Down on the Farm

OK so Courtney and Alex now live in Rotherhithe. And Rotherhithe has its own farm (check out: http://www.angelfire.com/pop2/surreydocksfarm/)
Here's Alex petting a sheep.
Here's Court clearly enjoying the pungent aroma of Surrey Docks Farm.
Up close and personal
Mmmm, sunshine
Here's poops & Sabs at Pat & Pete's.

more pics of Carrington's visit (see below)

Poopsy Doopsy

As Court has been extremely lax at posting on this thing of late, I thought I'd take it upon myself to post a few piccies of last weekend; for those of you who don't know, Miss Carrington 'Poopsy' Cooper graced London with her presence. London wasn't quite ready.... Here is the result....
Love Alex xxx
p.s. more pics to follow...

Can a full moon affect the Underground?

Yesterday in my office we were talking with one of my colleagues who is about to burst with child about tube etiquette. Now any decent person would give up their seat in the tube for a pregnant woman, especially this one who might have her kid in the freaking tube. This however is not always the case as many people in London are highly selfish and quite unobservant. Taking note of her personal woes with the transport, I told myself that I would begin to watch for opportunities like these where I, an able bodied person, could give up my seat for someone who actually needed it either due to pregnancy, illness, physical handicap, etc.

Tonight, I actually came upon my first chance to put this new found cause into effect. I had just jumped on the Piccadilly line at Kings Cross and was headed south to Earl's Court. We are talking 12 stops, so this isn't a short ride. I was fortunate to get a seat right by the doors with one empty seat beside me. At the same time that I boarded the train, a blind man also boarded. This man was properly blind. He had a walking stick and the pupils of his eyes were silver. As I sat there, he sort of fumbled his way towards the seats, but instead of sitting down, he stood directly in front of me with his crotch in my face. Remembering my decision, I asked him if he would like to take my seat. I got up and let him know it was vacant, and then took the seat next to him.

This is when it gets weird. This is when he started to touch me. Ok not down there like a pervie, but as I had my hands on my bag, he actually hooked his hand around my arm. Instantly I was VERY uncomfortable. Thoughts started flooding my head. "Ok buddy I gave you my seat, not my arm." or "He's blind, I can't say anything" to "This is all a sick trick and those silver eyes are contacts" back to "He's blind, how can I think these things? I feel so awkward."

The expressions on my face must have been priceless as he started to really wedge himself under my arm. So in a very tactful manner I tried to remove my arm by non-nonchalantly sweeping my hair away from face. As I repositioned my arm, here came his little sneaky blind paw wrapping himself around my arm once again.

I looked up at the tube map in a panic thinking surely my stop was near, but I still had 8 to go, and I really think the blind guy was with me for the long haul. So I made a decision, a decision that I'm sure some of you will judge me for, but it had to be done. I mean I had entertained this for about ten minutes too long as I considered all of my options, but I did the only thing that I could think of. I pretended Covent Garden was my stop, got off the train, and waited for the next.

Now all of you that think I am heartless, this is fine because you are ignorant. When you have a random pseudo hand holding session with a blind stranger whose finger tips look like they've been freshly inked, then we can talk.

Brooke

Every Rose Has Its Horns!!

Texas Wins 41-38!

Free video hosting, video codes at www.vidiLife.com

Living in London during College football season has been a difficult time. First no one really understands the game, then they gripe about how American football players wear pads and stop the game all the time, and of course there are the awful start times because of the time difference. This has kept me from venturing to see any of the big games, but that does not include the Grandaddy of the All, The Rose Bowl. Our beloved Horns faced the USC Trojans in a highly anticipated match up.

I must say that I showed nothing but pure dedication as the game started here at 1am, and I did not get home until 6:30am. To make matters worse, yes I am at work! It was all worth it however, because of the awe inspiring last 19 second game winning touchdown. Never in my life have I seen a more exciting game (I think I pee'd my pants a bit :) ). The Texas Exes London chapter and the USC alumni association rented out the local sports bar, and the place was packed with about 150 people who stayed until the end. There was a sea of burnt orange that was a fabulous site to see for this transplanted Texan.

That first fumble on Texas' first possession really made me nervous (hell the whole game made me nervous), and I thought it was going to be like bowl games in the past, where the team just could not deliver or live up to the hype, I should have known that Vince was better than that. With a Heisman trophy defeat staring in his face, he delivered the National Championship to the Longhorns with true leadership and style. I'm still so elated by the outcome that it has cancelled out the exhaustion I should be feeling from pulling an all nighter. I have yet to hear from my father, who I'm hoping survived the extreme excitement and celebrations that I'm sure followed. I can't imagine what it must have been like to have been there, but since I wasn't, London turned out to be a pretty cool place to watch the Horns put the hurt on the Trojans.

Hook 'Em Horns!

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We are having a Temergency!

After relating to all of the fam about my office's ability to consume massive amounts of tea per day, I thought that the following email, addressed to the firm's London marketing department, would be a funny and apt addition to our little blog:

I have spoken to Alan Brock to try and find out what's happening with our tea machine. There is a replacement machine ready and waiting to be installed but there's a problem with the connection so we are waiting for the maintenance engineers to come and fix that before we get the replacement machine.

Unfortunately we're stuck with just the kettle - or a walk upstairs - for the time being.

Julia Targett
Publications administrator
Acting departmental coordinator
+44 (0) 20 7427 3284

Yeah...that's right, I work in England.

