Lost-in-Transition

Big Sur and the big drive

2009-10-01T07:09:00.007+09:00

So this was one of the reasons for this whole trip, to drive along the famous route 1 up the coast of californai, which i had heard was sensational...but neither of us actually knew what the 'big sur' was...in the guidebook there is a picture of a bridge...so we simply shrugged and assumed that was it. the drive was amazing, only 300 miles, but it took us 10 hours of driving (plus 2 hours in santa barbara). the roads were windy, tight, frightening and stunning all at once. we almost ran out of petrol in the middle of nowhere...whcih was 'fun'...but 90% of the drive was as in the photos, hugging the pacific ocean...absolutely stunning. we did have a slight issue in that we were going north, and the big sur was just south of our destination, and i was genuinely worried that we wouldnt hit the big sur until after dark, and ero pointless and missing out on the view. for the last 2 hours we were literally chasing the sun. we eventaully crossed a bridge (photo) but soon realised that wasnt our bridge. just before sunset we spied our bridge and pulled over for the photo of the two of us, the sun was just sinking and literally 10 minutes after we got there we got an amazing sunset and amazing colours over the mountains...we had literally made it by 10 minutes...i was massively relieved and delighted. i was also a little worried as the tight twisty roads dont have street lights, and would have been incredibly frightening at night, after the bridge we didnt have far to go. turns out we never did find out what the actual big sur was, we soon passed a small town with big sur camp sites, but we still think its just a region and not a place. another relief was that we had hired a beautiful mustang convertible and had obviously had the roof down to maximise the experience, but as we moved north it got colder, and as i lent my hoodie to J (soft southerner), i only had a t shirt on and was completely freezing...so as soon as we left the bridge, we put the roof up (not as we were driving as we tried in LA, nearly breaking the whole bloomin thing), put the heater on full blast, and made the last hours journey in the dark...we got to our hotel very late...which was the best view of all hotels, it overlooked the ocean which was lit by moonlight...absolutely gorgeous....we went for dinner and a very well deserved beer...such an extraordinarily amazing day

Santa Barbara

2009-10-01T06:59:00.008+09:00

Santa Barbara is about 2 hours north of LA, is a beautiful small sleepy town. We were actually rather surprised about how much we fell in love with Santa Barbara. We only allowed ourselves 2 hours as we had a long drive, but quiet as it is, it is the most perfect place in the world to retire

More LA

2009-09-30T07:47:00.006+09:00

More Venice Beach and our favourite bar...which literally had sawdust on the floor...and j's future husband...the guy with long hair sat on the bar stool...bless her its all she could do to stop staring...

Los Angeles

2009-09-30T07:36:00.004+09:00

so our first real jaunt in the mustang, we managed to lose the coast road (yes, we lost the entire pacific ocean) so drifted inland for the 2.5 hour drive to LA. los angeles is one of those iconic places that youve heard of so many times and seen on tv...you almost feel like you know the place. we stayed on venice beach, which is the hippy/alternative part of the city...this was no accident...we both loved venice, and really was our cup of tea. although this was a predominantly beach related holiday, we felt it would be wrong not to see a bit more of LA, and not wishing to get stuck in traffic, we plumped for a very touristy coach tour...which included hollywood (where jayne bumped into one of her ex boyfriends from the uk...i mean...what are the chances of that?!) beverly hills, the farmers market and a few toher places, and we even did the cheesy 'stars homes' bit...the photo in the next section was marilyn monroes house...we even saw our vey own famous person at the farmers market where we had lunch...shes that famour we didnt know her name but she has been in films

San Diego beach

2009-09-29T07:46:00.008+09:00

a big them of our trip was surfing, J is a keen beginner surfer and i have never tried it before, so we took lessons in san diego, which i have to say were massive fun, very exhausting, but lots of fun. our hotel was right on the beach and we spent our mornings having breakfast by the beach, bit of pottering, long boarding up the boulevard, sunbathing and surfing, while our evenings were spent in a very very cool bar just off the beach. we didnt see much of central san diego but that wasnt the point. san diego was a wonderful place and would go back in a flash

San Diego

2009-09-29T07:35:00.005+09:00

So, a short 3 hour flight..and we were in California! We started in San Diego where we picked up our black mustang convertible, which was to be our transport for the next 10 days as we cruised up the coast. First stop, Balboa Park....a beautiful park which also houses the slf proclaimed 'best zoo in the world'

American Football

2009-09-29T07:27:00.003+09:00

Always always wanted to go and see a live american football match. it became popular in the uk in the erly 80's when they started showing on channel 4 (we only had 4 channels) at 6pm on a sunday evening, so it was with massive excitement that we got tickets to a game, which coincided with jaynes visit. was so excited. about 70 000 people turned up, but being america, the spectacle, the beer and the food is more important than the actual game itself. tailgate parties are where everyone fills the car parks with bbq's and drinking and parties, hours before the game...some people even tailgate without actually going inside to watch the game, they just wsatch it on tv in their cars...strange. the game itself was again very american. very stop/starting, lots of breaks (for tv commercials), and a bit dull at times to be fair...still an amazing experience

Houston touristy stuff

2009-09-29T07:24:00.004+09:00

cue the obligatory cowboy shop and the aquarium..which i have to say is the worst attraction i have ever been to in my life...awful awful place...

J Comes to Houston

2009-09-29T07:18:00.005+09:00

So for my main holiday this i decided that since i am in the states, it would be churlish to leave this country when i havent even explored it yet, so based on an album by the Thrills, and via a few travel programmes, and a travel biog written by comedian dave gorman...i decided to do a road trip along the famous highway 1, which runs up the coast of california...and who better to share the journey than my dear dear friend Jayne. On her first night i dragged her out with a few friends...and despite her jetlag, she coped very very well...and was also great to see her

Shottingham

2009-08-28T05:58:00.002+09:00

Met up my dear dear friend katie for tea/beer...as well as jayne. nottingham was almost nice in the summer sunshine

Snowboarding UK style

2009-08-28T05:38:00.009+09:00

Another quick and unplanned trip back to the uk for work....so i decided to surprise all my friends, who i knew were going snowboarding in Birmingham. so i drove up from the south of england and made it just in time to surprise them all in the changing area before they 'boarded' (ahem) i had the foresight to bring my boarding trousers so was able to join them...once everyone had gotten their head around the fact that i was there...it was beginner 'ramp/jump' night which was great fun, and everyone managed to do something new that they hadnt done before...but was just fantastic to hang out with my best mates...we plan to go away together this season...and i cannot wait

Greeeen Daaay!

