yorkshire postings

New Blog Address

2006-06-05T21:55:00.001+01:00

Please change your book mark to the following...
You can follow the stream of consciousnes HERE.
Cheers!

My Blogging Solution

2006-05-05T21:59:00.000+01:00

I have moved over to: New Blog, Again
I think it may be the right combination of features for this blog. I have also changed the name because my blog is evolving into something more than my experience in Yorkshire. Sure, lots of posts will provide a picture of life here, as viewed through an outsiders' eyes, but random stuff will be more prevalent (since that is more like me anyway ;-).

I will keep this blog up for some time. But eventually migrate all over to the new site.

Cheers.

New Software

2006-04-29T04:47:00.000+01:00

Ok. I went over to iWeb for the .mac blogging experience. It is nicely integrated with all the mac apps I love, but the blogging software has no COMMENT feature. I realize I don't really get any comments, yet!

But in an effort to improve my blog and pick a platform, I am now trying out desktop blog apps. This entry via ecto.

Stay tuned.

Something New

2006-04-26T23:55:00.000+01:00

Well, I could not resist buying iLife 06. As a result, I am testing out the blog-ware iWeb that comes with the package. To keep up with the postings, pls visit (from now) My New Blog.

Let me know what you think.

Todd

Holy Cow Batman! A Mac Attack

2006-04-23T01:15:00.000+01:00

Is this a dream? I hope not. (Those with short attention spans, pls read last 2 paragraphs).
Mac Subverts Windows!
*thanks to Jost for alerting me to the article.

Wake Up America

2006-04-22T21:46:00.000+01:00

I am starting to get nervous. I see my fellow americans getting more distracted by the "bad guys are going to get you" fear tactics of a demonstrative leadership. Please look for other sources of meaningful commentary to ensure your perspective is aligned with common sense.

Crooks and Liars Blog provides a link to a fascinating group: The Oxford Research Group. They have some interesting things to say about Iran and they have excerpts from their 2002 Iraq report that is chilling. Why is it that hate and fear continue to dominate the messages in the United States. *Also noted that many on the FUD front are using "knowledgable/smart people" in the same clause with "wealthy people". I am not sure there is any direct correlation without an unusually high standard of deviation.

Wake up America. Try to understand why some crazy people want to harm you and you will begin to understand how you can unravel that hate and stop the violence. No this is not about daisy print shirts and folk songs. It's about using common sense to approach life and keeping your mind open to the myriad of other perspectives. It ain't us v them.

Even if you do vote this September, it may be not heard. Crooks and Liars Blog points to Brad Blog-Voting 2006 may be train wreck.
Think this is just left wing drivel? Look at some of the facts: Read this entry (Top News Stories You Didn't Hear) at Made by Mark Blog.

Thomas the Tank Engine

2006-04-19T22:29:00.000+01:00

Well, we finally did it. We dropped work for a Sunday (both of us) and went to see Thomas. You don't know Thomas? Well, he is the most useful engine in the yard. Keiron rode on a train and we enjoyed the beautiful Yorkshire Dales. Gosh, we live in a heavenly place. I did not think anyplace could match NH/VT for beauty, but Yorkshire does.

This is a stop worth making if you find yourself on the A59 between Harrogate and Skipton. And you would if you were headed to Pately Bridge...a wonderful little village for exploring. Back to the Thomas event: They have built this replica train station (circa 1900) and tracks right of the A59. It's like a movie set, except it feels real. Bolton Abbey Station.

We eat ice cream, really creamy Yorkshire ice cream, and Keiron rides on a hand cranked lovely merry go round after the train ride. He is still waking up on Wednesday morning asking to be taken to the train station. He is a dream.

Speechless

2006-04-14T21:16:00.000+01:00

All politics aside, how is it possible this man is the leader of the most powerful country in the world (sans China!)? And this is recent, not pre-2000 video as his supporters would have said he is just a "normal guy". This is beyond not being media savvy, it is pathetic. I am sad. What am I talking about? See it HERE.

Ok, i buy the normal guy crap...but get with the program. You have unlimited resources for 6 years and this is as good as it gets? What happened to personal improvement?

I'm with stupid-Pet Shop Boys

2006-04-12T12:38:00.000+01:00

Fantastic find. The Pet Shop Boys have come out with a new CD entitled Fundamental. The first track on radio here is "I'm with Stupid". The first time I heard it...yuck. Then I listened again....cool. It is a developed dance record contrary to the title of the CD. Best part of the deal: the songs have an opinion. "I'm with stupid" is about the relationship between Bush and Blair. You can see the clever lyrics HERE. And you can listen to the song HERE.

