Wedding Post

Sophie, in the backseat and our neighbor Helen's (pictured, center) daughter, gets hitched. I grab my camera and join the neighborhood who line up to wish her well and good luck. Helen herself married to Martin who was born in the house pictured - Martin 80 or so and his mum a Wimbledon champion so he is a member of the club. Not too many people may claim that convenience. Martin knows more about stuff than most people I know and maybe as much as Arthur - on occasion Martin and I have discussed tree-pruning, WWII bombing strategies and gas lamps, which were across London until '64 when replaced by electrics. Helen has become our go-to in case of emergency : like several weeks ago when Aneta and I got our languages mixed up and Madeleine at home, solo, for the afternoon. After a while she marched herself across the yard, knocked on Helen's door, and announced she had been "Forgotten." Inside a moment I get a text on my mobile and a call at work. Madeleine very cool about the whole thing - no tears - but I know she was pretty upset especially since she has seen "Home Alone" and "Home Alone II."

I do five-hours of outside work which I heartily enjoy but today freezing and my hands numb by the end. Since it may snow yet I wanted to get the piles bagged.

Sports Day

KPR practice cancelled as the pitch frozen solid. Instead, we do a little one-on-one time where I beat him up. Or he beats me up, I don't know any more. He runs circles around me and I remember when he could barely keep up with the ball. It is properly cold but feels nice to be outside - I remind him of my swim practices, 6AM, poolside and freezing our nuts off knowing full well that the only thing worse was the shock of jumping into the cold pool. This is becoming my five-mile walk through the snow to get to school. Or the fish that keeps growing bigger. But Moe was there, right Moe? KPR meant to play the Whitton Wanderers tomorrow but I give it 50:50.

This afternoon Sonnet takes the kids the the Junior Borough Swimming Championships and Madeleine scores fourth in backstroke and second in breaststroke and is pleased as punch. Sonnet informs me Madeleine nervous before her race - especially the backstroke where she is expected to do a "tumble turn" between the first and second laps. It turns out Ok. Madeleine breathless when she tells me about the breaststroke race and avoiding being disqualified "if your feet touch together." Tomorrow she swims the 66-meters front crawl and the 133-meter freestyle relay in our weird 33 meter pools. Madeleine now at Pandemonium toy store rewarding herself for an excellent performance.

Stoned

I wish Toy Story 3 had the same effect on me. Molly spends the night and the Shakespeares up at the crack of dawn to watch their television. On my side, despite having more choice than ever in my life, I am no longer enthralled by the boob tube. Nor movies - we have not been to a film since I can remember. Sonnet and I once had a weekly date night which usually included some cheap Lebanese then the cinema somewhere in the West End but alas no more. Or when the babes were crawling we rented oldies like "African Queen" or "North By Northwest" Sunday evenings once the monsters down. It was the best couple hours of the week. The only reason, in fact, we pay Rupert Murdoch any money at all (Rupert Murdoch who I cannot stand for destroying the WSJ and hoisting Fox News on a dumbed down nation) is football. He owns the Premiere League when, in 1992, his BSkyB outbid the BBC for exclusive broadcasting rights by paying £302 million - a monstrous amount of money for then; before Rupert, the games were free. Bastard. The boy cannot live without it- heroes and all that.

During my banking interviews I was once asked, by an adult twice my age with a nice tie and grey hair - for my heroes. Without hesitation I said my father. A hero, after all, is a mythic sort of figure while my dad was, well my dad. As a yuf I think I mostly admired swimmers like Rowdy Gaines (who I follow on Facebook) and the great Swedish butterflier Par Aardvison. Today I wish to emulate my friends. One or two are mentors.

Eitan I know worships Manchester United's Wayne Rooney and before that, Christiano Rinaldo, before he went to Real Madrid (the tears !). Before that - Spider Man. Madeleine keeps mainly to herself on these things. At least I have not seen any thing or any one. She marches to the beat of her own drum.

Me: "Give me something for my blog."

Madeleine: "Like what?"

Me: "I don't know. How about the dog?"

Madeleine (without inflexion): "Rusty is an adorable dog. I am so glad we got him. Only he can be a bit lazy in front of the radiator."

Me:

Madeleine: "Howz that?"

Any Morning

Aneta brushes Rusty's teeth. Eitan does a karate chop. That's our new boiler behind him - now installed - heat! Just in a nick of time, too.

