Halloween Update

Well, we did get some trick or treaters after all. Two whole groups! One group of three and another of four. Each group carried one small bag amongst them. Clearly they haven't quite got the knack of trick or treating yet here in the UK.

Happy Halloween

I don't think we will get any trick or treaters. It's 5:20 p.m., already dark out, and not one little costumed person has shown up.

Rogers' Almshouses

What a tasteful answer the Victorians had for low-cost housing needs. The almshouses are tucked away on a back alley in Harrogate near the public library and the Waitrose grocery store. I love to walk past them when running my daily errands. They're so cute and quaint with perfectly manicured lawns.

A Hike From Brimham Rocks

Yesterday I hiked with the Thursday Ramblers from Brimham Rocks. Today I'm nursing my sore muscles. About 15 minutes into the walk we began to get lashed with wind and pelted with rain. Most of the trail was nearly impassable paths of slippery muck. One path actually became a stream of running water, the nearby stream had become a raging river. And we topped it all off with a steep mucky climb during the last half hour during which I slipped twice and went ankle deep in water several times.

Brimham Rocks, by the way, are a wonderful attraction in Nidderdale where one can walk among and climb upon rocks that have been carved into fantastical shapes by ancient glaciers.

Don't Try This At Home

I consider myself to be a good cook and I think most people who know me would agree. Yesterday I had my first cookie disaster. I had put the last batch of oatmeal chip cookies in the oven, then hopped on the computer to finish chatting with my sister. After she signed off I somehow forgot about the cookies...until I began to smell them. I jumped up, ran into the kitchen and swung the oven door open. Acrid smelling smoke filled the house. The cookies had been burnt to black crisps. What a waste of good cookie batter!

Batty About Bettys

It's hard not to love Bettys Cafe. They make excellent tea and coffee from a wide variety of leaves and beans obtained from all over the world. The cafe itself is cozy and inviting. The waitresses friendly and efficient. Their baked goods are simply yummy. The window displays are ambitious and inventive. About the only thing I don't like about Bettys are the prices (sky high) and the lines of customers (often out the door).

Fog on the Stray

I'm becoming accustomed to frequent fog here in northern England but this morning's seemed especially thick. I took my morning walk at 7 a.m. and the eerie glow of the streetlights could barely break through the gloom. I took these photos around 10:30 a.m. when the sky was a bit brighter but the persistent fog still clung to the trees and magically revealed the work of some busy spiders.

Click on either photo to view more shots of the fog.

6000 Steps

That's about how many steps I take in the morning when I do my "power" walk. I counted them today with my new pedometer. Aside from my steps, the pedometer keeps track of the distance covered, calories burned and time elapsed. This morning it took me about 42 minutes to walk 2.2 miles and I burned 300 calories. Hmmmm...not the world's best record. There's definitely room for improvement there.

KERRY WINS BY A LANDSLIDE!!

At least that's the result of a poll conducted by BBC Radio 2. Some 5,000 people in the UK cast their vote for the U.S. Prez. I don't have the exact figures but Ralph Nader came in third with about 17% of the vote, Bush with a mere 20-something percent and Kerry with a whopping 60-something percent. I guess for simplicity's sake they didn't include the other candidates in the poll.

This would indicate a decided liberal bent here in the UK -- or to put it more accurately -- with the audience of BBC Radio 2, which happens to be a pretty cool radio station.

I hope we see similar results in the U.S. come November. I can go ahead and cast my vote now on my absentee ballot. I just need to make sure the ballot is postmarked before election day and arrives by 10 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 12.

Happy Birthday, John

He would have been 64 years old today.

sigh.

arouse tarting when a arm ounds

That's how the sign at Manchester Airport read. I stood there bleary eyed trying to make sense of it while Brad waited to collect our luggage from the conveyor belt. It was about 6:30 a.m. UK time and I'd only managed to catch a few minutes of sleep on the plane. I pondered the odd phrasing. It read like one of those posters highlighting the lead story of one of the tabloid newspapers. Was "tarting" one of those odd Britishisms? As we exited the baggage claim area the mystery cleared itself up. I spyed another sign with the missing letters in place. It read "Carousel starting when alarm sounds". Well, it was English, though not necessarily proper English.

Our journey home went rather smoothly. No flight delays and very little turbulence. The drive from Manchester to Harrogate took about two hours as we hit some heavy traffic outside of Bradford. By that time the sun had begun to climb above the horizon. Every now and then we'd get spit on by some rain. Once, while at a standstill in traffic, I looked off to my left and saw a beautiful rainbow.

Before going to our house we stopped off at the Cosy Cattery to collect our purr boy. Ginger did well during his stay at the kitty ritz but he has been all over us since we got back. He is purring loudly and rubbing up against our legs and jumping on our laps to give us powerful head bonks. I guess he missed us. And we sure missed him. We had a great time visiting with family and friends but gee it's great to be back home.

Time To Go Home

We are at my brother-in-law's house right now and will run a few more errands before we head out to Dulles this afternoon for the long journey home. We had a nice relaxing stay in Ohio visiting with Brad's parents and sisters. We didn't do much but go shopping and hang out. I didn't even get on the computer to update my blog. But we did play a game of Shanghai Rummy. We returned to Maryland on Sunday and that evening got together with some friends that we knew in Tokyo who now live in Columbia, Md. It was great reminiscing about old times in Tokyo and I couldn't believe how much all their kids have grown up since we last saw them. They took us out to eat at a wonderful little Mexican restaurant in Clarksville -- El Azteca, such a treat since we can't get good mexican food in the UK.