Now if we could just get the bulk of those in agreement to speak up.

Worse than a lawyer

2006-04-10T22:13:00.000+01:00

I am waiting my turn in the local shop. A young girl turns to me and asks in a thick Caribbean/English accent, " Are you a citizen?".

I respond with a "No, I live here, but not with citizenship."

She says, rather grumpily, "No, I said, are you a solicitor!?"

"Oh, no. I am not a solicitor. Sorry." God knows it was the first time I was sorry for not being a solicitor.

Trying to create a friendly banter to make up for my ignorance of her accent, I suggest" I'm a consultant, perhaps that is worse than a lawyer? Ha!" This self deprecation does not work b/c the girl looks at me with a puzzled and disgusted look. I have replaced the correct term, solicitor, with lawyer and did so with an idiot US accent. "Umm, I guess that makes little sense...was it my suit?" She nods. "Nope, no solicitor here!" I say proudly like Gomer Pile!

I am puzzled by this question. Then I look down at my attire....grey pin stripe suit with euro tie. This in a shop where no one wears more than ripped jeans and a 10 year old t-shirt. I stand out just a bit.

This makes me think, are the only people in suits in this girls life, solicitors?

I order my cookie, not a biscuit, but a proper US style chocolate chip cookie and head back to the office...forgetting the milk for tea.

Don't Try this at Home

2006-04-10T22:03:00.000+01:00

Imagine ending the day in the park. Then cajoling a 2 yr old to head home by bribing him with a stop at the ice cream shop. Takes 15 mins to walk to the shop (at 2yr old speed). Pick out the ice cream, mmmm, yummy strawberry in a shiny wrapper. Hand the ice cream to the 2yr old to bring to the counter to pay for it. Talk it up one last time, then dig in your pockets to find that your wallet is actually at home. Yikes!

Keiron was not pleased. Try putting an ice cream back in the freezer. Add a dash of lateness (say 7.30pm) and cold weather and you have a....well, situation. Luckily, Keiron is a reasonable 2 yr old and after a convincing him we would come back after retrieving the wallet...he was ok. whew!

Picture of Keiron with Grace.

My Second Car

2006-03-30T21:39:00.000+01:00

Most Americans either don't take the bus or do and wish they owned or had access to a car. If they had access to the "36" bus from Ripon to Leeds...they might well sell their car. The 36 Bus is a delight. It sports leather seats to rival those in a first class cabin on domestic flights. It has a wide entry berth that makes you feel like you are boarding a party bus and it is 2 stories high! (I can also pick up random wi-fi signals on the way to work).

But the true pleasure of this bus is sitting up front on the 2nd level in front of an all glass wall. It's like being on an amusement park ride. You can really get a good view of the country side because you can see over the hedges and walls. It's also interesting to watch the cars in front as we go into the city--b/c you are on the 2nd floor with a warped perspective looking down, it appears as though the bus is swallowing the Kia or Peugeot in front.

Bottom Line: I turn on my iPod, sit back, read a magazine and glance up now and again to catch a nice glimpse of the English countryside as I ride into work. Sometimes the iPod is replaced by my laptop + iTunes and work....but I seem to get to work nearly as fast as if I were to drive and with alot less stress. It's a no brainer to ride the bus. Oh, did I mention that petrol is £1/litre.

Bonus: the drop off at work and pick up at work stops are literally outside our new offices and the bus runs every 20 mins (on time!).

We continue to strive for carbon neutrality and green living, sticking to the one car scenario as we did in NH.

2006-03-26T21:13:00.000+01:00

An unfortunate end to the day: Keiron passes out briefly tonight. Scares the crap out of us and we spend a bit more time after he goes to sleep looking up this strange condition. We will recheck to see if he has anemia and let our GP know about the condition. Nothing to worry about, but we make a habit of telling others just in case he passes out with them. (It only occurs when he is extremely distraught). Tonight, it was just being overtired and then getting upset during pajama time. This article describes what is happening: Breath Holding
--he is the typical case, not the other, more unique examples in the article. He has only passed out 4 times. 4 more than we would prefer....but they seem to be less likely to occur these days even when he gets upset. In the past, we were able to intervene at least a half dozen times before he passed out.