King's Assembly

Madeleine's class assembly yesterday afternoon and Sonnet and I join for the show. The kids belt out some tunes around a plot involving King Henry VIII - Madeleine, indeed, is King Henry. Along with two others. Madeleine also a presenter: "When he died, she married Henry and they had six children however only one survived. Mary ! Please welcome Catherine of Aragon!" Mr H, the Head Teacher, tells the children what a marvelous job they have done and how fabulous they are. And they are.

Henry VIII (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was also Lord of Ireland (later King of Ireland) and claimant to the Kingdom of France. He was the second monarch of the House of Tudor, succeeding his father, Henry VII.

Besides his six marriages, Henry VIII is known for separating the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church. Henry's struggles with Rome led to the separation of the Church of England from papal authority, the Dissolution of the Monasteries, and establishing himself as the Supreme Head of the Church of England. He changed religious ceremonies and rituals and suppressed the monasteries, while remaining a believer in core Catholic theological teachings, even after his excommunication from the Roman Catholic Church.

Henry also oversaw the legal union of England and Wales with the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542.Henry was an attractive and charismatic man in his prime, educated and accomplished. He ruled with absolute power. His desire to provide England with a male heir—which stemmed partly from personal vanity and partly because he believed a daughter would be unable to consolidate the Tudor Dynasty and the fragile peace that existed following the Wars of the Roses—led to the two things that Henry is remembered for today: his wives, and the English Reformation that made England a Protestant nation. In later life he became morbidly obese and his health suffered; his public image is frequently depicted as one of a lustful, egotistical, harsh and insecure king.

(sources - Wiki: J. J. Scarisbrick, Henry VIII; Robert M. Adams, The land and literature of England; and Eroc Ives, "Will the Real Henry VIII Please Stand Up?")

"Henry the 8th he had six wives

All of them lived in fear of their lives

Two were divorced and one of them died

Two were behead and one survived"

--Children's nursery rhyme sung at assembly

X-Country

Eitan's school team, pictured, with mascot, pre-race. This morning over cereal the boy mumbles that he has a 10AM cross country race and we can watch if we want to. So I do. Ten or so teams compete or 75 in the boys and girls races, which go off separately. The course a 1.5 mile loop around the Isabella Plantation in Richmond Park. Mum Karen, who is a professional athlete originally from Iceland, the volunteer coach - God bless her+she is good : Karen the European tri-athlete champion and recently completed the Australian Iron Man finishing 23rd overall. She will probably do Hawaii next year. Companies sponsor her. Karen laments that the boys train only once a week. I am sure with Karen's guidance these ten-year-olds would be doing daily doubles no problemo. Karen's son Trigvy a remarkable athlete himself who plays for the KPR reds (the other under-10 KPR football team) and this morning Trigvy wins the race. Eitan second.

The boys come round the last corner, into view, and on to the final straight-away heading to the finish gate with Trigvy looking over his shoulder and Eitan 20 feet behind. Eitan has a runner on his shoulder who he out-guns by the end. His advantage is size and a skinny frame while his long hair makes him look like Steve Prefontaine. But I get ahead of myself. The lads are all beat red and their breathe puffs in the cold air; they are please with themselves and I am happy to be invisible on the sidelines.

"Somebody may beat me, but they are going to have to bleed to do it."

--Steve Prefontaine

Hard Drugs

Nutella, which the kids swim in this morning, a hazelnut flavored sweet spread produced by Italian company Ferrero from the end of 1963. The recipe developed from an earlier Ferrero recipe '49. Nutella sold in over 75 countries. Gianduja is a type of chocolate analogue containing approximately 50% almond and hazelnut juice. It was developed in Piedmont, Italy, after taxes on cocoa beans hindered the diffusion of conventional chocolate. Pietro Ferrero, who owned a patisserie in Alba, in the Langhe district of Piedmont, an area known for the production of hazelnuts, sold an initial batch 660 lb of "Pasta Gianduja" in 1946. This was originally a solid block, but in 1949, Pietro started to sell a creamy version in 1951 as "Supercrema". In 1963, Pietro's son Michele revamped Supercrema with the intention of marketing it across Europe. Its composition was modified and it was renamed "Nutella". The first jar of Nutella left the Ferrero factory in Alba on 20 April 1964. The product was an instant success.

The estimated Italian production of Nutella averages 179,000 tons per year.

Me: "What do you think of Nutella?"

Madeleine: "Amazing. I haven't had it since year three."