2009-08-26T07:29:00.004+09:00

Managed to get hold of a much sought after ticket to see Green Day (thanks Keith). well, americans are extremely anal about many things, firstly, cameras werent allowed, of course, all phones have perfectly good cameras in them these days, but no, cameras werent allowed, so initially i was turned away, anyway, i went round the corner and actually put my camera in my shoe...so as i shuffled back to the entrance, i had a huge limp, and looked as though my left leg was 4 inches taller than my right leg...despite being metal detected, i still got in. the gig itself was great, well, apart from the corwd, it was like when i saw the arctic monkeys in oslo, in england you have proper mosh pits in the front, here, no such thing, just lots of fist punches in the air, but no movement at all..it was very very very lame, and very disappointing, not green days fault, but maybe american crowds are just as dull as the norwegian ones.

Houston Skate Park

2009-08-26T07:26:00.002+09:00

Next to the festival i discovered the houston skate park...an amazing place that was opened in 2008. its about as cool as you can gt, very central, free to go on, and more importantly, there is no clique there, beginners appear to be very welcome...they also do skate lessons...of which, at 34 im seriously considering. such a great place

Another Houston Music Festival

2009-08-26T07:19:00.004+09:00

You know..one of my concerns about moving to houston was that there wouldnt be any 'counter culture', and the longer im here the more cool things i discover about the city...that and having a very very cool houstonian friend in Randi to show me and my friends around. this was a music festival on a whole weekend right in the heart of houston. Such a good time, few beers, a few bands and good friends basking in the hot texan sunshine. i wsih there was more of this in houston though. the people that were there arent really that visible either, maybe most of them came across from the uber hip and alternative Austin. never the less...a great day

Houston Press Music Festival

2009-08-26T07:15:00.003+09:00

$10, 6 venues, 50 bands. An all day urban music festival in H-Town, which was a pretty great day, not only discovering new bands but also new venues to frequent. Not a bad way to spend a lazy sunday

Night out

2009-08-26T07:13:00.001+09:00

Continuing the catch up theme

Of returns, catchups, golf...and why is everyone all of a sudden pregnant?!

2009-08-26T07:08:00.002+09:00

following a 2 month hiatus from houston, spent travelling to europe, it was nice to catch up with a few good friends (half of whom seem to be pregnant...i now know 6 couples who are recently pregnant...need to stop drinking the water). anyway, was good to be back 'home' in houston and catch up with people

Im on a boat!

2009-08-26T07:01:00.006+09:00

Had the pleasure of being invited onto a friends 35 foot yacht, and a day sailing in the Gluf Coast. Its a different world, yacht clubs, affluence and boats...quite enjoyed my time in that world...although got slightly sea-sick after a couple of hours...Glens are not great on boats

Neils Wedding

2009-08-25T09:25:00.005+09:00

The 4th of July was my big brothers big day, and what a wonderful day it was. It was done in just the most perfect way, pretty relaxed, and good fun. It was a small civil service in a hotel in Donnington near nottingham, with a couple of hundred guests. The weather stayed lovely, and most of the afternoon and evening was spent outside in the garden. The ceremony itself was very touching, and not without its black humour, as my brother, still on crutches, had to struggle to sit and stand a number of times during the ceremony, but he coped valiantly. I had the absolute honour of being the best man, and it was with fear and trepidation that i stood to give me speech. Nicolas father is a professional speaker and gave a fantastic speech before mine, which didnt help the nerves! But I managed ok, i hadnt written anything down but had rehearsed it a great number of times in my head, and had completed it on the plan back from florence. i think it went down well. after that, i could really relax and have a few beers. overall, it was such a wonderful wedding, and a very happy occasion. i even managed to grab a few chats with tami...a very pregnant tami, which was lovely and topped of the day nicely. jayne agreed to accompany me and promptly became best friends with my entire family within 5 minutes of being there...i think they now prefer her to me...

Rome

2009-08-25T09:14:00.012+09:00

We took the 2 hour train journey to Rome on the saturday. It was the first time either of us had been there and we were pretty much blown away by the beauty of the place. the architecture was stunning. It was one of those days where you did a lot and saw a lot, including Vatican City, and we were pretty worn out by the time we left, but Rome is an absolutely gorgeous city...a must to see

Florence

2009-08-25T08:09:00.010+09:00

Had a couple of weeks in Florence with work, and this was one of those rare business trips where i actually managed to see something of the place. I have been before but was lucky in the fact that my good friend Jayne flew over from england for the weekend. Florence is such an amazingly beautiful place

June in Nottingham

2009-08-25T07:56:00.005+09:00

June again took me back to the motherland for work, and the chance to have a weekend at home and catch up with my friends...including my debut at wakeboarding. Nottingham has a great wakeboarding centre, which has a wire system which negates the need for an actual boat. Great fun despite not actually being able to go around any corners, but i did manage to get upright. And to the local pub for a beer after.

Gomez

2009-06-13T10:30:00.003+09:00

So slooooowly im beginning to find the cool underground places of houston amongst the glitzy shiny high rises. this time via a Gomez gig. ironically Gomez are from Leeds which is about 30 miles from Sheffield...a proper yorkshire band...and with an amazing new album, i even stood next to, and got talking to a couple also from sheffield who also live in houston, which will always strike me as bizarre being this far from home.

League City Yacht Club

2009-06-13T10:23:00.003+09:00

Sunday was hanging around the yacht club wi9th randi et al...more lounging, more sun...man its getting hot in here

Saturday Night

2009-06-13T10:19:00.002+09:00

Saturday night was my usual dinner at Thor and June's. Always a lovely evening, always fun.

