Pass notes #2

Wie geht's?

Age: 61 (today in fact)

Appearance: grey hair, different glasses, but essentially the same simple guy

Disposition: Happy, content, positive, thirsting

Where: Caterham, Surrey, United Kingdom

What are you doing there? Living. Soaking it all up. I may never pass this way again, according to Seals and Crofts, so I'm enjoying every day.

But why England? I'm me here. I belong. I can't really describe the feeling beyond that without getting all mystical and misty eyed.

Okay, okay. I think I get it. Have there been any messages from friends and relatives so far? Indeed there have. Ross rang yesterday, cuz Christine sent me a gift from Bury (I'm waiting for LOML to wake up before I open it) and Jade rang yesterday as well. Plus there are my crazy friends (GK and Simmsy), my mentor (WOH Gibbs), former colleagues, relatives and friends who got in touch via Facebook - marvelous for birthdays and the like!

Righty-ho, enjoy your day Wozza: Chur bro.

Don't say: When do you intend to grow up and settle down?

Do say: Forward!

Love and peace - Warren Ono Purdy

Good times never seemed so good (Neil Diamond)

Wie geht's?

This post was going to outline my views on GB under the spell of Brexit, or the LOML and my visit to the state rooms at Buckingham Palace.

But our friends, Patrick and Randy, knocked those two aside with a phone call around 2.30pm on Sunday. They were at the Emirates, in a director's box, and had a spare ticket!! Did I want it?? How soon could I get there? 

The 4.00pm kick off meant I had to get my skates on. 

A walk to Caterham station and the resulting replacement bus service to Purley, a train to Victoria, the tube to Highbury Islington and a brisk walk to the Emirates saw me catch the last ten minutes of the first half and all of the second.

Typically these days, the first half of Arsenal games can be tactically astute and steady (okay, boring). Such was the case yesterday, but two quick goals in the second spell had us up man-hugging and joyous!!

At one point, as I was basking in the north London sunshine at Emirates with us up 2 nil, I said to Patrick that this is as good as life gets. And I wasn't kidding!

Love and peace - Gooner Wozza

Pass notes #1

Wie geht's? I'm well, thanks for asking. You?

I'm into 49 UP: Ya wot?

49 UP, it's a series of documentary films: Is it about a really tall building's lift getting stuck?

No. It's an old Granada TV programme that first aired in 1964: I thought Granada just did Coronation Street, so they did and I'll tell you no more so I will.

Apparently not. Although there are similarities as this chronicles the changes every 7 years of 9 people: So it started as 7 UP (ha ha!)

Actually it did. Then 14 UP, 21 UP and so on: Yeah, I get it it - until 49 UP presumably.

Indeedy - it looks like that was the last edition. And it's wonderful. As I was also 7 in 1964, it really resonates: I've just googled it and there's a 56 UP as well which will rip your undies. It looks pretty cool - you'll need to get it. How do you know about it anyway?

Up until 28 UP, I watched these in New Zealand and loved them, then I lost touch until the lovely shop assistant in HMV ordered the box set for me: Good old HMV. Just you watching?

When I explained the premise to Jacky she poo pooed but she quickly became hooked to the unfolding drama of real lives being exposed every 7 years - we're currently watching 35 Up: Jacky poo pooing? Really? 

Do say: We don't change - the person we are at 7 is who we really are. The rest is just tinkering and fluff.

Don't say: Has to end at some point.

I'm walking around the world, here we go (Talking Heads)

Photo by Matt Jones on Unsplash

Wie geht's?

House shopping continued this week.

We returned for second viewings on two properties and have discounted both. SWMBO nixed the first one, and I found the second one too small, too cold and too noisy. Otherwise it was lovely and would have suited Jerry.

Second viewings are essential. We should have done that in the past really but la de da.

The problem with house shopping is that fatigue can set in at some point. We've probably now viewed ten properties - three of which we walked away from after 30 seconds.

We are learning though. Some Estate Agents are better than others shock horror.

The big national real estate chains are bad news - overly motivated by profit margins and sales targets rather than establishing an honest relationship with customers (us). 

The one offer we've put forward so far followed the estate agent's advice and we didn't even receive a counter offer from the vendor. Clearly we were being used as a means for jacking up the price.

So we'll be avoiding Bairstow Eves from now on, people.

All up, we need to get something soon before a more jaundiced world view upsets our apple cart further.

Jerry is waiting patiently (sort of).

Love and peace - Wozza 

I've been driving all night, my hands wet on the wheel (Golden Earring)

Wie geht's?

The shock of the new! Driving conditions in England can be demanding.

It's all coming back to me as I slowly readjust to the language (dual carriageway, lorries, straight on, etc), the narrow roads, the patience required, the incomprehensible descriptions of better routes by friendly colleagues, the awareness of parked cars, the narrower than narrow roads, double decker buses, the double flash of lights indicating give ways, the even narrower than narrow roads, and the round abouts (although the roundabout from hell in Purley still gives me heart palpitations).

It's only a five minute drive from Caterham (where we live) to Kenley (the school) but it's still enough for me to long for the trains that we use on the weekend.

Love and peace - Wozza

P.S. absolutely brilliant end of summer weather so far - warm enough but not too hot, rain on my first day greeting students, blue skies. Loverly.

Living in the past (Jethro Tull)

Wie geht's?

These posts are always a snippet of my past - you read them just after I've written them, after all. Closest I can get is my immediate yesterday. So...

It started off with some Face Time with Jade and Samantha. Modern tech meant our three locations and time zones (UK, USA, NZ) were all in split screen on my phone for an hour.

What a world we live in eh?

It was great to connect and see my beautiful girls and William and chat.

Following that, our plans were to jump a train into London for the day - maybe see a show, maybe the Picasso exhibition at Tate Modern, maybe FOPP, maybe a walk around Hyde Park, maybe a film, maybe dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe.

Que sera sera.

After lunch at Paul's we checked out Trafalgar Square. Our realtor had suggested The Play That Goes Wrong, I was also keen on The Mousetrap (it's been going for 66 years and every time I touch down in London I have a vague urge to finally see it), and SWMBO advocated Matilda The Musical.

The only show that we knew we weren't going to see was The Lion King - we made a promise that we'd only see it with Jade and we stick to our promises!

In the end we found good tickets for a 3pm Matilda and off we went (we both hugely enjoyed that experience).

Along the way I visited Waterstones and found a copy of The Choice - an autobiography by Edith Eger. The Observer piece on her that I'd read on the train going in was profoundly affecting and I had to find a copy.

More on Edith next time. 

Love and peace - Wozza