thought should really be there. But I can’t remember the name of the movie, what the thing was, or if it ever made it into reality. Anybody care to offer this senile old man a little reminder?

Another lovely London weekend

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Properly gray and rainy, yet thought provoking and full of beauty. We had a wonderful dinner at the Fat Badger, were chased by an adorable rat along the Thames, wandered among Henry Moore sculptures and gorgeous foliage at Kew Gardens, went out in Soho - twice, saw the Crack and a Louise Bourgeois retrospective at Tate Modern... We laughed, we cried, it were better than Cats!

Why London doesn’t suck:

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Reason 437: Steven & I tossed a frisbee around this Hampstead Heath field with our friend Chris yesterday.

‘Til death do us part...

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Just so’s y’all know... Steven & I have an appointment with the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea Superintendent Registrar at 5pm on Thursday, October 25th. The purpose is to file our “notice of intent to form a civil partnership.” Then there’s a sixteen day waiting period (I can’t tell if that means we can do the deed on November 10th, or after November 10th, but I guess we’ll find out on Thursday). At such time as we actually tie the knot, we will require two witnesses. I’m not sure of the qualifications, but any volunteers?

Working for the Man

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Heya, for the last few days I’ve been working at Lowe (in an office right next to Steven’s). I’m helping put together a presentation he’ll be giving in Helsinki on Monday. We had been saying the whole thing was kinda like a fire drill, when lo and behold, there was an actual fire drill yesterday!
That’s Steven’s colleague, and our friend, Teresa, by the way...

Spritz

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Just back from a weekend in Venice for the Biennale. We arrived in the early afternoon on Friday and had a wander, checking out some very excellent Irish video art. We stopped for a spritz (pictured), then wandered some more, and went for dinner at a place recommended by a colleague of Steven's whose mom wrote the book on eating in Venice. I had lamb with blueberries - YUM! On Saturday we got up early and did a speed tour of the WHOLE Biennale (both Giardini and Arsenale). Sophie Calle's installations about her mom and her break-up were highlights. Back at our hotel, we enjoyed a bottle of wine on the terrace of our "junior suite" before heading off to dinner at the fish market owner's restaurant. Sunday morning we did a little shopping, then shared a taxi to the airport with Bob & Chris, a couple from White Plains who were on their first overseas trip.

Dial “M”

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I spent most of yesterday at various London outposts of giant American corporations. It was an “M” day. Perhaps I’ll work my way through the alphabet?

Steven wants to move to China!

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Just thought I’d let you know...

Pain and Suffering

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I’m currently experiencing the aftermath of my date with Big John yesterday morning. This is my gym, btw. Doesn’t it look really suburban? At least not very stereotypically Londony...
Anyhow, I told Big John (the gym manager and personal trainer – and yes, he is BIG) that I wanted to build muscle mass in my upper body. He was more than happy to oblige. For two hours solid. Ouch! It’s a miracle I can even type this blog entry!

Fields trip

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Yesterday Andrew, Chandler and I were guided up 48,000 ladders to the scaffolding atop the St. Martin-in-the-Fields steeple by Andrew’s friend Robert, who’s a co-director at Eric Parry Architects. For some reason, when I heard we were going to the top of the steeple I thought it meant inside, not outside... It wasn’t as scary as you might think, though, and the views – particularly over the National Gallery and Trafalgar Square – were amazing.

Blue skies

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

And & Chand are visiting from SF this week. As seems to be the case lately, London has produced a succession of ever more lovely days with which to impress our foreign guests. I'm quite certain that as soon as they depart it’ll turn miserably cold, gray and wet.

After another fine repast at the Fat Badger last night, we retired to our living room for postprandial drinks. Steven & Andrew enjoyed what were perhaps the last of our Alka-Tinis. But then I have no idea whether they even sell Alka-Seltzer over here. Or if they have all the flavors...

