They Think It's All Over - It Is Now

So this morning we got up and headed off to Quigley's, our local Irish pub. We found a good spot in a room seemingly filled with English supporters and ordered our British brekkie.
Within minutes we realized that only half the room was English, the other German. I hoped they wouldn't be too disappointed when they lost. We came across our German friend Matt, so he and his son joined us to make up an international table.
"I won't wish you good luck, but nice to see you," I said.
The fun lasted for about 20 minutes until Germany scored their first goal. Half the room went wild. My friend leaped towards the TV screen as I poked my sausage around the plate. Great way to lose your appetite.
I tried to have fun, but let's face it, it is no fun when you're losing. The fact that my German friend kept shouting "shoot shoot" at the screen didn't help.
"Funny how the English think their greatest football adversary is Germany," he chirped. "We think ours is Holland, not England at all."
Another goal later I could see why. Suddenly everything went black, and not because I'd passed out for a change. The satellite TV lost its signal due to yet another storm. It lost the signal just as we scored not only our only allowed goal of the game, but the one that was disallowed by the seemingly blind referee.
The game ended with a horrible 4-1 loss for us.
"Well, it's been nice to see you," I said, shaking hands with Matt as we left. "Pity it was under such tragic circumstances."

Last Will and Tease-e-ment

We're all used to Spam in our inboxes these days, and usually I just delete it. This one, however, was a little more creative. It told me I had been left £7 million by Alexander McQueen, the fashion designer who died tragically earlier this year.
Much as I would a) find £7 million quite handy at the moment and b) would rather dress in Alexander McQueen than Coldwater Creek, I'm afraid I won't be responding. If any of you fancy your luck, feel free to tell Mr George I sent you!

"Dear Friend

Mr name Barr Perkins George personal attorney to Alexander McQueen - Designer
Fashion Label who died on the 11th day of Feb. 2010.I have the documents of a
large amount of funds which he handed over to me before he died made you a
beneficiary to his WILL. He left the sum of Seven Million Great British Pounds
(GBP £7,000.000.00) to you in the codicil and last testament to his WILL

Being a widely travelled man, he must have been in contact with you in the past
or simply you were recommended to him by one of his numerous friends abroad who
wished you good and his friend was a gay as well due to the fact that McQueen
was a gay and claimed he realised his sexual orientation when he was six. He
told his family when he was 18.

Lee Alexander McQueen, CBE (16 March 1969 ? 11 February 2010) was an English
fashion designer known for his unconventional designs and shock tactics.[3]
McQueen worked as the head designer at Givenchy for five years before founding
the Alexander McQueen and McQ labels. McQueen's dramatic designs, worn by
celebrities including Rihanna, Björk and Lady Gaga, met with critical acclaim
and earned him the British Designer of the Year award four times.

Late Alexander McQueen died on the 11th day of February, 2010 at the age of 40
years, According to him this money was supposed to be used in transporting and
getting the new store that was about to be opened in los angeles stocked with
his recent designers

You can read more about him from the site below

(1)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_McQueen


Please if I reach you this time as I am hopeful, endeavour to get back to me as
soon as possible to enable me conclude my job.

I hope to hear from you in no distant time.

Yours in Service,

P.George & Co. Solicitors"

Chicago Storms Sound And Fright Show

To say it's been a little stormy around here lately is like saying BP has recently poured a little water on troubled oil.
It's got so bad I now can't sleep unless I hear a rumble of thunder to send me off to dreamland.
Last night we had tickets to see Harry Connick Jr perform at the Chicago Theater and we preparing to leave when it happened again. To be fair, the weather forecasts are spot on. If they say rain will start at 4 p.m. if you look out the window by 4.01 p.m., there it is. And there it was.
We left the house at 5.30 p.m., not too concerned because as I said this has been a more or less daily occurrence for the past week. Plus, it's quite fun being treated to a free sound and light show when you're in the passenger seat.
It was beginning to clear as we left the house. By the time we got on the tollway we were approaching the eye of the storm.
Having lived in the Chicago area for sometime, I was just happy it wasn't a blizzard.
The skies became blacker and blacker, the rain heavier and heavier. The lightening flashed around us with such ferocity it was like being in a petrified forest.
Grumpy was indeed petrified. Not that our little convertible would be struck by lightning, but that we wouldn't have time to stop for dinner before the show. The thought of having to grab a McDonalds somewhere on route terrified me.
Fortunately we had our navigation queen to steer us through. After an hour or so she took us off the freeway on the scenic route, if you can call Cicero scenic.
We drove past a cemetery so full of water I was worried some of the residents were going to bob up to the surface like apples.
Row after row of traffic lights were out. Finally GPS woman told us to turn left - straight into a river which I'm guessing was actually a road unless she was feeling really mean.
We made several attempts at different river roads before finally finding one shallow enough to pass. In the distance we finally saw the Chicago skyline, just in time to see the Sears (sorry, but it's going to take me a long time to get used to calling it the Willis) Tower grab a huge bolt of lightning with its conductors.
Finally after two hours we reached our destination, just in time for us to pop into a neighboring deli, grab a sandwich and make to our seats just in time for the show.
And Harry Connick? Luckily he was electrifying too.....

