I surprised myself too
Well in the end it was an adventure leaving work for the last time (especially after noting on the JAL website that the flight was landing in ten minutes).
Marc breezed through customs and was already waiting by the time I got to Heathrow Terminal Three.
He just looked at me and laughed and various airport meetup scenes from movies of past ensued.
Apparently he figured something was up when nobody emailed him back after his emails from Osaka. Darn forgot that. So much for the great cunning plan. But hey it didn't matter...
So now I am going to bid farwell to my trusty bloggersite. I am leaving paulinlondon.blogspot.com and now you will be able to see my continuing adventures at Paul and Marc in London...
Over and out...
Friday, November 14, 2003
Aha! The counter-surprise operation is still in full swing...
I thought after yesterday's posting the game might be up but then I got this email this morning...
Date: Thu, 13 Nov 2003 18:40:26 -0800 (PST)
From: "Marc"
Subject: is something brewing????
To: "Paul"
Hey there pauley.... sorry I haven't called or emailed in the last 24... hope you haven't been worried too much. All is well....... Lets just say that there is a little surprise coming your way....you won't know when and how it is going to hit you but I think you'll get a kick out oif it!!!
Love you lots pauley and will talk again real soon
M
Well really, it is all good. We will be back together in less than four hours... not that I am counting down. JAL reports the flight is 20 minutes ahead of time as well... Will Paul make it to the airport in time? Will Marc breeze through immigration and be left waiting for Paul to show up? I have decided not to arrive in disguise given that might startle security there. Being well acquainted with Heathrow now I do know all the good spots to stand to wait for people to arrive. I will be the one wearing the Marcs shirt too (of course).
Other surprises
I have to fess up too, there are a few things I will need to tell Marc when he gets here. I will do my best to put them in a good light!
* The coffee in this city is shit. I don't know if its the hard water, the poorly trained baristas, the chain stores or what, but my tastebuds have had to adjust to poor quality coffee. But I know three places in London where the coffee is good and they are not chain stores so you have to go out of your way to get to them!
* We will be living in a bit of a construction site for the next month. But we are only 3 mins walk from the tube and I think location location location is paramount!
* On the plus we are living next door to a place that serves all day breakfast for £3.50 (including coffee)
* The flavours are not as intense here in general, but I have noticed the eggs are bigger...
I thought after yesterday's posting the game might be up but then I got this email this morning...
Date: Thu, 13 Nov 2003 18:40:26 -0800 (PST)
From: "Marc"
Subject: is something brewing????
To: "Paul"
Hey there pauley.... sorry I haven't called or emailed in the last 24... hope you haven't been worried too much. All is well....... Lets just say that there is a little surprise coming your way....you won't know when and how it is going to hit you but I think you'll get a kick out oif it!!!
Love you lots pauley and will talk again real soon
M
Well really, it is all good. We will be back together in less than four hours... not that I am counting down. JAL reports the flight is 20 minutes ahead of time as well... Will Paul make it to the airport in time? Will Marc breeze through immigration and be left waiting for Paul to show up? I have decided not to arrive in disguise given that might startle security there. Being well acquainted with Heathrow now I do know all the good spots to stand to wait for people to arrive. I will be the one wearing the Marcs shirt too (of course).
Other surprises
I have to fess up too, there are a few things I will need to tell Marc when he gets here. I will do my best to put them in a good light!
* The coffee in this city is shit. I don't know if its the hard water, the poorly trained baristas, the chain stores or what, but my tastebuds have had to adjust to poor quality coffee. But I know three places in London where the coffee is good and they are not chain stores so you have to go out of your way to get to them!
* We will be living in a bit of a construction site for the next month. But we are only 3 mins walk from the tube and I think location location location is paramount!
* On the plus we are living next door to a place that serves all day breakfast for £3.50 (including coffee)
* The flavours are not as intense here in general, but I have noticed the eggs are bigger...
Thursday, November 13, 2003
Outplotting the plotter or the plotting and planning in London...
Ok lets talk about Marc. After working out he was arriving this FRIDAY and not MONDAY I have been plotting a suitable counter-surprise... Here's what I emailed Skye earlier this week...
Subject: ok here's the plan...
To: "Skye"
From: Paul
Date: Wed, 12 Nov 2003 13:51:41 +0000
Skye,
At 11pm tonight Marc will be in the air... he may try and call you... lets pretend that all is still going to be as he planned... I am assuming that he will try and contact you in Japan either by phone or email so as possible talking points....
* If he starts to waver about the surprise thing then say no you have all set it up and that I seem to be getting over my cold. I informed him that I am getting over my cold just now so he will be aware of that...
* Tell him that you talked him into having my farewell work drinks near West Hampstead at (insert name) bar since it isn't that far from work anyway (he won't know!) so it is still all set for a surprise on Friday.
