I got these in the post the other day and I am dying (no pun intended) to start reading this series. But every time I think about starting I see Day 302 in my head and I remember I have more important books that I must read right now.
I guess these can be my reward when I get my UK License.
They are still very tempting sitting up on my bookshelf though.
High: 60°
Low: 51°
Forecast: Rain
Sunrise: 5:24 AM
Sunset: 9:08 PM
How cute is this?
As most of you that have been reading my blog knows since we moved here we have been driving Andy's dad's car. Well for the last couple of weeks he has been mentioning that he wanted to look for another car for us.
Well this is it! It is pretty much the exact same model that we were driving before but about 4 years newer. It has an awesome radio that has an aux input which I can plug our iPod right into so that we can listen thru the car speakers!
And yes that is a removable faceplate so that when we go into Liverpool for the Everton matches we do not have to worry about our car being broken into so that they can steal it! I mean the other car didn't have a fancy radio and it was still broken into but at least by removing the plate it takes away some of the temptation!
It also has a cute little sunroof so that on those rare sunny days we can drive with it open.
And... it even has a cute little butt!
Now for the best part... wait for it... drum roll please... IT IS AN AUTOMATIC!! *yay* I mean I know how to use a stick shift but it is so much better without it.
It was quite funny though when we went to go for a test drive. Andy got in and it was actually difficult for him to back up cause he kept reaching down to shift... I was laughing really hard. Then we went down a side road and I took over driving and for the first time since I started driving over here... I started out by pulling out onto the RIGHT side of the road! Andy said it is because it was an automatic and I didn't have to think about staying on the left when I shifted.
Since Andy's dad is insured for any car that he drives and we are not we drove his car back and he drove ours. We figured out why we were finding it so hard to drive the automatic... we were using our left foot on the brake and our right foot on the accelerator. How funny is that! Andy's dad said we need to tuck our left foot back under the seat in order to get back used to not having to shift and use that foot.
Fifteen years of driving automatic... 4 months of driving a manual... did not imagine I would have to relearn how to drive this kind of car! But boy is it worth it... no more stick!
High: 61°
Low: 52°
Forecast: A Couple of Showers
Sunrise: 5:23 AM
Sunset: 9:10 PM
I am NOT looking forward to this at all.
In fact the more I read and think about it I want to just toss these new books in the trash and learn to embrace walking.
I am scared to death to be honest. The UK theory and practical driving tests are not like the easy peasy US tests. I still remember how much Andy laughed after having to drive for about 10-15 minutes to get his US License. As long as you don't kill anybody in that 10-15 minutes you pass.
I have a feeling I will need to book some driving tests with a local instructor. Of course I know how to drive but I think I need somebody who knows what they will have me do so that I am fully prepared. It has been so long since Andy took his so he can not be of much help.
I really wish they would just exchange my license I mean why let me drive here for 12 months without having to do a darn thing but get added to insurance. If an accident was going to happen it would have been in the first 12 months, what is the point of having to go through this crap now? *ugh*
Oh and how silly is that if you take your test on an automatic that your license is only good for driving automatics! But if you take your test on a manual then your license is good on either. Just silly!
Also... just to complain a bit more... Because I do not have a UK Passport I have to post them my US Passport (which of course holds my Visa and is my only proof of being allowed to live/work in this country) along with a current passport sized photo. The really stupid part is that I have to have this said photo SIGNED by a professional that has known me for at least two years. Umm hello... I haven't been here for two years. So in lieu of getting it signed it says I will need to go to my local DVLA office which is in Manchester (not exactly local) and they are only open on Monday - Friday from 9:00am - 5:00pm. No Saturday hours!
There is a premium document checking service you can get done at certain post offices and there is one that is about 3 miles away from work that stays open until 5:30pm. I am going to try to go over there tomorrow right after work. I think a person can only use this service if they have a UK Passport but I am still going to give it a try. If I am allowed to use it then they will sign my photo after reviewing my other documents such as birth certificate, marriage license, etc...
Give me strength!
High: 61°
Low: 52°
Forecast: Rain
Sunrise: 5:21 AM
Sunset: 9:12 PM
Today is the third day in a row that it has rained. I noticed that on Sunday the neighboor had clothes hanging out on the line when it had started to rain. Was expecting to see somebody run out to get them off the line... but as you can see two rainy days later they are still hanging out.
It is calling for more rain tomorrow, I wonder if they will still be out.
High: 58°
Low: 51°
Forecast: Rain
Sunrise: 5:19 AM
Sunset: 9:13 PM
This is Corrie the neighboorhood cat. I am sure this is not his name but that is what I call him. He does have a collar, it says he belongs to the house next to us and I have seen them open the door to let him in before.
