PG Tips Tea Commercial

This commercial cracks me up because it's funny to think about a British-speaking monkey puppet drinking tea. Also, I think it is funny when he gets frustrated at the end.

Woking Blackhawks

Our town has a basketball team called the Woking Blackhawks and Victor is thinking about joining! Their season started last week, but I think you can join at any time. The games are on Fridays and they are only 80p ($1.60) to attend. I told Victor I would come and cheerlead if he joins. :) Victor is excited because he was been wanting to play basketball for a while but hasn't really had a chance to with work and all. The good thing is that practice is on Tuesdays at 8:30, so that gives him time to get home from work and make it to practice on time. The games on Fridays are at 8 as well, so it works out well with his work schedule.

Pictures from Our London Bus Tour

Click on "Visit this Album" if you would like to view larger pictures:

Piccadilly Circus

On Saturday we went to an area in London called Piccadilly Circus. It really is like a circus down there because there are lots of people and rides and carnival games and such. We had a pretty good time. We also went to the Amora London Museum of Sex and Relationships. It was really interesting and educational! We enjoyed ourselves and learned alot. Anyway, here are some pictures from Piccadilly Circus. Click on "Visit this Album" if you would like to view larger pictures:

My Quest to Make Friends

On Friday I had dinner with my book club/discussion group. We went to a Caribbean restaurant called The Mango Room. We had a nice time and had good conversations. Victor was supposed to come and meet my friends, but he ended up going to a year-end happy hour with his co-workers. Oh well, maybe next time.

Not too much else has been going on...I am trying to think of other ways to meet more people, and I found a website called gumtree.com where people put up personal ads to find friends. At first I thought it was weird, but when you think about it, how else are you going to meet people these days? In college, it was easy to meet people because you were all lumped in one centralized location and you automatically had something in common, but once you're out of school, you are just sort of floating in the atmosphere and its not like people are going to come up to you in the grocery store and say, "Hey, you look like someone I'd like to get to know. Let's be buddies." So, I looked through the ads and found several ads for black girls around my age that were looking for the same things I am looking for: friends to do stuff with and chat with. I'm just glad I'm not the only one looking for friends! There were also couples looking for other couples to hang out with. I responded to some of the ads and have gotten a few responses back already. I know it sounds a little sketchy, but at this point I don't know what else to do. I work from home, so I don't have any co-workers, and the gym and church we go to is filled with middle-aged people with kids. And much to my disappointment, there is not a Delta chapter here, so I have run out of options. We'll see what happens!

Marathon Training????

Well, I officially started my marathon training this week and I hate to say that I am already looking for excuses to quit!!!!!!!! What's wrong with me? On Monday I was supposed to run 6 miles, so I had mapped out a nice course along the Basingstoke Canal because I read that there are nice walking trails along the canal. Conveniently, one of the entrances to the walking trail is only half a mile from our apartment so I thought, "How nice! I will get to run amongst nature!" WRONG! When I got there I got scared because the trail is secluded from civilization and I was positive someone would be waiting in the bushes to attack me, plus the canal was level with the running trial and they were separated only by some mud and grass, and all it would take was a gust of wind for me to go running into the water. Also, the water was dark, so I have no clue how deep it was which creeps me out, and I kept imagining a sea monster coming up from the depths of the water to snatch me up. Anyway, against my better judgement I started running on the trail because I had spent so much time mapping out my running and I didn't want all the planning to go to waste. As I was running though, my imagination kept getting more and more vivid and I was sure that someone was out to get me, so I only ended up running a quarter of a mile on the trail and I got off the trail at the next opening. Part of me wanted to keep going on the trail because--I must admit--it was very pretty and there were ducks floating in the water and stuff, but my intuition told me to find somewhere else to run that wasn't so secluded, plus it gets dark here at 4 PM and it was already 3:45, and I was not about to be stuck in the woods at nighttime!! Anyway, since I had set out to run 6 miles, I knew I needed to keep running, so I ran around town. I figured I would head home after it felt like I had ran 6 miles, and then I would use Google Maps to figure out how far I had actually run. Well, I got home and I was feeling pretty good about myself because I THOUGHT that I ran AT LEAST 4 or 5 miles, but when I mapped it on the internet guess how far I ran?? 2.65 miles!! That's it!! I was so disappointed in myself because I really thought that I ran alot further than that. After I got over my disappointment, I decided to go ahead and map out Tuesday's run so that I would know exactly where I would be running and exactly how far I would be running. On Tuesday I was supposed to run 3 miles and the plan that I mapped out was 3.1, so I thought, "Perfect!" WRONG!! I started out running on Tuesday and I stepped of the curb wrong and my ankle started hurting very early into my run, so I ended up having to walk most of the way. Today I am supposed to run 3 miles and I am determined to do so, even if it kills me!!! I really do want to run the marathon and I do not want to give up, so I am just going to have to make running a non-negotiable part of my daily life.