Le Weekend

2009-06-13T10:16:00.002+09:00

My first saturday back in Houston was all about recovery rest and recuperation...and that means pool time. saturday with my friend Alexis

Nottingham Arboretum

2009-06-09T12:18:00.005+09:00

Say what you want about england, but no matter where ive been in the world, all the foreign summers...there is nothing quite like an english summer, maybe its because its such a rarity, but when the sun comes comes..its an event...and minus the stifling humidity...the final sunday of being home was such a day, gloriously hot and sunny...so i joined a multitude of folks and laid in the park, in the sun for a while...chilling out with jayne, just before we saw my brother in hospital

Neds Atomic Dustbin!!

2009-06-09T12:00:00.005+09:00

Now, its not a too extravagant statement to say that neds atomic dustbin changed my life...well, them and my big brother neil...you see back in the late 80's i was into bands like u2 and other such popesque bands, then my bro gave me a chunk of his record collection, and his neds albums...and i was hooked on the alternative scene, which i think kept me out of cheesy nightclubs and into proper gigs from an early age...he gave me his Until You Find Out 7" single...and i was sold on piercings, weird hair, weird clothes and proper music, bands like the wonder stuff (whom i am currently listening to while writing this), senseless things, pop will eat itself, jesus jones et al...seriously, between neil and the neds my life was changed forever, we used to go to many a gig together in those hazy days, and we had an annual pilgrimage to wolverhampton to see the neds play a christmas show, my first being at the age of 17 about a week after i passed my driving test, and we got lost in the fog going home and being stopped and directed by the police...cut to 18 years later and the neds with original line up playing again for the first time in 11 years or so...in wolverhampton...it was with great anticipation that we drove down the m42. the gig itself was incredible...it was back to the old days, t-shirtless, in the mosh pit, pogo-ing to awesome tunes, sweaty as hell, almost puking with exhaustion at trying to sing, 'dance' and jump around to the band...it was total bliss. cue the end of the gig...neil castrated on the floor outside in agony...hed stood at the back for the entire gig...until the encore where he'd gone into the mosh pit, slipped and fallen...we drove to the emergency room back in nottingham where he was diagnosed with a broken ankle/heel. as it turns out it is a bad break, he is laid up for 6 weeks, with a metal plate and pins in his heel for the rest of his life...he is getting married in 5 weeks...and will go up the aisle on crutches...stag do and honeymoon cancelled...incredibly bad luck...and gutted for him

Aberdeen

2009-06-09T11:52:00.002+09:00

I often have to work in aberdeen, scotland, and when i do i get the pleasure of staying at my very very good friend katyas house...which usually involves a week of being looked after, fed, watered and we basically spend a week eating pizza and drinking corona beers while chilling out on leather sofas wartching crap tv...seriously, its a real highlight in what can sometimes be a very long business trip. she also organised a lovely dinner party with other wonderful friends i have in the granite city...oh she even put me on the insurance of her brand new audi Q7 beast....awesome vehicle

Skegness!!

2009-06-09T11:38:00.004+09:00

Skegness....mmm...how to describe, for my texan friends youd liken it to galveston...its an old english seaside town that has seen better days and is peppered by chavs....or white trash if you like, but its usually good for a laugh for about a day...and as per usual with jayne i had a total blast, a really fun happy shiny day, and even though i lost the 'first to see the sea wins 10p' game, and pub cricket (see childhood), it was an incredibly fun day

Football with My Big Bro

2009-06-09T11:31:00.002+09:00

Monday night if drove an 8 hour round trip to see my beloved sheffield united with my beloved big brother. it was a massive massive game, the championship play off semi final 2nd leg...if we won, we went to wembley for the final and a game estiamted to be worth around $100m...but more importantly means we would be in the premiership and amongst other things, would mean they would be on tv in the states each week. we won 1-0... cue bedlam...(we would later lose the final of which i didnt see as i was on a motorway in the middle of poland going to an ex communist tank factory...but that night we were on top of the world)

Saturday Night's Alright

2009-06-09T11:23:00.002+09:00

Saturday night was what is quickly becoming a tradition when i manage to get home, a curry at 4500 miles from Delhi restaurant with my best friends and a night out...have to admit...as i know none of them read this, i was actually quite giddy with excitment in seeing my friends, i havent seen them since christmas, which was 5 months ago, so it was just wonderful to see them. moving around, you make lots of good friends, but its only when i go home that i realise how much i miss my friends, and miss having really good friends who have known you for a long time...had such a wonderful night with them

Fun with Glen & Jayne

2009-06-09T11:20:00.001+09:00

Gymnastics...by a non gymnast

2009-06-09T11:06:00.005+09:00

i know, its hard to believe that im not a professional gymnast. one thing though, my camera is awesome, it takes 7 shots per second which gives some great effects

Gymnastics by a gymnast

2009-06-09T10:50:00.007+09:00

Jayne used do gymnastics for the English national team...and is rather good at it still...some of these photos really look like she has a jelly-spine...and make your eyes water to look at them. impressive stuff

Home Home

2009-06-09T10:44:00.002+09:00

A few days after mum left i was working for 3 weeks in Europe so managed to make it back to Nottingham for a 3 weekends, not my home town, but my adopted home since leaving university there. So after a horrendous sleepless flight i spent a lovely day in wollaton park near the centre of nottingham with my very very dear friend Jayne

Onion Creek

2009-06-09T10:39:00.005+09:00

Just before dropping mum off at the airport, we stopped by a really cool bar called onion creek, which is a fantastically texan place and met friends alistair and randi for lunch. was actually lovely having mum around...weve not lived under the same roof for about 17 years, and certainly not spent that amount of time together for about as many years....so was really nice to just hang out together. a really lovely week x ps see the funniest toilet wall graffiti i have ever seen in my life

Wild Alligator Park

2009-06-09T10:29:00.002+09:00

Down the road from said ranch is a wild alligator park, which as described by my boss should have been teeming with alligators strewn across the path....after a nervous 30 minutes of glancing in the bushes...nothing nil nada...highly disappointing, but we did eventually see one little fella...couldnt shake a bit of disappointment though

Real Cowboys

2009-06-09T10:24:00.004+09:00

So mum wanted an authentic texan experience, and where better than a working ranch...yes there were a few 'old' buildings to look at, which were ok, but we did get to see a real life cowboy show, which is actually better than it sounds...these guys have a lot of skill...and hey, it was another excuse to wear my cowboy boots