To further understand the crisis of this situation, please refer to the following description of the UK security levels:

The British are feeling the pinch in relation to recent bombings and have raised their security level from "Miffed" to "Peeved." Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to "Irritated" or even "A Bit Cross." Londoners have not been "A Bit Cross" since the blitz in 1940 when tea supplies all but ran out. Terrorists have been re-categorized from "Tiresome" to a "Bloody Nuisance." The last time the British issued a "Bloody Nuisance" warning level was during The Great Fire of 1666.

Happy New Year 2006!

I guess that everyone should enjoy a big city's New Year's celebration. London celebrates with a huge fireworks display by the Thames. It really is surreal to count down and then have Big Ben strike midnight right next to you. The firework display was the most amazing that I've ever seen. This year they chose to have the central focus be the London Eye, and they utilized the Eye within the show. I got a bit of footage so that you can see what I'm talking about because seriously words cannot do it justice. Enjoy and Happy New Year!

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HOLY HELL WE'VE MOVED!

I can now say with exhausted enthusiasm that we have INDEED moved into our flat. The journey was arduous but we made it in the end. Here's why I LOVE living in Rotherhithe:
1. We live right next to the Thames. Ok I live next to one of the most famous bodies of water ever. And more specifically where we live is next to an old whaling dock. So back in the 1700s they used to bring whales from Greenland to the dock next to the flat and strip them of blubber and subject them to all kinds of cruelty. But hey that is so Dickinsian and we live in the 21st century so calm down all you bunny huggers! It's history dammit!
2. I can get to the boat to work. Yep that's right. The Thames Clipper takes me through half of my journey to get to work. Believe it or not I actually enjoy the commute. It's a pretty awesome sight to be able to see all of London's key landmarks on the way to work. Check out my route online. I go from Greenland Pier to Savoy Pier. http://www.thamesclippers.com/home/
3. We have an indoor heated pool. In all my days spent here I've hardly ever spent time in a pool. Now I can swim whenever I want!
4. It's quiet. You wouldn't believe this is a borough in London. Oh and it has trees! Vegetation...who would have thought?!?!
All we need is just to revamp the place and have a house warming party. See the pics below.
Lots of Rotherhithe Love,
Court
x

Our new address:
24 New Caledonian Wharf
6 Odessa Street
Rotherhithe
London
SE16 7TN
England

A Sight for Sore....Balls?

Danger: The following material might be considered by some (cough...Grandmommy) to be crude and uncouth. Please proceed with caution

So it is rare that I would have two postings back to back. Although I am trying to keep the blog more up to date than previously, two days in a row is even crazy for my new found blogmaster ways. The sight that I saw this morning, however, was something that I think merits a blog.

I'm going to work this morning, a tad on the late side due to delayed trains, and I'm listening to my i-pod, minding my business when I arrive at my stop, Blackfriars. I embark down the long hallway with all of the other city drones marching to our respective offices. It is common practice for charities to ask for money from arriving passengers as they make their way to their exits. This is the time with the most traffic and hopefully some people are morning people, as most of you are aware, I am not.

This day was different. Yes there was someone asking for donations. Typical signage, typical bucket, typical testicle costume......wait hold that train! That person is dressed up as a large, hairy ball. Yeah that's right...I had to do a double take. This man/woman was raising money for "Male Cancer" (I guess it would be impolite to call it by its name in the UK - we know how the women folk blush). After a good once over, I proceeded to toss him/her a coin, partially for the cause, partially for the "ballsy" costume.

Initially I was unable to find a picture of Mr. Hairy Ball, so I drew from memory what he looked like for those of you who are visual, but a big thank you goes out to Carly who's lover boy also came in contact with the ball man and had the sense to take a picture. Both are included below for your enjoyment. Please note the accuracy of my paintbrush skills.

Food for Thought

I have just returned from Paris, yes riot free, and now I am forced to contemplate what I consider one of the world's greatest mysteries...how are the French not a bunch of fatties?

The food was absolutely amazing in Paris. Our first dinner was a five course meal of every kind of delectable delight. Each table was set with two huge baskets, one containing all sorts of vegetables and the other containing all sorts of sausages and meats, both with a knife and cutting board. This is your salad course as you proceed to stuff your face on the freshly cut ingredients. Next came the soup course and then the main of Beef Stew or Leg of Lamb. Following was the cheese course (the cheese defintiely does not stand alone in France) with cutting boards featuring several different cheeses ranging from goat cheese to Brie. Then last but not least a homemade, decadent chocolate pudding. It was by far one of the top ten meals that I've ever had.

The days were filled with rich hot chocolates and banana, Nutella crepes by the Eiffel Tower. These crepes melted in your mouth with yummy goodness.

The sights were fabulous, the food was better.

Good morning/afternoon/evening The Paul Weiland Film Company...

...is the standard greeting that escapes my lips anywhere from 20 to 1000 times a day. It's a mundane line but hey I get paid the big bucks for uttering it (so I'm told). The job so far is fine. I'm not doing any hands on stuff which I pray to God I will be doing this time next year. This is mainly b/c I'm the receptionist but hey it's a start. The website should be up and running in two weeks so you guys can check it out soon. What else...

The weather here is very strange. Some days it's freezing and then others it's surprisingly mild for October...well England for that matter.