World Cubs Fever

From today's Naperville Sun.....

Never thought of myself as a football pundit, but as you'll see, in Naperville anything is possible...

I’ve probably been more excited than I should have been about the Blackhawks winning the Stanley Cup. After all, I’m not American and I’d never even heard of the competition until this year. But I found myself caught up in the thrill of a local team winning for a very particular reason. My team hasn’t won anything since I was nine years old.

I’m talking about World Cup football, yes, football, not soccer – I may have lived here for three years but I’m still English. I’ve been living under false hopes of another win for most of my life. If they’d never won at all I probably wouldn’t have thought about it, but surely if they could do back in 1966 they could do it again? Look at the Blackhawks.

I like football, or soccer as you insist on calling it. The rules are fairly simple, it doesn’t take too long and you don’t have to mount a full scale musical at half time to wake the audience up.

Every four years I’ve watched our boys in vein. I’ve watched in schools while teaching, in rowdy British pubs and once in an Italian hotel. The fact that our first game this time was against the USA seemed an amazing co-incidence since I now live here. That I ended up watching that game in a faux British pub in Louisville, Kentucky of all places was even more absurd.

It was like being in a negative of an old photograph. We were the only Brits in the place. When England scored my husband and I were two tiny voices cheering politely at the back. When the Americans scored and we were glum, their screaming raised the roof.

If England had been playing America at any other sport I would have no doubt we’d have lost and would probably be cheering you all on. But football is our game. We’re supposed to be the best. From what I can make out here in Naperville, only school girls play soccer, so how come your team can still draw one all?

On Friday we decided to watch the second game against Algeria in Quigley’s. As I suspected there weren’t too many Algerian fans, just a handful of English and some English fans with American accents. The most exciting thing about the match was the veggie wrap I enjoyed while watching it. Another miserable game we should have won easily. In case you think I’m being less than patriotic, you should read what the British press has to say.

Although I guess I’ll always support the underdog, because that’s what we British do, over here in the States I feel I have a sporting chance. When it comes to baseball, I’m going to support the Cubs, because they’ve got a real chance, right?

Mazeltov - It's The Jewish Hospital!

Dominating the skyline in certain parts of the city is the Jewish Hospital. This got me to thinking exactly what that means....
1. The good news is all the doctors are highly rated - by their mothers.
2. IVs contain chicken soup.
3. Car parking is $30 an hour, but everyone is too mean to pay it so they park for free round the corner and order an ambulance.
4. The nurses wear yarmulkes.
5. A sign saying "the first cut is the deepest" hangs on the wall of the circumcision ward.
6. Every operation is watched by 30 doctors. One to perform the surgery, the other 29 to tell the surgeon he's doing it wrong.
7. All liposuction is conducted by Dr Shylock. Who else would want a pound of flesh?
8. All babies are taken directly from the nursery to fourth grade.
9. If you look carefully, you can just make out the fiddler on the roof.
10. The wards are only full on high holy days.

An Artistic Break

With racing, boxing, baseball and soccer, this has to have been one of our sportiest trips ever. I finally got back to the arts yesterday with two visits to the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts.
In the morning we visited the very touristy but always worth a visit film presentation about the state - Kentucky Show! I expect you've seen them - the little travelogues with overlaid pictures and breathtaking shots of scenery set to music. It filled in any blanks we had about Kentucky. Did you know blue grass doesn't just refer to the music? In early June certain grasses blossom with tiny blue flowers which makes the fields appear blue. (See how educational this blog can be sometimes? Now I've saved you the effort of having to actually come here yourself).
In the evening we saw Legally Blonde, which would be our daughter's favourite musical of all time if she ever gets the opportunity to see it.
Many of the girls in the audience dressed up as Elle, sparkling in tight hot pink dresses and dainty heels.
Not one of the all time great musicals, but a lot of fun and no sport anywhere, unless you include a couple of bouts in court!

