Open Heart Surgery

We all have bad days or tough times. But I feel like I have been having a lot lately – more than my fare share. I don’t quite know what is keeping me in an eternal bad mood but I really hope it stops soon.

Let me start at the top:
I was upset about something or another. (To be honest, I can’t even remember what anymore. I am sure it was something silly.) I was rushing out the door to meet up with Ingrid for some coffee and a chat… when I tripped a little… AND let my laptop gently brush against the metal table. Well, I felt that it was just a gently brush. However, it would appear that my computer felt otherwise. The screen went black and we couldn’t see anything. Humm…. Serious problem.

In moments like this, you think about all that we do now a days on computer. We were lucky that all the guts were still in order and the computer worked when hooked up to an external screen. But that didn’t really feel like a solution.

While I was off brooding during my coffee with Ingrid, Lenny started to look up my computer model on the internet. He found a site that would explain step by step how to replace the screen. That was the start to my little green Dell’s open heart surgery. I won’t bore you all with the details (I thought it was very exciting!) but Lenny managed to get the computer all taken apart one evening and find the part we needed to order.


About 3 weeks later when we had the parts and the time, we finally replaced a small little orange bundle that lives at the place I dropped the computer. I can’t begin to explain my surprise when it turned on and worked!!! To be fair, we were both quite pleasantly surprised! I knew that Lenny was smart (or I wouldn’t have married him), I knew he was really smart when he was doing Diabolical Sudoku quickly, but now I know him to be the miracle man that he is! Thanks, honey!

Happisburgh Beer Festival

The Happisburgh (pronounced Haze-Boro. I don't see it either, but I promise that is really how people say it) Hill House Pub Beer Festival is an amazing four day treat! I never imagined myself at a beer festival... once I knew I was going, I certainly didn't think I would be saying that it was wonderful. But, wonderful it was!

Emily, Jayme, Becca, and Dave (and loads of other Norwich friends) were going camping in Happisburgh for the 10th annual beer festival. They said it would be fun- so off we went! This adorable little pub next to a camp site gets in about 60 different micro-brew beers and another 20 ciders. People just go up and order by number! I stuck to cider and had an amazing afternoon in the rain alongside our wonderful friends. The wind speed was so high we joked that we had 2 months of weather in 1 afternoon! It would be sunny one second, raining the next, and just cloudy a few minutes later. It was really amazing.

On Saturday night the forecast was for 30 mph winds. Our little HomeBase tent didn't even live through the first night. The peg hole broke apart and split in two before the sun came up at 5am. We knew we didn't stand a chance against 30 mph..... so, we moved in with Jayme and Emily! Who would have thought that we would end up in the 'guest room' of their tent!

I think my favorite part of the festival was seeing the variety

of people and ages there all enjoying their pint and the band. I could just picture my parents and about a dozen other people there with us & having a blast! I will really miss the fun, relaxed nature of the pub environment.

Becca is always ready for anything! Rain or shine!

Ireland

We had a long weekend to Ireland booked in April. But by the time I got back from California after the Iceland Volcano I put my foot down and refused to go anywhere! We decided to re-book that trip for the summer half-term.

It was quite a whirl wind trip, but we saw a few amazing spots. I am just going to do a brief highlights photo tour:

After a real scavenger hunt- we found a rather unknown little castle called Johnston Castle. We had a little majestic walk around a lake and ice cream next to some peacocks.

In Waterford, we hoped to see the factory and lots of sparky crystal things... but instead we just got the construction of the new complex! Bummer.

Some Blarney Stone luck for Maia....

And some for Lenny too!

Last stop - Cliffs of Moore. All I can say is ..... awesome.

Thanks, Ireland. Amazing trip and we look forward to coming back again!

Last Hurrah

People make jokes about 'when pigs fly'.... but I think they just might start flying in a few years because time seems to fly more and more every day!

Hedi and Bruce were in England for nearly 2 weeks but it felt more like 2 days! We had a little trip to France, a few days around London, Bruce and Hedi had a night in Cambridge, and then we all went to the Isle of Wight for the last weekend.

The Isle of Wight has a very strategic position between England and France and therefore many of the interesting sites are castles, battle stations, and other military defences. We enjoyed an afternoon at Carisbooke Castle. They have great videos to help explain the importance of the location and who lived there over the ages. Bruce couldn't get enough!