Mum's Day and Springtime in Harrogate

2006-03-26T20:42:00.000+01:00

It's Mother's Day here in the UK today. We celebrated by picking up some lovely gerber daisies last night at the supermarket. Supermarket? Yes, supermarket. This is another product that is far superior in the UK than in the US. Flowers. You can get lovely flowers at ordinary places and extraordinary flowers at proper shops.

The celebration continued with a candlelit dinner in the kitchen. Keiron made 3 cards for mum. We woke up late this morning, forgetting about the time change, and rushed over to Betty's for our Sunday breakfast/brunch. Luckily, we just beat the queue and slipped into a nice table in the Cafe at the Harlow Carr Gardens restaurant. Soft, live piano playing can be heard (and seen) while you admire the garden setting in a fabulous atrium atmosphere. Yes, you will pay for all of this- but Betty's is worth every pence, again, and again.

We enjoy breakfast as the queue builds. Dawn reads to Keiron and sips her cappuccino. It's really great b/c their are so many families on Sundays at this location. You never worry about your own going a little wild now and again. But, it's not like romper room...it's just a bit more real than you would expect at a landmark cafe in England. In fact, it's a nice mixture of young families and much older adults. You often see a child walk from her table and straight up to a grandmotherly figure sitting at a nearby table. Everyone takes it in stride and it makes for a pleasant atmosphere. Even if you are not keen on children at your restaurant, you would still find Betty's on Sunday morning enjoyable. I digress.

We leave Betty's for a walk around the gardens. See the Garden
It's warmish here today, but not terribly so. We last until Keiron, umm, well you parents can finish this line.

It's not an over the top day...but I think Dawn enjoyed the morning.

The crocus are blooming and baby lambs are everywhere in the fields. It's spring in Harrogate. I will try to post some pictures of the flowers...just amazing as they appear everywhere....Must be an army of gardeners seeing to the planting.

In the meantime: Crocus in Harrogate (Look at top of page to click through several images of spring in Harrogate)
You can also see a bunch more just by Google-ing "crocus harrogate". Of course, none of these pictures do justice to the extreme colours you see in person. It must be a big deal though, as Google brings up press releases by the Council telling everyone about the crocus.

Choices

2006-03-23T09:56:00.000Z

Every once in awhile we all reflect on our lives. And. Then we move on as if nothing ever happened. Sure, we carry that reflection with us for a couple of days. It's like a pet rock, which we get bored with easily. We then throw the reflection away and attend to next drama.

This article stopped Dawn and I in our tracks. 3 Months to Live

The trick. How can you turn this reflection into meaningful action? Moreover, sustainable action? And how do you measure it?

Authentic....for now.

2006-03-22T10:14:00.000Z

American readers will have heard of this guy Fat Man Walking News Story. He has been on Oprah. A fascinating story of reinvention. It appears to be authentic for now. I am hoping he can stick to it. As a man of reinvention myself, it can be daunting. Those days when no one is looking--that's when you discover if you have what it takes. Jost often reminds me; "Integrity is what you have when no one is looking".

If you fancy a change...take this story to heart.
Fat Man Walking Website

Freakonomics

2006-03-21T20:06:00.000Z

A friend of mine, Jost, tipped me off on the following book. I look forward to reading it soon: Freakonomics

Apparently, it asks some interesting questions. An excerpt appears on the website as follows:
"Which is more dangerous, a gun or a swimming pool? What do schoolteachers and sumo wrestlers have in common? Why do drug dealers still live with their moms? How much do parents really matter? What kind of impact did Roe v. Wade have on violent crime?

These may not sound like typical questions for an economist to ask. But Steven D. Levitt is not a typical economist. He is a much-heralded young scholar who studies the riddles of everyday life-from cheating and crime to sports and child-rearing - and whose conclusions regularly turn the conventional wisdom on its head. He usually begins with a mountain of data and a simple, unasked question. Some of these questions concern life-and-death issues; others have an admittedly freakish quality. Thus the new field of study contained in this book: Freakonomics."

Intrigued? I am. I will let you know how I get on with the book. As Jost has always reminded me: compensation, whatever it's form, drives behavior.

Outside perspective

2006-03-18T11:30:00.000Z

I continue to be amazed by the view of my home country, from outside. I was a dissenting view before moving to the UK, but now that I am looking at her from the outside--i am terrified of what I see happening.