"Houston...we have a problem.." (always wanted to say that)

2009-06-08T12:00:00.004+09:00

Apart from the oil industry, houston is pretty famous for the NASA control station, immortalised (usually incorrectly) for the apollo 13 near disaster. nasa is strangely only 25 minutes from my house but id never been before, there are a few incredible things about the place, the Saturn 5 rocket as shown above is one of them. its basically a massive fuel tank, only the small triangular bit at the end actually houses people and makes it back to earth, the rest of it is basically space junk. the massive 5 f150 engines at the back end are only used for the first 2 minutes of the trip, these are blown off and land in the sea, only to be used for a mere 2 minutes...millions of dollars, the rest is blown away in space. the engineering is mind boggling, but mightily impressive. the other cool thing about nasa houston is that it is a working facility, we toured the workshops and testing bays where astronaughts actually train. its a bit like when i worked in jaguar cars in the uk...people would take tours of the factiry while you worked...a pretty strange experience...anyway, was a great place to visit

Frederiksburg

2009-06-08T11:52:00.003+09:00

Frederiksburg is an old german colonial settlement and lies within the hill country of texas...and is most famous for being the wine region of the state. as mum is a bit of a wine buff we visited a few vinyards so sample the local wines...which apparently arent that bad

Austin...and yet another birthday

2009-06-08T11:42:00.004+09:00

So for my birthday we drove out to Austin, which is a bit of enigma, its a really old hippy town, its where willie nelson somes from and still plays, its a bit of an oasis of cool and alternative-ness in a the very conservative state of texas...and hence has always appealled to me. unfortunately when we went....well...ive never seen so much rain in all my life...which did not make for a great birthday. by night it cleared up and was sunny, but i guess by then the damage had been done. we did see the famous bat colony of austin fly out of the bridge at dusk...all 3 million of them suddenly and all at once flew out from under the bridge at the same time, which is an amazing sight (if not smell) to behold. the building is the state capital of texas...where mr bus used to be governor...least said

A very sad goodbye

2009-06-08T11:32:00.005+09:00

One of the hardest parts of this whole 'ex pat' life is that things are always transitory, places, jobs and friends all come and go with alarming regularity. it never gets any easier, people come and go all the time but you never really get used to it. one of the saddest departures was my best friend in houston, nikki, who, after 3 years in houston was shipped out to moscow. these are a few pictures of her great leaving party. 99% of all the people i know in the US, i know through nikki, and to be honest, without her, i would have been as lonely as i was in norway, and without getting publically all gwyneth paltrow, i owe her an awful lot, she was and is, and hopefully always will be a great friend of mine, but houston will never really be the same without her...anyway, heres vodka in your eye lady x

of cowboy boot shopping and line dancing

2009-06-08T11:19:00.006+09:00

took my mum cowboy boot shopping fopr her birthday then out to a proper line/two-step bar to try them out with a few friends from houston

Baseball

2009-06-08T11:11:00.004+09:00

So...one of the few reasons that 'soccer' (eugh) doesnt take off over here is that my american cousins find it dull...hmmm...i went to my first evert baseball game with mum on her second day, and i was pretty excited, walking into stadiums like that are an amazing feelings for me, the atmosphere, the pitch, everything is fantastic, and this was no different...now, if you want to know where all the fat people hang out in houston, then its at a ball game...its basically an excuse to eat and drink stupid amounts...the first hour was great fun, with a few runs being scored, and even a home run for the Astros...the following 2.5 hours were...well, frankly dull....not one run was scored...for 2.5 hours...and theu think soccer (eugh) is dull....hmmmm....anyway, a great time was had

Mums Visit

2009-06-08T11:08:00.003+09:00

So in all the countries ive lived in, my mum has never had the chance to come and visit me, (ignoring the whole japan debacle) so it was with great delight that she made it over to Houston for a week, which gave us a great chance to catch up and for me to do a few touristy things...ill keep it brief as i have been sadly deliquent of late

Houston International Festival

2009-04-23T06:55:00.011+09:00

Every year Houston hosts an international festival, which is basically where they close half of downtown off, put up numerous tents, charge you a fortune for food and beer and have themed areas...ie different countries. it was a gloriously hot sunny day, and as ever, my good buddy Randi introduced this to me...she is the best tour guide ever i swear. spent a nice few hours basking in the sun and listening to 'world music'. unfortunately this years 'themed' country was ireland...so as with st patricks day here, everyone claims to be irish or have irish roots, and generally play on all the classic cliches....which actually annoys me a little how people have embraced st patricks day, non irish people i mean...not sure how it caught on but it riles me a little...maybe im just too grumpy, but i belive in supporting your home football team

Texas Wedding

2009-04-23T06:38:00.002+09:00

I was fortunate to be invited to my very first Texan wedding by a colleague at work. The weekend was horrible weather wise, with armageddon-esque black clouds and 24 hours worth of tropical rainstorms, but luckily as i got the the venue, the sun came out and it actually became lovely, we even had blue skies...which is a good job as the wedding was an outdoor affair. i also managed to avoid the dancing, so all in all, it was a success

Dinner at La Maison du Parkes...dinner at mine

2009-04-13T12:21:00.004+09:00

have finally gotten my house to a presentable and furnished state to have guests. Invited a few close friends for the inauguration dinner

this is my place

Reaching a Segway

2009-04-13T12:19:00.002+09:00

Made me smile, but tourist groups now have Segways to transport people around the sights...looks ace fun! God bless america

The Lovland clan

2009-04-13T12:15:00.003+09:00

ironically visiting San Antonio that day was my very very good friend Thor, and his wife June and Madelaine, their 7 month old baby...along with Thors entire Norwegian family.

Remember the Alamo!

2009-04-13T12:08:00.004+09:00

So you've all heard the phrase, but do you know actually what the Alamo is? Well, a brief history of time, for 13 days in 1836, the Texan army who laid claim to the state of Texas for the US, battled the Mexican army who also claimed Texas to be theirs. Those who fell in the battle include Davy Crockett and James Bowie (of the Bowie-knife fame).