This evening I may join the fellas for a site tour of St. Martin-in-the-Fields (which should really be called St. Martin-in-Trafalgar-Square, but the locals are funny about naming stuff). It’s due to reopen to the public on September 30th, so this will really be a sneak-peek preview!

vom Lehn Euro Extravaganza

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Well, they’re on their own now, and so are we (or should I say I, since Steven’s in Helsinki?). This morning Garry, Nancy, David & Eric jetted off to Glasgow for the last five days of their European Adventure™! We did a LOT of walking, played frisbee across from Buckingham Palace, rode a narrow biddy boat up the Regent’s Canal, got caught up in an emergency evacuation from the Natural History Museum (which at first we thought was part of the Ice Station Antarctica interactive exhibit), hosted a dinner party for visitors from Brooklyn and Detroit, ate a pub lunch in the Windsor Castle’s sunny beer garden, had an, um, adventurous and exciting first day in Paris involving Gendarmes, Pompiers and NO TAXIS (it was, after all, the hottest day of the year), saw some cool art at the inside-out Centre Georges Pompidou, bought the exact same tacky souvenir... TWICE (don’t ask, but apparently came dangerously close to continuing a family legacy), saw Tour Eiffel twinklage (but left the ascent for our next visit), and enjoyed a leisurely dejuner at la Louvre. That’s the abridged version. Oh, and Olive is experiencing withdrawal from the attention and companionship of David and Eric. Check out the pics on Flickr! xx

Jany’s birthday

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

London is full of these amazing spaces. This one is called the London Bridge Vaults and it’s under the London Bridge overground station. They also call this kind of space “arches” but that seems to refer to less extensive areas. This corridor is about 125 yards long (maybe 80 meters), with cavernous rooms to either side. At one end there's another even more cavernous passageway that's maybe half as long. A group called Shunt stages events here, and this is where our friend Jany had her “Flashdance” birthday party last Friday.

Chandelier, Fat Badger

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

I don't think we've ever occupied the sofas before, so we've never seen this view (looking straight up). BTW, the smoking ban is FABULOUS!

Masia Sumidors laundry

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Hey there! Check out our Spain pics on flickr! xx -Mark

Buon giorno!

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

We're in Milan for the weekend. Steven had to attend meetings here on Friday and Monday, so I zipped down to meet him. These are tourists on top of the Duomo. Many more pictures on flickr -- just click on this one and explore my "photostream"!

Kildare Gardens Update

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Patty & Bill stayed at a B&B on this square during their visit to London (the B&B is now closed, and the building appears to be empty). That was a year ago, and these trees had just been severely pruned. I went back in October to check on their progress, and this is what they looked like yesterday...

Pardon the fromage...

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

I know it's cheezey, but I figure somebody might be interested in a couple recent snaps of the furry cuteness.

Amster! Amster!

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

We spent our Bank Holiday weekend in Amsterdam (where we figured out that this particular "Bank Holiday" is actually Pentecost -- but shhhhhhh! They don't do religion here!). Among the many strange and wonderous things we saw was this gigantic crystal chandelier in the shape of a revolver. AWESOME! Amazingly, if you search for "gun chandelier" on flickr or Google, you won't find any other pictures of this... Seems a little odd to me. The guy who did this also did an enormous ship (which is in the Lloyd Hotel) and a big bomb (only heard about this from Elizabeth Pick but haven't seen it). Searching for the others won't give you any satisfaction either, but you might find some pics of a gummi bear chandelier, which is kind of cool...

My current obsession

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Modernist public housing projects ("council estates" or "social housing" over here) are scattered throughout London. Their presence is a good indicator that any given area was pretty much flattened during the Blitz. Maps are generally posted at key public entrances, and vary in design according to the responsible management authority (usually either the local council or a housing trust). The maps are little bits of visual ephemera that I pass regularly, so I thought I would document them and see if anything emerges...

Au Revoir G&D

We just put Geno & Devin in an estate car (that’s English for station wagon) with one more suitcase than they brought and a bag of Lisboa pastries and sent them off to Heathrow Terminal Three. Last night we tried to give them an inkling of why London’s so totally awesome and now it seems they may be the ambassadors of Bearlesque to San Francisco!
In other developments, my name is on the Conde Nast Traveller website, but no link to the content of my article... So all you people who are interested will have to look harder on the shelves of your local international newsstand or purchase a back issue online...

95 South, Massachusetts

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Taken aboard the Peter Pan bus from Logan Airport to Providence.

Viterbo

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Check out the pics from our Easter in Italy!

Condé Nast Traveller - April 2007

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Just so you know what you're looking for... This is the cover of the issue in which my SF article appears.

