Over and out.

Time for family OTW to say goodbye to California till autumn/fall.....so a very big thanks to Vinogirl,La Serenissima and all!....see you later.

Warm California sun.

Family OTW return to an embattled England in a few hours after the best summer any of us can remember. Vinogirl,vinomaker,the Utah clan and many nameless casual acquaintances made this summer a pleasurable experience that I thought had disappeared with the summers of my childhood...but magically reappeared for princess OTW.The weather,freedom of action and the politeness of all we encountered made such a difference from the sodden and economically comatose Britain we left, that returning is a bittersweet undertaking. I never did find my new house but I enjoyed looking and found out just how different the process is from back at home so I will continue to search at a distance.....All good things come to an end and so its time to say goodbye to America...until spring!

G and T

Family OTW have settled nicely into our home here in Ca and are enjoying the much reported heatwave.Temps are heading north of 107 and everything that doesn't keep in the cool seems to be catching fire.As a stiff upper lip Englishman I am enjoying the heat immensely...after all...there are no fuzzie wuzzies to contend with! Britain at the moment seems to be in the grip of some sort of monsoon!...has the nulabour socialist govt finally taken the leap into making the weather more homely for all our imported citizens?..we deserve to be told. On a lighter note I have found that a liberal imbibing of very cold G and T at the end of the day does help seeing these natural disasters in a much more positive light....well thats my excuse.

The Leaving of Liverpool.

Family OTW leave Liverpool for California in a few hours....until I arrive and start posting again I leave you with this tune.

Spraece Englisc tung.

When over the water in California I try to try and fit in with everyday life and not think too much about life in England .Occasionally though I do miss the feeling of being rooted in the land through the history that surrounds you in England.Knowing that possibly dozens of generations of your family have inhabited an area does make you feel closer to a location.I also enjoy the freedom from past entanglements and class connotations that life in America brings..its definitely more conducive to a more enterprising culture in the least part.I'm proud of being English/Irish/Welsh...British I suppose...but I'm equally happy to plan a future that may involve leaving everything behind one day.....it's not like the history is going away ,so I can always dip into it when my Englishness gets a bit Californiarised!

quake

This weeks quake in England made me not miss California as much as I usually do...so besides getting California's quakes I'm hoping that a Californian spring will arrive and perhaps a Californian summer......ermmmm maybe not.