Christmas Bonus

Here is another funny commercial. This one is for the Christmas Bonus Lottery. I especially like the turkey running along the beach with her braids flowing behind her: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwokqKZLpPA

Anyway, I ordered my office furniture today. Yeah! I think it will take a week or two to get here. It was fun picking out what I wanted. I will be glad once I have everything together. Not much went on today. Oh, I bought some car insurance! At first they tried to tell me it would be £1900 a year, but I was able to bargain them down to £625 by agreeing to get a letter from my previous insurer saying that I have been claim-free for the past five years. Whew! It wouldn't have made a huge difference to me personally since my company is paying for my insurance, but I am glad that I was able to save them a lot of money.

Victor is still working long hours, but their busy season is over on Friday so his workload should ease up a little after that. I am so proud of how well he is doing at work and they even gave him a little shout-out in their company newsletter. Here is what it said: "Victor Yarbrough is now well on board and running the claims function previously conducted by Irina in Investigations. Victor, who comes from Cincinnati, Ohio, has made a real impact in a short period of time. " Isn't that nice? I like to brag on my man. :) Speaking of newsletters, I wrote an article for my company newsletter about relocating to a different country and it was published this month. I would post it but it is sort of long.

God is really blessing us here and we thank Him every night for allowing us the wonderful opportunity of living abroad. Please pray for us that we continue to follow the will of God and remain sensitive to His desires for us.

UK Commercials

UK commercials tickle me. I am going to start posting commercials that I think are funny, weird, or interesting. Here are a couple:

This Nutrigrain commercial is funny but borderline weird: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8567695671324387491 I FEEL GREAT!!!

Here is another one that makes me giggle: http://youtube.com/watch?v=zy9h8G2EcQ0&feature=related "Does anyone have any aqua mineral?" Hee hee

And I hate this commercial because it is supposed to be about chocolate but it is just a gorilla playing the drums. I hate it!!http://youtube.com/watch?v=TApA1fyoSdk&feature=related

The Price of Gas

Someone was asking about the price of gas here (I believe it was Daddy). Right now gas is about £1 per liter. How does that translate into US prices? Well, there are approximately 4 liters in a gallon, so that would be £4 a gallon and when you do the currency conversion, that comes out to be about $8 a gallon. So quit your crying about your $2.50/gallon gasoline! Hee hee. :)

I'm On My Way!

I finally got my internet and phone lines hooked up in the apartment--whoo hoo! My quality of life has shot up by 97% since I no longer have to trudge to the library everyday and clamor for a computer. Now I can work out of the comfort of my home. This week's tasks will include getting my home office together and ordering office furniture. Fun fun!!

So, what have we been up to? Last week I drove to Wales for a business trip. Although it was very windy, dreary, and rainy, Wales was very pretty. The hills were lush and green and there were cute little sheep everywhere. We also went down by the coast one day and it was so pretty watching the water crash up against the rocks. Anyway, the drive up was about 3 hours. I have come quite a long way with my driving. A couple of weeks ago I would have never driven farther than the grocery store or the gym, but now I'm driving to different countries. Now that's what I call progress!

This past weekend I had a team meeting in London. There are only seven of us in the UK, so this was a nice way for us all time meet face to face. We went to a medieval banquet. Basically we were down in a dungeon and the performers were dressed in medieval clothes and there was lots of loud medieval music and entertainment. I had gone to a medieval banquet in Germany last year, so I knew what to expect. We had a pretty good time, but I think two medieval banquets in one lifetime are more than enough for me!! Here are some pictures:

http://lydiaandvictor.myphotoalbum.com/view_album.php?set_albumName=album02

I went to the store on Saturday and discovered some more interesting potato chip flavors:

• Lemon Roasted Chicken with Rosemary and Thyme




• Yogurt & Green Onion




• Spare Ribs




• Roasted Red Pepper with Goat Cheese




• Heinz Tomato Ketchup




• Lamb & Mint

I need to start bringing my camera to the grocery store so that I can take pictures of the bags. I'm going to bring a few home for folks to try during the holidays!!