On Sunday, we went to the west coast of the island and visited one of the main tourist attractions called the Needles and the Needles Old Battery. We had a wonderful walk along the coast with views of the cliffs. At the top was the military battery and direct views of the chalk stakes (Needles) that rise out of the water. Amazing things in this little world of ours!

Bromberg visit part 2

We had only a few days in and around Richmond with Hedi and Bruce during their recent trip out here, but we made good use of the time that we did have.

1. Night out to dinner at Mama's Restaurant with Jayme, Emily & Becca. (Mamma's has turned into our celebration site and the place we go anytime there is a group together)

2. Evening of Indian food with Richard and Mary-Anne. Richard and Hedi have a special bond because Richard helped Hedi pull of a surprise party for Lenny around his 30th when ILOG went to Florida for a work conference.

3. A wonderful evening at Ivan and Corrine's house with a home cooked Salmon and delicious veg.

4. A quick spin through Isabella Plantation Garden in Richmond Park as we were heading to the Isle of Wight.

It is just so beautiful in and around Richmond that I love having the opportunity to share it with other people. This is the little Terrace Garden park that is just at the end of our street. Isn't it amazing?? Chula loves to run around the grass (off to the far right of the picture) and she is a skilled squirrel huntress! he, he

All that running around can tucker a Chula out... apparently even her head needed a bit of a rest!

The Brombergs arrive!

I know it has been way too long since I updated the blog. That volcano really threw a loop into normal life! How many times does a person get to say that?!? About 3 weeks after getting home, we had some visitors who have been promising to come for years.... Hedi and Bruce Bromberg! This is clearly worthy of several new blog posts!

Part One:

Only a few days after arriving, we jetted off to Paris for the weekend with a hope of attending the French Open for Lenny and Bruce. It was a really lovely weekend. The weather could not have been better~ sunny with a light breeze. If Hedi and Bruce ordered this.... I want the number for their travel agent! Amazing.

Nuts and Bolts: Eurostar! What a way to go. I met Lenny, Bruce, and Hedi at Richmond station. We caught the tube to King's Cross and then jumped on the Eurostar. Only 2 1/2 hours later.... Nous sommes arrivés à Paris! Parlez-vous français ? I sure don't! No worries~ Lenny and Hedi both had things coming back to them and I supplemented with my fluent use of ULP (Universal Language of Point- I just point at anything I want to order! Works great!)

Itinerary: We enjoyed Friday night out in the Latin Quarter. Saturday was a big day walking and seeing the Louvre. Please note this wonderful picture of Winged Victory ~ she is still my favorite work in the Louvre. Sunday was another day out walking and then into the Marais district where we enjoyed some Judaica shopping. Okay, you got me. That part was my request. But we all had fun!

This was our little breakfast place. The waiter was a hoot. He played up that he didn't know any English. As soon as we tried ULP and a little French... his English came back to him!

Such a wonderful and beautiful city. Au revoir Paris!

Cancelled

I had to call work today and leave a message that went something like this, "Hi. This is Maia. I am calling to let you know I can't make it into work because of the volcano." For real?? This can't be for real! But, oh yes! It is so very real.

Both Lenny and I were back in the states this past week to get ourselves ready to move back in the summer. We had a wonderful week visiting friends, looking at houses, and exploring the bay area in ways that we never have. On Thursday, we both went to visit our families before heading back to London on Saturday. But.... we are getting some extra time with them!

All flights have been canceled into Heathrow for over 4 days now. I have been told that the soonest I can get back is 10 days after my original flight. We have kids and teachers trapped in China. My head of department is trapped in Tibet. Thousands of flights have been canceled all around the world. They believe that 200,000 British people are stranded abroad. Lenny and I consider ourselves to be very lucky. We are with our families. We have wonderful beds and home cooked food. But, I am starting to get nervous about ever getting back to our little Chula. I just hope this volcano calms down long enough that we can get back home.





Over the past few years, we have had earthquakes, hurricanes, and now a volcanic eruption! Say what you will, but I claim this is just the start. Mother Nature is sending us a message.... she is seriously pissed off! On the other hand, my friend Ingrid said this is just Iceland's way of getting back at England for the way they handled things when Iceland had the financial collapse a few years ago. I guess we will have to wait and see who is right.

This is one of the few times that I hope I am not right.