Source: Wikipedia;

Met Office : Severe Winter Warning

These Brits love a spell of foul weather - something to bond over. And heavy snow expected, too, for London and Surrey by Saturday. If so, this will be the earliest snow in seventeen years. This, though, being the second warmest year on record. The kids amped - it wakes them early for an immediate check on the outside. The "arctic storm" will keep things sub-zero for the next ten days or so; the pond froze over last night and frost covers everything. While most think of a white Christmas, I think : transportation chaos. The dog starts yapping at 5AM so Sonnet and I take the pooch for a walk around the block. For a dog, he sure hates it - "Rusty" would rather sit in front of the heater and who can blame him?

Sonnet visits St Catherine's School, a possible school for Madeleine who will enter secondary school in two years. She notes "warm, friendly, all girls. The Head Mistress, a nun, wore a business suit."

Yesterday's Thanksgiving makes for a slow day in the UK - my emails halved. Katie spends the holiday with Aunt Marcia and Larry in Bronxville where the Seabrings host the turkey this year. Four families trade holiday gatherings which has been "going on for some time," Marcia notes. Per tradition, the men put on their aprons and do the dishes afterwards.

The kids studying the planets in school

Madeleine: "We are all aliens. Did you know that?"

Me:

Madeleine: "We are aliens from outer space."

Eitan: "That is so obvious."

Madeleine: "Does anybody live on Mars?"

Me: "Not yet but scientists are talking about how to visit. The problem is the getting back."

Madeleine: "Can't they build a big gas station or something?"

Me: "Good one. That is the idea."

Eitan spills Cheerios on the floor and I catch him putting back in the box.

Me: "Are you out of your mind?"

Eitan: "What?"

Me: "Would you lick the floor with your tongue?"

Eitan: "Er, yes?"

I promise the kids Nutella and - to their great surprise - I bring a jar home. Eitan glops it onto his oatmeal which gets me a dirty look from Sonnet (Eitan in background growling: "mmmm loving this.")

Sonnet: "You've been wearing that to bed. You cannot where it to school."

Madeleine: "Yes I can."

Sonnet: "Try me."

Photo from the www.

Zoe And Fuzzy+A Party Date Set

Zoe has settled into her grammar school in Devon - one of the country's best. Last year she was working like mad but now it is under control - the shock behind her.

North Korea attacks South Korea. Ireland falls apart. Main news story : wedding date fixed for Kate and William in April, 2011. The PM grants a bank holiday week end. We are going to par-tay dude.

Willem

Willem with us this weekend for early Thanksgiving. Willem married to Halley, and we are also joined by their children and "Fozzy." which gives Rusty some companionship (they dogs establish whose dominant by growling and humping each other). Willem co-founded Exeter University's Mood Disorders Center, a research, clinical and training which he runs today. He joined the university in 1999 where he has had a number of roles including heading up the doctoral clinical psychology training programme, leading the clinical research group and academic lead for the Mood Disorders Centre. In 2006 he was awarded the May Davidson award for clinical psychologists who have made an outstanding contribution to the development of clinical psychology within the first 10 years of their work as a qualified clinical psychologist. He is a "grand-fathered" Fellow of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy. Source: Willem's bio on website.

Last year, following a similar Thanksgiving re-union, I was in California driving on the 101, listening to NPR : there was Willem being interviewed.

RIBA

I take this shot at the Royal Institute of British Architects which is one of my favorite spots to have lunch. Located on Portland Street between Regents Park and Oxford Circus, RIBA an art deco building with a sculpture garden extending from the restaurant. In the summer, lovely.

I join college friend Fergal, and HBS grad and 2:28 marathoner+a successful venture capitalist; we discuss the demise of Ireland which is all over the news. Recall that earlier this year, fears of a sovereign debt crisis sparked a euro crisis from profligates Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain and our dear Ireland. This led to a confidence crisis as well as the widening of bond yield spreads and risk insurance on credit default swaps between these countries and other EU members, most importantly Germany.Concern about rising government deficits and debt levels across the globe together with a wave of downgrading of European government debt has created alarm in financial markets.

The debt crisis has been mostly centred on Greece and the rising cost of financing the government debt. In May, the Eurozone and the International Monetary Fund agreed to a €110 billion loan for Greece, conditional on the implementation of harsh Greek austerity measures. Also that month, Europe's Finance Ministers approved a comprehensive rescue package worth almost a trillion dollars aimed at ensuring financial stability across Europe by creating the European Financial Stability Facility. It is now being tested.