Speaking of the holidays, I was so bummed not be home for Thanksgiving this year. I spent the entire day thinking about what I would be doing if I was at home and wandering what my family was up to. Thankfully, I spoked to my family several times on Thanksgiving, so I felt like I was in the loop. My sister Camille also took pity on me and fulfilled my request of detailing what each person was doing in the house so that I could have a mental picture of what everyone was doing at home. Although I was sad that I wasn't at home, I took comfort in knowing that I would be home for Christmas. Yay!

Still Waiting...

This week was full of ups and downs in my quest for normalcy. While I did finally receive my check card, I had to fight with DHL in order for them to deliver it to me in a timely manner. I finally got the phone line hooked up, but only after 3 additional calls to BT and a whole lot of arguing, threatening, and crying (by any means necessary!!). Since the phone line was finally activated, I was able to call the internet company on Friday to order broadband. They said that they would send out the equipment within 5 days, but it will take up to 15 days for the internet to be activated in the apartment. WHAT??? At this point, I really don’t care—I just want to be able to work from home instead of going to the library everyday!!

Anyway, aside from my daily struggles with DHL, BT, and Citibank, the rest of the week was not too bad. I worked out 4 days this week, which is good for me because I usually start out the week with these lofty fitness goals and by Tuesday I have talked myself out of doing more than a few minutes on the treadmill and a few crunches. This week I actually did all of the workouts that I had set out to do, so I am happy about that. I also registered for the Paris marathon (April 6, 2008) so I guess I have to do it now!! I’m excited!

We also got satellite television this week, but we were disappointed to find that satellite television is nothing more than 500 channels of American reruns. L It is sort of funny because all of the shows that failed in died in the US are thriving and successful here. It was nice to watch some oldies but goodies though, like “The Goonies” and “Real World” episodes from 6 seasons ago. :)

On Saturday Victor and I tried to go to the Museum of Branding & Advertising in Notting Hill, but we couldn’t find it and of course no one we asked knew where it was, so we ended up going to a nice outdoor market that had lots of yummy fruits and vegetables and nick nacks. We bought some really good strawberries and blueberries for only £1.50 each and 5 avocados for £1. The good thing about London is that even though housing is expensive, food is really cheap! Then we went to Harrod’s to look around at the merchandise. We’ll have to go back there to shop after a couple of extra zero’s have been added to our paychecks!! After that we met up with some of Victor’s co-workers and we had dinner at a cozy little Thai restaurant, then headed home and got in around 1 am.

Victor is doing well at his job. He gets compliments from his managers all the time because he is such hard worker and he goes the extra mile to produce quality work. I am very proud of him and all that he has accomplished so far.

The other day when I was at the grocery store I noticed that the potato chips here have fancy flavors with long elaborate names. My favorites that I have tried so far are:
· Vintage Farmhouse Cheddar with Pan Fried Shallots
· Balsamic Vinegar with Olive Oil and Chili
· Thai Sweet Chili with Roasted Red Peppers
I also noticed that there are a lot of meat –flavored chips, like roast beef, pork, roasted chicken, prawns…it’s sort of weird.

Weekly Wrap-Up

Well, since I am sitting here on hold with the phone company, I figured now would be as good a time as any to write in my blog!

This was a good week. I got my new car on Tuesday and guess what—it wasn’t a stick shift afterall!! Imagine my surprise and relief when I walked outside and looked in the car and saw P, R, N, D instead of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5! Figuring out how to drive a stick has been a source of stress for me the past few days, but now all that worry is gone. Woo-hoo! Anyway, I got a cute little funky 2007 car called a Renault Magane and it is electric blue. I like the color because it is something that I wouldn’t normally pick out on my own. Also, the car didn’t come with regular keys. To start the car, you just put this card in a slot and push the start button and the engine comes to life! Neat! I like it a lot, but I will only have this car for a few months and then I will getting one of my co-worker’s cars in February when she moves back to the States since there will still be a year left on her lease. She has a Ford Focus, but it is a 2006 so it won’t be too much of a downgrade. Plus, it’s an automatic so that’s all that really matters!! If you click on the link there are some pictures of my car and the “key”, and I also threw in a picture of our street and the gym that I go to. :)

