Park and Ride

Cambridge has its share of parks and some of them (some) have pretty innovative play equipment. We stumbled on this one today. Check out this two-kid contraption, which rotates, swings and tilts as it goes. A big pleaser. As too are the rain puddles. Mud is sure to be a new household staple.

We put a small deposit down on our rental home today, enough to start the reference-check process. We should know this week if we've secured the place; it is our intention is to move in on June 24, with the help of loaner furniture from RAF Alconbury.

I did the math tonight and this home has less square footage than my 2-bedroom Del Ray Bungalow (it also has less bathrooms! and a much smaller yard). But enough whinging, as they say. My godmother has the right approach, she says she's looking forward to visiting, when she plans to bring one change of clothes and a toothbrush. I told her she might consider skipping the toothbrush, it is England after all.

The Blackest Swan

Our encounter last week with one particularly nasty swan was apparently not such an accident, at least as far as this bird goes. Tonight, as we dined river-side at The Waterman, we watched this foul fowl literally attack (wings flapping, charging at top speed) no less than a dozen rowing shells, all of which come out on the river in the early evening for team practice. It took two seconds of Googling to find a story about this bird, known locally, as Mr. Asbo (I'm not making this up). Here's a piece from the Telegraph, headline: Cambridge Rowers Ask Queen to Kill Violent Swan

Mr. Asbo nests nearby and has actually capsized rowers. In case you didn't know, swans are the property of the Queen, she even has an officer in charge of their well-being. I doubt this feathery white ball of storybook ferocity is being invited to the palace for tea anytime soon.

(photo credit: Mason's News Service)

A New Read: On the Roundabout

Potty Mouth has a new sister publication: On The Roundabout (www.OnTheRoundabout.com), a weekly blog about being an American in Britain. Give it a read if you want to know more about the highs and lows of life in the UK. I plan to update it once or twice a week, starting with today's post, Talk Big, Live Small.

Leftward Leaning

English cyclists and Pedestrians beware. I have begun driving in the UK. It was all white knuckles yesterday (mine AND Paul's). Today I settled in and drove an hour to RAF Lakenheath. It turns out the roundabouts aren't the hardest part- it's remembering that the bulk of your car is now to the left of you. I've come crazy-close, Paul reports, to snapping off a few side view mirrors on parked cars. Fine by me, I'm just worried I'm going to take out one of the gazillions of cyclists they have here. I do think I deserve some merit pay for learning to navigate the roads in an American minivan (a loaner for now), among the very widest cars you'll see on the road here. Harrumph...

Today's first- we dined on duck eggs this morning- instead of the hen-produced variety, a gift from a farmer, a friend of a friend of a friend, who we learned last night has enough ducks on his farm to produce 10,000 eggs a day (he also has a moat around his house but that's another story). The eggs were delicious, a bit bigger than hen eggs, more yolk, which give the exterior a bit of a pink hue. The shells are thinner so they cook faster, and, I'm told, make cakes and meringues super light.

It's a rainy Sunday, so after Mario Andretti here explored the streets, we retreated to our flat for tea and cookies and a little play dough action. And the rain pours on, to the great-delight of all the dry English gardens (there's a drought underway).

'Slice him in half!'

We stumbled on the Cambridge Country Fair this afternoon while we were in the city center trying to set up accounts. Definitely a different fair vibe than in the U-S-of-A. Not a funnel cake or hotdog to be seen. Rather we ate falafel with humus and soft serve ice cream. The attractions were part state fair (horses, sheep, ponies to pet) and a huge assortment of monster blow-up slides and these wild plastic balls you get into And roll around in. Everything cost a fortune (the equivalent of $8 American for harry and Charlotte to spend five minutes inside a moon bounce, which if you do the math, makes Disney positively affordable).

But there were some awesome moments - harry rode on his first roller coaster!! And a farcical knights in Armour sword fight. The little British tikes were all booing the black knight and cheering on Sir William 'slice him in half!' it took Harry five seconds to pick up on it and begin parroting the jargon. Paul and I were in stitches.

All Things Great and Small

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner! After an uninspired visit to the fan favorite, number four (sorry no. 4 enthusiasts, it was a little too close to the local tattoo shop, etc. and very dark inside), we doubled back to the cracker box, known formally as st. Peter's Lodge, took some measurements, and told the estate agent we were ready to commit. As I have told family, st peter is most assuredly the saint of Very Small Things. The house is Victorian, beautifully styled and, well, petite, nary a closet. I wanted the English experience And this is assuredly it. We have many hoops to jump before it's a done deal so we're not counting our chickenst, but it could be a very nice spot, just 250 yards from the river Cam and Jesus Green, to lay heads. My shoes wil be homeless, but why niggle? My friend Kristine, an expat, has vowed to show me the world of hidden storage solutions.

In other news, we moved today to our temporary housing, a very nice penthouse apartment with a view of the river Cam. Despite the ultra modern everything, it's quite nice. Everything but the washing/drying machine, which is quite beyond our comprehension. It has so far eaten Charlotte's new sparkly shirt, turned harry's pj top to pink (an unecpcted hot cycle, I'm steaming mad) and is currently holding our things captive in the dry cycle. We literally can not open it. ) course why complain? Not much room for clothes in the new house anyway.

The Meadow

Today's property visit was a converted barn in a huge meadow. Modern throughout, very nicely done, and still under construction (ugh). Harry was over-the-moon about the WWII pillbox in the backyard (back field?). It was also over budget. But we would have considered it until I bothered to ask if it would be available for three years. Apparently the owner wants to move in in 18 months. Oy! Might have mentioned that, people!

Paul had his first day of work today. I took the kids out to explore and we had a Lot of fun feeding the ducks and battling one very big swan, who snatched a piece of bread out of charlotte's hand. "He is not my friend!" She announced between sobs.