Ireland's only real economic advantage is their 12.5% corporate tax rate (set up in '86 on the advice of Ira Magaziner who also conceived Brown's "new curriculum" of no grades nor requirements), the lowest in the western world, which attracts foreign companies like Dell to the tiny country (by contrast : US, 39%, Singapore, 17%, UK, 28%). Taking the bail-out, Ireland forced to rethink this advantage. Fergal worried the brightest and the best shall leave. They always do.

We should thank our lucky stars that Gordon Brown kept us out of the Euro. Recall Tony and Peter Mandelson and others fought hard for Britain's inclusion. Super Gee, for all his failures of personality and style, did more for the UK than many appreciate. He should be remembered for this. And Blair - Iraq.

Cal - Charlie Brown - Doonesbury

Cal goes down hard. Nothing redeems this season, which I began looking forward to with CW and Mike in June. Again I must say: "just wait 'til next year, damn it!"

Moving right along, I loved the "Peanuts" as a kid. I collected Charles Schulz's books and clipped the dailies and taped them into filing folders. At one point, I broke into a green recycling both at the Kensington hight street (Berkeley) for back newspapers. Funny what one remembers. I loved the story lines and got some weird thrill owning them to completion. Ob-ses-sion, dude.

On comics and football, Gary Trudeau celebrates 40 years of Doonesbury and interviewed on Radio 4. Doonesbury started in the Yale Daily News in '68 as "Bull Tales" when star Quarterback "B.D." meets Mike ("My name's Mike Doonesbury. I hail from Tulsa, Oklahoma and women adore me! Glad to meet you roomie!"). The Daily News's executive editor, Reed Hundt, eventually chaired the FCC and noted that the Daily News had a flexible policy about publishing cartoons: “We publish pretty much anything.” Doonesbury debuted as a daily in 1970 in two dozen newspapers following an offer Universal Press (Trudeau says Bull Tales meant for one semester or two semesters tops). He is still with UP today. Trudeau describes this early period as the Golden era of comics.

As a 7th-grader, I learned American history from Doonesbury: A November '72 strip of Zonker telling a little boy in a sandbox a fairy tale ends with the kid awarded “his weight in fine, uncut Turkish hashish” caused an uproar. During the Watergate scandal, a strip showed Mark on the radio with a “Watergate profile” of John Mitchell, declaring him “Guilty! Guilty, guilty, guilty!!” Trudeau sent B.D. to Viet Nam and Joanie to graduate school in her middle-age to begin a law career (Hello, mom!). Trudeau, in '76, introduces Mark as a homosexual (in the early- mid-80s my dad's law firm lost their mail-operations employee to AIDS; Moe's firm with him until the very end). There is much more, of course, covering Kissenger to Ford to Clinton. Trudeau took on the cigarettes industry for its lying and thieving and the Iran Contra affair. He famously depicted el Presidente as invisible. That was a good one. And then there is Zonker's uncle, Duke.

In '75, the strip won Trudeau a Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning, the first strip cartoon to be so honored. It was a Nominated Finalist in 1990, 2004, and 2005.

“The way I see it, it doesn't matter what you believe just so you're sincere.”

--Charles M. Schulz

Go Bears!

There may be a lot of big games but there is only one Big Game. And that is Cal vs. Stanford. The first Big Game on March 19, 1892 on San Francisco's Haight Street grounds when Stanford beat Cal 14–10. It is the tenth longest rivalry in NCAA Division 1 football. Stanford leads the series record at 55–46–11 (wins–losses–ties). Cal won the most recent Big Game on November 21, 2009 by a score of 34–28. Cal has won seven of the last eight Big Games, following a seven game winning streak by Stanford. The location of the Big Game alternates between the two universities every year. In even-numbered years, the game is played at Berkeley, while in odd-numbered years, it is played at Stanford. There are also other competitions between the schools like "The Big Splash" (water polo), "The Big Spike" (volleyball),"The Big Freeze" (ice hockey), and "The Big Sweep" (Quidditch).

Us die-hard Bears fans like to think we are giving those privileged private-school golf-playing preppies a drudging when we win. It is therefore the more horrible when we don't.

Moe and Grace hosting a pre-Big Game party for 25 friends and Cal fans (no Cardinal red today). The outlook, Moe and I agree, not good: Stanford has the best quarterback in college football - Andrew Luck - and ranked #6 in the nation with a 9-1 record. Plus it is overcast and raining, Grace tells me. In short, perfect conditions for an upset. Go Bears!

Queenies

Conrad's Soho neighbors this morning following a night of partying. They look in pretty good shape, too. Conrad and I shared a book club for seven or eight years (my interest fallen as I always felt like the dumb American. Maybe I am the dumb American). Conrad a strategy consultant (MBA from Wharton) and an inerior designer.