Cozy Shack Fund

Please make your donation to LB's cozy shack fund by purchasing your very own awesome mug!

It's official!

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Steven's "settlement" visa - woo hoo! This means that on the basis of our relationship, Steven is entitled to stay here as long as he likes and do whatever he wants. In a couple more years he can apply for citizenship (and get a UK - i.e. E.U. - passport)!

So innocent looking...

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Insight

I think this is something you could only fully understand if you’ve spent some time on this island... Remember, “out of my tree” and “pissed” mean drunk here.

After Todd Hido

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

I hope you all know that if you click on one of these images you get whisked to my flickr site, which has pretty much every picture I take. Nobody has looked at this one, which I thought was kinda pretty, so I'm putting it on the blog. Click already.
In other news, Olive was stricken with a half-closed cloudy eye last Sunday. Googling was too scary, so I made an emergency trip to the vet on Monday morning. He did something with fluorescent dye that reminded me of Danceteria in the 80s. Then he recommended a FIV/FeLV test, which involved ten excruciating minutes in the examination room with Olive and a plastic thing waiting for blue dots not to appear. I couldn't watch and did the crossword instead (thank god it was Monday). The result was negative - whew! - and cipro eyedrops were prescribed. After a week of that and a follow-up visit to the vet, everything seems to be back to normal...

Cab-Free Clubbing

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

After a couple years in the neighborhood, Steven & I finally paid a visit to Neighbourhood: a great venue with excellent music and a fun crowd. Since it couldn’t be closer to home, we can kiss those $50 weekend cab fares from Soho and Vauxhall goodbye! We say gay-schmay: now, it’s all about the mix.
Today was grey and gloomy. Except right around dusk the sky turned the prettiest shade of lavender.

Shoe Tree

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

As I stopped to take this picture, an elderly woman carrying a small painting came up to me on the sidewalk and spoke in a thick accent. I didn't really understand what she was saying at first, so I just said "no thanks." Dumb, huh? Turns out she's 82, hails from Portugal, has a cat named Lucy, and this is her garden. She told me it's no good now because there are no flowers. She's going to take all those boots off the tree, repaint, replant, and rehang them. I'll go back over the summer to check on her progress.

Whitstable

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Last weekend we spent 5 days in and around Whitstable, which is an hour and twenty minutes east of London by train. The town is well-known for many things, including native oysters and these beach huts. On Monday morning we learned that artist Margaret Salmon lives there, because there was an article about her in the Independent. Of course, that might be an English Fact.

Luxury is a Chocolate Biscuit

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

We were recently having a discussion regarding what constitutes luxury in this country as compared with the USA. I was saying that from a British perspective, everything in America is luxurious because here, luxury is... Matthew finished my sentence: "a chocolate biscuit." Here is proof. In case you can't read the fine print, it says that John Lennon once requested payment in these particular chocolate biscuits instead of money. £7.50 for a tin, btw. I imagine they must be pretty darn luxurious.

Here, kitty kitty

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

From the Chapman Brothers’ excellent show of corrugated cardboard animals at Paradise Row.

Totally excellent

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Just wanted to toot LB's horn by showing everyone the totally excellent mugs she sent me for my birthday. Cafepress.com - who knew? (as in: "who knew your groovy friends could make such totally excellent stuff there?")

The indignity

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

This is Olive sporting her Danish head funnel. TEN DAYS she has to wear that thing. I actually had to go for a more BDSM/Gaultier arrangement since she kept kicking it off and gnawing at her stitches...

SNOW DAY

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

This is probably it for 2007. At least poor Olive got to experience a bit of winter magic before I trundled her off to the vet for her little snip-snip this morning.

Momentous

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

I know it's too dark, but this is a picture of Steven's hands filling out his first Checqueue. I think that's how they spell it here, but not totally sure I added enough extra letters. Anyhow, the occasion was a dinner and a show at Bistrotheque to celebrate my birthday.

Olive & Hazel

Originally uploaded by sf2london.


Originally uploaded by sf2london.


Originally uploaded by sf2london.

While Steven & I were away, Olive stayed at Auntie Kath's house and got to know couzin Hazel. I know, sick. But cute!

So long 2006

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

The year’s last sunset from Fire Island Pines beach.