Not sure if you can tell in this picture but it is raining. I always feel so sorry for the little guy when I see him out in the cold rain but he seems to enjoy it. I am still not used to 'housecats' being allowed to go out all of the time. In the states when you see a cat outside it is usually a stray and doesn't have a home as they do not wonder around like here. My cats were brought inside as soon as their eyes and ears opened and if not in a carrier box have never been outside. I could never dream of allowing them to go wonder around outside, I would be way too scared!
By the way... if you are wondering why I call him Corrie... it is because he reminds me of the black cat in the opening sequence of Coronation Street (a UK soap). Watch the below clip, you will see the cat at around 12 seconds in, you can even hear him meow.
I have been craving Rice Krispy Treats and after failing to find Marshmallow Cream over here I resorted to melting down my own marshmallows to make the yummy treats.
I also could not find a bag of just white marshmallows so had to buy a couple smaller bags that had a mixture of pink and white ones. Was pretty easy to make though, just melted down 10oz of marshmallows with 3 tablespoons of butter. Mixed that with six cups of Rice Krispys and pop that into a non stick 9x9 pan to let cool.
The result... Delicious!
That my Spousal Visa paperwork was couriered into the British Consulate General in Los Angeles in the early morning hours of Friday, July 25th 2008. Then seven long hours later I was told that it had been approved and that this thing of beauty had been printed and put into my Passport.
I can not believe it has been a year since that day. For those of you reading that have gone thru any type of Immigration process you will know the stress that I was feeling a year ago today. Not to mention all the stress up to that day! But to know that they had the paperwork and that a decision would be made shortly. I was a nervous wreck!
But as you can see it all worked out in the end... and now a year later I am happily living in England. Thank goodness I will not have to go thru that stress again!
High: 63°
Low: 51°
Forecast: Partly Sunny
Sunrise: 5:14 AM
Sunset: 9:18 PM
This picture does not really reflect the true color but it is the best I could get. The flash from the camera brings out a redder tone than is actually picked up by just looking at it.
This is the truly the darkest I have ever had my hair... I do like it, however I think I would like it to be just one shade lighter. I am sure it will start to fade some and when it comes time to color it again I will look for a shade lighter. Although this was supposed to be light brown already!
High: 61°
Low: 52°
Forecast: Early Showers
Sunrise: 5:13 AM
Sunset: 9:20 PM
So this is all it takes to get some gossip on some US actors... they just need to date someone from Scotland!
I used to love getting my US Weekly and In Touch magazines every week. Yes there are plenty of gossip rags over here in England but I haven't gotten used to it being all about UK celebrities yet. I am thinking about looking into a US Weekly subscription, I am sure it will be pretty expensive to have it mailed over here but it might be worth it.
It can be my lifeline into the lives of those US Celebrities that I miss reading about. I mean I have no idea what is up with Brad and Angelina these days... they could have 20 kids by now!
High: 62°
Low: 51°
Forecast: A couple of Showers
Sunrise: 5:11 AM
Sunset: 9:21 PM
We had a big bag of cat litter delivered today... in order to push the order over £25 and get free shipping I threw in this £1 catnip toy.
I know all cats react to catnip differently but I can honestly say that Gallagher goes absolutely crazy! I snapped this picture just seconds before he jumped on Rooney in order to steal the toy away from him.
This toy has a little velcro patch and you can put a pouch of catnip in there. I have to give this to these guys in moderation or else they would be constantly bouncing off the walls.
I was able to get a little bit of the catnip love fest on video.
So I decided to use a cap highlighting kit on my hair. I couldn't reach the back holes and Andy was too scared to pull my hair thru so he sat behind me and guided my hand with the little hook to the next hole. That is true love.
Too bad it turned out so terribly!
When I put the coloring on some of it must have gotten down into the holes on the top of the cap and I ended up with large blotches of bleach blonde on the top of my head. *ugh* Tomorrow I will go back to the store and get an all over color to cover up this mess. I'll have to wear my hair back in a clip for work tomorrow. Maybe I'll go brunette... it's been a while since I went really dark.
I did take this picture by the way, I was holding the camera with my right hand and was finding it difficult to get as much of my head in the shot as possible.
High: 66°
Low: 53°
Forecast: Sunny
Sunrise: 5:08 AM
Sunset: 9:25 PM
Andy and I had our groceries delivered tonight. I can not explain how much I love this service! I have talked about it on here before but I believe it deserves another post. Just go online, order what you want and tadah it is delivered to your door as if like magic. To traffic, no hordes of people and no long lines. Bliss.
