My first guest!

Guess who arrived this weekend?  Right!  We made it the first three months apart, and now we have three weeks together.  Of course, the first order of business (after a nap to help the jet lag and a walk around to show off the neighborhood) was to get him on over to the Borough market.  With the Tower Bridge right there we did a little sightseeing tour, and then on to the good stuff!  We picked up greens, and salami, cheese, yogurt, squash ... all the pickin's for a delicious couple of meals this weekend.  Yeah!  I am so happy!

Fringe.

Time for a change ... another one.

Last Relo Purchase

Needs a little dusting.

The one last item I had needed for my flat was a kitchen table.  I have had two TV trays side-by-side since I moved in, and since the BF is coming Friday, the time had come to finally get it in gear (plus, now I can file my expense report).  Another auction house score!  Granted, this table has a few flaws, but for 80 pounds, this "late Victorian walnut centre table, octagon top, united by under tier on turned supports" is perfect for my little spot.  Also, it follows my theme of carved flowers, so I am happy.

I have also discovered Addison Lee - THE delivery service (goods and people) for London.  Only 11 pounds to get it home.  I did have to remove the top to get it in, but it is there now.  I shall eat my dinner on it tonight and not be called a scammer to get it home!

Reap the rewards!

Apple crisp ... a big one for the office, a small one for me to try out, you know just to make sure.  Yum, yum!  Worth getting soaked in the rain!!  Thanks to former neighbor in Logan for the recipe!

The sweater is finished!

Cowl Neck Sweater by Karen Clements

I cast off this AM, finished knitting on the bus home last night.  I have finally finished the sweater I committed to knitting for my friend that closed her shop and moved to LA.  Very sassy, off the shoulder design.  I think it is great ... so relieved to have it done so I can start on a bunch of new projects I have been drooling over!!!!  Yeah!!!!!

Hewitts Farm

Knockholt Train Station

To keep myself in the know about what is going on around time I subscribed to TimeOut magazine.  A couple of weeks ago they had a column about "Pick Your Own" trips outside of town.  Essentially these are farms you can go to that allow you to pick your own fruit and veg then pay for what you take.  Right up my alley!  So, I had been marketing the idea around the office and with the new friends.  Got a few bites, so we planned for this morning.  Now, of course, any sort of planned outside activity is a risk in London, as no matter what it looks like in the AM, there is always a 60% chance of rain - more than likely.

Pear Trees

Anyway, the joint philosophy of my compadres was that you can not let the rain deter you here or you'll never do anything.  Nonetheless, this AM the weather was spectacular.  Hewitts Farm is about a 30 minute train ride south of London in the direction of Kent (only 5 pounds).  They have 76 acres of PYO (pick your own) with apples, pears, squash, pumpkins, plums, zucchini, corn, cauliflower, broccoli ... and in the Spring looks like berries, etc. as well.  So, off we went - two new GFs and one flatmate's Mom "Ro" from Yorkshire England.

The harvest, with fields in back

Of course, as luck would have it, on the way out the weather turned and it proceeded to drizzle the rest of the trip - and what a trip it was.  So, the instructions to get to this farm were to walk out of the station, follow the footpath, go across the golf course.  A bit vague and unusual, yet possible.  However, we were OUT THERE.  Not much around (can't believe there was golf!).  Anyway, it took us a while of tracking around up and down hills and through a little brush (even after 2 phone calls to the farm), but eventually we got there soaking wet and already covered in dirt, so more or less ready to go pick our own apples and veg!

Scenic walk back

So, I ended up getting a large zucchini for some bread, plenty of apples and pears for some sort of sweet I am going to make tomorrow, and squash, cauliflower, beets for this week's dinner (all pulled right from the ground!!) al for 3.90 pounds (this is like 6 bucks and would have been probably triple at my beloved Brough market).  Very cool.  Though I was soaked and my feet were like big white prunes (ewww) when I got home, I had a great time and would certainly go back, hopefully when it is sunny and strawberries are in season!

Wapping

Friday night I got an invite to go to dinner out in Wapping ... this is a neighborhood on the East side of town, right on the river.  One of those hidden gem parts of London I think.  Not touristy, not in the guidebooks, farther out than most west-siders want to go, but wow ... loved it.  As I was walking down the street, wet from the rain earlier that day, lit with dim lanterns, it looked like what I would imagine old London would have been.  Also, a first, I had to take the "overground" train to get there.  Which is more or less kind of like the tube, but, well like the name suggests, is overground.  Public transport here is the bomb - this station is just minutes from my place.