Dog Run

Easy material, "Rusty." The dog now sits, lies, waits and follows on command. All for a dog treat. His favorite 30 seconds is, and by far, meal-time, which he enjoys three-times a day. "Rusty" puts his full head into the dish and hoovers away. I scratch him behind an ear which gets a hind leg thumping; Madeleine curls up with the dog. Even Sonnet being won over slowly - she comments on "Rusty's" oversize paws which he has yet to grow into. This morning Eitan and I take the dog to the park and let him run around while Eitan works on his ball skills. It is foggy and soon "Rusty" gone and I spend five minutes searching for him before he turns up across the street in the hands of a nice construction guy who pulls his car over to ensure "Rusty" unhurt.

That Hair - Baby P

I tell Eitan he could be in a rock band. He smirks. His hair like the sixth member of the family (including "Rusty"). I join his class for the first time in a few years - in fact, not since I delivered a story about "Kit Kat Cowboy" and Eitan covered his eyes for 20 minutes. It was unnerving. This morning he protests and I take the bait: no embarrassement from me, no Sir (as I drop my trousers and show my stripy pants).

After passing school security (from today I am undergoing a background check by the Criminal Records Bureau as a matter of course for being in the classroom. This procedure new. Britain taking child protection seriously following "Baby P.") I join Mr B to find the classroom joyous. Michael Jackson's "Thriller" in the background and the children singing. The sun shines through the window as I listen to little people laughing and chattering like something from Roger & Hammerstein. Mr B puts me to work filing papers then making black stars and white planets from construction papers - the solar system under investigation. Did you know that Neptune takes 164 earth years to travel around the sun? I didn't. (Note Eitan's shirt sprinkled with stars - "Mufti Day" dude). The kids well behaved (I think of "Rusty" - anybody can be trained) and one friendly gal takes the stage to present her "soap box" about a recent visit to Egypt. Captivating, too. Eitan able to contribute that King Tut's early demise most likely from undernourishment and a few violent bone-breaks which he describes with relish. His knowledge from the Denver Museum. I make a point of not noticing the boy though I am aware he is sensitive to my every movement.

The music and singing btw practice for the O2 center where the kids will perform over the holiday break.

Peter Connelly ("Baby P") was an English 17-month old boy who died in London after suffering more than 50 injuries over an eight-month period, during which he was repeatedly seen by Haringey Children's services and NHS health professionals. The case caused public shock partly because of the magnitude of Peter's injuries and partly because Peter had lived in the London Borough of Haringey, North London, under the same child care authorities that had already failed ten years earlier in the case of Victoria Climbié. A public enquiry resulted in measures to prevent similar cases happening. Peter's mother, Tracey Connelly, her boyfriend, Steven Barker, and Jason Owe were convicted of causing or allowing the death of a child, the mother having pleaded guilty to the charge.

Royal Engagement

After nine years, Prince William no dummy. His marriage proposal to Kate Middleton follows ups and downs which have occupied the country and keep Fleet Street humming. God bless. The engagement in a nick of time, too, what with this horrible recession. Entertainment=religion. William does not disappoint either slipping his mother's engagement band on Kate's finger, noting Di won't miss a bit of the action. I feel Di's ever-loving presence upon them smiling her approval and making us all feel special somehow. It is easy to be cynical about these things when divorces and pre-nups the accepted norm in our Western World. There are similarities, too, between Kate and Di : both "common", ie, no Royal pedigree; each tall and beautiful. They have great style and enviable hair. Di 20 when she married Prince Charles and the media exposure killed her. Kate, on the other hand, knows the score and plays it like a pro. Since '07 Kate's privacy respected by the paps whom, she notes, a reason for her break-up with Wills last time. If today's headlines any indication, this will be one of the world's most visible events ever. Game on.

Sonnet and I have dinner with Simon and Diana at a favorite place, the River Café. The restaurant owned and run by renown chef Ruth Rogers and until early 2010, Rose Gray. The R-C earned its first Michelin Star in '88 and Sonnet and I dined here first time in '97. Not easy to find either : the restaurant next to various council estates and converted warehouse blocks on the northside of the Thames in Hammersmith not too far from the Hammersmith Bridge. Chefs who have trained at R-C include Sam and Sam Clark of Moro, Ed Baines of Randall & Aubin, April Bloomfield of the Spotted Pig (in New York) and celebrity chefs Jamie Oliver, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Tobie Puttock. The architectural design, by Stuart Forbes Associates and Sir Richard Rogers, simple, industrial and clean - at its opening this style years ahead of the nouveau blather now common in modern financial centers. Simon suggests the grouse, a seasonal game bird available for two months in late autumn, and it is amazing.

