It has happened: I’ve crossed the line

I now officially speak Englican. Or Americish. This past weekend Steven & I went to Salisbury, accompanied by Kath. We took the train down from Waterloo station, dropped our bags at the Red Lion hotel, and proceeded to walk out of town toward Stonehenge. We walked. And walked. And walked and walked and walked. Then we had some lunch, followed by even more walking. And then we walked some more. We finally arrived at a lovely spot from which we could see the stones in the distance (just beyond a busy motorway) and decided to save a couple of kilometers by heading straight into the nearest town, where we downed a well-deserved pint and hailed a taxi back to Salisbury. We shall return some time to see the henge up close, or maybe just pay a visit to another site where one can actually touch some prehistoric rocks.

But I digress. At dinner, which was Indian and probably up there with the top ten meals of all time, we were discussing food (as one does). I was describing something Steven & I had eaten in Palermo when we were there a few weeks ago. First of all, I said “aubergine” when I meant “courgette”. Do you see where this is going? Let me remind you: I was there with Steven and Kath, who despite both having recently earned British citizenship, are, in fact, American. To me, speaking British English when not absolutely necessary represents the line, and speaking it in the exclusive company of fellow Americans is crossing it.

Yes, yes, I said I’d never do it, and now I have. So there you go.

Thinking of spring

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Don’t get me wrong - it’s definitely still winter. But we’re thinking of spring. Snowdrops and irises are blooming on our little terrace and in several window boxes. The first daffodils are poking through the ivy, and there's even a precocious crocus defiantly claiming its moment in the sun. The days are noticeably longer (for example it's 5pm as I write this, and the sky is illuminated). People are beginning to emerge into the clear light, and this past Saturday the Portobello Road market had a kind of downturn-be-damned brightness. A bit chilly, though I expect it’ll warm up soon enough.

London’s still a puzzle

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

A couple of months ago, Steven and I walked along the Grand Union and Regents Canal from our house to Islington. The canal passes right through this site, known as King’s Cross Central, which is the largest single regeneration site to be developed in London in about 150 years. For some reason, I imagined that the canal skirted the northern edge of the site. As we were walking along, my mind’s map put most of the site to the south, between the canal and King’s Cross Station. In fact the largest part of the site lies to the north of the canal (left 2/3 of the white section of this model). Funny how mental geography doesn't always match the true lay of the land...

Of course there is, darling!

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

On our way home from a delightful Sunday lunch in Maida Vale, Steven and I passed this bit of landfill-bound Christmas ephemera (here they would call it tat) this afternoon... The hands really got to me. This particular box was sitting atop the wall of someone's front garden on Elgin Avenue. There were a few other cardboard boxes strewn about, and while I felt curiosity regarding their contents, I was also a little scared to look inside...

Blizzard of '09

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

For those of you not keeping up with my Flickr photostream (or the news), IT'S STILL SNOWING!!!