We are now in our 4TH week of living with Pat and Pete and have been told 'it's going to be another 2 weeks before you move into your apartment.' I suspect that this apartment no longer exists and these so called real estate agents are really experts in the line of torture and mental anguish (for which they are succeeding). What will it be like to only commute 30 minutes to work as opposed to the 90 minute one (EACH WAY!!!) I endure everyday? I envision sleeping in past 7am (Mom, I know you wake up at, like, 4am, but in the UK no one gets to work before 10am ok?!?!) perhaps hitting the snooze button more than once and even, if I'm lucky, be fortunate enough to enjoy a whole breakfast. Not just an apple or one of those tiny yogurts they pass off as a shot drink but a bowl of cereal or waffles even! The possibilities are endless, but for now, much like my apartment, they continue to elusively taunt me.

Nothing else to report. Until next time...
Court
x

Nudey J. Booty

When you think Hungarian women, the picture of beauty is not so conventional. Ok let's face it, most of them of have been kissing trains. We're talking hairy, we're talking furrowed brows that have been scowling since they entered their post communist world.

So you can imagine my utter shock and horror when I went to partake in the famous Hungarian thermal baths and was exposed to their large and in charge, fully naked bods.

Let's set the scene for the encounter. I went to have a massage, very cheap in Hungary. This place was very confusing, signs were all over the place in broken English, and old Hungarian women who worked at the baths kept grabbing me and turning me down dimly lit hallways. I arrived at the massage area to be handed a singular sheet and told to wait. As I sat down ready to contemplate what I potentially had gotten myself into, I saw it. Gasp! The massage room with a large naked body oiled up and jiggling about. It reminded me of a beached whale and someone trying to lift it but failing over and over. It was a glimpse into a future that I hope and pray doesn't await for me, a future where gravity is a woman's worst enemy, an unescapable force.

Once the initial shock set in, then the next obvious concern that crossed my mind was, "Oh my gosh, am I going to have to get naked?"
Thankfully for this modest American girl, I was able to maintain some dignity and keep my Getter booty from being exposed, but my eyes may never recover.

Land Shark

Disclaimer: BEWARE!!!!! This blog is not for those are the weak of heart. Any of those suffering from fear of blood, seeing my fat, high blood pressure, pregnancy (yes that is included in suffering), and Grandmommy like hysterics should not proceed any further.

This weekend I was the victim of England's first known Land Shark attack. I escaped with only wound to the leg which was stitched by the highly skilled Dr. Akis from Cyprus.

Highlights included: Seeing my own fat, drinking a Diet Coke in the Ambulance, telling an inept nurse off, casting Clive Owen to play my doctor in the movie version, and receiving three layers of stitches.

Pictures from the scene:

BEFORE


AFTER


The Man of the Hour...I call him Akis, you can call him Dr. Hottie

The Stars at Night...

...Are Big and Bright (clap clap clap) Deep In the Heart of Texas!
Yee haw! Alex and I would like to let everyone know that we OFFICIALLY own 5.4 acres of the great state of Texas. We hope to build on it when we return back to the states. It's on the north shore of Lake Travis and just a 2 minute drive from the lake. And according to Google maps, Richie, my cousin, lives straight across the lake from us. So I guess we can expect to see alot of each other via boat. When we get back for Christmas y'all are all invited for a champagne toast on the land to help us celebrate. Get excited!
Lots of love,
Court

Bored Beyond Belief

I've always known that I was directionally challenged, but I should go ahead and add geographically challenged as well. For the last...let's say hour, I've been playing this European geography game to try to keep my mind off the fact that it is a ghost town in my office. My best score is 34/45. Go to this website and play the game yourself:

http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/country_europe_G2_drag-drop.swf

First you will feel silly for not knowing where these countries are located, and then you will feel like a dumbass because you didn't even know that some of these countries existed. Now I'm just a bored moron.

A pigeon...

...walked into my house today. Just walked in the front door, waltzed passed Mark, Staci, and I and into the kitchen, to you know, check things out. After it made a bird bath out of the frying pan that was soaking in the sink, we attempted to lure it back out of the house with cat food. It then flew into the window not once but three times and finally made it's way outside injured. Or so we thought...it kept trying to fly and to our dismay just jumped a whole bunch. Talk about depressing. Finally it just flew off...faker!

Yogurt Swirl...

...Is the best way to describe the current state of my legs. Orange and vanilla yogurt swirl to be exact.

It all started when I was visiting Becky in Texas and commented on how great her tan was. She said she had been using these self tan towlettes that you just swipe over your legs and presto change-o tan legs. Well I decided to finally give it a try yesterday and the pictures you see before you are the result. No it's not a skin disease it's just my first attempt at self tanning. I have to say though I am pleased with the 85% of my legs that are tan.

Behold...the swirl...

Granmommy

I won't lie it's been tough since we all found out what's going on with the matriarch of the family. It's been unexpected and hard on everyone to say the least. I've found comfort in the words of Becky and my dad though. Becky told me yesterday prior to GM's surgery that we were all in battle mode. I know she meant mentally but I know everyone has been fiercly praying for her safety and recovery. Dad also mentioned that things like this seem hopeless without the full of armor of God. Well I know we're all 'fully loaded' at the moment. So Granmommy, if you ever get around to reading this, know that we're all behind you, we're all praying for you, and know we all love you.

Now to lighten the mood...favorite Granmommy stories...
1.) Brooke has a Nazi boyfriend? Just the other day GM and I were discussing Brooke's potentially Swedish boyfriend (let me clarify, he has all the potential in the world to be Swedish because he is, the potential left to be fulfilled is in the boyfriend status). I told her his name was Karl to which she responded 'that sounds like a Nazi name.'

