ten years...

yikes.

Austrian (and Swiss) Alps...

so, I just got back from a snowboarding trip to the Austrian (and Swiss) Alps with three Aussies, one German, and another American...all of which I've known for a couple of years actually...the trip was sweet...I'll write more about it in the next post...but in the meantime, here is a picture I took from one of the chair lifts...

winter wonderland!?!?!

this is the view from our kitchen...into the little enclave/patio of our modest flat...we live in the ground level which is partially underground...

So, overnight we received the most snow in the London area in more than 20 years...london doesn' t even get a lick of snow normally...first time myra and i have seen it stick since being here...6 to 10 inches of snow...big deal right??? this is a normal day in Chicago for those back home...

but here, its a freakin' disaster...everything is basically shutdown...remember, we don't get snow here, so no need for snow removal plans, salt trucks, etc. etc...i bet many homes don't even own snow shovels...anyways, the trains (think Metra) have been shutdown...the tube lines are either partially shut or suspended...the buses (think red double decker) are not running at all...many of the airports are shutdown, including only one runway at heathrow...nobody can get anywhere because everyone here uses public transport...even if they could plow the snow, i don't even know where they would push it because streets are so narrow and everything is so tight...

i'm going to throw gus into the patio area and watch him try to fight the snow...literally...he will either try to fight it or tip toe on it like its burning hot coals...what a chooch.

Mr. Rude in Dublin...

this will be quick cause i'm lazy...So, we went to bloody Dublin last weekend...left on Friday night...came back on Sunday night...we toured Dublin on Saturday, then visited the GREEN part of Ireland on Sunday...we visited the Wicklow mountains, the Wicklow gap and then the towns of Glendalough and Avoca...then we drove by the seaside...it was definitely very pretty and green...the rain wasn't bad either...we saw sun both days and saw horrific rain both days...but that's dublin and ireland apparently...

sorry, no little green people at the end of rainbows...no pots of gold...

one of the highlights of the trip was visiting the St. James Brewery, the home of Guinness...the beer that i have grown to swallow pint after pint after pint after pint...Guinness folks is tasty...and has the same calories as any other beer...its not heavy as people say it is...and it has less bubbles...so less gas...so you can drink more...and its quite a pretty beer after its poured from a tap...very pretty...princess usually wants to slap me whenever i just stare at it bubbling up and settling...any guinness drinker would know what i'm talking about...

anyways, we are going to try a new thing by bringing mr. rude everywhere we go and taking one picture of him to memorialize the trip...no better way to remember Dublin than Guinness since it literally owns half the city...the picture here is at the Gravity Bar on the top floor of the storehouse in the St. James Brewery...great views there of Dublin...we get a free pint at the end of the tour...it was mid-afternoon...there were probably at least 200 people packed into that bar...and i pulled out mr. rude and M snapped the picture...quickly...

Mr. Rude.

Not much in common...chapter 1.

ok...so, here is a random difference why the only thing the U.S. and the U.K. have in common is kind of the english language...and i stress the kind of...

so, they don't sell these behind-the-head earmuffs here for some reason...i feel like i'm the only person in london that has worn them or ever even seen them before...i've been asked twice now by complete strangers in the last week where i got them...and i definitely get inquisitive looks...like these were some asian invention that i bought from the motherland...

the stupid part is that people wear such bizarre things on their heads...this place is weird hat central...seriously...some goofy stuff goes on people's heads to keep them warm...

why TKG02 is a bad influence...

and playing video games at work isn't a good idea when your boss is around either...

i8bigboobs (7:25:53 PM): YEAH, MY DAD IS HERE
i8bigboobs (7:25:59 PM): HE IS LIKE,..WHAT ARE YOU DOING
babar899 (7:26:01 PM): LOL!
i8bigboobs (7:26:07 PM): i SAID I AM PLAYING WITH _____
babar899 (7:26:18 PM): LOL!
i8bigboobs (7:26:19 PM): he is like what is with those balls
babar899 (7:26:20 PM): we are losers.
babar899 (7:26:24 PM): LOL!
i8bigboobs (7:26:26 PM): hahahaha
babar899 (7:26:30 PM): i am cracking up man.
i8bigboobs (7:26:33 PM): no he is angry
i8bigboobs (7:26:37 PM): I must go