http://lydiaandvictor.myphotoalbum.com/view_album.php?set_albumName=album01

I’m serious about running this marathon in April! I worked out 5 times this week and on Wednesday I met with a trainer at the gym and he gave me a workout plan so that I will be rock-solid and in tip-top shape in no time! Anyway, Victor and I had dinner with some of the other Fellows last night and one girl said that she was going to run the marathon with me. This was after a couple of glasses of wine though, so may be she didn’t realize what she was saying. Ha! I told her that she could back out if she wanted to because I have backed out of running marathons too many times to count. I’m really going to do it this time though.

A word about British television…sometimes I giggle when I watch TV because on some shows instead of having closed captioning, they have a little man or woman standing in the corner of the screen doing sign language. I laugh everytime. One day when we first moved here Victor and I were watching TV and the man was in the corner signing away and then all of a sudden he disappeared and Victor was like, “Where did he go?” and I was like, “It must have been time for his break.” Ahahahahaha!! I crack up everytime I think about my funny joke. A lot of the commercials are funny too. I’m going to start posting some of them if I EVER get the INTERNET in my APARTMENT!!!!!! Sorry—touchy subject!

What else…oh yeah, I went to the Civic Office yesterday to pay our Council Tax, and the lady was so rude to me. L Unfortunately, customer service is not one of the UK’s strong suits. For instance, I have been waiting to get my check card from the bank for two weeks now. I called the bank a couple of days ago to let them know I had not gotten my card and they checked at it hadn’t even been sent!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was very polite and asked that it be sent rush delivery because I don’t have access to my funds and they said sure. Well, I called back today and I was told that the card was sent rush delivery yesterday but it would still take 4 business days to get to me. ???? Guess how long it takes for them to send it regular delivery? 5 DAYS!!!!! I was not lying when I said that they like to take their time doing stuff here. Oh well…and by the way, it’s been 40 minutes and I’m still on hold with the phone company…

I'm Back!!

It has been 3 weeks since I have officially moved to the UK. I was trying to wait until I had internet access in my apartment to resume my blog entries, but seeing that I still do not have the internet (the British are SO SLOW!!), I figured I had better start writing before I forget everything that I have done so far.

Anyway, so far I have been just settling in and trying to get situated. I am still in the process of getting my home office set up. I have my computer, printer, keyboard, etc., but I still need to buy office furniture, set up my phone and fax lines, and set up the internet. I thought that this would be a quick and easy task, but no! I have been trying to get my phone lines installed for the past 3 weeks. I was finally able to schedule the phone technician to come on November 7. That is still a week and a half from now, but I will take whatever I can get at this point!
What else is going on? I have been learning how to drive on the opposite side of the road. It was so disorienting at first and I was in a constant state of confusion, but now I think I am getting the hang of it! I no longer have the urge to ditch the car on the side of the road and take the bus home. :)

Last week I got caught up in an attempted robbery! Victor and I had gone to the electronics store to buy a TV, and while Victor was checking out I went out to pull the car around and as I was walking to the car I heard all this commotion behind me and I turned around and this man was running out of the store will a box and an undercover security office and a worker were running after him. Anyway, the man was running towards me and I guess I was in his way because he ended up hitting me in the leg with his box and then I fell into a pole and had to pivot around to keep the security officer and worker from running into me too. Anyway, they caught the man and slammed him up on this car and the man was like, "what are you talking about, I didn't steal anything!" when it was so obvious that he did steal it. Then his girlfriend or wife or someone came out of the store and was like, we didn't steal, the receipt is in the store! If you bought something, why would you leave the receipt in the store? Anyway, I ended up with a scratch on my leg where he hit me with the box and I twisted my ankle a little bit when I had to pivot around the pole. Victor was inside the store when all of this happened, so when I went back in the store he was like, "Someone said there was a robbery" and I was like, "I know, the man hit me with his stolen goods!" Then Victor was upset that he was not outside to witness me getting hit because he said he would have beat the man up. My hero! Ha!

Anyway, today is Tuesday and right now I am at the Woking Library trying to do a little work, but there are so many distractions here, plus you can only be on the computer for an hour at time. I will be so glad when I will have everything set up in my apartment and I can work from the comfort of my home.