Religious maniacs, intolerance of dissenting views, and a black/white domestic and foreign policy. Army recruitment of boys and girls in middle school! What path are we going down...is it too late to reverse direction or at least steer away. I found the following book review and excerpt on BoingBoing Blog.

American Theocracy

If so many "right-wing-ers" are frustrated...why is nothing happening. Mark has many entries on maybe why- see articles on the failure of the press at MadebyMark.

In the immortal words of Charlie Brown: "Good Grief!"

New Digs

2006-03-18T10:21:00.000Z

For those following our progress here in the UK. We spent last weekend painting and assembling Ikea office furniture for our new digs. We have joined up with two significant people, Alan Wallac & Chris Hill, in our sector to form a new company.

The Camberwell Project

We are excited about this and the projects we are currently working. Have a look at the news on our company site to understand what we are currently doing.

Nice Collective-Pants!

2006-03-18T06:38:00.000Z

Companies usually look for press wherever they can get it....but this definitely a new outlet for PR. When Ian/Joey make the best pants, they can now claim they help you to avoid plumber's crack!

PANTS!

Cheers...

Friday Night Fun-Saturday Routine.

2006-02-25T19:24:00.000Z

I don't think we imagined ourselves spending Friday nights looking at separate computers typing away into the wee hours of the morning. But, then again, we did not image living in England 1 year ago, starting a business from scratch in a completely new field of operations.

The best thing about a boring Friday night, is that a Saturday in our neighborhood is just around the corner. My Saturdays seem to be comfortably slipping into a routine. Keiron and I usual run around Saturday morning. We run to the tip (dump) with recyclable, hit the supermarket for some domestic goods, and ditch the car for the rest of the day. We walk down the street just behind our home. This street would be familiar only to Americans living in Boston or NYC. But it's our street in the lovely town of Harrogate. A couple of butchers, florist, lovely produce stand, bakers, pharmacy, post office, cafes, laundry, wine shop, barber shop and for some weird reason: 7 other hair salons of varying cost. All of that is packed into a couple hundred yards. Yes, yards. This is not your strip mall, mile long, park out in the boonies, bland looking development. In fact, the buildings are all around 100 years old.

Back to routine: We drop our laundry at ProntoClean where a really nice couple and a small team of helpers quickly get your clothes clean, including a military precise ironing of dress shirts, while you finish your errands. We then head to the post to drop a few letters in the large red box that is the size of a phone booth, solid metal, and not a box at all: a cylinder. Satisfied we have done the chore part of our errands, we head for the butcher. Andy Arnot sells the most delicious meats in town. If you wonder where the really good meat in a restaurant is bought-it's here. He lets you put together your order, pay for it, and pick it up at the end of the day--which is really handy. In fact, we live in a town operating like a small village: I have forgotten my cash on occasion, but still went home with my vegetables and back to pay on Monday. Try that in 80% of the world.

After picking out a delicious array of meats for Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues dinners, we head back up the street to the cheese monger. What most folks in the US would recognize as a trendy cheese shop with olives, crackers, and cured meats. But the difference is: Tartufo is the real thing. The owner describes his array of local and imported cheeses as Steinbeck might. Our current favorite is Doddington: a lovely hard cheese which can only be described as a mix between cheddar (good kind) and some yummy north yorkshire goat milk cheese. I am still in the "wow this is great" stage so the details escape me. Today I tried some of his salami and prosciutto. I am in love.

The food here is so much more tasty than most of the stuff in the US. But, because they don't like to overdo a good thing, we lost 10lbs in the first 3 months...eating whatever we wanted.

On occasion we will stop in to see Sue at 4 Seasons. She has an array of flowers, freshly cut, that make you think of spring all year 'round. But most days, we just meander back up the street to pick up some organic vegetables. Most produce here seems to be organic, not as much an exclusive item as in the states. We got our Christmas tree from Leng's vegetable stand. He delivered it to our home for free! (Next year Keiron will likely be big enough to help daddy drag it home).

We pick up some wine--this is where the US is ahead--and some beer (US behind). The wine is much cheaper here, but the selection is not as good. Maybe this has more to do with my unfamiliarity with labels. I dunno.

At the end of the shopping trip, we pick up our meat and head home. All on two feet. If it's a particularly nice day, we will head into town across the park and amble along the high street.

I love our new life.

Good Food.

2006-02-18T08:31:00.000Z

It's been nearly 2 months and Sophie and Zeke's is thriving! Nearly put out of business by a zealous city planning officer, they opened a month late on the 2nd of January 2006. Since then, the crowds continue to grow.

