tiggymalvern | Jul. 11th, 2007

Each time I go back to Britain lately, some incompetent nutjobs try to bomb an airport while I'm there and make flying back from Heathrow even more annoying than it needs to be. I'm really glad those people weren't my doctors - doctors are supposed to be intelligent and logical, and I'm fairly sure I could have put together a more effective attempt at a car bomb than Glasgow's. I would also have measured the gap between the door pillars, and bought a Mini instead of a 4x4.

We got an upgrade for the flight out to nice, wide chairs with loads of leg room and big adjustable footrests. So of course there was a fat woman who complained intermittently through the entire flight to her friend sitting next to me (and anyone else within several rows) that it was the most uncomfortable flight she'd ever taken and how she couldn't bear to spend nine hours there, and the staff did everything they could to make her happy, offering her extra cushions and alternative seats, and she was deeply ungrateful. Cattle class on the way back was full of cheerful students in a group from Edinburgh University instead.

The American embassy renewed our visas after the standard four hour period of dullness for two five minute sessions with paperwork, so I'm now free to come and go again for the first time since January. It was great to catch up with

charles_nancy after almost a year, and looking happier than I've seen him in a long time with his new Australian fiancee :-) We had a fun meal out that night with a bunch of his friends and our strangers, one of whom was born four miles from me, and the only one of the nine who was still living in the country they were born and raised in. I love the way the world is so small now. It's the first time I've ever spent four hours in a Pizza Express! Though admittedly it took 45 minutes for everyone to show up, due to the closure of King's X and a big stretch of the Piccadilly line - in London, nothing changes!

It rained every day I was in England except two, and meanwhile my local-to-home f-list entertained me with tales of the 10-day wave of glorious sun and heat that wasn't so pleasing for my plants in my absence. But it was still the perfect time to go, because I got to watch all of Wimbledon :-)

( And here I need the LJ-cut because my enthusiasm got away from me and ran a few laps of the field before I caught it again )

In contrast, the British Grand Prix which we recorded and watched later after the fabulous Murray/Jankovic mixed doubles win (whoever scheduled the GP for the Sunday at the end of the first week in July was an idiot, because Wimbledon will steal the ratings) only reminded me of all the reasons I stopped watching the sport. A line of cars driving round in a long procession, with the only 'overtaking' happening because of pit stops. Yawn. Even with a British driver on pole setting a new record every race he's in, it managed to bore the crap out of me. If F1 racing drivers are ever allowed to get back to the racing part, I'll start taking an interest again.

Mostly the trip was about being obligatorially sociable with relatives (and isn't it nice when sociable means sitting and watching the tennis together? XD), so I didn't go to many interesting places, but there will be a few photos later. No birdwatching apart from the ones I fell over along the way, but I still managed to fall over a life bird - I was severely boggled by the sight of three raptors with dramatically forked tails soaring alongside the M40, but a quick check of the RSPB website agreed that the red kites reintroduced to the Chilterns are doing well. Somehow my mind still associates them firmly with Wales, but it was lovely to see the persecuted return to enjoy some of their old homes.

I got to read a few books over the trip, including The Time Traveler's Wife which a friend bought me for Christmas and I'd heard vaguely good things about.

( Cut for review )

So as you will have gathered, I'm back home with full computer access restored, and I'll get onto my emails soonish, but still no cats to hang round my ankles. We were going to collect them last night when we got back, but the Scooby's battery died while we were gone, and the carrier won't fit in the Seven! I'll ~~reprieve~~ retrieve the poor things later today.