2.) 'I'm on fire.'
No 3 words have created such comedy in our family than these. It was a summer day a few years ago. Farmers Branch was quiet as it is, until the phone rang. GM had called to let Brooke she wasn't on fire. Befuddled, Brooke responded with the only response you can have when faced with a potentially crazy grandmother...'I'm not on fire either,' she said hoping not to rock the boat. GM then went on to explain that there was a fire in Farmers Branch, she worried that we would look out the window in any general direction, see smoke and assume that her house was on fire. It indeed wasn't...so we're told.

3.) Al Queda has played a part in both of our countries fears at the moment but no one knew that better than Granmommy after 9/11. According to her inside government sources (aka Charlie Bird who's on the Farmers Branch city council) Al Queda was planning to poison the Farmers Branch water supply. And after said warning, she told me she was beginning to test the water for said poison. I replied with, "Granmommy, how can you tell if it's poisoned or not?" She responded with, "Oh I can tell." You don't mess with scientific facts like that folks.

I love you Granmommy!
Love,
Court

Grandmommy Part Deux

After reading Court's post I was inspired to add a couple more cherished Grandmommy stories to the mix. They do always say that laughter is the best medicine.

A Potential Bestseller?

While riding in the land yacht white Caddy, Grandmommy was inspired with an idea for a book. This was no ordinary book, this was a book of personal entries gathered from friends and family far and wide. Something that mothers could give daughters. Something that could be cherished between generations.

Of course I am only referring to a collection of stories surrounding "my first period." Yes that's right folks, let's share with the rest of the world our awkward stories of puberty and becoming a woman. This idea was put to rest by a typical Brooke face and a firm stance that any periods in writing should be reserved for punctuation.

Do your boobs hang low?

This story has been told to me several times by Grandmommy although I personally cannot recollect it. Since I have no recollection, we are going to blame all crudities on Courtney.

The scene: A tranquil day in da Branch, golfers on the green, a light wind in the air. A car pulls up with two bouncing blonde girls spilling out of it.

Courtney, in her hyper, "just can't wait" way runs up to Grandmommy's house eager to raid her fridge, jump on the mini tramp and play with plastic bats.

Unassuming Grandmommy is in the kitchen washing her hair in the sink.

Courtney reaches the door, and Grandmommy looks up from the sink to her see her little face filled with mischief and giggles peering through the door.

Brooke, trails behind in a very angelic and adult like manner.

Courtney bursts into the house before Grandmommy can react, and quickly turns back outside and yells, "Hey hurry up, come quick, you gotta see this, Grandmommy's boobs are hanging in the sink!"

The world stopped as the knowledge of Grandmommy's vulnerable nature was made public to the entire golf course. The horror, the sheer mortification. A proper "braining" was definitley in order.

I've Fallen...

And I can get up, only to fall once again. I don't know what has happened in the last three days, but I have forgotten how to walk or developed two left feet. I'm referring to the fact that I've fallen flat on my face three times in the last three days.

Incident #1
Date: 7/15/05
Location: Westminster Tube Station
In an effort to try and tone my thighs (not working), I have taken to always climbing the escalator on the left rather than standing on the right. I reach the top of the escalator only to have my flip flop hit the top step and send my left ankle into the teeth of the next.
Injuries sustained: Mild abrasions to the left ankle.

Incident #2
Date: 7/16/05
Location: Oxford Circus Area (read very busy)
This fall occurred during our walk to the bus stop. Due to the frantic nature of Oxford Circus, I felt the need to run across the street to make sure that the traffic did not run me down (we did have a green man). Please note that during this fall I was dressed really cute and wearing shoes that I usually have great difficulty walking in let alone running in. I bit it so hard I'm surprised that I was able to get up again. This fall was during a sprint and it was sudden. Thankfully my trusted friend Carly saw it as her duty to stop traffic (please note that traffic was not moving as it was a red light). I really wish I could have been one of the drivers in the cars present to witness my massive fall and the girl stopping the already stopped cars.
Injuries sustained: Massive purple bruise on my right knee. Jeans helped ease the severity of injury.

Incident #3
Date: 7/18/05
Location: Westminster Tube Stop (again!)
Once again I'm on the exact same escalator. Funny thing was that I was thinking about last week's fall when I fell again. The first time was a mere trip in comparison to this. I fell and then got wedged in between the moving escalator and the person next to me. I had to be helped up, and my pale pink skirt was covered in black. Tried to act natural and boarded the train where no one else did.
Injuries sustained: abrasions to the right ankle and right hand and of course my wounded pride :)

So there you have it. Hopefully I won't add to this list, but I must mention that my friend Sean definitely got his head stuck in the tube doors today as well. So maybe there's something in the water.

WE ARE OK

Just to let everyone know that me, Court and Alex are ok. Scariness on London transport. We aren't really sure what is going on, but we love you and are ok.

Olympics

I love the Olympics, and it is so exciting to be in London right now as they have secured the 2012 Olympic bid just ahead of archrival Paris in a 54 to 50 vote. The sun has just come out and everyone is smiling. It really is quite a good feeling even if this isn't my home. You can really sense how much people wanted this, and since alot of the construction is going to go on in the East End, maybe this means it will help the sale of Court and Al's house. I'm already making plans to come back and attend.

