The Year in Review

Well, it's been a year since we moved over here - we left the States on January 10th last year and arrived on the 11th. We can't believe it's already been a year - sometimes it feels like it flew by and sometimes it feels like we've been here longer. If you would have told us a year ago that we would live in a small one-bedroom flat in the second most expensive city in the world (only behind Tokyo - NYC came in at number 13 if that tells you anything) where it rains a lot, have no car, and walk 13 minutes every time we wanted to ride the tube/train, we would have said "NO WAY" that we could do it! You know what though - it hasn't been that bad at all - it sounds like it would get old quickly, but it really hasn't - we've actually really enjoyed it! This special "Year in Review" update contains several lists we've compiled as well as our reflections over the past year. We hope you enjoy it!

First, we want to mention the two things that surprised us the most. Rain - you always hear how much it rains in London - we were expecting the worst - hard rain all the time - we were pleasantly surprised to find it nothing like that at all. It does rain a lot, but it's not hard rain - and it usually doesn't last very long. If it does rain all day, it comes in random spurts lasting only about 10 or 20 minutes - and it's light rain. So when people say it rains a lot, they mean often - not hard or constantly - you can very easily get out in it, but you never know when to expect it - you have to always be prepared - the sun can be shining one minute, and the rain comes the next. We've only seen lightening here twice!

The second surprising thing is food - we've always heard how bad it is over here, and we were prepared to not like anything. The reality is that there is plenty of excellent food over here - plenty of great restaurants - we've had lots of outstanding meals in London! However, the food in the grocery stores are a challenge - they just don't have the same stuff that we're used to having - their grocery store steak is horrible (but excellent in restaurants), and it's hard to find the right ingredients to make stuff - cheese is totally different over here.

What do we miss the most? You! Really - our family, friends, and animals have always been missed the most! But that's a given - something else is music! Not driving a car everyday and listening to the radio really makes us miss music - however, we both got iPods for Christmas, so we are making up for lost time - great gifts by the way! We've already touched on food - the restaurant food is great, but the grocery store lacks a bit - we can get by, but we miss all of the common US grocery store stuff - every time we go home, we fill up our suitcases with good ole US food (popcorn, mac & cheese, spaghetti, ranch dressing, ice tea, etc). We miss ice - by default, you don't get ice in your drinks - and even when you ask for LOTS of ice, you only get three cubes. And refills - not only do you not get them for free, but the waiters don't even come by and ask if you want more - they will even see your empty glass and ignore it unless you flag them down! We miss cheap stuff and good deals - the cheapest we can eat out for is 15 pounds (almost $30!) - and that just gets us some grilled chicken and fries. That's cheap around here. We don't really miss cars, but we miss having them to carry stuff around - when we leave the flat, we have to carry whatever we need with us - it's a pain when you leave early when it's warm but won't return until it's cold - so you either have to carry your jacket all day or freeze later on. And I wish I could just throw my golf clubs in the trunk! And it sure is a pain to carry our groceries home!!!

Here's a list of some "England bits" that we and some of our visitors have come up with - some words, phrases, and things that are done differently over here:
lift = elevator
scheduled is pronounced "SHED-YULED"
biscuits = cookies
instead of saying "a guy named Brad", they say "a guy called Brad"
mum = mom
chips = french fries
crisps = potato chips
boot = trunk - "put your golf clubs in the boot!"
windscreen = windshield
the electric voltage is higher over here - if you plug in something from the US w/o a converter, it will blow up - ask Jill about her hairdryer!
nappies = diapers
fags = cigarettes - very strange to hear, "I'm going outside to have a fag"
they use the word "toilet" instead of "bathroom"
"loo" is another name for the toilet - they also say "WC"
instead of "give it a shot", it's "have a go"
jumper = sweater
sweater = what we call a sweater vest
beanie = toboggan
toboggan doesn't mean beanie - this word is only used for a "sled"
trainers = shorts - it was weird when I was reminded to bring my "trainers" to the gym
if you have to use the bathroom in public, it will cost you (usually about "20p to pee")
they say "journey" instead of "trip" - "have a nice journey!"
instead of a "round-trip" ticket, it's a "return" ticket
surname = last name
Jill is referred to as "the misses" - "so, how's the misses?"
when you use a credit card, they actually check your signature against the card - I actually got called out for scribbling once!
you don't find paper towels in many bathrooms - they have air dryers or those towel roll thingies
the toilet paper is not on a roll - there are little sheets about half the size of Kleenex in a box on the wall
brolley = umbrella
they have Easter, but they don't do Easter Eggs
garbage is referred to as "rubbish"
garage is pronounced "GAIRIDGE"
tennis shoes are "footgear"
"take-away" is used instead of "to-go" when ordering food "to-go"
vitamins are pronounced "VIT-A-MINS" - not ITE, but IT (like the word "it")
guys are "mates" and "blokes"
"mind the gap" is a common phrase - it means "watch out for the gap" - "mind" is used instead of "watch" in many instances - "mind your head"
cheers = thanks, bye, and it's done as a toast before you drink your beer
queue = line - "the queue at the grocery store is long"
you bag your own groceries at the grocery store
faucets have two spouts - one for hot, one for cold - hard to create "warm" water
no "dollar slots" on coke machines - pound coins are used
lead = leash
instead of "do you want", they say "do you fancy" - "do you fancy going to a pub?"
screening = movie (go to a screening at the movie theater)
quid = slang for money - like we use the phrase "20 bucks", they say "20 quid"
instead of calling someone, you "phone" them or "ring" them
beer is served in pint-sized glasses - we actually like this - we'll miss it when we move back! (and it's NOT HOT - that's a myth!)
the beer selection is much better over here too!
you don't find air conditioners very often - we don't have one - but it never really was too hot - our fan worked fine
you have to buy a TV License every year - one for every TV you have - costs about 100 pounds and the penalty for not having one is 1000 pounds!
they use NHS (National Health Insurance) - taxes from your check are cut - you don't pay when you go to the doctor
the doctors don't give shots/medicine often - "take some tylenol" is what I usually end up hearing
there is a 17.5% VAT (value added tax) - quit complaining about a little ole 8% tax at home!
words that end in "ter" in the US end in "tre" here - "theatre" for example
and "our" too - color is "colour"
tire is spelled "tyre"
hiya = hello
they don't use Fahrenheit over here - Celsius
and meters, grams, etc. - I weigh 69 Kilograms and I'm 177cm tall - sometimes they measure weight in "stones"
their hole punchers only punch two holes - and they don't have "3-ring binders" - they have "2-ring binders"
if you ask for water, you get the bubbly kind - if you ask for "still water", you still get a bottle - you have to ask for "tap water"
cheeky = being rude, but in a funny way (not good to be cheeky if you're a child) - "he's a cheeky monkey!"
you see PDA all over the place - and I mean EVERYWHERE!
instead of "great, excellent, good", they say "lovely, brilliant, and nice" - "the food was quite nice!"
"haven't got" is used in place of "don't have" - "i haven't got any money"
conjunctivitis = "pink eye" - but they've never heard of "pink eye"
they don't have tylenol over here - they have "paracetamol"
day planner = diary - when we ask people to do something, they have to check their diary
they still have milkmen here delivering milk each morning
it's still weird to see kids and dogs in the driver's seat - can't get used to them driving on the wrong side of the road