Oh... and before you ask. Walkers and Wotsits were on special so we bought quite a few for our lunches, these should last awhile.
High: 63°
Low: 52°
Forecast: A couple of Showers
Sunrise: 5:06 AM
Sunset: 9:26 PM
I have been watching cricket all day... I don't understand a thing they are doing but for some reason I can't turn it off.
Andy is not that into cricket but does understand enough to try to explain to me about what is going on. So I have a better idea now but to be honest there is just so much to know. I did have a good laugh though when they stopped play for a tea break. Ha!
Can't wait for football to come back though...
Just found out something new about my US License today. I knew that I was only allowed to drive on my US License for 12 months and during that time you have to sit the theory test and take a driving test in order to get your UK License. However, I learned today that I will have to apply for a Provisional License before I can take my driving test as I can not take the test with only a US License! A provisional License costs £50.00! What a complete rip off. Just another way to get more money out of you.
High: 60°
Low: 510°
Forecast: A Couple of Showers
Sunrise: 5:05 AM
Sunset: 9:27 PM
I would like to say that Rooney is trying to keep his dignity here by covering up his private bits but to be honest he is not that bothered usually.
We find him sitting like this all of the time... it is rather funny looking!
Andy and I went to see the new Harry Potter movie today and both enjoyed it. I know that for the length of the film they have to cut out a lot information that can be found in the book version but honestly in my opinion they cut out a pretty important part of this movie. For those that have not see it... stop reading now. For those that have.. keep reading.
The whole point of Draco using the sister vanishing cabinets to connect Hogwarts and Borgin and Burkes is so that the other Death Eaters could enter the castle and in doing this a huge fight breaks out between them and the Aurors and students. However in the move the Death Eaters enter and they don't do anything! After Draco fails to kill Dumbledor and Snape steps in to do the deed they all just leave!
So in the movie version... what is the point of bringing the Death Eaters into Hogwarts? They enter, they find Draco and Dumbledor up in the astronomy tower and leave.
To be honest it is ridiculous! Add another 15 minutes to the movie and keep the battle in, it plays a huge part in the story. Why would Draco have to keep practising with the cabinets by getting it just right so that they could be used? If no fight was going to break out just skip that whole bit cause there is no need for Bellatrix and the other Death Eaters to enter.
Also in the book Dumbledor puts a spell on Harry to make him immobilised so that Harry could not stop what was about to happen. Dumbledor knew that Snape would step in and kill him, he knew it was going to happen. In the movie Dumbledor just tells Harry to stay down and not step in. If it was not for the spell I do believe Harry would have stepped in so by not doing it in the movie it goes against everything I think Harry is and stands for. If he could move he would have went up and tried to take them all on, the spell would have been required.
Anyway... these are just my thoughts fresh after watching the movie. Andy and I ended up selling almost all of our books when we moved over just because there were so many of them and they took up so much weight and space in the tiny shipment we were allowed. I am now in the process of buying a new Harry Potter box set so that I can reread all of them again.
High: 59°
Low: 51°
Forecast: Cloudy and Late Rain
Sunrise: 5:04 AM
Sunset: 9:28 PM
I promise you that there will never be a day that I complain about it raining. Even though that everybody at work says that I will eventually get tired of it... I swear I will not.
I love the rain. I love the dark cloudy skies. Love, love, love it!
High: 58°
Low: 52°
Forecast: Rain
Sunrise: 5:03 AM
Sunset: 9:29 PM
I love my kitchen door! This is the first time I have ever had a door that you can open just the top half.
It is great for letting air in while you are cooking and doing things in the kitchen. And since there are way less flies and flying insects here than in the US... I seem to have this door open quite a lot.
High: 63°
Low: 51°
Forecast: Rain and Drizzle
Sunrise: 5:01 AM
Sunset: 9:30 PM
This is the most American thing I have seen since I moved here. Honestly!
As soon as I saw it driving by I mentioned it and even Andy said 'Now that is American!' Do you know how much this thing must cost them in petrol? Right now petrol is at around £1.01 a liter. That is $1.65 a liter and there are 4 liters in a gallon so it is $6.60 a gallon! That is crazy!
Some of the roads around here are not even big enough for this thing. Since we pulled out behind him I was able to get another picture of it from the back. A bit of an overkill I think.
Tonight was the opening night of the new Harry Potter movie, The Half-Blood Prince. For every other Harry Potter movie release Andy and I were at the midnight showing and it was the same for the release of the books. But honestly on the way home I checked on my iPhone and at 5:30 the 6:30 and the 7:30 showing was sold out and we just couldn't be bothered. We knew that if we headed over after dinner that we would end up not making it in until the 9:30 showing due to the line. We will just go this weekend... I must be getting old.