The River Walk

2009-04-13T12:02:00.003+09:00

The river that runs through the centre of San Antonio was going to be concreted over during the 1940's during the boom expansion years of Texas - SA used to be more prominant than Houston or Dallas- to make way for more blandness, but local groups protested, long story short, the city relented and decided to celebrate the river rather than destroy it, wha emerged was this magnificent Venice-esque River Walk, which is truly truly stunning. It goes for about 3 miles and is a total joy to wander through, and take in a few restaurants on the way.

Historic San Antonio

2009-04-13T11:57:00.003+09:00

Dont get me wrong, San Antonio (the 7th larget city in the US has its bland downtown skyscrapers, yet there is an historic side to the place which attracts 3 millions visitors per year (thank you lonely planet), so dont go thinking that the whole place looks like this, but the good thing about the city is that main tourist spots are walkable...the fore-fathers had some sense of scale at least

The drive and Central Market

2009-04-13T11:53:00.002+09:00

San Antonio

2009-04-13T11:51:00.001+09:00

Easter weekend was a short long weekend, ie only Friday off, and in the spirit of 'having' to do something cool and meaningful, i took a lone roadtrip to the city of San Antonio, a mere 3 hours drive away...here comes the science part

Tri Results

2009-04-08T23:45:00.004+09:00

Swim: 14 mins 52 seconds - 653rd out of 972
Bike: 43 mins 36 seconds - 349th out of 972
Run: 24 mins 58 seconds - 192nd out of 972
Overall: 1 hour 31 minutes 47 seconds - 420th out of 972

Clearly need to work on swimming!!

Tri-ing to avoid puns

2009-04-07T12:05:00.002+09:00

so i was in the first wave (no, this wasnt a pun), which consists of about 50 guys of my age, most buff and muscley, some wearing wet-suits to protect them from the cold, some in tiny lycra numbers...including me, so all these macho guys lower themselves into the water and squirm and shriek like little girls, you had to laugh. now by this point im very nervous, the water is totally totally freezing, the sun has just come up, my goggles were leaking, and i had been warned about flayling limbs at the start, which was true, you cannot swim propoerly for a while. the swim start was on the photo, it was from the bank and around the ship and back to shoire the other side. i actually did ok, took a while to get a bit of space and rhythm, and i swallowed sea water, nearly vomitted because of it, got a bad cramp half way through and was kicked a few times, but generally it was ok. i got out and was totally exhausted, i hadnt realised how tired i was til i tried to run up the ramp the other side.

a slow transition, and clean socks and i was on my bike. the air had warmed up a bit, and it was only a relatively short 12 mile ride. i actually loved the ride, it went along the coast road. i was dry, warm and sitting down. pushing hard, but the course was pretty flat and covered it in 43 mins, averaging 17.5 mph, which is ok for me.

i got off the bike for the 3.4 mile run (this was a 'sprint' triathlon, and the shortest one of them), so i got my running shoes on and started to run...well, my arms ran...my legs went totally to jelly, it was the weirdest sensation, there was nothing there at all, really, my arms were going at normal pace but my legs were going through treacle. it took a whole mile to be able to run with any kind of normality, i swear i have never run so slowly in my life.

anyway, i had my usual sprint finish at the end and was shattered, but really really enjoyed it. ive been running for years, and get a bit bored of running, but all 3 events together is really interesting, i need to work on a few things, but am certainly doing more, next time the olypmic distance, but anyway, great 'fun', thoroughly recommended at least once in your life

Pre-Tri-al...ahem

2009-04-07T11:57:00.004+09:00

so, the day is a 5am start, be at the venue at 5.30am, stuff as many sugary energy bars down your throat as you can before you gag (yes i did) as there is NOWHERE to get breakfast at 5.30am, drop your bike, socks, running shoes, helmet, oakleys, gloves, energy gels in the transition area, go look at the cold bleak black freezing water, undress, put stupid rubber swim cap on, undress, walk across the car park and along the path for 15 mins to the swim start in bare feet as you never realised you needed flip flops, listen to announcements, try not to smirk when some old dear warbles the national anthem out over the loud speakers as your american cousins whell up with emotion and make your way over to the start like a condemned man...

Tri Tri and Tri again

2009-04-07T11:37:00.002+09:00

amongst many boxes that i wanted to tick was to complete a triathlon, and there is no better place than the States. there are so many over here, the climate is condusive and with so many people of all shapes and sizes competing here, youll never have to worry about being last...there isnt an elitism about events like this, and that makes them so accessible...in fact, i see more athletic and toned people in Texas than a) fat people and b) in the uk...yes there are overweight people here, but there is certainly also a significant proportion of uber fit people, but very polarised

anyway, off to the seaside, to Galveston, which was the island town which was totally obliterated by hurricaine ike a few months ago...but to be honest, its a bit like Skegness if youve ever been there, a bit tatty and cheap looking seaside town thats seen better days, regardless of strong winds. was supposed to be going with Nikki but she was injured, so had to go one my own, which i tell you, sucks, especially when i didnt really know what to do, where to go or anything as this was my first triathlon.

i drove down friday night, went to the venue and checked in, picked up my gubbins, t-shirt, number(s) and blue swimming cap...oh yeah...a swimming cap...hmmmm...

it was nice being at the venue the night before, they were setting up, and i got a sense of excitement that i always get at things like this, the excitement that is frustratlingly lacking if im not competing. just being around the place was great. my main concerns were few-fold. a)the housekeeping of just getting to the start and not forgetting something...like my bike or something, b) the swim...ah the swim, in the open sea with 100 other men thrashing around like piranhas, and you have to do the freestyle/crawl..mmmm...never my stength..and had ahem only done one training swim...in a pool...mmmm... the rest was ok, just the faffing and the swimming

Breckenridge, Colorado

2009-03-30T12:10:00.010+09:00

Not living by the slopes as i have done for the past 2 years actually really sucks, ive become one of those people that only goes boarding once or twice a year...boooo...anyway, a few of us from Houston took the 2 hour flight to Denver, and off to Breckenride and Keystone. the first 3 days were very sunny and very warm, but it hadnt snowed in weeks, the last day we had 14 inches overnight, and was absolute bliss in deep deep fluffy powder, so i guess we were pretty lucky to have it all really, sun (i got sunburnt) and new snow. was a great trip, whi9ch almost went sour when i got lost and stuck in the woods off piste, which almost almost resulted in the ski patrol being called out. the problem was i was in trees in very deep snow, i mean up to 4 feet deep. i got stuck as everytime i put my hand down to get up, it sunk right to my shoulder, every time i stood up my legs just sunk to my waist, i have to say i was a little scared at one point, stuck, lost and rapidly getting more and more exhausted...i made it to the bottom eventually, much to the relief of everyone. great trip though, Breckenridge is such a lovely little town

Rocbar again

2009-03-30T12:05:00.005+09:00

Where else can you walk into a bar and see barmaids swinging in lingerie from the ceiling whilst listening to Pantera eh?