Feedback is extremely positive: good atmosphere, good service, good food. No surprises there. Reid (disclosure: Reid is my brother) is a trained culinary chef and his partner Danna have several years experience in the restaurant business.
One surprise: crabcakes. Apparently, patrons are calling them the best inside and outside of the bays in Maryland.

I have not had the pleasure of dining at the new place, but look forward to it when we visit this summer.

In NH for a visit, make the drive to Sophie and Zeke's.

Feeling Poorly. A request.

2006-02-18T07:40:00.000Z

In England, you are not sick. You are "feeling poorly".
My stepfather is heading into the hospital for 5 days next week to undergo a series of tests that include inducing several seizures of varying severity. Not good. Add to this, my mum has begun to lose further mobility on her right side and subsequently has discovered it is being caused by a new spinal cord problem. You begin to get the picture: the Peterson household is feeling poorly (x10).

I have a request:
I would like to encourage my readers to send cards or magazines or whatever your preferred choice for contact to hospitalized friends to George. Given the life threatening nature of his accumulated illnesses and these new tests, I bet he would enjoy getting pieces of random mail from any, including anonymous sources. If I have picked up some non-family readers: George enjoys literature, loves opera, and can't get enough of action movies. In other words, he finds everything interesting. He also likes to discover humor in unusual places. No matter what you send, I am sure he will find it interesting...

Address:
George Peterson
RR 1 Box 98
Bradford, NH 03221
USA

or notes and/or copies of news stories, pictures or whatever to: (note: dialup access)
peterson_03287@yahoo.com

thanks.

The Flu

2006-02-18T07:28:00.000Z

Let me just start by saying that I rarely get the flu. In fact, I usually only get sick about once every other year or so.

I have had the flu 2 times in 3 months. I have had 3 separate colds. And yes, I have washed my hands so much that I am now battling a case of eczema. As I write, Keiron has the flu and I am on the latter stages of mine with an annoying head cold. Dawn went through her bit 3 weeks ago. Is this English water? Is it poor hygiene? Is it stress related? I am sure we have enough of that going around to fill 1000 seminars worth or material.

Or, is it just (as many have told us) the effects of having a 2 year old roaming about, carrying all manner of germs? Add to this, you cannot get the flu jab in the UK unless you are over 65 yrs old.

Here's to an early spring with lots of outdoor activity!

Travel: Toy Museum

2006-02-05T20:13:00.000Z

In an effort to make this blog more than just a collection of random thoughts, I am going to begin posting my travel reviews for the UK and beyond.

Ilkley and the Ilkley Toy Museum:

Ilkley Toy Museum

Town of Ilkley

We were leaving Betty's and the lovely RHS Harlow Carr Gardens for home late this morning. It would have been an ordinary day, but half way home (2 mins into a 4 min car ride) I pull out the road map and ask Dawn why were we going home? Without an attractive answer, I convince Dawn that it is time to sort out this Ilkley thing. You see, everyone has been talking about how lovely Ilkley is and how it is now one of the toniest places to live in North Yorkshire. I am curious, not skeptical.

What we find is a typical Victorian era town with no more or less charm than average and a disappointing high street. It did not help that our main route into town on this afternoon was from the South. This means, as it does with so many cities, that we approach through the "less desirable" part of town. I put this in quotes because that statement is relative. It is turning out this jewel of the north has a soft underbelly. Regardless, we press on to the town centre and find a parking spot right on the high street. This should be a sign, but given it is Sunday, not hyperactivity Saturday, I don't pay too much attention.

We take a stroll down the high street and take a left down a promenade style street with, admittedly, a few cute shops with nice windows to gawk over. Of course, this area includes the infamous Betty's Cafe. But after a quick stroll back (this section is only 200-300 feet long) and down another street, it is apparent the village is only just coming into its own with a mish mash of cheap shops and an occasional funky or otherwise interesting shop window. We stop to eat in a pleasant cafe on the corner of the main intersection, Cafe Niro or something (not the chain cafe), and have unremarkable sandwiches but killer creamy gelato.