High: 64°
Low: 51°
Forecast: Sunny
Sunrise: 5:00 AM
Sunset: 9:32 PM
Tonight Andy and I decided to get an Indian take-away. This is my Chicken Tikka Biryani, Onion Bhaji and Garlic Naan.
Nothing much of anything else really happened today.. sorry to be this boring but this is as good as it gets for today.
High: 66°
Low: 52°
Forecast: A Couple of Showers
Sunrise: 4:59 AM
Sunset: 9:33 PM
Look what came in the post today! Andy and I were SO excited when we saw the envelopes waiting patiently for us just inside the front door.
This little guy is my season ticket for the upcoming season. Andy says when he had a season ticket before he moved to the US you got a huge ticket book where you had to rip off your ticket for each match. Now you just scan your card as you go thru the turnstile... fancy!
I can not wait for the new season to get started... it has been a long summer already. I am very happy that there are only 3 months between the seasons, any longer and I might go crazy.
As they say here in England 'Only 33 more sleeps' until the first match of the season... yay!
High: 65°
Low: 54°
Forecast: A Couple of Showers
Sunrise: 4:57 AM
Sunset: 9:34 PM
This is what THIS looks like when it has not rained cats and dogs!
Andy and I had every intention of going to two movies today but it turned out to be a very lazy day instead. Had to run out to the shop to get some bread for lunch this week but other than that we just stayed in and relaxed.
I even went to bed early... which was much needed!
High: 62°
Low: 51°
Forecast: A Couple of Showers
Sunrise: 4:56 AM
Sunset: 9:35 PM
Yesterday was the last day for one of the guys we work with and he left his car in the parking lot all night. Well... a couple of people got together today and decided to fill the entire car with balloons, wrap it in plastic wrap, add some colorful post-it notes and then more plastic wrap.
I think they did a pretty good job!
I mentioned earlier that I was moving to a new department at work... well today was my last day with my 'old' department. I will miss the people on my team a lot but I have to say I am really excited to make the transition. I love the work that I will be doing and I know I am going to be really happy. I am still on the same floor as where I was so it will be easy enough to go say hi to everybody I used to work with anyway.
Technically I am only in the new department on a seconded basis so it isn't a permanent move yet. However I have every reason to believe/hope that by the end of the year it will be official. Yay!
High: 66°
Low: 57°
Forecast: Times of Clouds and Sun
Sunrise: 4:55 AM
Sunset: 9:36 PM
So this is the same field that I took a picture of back on Day 235, what have they done with the sheep?
Was shocked to come over the hill to see a giant circus tent instead of the cute little sheep... hopefully they will be back soon!
Andy and I went to go see Bruno tonight, thought it was very funny but in my opinion not as funny as Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan. Well worth a watch but of course as with other Sacha Baron Cohen movies you must watch at your own risk.
High: 62°
Low: 50°
Forecast: Sunny
Sunrise: 4:54 AM
Sunset: 9:37 PM
Look what we have in the bathroom now... light!
You may remember the post from Day 268 explaining that we were down to one working light in the bathroom. I would like to say that Andy and I worked together to figure it out but sadly we could not do it on our own.
The landlord was over fixing something else and while he was here I made Andy ask him how to do it. He had a go at changing them but could not figure it out either so he had to call his electrician that put them in and he let us in on the little secret.
You twist it. *ugh*
I had that canister pulled out of the ceiling, I was unscrewing all kinds of tiny little screws, etc... and you twist it. I know I tried that to do that at first myself and it did not work.
Oh well, Andy has now replaced two of the four that were burnt out and it is much brighter in there which is a great thing!
High: 58°
Low: 49°
Forecast: Times of Clouds and Sun
Sunrise: 4:53 AM
Sunset: 9:37 PM
This seriously made me laugh so hard!
I have no idea what the story behind it is but this was spotted in the parking lot of Tesco's (grocery store) today.
The shopping cart on it's own would be understandable, it would not have been the first time I have seen a cart that has been turned over. But who put the traffic cone in front of it? In fact there were three traffic cones but you can only see one in the photo, the other two were right behind it.
Is this a scene of a crime? What exactly happened?
Curious minds want to know...
High: 59°
Low: 49°
Forecast: Cloudy
Sunrise: 4:52 AM
Sunset: 9:38 PM
It poured down rain off and on all day today. On our way home from work we were met with horrible traffic... as seen above.
So to try to get home a bit quicker Andy drove down a back way that goes thru an industrial area. We have driven this way before so thought nothing of it... except...
