dreaming of a canadian christmas

It's rare to have a nice quiet Saturday morning alone in North Lodge. It's raining so there's no particular urge to go out, and most of the house was already cleaned yesterday for company. So it's just me, a mug of coffee, a space heater and a pile of dirty dishes, while Dean snoozes on.

Thus: time for an update.

Fare thee well

North Lodge incurred a substantial loss (in quality, not volume) when sis-in-law Jill headed home a week or two ago. No more girltalk or gregariousness, no more coming home to clean dishes, and no more weekend escapades to the countryside :( We made the most of the final weekends before she left, with a day at Hampton Court Palace (where our dear Anne Boleyn found a friend), a weekend in London (Lion King matinee, Tate Modern and yummy Wagamama) and a visit to Stonehenge and Salisbury. whew! When we do England, we DO England.

Some genuine cheer

As you may have read below, we've managed to fill the void with a little indulgent Christmas shopping, but modern materialism aside there have been some other blessings of late:

For one, we're hopping a plane in exactly a week to spend some quality time with our families. There was a fortnight of terror when there was a very real risk we'd not have our passports back from the consulate in time. Our highly-skilled migrant visas have been off for processing for months with no return in sight. Dean worked some magic this week and ensured they were in the post by last Thursday. They should be here in a few days. Thanks to those who were praying.

Meanwhile, I've been feeling pretty lonely since we left Aberdeen. I spend most of a normal person's social hours on a bus, leaving little time to make friends in either Oxford OR London and with Jill gone my social circle shrunk by 50%. So we're pretty chuffed to have found some fun/interesting/likeminded fellow Canucks in Ox. Heather and Chris Ewert (see Stonehenge above) are living just up the road at Wolfson College. We know they're great because they still come out to the pub with us even though I threw up in their bathroom after our first meal at theirs ;) - no connection to their cooking, I assure y'all!

Expanding more than just my waistline

Ask any expat and you'll invariable hear that there is something about the british winter that makes you want to retreat into comfort foods. Chocolate, milky tea, heavy soups, steamy pastries and seemingly endless biscuits constitute my current diet, but I've also found a really big weakness for mince pies lately. It's puzzling because I hated them growing up. After 3 years, British culture is finally getting the better of me.

Another feature of my hibernation mode (and the 5 hour daily commute) is a continued obsessive need to read. So far this month I've polished off two amazing Orwell novels, and a recent visit to Persephone books in Bloomsbury armed we with enough lit to sustain me through Christmas. It's bliss for a lonely kid in Oxford.

We all roll on

On the work side of things, Dean is pushing his publication count into the double digits - unheard of for someone who's had his PhD for all of a month or two. and I still am liking my job. The next issue of the mag comes out on Dec 22, so I won't see it until the New Year, but general consensus is that it's the best one yet. My senior editor and I strike a good balance: I make sure we push the ol' business school boundaries a bit, and she makes sure we don't make anyone mad in the process. The School is sending me to California in March to meet with alumni and schmooze with fellow editors. I've got a room at the Hyatt in San Fran, if anyone would care to join me for a day or two :)

so that's the latest. stay tuned for more over the holidays!

Comments

[harmonie]

Sorry you're feeling lonely... I'm happy you have your Canadian visit to look forward to!
Would love to come visit! Someday...
Merry Christmas!

[Dean]

Good post... I like your blog 'cause I would have forgot all the fun.