Village Fete

Ok... this is a bit of an English tradition. let me explain. Over here we have something called the 'village fete' (prounounced 'fayte'. It's a very parochial, villagey affair where you can have pony rides, climb aboard the local fire engine, have a go on the coconut shy (i suggest you google this to find out what it is), and eat cakes made by the women's institute. The High Wych village fete where mum & dad lives was no different. Except for the cakes. They were all from Tesco's - the local supermarket!
Here are the piccies that Brooke took:

Courtney taking part in the tug 'o' war


Our version of a team of cheerleaders


Finally it's the human fruit machine...

Al
x

Royal National Lifeboat Institution

Here's Alex on the life boat. Some of you might wonder what he does as a volunteer lifeboatsman. Well so far, nothing, b/c he hasn't made any saves. Which I'm told is a good thing.

Napoleon

Now I know you've heard of his majesty but most of you have never before experienced his awesome class and his high tech style. I give you...NAPOLEON!

The Track and Tennis

It has come to my attention that I've been living a very posh life the last few weeks. Not only did I cheer on the ponies at the famous Ladies Day at Royal Ascot, but I also caught a few jolly good sets of tennis at a little event I think they call Wimbledon.


Before I know it I'm going to develop a fake accent, refer to everything as lovely, and eat puddings rather than dessert.

What are you kidding? Do you know who I was raised by? This kind of sarcasm and crudity just doesn't disappear over night. Following are the faux pas that were committed at said events:

1. At Ascot, I suggested to a group of very proper older women that they only lived once and should therefore have their picture taken with a drag queen.

2. Called Elizabeth "Ole Bessie" as her royal procession drove down the track.

3. Not aware of Tennis etiquette, sat down before the game was over. Gasp...not before the game was over! I swear the ball boys were out for blood.

4. Again not aware that Tennis was so tame, yelled out, "Good Effort!" in a dead silent crowd. Did manage to get one Chinese tourist to chuckle.

5. Megan and I tried to keep the tennis ball that came at us over the fence (like in baseball), but was then informed that we needed to give it back because we were in England and that British people were too polite to keep it.


6. Dubbed one of the players "Gut boy."

So there you have it. It just goes to show you that you can put a Getter in England, but you can't put England into a Getter.

Interviewing 101

I think I should write a book on what NOT to do during, before and after an interview. Let's review my history shall we?...

November 2004
Position being interviewed for: Production Secretary
Company: Leopard Films
Salary: below minimum wage
Summary: Was working the Texas charm for as long as I could then they hit me with that hard hitting question, "so what do you think the duties of a Production Secretary are?" Having no clue whatsoever, I bullshitted my way along which received confused looks. To which I then responded, "I have no clue." Score...

Febuary 2005
Position being interviewed for: Researcher
Company: Leopard Films
Salary: again below minimum wage
Summary: Was totally underexperienced and cried during the interview...NEXT!

June 2005
Position being interviewed for: Researcher
Company: Attaboy Productions
Salary: I said between 300-350...of course they're going to pick the lower sum...dumb ass!
Summary: Went in for a researcher on a car show, they asked what I knew about cars. I replied with, "I come from a state where there are big ones." Ponder that for just a while...yeah after I sign off here I'm going to get a tattoo across my forehead that says 'dip shit.'

Love y'all miss y'all. Good to see everyone while we were in Texas.

Until next time,
Court

Oh My God We're Back Again!

Here's the latest adventure that I've had in ole England:

I was watching "Top of the Pops" on the BBC where they feature each weeks biggest number one in the UK. The Backstreet Boys were performing their new single which requires them to get down on their knees and act really heartbroken (the video even includes thrown sand). It was gripping. Knowing that the show is filmed in London, this meant that the Backstreet Boys were in town, and I bet they were ready to party (especially the one fresh from rehab).

So I'm walking through Regents park the next morning with my high school cronie Amber and flatmate Kerstie to go to the tube. Its a beautiful day in London...almost 75 degrees. This man is running towards us. First thought: He's good looking. Second Thought: He could pass for one of the Backstreet Boys. Third thought: Holy Hell it is a Backstreet Boy - it was meant to be.

After telling random strangers of our brush with fame, we went on to Portobello Market. There I realized that I was shopping next to none other than Hermione of Harry Potter. This day was every pre-teen's fantasy...Harry Potter and a Backstreet Boy. How could I be so lucky?!

So there you have it. Hopefully this will make your day or at least make you envious of my glamorous lifestyle rubbing elbows with the sorta rich (more money than me) and the somewhat/used to be famous.

These are a few of my favorite things...

As of late I am really beginning to miss the ole US of A. Being away from the states for such a long time has forced me to realize all the wonderful items that I took for granted while living in the land of the free and home of the brave. So the following are items that I miss and can't wait to have back (in no particular order):

1. Cut the polite crap...Give me a crude and loud American any day of the week.

2. Food that I don't have to google to make sure I'm not eating cow balls or something of that nature.

3. Any sport besides cricket, rugby or soccer.

4. Not having to plan my grocery trips around the 274 bus.

5. Being Tan.

6. Saying "y'all" without being aware of it.

7. Large portions.

8. The Texas heat.

9. A cell phone plan that includes free nights and weekends.

10. A good healthcare system.

11. The American Standard Dictionary - no more "u's or s's"

Now of course the obvious items are included such as family, friends and the babies of the world - so don't go getting in a huff because those aren't on the list :). I miss everything! How am I going to make it to December?