After lunch, we take a stroll back up the high street, spot a sign for Toy Museum and head further uphill. Just as we are thinking that this is more hill than we really want, we see a 9 foot bear dressed as a bobby. Keiron loves this and so we head into the welcoming open door to find another bear, same size, in street clothes (i think). Inside we find a new, well lit room with lots of antique toys and displays (doll houses, carnivals, etc.). Great, except one thing: they are all in cases that start at 3.5 feet height. I mention this to the young lady behind the counter. She pulls out a small plastic stand with a retractable handle for little hands. Brilliant.

The best part of the museum is likely the animated toys from the late 19th century. Keiron watched it 2 or 3 times (at 20p per 20 sec showing). The rest of the museum tries hard to be a serious toy aficionado's labyrinth, but I am struck by the lack of meaningful toy timelines and the fact that they spent more on glossy posters on the wall advertising the museum than on the actual museum. For example: their are lots of toys from 1850-1910 and all from Germany. Were all toys in that period from Germany? What were the cost of the toys? Who played with them (aristocrats or common folk?) If you are in to toys, you probably think my questions inane. But I like to learn and I did not learn much at the toy museum. Another example: lots of toy soldiers from a 40 year span...but no progression into the 20th century to show how the toys changed with the politics, standard of living, technology, etc. Context is important in a museum. Something to improve straight away: They have lots of toys displayed in unmarked drawers that we only discovered because I am nosy.

All in all, Ilkley is not a bad town but it is hardly worth a special drive to see. Perhaps I should put it in its proper context: If you are driving to the Lake District and need to stop to stretch your legs or grab a cuppa, you could do worse. And for the toy museum: a modest diversion if you find yourself in Ilkley on a less than sunny day. But don't read the note attached to one bear: it explains how this bear was found with its owner at the time (a little boy) in his dead arms. Creepy, do I really need to know that part of the story?

baby Grace

2006-02-01T22:06:00.000Z

Wow! She is a beauty. Grace Lauren McMillan. Born on 26th of January and weighing in at a respectable 7lbs+. Julia is recovering from 3 days of labour, but both Andrew and Julia are naturals in their new roles as Mum and Dad. Keiron has been kept at bay, given his oozing nose and nasty cough, but he has been mesmerized by Grace (Gwace to Keiron) through the McMillan kitchen window.

She is sleeping lots, (not so for the parents), now that she has gotten accustomed to life outside the womb. It will be exciting to watch her develop and see Keiron interact with her on a daily basis as they both grow up together. And it's great to have a niece living so close by, again. It was fantastic living so close to Sophie (and Zeke) in 2004/5.

Watch this space for updates on Grace's progress. We could not be happier for Andrew and Julia. Well done!

January 2006

2006-01-28T20:44:00.000Z

Good news from UK. It’s a girl! Grace Lauren McMillan. Born Thursday to Dawn’s sister Julia. Everyone is ecstatic with this long awaited baby.

Good news from NH. George is back home from the hospital, although not completely comfortable, he is managing in his own home for the next two weeks.

It's been a long month. Under pressure to deliver on customer reports and keeping up the steam on our mega project, we have been a too busy. But, Keiron’s birthday was a bright spot and he had a blast as a few
of his little buddies came over to celebrate. He ate lots of chocolate and other sweeties….getting to bed that night at 10pm (yikes!). Looking into pre-schools and finding a gemnearby. We are waiting to check out the nearest competitor before deciding. Poddy training continues…2 steps forward, 1 step backward. He is applying his goal oriented personality to the new poddy use (to get stickers). Let’s hope it does not give him an early meeting with the proctologist.

Missed a friend’s birthday party, among other nightlife invites because the Keiron is not sleeping well these days. We are working on getting him out of our bed back to his bed. I figure once he realizes the freedom
inherent to his own bed (Crib has been reconfigured into a bed), he will sign out from the master suite.

Reid and Danna’s place is off to a blazing start! The feedback from customers is highly positive and repeat business is high. Word has it that Zeke is making a bit of money washing dishes and Sophie is lending her charm to the hostess station on a Sunday. Looking for an office for our business: the rent is off the scales….but working from our home office is more difficult with vibrant child.

Puzzle mania: Keiron is the puzzle master. It’s like living with a tiny “Rain Man” as he solves small and large puzzles. He loves them. He can’t be bothered by TV for more than 15 mins (Thomas the Tank Engine or Noddy) and yet he will work puzzles for twice that amount of time. In fact, building blocks has taken a back seat to the puzzle mania. As such, our living room floor and kitchen floor are constantly covered with all sorts of puzzles.

easy does it

2005-12-28T20:58:00.000Z

The one thing I find most difficult about being a dad?

