The Emerald city
Yik shamish. Ant is in the US in A
Firstly thanks to the many of you who have sent e-mails and postings to this blog...it's good to hear news of back home. Although it was very noticeable that most people's comments have wished me well on my trip, whereas my brother posted me a story about a gentleman from Sunderland who needed rectal surgery after launching a firework from his A-hole. Nice to know that was uppermost on your mind when you thought of me David!!
So I was proved right, the South-East's transport service let us down on Tuesday. A final night with the lovely Liloushka was interrupted by a broken down train which meant it took her three hours to get home and then the M3 was blocked for ages on Wednesday morning meaning that we sat nervously in the car hoping that I would make my flight. At one point we were contemplating hopping onto the opposite carriageway and thumbing a lift it was getting that tight!
However, Heathrow was made in enough time to be one of the first in the queue to check in and security was cleared in no time at all. After 17 years as an adult flying passenger, I managed to for only the second time in my life, swing the "Do you know who my uncle is" routine. Ron, I was so grateful that you dedicated years of your working life to BA, so that I was able to get an extra three inches of leg room and an upgrade out of cattle class. "Would you like another glass of Chablis Mr Ball?", "Thanks very much and any chance of a fluffy pillow when you've got a spare moment?"
Good flight accompanied by some fine literature courtesy of the Daily telegraph, Viz and Nuts magazine and was able to find plenty of good films. Cars was a good recommendation, thanks Natalie & Freya.
Now the reasoning for my first stop being Seattle was to stay with old friends Andy & Paul. I should clarify that Andy is in fact Andrea, I feel that I get enough "Chandler-like qualities" comments without fanning the flames further by suggesting that I was going to live with a "modern couple". It's been great to spend time catching up with old university friend Andy and sharing stories of staggering round the streets of Durham when we were kids.
Wednesday night, despite suffering from reasonable jet-lag, we went to the theatre to watch a comic group called Capital Steps. As most of the Senate and Represntative House election results were known by then it was culturally interesting to bear witness to this group lambasting Dubya and his cronies. They were like a younger Bird, Bremner and Fortune with a few song and dance routines thrown in. I particularly enjoyed Saddam Hussein's rendition of Paul Simon's "Still crazy after all these years" and a Bo Selecta puppet of the North Korean leader. Who says Americans don't do cutting edge political satire? And apparently the British security forces caught onto the summer plane threat when they knew that toothpaste tubes were going to be used? It was such a sure give-away cos who in the UK uses toothpaste was the bring the house down punchline. Remember my friends we weren't the ones who elected a Blofeld style meglomaniac to be our leader...twice...
Thursday was spent taking in the tourist trail in the Emerald city. The space needle is still a great edifice with fantastic views around the Puget sound http://www.spaceneedle.com/. I wandered down to Pike place market to see the site of the fishmongers throwing their products at their customers, which is a traditional activity in this part of the world apparently? Although the possible highlight of the day was popping into a bar that from outside looked a little like the Cheers Bar with a cosy atmosphere and turned out to be the kind of bar that Napalm Death groupies hang out in. When the old boy who I swear used to play Uncle Jesse in the Dukes of Hazzard strolled over for a chat and spat his gum at my feet, I thought it might be a time for a sharp exit.
On the sporting front, congrats to the Blues in getting through to the quarter finals of the Carling cup and not so many congrats to the England cricket team in getting a pasting to a Canberra pub side. Whay have I spent all this money coming out here again??
Up the Monty
Firstly thanks to the many of you who have sent e-mails and postings to this blog...it's good to hear news of back home. Although it was very noticeable that most people's comments have wished me well on my trip, whereas my brother posted me a story about a gentleman from Sunderland who needed rectal surgery after launching a firework from his A-hole. Nice to know that was uppermost on your mind when you thought of me David!!
So I was proved right, the South-East's transport service let us down on Tuesday. A final night with the lovely Liloushka was interrupted by a broken down train which meant it took her three hours to get home and then the M3 was blocked for ages on Wednesday morning meaning that we sat nervously in the car hoping that I would make my flight. At one point we were contemplating hopping onto the opposite carriageway and thumbing a lift it was getting that tight!
However, Heathrow was made in enough time to be one of the first in the queue to check in and security was cleared in no time at all. After 17 years as an adult flying passenger, I managed to for only the second time in my life, swing the "Do you know who my uncle is" routine. Ron, I was so grateful that you dedicated years of your working life to BA, so that I was able to get an extra three inches of leg room and an upgrade out of cattle class. "Would you like another glass of Chablis Mr Ball?", "Thanks very much and any chance of a fluffy pillow when you've got a spare moment?"
Good flight accompanied by some fine literature courtesy of the Daily telegraph, Viz and Nuts magazine and was able to find plenty of good films. Cars was a good recommendation, thanks Natalie & Freya.
Now the reasoning for my first stop being Seattle was to stay with old friends Andy & Paul. I should clarify that Andy is in fact Andrea, I feel that I get enough "Chandler-like qualities" comments without fanning the flames further by suggesting that I was going to live with a "modern couple". It's been great to spend time catching up with old university friend Andy and sharing stories of staggering round the streets of Durham when we were kids.
Wednesday night, despite suffering from reasonable jet-lag, we went to the theatre to watch a comic group called Capital Steps. As most of the Senate and Represntative House election results were known by then it was culturally interesting to bear witness to this group lambasting Dubya and his cronies. They were like a younger Bird, Bremner and Fortune with a few song and dance routines thrown in. I particularly enjoyed Saddam Hussein's rendition of Paul Simon's "Still crazy after all these years" and a Bo Selecta puppet of the North Korean leader. Who says Americans don't do cutting edge political satire? And apparently the British security forces caught onto the summer plane threat when they knew that toothpaste tubes were going to be used? It was such a sure give-away cos who in the UK uses toothpaste was the bring the house down punchline. Remember my friends we weren't the ones who elected a Blofeld style meglomaniac to be our leader...twice...
Thursday was spent taking in the tourist trail in the Emerald city. The space needle is still a great edifice with fantastic views around the Puget sound http://www.spaceneedle.com/. I wandered down to Pike place market to see the site of the fishmongers throwing their products at their customers, which is a traditional activity in this part of the world apparently? Although the possible highlight of the day was popping into a bar that from outside looked a little like the Cheers Bar with a cosy atmosphere and turned out to be the kind of bar that Napalm Death groupies hang out in. When the old boy who I swear used to play Uncle Jesse in the Dukes of Hazzard strolled over for a chat and spat his gum at my feet, I thought it might be a time for a sharp exit.
On the sporting front, congrats to the Blues in getting through to the quarter finals of the Carling cup and not so many congrats to the England cricket team in getting a pasting to a Canberra pub side. Whay have I spent all this money coming out here again??
Up the Monty
posted by Ant | 4:54 pm
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