8 months

Junior is two-thirds of the way through his first year already - how time flies!


This time last month we were about to leave Norway.


Photo by Dad


When we returned to London, the weather improved (of course), so we spent a lot of time enjoying being outdoors. We took S to Longcross Test Grounds to drive fast cars (his birthday present from last year). He got to drive a Ferrari, Porsche, and Lamborghini. I wasn't jealous, though... I got to drive a VW Polo Zipcar to and from the test grounds. Ahem.









We have been hanging out in local parks...

















 ...and going to softplay to allow Junior a chance to stretch his arms and legs without fear of hurting himself (or the flat) too much. He is crawling, pulling up, and beginning to climb, so keeping him safely occupied at home is a daily challenge.


 


We tried a music and movement class, but Mr Wiggly had a hard time sitting still. He crawled around the room sucking all the musical instruments and distracting the other mums and babies... We might try again, but for now I prefer to give him unstructured playtime.





He has been enjoying his baths now that he can sit up. He sucks on his rubber duckies and splashes the water (and me).





Nap time is evolving, as well. We moved him into his own room and proper cotbed, and he has made the transition quite well.


Robot and circuit board bumper, and sleep sack made by Grandmamasita


The rest of the month, we have had Olympic fever. We watched the torch relay as it went up Haydons Road in Wimbledon.









We had a visit from a friend who has been volunteering at the beach volleyball venue.





We have been watching the competitions.





And we went to the live screen site near the foot of Tower Bridge for a picnic.





Despite initial skepticism and annoyance at not getting tickets for the swimming events, I finally felt excited about London2012 during the Opening Ceremony. With a squirmy eight-month old, I'm now glad that I didn't have to sit in the Aquatic Centre to feel like part of the action. The Games have been a great success and it has been fun reading tweets and following the BBC coverage. I hope it continues for the Paralympics next month.

irish wedding

It is unlike me to wait so long before blogging about a trip, but here it is...


Our friends C&S tied the knot over the August bank holiday in C's native Ireland. Knowing that it would be my last chance to fly before the baby arrives, and our last chance to get away for a while, we decided to make it a mini-break.


We flew to Shannon and rented a car; then drove to our B&B just outside Tipperary in the scenic Glen of Aherlow.


 








 We spent our first full day exploring the area and taking advantage of the well-signposted walks (between rain showers!)


 









outstanding in their field









The wedding took place on Saturday in C's hometown of Hospital, near Limerick. Try googling "hospital, limerick" for directions to the church... I promise that what you are looking for will be the last link you'll find. But as it turned out, the route was fairly easy and we found seats with all the cool kids.











Perhaps as could be expected at an Irish Catholic ceremony, there was an emphasis on C&S's new married life together and encouragement to procreate. Inwardly, we wondered what their one-year old daughter thought of being excluded from the references to the joys of future children, but the three of them took it in their stride. Maybe words matter more if you place importance in them. The correct sentiments were there in any case, and C&S couldn't stop smiling - which is all that really matters!


The reception was held at the beautiful Aherlow House Hotel, overlooking the valley.




lucky private moment with the bride and groom


We indulged on scones and jam with tea and coffee while the other guests arrived and the bride and groom mingled. Sitting down to dinner later with nearly 250 other people showed just how happy we all were for C&S, and there were very few dry eyes when the bride's father sang her the loveliest song... (S will have a hard time topping it when their daughter gets married someday!) Gradually tables were moved, the band set up, and the dancing began. I'm sad to report that we didn't last long after midnight, but the party continued until at least 4 AM.


The following morning, we woke up late and had given up the idea of breakfast when the phone rang. Our wonderful Irish hosts would not take no for an answer: 'come down and we'll give you breakfast. Go on, go on, go on...'


We continued exploring the area, heading first to Cashel where we found the local brass band playing (practicing?) in the town square.





We walked up to the famous Rock of Cashel and enjoyed the views from above, although restoration efforts meant that it was not as picturesque as usual.








From there, we proceeded to Cahir Castle. Maybe it was the presence of blue sky, or the absence of scaffolding, but I preferred Cahir Castle to the Rock of Cashel. Fortuitous timing also meant that we got there just in time to join a free tour.














On our final day, we drove back toward Shannon Airport via Cork.








Driving in Ireland was remarkably easy but danger never seemed far away. Big trucks rush down narrow country lanes. Speed limit signs of 100 km/hour are posted just before tight curves (how?! and why?!). The slow lane is for passing...or for parking... And there are signs and reminders everywhere to stay on the left.





I could understand it on our rented car (many tourists come from parts of the world where you drive on the right) but presumably the locals should know? Entering Cork was harrowing, only because we ended up right inside the city centre with no real idea of where to go. Fortunately we were able to park the car and walk around.