The place is called the Wapping Project and is an old hydraulic power station converted into an artistic exhibition site / outstanding restaurant.  One of new Chicago gals lives right near by ...  the place is hip and we had spectacular food.  A very industrial, architectural design inside.  Right up my alley with natural, local preparation.  Had some smoked eel with a wonderful horseradish sauce, some bacon wrapped date, and for entre a sea bream with crab croquette.  And honestly for what it was, the price was in line.   Yeah!  A friend that likes to spend $$$ on spectacular food  ... oh, and she just did half iron man, so also encourgement for fitness focus.

Unfortunately the picks do not do this place justice, so just maybe you'll have to visit there with me to see it for yourself.  Happy, happy.

King's Head Theatre

I have been told that I must check out the theatre in the back of some of the pubs here in London.  Interesting, I thought.  There are of course thousands of pubs in London I am sure, and I did not know that some have small theatres in the back with low budget independent shows.  In my neighborhood is King's Head Pub, supposedly one of the best pub theatres in London.  I had looked at the flyer several times while walking about, because as coincidence would have it, it is set in Chicago and tackles the topic of race.  While I was out with a couple of my new GFs they also were interested, so we made a date for Thursday.  Just so happens a former co-worker of mine also moved to London this week so she came along as well.  Nice group of four somewhat strangers on the verge of new friendship went to see a play in London about their home town.  Happy.

The show made from a nice night out, controversial topic to discuss over our French food after the show, and I am somewhat surprised that in past couple weeks I think I have made some really good friends.

Cheers!

http://www.kingsheadtheatre.org/home/what-s-on/this-is-how-it-goes.php

Likely suspect ...

I think this fat boy ate the mushroom ... largest slug by far recorded to date in garden de Sarah ... too bad death was the penalty.

Funghi!

This guy popped out of nowhere in the garden ... I mean really, one day I saw this weird white stuff coming out of the bottom of my tree and I just thought, "I don't want to know".  I mean, really with all the scary stuff I have seen out there, I just turned my back and went back inside.

But the next morning (maybe two days) this guy was in full bloom.  It is literally the size of my full open hand.  Cool!  Despite most things being scary, I am excited about fungus in the garden.  Just wish I knew if I could eat this thing or not.

See, I can make friends!

Five on left are all from Chicago!!

Know your food

Exotic native mushrooms

As expected, being able to enjoy the Borough market and all its bounties has been one of the highlights of living in London.  What a fabulous day, when the sun is shining, the traders are preparing their goods, and all our the visitors' eyes are glowing at the delicacies around.  How fortunate I feel when I come home and fill the fridge with the bounty, grateful I have this wonderful food in my life.

I feel very strongly, that knowing your food - where it came from and what is in it - is very important to not only our health, but the health of our planet.  The markets in London, and the number of local producers in England and beyond make this a very easy way to live.  For example, my Sunday breakfast:

• Eggs -  Organic, free range eggs from the "Old House Farm" out in Herefordshire
• Butter - "made with cream from our organically reared Guernsey Cows at Berkekey Farm Dairy" out in Swindon, bought from the notorious Neal's Yard Dairy http://www.nealsyarddairy.co.uk/
• Bread - sourdough, made locally at Poilane in London
• Jam - Handmade Norfolk conserves, reduced sugar - each batch handmade in the small kitchen of the Wood Berry Farm with their home-grown berries
• Bacon -  smoked short back bacon from a happy pig raised out on the Ginger Pig's farms in Yorkshire  http://www.thegingerpig.co.uk/ 

Ok, ok ... healthy?  A little comfort food for a girl away from home once in a while ...

  

Found the Lace Curtains!

My bedroom window is at street level, so I was going to need to get some curtains to block someone looking in, but wanted to be able to enjoy the sunlight in the mornings and my flowers planted outside, so I decided to look for some lace panels.  It is quite common here to use "nets" as they call them.  You may recall in an earlier post I made my way out to the HomeBase to find the "net rod".  So, I started to do some searches online for where to buy such a thing and found this great antique dealer.  They have tons of antique lace curtains, and I found these perfect Arts&Crafts period ones.  Not sure if they are really old, but they do seem like the real deal.  They are so cute!  And vintage looking and match the flowers on the desk I just bought!!  Exciting!!  The front yard is coming along nicely!

http://www.antiquescentreyorkeshop.co.uk/acatalog/Antique_&_Vintage_Nottingham_Lace_Cotton_Panels.html

Vintage design SCOTTISH lace Curtain panels ~ ARTS AND CRAFTS PERIOD~ A Stunning set of 2 SCOTTISH NOTTINGHAM LACE SAMPLE PANELs. This beautiful lace panel is subtly decorated in true Vintage ARTS AND CRAFTS simplistic style. It is a very fine weave design typical of the 1930s and EACH PANEL is finished. Made on the original Victorian Nottingham Lace Machines

... and it continues ...