Rodeo...yee haw

2009-03-30T11:58:00.005+09:00

We got to the rodeo a little late, so missed all the big bull stuff, but none the less had a great time, it runs for a couple of weeks, and there are about 60,000 there everynight, dont get me wrong, this thing is huge and hugely important around here, it is taken very seriously. highlights were gav attempting to milk himself on the auto milking machine, and my absolute favourite is something called 'mutton bustin' where they strap 4 year old kids on to the back of angry bucking sheep and see how long they can stay on for, seriously, i cried laughing, these kids are shaken, and thrown about like you wouldnt believe, then trampled on...before you die you have to watch this...maybe its on youtube...only in texas

'Cougared'

2009-03-30T11:53:00.003+09:00

One new phrase for me is 'cougaring'...this is where women a little more 'senior' prey on unsuspecting younger males...

there i was minding my own business and this rather attractive senior lady accosted me and demanded having her picture taken with me, then proceeded to round up her female friends to join in...i mean, who was i to argue?!

cowboys like cowgirls

Houston Rodeo Cook Off

2009-03-30T11:46:00.005+09:00

My very excellent and very Texan friend Randi volunteers once a year for the Rodeo Cook Off, which is basically a bbq competition US style...ie very big, it preceeds the rodeo and is no small thing. they group tandi works for sell lambs for charity, and a week before the rodeo, these similar groups are measured against eachother...Randi managed to get myself and Alistair in for free, and free beer and food all night. what is missing from these photo ws a trip to Cavenders Cowboy shop...ill try and get these photos from my phone one day, its basically a dept store for cowboys, and sells shirts, boots and stetsons etc... and we had a whale of a time there trying all manner of western attire...dont get me wrong, this is now a novelty shop...this is a very serious outlet, and i felt a little conspicious, but gladly rando was there to help...anyway, i left with a straw cowboy hat and a pair of great boots...i actually love my boots, theres something wonderful about wearing cowboy boots, mock you may...but i love em...anyway, on a freezing cold february night we drank, ate, and avoided line dancing

Last night of Chinese New Year

2009-03-28T13:31:00.004+09:00

Chinese New Year lasts for two weeks, and luckily, my last night there was the last night of new year, which is celebrated by lanterns and a big party and fireworks. By this point i was pretty shattered and had had enough of shanghai, but i dragged myself and my camera out to watch the celebrations. id like to say it was a beautiful experience but it wasnt, it was too busy and crowded and noisy. i hate to say it but it ended up just being a case of getting a few nice photos and ticking box and getting out of there. it wasnt a friendly atmosphere. in fact, i took a photo of a guy cooking satay...its the photo with steam coming up, i was a long way from the guy cooking, but he got very angry at me taking a photo, and literally threw one of his satay sticks at me, which hit me in the chest...sounds almsot comical now, but it made me angry and upset at the whole place...shanghai is not a friendly relaxing good feeling place...its hard work. i went staight back to my hotel and gladly packed

Tea Ceremony

2009-03-28T13:23:00.003+09:00

During my wanderings at the weekend, i got talking to 3 students in the town, we started talking about random things, football being a good leveller...and we got talking about a sheffield united player who is chinese, anyway, these students were ontheir way to a tea ceremony and invited me along. now its not as ritualistic as it is in japan, but was extremely fascinating, they led me to a small building and into a small room, where we were served all manner of teas and were explained the rituals behond them all, and the different cups that you drink them out of. the frog is the master of teas and you had to stroke hom before you could commence...apparently he brings you luck. i had such a lovely afternoon with them, and warmed the soul to think that random people can just meet, talk and share a wonderful experience together...restores your faith in mankind really

Shanghai

2009-03-28T13:07:00.008+09:00

I also have a team in Shanghai (china kids) thaty i need to see a few times a year. now...heres a thing, ive been to a few places in the world that are less than salubrious but have loved them, and i like to pride myself on the fact that i love most if not all places i visit and can find the good points in them...BUT...i have been to china 3 times now...and hated every place that i have been, in fact, true story, but in 3 visits to 3 different cities at different times of the year...and i have never seen the sky there through the pollution. now, there are many beautiful places in china and i have only been to industrial areas...but i have never enjoyed a visit there. this was my first time in shanghai, and as interesting as it was...i didnt like the place at all, too busy, too dirty, too noisy, too much pollution, too much chaos...just too much, especially when you still have jetlag and you are travelling alone...still...an interesting place none the less. shanghai; tick

Singapore

2009-03-28T12:52:00.004+09:00

I have a team in singapore, and this was my first visit here for work, but as i lived literally up the road in malaysia for 2 years, i had been to singapore many times...a nice place if not slightly sterile, but nice none the less, but a killer 18 hours on a plane from the US. nice to be back albeit for a week..and a week of severe jetlag, long working days and longer nights of business dinners, but did manage to sneak an evening to myself and wandered down clarke key for dinner...even had roti canai...my favourite food

Burns Night Supper

2009-03-28T12:42:00.005+09:00

Obviously Houston is the oil captial of the US, and its 'sister' city in the uk is Aberdeen, which is europes oil capital, consequencely, there are a lot of scottish people in Houston, thus the celebration of Robert Burns, the famous scottish poet is very much celebrated over here, and the traditional black tie/haggis eating 'supper' is very well attended...this was my first..and my first black tie event actually. james bond or pingu, take yer pick

More early morning riding

2009-03-28T12:39:00.003+09:00

still cold... (ps have you any idea how hard it is to take a photo whilst riding??!)