After lunch, we got back in the car and drove to Blarney. Here are some facts about Blarney and the Blarney Stone that we hadn't anticipated: they charge 10 euro for the privilege of kissing a (presumably unhygienic) rock that has been kissed by strangers for years...and there's not much else to do in Blarney.





So we went along to Bunratty, (immaturely making fun of the name: 'Bunratty, heh heh') but got there too late to go inside the castle.





All that was left to do was have dinner at the local pub, check in to our hotel, check out a mere 12 hours later, and fly home...


We had a lovely trip. Ireland is comfortingly familiar from both an American and British perspective. Born as a Cassidy, I feel an automatic affinity for the Irish. And now that I live in the UK, Ireland's rolling green hills and full breakfasts are similar, though not the same. Looking forward to our next trip to the Emerald Isle. But maybe Northern Ireland for a change?

license to drive

Very pleased to report that I passed my UK driving test today, nearly 21 years to the day when I got my California license. Hooray!


Things I intend to unlearn as soon as possible now:

• The parking brake as 'hand brake' for stopping at red lights. WTF?

• Signaling only when necessary. Isn't signaling all the time better? (The theory on this one follows the principle of, 'if a tree falls in the woods and no one hears it, does it make a sound?' In other words, if you are pulling out into the street, for example, and there is no one around, why bother signaling? I still don't see why you shouldn't.)

• Not giving pedestrians or cyclists the right of way. I really, really hate this, especially since I'm usually the target pedestrian or cyclist.

• Using mirrors excessively. Mirrors are a great asset to any driver, but the way they teach you to drive over here has you looking behind more than in front.

• Reversing around corners. OMG this is the stupidest maneuver and I have no intention of ever using it again.

• Driving with both hands on the wheel all the time, to the extent that shifting is nearly impossible. Also, I know it isn't recommended practice, but turning the wheel with hands at 10 and 2 pushing and pulling is really more trouble than it's worth. And it makes you not only look like a granny, but drive like one, too. Not gonna do it anymore.

Of course, all this is somewhat academic. We don't have a car so I have very little use for a license. I'm happy on my feet/bicycle/the Tube, but it is nice to have some options.


So now I am a fully fledged adult in 2 countries. Sweet relief! Watch out, UK roads...

Thanks, S, for the card!

driving fail

Gotta get it off my chest: I failed my driving test. Argh, blast, dammit and many, many expletives.

The fact that I have to take a driving test at all is the subject of another rant, but suffice it to say that I put this particular fail down to Californian instincts vs. British driving rules. The examiner told me that we were approaching a mini roundabout, and that I should take the first exit to the left.

Now, here's what a Brit would do: approach with caution, signal left but look right, while down shifting, and maintain speed if it was safe to enter the roundabout (in other words, you don't necessarily have to stop before entering a roundabout.)

Here's what I did: approached with caution, signaled left and looked left by instinct. At this point, I noticed a group of kids who were trying to cross where I needed to come out of the roundabout, so I was concerned about them. I was not at a complete stop, but I wasn't moving very fast. Still, I guess I had entered the roundabout by now (or was just about to; it all happened so fast neither of us really knew the exact story.) To my detriment, I didn't look right quite soon enough - in that split second, a car zoomed around from my right (to be fair, she had the right of way, being in the roundabout already). I reacted fine - braked hard and let her through - but the examiner felt it was necessary for him to brake as well.

FAIL.

Strangely (from my point of view), he had no concern about the kids, who (in my opinion) were a major road hazard. But in the UK, pedestrians stop for cars. If they stood there all afternoon waiting for someone to let them cross, the examiner wouldn't have batted an eyelash. If they ran into the road and caused a multi-car pile-up, he would have been satisfied as long as I had looked right first and done everything by the book. Very strange.

Now, I cannot blame anyone but myself for not looking right soon enough. Like I said, it's 20 years of instinct looking left first, then right. I had the same problem in Japan so I usually over-correct and look both ways multiple times before moving out. The kids distracted me, again, because I am used to planning ahead in order to stop for pedestrians. In my world, the other cars are doing the same thing so everyone would be slowing down for them.

But not here. Sigh!

Aside from that, the test went really well. I aced reversing around a corner (don't get me started on just how inane this is) and did the parallel parking perfectly. The examiner didn't really have much to complain about. But the roundabout was enough to push him (and me) over the edge.

So now I have to do this all over again. In January. Spending more of my precious, hard-earned cash for a licence that I kind of sort of already have.

At least it's a bit of a tradition to fail your driving test on the first attempt in the UK, so I'm living up to expectations. And we don't have a car so I don't really need a licence anyway. Meanwhile, I'll keep walking and cycling everywhere. It's greener and better exercise than driving. So there. Hmph.