I have been very busy helping Steve pack for our move to our holiday home in South of France. Let me tell you this was not an easy task as we had to sift and sort through many boxes of stuff from California as well as go through our stuff in England to decide what […]
Harriet’s Visit Draws to a Close – But No Slowing Down Here!
I am finally getting around to telling you about the last part of Harriet’s visit to us in Lincoln. Been a wee bit busy lately (more of that very soon). Harriet and I saved most of our “London Experience” for the last part of the trip. Rather than try to describe all the fun we […]
Lincoln and Beyond
Before venturing outside of Lincoln, Harriet, Steve and I took advantage of the warm weather and went down to city centre to see the Brayford Wharf, the home of many beautiful swans. I’m sure I have taken hundreds of photos of the swans in all four seasons. We parked at Lucy Tower car park, recently […]
Harriet’s First Week in Lincoln
Steve and I wanted to give Harriet “The Lincoln Experience,” otherwise known as “A week in our lives in Lincoln.” Over the next several days, Harriet gladly accompanied us on our errands around town, although sometimes the errands came to us, as when our friend Dorothy delivered a dozen free-range eggs straight from the farm. […]
Harriet Comes to Town
Shortly after Steve and I returned from California in March, our friend Harriet came to visit us in Lincoln. We both agreed to keep a daily journal of her visit – her first to England – and then combine it into one, and then share with all of you. This is my first guest-authored blog. […]
CCJ Sheffield Visits Lincoln
I took on a project of contacting each of the 33 Council of Christians and Jews Branches to find out what events & happenings they were having and to encourage them to put them on the National CCJ Website. It turned out to be a serendipity for me as I got to know many of […]
Meeting in France and in the Yorkshire Dales
While in France last month, we stayed at the De Fleurus Bed & Breakfast in Pezenas. We met a wonderful couple Jo & Ken. We had breakfast together each day and as we talked about our move to South of France, we realized how much we had in common with them, as they are also […]
A Visit from My Cousin Doreen
My cousin Doreen just spent four days with us in Lincoln. She lives with her husband Malcolm in Brighton. Doreen just celebrated her 70th birthday, but we were in Scotland and had to miss her birthday party, so she decided to come to visit us. We strolled along the streets in the Bailgate, window shopping […]
Inspiration in a Cappuccino
I had a relaxing day today as I walked down into city centre to do a few errands. The first stop was the bank to make a deposit. Did you know that you do not even have to sign the back of the cheque to endorse it here in England as you have to do […]
CCJ Leeds Visits Lincoln
The Council of Christians and Jews is one of my favourite organisations in the UK. I am the Chairman of the Lincoln branch of CCJ. Recently the Leeds branch contacted the Lincoln branch to arrange a visit to Lincoln, to see some of the sights important to both Christians and Jews. We agreed that a […]
A Couple of Special Anniversaries
5 year Anniversary Living in the UK Steve’s 35 Year Work Anniversary at the Same Company It is hard to believe that it was 5 years ago today that Steve & I boarded an American Airlines plane in Los Angeles, California, for London, England. Steve’s work brought us here for what was meant to be […]
A Fabulous Long Weekend in London (Part 2)
It’s Saturday and the weather is beautiful – I knew it would be even though the weather forecast called for rain. The temperature was cooler but the sun was shining all day. We decided it would be a great day to go to the Borough Market – one of the biggest in England with over […]
A Fabulous Long Weekend in London
I had decided that I would like to plan a trip to London for my birthday in February, just Steve and me, and that we would do the “Tourist Things” that we had not done yet. Of course I wanted to wait until the weather got warmer and drier but had not chosen a particular […]
A Holiday Walk
Easter Sunday – A visit to my cousins in Sheffield (where my mom is from). Steve and I had not visited my cousins Brad and Maxine since I returned from Southern California a few weeks ago, and there was a holiday weekend coming up. This meant that Steve had Friday and Monday off from work, […]
Heading North
The next leg of our European Vacation with the kids took us to Lincoln, where we live. Jonathan and Joshua visited us three and a half years ago and stayed with us in Lincoln. We took them to our favourite restaurants, the Lincoln Cathedral, Lincoln Castle, Jew’s Court and the High Street. We also had […]
An Invitation from The Archbishop of Canterbury
The Council of Christians and Jews was formed during some of the darkest days of the Second World War to help Christians and Jews build bridges through dialogue and friendship. Last year was the 70th Anniversary of the Council of Christians & Jews. A number of the CCJ Branches celebrated though various local events during […]
Settling Back Home in the UK
It seems like minutes ago we were in Costco in Garden Grove, California shopping for food and supplies for my parents; now we’re at Costco in Sheffield, England replenishing our own fridge, nearly empty from being away for a month. This was our third trip to Southern California in seven months due to my parents […]
The Sun is Shining in Lincoln Today
The past few weeks England has had some of the worst rain storms of this summer season. In fact a month’s worth of rain fell in a 24 hour period in parts of the UK causing horrible floods and creating a number of problems in those places. But today, here in Lincoln, it is clear […]
The Olympic Torch Comes to Lincoln – Our City!