Tea for Two

I am now going to reflect on an English past time which should be called an English all the time, the art form of drinking tea. I think I can single handedly blame tea consumption on the UK's inability to outperform the US in productivity. Tea time is a common misconception, every minute is tea time. Every ten minutes at the firm someone around me will call out, "Everyone ok for drinks?" The answer is never yes. The answer is always, "Well, I could use a cup of tea." This answer comes from everyone and was the answer 10 minutes ago and so on and so forth. Paper tea cups line their desks, tea bags fill the trash cans, and reports go unfinished because...gasp, we haven't had tea in 15 minutes - the shame, the blasphemy, the horror.

After witnessing this mass consumption of tea, it forces one to ponder several items.
1) Has the English bladder somehow evolved to take on this much tea? No one ever seems to go to the "loo" except for me, new to the game of binge tea drinking.

2) The Boston Tea Party must have been more than a protest to the Brits, but a complete tragedy. There was probably wailing in the streets, clothes torn in mourning, and possibly sipping from the surrounding waters from the loyalists.

3) Will I upon my arrival back in the US suffer some sort of massive caffeine withdrawal where I might need to check into the Betty Ford of tea drinkers just to survive?

Maybe a cup of tea will help me find the answers.

If It's Not Scottish It's Crap

Welcome once again to Courtney's Euro adventures! This time we join our heroine in the idyllic setting of Ayr, Scotland...
Well the beginning of the trip was hellish. I had to be up by 5am to catch a cab to the airport. I was not a happy camper. I think I spoke about 2 words to my production team the whole day. My hotel room situation was problematic in that I kept finding spiders in my bed. I don't know about you but I'm not a big fan of sharing my bed with them, the hotel however, wasn't too bothered. I kicked up a fuss and moved rooms only to find more spiders. I started trapping them under glasses as evidence for the hotel staff. But they viewed this as odd (this coming from people who eat haggis, a pig's stomach deep fried and stuffed with unmentionable meat), but I digress. I worked all day everyday and didn't get to see as much of Scotland as I would have liked to. For the times I actually spoke to a Scot it never amounted to much because most everything they said was lost in translation. For the majority of the trip I merely nodded and smiled alot. But now I'm back in sunny (not) England counting down the days until I'm back in Texas. I keep making mental lists of things I want to do/eat. I'm praying I won't come back fat but I have a feeling that's inevitable. I can't wait to see y'all. 14 more days! Get excited!
Love y'all,
Court

When in Rome...

...Make sure to stay away from the Gladiators trying to rip you off. Rome was absolutely amazing, and below I will highlight some of the most interesting events (in no particular order).

6. Finding a beach outside of Rome complete with Roman men in Speedos sprawled out in all their glory as they bronze in the sun. Imagine any stereotypical greasy Italian man in a spread eagle position complete with medallion and mustache.

5. Eating Gelati (the best ice cream ever) three times a day - 4 scoops each time. Having the Gelati man try to get me to give him a kiss in exchange for my cone. I told him maybe next time which I'm sure he probably didn't understand.

4. Accidentally joining a pro-marijuana protest because we thought it was a parade.

3. Joining a random tour group in St. Peter's only to have the best tour guide ever. Learned that Madonna's baby wasn't allowed to be baptized there because it was a bastard child, and that Ben Affleck and J. Lo had tried to have their wedding there, but the pope wouldn't allow it. Strangely enough a marching band went through the plaza playing "Downtown" and some Stevie Wonder song.

2. Meeting two Italian girls who took us to a local hangout. One was a translator for films and is currently working on Dead Man Walking. We proceeded to meet way too many Italian men who couldn't speak English except for "Me boy, you Girl, we pretty." Typical Italian dress consisted of a tight t-shirt with some sort of Euro expression or some sort of random athletic jersey (child's small) from the states. They had an obsession for US pop music and sang every word without knowing what they were singing. According to them my name was Broke.

1. Being approached by a cab driver late at night who had some sort of throat issue, and had the electronic voice box thing...very darth vader like, very scary.

Ok here are some pics of our trip to Paris. You'll be getting a link to look at more pics of Paris and my bday. Enjoy! Love y'all miss y'all, 

Eiffel Tower - Alex 

Eiffel Tower 

Notre Dame 

TEXAS, pamplona, green day and i hate jude law

Well, we've finally booked it....and i CAN'T WAIT for some Texan sunshine, Mi Cocina, and Bruty tooty oh rooty.
Luckily Court's been keeping this thing up to date because Brooke and I have been a bit useless on the old Blog front. Anyhoo, not a lot to report. Court & I are going to Paris next weekend for her birthday present so I'll be able to impress her with my attempt at the language of love. Er, sacre bleu, votre chien est apelle Bruty tooty.
OK, yes, I'm crap.
On to Green Day. I finished my first book. All 20,000 words, and I was pretty stressed at the end of last week. Grandmommy, I know you're a huge fan so I'll make sure to send you a copy.
By the way, before I forget... Brooke.... look up Pamplona on Google. Running with the Bulls. A Spanish tradition. Maybe you could organise a competition for the first person to run a certain distance, finishing a full carton of Ben and Jerry's whilst a herd of Bulls are chasing them through the streets. Or something.
OK.. back to Jude. Did I tell you I can't stand Jude Law.
Love Alex
x
P.s.... let's all head down to Austin for a few days!!!

