Archive
Milo’s stitches are out
Milo is such a bouncy dog that he needed to be drugged just to pull the stitches out. We didn’t want to risk having him jump just as the knife was next to him while cutting the stitches, which is what he just about did at first. So, he is now completely out of it while relaxing on the couch with Lorie. I’ve added a couple of new photos in the Milo In London photo album. (scroll to the end to see the new ones)
The Tidal Thames
For those of you who have visited, you know I walk Milo by the Thames River and am often amazed by the fluctuations in the tide. It moves about 16 feet (4.7 meters) each day, and that’s just over the next few days. Check out the tidal flow near the Hammersmith bridge from http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/coast/tides/tides.shtml?date=20070628&loc=0115:
Alan explains the new changes in the UK government
Our friend Alan has a good write-up about Gordon Brown taking over as Prime Minister now that Tony Blair stepped down. See: There’s a new sheriff in town
New Housing Construction
Two houses in Fulham have been torn town and are being replaced, with new houses complete with basements. These houses are what us Americans would call "row houses", but are quite normal in London. I promised my brother photos of the dividing basement wall being built, which are concrete blocks with packed-foam insulation, so here they are:
International London
Tonight proved interesting as I was at a work-related dinner with people from all over the world, then an interesting ride home. The highlights are:
- India: Thomas from France explained his experience living in India in the early 1990’s when he got cable TV and the cable guys came up dug up the road to lay the cable to his house, only to find out that whatever was on the one (and only) cable channel was whatever the guy at the main cable office was watching. When the cable guy would change channels, everyone with cable would suddenly be watching a new show.
- Japan: The guys from Japan explained how stopping traffic to help film some stuff for MTV in Tokyo can get you arrested.
- Brazil: Pulling an armed robber out of your father’s car in Brazil just isn’t that uncommon.
- Korea: Having a good time with karaoke in Korea can easily last until dawn, at least for Canadians.
- Syria: My taxi driver tonight was from Syria and had been a "diplomat" in the military there for 10 years when they tried to overthrow the government in 1970. That didn’t go over so well and he spent 10 years in prison for it. He can no longer go back to Syria, but he does suggest visiting because it is a beautiful country. He’s 72 and taught me that Thank You in Arabic is "shockra", although I think I mispronounced it.
This is not a typical evening in Longview, WA!
On another note, Milo’s drainage tube is now out, but still has stitches in his chest for another week or so.
Brian’s New Office
No, the entire building is not just for me. However, it is a nice building even if it is a little bit like a library inside: very quite and bland. However, my desk at least has some beads from Bourbon Street adventures in New Orleans to help give it some color.
Click on the picture to get a good view of the entire area.
Milo still recovering – watching the Glastonbury concert
It’s tough being an only dog with no kids to compete with. Really! Who else has to suffer being held on his back just so he can sleep, or having bowls of water and food held up to his cone so he can eat? Thank God for Amazon who supplies us with movies (like Netflix in the US), which allows us to watch bad Jane Austin movies (via Lorie’s selections) and Rambo (via my selections on free TV), and the Internet which supplies a never-ending amount of work.
Thankfully for Milo, there is a big music festival being broadcast on quite a few TV channels. The gig is at Glastonbury, which is also the name of it. So far, I like the Arctic Monkeys and Amy Winehouse: I’m not sure what Milo likes.
Milo is in recovery
Two rotweilers attacked Milo today at the place he normally plays at and he has even played with them before. We aren’t sure who started it or what really happened, but the end result is that Milo ended up with a very large chest wound. He now has 7 stitches, a drain, and a cone. As long as he doesn’t get infected, he should be OK; and he is on antibiotics and pain killers for a few days. It is now almost 1am and we have a bed made up for him, but he is in pain when he tries to lay down, so he just sits or stands and almost falls asleep. It will be a long night or more for all of us until the pain goes away.
Dinner at Fifteen
Our friend Mark was in town and requested that we go to Jamie Oliver’s restaurant called Fifteen London. If you know me, then you know that the only food I know much about is sushi, sake, and chocolate. That means I had no idea what Fifteen was all about, so as their site at http://www.fifteen.net/Pages/default.aspx explains:
In 2002, Jamie Oliver combined two ambitions: to open a top class restaurant and to give disadvantaged youngsters the chance to gain professional training that would set them up for an independent, inspired and productive life. Five years on, Fifteen is still achieving both, improving and expanding all the time.
We ate in the Trattoria and all thought our dinner was good. There was no sushi or sake, but the brownie was good.
UK’s Lightning to build all-electric GT sports car
Let’s hope they build it! See: UK’s Lightning to build all-electric GT sports car – Engadget
The Adventures of Lorie and Brian Groth 