* On Friday he might try and sms or call you when e arrives. You will need to give the impression you are still on the train there but only five minutes away from the airport so get him to sit tight (that usually works as an excuse for me!).
I will be there to counter-surprise him instead. Ha!
* Btw I have dropped enough hints about "Monday's arrival" to make him think that all I have is a lingering suspicion about a surprise rather than the full plan...
* I should be able to get away from work at 3pm Friday so the airport should not be a problem.
Any other thoughts / suggestions on the plotting
and planning?
:-)
Paul.
---------
How did I find out?
* Travel itineraries are not sent as MSWord documents
* Skye after 3 ciders can't lie convincingly
* Idle chatter with Marc made him let the cat out of the bag anyway
Visuals
In other news there have been some great autumnal scenes in London this week. These have included
* Walking to work from Waterloo Bridge on the South Bank in between the trees with the golden brown leaves. The leaves are gone in this image but you could imagine what it looked like on a foggy overcast day...
* Finchley Road...
Ok and now tonight... haircut at Covent Garden... (snip snip)
Ok lets talk about Marc. After working out he was arriving this FRIDAY and not MONDAY I have been plotting a suitable counter-surprise... Here's what I emailed Skye earlier this week...
Subject: ok here's the plan...
To: "Skye"
From: Paul
Date: Wed, 12 Nov 2003 13:51:41 +0000
Skye,
At 11pm tonight Marc will be in the air... he may try and call you... lets pretend that all is still going to be as he planned... I am assuming that he will try and contact you in Japan either by phone or email so as possible talking points....
* If he starts to waver about the surprise thing then say no you have all set it up and that I seem to be getting over my cold. I informed him that I am getting over my cold just now so he will be aware of that...
* Tell him that you talked him into having my farewell work drinks near West Hampstead at (insert name) bar since it isn't that far from work anyway (he won't know!) so it is still all set for a surprise on Friday.
* On Friday he might try and sms or call you when e arrives. You will need to give the impression you are still on the train there but only five minutes away from the airport so get him to sit tight (that usually works as an excuse for me!).
I will be there to counter-surprise him instead. Ha!
* Btw I have dropped enough hints about "Monday's arrival" to make him think that all I have is a lingering suspicion about a surprise rather than the full plan...
* I should be able to get away from work at 3pm Friday so the airport should not be a problem.
Any other thoughts / suggestions on the plotting
and planning?
:-)
Paul.
---------
How did I find out?
* Travel itineraries are not sent as MSWord documents
* Skye after 3 ciders can't lie convincingly
* Idle chatter with Marc made him let the cat out of the bag anyway
Visuals
In other news there have been some great autumnal scenes in London this week. These have included
* Walking to work from Waterloo Bridge on the South Bank in between the trees with the golden brown leaves. The leaves are gone in this image but you could imagine what it looked like on a foggy overcast day...
* Finchley Road...
Ok and now tonight... haircut at Covent Garden... (snip snip)
Tuesday, November 11, 2003
What the punters have emailed me about Finchley Road...
Oh the humanity! Been very busy the last two days setting up the new place...
Compared to other parts of London (ie Haringey) it was a no-brainer moving to this part of London, and this is what a colleague (an Australian from Melbourne) said:
Finchley road is a really nice spot... close to city, a bit posh without being over the top, great transport links, o2 centre is good (this is the large shopping centre with multiplex cinema and gym), close to hampstead heath/regents park/etc, and quite safe...
It was exactly what I was thinking... Of course the downside is that it is a busy road and the studio is much smaller than where I was... But I do have double glazed windows and the street isn't strewn with litter and scummy vegetables from the 24-hour fruit and vegetable stores.
More on Haringey
Speaking of 24-hour vegetable stores, who is going to go out at 3am and buy mouldy vegetables from one of these stores on Green Lanes? The local women won't be since their husbands will have locked them in for the night. Shortly after moving in to Haringey I popped in on one of these stores and noticed that the fruit and vegetables lacked a freshness that one expects and demands nowadays. I walked out and went the extra half-mile to the local Sainsbury's where everything was much more shiny, pert, fresh and glossy...
Really the neighbourhood isn't that bad. I only ever saw one concealed weapon in my time there and I didn't study it too closely so it may have only been a replica as it was tucked under a fat Turkish man's tracksuit... Like any neighbourhood it has its good spots... But I never particularly wanted to venture out and try every kebab shop on the strip. I have decided I have had enough exposure to Eastern Eurotrash culture. Its all good, but enough with the halal meat!
A foggy day in London Town
Today really was a foggy day. It was grey, bleak and miserable... and since it was the first real grey day in three months I loved it. Of course cold damp weather isn't so crash hot when you are coming down with something.
A person can develop la grippe
Damp nights, moving house... it has meant one thing... I'm coughing up a lung right now... trying to have early nights and lots more chicken soup...
But meanwhile...