We have never driven this way after it rained all day and this is what we came up against.
Unfortunately there is only room for one car and there were cars behind us so we had to go for it. I wish I had switched over to video so that you could see our car trying to make it thru the rather deep water. And yes it may look deep but it was much deeper than it looks! The water was up to the top of the hood of the car, I was truly scared we were not going to make it. I couldn't even take a picture while we were in the water because I was too scared and was holding on to the side of the door.
After we got out of the water and up on the other side the hood of the car was smoking, obviously because water got into the engine.
Note to self... do not drive this way home after a day of heavy rain.
High: 62°
Low: 52°
Forecast: Periods of Heavy Rain
Sunrise: 4:51 AM
Sunset: 9:39 PM
This house is just two doors down from mine. I just love her flowers!
I will have flowers next spring... I am making a vow right here and now that there will be beautiful flowers in my front garden next year.
Every time I go outside I look over in awe. Well really I look over in jealously.
High: 64°
Low: 52°
Forecast: A Couple of Showers and Thunderstorms
Sunrise: 4:50 AM
Sunset: 9:40 PM
Andy and I had ever intention of going to the Scarecrow Festival in Blackrod today but it just didn't happen. I had a headache at the start of the morning and didn't feeling like doing much of anything. To be honest we just stayed on the couch and watched about 4 movies.
Andy got motivated enough to go to the gym but not me... I stayed laying down watching TV. It was truly a lazy day. Then when I thought I felt a little better and was thinking about getting up to go to the festival... it started pouring down rain outside so I took that as a sign to just stay in.
Oh and this is my homemade cheesecake with crushed fresh strawberry topping... how good does this look? And yes it tastes as good as it looks.
High: 67°
Low: 54°
Forecast: Late Showers
Sunrise: 4:49 AM
Sunset: 9:40 PM
Cheeseburgers, Potato Salad and Baked Beans... Perfect 4th of July food. Yummy! I also made a homemade cheesecake but you don't get a picture of that until tomorrow.
Didn't really do much today to be honest. We left the alarm off and ended up sleeping until 11:00am! That is way late for me. Spent sometime making the cheesecake and the other foods, caught up on Eastenders and Coronation Street, ate and then watched Big Brother.
At around 10:30pm we heard some fireworks going off but after looking thru all of the windows we could not determine exactly where they were coming from. Maybe there is another American around me somewhere?
High: 66°
Low: 54°
Forecast: A Couple of Showers
Sunrise: 4:48 AM
Sunset: 9:41 PM
So today it has happened... The humidity has lifted, it is nice and cool again and the rain has come back. Yes!
I had to park a little ways from work and snapped this photo with my iPhone as I was making may up to the building. This garden is along the walk and I have always thought it was very beautiful. The person that lives here must take a lot of time to plant, weed and keep everything looking nice. Although I never see her/him out enjoying the beauty though.
You even get a view of my wonderful flower umbrella (full picture back on Day 14). This has to be one of my favorites, every time I use it somebody always tells me how lovely it is.
High: 67°
Low: 54°
Forecast: A Couple of Showers
Sunrise: 4:47 AM
Sunset: 9:41 PM
This is the book I am currently 'trying' to read. I say trying because I just can not get into it. I am about a fourth of a way thru it and am about to give up for now.
I have moved over to a new department at work and the girls I sit next to now have just started getting into Twilight. A couple of them are in the middle of the series of books and we have all been talking about them. Because of this I am dying to go back and reread the Twilight books and just can not get into this book. We all know my LOVE for Twilight!
I have a feeling I am going to have to just stop where I am in The Queen's Fool and then come back to it after I am done with the Twilight series. If not I am not going to enjoy this book and I do love all of Philippa Gregory's other books.
High: 78°
Low: 62°
Forecast: Sunny with Late Showers or Thunderstorms
Sunrise: 4:46 AM
Sunset: 9:42 PM
I apologize in advance to any cyclists that may be reading this... but I have to get this off my chest. I absolutely hate how many people ride bikes in this country!
I am truly sorry but the roads here are hardly large enough for two cars let alone bicycles aslo! You spend more time having to slow down and waiting to pass when there is a free space on the other side of the road.
I have asked Andy why they don't just ride on the sidewalks (or on the 'pavement' as he would say) and he said those are for people who are walking. Oh please.
Hopefully for now I can keep my day dreams of screaming at them to get off the road at bay. I will just have to keep cursing under my breath as I pass them.
High: 78°
Low: 65°
Forecast: A Couple of Showers
Sunrise: 4:45 AM
Sunset: 9:42 PM
