Challenges, Chuckles, and Chugging Along

The gauntlet has been thrown down. Let the competition of blog-writing commence! Fifteen rounds, bare-knuckle typing . . . only one will leave Thunderdome alive! This SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY!

Okay, so that was just a little fun babbling. Imagine me with a monster truck announcer voice doing that one. I love reading my wife's writing as much as she loves reading mine, so we'll work together on this little labour love.

Okay, so THAT last line was just to make Brianne gag at the romantic treacle. The antagonism of the first paragraph is so much more interesting than benign co-operation, don't you think? Conflict breeds excitement; that's why producers actually hire psychologists to help them pick reality show contestants who will get along the least.

Anyhoo, we checked out the Science Museum yesterday. It was a brief adventure that involved two separate stops at the gift shop. No buying, just enjoying the diversity of interests and commenting that children should have fun and stimulating toys like those offered there, rather than handheld portable sensory overloaders. We got to the museum just after opening and looked at the farthest wing from the entrance. By the time we got back to the front door the place was crawling with large families and youth groups, so we decided to call it a short day and come back another time. Summer is a BIG time for these museums, and there are about eight different ones all around South Kensington Tube stop, and they're all FREE. Hoowah.

Chuckle-worthy moment - An interactive display which introduces a scientific social issue to a group of players, plays a simple game, and then asks the players to vote on this issue. Topic: Should you be able to choose the gender of your baby? The game involved catching sperm cells Pacman-style to rack up a score of boys or girls. (Don't dwell on that image, it was cartoony and not nearly as icky as it sounds in writing) We were playing the game next to a girl of about 8, and when her mother joined the display the girl announced "Mummy! The last one was all about sex and I had four babies!" We nearly yelped in laughter at the mum's "Steady on there!"

We're happy to discover that our laptop will actually play Region 2 DVDs. Now we can wind down our evenings with a nice film once in a while. We've seen Knocked Up and The Holiday, both good movies I would recommend for an evening of light entertainment.

I've taken to jogging in the mornings. There is so much early daylight in this part of the world, I wanted to take advantage of it. The trick is trying not to disturb Brianne too much when I leave at 6am. The secret: don't TRY to be quiet, otherwise she feels someone/something is sneaking around illicitly. She can just ignore regular-volume noise and go back to sleep. There's a earthen jogging trail which runs from Finsbury Park northwards, passing by our house just about a block away. Convenient and scenic.

Following up on my promo for Vintage Video, here's a link to their website:

http://www.vintagevideocanada.com/

Definitely check it out.