Dog's Life

Rusty , Memorial Day weekend.

Whish!

The Thames, until the 19th Century, an open sewer which led to cholera : water in, water out.  By the 1850s London's population surpassed two million , all using the river for, which had become so God awful that the smell alone closed government  - rugs hung from Parliament windows to block the foul elements.  

Enter Joseph Bazalgette, a civil engineer and Chief Engineer of the Metropolitan Board of Works, who was tasked with moving a lot of shit.  Without him, London could not have remained the world's most populated city until '52 when Tokyo became bigger (London peaked BTW at 8.6 million in 1939 ; today the city holds around 7.8 million, 24th in the world, according to the UN).

Balagette's sewage network, in operation today my goodness, moves waste along the Thames Valley corridor to the Thames Estuary via six main interceptor channels totalling 100 miles and constructed from 1859 and 1865; They, in turn, fed by 450 miles of main sewers that shift contents from 13,000 miles of local pipes. Construction of the interceptors required 318 million bricks, 2.7 million cubic metres of excavated earth and 670,000 cubic metres of concrete.  Gravity allows the sewage to flow eastwards along the Thames Corridor.

During the 20th century, modernisation reduced pollution of the Thames Estuary and North Sea.  Otherwise not much has changed, pictured excluded.

Joop!

This is what it looks like to clear 2.12 meters, as Kamila's brother Mathais does the other day at a competition in The Czech.  He is 17 years old which makes him one of the best jr tall jumpers in Europe.

Madeleine: "What are those ?"
Me: "Lemonheads. I used to eat them when I was your age. It's been, like, 35 years since the last time . . ."
Madeleine: "Are they any good."
Me: "No, they're awful."
Madeleine: "Really, Dad. Then why did you buy them?"
Me: "Good point. What's your favorite candy anyway ?"
Madeleine: "Oh I don't know. .."
Me: "You like gummies, that's for sure. And lollies. Oh, and cotton candy."
Madeleine: "I guess so. I like ice cream too. But not chocolate."
Me: "It's nice to sit here together and eat junk food, isn't it honey?"
Madeleine: "Yeah."

Bon Voyage

Eitan off to France with Y6.  Normandy eight hours by coach and the children allowed to bring their Kindles or iPads and iPods for the long ride.  This for the adults, of course. Sonnet drops the boy off at school, 6AM, and he has - bar far - the largest bag of his crew. Split between mom and his friends, Eitan hesitates but , then, is gone.

We spend a lovely afternoon at Diana's and Simon's prusecco party overlooking sailboats on the Thames from the Chiswick Mall.

Me: "You and I are going shopping tomorrow."
Madeleine: "Really? "
Me: "I am going to buy you some clothes. So you don't look like an orphan."
Madeleine: "OK but you don't get to choose for me."
Me: "Don't worry, no dresses. But no plaid either."
Madeleine: "What's that?"
Sonnet: "cross hatches. .."
Me: "And nothing you can climb a tree in."
Madeleine, suspiciously: "Is this supposed to be a bonding thing ?"

Dog Day

Harvard Night

Eric at Harvard's graduation on a near perfect evening. The photo composition exact so well done who ever took the shot of him.

Friday again. We finally have hot summer weather which means .. something new to complain about, these Brits. Poor Kamilla on the third floor of our house unable to fall asleep until 2AM while I find Madeleine outside Eitan's bedroom lying on a few pillows, 9PM, reading a book ("War Horse" by Michael Morpurgo). I tell her it is all good as long as I don't catch her sunbathing naked. Like her mother used to do.

Stan takes in as much culture as anybody can and I am hard pressed to keep track of his concerts and recitals at the Royal Festival Hall, Wigmore Hall .. .  the Barbican Centre and elsewhere.  Of course it is not the same without Silver's knowing understanding of each performance, and her joy of London's culture and the human spirit. We miss her.

Eitan thinks he can pack a week's worth of clothing and etc's in one duffel bag for France tomorrow. Sonnet asks Kamilla to help him but he will have none of that. A boy's gotta do what a boy's gotta do.

Sonnet and I to see The Horrors tonight at the Brixton Ac.

V and A

Madeleine has yet to start Emanuel and we are at our first school fund-raiser - this one for a new £2M drama theatre which will open in March 2013.  By coincidence, the £250 per ticket event at the V&A for a private viewing of .. Sonnet's Ballgowns exhibition.  Sonnet makes herself available and even receives a bouquet of flowers from Emanuel's governor and an ovation.

Eitan sits in front of his Mac: "It says 'file saved automatically' - what does that mean?"
Me: "It means that your file will be immediately deleted."
Eitan: "Really?"
Me: "Are you going to the Hampton School this fall?"

Eitan:  "Je veux une pomme."
Sonnet: "Eitan is going to France on Saturday with his class."
Eitan: "J'adore regarder la television."
Me:
Eitan: "Quand il pleure je mang-ez une from-mage avec le chien."
Me: "Say: 'J'ai une grosse willie.'"
Sonnet:
Eitan: "Ha ha ha!"
Me: "Say it to one of the teachers."
Sonnet: "You will not say that to your teacher."

Me: "What are you doing?"
Eitan: "Making a soap-box for school. .. ."
Me: "What's that?"
Eitan: "It's a power point presentation. I have to explain how to do something."
Sonnet: "Oh?"
Eitan: "I am going to describe how to train a dog."
Me: "You mean, ignore the dog for three weeks until dad yells at you to take him outside ?"
Eitan: "I've trained Rusty to do tricks. I taught him how to roll over."
Sonnet: "Madeleine gets credit for training Rusty how to roll over."
Eitan: "What?! I taught him how to roll over. And sit. And heel."
Me: "Can I sit in the back of the classroom when you give your presentation?"
Eitan:
Me: "Now that would be fun."

Timbre

Sonnet and Stan join me in Paris and so we have dinner at Le Timbre in the 6e, on recommendation from a friend chez Astorg. Le Timbre is one of those perfect neighbourhood restaurants and, as Stan notes " it really is a two man operation" - in fact, man and woman, as she takes reservations and serves us and maybe ten squeezed tables while he prepares the boeuf. And what boeuf it is : terrine de campagne confiture d'oignons, foie gras de canard maison.. . filet de cabillaud compote de tomates .. .the menu, below. Me, I go for the boudin noir bearnais puree aux herbes which also known as "blood pudding" in Ireland. And it is wonderful - a salty dried mash with crumbly bits over a potato herb puree. Thibault tells me : "It is what I would have ordered" so I know I am on to something special.

Today Sonnet and Stan at the opening of the "Degas et le nu" exhibition at the D'Orsay which, Sonnet notes, "titillating " as the painter spent some considerable time at a French brothel painting his hosts.  From the D'Orsay, Silver and Stan return to London via Terminus for oysters and lunch; me to work on rue due faubourg st honoree.