And we've done it!

And by 'we,' I mean, 'me and all of the voices.' My new London blog has been officially launched and can be found here. And here. And here. (Please note all these hyperlinks go to the same place.)

CHEERS! See you on the other side!

English grocery shopping do's and don't's.

Do: convert all recipes into grams and ml in advance of shopping.
Don't: bother with recipes at all, as you won't be able to find the ingredients, anyway.

Do: handle all plastic containers of soup with care.
Don't: drop your soup container in the aisle, where it then busts, spraying butternut squash all over the floor.
Do: run for it.

Do: bag your own groceries.
Don't: stand there, staring expectantly at your cashier for ten awkward minutes before noticing that the patrons in the other lines are all taking care of their own, leading you to scramble and pack your groceries in a frantic rush, guaranteeing you will arrive home to find that you shoved your bread between your jars of tomato sauce and your eggs are missing entirely.

Do: leave via the main entrance.
Don't: leave via the fire exit.

Do: get home as quickly as possible with your load and vow never to return again, as you can survive by sucking the splatters of butternut squash soup off the hem of your jeans for at least a few weeks.
Don't: realize you forgot the kitty food as soon as you see the mewing cat.

Do: take advantage of your return trip to buy a bottle of red wine.
Don't: wait until dinner to open it.

My London Blog Name

Seriously, people. I canNOT come up with a good name for my London blog. I sent out a mass text my last weekend in San Francisco soliciting help, and of course all the great ideas that came back were TAKEN. Oh, yes. And by people who have done this. Or this. Then the lightbulb came on: The Daily Drizzle! Brilliant name for a blog, isn't it?? Except someone else has already done it and killed it and it has been removed from blogger forever. Then of course you have variations on The View theme: we have this hilarity (which I secretly wish had been carried on) and also this. Please note that all of these blogs died within a post or two, and all several years ago (this is also the only reason I feel free to poke a little fun. These bloggers have obviously not grown attached to their works). BUT THESE ARE THE PEOPLE PREVENTING ME FROM GENIUS. I'm convinced of it. I was going to produce something heartbreaking, and staggering, and now...I'm choked off, like a rose surrounded by weeds. Weeds with really great names.

Any ideas would of course not only be appreciated, but humped beyond oblivion. And totally worthy of a care package from London consisting of pub coasters and a British tabloid. Please. Help me jump the gap. (And yes, that's been taken, too.)

What I'm looking forward to most...

People keep asking me what I'm looking forward to the most about my upcoming trip to London, and consistently my mind goes straight to "my flight on Virgin Airlines." I've only done Virgin once, on the way to Las Vegas, and it was great. I can't imagine the wonders of flying abroad and spending ten straight hours on this plane. I don't know what I'm expecting, exactly...maybe a cirque du soleil act complete with live trapeze artists flying over my seat, or a laser light show and a cocktail bar and stewardesses in white plastic mini skirts and bubbled vests and blue hair to serve my every whim and desire, down to live goldfish in my martini glass and fuzzy pink socks for my wiggling, over-stimulated toes.

I hope I don't peak out early.