Artopia

2009-03-28T12:34:00.004+09:00

One of the coolest people i know in houston in my mate Randi...usually ex pats hang out with ex pats, which is great, but you really need a local to show you the cool things...enter Randi...a pure texan through and through (minus the guns). she dragged me out on a saturday night to attend an underground art event...along with a very cool band who make most of their instruments, kind of blue-grass meets folk

Tour de Houston

2009-03-28T12:23:00.004+09:00

As there are no hills in Houston, let alone hills, the mountain bike has take a bit of a back seat (or saddle if you prefer). There is a very famous road biking race in Houston called the MS-150 which is basically a ride between H-town and Austin, which coincidentally is 150 miles..now, im not doing this, it was booked up long before i arrived on the shores, but there are extremely well organised training rides organised by 'local' oil companies, one of which is where a majority of my friends company 'conoco phillips' who hold training on saturday mornings at around 7.30am...which means a 5am start on a weekend! now these training rides are better organised than most races in the uk. up to 40 police officers and 50 marshals are present, with tech wagons in assistance and feed stations...anyway...random photos of early morning shenanigans. my first ride was a measley 28 miles...unfortunately i broke the all time record (and was publisied in the weekly newsletter..i kid not) for having the most punctures in a single ride (4) due to a dodgy tyre...ps it was freezing!

A brief history of time...

2009-03-28T12:21:00.001+09:00

ok..so been a while...laziness, busyness (as opposed to business) and internetless...but a quick zoom through the past 2 months...

There goes the neighbourhood...

2009-01-20T06:13:00.014+09:00

Sunday was the Houston marathon, of which i had a couple of mates running either it, or the half, so i blearily got out of bed to go and watch, it actually ran pretty close to my house in the Museum District. this afforded me a walk around the neighbourhood, something which i hadnt really previously done. in a rather cunning town planning scheme, they have put 99% of the museums together...which is where i live, which is fantastic, the fine and contemporary art galleries are 15 minute walk from my house. i am also pretty close to the university, and amazingly the stadium - which is bigger than most football stadiums in the uk - belongsm to the university...they take sport very seriously here. i ended up an hour later in Rice Village, which is a very cool place, doesnt look like a village, but is where a lot of the cool bars and shops are...including The British Isles ( a lot of ex pats live in rice village), they have a British shop (there are a lot of uk people here, mainly from aberdeen due to the oil business), which apparently sells english food and sauces and tea bags etc...they even sell dart boards, ww2 model aeroplanes and any other cliche english thing you can think of...cant work out if its patronising or cool...ill err on the cool side. i acutally live in a very lovely part of houston. i remember showing a picture to an australian friend, who was amazed that they have sky scrapers...i think they were expecting a scene from a western film or something, conversely, i was pretty amazed at the tree lined roads, just outside the city centre...very happy with where i live and my house is now almost there...and am beginning to fall in love with houston, and havent even scratched the surface yet...

New Years Return

2009-01-20T06:11:00.001+09:00

Dinner in the uber swanky Benjy's with most of the ex-pats returning to Houston

Texan Golf (same as normal golf...just add Rum & Coke)

2009-01-20T05:53:00.006+09:00

had an invite from my good buddy Randi to play golf at her fathers country club...so with 5 hours sleep, and still certain amounts of beer inside me i hacked my around...its been 18 months since i last place. certain things about golf in Texas: 1. they use buggies (karts, as 'buggies' seemed to be a comical word apparently) to go 10 yards...seriously, if the ball is 10 yards away they drive to it...i was frowned upon for walking...seriously. 2. drinking alcohol is part of the game, and rum n coke the choice drink. 3. there were many many more 'senior' ladies who were pretty good, which leas to the conclusion that that is ALL they do all day. 4. they dont shout 'you da man' as often as you'd imagine. great (if not long) day.

"...all I wanna do is bicycle..."

2009-01-16T06:00:00.005+09:00

Neeeeeww toy, rather splendid new road bike, uber lovely. cycling is my new thing for 2009 as well as triathlons...really need to get fit this year after doing basically nothing since leaving norway...had an hour in the freezing cold on sunday around memorial park

New Years Eve

2009-01-16T05:54:00.003+09:00

Not being a massive fan of NYE and all the pressure it brings, i opted for a quiet one in the 'local' british pub a few miles from my house, and a usual haunt for houston ex pats...ended up being a nice and relaxed few beers. some were more enthused than others however. (having looked at these photos for a while, i thought the countdown sign said 2002..and couldnt work it out...font aside i think it says 2009...now there would have been a fubar)

Last night out

2009-01-16T05:41:00.008+09:00

Had one last night out with my best mates before i came back...and have to say was one of the best nights out ever...cant remember having so much fun...a boy can miss nights out and people like this...

Christmas day

2009-01-16T05:36:00.004+09:00

Christmas morning with Jayne, and the boombox that plays ipods...which has to be the coolest item in the eworld ever (i blew it up a minute after this), and lunch at my bro's fiance's families house...a lovely lovely day all in all

Two Seasons Snowboard shop

2009-01-16T05:32:00.004+09:00

Messing about in Jaynes shop on an electric skateboard...coooool

Jasmin - Guitar Weirdo

2009-01-16T05:29:00.002+09:00

An evening chatting with Jas...and generally catching up

Nottingham

2009-01-16T05:25:00.003+09:00

A leisurely stroll with the Drinkwaters in Nottingham, alongside the River Trent

Sheffield

2009-01-16T05:08:00.007+09:00

Decided to make a trip up north to the motherland that is Sheffield, my birthplace and growing up place. was one of those crisp clear cold days and was wonderful. mooched around with jayne, shopped a bit and even got to have coffee with mother dearest. Sheffield is famous for many things, we have the oldest football club in the world, we had the first ever floodlit game of football, oh and we invented stainless steel..now where would you be if we hadnt done that eh??!! rotting..thats where. consequently, sheffield grew into a large industrial city, bilging out great plooms of smoke and pollution and for years was considered a dirty town, since most of the steel industry has now upped and gone to india and china, and following a period of about 20 years from the 1980's to 2000, sheffield struggled to find a new identity and prosperity, however, investment has been made and has seen sheffield go through somewhat of a renaissance, and looks like a beautiful place now...no florence admittedly, but a great place, and a huge university city, having 2 large universities. i always get a tinge of pride talking about sheffield, and have a sheffield calendar in my office in the U.S. in fact, my company buys a lots of specialised steel from sheffield still, and was actually defending a sheffield supplier to my boss the other day. we actually buy steel from the company and factory where my dad worked for 20 years...another fact i am truly proud of..anyway...

here y'all go...Sheffield, the greatest place on earth...