So Sunday almost outdid Saturday this week ... I woke up early, like 7:30A and was really awake.  Hmm.  Grabbed the laptop, browsing the options for the day, and at 9A got a text from a gal I met previously asking if I wanted brunch.  Well, sure! My stomach's growling, and I could see by the glimmer in the window that today was going to be a wonderful day - even did a risky move wearing a tube top without a scarf and no umbrella .. woo!  Bold.

Breakfast was delightful - she brought another friend of hers ... two Chi-town gals.  Nice.  We then hit the Columbia Rd. Flower market (found the fern I had been hunting) ... I tell you, the weather was so perfect.  I think the States has been having this perfect fall weather as well, but today when in the sun, it was unbelievable.

Anyway, after that trip (I always get lost coming back from there ... ugh) I dropped off the goods and the neighborhood was having what could only be described as a church social.  Pies, books, plants, and the center of attention was the local dog show (mom would have loved it).  Oh, lest I forget the kids do snail races ... needless to say, did NOT make me feel warm and cozy inside (in fact, on the way home from the market I picked up a flashlight so I could go out at night and pluck the f@%%#4q4ers off my dahlia).

Anyway, pleasant, and got my face seen in the hood.  Got an organic ice cream and headed over to the rose garden to knit in the sun.  Two hours later ... a little toasty and the stomach rumbling told me it was time to head home and fire up the barby!

This week ... Monday - fish at home, Tuesday night we have an official Nielsen launching of internet measurement in the U.K. at a cool brewery on Brick Lane, Wednesday lamb ...  what else??

Really happy person right now.

A most stellar weekend

I got one of these on the bottom 

I am trying to boil down precisely what it was that made this weekend really great, and it just isn't one thing.  That's that over-analyzer / philosophizer in me.  Really, I had a really spectacular weekend.  There is of course the fact that the office got together for some cocktails Friday, which was great, because a lot of people actually come out and I really do enjoy their company.  Bizarre (which is my new favorite word).

But there was also the fact that there was a knitting show this weekend in a neighborhood that I had not been to before AND I had a companion - date with a co-worker's fiancée.  He said, knowing me the little he did, that I and his GF, soon to be wife, would hit it off and he was right.  Beautiful, nice, crafty lady!  We met for breakfast and then headed out to the show.  I had a wonderful time.  Really nice yarn, good variety, can I just say ... vintage needles (50 cents!!!).  Fun time.  I'm whipping through this current sweater project I've been working on now since before I left Chicago in anticipation of starting one of the 3 on the list (yikes!  I need to hold back now!!).

Finally, Statistics & knitting!

Buttons!

Since the knitting show was close to Buckingham Palace I made my way on over and took a look outside.  Beautiful parks around, but let's just say, this is lost on me a bit.  History / politics / royal reality ... it has not been my favorite way to spend time.  Anyway, I was there ... I have pics ... and if you find your way in this neck of the woods and would like to visit ... I will go back with you.

And then, with what seems to be becoming the Saturday ritual ... I stpped back by home to the butcher, fishmonger, and produce stand to load up for the week and then headed on back home - this week inspired by the knitting and knocked out a dozen rows.

The palace

Kind of like this pic with the pigeon on the shoulder

Hooked up!!

A long time coming, but officially as of today I have a phone, a TV, and also wireless internet.  I feel so "in the now".  In London, you pretty much need to get a home phone line, whether you use it or not, to get internet.  So, done, and the unlimited International calls were only like 5 pounds, so went with that - I can jibber on now unlimitedly!  If anyone received my home phone # in in the past, it is not correct.  British Telecom issued me another, so if you'd like it just email me.

TV - interesting in many ways.  First, TV here is "free".  What that means is that if I plug my digital ready tuner (like the one in my new set) right into the antenna I get over 40 TV channels and 20 radio stations.  It took me a couple days of frustration to figure out what needed to be plugged into what (oh, that box all the way up in the bedroom needs to be turned on? huh, who would have figured? Didn't even know what that thing was.).

I don't know if it is just because I really haven't watched much of any TV in a few years or if the TV really is all that different here, but let's just say my first evening in front of the telly was a bit delightful and shocking.  You get I think 4 BBC channels, so that is where I started.  The first show was this great PBS style program about a man with Dutch Ghanan parents trying to trace his roots.  Watched the whole thing.  Quality programming that I heard so much about from the BBC.  I love public, educational programming so I think I may enjoy that bit.  However, this is where the free part comes in -  you actually need to have a license here to have a TV.  People here seem pretty fearful of the TV license patrol guy, who apparently drives around peering in everyone's windows to see if they have a TV.  I needed to sign up online and it cost me 150 pounds - that's $225 - for a year.  Still less than U.S. cable, but this is not optional, unless you don't have a TV, and well with all the guests I am expecting (um, hum) and the fact that the set was included in my relo, why not?