Football Fever

I'm not a huge football fan, but I've always supported England in the World Cup. I'm old enough to remember their win in 1966, but probably won't live long enough to see it happen again. I've watched World Cup games on black and white TV as a child, in classrooms while working in schools and in crowded pubs with thousands of cheering students praying I wasn't crushed as they cheered our boys on.
Yesterday I watched the first game of the 2010 South African World Cup in a faux British pub on Fourth Street, Louisville, Kentucky. Outside the temperatures were in the mid 90s with a heat index stretching them up to 100 degrees. The humidity was so high I could feel the sweat dripping down my back and it felt like someone had inserted a metal skewer into my head.
"This'll be a great place to watch the game," I said to Grumpy. "There's bound to be some other Brits in here."
We sat down and Grumpy ordered a pint of Boddington's and we shared a plate of fish and chips as the game began.
"Let's stand up when they play God Save The Queen," I said to Grumpy.
"Let's not," he said, looking around.
As our anthem ended I could only hear one person applauding. Me. Some British pub. It was just us, about 50 Americans and a drunk South African woman.
Watching the game was like trying to develop a negative in the Twilight Zone. When we cheered our first goal the Yanks looked glum. When we heard them cheer, we knew it was bad news for us.
Had it been England v USA in any other sport, I wouldn't have dreamt we would even have a chance. But this is football. It's our game. The only time we ever hear of soccer here is when a proud mom or dad tells us their daughter plays for her school! It's a girls' game. So how do they even have a team?
At first I wasn't worried. We scored in the first four minutes and I was already feeling sorry for everyone else in the pub. But for our goalie to let the ball slip through his obviously buttered gloves - honestly!
The only way to reach any fellow fans was by using Grumpy's phone to see what every one else was saying on facebook.
So in the end we had to be content with a score of one all.
"But we are top of our group," said Grumpy.
"Yes, but only because it's listed alphabetically," I moaned.

Full Steam Ahead

It's always good to see a city from the river, so we boarded the Belle of Louisville to see the sights. They say it is the oldest working steam boat in the country, but that could be a lot of hot air...

The water tower along the Ohio River is older that the one in Chicago.
Now, this may look like a beautiful 3d tattoo, but believe me, its not. The May bugs must have got their calendars wrong this year, because thousands of them decided to come along for the ride. They don't bite or sting, but remembering them flying all over the boat is enough to make me sea sick!

Trolley Song

It's always nice to see a reminder of home when you're away. Here I am on Louisville's trolley - just like the one in Naperville!

A Night At The Races - And They're Off!

Photo Finish - Race Night At Churchill Downs

Yesterday evening we joined about 40,000 of our closest friends and went to Churchill Downs, the famous race track which is home to the Kentucky Derby. It was an eclectic crowd, due in part to the fact that it was Seventies night.
"It's ok, the fashion police went that way...."
Some people arrived in style - in a rhinestone covered limo....
Some riders can just be too relaxed.
Now this is my kind of gift shop....


Grumpy and I were on top form - we won three races and we didn't even have a horse!



Now here's a surprise coup. This is Calvin Borel, this year's Kentucky Derby winner.

Horse Play

Come with us on a drive through the Kentucky countryside to Lexington, the horse capital of the world.
The Kentucky Horse Park is full of celebrities. These days Mr Ed doesn't like to be recognized....

Finger Lickin' Food

As international foodies, Grumpy and I enjoy eating famous food in its original location. We've sipped Singapore Slings in Singapore, bitten into Baked Alaska in Alaska, hailed Caesar's Salad in Caesar's Palace - you get the taste of it.
Therefore it was only right that in Kentucky we dined on Kentucky Fried Chicken. No where says gourmet like food eaten straight out of the bucket - especially when you're within a stone's throw of the Colonel's final resting place.
It truly was an international meal - they even served it with scones! All that was missing was the cream and jam.....

Fighting Chance

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee,
Louisville's the birthplace of Mohamed Ali.


One of his poems is prophetic and sad
but his getting Parkinson's isn't all bad.
The Olympic Torch that he used to give fire,
He'll not be forgotten and will always inspire.

Kentucky Pride Chicken

I don't normally make a point of visiting cemeteries on vacation, but I didn't want to appear chicken....
So we duly paid our respects to Colonel Sanders.
We discovered he had a been a 33rd degree Freemason - the highest of the ranks. Which explains why he was so good at keeping his special recipe secret.....
If you ever want to visit (he's buried in Cave Hill Cemetery, Louisville) you just have to follow the yellow brick line that leads to his grave.

