Mike's musings

Into London - and out again

I go into London this morning at a decent time, and sent a text to my mate Nick to see if he fancied lunch. No reply, so I gave him a call, and he wasn't available, but said that it was a good tactic: giving him a call if I'm in Town. It would be great to catch up with him in person after some 15 years.

So, I left around lunchtime, having really only gone in for some general discussion, and managed to get some actual work done in the afternoon.

Labels: London

"Why's that man got a gun, Mummy?"

These are not words you want to hear on a tube in London. We were stopped, with the doors open, at a station, and Jo and Moo were facing the platform, while I was facing away. You know when the adrenalin suddenly kicks in, and you start thinking very, very quickly? One of those times. Moo, answered, rather calmly, "he's in a film, Jo," and only then saw my reaction. It was, of course, just a poster, and a significant relief...

We were in London because Jo wanted to go to see the dinosaurs at the Natural History Museum. Unluckily, Jo wasn't the only child to have this idea, and we weren't the only parents to agree to the plan. South Kensington tube station was closed due to over-crowding, so we got off at Gloucester Road tube, with hundreds of other people, from whence we walked to join the queues the stretched from the entrance, down the ramp, snaking round the grounds, and for about 100m on the pavement. It moved fairly quickly, and we decided not to join the queue that wound round the main hall towards the full dinosaur exhibit: another 150m or so, at a guess. Instead, we wandered round some of the other halls, saw some aquatic fossils, had some lunch (expensive, but good food), and then looked at the evolution exhibits. I gave Jo a quick lecture on evolution and how Charles Darwin (whose statue now sits on the stairs overlooking the main hall) is a hero. I'm not sure how much she understood about Australopithecus' relationship to modern humans, but she seemed interested and took some of it in.

Went home (via Gloucester Road again, as South Kensington tube was closed again), and Jo, who was on her knees with tiredness, fell asleep in the car. Back home for fish and chips with Miri (who was very pleased to see us!) and Mel. The girls fell asleep very, very quickly, and we've spent the rest of the evening to now wrapping presents, baking muffins, cakes and the rest and preparing for the party tomorrow. How can it be so much hard work?

A tiring day, but a good one.

Labels: Jo, London, science

Jo's 3rd birthday

Up at 0550, a few presents, some time to play with them. Moo and I had both taken the day off

Mel turned up a little earlier than usual, so we could go off to Witham, where we caught the train. Jo very excited: although she's been on a train before, she was only a few months old, and can't remember it at all. The journey was a little longer than she would have liked, and she got a little too excited for a fairly busy train. Got to Liverpool Street, took the tube to South Kensington. This also a little long...

Jo loved the Science Museum, and after a couple of hours there, we headed off to the V & A and had some lunch. Good food, and not too expensive for London, I thought (beat £2.95 for a piece of cake at the Science Museum!). Then did the textiles section, which she loved.

And then she did the "trying to get away, pulling on her arm, and twisting it" thing which she's done before, and pulled the ligament out of alignment. Which she's done before. We went to the first aid room (the staff were very helpful), and tried to fix it. We failed, so caught at taxi to the Chelsea and Westminster hospital. Paeds A&E were very good, and a staff nurse fixed it, so that was good. We got on bus (Jo was already asleep, but woke up briefly), on the tube (she hardly ever stirred), bought some muffins and a doughnut, and got on the train home. She woke up at Liverpool Street station, and had a good (though still sleepy) trip to Witham. In the car, then home.

A few more presents, and then a fish and chip supper with Mel. Bath, and then bed.

So, we'll all remember the unscheduled trip to A & E, but she had a lovely birthday, I think, and has a story to tell.

Women and the CofE

I'll blog soon about the news that the General Synod of the Church of England isn't expected even to vote on whether we should have woman bishops until 2010. I'm incensed, obviously.

Labels: birthday, Jo, London

London

(backposting) A trip to London, worked out better than I thought it would, and I'm becoming resigned to the fact that my boss has decided to send me on sales training. In fact, having bought (at his request) SPIN selling by Neil Rackham, I'm beginning to look forward to it. Now _there's_ a strange thing!

Poor Moo's not well, and I'm off Zurich tomorrow.

Labels: illness, London, meeting, Moo