Christmas

2009-01-16T04:43:00.002+09:00

Flew back to a freezing England for christmas for 10 days, which is never enough time to get settled really, but was good to get back, and the rush to fit in as many people/friends etc.. was the usual.

one of the highlights was seeing my great friends katie and rich with their new and first addition Lucas...who is the sweetest thing in the world and had the honour of being able to hold the little man for many many hours...welcome young sir

other highlights included taking a casino to the cleaners and even winning on blackjack, a game of which i have never played before, and kinda had to watch other players to understand the rules, yet i still won about £30...and have never been happier with earning so much money in my life...until however, down to my last £1 of the night, actually, it was borrowed from jayne, on the roulette table, i put my chip on number 20, and bearing in mind thaty there are 36 numbers on a roulette table, on my last pound, the ball actually landed on 20...and we won £36...we made a hasty and slightly giggly (i have to say) exit. there were some big players in there, all very serious, but that £36 was the most fun ever.

Team building

2008-12-17T08:21:00.007+09:00

SQE Training

2008-12-17T08:00:00.005+09:00

Spent the week with one of my global teams, who flew in for a weeks training and strategy sessions. Was actually great to see all my guys in one place at the same time and even share a beer with them. has taken weeks and weeks of preparation for this, and managed to get tonsilitis right at the start of the week...a long week indeed, but great none the less.

New York New York...so cold they named it twice

2008-12-17T07:42:00.010+09:00

As a surprise for Shons birthday, I took her to New York for the weekend, and she only actually got to know where we were going just as we got on the plane...various photos from a great..if not freezing cold weekend. new york has really been on the top of my list of places ive always wanted to go to, and its weird, going there and actually knowing the street names and landmarks through so much media exposure. partly due to the cold weather and the sheer size of the place, there are so many things id like to go back and see and do...unfinished business if you like

Stuff!

2008-12-17T07:32:00.002+09:00

My life/belongings (well some of them/it) have finally arrived from across the sea to my lil ol pad in Houston...sooo excited to my stuff back...yes yes ive managed without it for months...but its stuff! also had to furnish my house fropm scratch re furniture...but that is also coming along nicely... couple of photos from Shons birthday

Coldplay

2008-11-20T11:51:00.007+09:00

apart from the rockets tickets, my friend Shon got us two tickets to see Coldplay, also at the basketball stadium, her company has a suite there, so it was a pretty posh rock concert...with free beer...strange also to sit down at a gig, but it was a brilliant evening and such a great gig, the whole evening was so good...i have missed gigs.

other things to note...being a big arena was obviously hard to see, but near the end of the set, the whole band came up to just below our suite and played a few acoustic songs right in front of us...oh and when we were leaving, some roadie gave us a set list from the band and one of the bands plectrums...topped off a perfect night

Houston Rockets!

2008-11-20T11:36:00.007+09:00

Saturday night i was taken to my first ever basketball game, to see the Houston Rockets, who are one of the big NBA teams...not only that but my friend Shon managed to get us court side seats...ie actually sat in chairs on the court surface...was an incredible experience. we also had access to an exclusive bar next to the dressing rooms, and got to witness the players warming up before they went on court...one of the leagues most famous player, the chinese player Yao plays for houston...and is soooo tall, a guy who is 6 feet 3 inches stood next to him and looked like he was stood in a hole...

we actually won the game, (the parkes curse obviously does not extend to basketball), which was so exciting, theres never a dull moment, the americans certainly know how to throw a sporting event, where the crowd are the main focus...not the players as in the uk...at a time out, the referee even did a pre planned 'performance/skit' with the rockets mascot...i mean, the referee doing a comedt scene with the mascot...can you imagine that in the uk???? so much fun, so much entertainment and had an incredible evening...

Nesting

2008-11-20T11:34:00.001+09:00

spent saturday traipsing around cool imported furniture shops...a tad expensive but some lovely stuff...though a house that size is gonna take some fillin...eek

Moving day!!

2008-11-20T11:30:00.002+09:00

finally finally moved into my own house and out of a hotel...worked the friday and waited for things to be delivered, sofas etc... and got cable set up...also took delivery of my one allowed air shipment, which was a badly needed suitcase of new clothes...problem is, is managed to muck it up and got a suitcase full of full on norwegian temperature winter clothes shipped...so totally useless, and will have to wait til my sea shipment arrives...so nice to have a home again...and is probably the nicest place ive ever lived in...i love it...just need to furnish it now...

Memorial Park running trail...again

2008-11-20T11:23:00.002+09:00

new photos from what is rapidly becoming a favourite place, theres an official running path around memorial park about 10 mins from my house, my usual saturday morning run...managed to struggle to 6 miles this time...plus they have a 'muscle beach' half way around, added to sa golf course, mountain bike trails, road cycling course, tennis courts and other stuff to do...the weather has cooled considerably here...was actually quite chilly the other day...must be getting soft...

Murder in the Village

2008-11-20T11:14:00.002+09:00

back in Houston and was invited to a murder mystery party at a friend called Nikkis place...in the swanky rice village...great evening, nikki cooed an awesome dinner, everyone was askled to come in fancy dress in keeping with the character biogs that we recieved the week before...its a role play that is semi improvisation and semi lead by a script...great fun...and have to admit to guessing the murderer...i went as an aussie explorer which lead to one well known conclusion...that i cannot do accents...resorted to speaking in yorkshire and saying cobba at the end of each sentence...i kid not

"The Sherrif's a near???"

2008-11-11T04:44:00.004+09:00

apparently theres been an election in the States...again, being in texas has taught me to watch what i say in public...

S-a-tur-day Night

2008-11-08T06:59:00.008+09:00

with some excellent chums in Nottingham

Indoor Snowboarding

2008-11-08T06:51:00.014+09:00

couple of fun filled hours with Jayne on the slopes