Understanding how much, if at all, to encourage my son. Let me explain by way of example. Today it snowed. I was still recovering from the flu, but sensed we might not see much more of the white stuff this winter. I asked Keiron if he wanted to go outside and sled down the hill. Nope. Play in the snow? Nope. Get his snowsuit on so we could have a go at the snow? Nope. So I put him in his suit and after a wee bit of fuss, he started reciting: "it's snowing, it's snowing!". With a big grin on his face, I led him out the door and across the street to the park.

“Want to sit on the sled and have daddy pull you?”
No.
“Come on Keiron, you WILL like it.”
No Daddy.
So I placed him on the sled. He grabbed onto the saucer shaped plastic sled like he was approaching the Pallavicini descent at A-Basin with only one ski lesson under his belt.
“Look up Keiron, don’t be afraid to smile.”
He looks up and realizes there is snow on his wellies.
“Must rub snow off wellies, must rub snow off wellies” he mutters.
After a grueling 6 seconds where we reached a speed of 2 mph, I gave up.
I ask what should have been the obvious question from the start.
“Ok, Keiron. What do you want to do?”
“Climb up hill, Daddy.”
Simple. Different. Ok.
So we climb, err walk, up the hill, watching the pattern our boots make in the snow and looking out for reckless sliders heading our way.
At the top I show Keiron how to make and utilize a snowball.
He throws his first at a video taping mummy. His.
He generally gets it, but does not have the dexterity to make them yet.
More snowballs are made and tossed in various directions. 10 minutes pass.
Nanna meets up with us and she carries Keiron back to the house as he describes various objects, animate and inanimate, as his own. A pale. A sled. A dog.

The snow was still falling. But flu ridden Daddy and a contented Keiron (being carried by Nanna) were headed back inside.

Perhaps it would help, when thinking of how much to encourage my son, if I imagined what I would want to do if I had just discovered fear, pain, excitement, and anxiety all at the same time. And I did not know what caused them, but had some ideas. Oh yeah, and I’m 2 yrs old.

Besides, what does the love of my life and the cutest boy on the planet do when it snows?
Anything he wishes.

Christmas is coming...

2005-12-04T20:03:00.000Z

The excitement is building and Santa is getting ready to make his first meaningful visit to Keiron's home. Christmas is so magical with children. We spent today at the Knaresborough Edwardian Christmas Market, which is a fancy way of saying Outdoor shops with scrummy food. Keiron proceeded to eat a ham & cheese crepe, pork sandwich and cake...followed by chasing pigeons and petting a Greenpeace polar bear holding a sign "No fish in the sea=No tea for me".
Knaresborough is quaint, very old (circa middle ages: ) and up on a steep hill, guaranteeing you can indulge a bit on top knowing you just worked your glutes on the way up.

We went to see Rufus Wainwright last evening in a beautifully restored City Hall Auditorium in Sheffield. A must see for anyone who digs lyrics, piano, and complicated structure in the music they like.

This week is big...Wednesday we find out if our Incubator Project gets the funding it needs to match with our private investment. Will make for an interesting Christmas if it does not.

Observations

2005-11-06T19:45:00.000Z

The past two weeks have been a virtual blur with work consuming us and culminating in a 3am migrane followed by, yes, you guessed it: vomiting. But Carol was a dream this week, taking Keiron for 3 nights so we could get back on track with sleep etc. We are now a bit more rested.

NEWS ALERT!!! Reid, Danna, Sophie and Zeke will be opening "Sophie & Zeke's Restaurant" beginning of December in historic Downtown Claremont, NH! 6 months in the making and it is finally coming together for them. Fantastic news this past week.
Website will be up soon...check back here or contact Reid and Danna on email.

Prior to all of that this past week...we spent a glorious hour in Hyde Park (London)-crossing for a meeting
( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyde_Park,_London ). We were busy trotting across the park not paying too much attention to anything and suddenly found ourselves in the midst of what must be one of the most beautiful big city parks in the world. It has the formality of a traditional park, but the scale of the best "concert" venue parks in the US, with water, lawns, flowers and trees in abundance. Throw in some 18th/19th century architecture, statues, and a small palace and you have a truly European pleasure land. I love Golden Gate park near Ian and Joey's old house, with its other world trees plucked from a Tolkien novel and its rose and Shakespeare gardens, but the British know how to do parks and all others are simply imitating.