Last Day Here For Now

Victor didn't get home until a little after 10 pm last night, so we didn't get to go out to dinner. We went to McDonald's instead. We plan to go out tonight. Hopefully he will get home before everything closes, but he has a work gathering that is 6-8:30. He said he was only going to stay until 7, so we'll see.

Here is the flat we picked: http://www.rightmove.co.uk/viewdetails-8966298.rsp?pa_n=1&tr_t=rent . It isn't either of the ones I mentioned yesterday, but it is cheaper and we decided that cheaper would probably be the better way to go for right now. It is still nice and it is modern with 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, washer/dryer, dishwasher, etc. We will probably move in next week. Oh yeah, it is located in Woking and it is very close to the train station and the town centre, so everything worked out nicely!

Today is my last evening here and then I am headed back home tomorrow until my work permit is ready. I am looking forward to coming home for a little while because I now realize that I really took my space for granted. Things are so much smaller here!

UK Guinea Pig Credit Card Commercial

They have a credit card called Egg here in the UK and I saw this commercial on TV today and it made me think of Buster. I don't know why I just can't let go of him. :) Anyway, in the commerical researchers are trying to figure out how to make the "busy lifestyles" of guinea pigs easier, so they send out a robot with a guinea pig wig on in order to find out. Through their surveillance they find that guinea pigs want a credit card with a low interest rate. I just thought it was funny. :)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=I3gzVxDSwCk

Flat Searching

Today I met with the relocation agent to do some flat-searching. The relocation agent was a nice South African lady named Dawn, and she picked me up at 10:15 at the subway station and off we went! She had a nice color brochure printed up with an itinerary, pictures, and descriptions of the places we would be visiting today. First, we went to Clapham, which is within London. The flat in Clapham was the exact opposite of what I had specified on the questionnaire, but whatever. It was not within walking distance of the train station/underground, it wasn't modern, it wasn't really in a quiet area (it was right across the street from an elementary school!) and it was filthy!!!!!!! I forgave the filthy part a little bit because there was still something living in the flat, but my goodness! The carpet was so dirty and there were stains on the walls and so much clutter and the furniture was outdated...I felt like I needed to wash my hands when I left. Needless to say, I was a bit concerned after we left this flat and was afraid that maybe the whole day would go this way, but things definitely got better after we got that one out of the way.

The next area that we visited was Walton-on-Thames, which is a nice little town located in Surrey. The first flat we visited was located right across the street from the train station, which was a definite plus since that meant that Victor would not have to walk far in the mornings and the evenings to and from the station. We arrived to this flat about 10 minutes early and the landlord had not arrived yet, so we waited in the car with the windows down. We were sitting there chatting when out of nowhere a cat tried to jump through my window!!!!!!! I had seen the cat when we first parked but he was so far away that I didn't give him a second thought and then out of nowhere he was in my face trying to scratch my eyes out!!! Well, I'm sure he didn't have malicious intent and he wasn't that close to my face, but it was just strange. He got about halfway in the car but he couldn't get a good grip so he ended up falling back down. Needless to say, we rolled up the windows after that. The bad thing though is that I am very allergic to cats and when he tried to jump through the window some of his fur came off and landed in the car, so for the rest of the day my eyes were watery and my nose was stuffy and I was itchy. Anyway, this flat was much better than the first flat, but not quite what I was looking for.

The next flat we went to was also located in Walton. I just fell in love with this flat as soon as I walked in the door!!! The last person had already moved out, so it was spotless and it smelled good. It was a modern, fully-furnished apartment with stainless steel appliances in the kitchen with a washer/dryer, 2 bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms and one half bath. It was only about a 4 minute walk to the train station and close to alot of restaurants and shops and the grocery. The only thing was that it didn't have a dishwasher and it was a little more than what we wanted to pay. Doesn't it always work out that way? Here is the link to the website if you want to look: http://www.rightmove.co.uk/viewdetails-8005851.rsp?pa_n=1&tr_t=rent . We went to a couple of other flats in Walton, but you know nothing ever measures up when you have already seen what you really want.