* It is hard to not get distracted by some of the news about town. First we are told still to be alert but not alarmed by the fact there is a new report highlighting how ripe London is for a terrorist attack. It does need to be put into perspective. London has had years of experience dealing with the IRA and every corner of the city is covered by CCTV cameras...
* Anyway next week when President Bush arrives will be even more of an interesting experience. The local Haringey Socialists have ensured there are plenty of "A Killer Comes to Town" posters put up. Oh and there will be a series of fun events including one where a statue of George Bush will be pulled down!
* I had a ticket to go to today's dedication of the Australian War Memorial, but alas by changing jobs next week needed to stay in the office. It was probably for the best not to be caught out in the foggy damp air of Hyde Park Corner.
* Tonight's the Night has opened. The critics had to sit through it so the rest of us don't have to. I couldn't sit through one of Ben Elton's tedious standup monologues so the thought of sitting through his crap book and crap Rod Stewart songs would be torture.
* The British Press isn't allowed to talk about what Prince Charles was going on about the other week (or what George Smith was going on about). But they are talking about everyone else talking about it! Legal issues around the matter have meant that distributors of many foreign language newspapers did not offer many titles for sale over the weekend.
But still there is this great blogsite which is a bit of a smashing read...
Incidentally a good reliable source of Royal Scandal, The Sun reported today that “The incident could not have happened. It would not have been in George (Smith’s) remit to attend the Prince or serve tea in his bedroom.� Which would have to seem quite reasonable... unless his bedroom was a tearoom?
Oh the humanity! Been very busy the last two days setting up the new place...
Compared to other parts of London (ie Haringey) it was a no-brainer moving to this part of London, and this is what a colleague (an Australian from Melbourne) said:
Finchley road is a really nice spot... close to city, a bit posh without being over the top, great transport links, o2 centre is good (this is the large shopping centre with multiplex cinema and gym), close to hampstead heath/regents park/etc, and quite safe...
It was exactly what I was thinking... Of course the downside is that it is a busy road and the studio is much smaller than where I was... But I do have double glazed windows and the street isn't strewn with litter and scummy vegetables from the 24-hour fruit and vegetable stores.
More on Haringey
Speaking of 24-hour vegetable stores, who is going to go out at 3am and buy mouldy vegetables from one of these stores on Green Lanes? The local women won't be since their husbands will have locked them in for the night. Shortly after moving in to Haringey I popped in on one of these stores and noticed that the fruit and vegetables lacked a freshness that one expects and demands nowadays. I walked out and went the extra half-mile to the local Sainsbury's where everything was much more shiny, pert, fresh and glossy...
Really the neighbourhood isn't that bad. I only ever saw one concealed weapon in my time there and I didn't study it too closely so it may have only been a replica as it was tucked under a fat Turkish man's tracksuit... Like any neighbourhood it has its good spots... But I never particularly wanted to venture out and try every kebab shop on the strip. I have decided I have had enough exposure to Eastern Eurotrash culture. Its all good, but enough with the halal meat!
A foggy day in London Town
Today really was a foggy day. It was grey, bleak and miserable... and since it was the first real grey day in three months I loved it. Of course cold damp weather isn't so crash hot when you are coming down with something.
A person can develop la grippe
Damp nights, moving house... it has meant one thing... I'm coughing up a lung right now... trying to have early nights and lots more chicken soup...
But meanwhile...
* It is hard to not get distracted by some of the news about town. First we are told still to be alert but not alarmed by the fact there is a new report highlighting how ripe London is for a terrorist attack. It does need to be put into perspective. London has had years of experience dealing with the IRA and every corner of the city is covered by CCTV cameras...
* Anyway next week when President Bush arrives will be even more of an interesting experience. The local Haringey Socialists have ensured there are plenty of "A Killer Comes to Town" posters put up. Oh and there will be a series of fun events including one where a statue of George Bush will be pulled down!
* I had a ticket to go to today's dedication of the Australian War Memorial, but alas by changing jobs next week needed to stay in the office. It was probably for the best not to be caught out in the foggy damp air of Hyde Park Corner.
* Tonight's the Night has opened. The critics had to sit through it so the rest of us don't have to. I couldn't sit through one of Ben Elton's tedious standup monologues so the thought of sitting through his crap book and crap Rod Stewart songs would be torture.
* The British Press isn't allowed to talk about what Prince Charles was going on about the other week (or what George Smith was going on about). But they are talking about everyone else talking about it! Legal issues around the matter have meant that distributors of many foreign language newspapers did not offer many titles for sale over the weekend.
But still there is this great blogsite which is a bit of a smashing read...
Incidentally a good reliable source of Royal Scandal, The Sun reported today that “The incident could not have happened. It would not have been in George (Smith’s) remit to attend the Prince or serve tea in his bedroom.� Which would have to seem quite reasonable... unless his bedroom was a tearoom?
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