We almost missed the park, heads down, talking about our upcoming meeting. Instead, we were momentarily distracted by a horse passing with a gallant rider and realized we needed to slowdown to a stroll, look skyward to a crisp blue and inhale the cool air with the smell of healthy grass.

HALLOWEEN: Pumpkins with stickers attached giving directions on how to carve a jack-o-lantern. You know you are in a foreign land. Our little devil enjoyed the evening. We took him next door to Julia and Andrew's for his second trick or treat. Yes, he is not 2, but he did take part in the famous Wilmot Halloween Celebration last year. We did not need the ski parka this year. :-) However, we had a traditional thanksgiving treat about a month early....as one of our new friends in the UK brought over a homemade pumpkin pie. I dashed to the store for some tin can whipped cream and was transported back to the US. Deliciously dark brown.

We picked up another bit of work this week and Dawn may have picked up a 4 month contract in the retail (Project Mgmt) sector. Still feeling our way around the place, but starting to make a mark. Oh yeah, and we have a proposal to move a service for a customer to the US...ironic.

November is shaping up to be a month of great change....stay tuned.

Redneck Disneyland

2005-10-18T21:55:00.000+01:00

Keiron and I went to Diggerland with Uncle Andrew, his brother Jason and his son Dillon this past weekend. It was a hoot...but I suspect Keiron was just a bit too young as he could not grasp the concept that his hand was controlling the 20-ton loader...it was surreal. Instead, he loved the toy size bulldozers and the bouncy castle. We chowed on tasteless burgers and chips for lunch and rode the Bob the Builder bulldozer (toy size) most of the visit. Imagine a place where you can drive a piece of heavy machinery with little or no safety equipment, by yourself, as long as you are 5! Scary. Likely no place in the usa due to litigious culture.

yes...that's keiron after his audition for the Partridge family revival tour....what's new is old...funny how so many bands sound like the early 70s revisited. Listening to David Gray these days and lots of UK pop, especially Robbie Williams….yeah, I am hooked. Not sure why USA is void on this guy…but it may have something to do with the fact that a normal haircut in the UK looks something like this (no, not kidding!)….looks interesting with triple Windsor and bold stripe suit…but hey..gotta love the originality…it’s refreshing….civilized, smart, logical. Hmmm…I think I like this place.

5:30am is the norm for Keiron now….ouch. enough said...

Leffe blonde beer is brilliant and a nice change from the hoegaarden. Looking to join these guys to continue giving back….both of us…seem like a fun group…more on that next time.

Rollercoasters

2005-10-07T19:26:00.000+01:00

...bright days have been replaced by clouds, everywhere. the weather is now reported with mention of breaks of sunshine. i suspect winter is just around the corner, with its rain....mirroring the mood this week as we floated in and out of meetings-each a dramatic turn up and down. Ending the week on a down with the retreat of our first contract, temporarily...stay tuned.

on a brighter note-keiron really turned on the charm this week. he must have stopped teething and is a real laugh to be with...giggling and playing constantly. he has expanded to 3 or 4 words together-albeit- intermittently. we seem to be having more "get the video camera" moments as he grows up by the day.

we are heading into the weekend to recharge our batteries and gear up for a strong finish in october--

squash game is getting better, no, I still can't really play--but progress is being made. sport will become increasingly important as the weather gets duller (i imagine)...

keiron did ride a train last weekend:

did i mention the front yard

2005-09-30T21:57:00.000+01:00

...yes, wow! imagine puffy white clouds descending upon the deep blue of the sky as a backdrop. rain? not much yet, but sure to come since it so magnificently green here. 5 mins from our victorian are fields of sheep, a patchwork of farms, and the dales.
...still in awe of it all. so different, but familiar enough to bolster your desire to follow your curiosity.

in the beginning...

2005-09-30T21:50:00.000+01:00

...we made our way to the park, then the ducks, and finally for an ice cream. keiron loves it here. of course, he is the happy chappy of the block and has generally run around with a smile since he was able.
...did i mention that 2 mins walk from our home is every convenience one could ever want. really glad we chose the town over country. feeling alive as we mix and mingle with all that is going on every day. but civilized, shops close down at reasonable hours and freshness is valued over quantity and to some degree variety. but, ahhh...the bread. so yummy.
...walking lots, and not to the pub ;-)
...keiron had a go at the potty...success, but not a routine yet. four words linking, dancing, and obsessed with the roundabout. what a front yard.