We were so excited when we heard that the Olympic Torch was coming to Lincoln. It was carried through our city on its way to London for the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics next week. I immediately went online and found the websites that would show me the route and the schedule. I […]
Jean Turns 90
Jean is our neighbour and dear friend. We’ve been friends since we moved to Lincoln four years ago. She owns a flat in the same building that we live in. She has become part of our family. A few months ago Jean had to move into an assisted living home just a little over a […]
Anita & Ron’s Wedding
It has been non-stop over these past few weeks since returning from our recent visit to California. We just attended our friends Anita and Ron’s wedding in London. It seems like just yesterday that I introduced them to each other, when in fact it was more than a year and a half ago. Things feel […]
A Short Taxi Ride
It is amazing what you can learn on a short taxi ride. When we moved to England four years ago I chose, for the first time since I was 16 years old, not to have my own car. The main reason being that I wanted to immerse myself in the English culture and I know […]
Prince Charles and Camilla at Lincoln Cathedral
I was so excited when I heard that Prince Charles and Camilla were coming to visit Lincoln. This is big for Lincoln – a city that is three hours away from London. Lincoln is known as the hidden jewel and yesterday it felt like a diamond. The Lincoln Cathedral is the 4th largest cathedral in […]
Thanksgiving Day
Living in England almost 6,000 miles away from our family means that we have not celebrated Thanksgiving with our family in three years. I really miss having Thanksgiving dinner with our family in California. It is one of my favourite holidays. Not a religious holiday, a day with family and friends, food, and fun. To […]
It’s Time to Take Out the Hot Water Bottle
Hot water bottle, thermals, layered clothing, wool socks, boots, wool scarf, heavy jacket, and a brolly or two. These are all signs of winter approaching. Autumn is moving into winter and the holiday season is almost here. We can feel the weather changing as the temperatures drop and become colder. We can see it in […]
Our Own Family’s “Who Do You Think You Are?”
Sunday was family day in Sheffield, UK. Shortly after her stroke in May, my cousin Doreen had reconnected with our Aunt Jackie and her son Warren and his family through a phone conversation. Warren then invited her to visit when she was near Sheffield. As she lives in Brighton, four hours away, it seemed the […]
Sometimes You Don’t Have to Go Somewhere to Travel –It Comes to You…
My cousin Doreen arrived Thursday on the train from Brighton – thru London – then up to Lincoln to visit us for a few days. She and her husband Malcolm had visited us once before about two years ago. They had stayed in a nearby hotel. This time Doreen came up on her own and […]
Random Acts of Kindness
It is amazing how a random act of kindness makes you feel, whether it is someone doing something for you, or you doing something for someone else. I love it and look forward to times when an opportunity comes my way allowing me to do something for someone else. I love the happiness that I […]
A Visit to Hackthorn, Lincolnshire
While attending an Army Benevolent Fund fundraiser at a beautiful estate home, I met a lovely lady named Lindsay. When you meet a person sometimes you just click with them. Well that is what happened with the two of us. After being introduced that evening, we didn’t stop talking until the event was over, and […]
House Hunting, continued: A Visit to the Grounds of Chatsworth House
It’s another bank holiday weekend and Steve and I went to spend it at Brad and Maxine’s, my cousins who live in Apperknowle, a beautiful village not far from Sheffield, where my mom is from. I drove all the way there. It took an hour and fifteen minutes, only five minutes longer than usual, even […]