Thursday, July 07, 2005

London Attacked

I really don't have a lot to say on this. . .most of you will have received my mass email stating I am alright. I live two hours away so I am not directly effected by this tragedy. Birmingham, the second largest city that I live just outside of, is also under watch for further bombs. All I really can think to say is how impressed I am with the people of Great Britian for their stoicism and courage to not let these events hinder our daily lives any more than it absolutely has to. I am proud to be living here at this time, with so many other great things happening in this country and in the world.

Tuesday, July 05, 2005

Another New Home




Here is my new house!



This is the view from the front of the house. You can see quite a bit of countryside; this picture doesn't quite do it justice.



This is our sunset view from the front.



This is our back garden. There are all sorts of flowers and it seems something different blooms everyweek. There are also some herbs already growing in the garden. It needs a bit of weeding and clean up but still looks beautiful with everything in bloom.
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Monday, July 04, 2005

Happy Independence Day!

It is funny how many people over here were aware and mentioned the 4th holiday to me today. I came into the office with a handdrawn flag and a sign saying up with the rebels on my desk from my colleague Alan this morning and numerous people mentioned it to me throughout the day. I never really gave it much thought except for the fact that I should be off work today! Stacy and Brianna decided we should have a BBQ for a little celebration. We invited all the Americans who are here but it ended up just the three of us (and one Brit). We managed to get American as possible with bbq chicken, potatoes, apple pie and of course, Budweiser (which, as an aside, I recently found out the original Bud comes from Chezc Republic and the American co. stole it). It wasn't the most pleasant weather for grilling outside but we managed to talk the sky into giving us enough time to cook the food and have a nice little 4th of July celebration here in England.

Here we have Stacy trying to keep the grill going in the drizzle while I supervise.
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Sunday, July 03, 2005

LIVE8

We headed to London Friday and went to see Fame the night before. It was probably the worst theatre production I have ever been to but we had a fun night in the bars before and after. I had a great picture of Martin, Jackie and their friend Jason but somehow lost it on my computer.

We headed for the park around 10:30/11:00AM. Here was the crowd before the show before everyone got in. Most people brought little picnics and stuff to sit on and took breaks between sets. Jackie and I agreed we were a little less prepared than we would normally be but it didn't effect our good time.

The show started with Paul McCartney singing Sgt. Pepper's. "It was 20 years ago today. . ." referring to the last LiveAid. He had horn players in the uniforms of the Sgt. Pepper album cover. He was joined by U2 and Bono sang along before they took over to sing "One" and a few other songs.

The guys from Little Britian came out to do one of their routines and introduced Elton John

Elton John was okay. . . I was not as impressed as I thought I would be, I think because of the songs he sang. For his last song they sang "Children of the Revolution" originally by TRex and was joined by Pete Doherty (originally from the Libertines) and that boy was not looking good.

Coldplay was the next on and they were wonderful!

Before Michael here, Dido was on. I have never given her much of a chance but I really liked her. She was then joined by singer Youssou N'Dour who was amazing. REM put on a great set but I got the feeling some of the Brits surrounding me weren't so keen on them.

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LIVE8 continued. . .


Throughout the day we also had Keane, Ms. Dyamite, Snoop Dog, and introductions with Kofi-Anan and Ricky Gervais (I never thought those two men would be in the same sentence!) Bob Geldof popped back on stage and said he was so thrilled he had to sing a song. He pleased the crowd with his "I don't like Mondays."



This one's for you Don! Travis brightened the stage with their delightful melodramatic pop that we love so much!

Then the next surprise. Brad Pitt came out (with bleached blonde hair) to introduce Annie Lennox. I didn't get any pictures of Annie because I was mesmerized by her performance!


Madonna brought on stage a young woman whose picture had been shown all over during the time of LiveAid and was on the brink of starvation. She is now attending university. I'm not sure how I felt about all that...it seemed a little exploitave.

But Madonna was good!

The Scissor Sisters then rocked as they always do!

Velvet Revolver received some mixed reviews.

Sting got the crowd going again.
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And a bit more. . .


The night ended with a great run, beginning with David Beckham (ooh la la) introducing Robbie Williams.

I wish I had a better pic of Robbie. You may not be his number one fan but he is quite the entertainer and I was amazed at how crazy the crowd went over him. By far probably the best response from the crowd.

The Who came on next, introduced by the delightful Peter Kay. I could have listened to them all night!

Then Pink Floyd joined the stage and had a worthwhile reunion!



The finale brought Paul McCartney back on stage.

He was joined, to everyone's surprise (although it was somewhat expected) by George Michael. Eventually all of the musicians came out for the final song. There are a few folks I didn't mention because I wasn't as into it or not a fan (ie, the obnoxious diva Ms. Mariah Carey). We arrived before noon that day and didn't make it back to the hotel until 1 AM. It was well worth it though!
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