After Walton, we stopped for lunch and then we headed to Woking, which is about 20 minutes from Walton. All of the flats that we viewed here were very close to the train station and to the town centre, so that was good. Here is the link to my favorite one in Woking. Too bad you can't see the inside because this picture doesn't really do it justice. This flat was modern and fully-furnished as well, with a washer/dryer, dishwasher, microwave, all silverware and dinnerware, 2 bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms, and very nice furniture. http://martinco.com/search/property/show/mcp34610?beds=2&distance=4800&page=1&property_type=2&location_id=307&moving_date_month=12&office_type=lettings&let_furnishing=13&moving_date_day=11&let_period=&location=woking&min_price=1000&max_price=1400&order_by=0&moving_date_year=2007

So out of the 10 flats that we viewed today, I have narrowed it down to the two that I highlighted above. I don't know which one to choose because both of them have pros and cons. I will show the properties to Victor once he gets home and then hopefully he will help me choose. They both cost the same...I love the first one, but it doesn't have a dishwasher and the town is a little bit smaller than Woking...I think saying that I love the second one would be a stretch, but I really do like it alot and the furniture is nicer, plus it is within walking distance to the town centre. The town centre has a big shopping centre, 6 cinemas, 2 theatres, the grocery store, etc. Both areas have direct trains that go to both Basingstoke and London. Decisions, decisions. We will definitely be making a decision tonight and then letting them know tomorrow morning because property goes so fast out here and if you hesitate someone else might snatch it up with their grubby little paws (hee hee).

Renting a flat in the UK is similar to buying a house in the US. They have an asking price and then you put an offer on the flat you want and see if they accept your offer. Luckily the relocation agency acts as the mediary between us and the rental property, so they will be doing the negotiating, which is fine by me because I don't like all that back-and-forth mess. So we will be letting them know which one we want tomorrow and once they accept our offer we have put down a deposit (usually one week's rent) to hold the flat. We will then have to complete an application and provide references. Once all of that goes through we will have to pay an "administrative fee" of about 180 GBP, as well as 6 weeks worth of rent PLUS the first month's rent. The 6 weeks of rent is a security deposit, so I think we get that back when we move out. Unfortunately, since I won't be here next week Victor is going to have to do all the paperwork himself.

Anyway, we finished up around 6:30 and I got back to Chelsea about an hour ago. Victor had a 7:00 meeting that was pushed back to 7:30, so hopefully he will be headed home soon. We are supposed to be going somewhere for dinner since we have eaten in the past few nights, which leads me to think about the grocery stores here: Their food is really good and fresh! They don't really have frozen meals here, but they do have refrigerated meals that you can heat up in the microwave and they are really good! Their produce is really good here too, and the food prices really aren't bad at all as long as you don't convert the price to USD in your head. :)

Tomorrow I will try to get things rolling with the flat and then I think I'm going to do some exploring around London. We'll see how it goes!

Recap of the Past Few Days

I finally got the internet to work in our temporary flat, so now I have time to fill everyone in on what we have been up to the past few days!!



Sunday, September 9, 2007


On Sunday morning we checked out of our hotel and headed to our temporary accomodation in Chelsea. Chelsea is one of the "posh" areas of London, similar to Soho or Greenwich Village in NYC. Anyway, we were supposed to meet the housing representative at 11:00 and we got to the apartment a little early so we just sat on the stoop and waited. While we were waiting this old man came walking down the street with the cutest little dog that reminded me of Buster...The housing representative finally showed up at 11:20 (even though in the email he sent earlier stressed the importance of US being there promptly at 11:00) and let us in. The flat is small but nice. It is a one-bedroom with one bathroom, with a sitting room with a nice bay window, and a tiny kitchen. A flat of this size in this area goes for about 750 GBP PER WEEK!! Keep in mind that 1 GBP= 2 USD. Do the math and you will see that it is quite expensive, but believe it or not this is one of the cheaper flats in this area. You can tell these folks can afford it though because the streets are lined with BMWs, Mercedes, Audis, Range Rovers, and the like. I was able to find a picture of our flat online so I have posted it at the top of this post (as you can see, there is a Porsche in the picture).

So we got settled in and took a nap for a few hours since we were still a little jet-lagged. We woke up around 5 pm and walked up the street to where all the shops were located. We ran a few errands and then we rode the underground to Goldman Sachs so that Victor would know how to get there on Monday. We then went to the grocery store and then headed back to our flat. I'd say we walked at least 4-5 miles on Sunday.