Calling all Ice Cream Lovers

Hello Dear Family and Friends,

I'm calling on all of those creative Getters/Hannafords to put on their thinking caps for my very first pseudo Cambridge Assignment. Ok kids...this is a fun one. I have a group project so everyone get their Elmers glue, glitter, and poster board ready. Here is the objective: Come up with a Marketing plan for Ben and Jerry's in Spain. Yes Dad you heard me right, we have to market those libral hippy low lifes. Right now I'm in need of a radical idea similar to Red Bull's Flutaag contest where people make their own homemade flying machines (Grandmommy don't worry about understanding any of this). So what can Ben and Jerry's do...especially in Spain. Here they sponsor the world toe wrestling championship, but I want something better. So drink some Sangria, put on the Grateful Dead, turn on the black light, get yourself in that Ben and Jerry's mentality with Orka sounds in the background and think of something totally awesome dudes. Gracias.

Beardog

Gone To Texas!

Below please see the itinerary for passenger(s):
Mr Hannaford, Alex
Miss Getter, Courtney

Departure
London [LHR]
Heathrow
Great Britain (UK)
TERMINAL 3
08:30 Tue 31 May 05

Arrival
Dallas-Fort Worth [DFW]
Dallas / Fort Worth International
United States
TERMINAL C
14:53 Tue 31 May 05

I'm scared of old big angry Irishmen

I'm currently at my desk at work commiserating over the fact that it's Monday. The weekend wasn't as long as I'd like it to be but I had some fun anyways. Friday was Matt Gyves' birthday (aka one of Alex's best men, the redheaded one). Saturday we went to a wedding (naturally it wasn't as good as mine, plus it was a cash bar, so that's a no-no). Sunday we nursed everyone's hangovers from their Saturday ventures the night before with our attempt at a Tex-Mex breakfast. Good attempt but not the same. However we have found that Alex can make really good salsa so Brooke and I are happy about that. Sunday night led us to our local pub. Al and I were joined by Bear Dog, Mark and Russell and boy did we partake in some wonderful pub delights. First the girls bathroom was let's say 'out of order.' In so many words, there was poo everywhere so I had to hold it until I couldn't hold it any more. I got clearance from the manager to use the guys' bathroom and Brooke came too. My turn was fine, but when I had to guard the door for Brooke I was approached by a 7 foot Irishman aged about 65 and missing teeth. Some expletives ensued as I nervously stood guard and made sure my sister emptied her bladder at the expense of being used as a punching bag by the chap. Thank God nothing happened but the gentleman was told to leave. If he would have tried anything I would have just employed the tactic my dad taught us girls from an early age, aim for his balls and run like hell. Thankfully that needn't be used. Then we had our entertainment for the night. An aging 'beauty' began to dance solo to the pub music offered by a lone guitarist. This included writhing on the floor, rubbing herself on a pole, and taking her top off. After laughing hysterically at this drunken tragedy she came over to me to say that we ruined her bachlorette party. Keep in mind NO ONE WAS WITH HER! And she was definitely trying to grab the guitarist's package while he was playing. So basically I think she was just a drunk whore. Oh the delights of England! I love y'all!
-Court

I love long weekends

So over here across the pond, they give us Good Friday and Easter Monday off for the blessed resurrection. And now that I'm back at work, I'm in a grumpy mood. Let me explain. Last Friday, we went to Pat & Pete's friends for a party. It was a big celebration and I mingled with what the English call Gypsies. There was lots of folk music, people brought their 8 (or more) children, and old people smoked hash. It was hilarious to say the least. The rest of the break we spent at Pat & Pete's in the serene country side. And then the big news came. We are going to have a new addition to the family. We were given a car! The Hannaford's friends gave us a 1985 (yes, the same year Brittany was born) VW Polo GL Hatchback! Boy is he a beauty! He's red, awkward, and has low mileage. Based on the first two criteria I've christened him Napolean (after the movie Napolean Dynamite, out on DVD/VHS now). Alex took him to get inspected today and he failed (bad windshield wipers, and something about oil), but it's all easily fixed supposedly with minimum cost to us. So we will be mobile baby! And not to fret, I'm taking lessons to learn driving over here. Here are some pics of the pride and joy...they're not actual ones but other models that look just like him.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=9873&item=4538887224&rd=1
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=9873&item=4538402336&rd=1

Enjoy!
Love,
Court

Guess who?

http://www.cnbceurope.com/ibn/members/apc/index.php?url=1

Lost in London

Let's talk about how many times I've been lost in London in the last week...oh wait they are too many to recount. I did manage to take five different tube lines yesterday in the space of an hour. I do believe that has got to be some sort of record. I also got on a bus, the right number, but wrong direction and took it until they told me to get off, far far away from home. Today I actually managed to successfully take the bus to the tube station, but I think the getting home part is actually going to be a bit trickier. It doesn't matter today though because I locked myself out of the flat, and I'm meeting up with a flatmate after work so that I won't have to spend the night on the front steps. So I'm a bit of a mess.

It's My Birthday!

Hello I'm 23 today yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay! Have a Guinness for me or wear something green.
Love y'all,
Court

In a Mood

Ok so since my last wedding ring (you know the one where not 1 but 2 diamonds had fallen out after having it for 2 weeks?) I've been reinstated with a new one. And upon first glance today I realized that yet again a diamond is missing. Therefore I'm in a mood. I've been told to only wear the ring on special occassions but it's my damn wedding ring for crying out loud, I'd like to wear it everyday. I hate the thought of having my marriage being recognized when I decide to dress up b/c if that's the case it'll be next to never. I was out filming yesterday yet again at another auction house. Our contributors were interesting to say the least. One team broke a very expensive vase before the auction even started. The auction house had a gigantic bison head up for sale that when the sale concluded decided it didn't want to be hung up high on the wall anymore, crashed down and broke some chairs into splinters. I spent an HOUR AND A HALF trying to get home on what I call the slowest train ever to be created EVER (this conclusion takes into account trains made during Victorian times). Ok I'm going to go sulk over my ring. I'm really ANNOYED!
-Courtney

I'm I an official Londoner yet?