We've done more traveling this year than we ever imagined we would do in our entire lives. Here's the damage for 2004:
England - London, Stonehenge, Longleat, Bath, Cornwall, Windsor, Brighton
France - Paris
Italy - Venice, Milan, Florence, Pisa, Rome
Scotland - Edinburgh, Highlands
Belgium - Brussels
Ireland - Dublin, Cliffs of Moher, Bunratty, Burren
Germany - Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich, Bavaria
Netherlands - Amsterdam (Holland)
Sweden - Stockholm
Denmark - Copenhagen

As much as we both dislike flying, we've made it through 32 flights this year - but we have YET to make it through a round-trip US flight without something going wrong (lots of lost luggage, late flights that caused us to miss connectors, engine problems, etc). We're getting good at running through airports! We've seen some excellent plays too - When Harry Met Sally, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Anything Goes, Chicago, Oleanna, Les Miserables, Saturday Night Fever, Mama Mia, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and whose Life is it Anyway? And Jill is making me list the concerts we saw (which I'll have to admit they were all good) - Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, and Madonna.

We've also had several visitors come and stay with us - Jill's mom and dad, my sister and brother-in-law (Ashley and John), Bart and Kerrie, Amy and Clarke, Scott and Kim, and Kathleen. It was so nice to have family and friends over here - some of the best moments of the whole year! We sure hope more of you can come and visit this year! Our door is always open!

We've also managed to use a shower without a shower curtain for the whole year - and it's one of those hand-held kinds so the water is not constantly running over you. It gets pretty cold during the winter mornings - but my showers are a lot faster during that time too! And instead of driving cars all year, we've been on tubes, trains, and buses. I did see an old car for sale for 200 pounds one time, but Jill said she didn't want us to buy it! We've been here a whole year, but we still get to use the "American excuse" - we can ask those questions that we should know the answer to and pretend we don't live here! "Oh, I'm sorry. We didn't know we had to stand in that long line and buy a train ticket before boarding." "Okay, since you didn't know, you can just buy it here."

Well, that about sums up our experience over the past year. Here are a few other things we've done since the last update. Justin and Rachael introduced us to a "wheatgrass shot" - no, this is not alcohol - it's some kind of grass blended into a liquid shot-size drink - they say we can drink a couple of these a week and get the same nutrients as if we had eaten our veggies - this works GREAT for me since I don't like vegetables. It did taste a little bit like grass, but it wasn't too bad - much better than eating real vegetables! You may have seen some pictures of us in Richmond Gardens feeding the squirrels - as you know, the squirrels come right up to us and take "monkey nuts" out of our hands. Well, we were out there the other day, and one ran up Jill's leg! It was hilarious - I wish I had it on video! Cheese balls - we were excited when we saw a can of these at the grocery store - until we took a bite - you should have seen our faces - these were NOT what we were expecting - these things were balls with chunks of cheese in the middle. And the cheese over here is not quite the same - we gave the rest to Justin and Rachael! Speaking of Justin and Rachael, we recently started a friendly poker league - No Limit Texas Hold 'Em tournaments - check out the stats here.

We'd like to send Mr. Tim Braswell a huge CONGRATULATIONS! He'll be getting hitched this summer. We wish you and Heather the best! As you know, we just got back from spending the holidays in the US - but we didn't get enough - we'll be back tomorrow! I'm serious! I have a company meeting in Atlanta, so we're already coming back again. We're always excited when we get to go home - trips home are always the best!

This past year has been an outstanding experience for us - we've learned so much about the world, we've grown even closer together as a couple, we've seen so much more of the world than we ever would have if we didn't live here - we've done a lot (we've already started working on plans for this year - Jill's mom and dad are coming back, and we may be meeting Ashley and John in Greece this summer). The world seems so much smaller now. We are so blessed to have had this opportunity! And we want to thank all of you that have helped us along the way - so many of you have done so much for us! And you have no idea how much you keeping in touch means to us - phone calls, emails, letters - we love hearing from all of you! Please come and visit before we move back! We love and miss you all! God bless!