Louisville Blogger

Until yesterday I thought the Louisville Sluggers were the local baseball team. Turns out the Louisville Slugger is the brand of baseball bat that all the major league teams use. Despite being Cubs fans nowadays, we still consider baseball worth supporting (!) so we enjoyed the factory tour.
It's just not cricket! Grumpy has an unfair advantage.
"Frankly I think the whole thing's a bit wooden."
This is how they cut the bats out of the trunks, proving baseball bats do indeed grow on trees.
Never kiss your bat for luck until the glue's dried....
Mickey Mantle, the original batman....
This one's Babe Ruth's, which is odd, because I always thought that was a chocolate bar.

My New Kentucky Home

We're staying at the historic Brown Hotel in Louisville. It was opened in 1923 and one of the first guests was British Prime Minister David Lloyd George. Word has it the place is haunted, but unless you count pianos playing by themselves in the lobby, we've seen no sign of anything yet!

East Ender

It's always interesting to meet locals when you travel. Last night we a real character, Winston Joseph Spaulding. You may be surprised to hear I know his middle name. Believe me, that was the least of it. Within 20 minutes he'd told us his entire life story. Turns out he was born in Hackney, London and moved to Louisville when he was 12. Hearing him speak now you'd never believe it, but we know it's true because every so often he'd slip into an East End accent, especially when talking about something from his past.
So there we were sitting on the sidewalk outside a hip hop bar on a sultry Kentuckian night. Winston had lived in Hawaii and Atlanta before moving to Louisville, and had five kids by different women all over the country. He wore not one, but two diamond studded earrings and smoked and drank copious amounts of white wine as he spoke. We barely said a word, he was excited that we were British, but other than that didn't really care as long as we listened.
What we learned is that Louisville, like most cities we seem to visit in the U.S , is undergoing a regeneration. It's a real melting pot where blacks and whites mingle together. Hardly surprising these days, but interesting when you realize it was only 40 years ago when race riots were common and there was segregation in many cities.
Winston's father was American and his mother from the West Indies. In the 1950s thousands of West Indians immigrated to England. Nowadays the world's a much smaller place, and you never know which immigrants you'll meet.....

Travel Tip

When packing I try to take a colour palette of clothes with that will co-ordinate. Not only does it make it easier to get dressed each day, but when if your bag is searched at the airport at least your stuff will look good!
Of course we didn't encounter that on this trip - just a long five hour drive. I had chosen a coffee and cream palette. I have good news and bad news about this. Bad news - when Grumpy spilled an entire cup of coffee over me at our lunch stop it didn't match my clothes after all. Good news - I had a change of clothes in the car that went with my shoes and newly coffee stained cap!

Road Trip

Tomorrow we're off on another little jaunt to the state that's finger lickin' good. Why Kentucky? Well, when your ambition is to visit every state you have to do it sometime. This'll be number 27 for me, 28 for Grumpy.
The good news is this time we're driving, so no airport problems, plus I can take all the sharp pointy objects and gallons of unidentified liquids I want. The bad news is 'road trip' translates into "it's all right for you, I have to do all the driving." Having barely driven out of Naperville since we've been here, you'd think he'd be used to it by now. We're very old fashioned in that way. The husband does the driving while the wife does the navigating. Fortunately these days my job has been taken by over by GPS woman. I'm still looking for a robot to take over the driving.
Hope you'll check in to follow our adventures. I'm on the hunt for the essence of Kentucky - horse racing, fried chicken, bourbon and perhaps a few surprises.
If you don't hear from me for a couple of days it means Grumpy won the "how much are they charging for Internet in this hotel?" argument. If you do hear, it means I'm blogging from the bathroom at 2 a.m.

Star Turn

This week one of my dreams came true - for someone else. One of my more bizarre ambitions is to own my own theatre, possibly because it's the only way anyone will ever stage any of my plays. Anyhow, this dreamer is Kandiss Hernandez, founder of Kidz Kabaret who has just opened the Center Stage Theatre for her children's acting school. I've been a supporter in one way or another since our early days in Naperville, so it was very cool to see her dream become a reality.
"Keep smiling and they'll never notice you forgot your pants..." The Naperville Jaycees present a cheque for $5,000.
Ta da! The theatre even has it's own walk..and wall..of fame.
A star is born...

Councilmen Kenn Miller and Paul Hinterlong stand under the(ir) stars.
Not sure this belongs to Dustin, but you never know....

The new Center Stage Theatre can be found on Quincy Avenue, Naperville. Its first production, The Sound of Music with a cast of children and moms stepping in as nuns begins tonight.