I don't think I am considering that I need a map everywhere I go. I have yet to realize which tubes trains are the fast ones, and I still smile on the tube while everyone else looks as if they might go medieval on my ass at any minute.

Speaking of medieval kill tactics, some dude about 10 minutes away from me was killed by an ax in broad day light. Go figure that I would live in one of the nicest areas of London and an ax murderer would be out and about. Now for all of you across the pond that are super excitable and worry warts (read Grandmommy), the ax murderer was apprehended and there were bobbies all of the place this morning.

Back to my really nice neighborhood. Let's talk about how I live near Jude Law and Gwen Stefani. My flat has an amazing panoramic view of London. Now here is the downside. My shower is like someone is peeing on me, and my provided pillow is like sleeping on a piece of paper, two pieces if I double it up. My bed is about as comfortable as a camp bed. So I'm going to have to take the good with the bad.

Things have been great so far. The peeps at my job are super nice, and I just hope that I can finally get past my shy stage to my laugh really loud and be sarcastic stage. I'm sure there will be comments about that last sentence.

Anyway I guess I should be doing some work now. I've got to warrant my 26 days vacation somehow haha.

Brooke "The unofficial Londoner" Getter

Note to Bear Doggie

Package of Poorly Packed Paraphernalia Leaving Pronto

Your box of various unimportant trash items is leaving tomorrow - supposedly. Based on the cost, I should just mail myself - but I think that's been done...

Hurtin' 4 Certain

weekend good, working on weekend bad

Ok so the weekend (if you can call it that) is officially over. It really wasn't the end of my week b/c I had to work on Saturday. I spent 8 hrs. in a sub zero temperature auction room filming two teams buy crap. It was gripping TV. Alex wanted to fall asleep fast last night and asked which drug to take to induce this, I suggested he take Ambien, and 30 minutes later Alex was high on his sleeping drug. He claimed he saw shapes. Instead of messing with him I tried to wrangle him to bed in hopes that he would stop grasping at the air (or what he called 'pretties'). It was interesting to say the least. When he missed his alarm this morning for his volunteer life boat duties that was hilarious too. So let's recap...
1. didn't have a weekend
2. Alex got happy on Ambien
3. Alex sees shapes
4. Alex slept thru alarm
5. Courtney laughed at him in her head at 7:30 this morning

*note to self: keep Ambien for own personal use. If husband needs to fall asleep, give him alcohol.*

Love y'all,
Court

Texas Report

Beautiful day here in Dallas...clear skies, 80 degrees, little wind. Grammommy and Grandpoppy are gone to Kansas, Brooke and Court to London, Brit to Hawaii. Rusty and Heena are all alone...hmmm. Bass are spawning over at the pond, 'Horns playin' baseball (ranked # 1), Scott Wilson says hello (he actually quit drinking for Lent...ha!)...Spring has sprung. Garage sale sometime soon to get rid of everyone's crap. TJ aware that he is known in London. Kerry and Becky doing fine...done with their new home construction in about 2 months. Babies of the world doing well. Babies of the world...

Hurtin' for Certain

Blogger Uncouthness BEWARE

It has come to our attention that a very risque blog has been posted recently by the likes of a 'Granmommy' aka JoAnn 'I love killing slugs with beer' Getter. Such immorality will not be tolerated on the blog and if these postings continue I have no choice but to laugh and point fingers at you (not literally but in my head I'll be pointing).
On to other subjects, Brooke arrived yesterday morning at 11am full of snot and flu and I have yet to see her b/c
a.) her program took up all of her time upon arrival
and b.) i have a job
so well after 24 hours of being in the same city I'll hopefully have contact with her tonight. Until I leave you with this tip: beware the granmommy!

Brookie the Bear Doggie

Brookie the Bear Doggie has reportedly arrived safe and sound to The Island. Please afford her all the standard abuses commensurate with her plebeian status as the most recent arrival.

Warning: Purveyors of abuse should be forwarned that payback is hell.

Hurtin' 4 Certain

It's cold

So we did a very English thing today while out in the country...we went on a walk in 20 degree weather. We all dressed up warm, Lizzie brought the horse out and we braved the bitter English weather. I'm told it'll 'warm up' next weekend. Upon further investigation of what 'warming up' meant I found that the predicted forecast will be 34 degrees. Not the big increase I was hoping for but oh well. I had a bout of the flu last week and I still have a froat which I'm hoping will go away soon. I'm going to start fake baking soon b/c my skin is now the same color of this white backdrop on the screen and people are beginning to stare. I need UV rays and I need them now. Oh and the Bear Dog is town starting manana so I'm very excited, don't worry I'll show the ways of the 'Big Smoke' and I know she'll love it just as much as I do. Lots of love to the whole fam. Miss you guys...until the next blog.
Love,
Court

Foundation testin' in Texas

Got me a little bit tonight in the trailer home...tested out them cinderblocks...certain to withstand any twister.

Grammommy

Redneck Report

All is well in Texas. It's 70 degrees today - overcast. I'll be repairing the metal straps today that hold my trailer home to the cinder blocks. Gotta get ready for tornado season...

Hurtin' for certain :)