We met Simon and Diana at a Bat Mitzvah - Simon a venture capitalist and Diana a writer with a weekly food column for the LA Times before she moved to London. She raised a substantial amount of support for President Obama's '08 election, and we love hearing her and Simon's inside views on various affairs. Like Bush rushing his book "Decision Points" before Cheney comes out with his auto-biography which skewers el Presidente. Could be nasty. The kids home with "Rusty" and Aneta.

Photo by the paps in Ibiza.

"Religion is the opium of the people."

--Karl Marx

L'Equipe Suisse

Geneve Natation 1885, pictured, in 1982 or '83. I trained with this group during my year in Switzerland. Coach Tony Ulrich, in slacks, took an interest in me and, with my parents, made it possible : Tony sorted an exchange family and then again mid-way through the year when Claude turned out to be a dud and returned to his mommy midway through the year. Tony often picked me up at my host parent's flat or the train station for dark morning practices. Asst Ralph, on the far-left, not a great coach but enthusiastic - we travelled Israel for a month for training sessions and competitions. I stayed on a kibbutz and ate cucumbers and lettuce for breakfast. I saw the dome of rock and wailing wall; Jerusalem's Arab markets and where Jesus walked on water. We visited Masada and the Dead Sea and I touched Jordan.

GN composed of a small group of distance swimmers but mostly staffed with middle-distance experts and sprinters. World Record holder Dana Halsell for instance (third from right). Etienne Dagon, holding the trophy, won Switzerland's first swimming medal in an Olympics - a bronze in '84 in the 200-meter breast stroke, clocking 2:18. Etienne old for a swimmer - 24 then - and dating a 14-year old on the team. Ah Europe. Behind him the Jacot brothers who helped set the Swiss 4X100 freestyle relay record. Theophile David (behind Etienne, chiseled jaw) a 2:02 200-meter butterflier and awesome physical specimen - tall and handsome - he anchored his huge hands at the top of the stroke while his body rolled over and forward. Slow, powerful, graceful. Theo a finalist at the '83 European Championships and ranked #8th in the world but did not register at Los Angeles. Theo having an affair with my host-sister, age 16.

I was in Geneva a couple years ago and swam some laps at the 50-meter grand basin. I looked for Tony but he was no longer there.

Boiler Trouble

As our boiler out and no heat, we take comfort as we can - pictured. Some mornings, like this morning, we can see our breath. In the kitchen. When our plumber installed the radiators he failed to evacuate an air pocket so the pump blades spun in air (instead of water) and overheated. If not for the pressure discharge trip, the sucker would have blown. Do not mess around with a boiler. We now discuss whether his shoddy practices or an old boiler the root of the breakdown. The work-around not cheap. Sonnet buys ten "space heaters" and for Aneta (so miserable at one point I think she might move to the train station for warmth) an electric blanket. The kids have double comforters and Sonnet and I each other. I would like to suggest there is a sense of war-like bunkering-down and family bonding but mostly everybody cranky. We hope to have the problem fixed by Christmas. Suggestion to parents : bring warm clothes for the holidays.

Eitan: "We're learning about idioms in school"

Me: "Yes?"

Eitan: "Like 'don't teach grannie to suck eggs.'"

Me:

Eitan: "That's an idiom."

Me: "Don't you mean 'don't teach grannie to boil an egg?'"

Eitan: "No. I mean 'suck eggs.' That's what they told us in school."

Eitan: "I once fed a pigeon bread with tabasco."

Madeleine: "You said mustard."

Eitan: "Did not. I said tabasco."

Me: "Sounds like your story growing mister."

Eitan:

Madeleine: "Busted."

Hookie

Madeleine not feeling well so I ditch work and she plays hookie. We go to IKEA, pictured, and I tell her that if we are stopped by a truant officer she should tell him she's a run-away. Since today one of those cold, grey Mondays it is quite appropriate to be at an enormous shopping center in Wembley buying .. home goods. I get fired up over a cup of coffee for kitchen towels and other crapola. We are here to buy "Rusty" a dog bed but walk away with a lot of stuff excluding a dog bed. Madeleine tags along dutifully and we practice her maths and spelling. She seems to be feeling much better and watches "Harry P" as I blog.