Monday, September 10, 2007



Today was Victor's first day on the job! He wore a black suit and looked like a handsome corporate businessman. :) I always tease him that all he needs is a black hat and then he will look like a chauffeur when he wears that suit, but he really does look nice. Anyway, he left here around 7:20 am and got home at 7:15 pm, and that was just the first day!! We expect that he will be working at least 12 hours a day Monday-Friday. One of his co-workers said that he has logged in as many as 115 hours in one week!! That is ridiculous! But I figure that it will be okay since I will be gone several days out of the week on my monitoring trips anyway, so at least Victor won't feel guilty if he has to work late. It seems like Victor will like his job; he said that his co-workers seem nice and alot of them are around his age and the work seems interesting. What a relief, because the last thing we want is another Ernst & Young experience! We are praying that he will continue to enjoy his job.




Tuesday, September 11, 2007



Today I got up early to go to Starbucks so that I could log on to the internet since I was expecting an email from the housing agent regarding some rental properties. I also needed to download some software that we needed in order for the interent to work in our flat. After I left Starbucks I went to the electronics store to exchange an energy adapter and then I went to the grocery store before heading back "home".

I spoke to the rental agent this morning and we will be meeting tomorrow morning at 10:15 to go look at some properties. We will be looking in Battersea/Clapham Junction, Walton-on-Thames, and Woking. We will probably end up moving to Woking because it has direct trains that go both to central London and Basingstoke, so both of us would be able to get to work easily, plus the flats are a little more modern out there and cheaper than what you would find in London. I will more than likely drive to work though. I am looking forward to finding something tomorrow. It is going to be tight for awhile though because they require that you pay 10.5 weeks of rent up front!!! We have alot of money saved up, but since the pound is worth twice as much as the dollar, you can imagine that our money will drain pretty quickly. We will both be getting paid in pounds though, so everything should be okay. Oh yeah, we found out yesterday that we both fall into the highest tax bracket in the the UK, so they can take 40% of our income in taxes. YIKES!!!!!!!!!!!! I told Victor that he needs to work his tax-knowledge magic and find a *legal* way around that, because that is ridiculous. I think for the rest of this year we should be okay since I think we will pay our taxes in the US since that is where we lived for the majority of the year, but I don't know about next year. I guess we'll see what happens.

Anyway, I will be sure to post some pictures/links tomorrow of the properties that we view.

We Made It!!!

We made it to London! I arrived to Gatwick Airport at 9 AM and it took me about an hour to get through customs. I then took the train and the subway to our hotel, which is called Courthouse Kempinski. I got to the hotel around noon and Victor wasn't here yet, so I did a little exploring on my own. First, I went across the street to this little restaurant called "LEON", which is supposed to be a "healthy" fast food restaurant. I had the hummus and the roasted sweet potato falafel, both of which were pretty good. After that I walked around to the different shops in the area. My favorite was LUSH, which is an all-natural store that sells facial, hair, and body products. I really liked the store alot; here is the website: http://usa.lush.com/cgi-bin/lushdb/index.html?lang=en_US&dlang=en . I now know what everyone is getting for Christmas. :) Anyway, Victor made it here around 2 pm. We hung out for a little while and then took a nap for a few hours since we were both jet-lagged.

One of Victor's co-workers had a get-together at her flat tonight, so we went. We had a pretty good time and everyone seems really nice! It was mostly black Americans there, so it was sort of nice to know that there are other African-Americans living/working in London. One of Victor's co-workers--whose name is Trina--reminded us of Cousin Jenny in both looks and demeanor. Victor jokingly told her that we were going to call her Jenny from now on and she just sort of looked at us, so needless to say we will be calling her by her given name. There was this other guy there named Randall and he reminded us of Joey. Anyway, now we are back in our hotel and tomorrow morning we will be moving to our temporary housing in Chelsea.

Our Anniversary!

Today is Victor's and my first wedding anniversary. So far it has been very nice! Last night we went a fondue restaurant called The Melting Pot for a romantic dinner. Today we thawed out our wedding cake and had a piece. Surprisingly, it was pretty good!! This morning when we woke up for church our electricity was out, but luckily it was back on by the time we got back home. Now we are just enjoying our afternoon and relaxing before starting the work week. Next week I am off to Portland, OR and then I will be back Wednesday night.

Hello!

Hello,

This is my first blog! I am starting this blog because my husband and I will be moving to Europe in a few months and I wanted to find a way to be able to keep my friends and family informed on everything that goes on in our lives while we are away. The goal is to write everyday with the details of our day-to-day lives, that way it will seem like we never left!! We'll see how it turns out...