However, after the delightful BBC show was over I started flipping around - still looked to be some decent programming.  For the record, I have never been a fan of British comedies - don't really know much about them.  However, what I can tell you is that I watched this one - it was "smart" as the Brits would say, very tuned in to the human psyche, but I tell ya - they dropped the f-bomb within my first 30 seconds.  Whoa! (on a side note, they really do love that word here, and it appears to be a bit less offensive and used more for shock value.  Jonas said I was cursing more - ooops!  Guess I need to try and not pick up that habit!).  The second program was a couple of 20 somethings living together, and the sleazy sexual references were shall I say, a little blushing.  So, all in all, looks like I can really get into this TV thing!!!

And finally ... the internet hub showed up today ...  and worked.  Let the Skyping begin!!!!!!!!  You can find me by searching my gmail address.

I win!!

The auctioneer

Up the street from me there is an antique auction shop (www.criterionauctions.co.uk) that I had a little look around in this weekend.  I am still looking for a desk and a kitchen table, and want something I would actually want to keep longer term.  Very cool spot - lots of nice quality items, and to me they actually seemed to be reasonably priced.  The way it works is you scope everything out, either in person or online, and then can either submit a bid or show up Monday evening for the live auction.

Well, well, well ... I did see this lovely Arts & Crafts (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arts_and_Crafts_Movement) ladies dressing table with inlaid wooden flowers that would make a great desk, and was perfect in size.  So, I thought about it a bit, went back in on Sunday and decided I would bid on it.

To be on the safe side, and out of curiosity, I came to the auction as well.  Very quiet (proper) auction, with your little numbers.  Moved real fast, and the auctioneer essentially played the part of any online bids he got.  The heart definitely gets to pumping when your item is coming up!  There were 3 other online bidders, but I offered just enough to edge them out.  It's mine!

Now, there does come a challenge ... these guys do not deliver and I need to get it out of there before 6P on Wednesday.  Agh!  I have a task a head of me today.  Hmmmm.  Oh, and it needs to get upstairs as well.

An update on the garden

Passion inducing ...

I found the quasi Home Depot of London, called HomeBase - home improvement items and a solid garden department.  Not really the quality or selection like the States, but at least I know where to find such a place now and I really just needed a curtain rod for these outstanding antique lace curtains I bought online for the bedroom (later post).

Nonetheless, the most important part of this experience was that I got to buy a couple of these passion flower plants, that are simple stunning, for my climbing plant post out back in the garden.  That gives me an excuse to post some pics of my other plants in the garden at this point.  I think I am done for this season, since it should frost in a about 6 weeks.  Anyway, it is delightful both out back and out front.  I am still killing about 2 slugs a day, but in control now.  Dig it.

Food, Flowers, and Wine ...

I've noticed a common theme in my posts - revolving around the above three items.  No complaint, just a realization, a clarification of those things important, that bring peace.  So, keeping with that theme, today I decided to go off to Marylebone.  Not for any particular reason more than I didn't really have anything to do and I thought I needed to check out the farmer's market there.  Well ... I looked up the bus route, and there is one directly there, but it said it would take 48 minutes, which seemed high, so I decided to kill two birds with one stone and just run there.  Strapped on the jogging gear, and off I went.  Made it in 35.  Ha!

Anyway, this neighborhood is chic, with higher end shops (bought my first x-mas gift)... let's just say Madonna lived there.  Still, cute enough, central downtown neighborhood.  Pluses in my perspective: great travel book store on the high street that I will go back to for travel books when I actually start traveling and a fromagerie (cheese shop) which was out of this world and picturesque as you can see.  Had a spectacular protein rich breakfast of salmon with eggs as well (back to the food pics)!!

Well, at the end of the afternoon, I walked nearly all the way back home and ended up in another one of those "please someone rub my feet" kind of days.  Another solid exploration.  Purchased:  bed skirt, white (no need to mention the John Lewis visit again) ... needed to hide the hideous bed frame I brought over; 2011 weekly calender so I can begin to track all the events here is in the city (timeout subscription complete); 8 little tomatoes for roasting at original destination farmer's market (which wasn't all that great - but the first batch of tomatoes turned out great!).  Good weekend ... and a busy work week to come.

Office treats

Another unsuspected benefit ... Swiss chocolate personally delivered to you by a Swiss guy ... "French biscuits from France in the usual spot" ... "Scottish candies in the usual spot" ... "Treats from Finland" ... "Let me know what you think of these candies from Astoria" ...   Even had someone from the U.S. plop down a bag of Hershey's Kisses.  All of these emails received this week.  Now granted, folks are coming back from their August holidays, but small, unusual delights without the airfare!