You've probably arrived at the worst possible time for living in the desert - think how AWESOME it will be in the winter when its 75 and everyone else is covered in snow. Have you been to Idlewyld yet? I recommend a visit for some cooler temps!




Actually evil Dev might be more appropriate - was it your master plan to maintain control in order to get me and maven to do karoake?




Have a great trip Julez. Bizarrely, this weekend I had a dream that we met and you were trying to get me to buy life insurance.


Good to hear you are settling in Nicky - I didn't realize the Lollapalooza festival was still going - I went in 1992 at the Michigan Speedway. Pearl Jam, Chili Peppers and The Jesus and Mary Chain.

Afternoon everyone! Feels like i've not been around though i've been lurking. Julez.. have a wonderful trip. Kris and I are planning on making a trip to the UK next summer after we do our proper ceremony. I can't wait. I wish we could take the boys but not this first trip.

Poor Kris is getting so anxious. He wants to work badly and hates to just sit at home. Thankfully it shouldn't be too much longer. Now if only we could win the lotto he could work and I could stay home and just write LOL

Lolla is now a Chicago festival. Has become one of the biggest in the US. Radiohead headline this year.

What I'd give to be able to see The Jesus and Mary Chain live!

Received our AOS notice of action letters today.

Yeah I know how Kris feels right now. I'm not enjoying sitting at home everyday being the househusband, with my main task of the day is doing the dishes/laundry etc.

Shouldn't complain really as I knew this was coming. Hopefully EAD isn't too far off.

Taking a break from work to have a ramble here...

Things I have discovered in the past 2 weeks in LA

• My car insurance has actually gone down as CA is allowed to take Bruce's 18 year unblemished UK driving record into account, whereas CT doesn't
• You can cook pretty okay with just a big saute pan and a small stock pot while you wait for your really nice kitchen stuff to arrive from CT
• Certain highways seem okayish to me (I-10, I-5, 101), others like imminent death (the 405, the 134)
• There is a large and I mean LARGE flying insect out here in Burbank that looks like a scarab beetle. LA peeps -- WTF is this thing?
• Why did no one tell me about the dollar stores out here? I mean, our Dollar Tree back in New Haven was like a bodega in comparison to the palatial Dollar Tree and 99-cent stores. I am now the proud owner of a tortilla warmer, numerous tea towels, and former owner of scrummy organic (yes, organic!) raspberries and blueberries, all $1 or under
• Now that I only work from home I can wear a beach cover-up all day if I want to (and I am right now)
• Not everybody here is slim and gorgeous. Then again, I do visit the Dollar Tree, so maybe I'm going to the wrong places.
• I am not allowed to drink that much cheap gin ever again, or so Bruce tells me

Is this what you are seeing flying around?

June Bug

I hate those things. Hate them hate them hate them. Just looking at the picture on wiki gives me the willies.

Yes! Bleccch. Thanks for the info; now I know how to curse it by name.

they are harmless, unless you hit one while riding a motorcycle

I hate (in no particular order):

The moving company that keeps changing its mind about when our stuff is arriving (is it this Thursday? Friday? Sunday? Next Monday? Who knows?)

UPS (deliver my freakin' new SIM card for my phone -- I am sick of seeing its "Out for delivery" and not having it)

Cranky hubsters complaining about the moving company

Bleh. Having a poo day, sorry for the whingeing. I have over a week's worth to catch up on so look out!

I hate moving companies almost as much as I hate Northwest Airlines, especially Mayflower. I think the original wooden ship moved faster than their vans.

Ewww...I imagine they make quite a mess. For some reason they love my hair and Ive had a few occasions where they have flown into my hair and got stuck. I'm still in therapy :-p

I am sorry to hear that you are having a crappy time right now. You just got here and everything is just kind of happening all at once. It happens to all of us at one point or another. Just know that it is going to get better.

I'm not too bad being at home - there are days where I have to catch up on all my e-mails and VJ etc and clean the house, do the laundry etc - other days are pure PS3 days but even that gets a bit dull when it is all you do. I want to start making my jewellery again but feel loathed to when none of my stuff really has a proper home yet. As soon as we get our things all organised it will help - having no money so does not help though

BUT!! We have some plastic drawers from Walmart now that we can hide in our wardrobe and at least have somewhere to put stationery, computer parts, tools etc instead of using boxes! Ohh for some decent furniture and storage space... the perils of renting are that you can't bash down walls and really organise things properly


Yeah - I'd say so!! Of course, I love them because they have EVERYTHING!! Well - almost And having no money means we are allowed to shop in these places... I mean - it's still an improvement on living in a poisonous spider-infested trailer in cabazon

My mum goes on holiday to Morocco tomorrow for two weeks - she gets back the day before our legal wedding so we won't speak til after - she really wanted to be there but it was just too expensive. She sent me a lovely e-mail when I told her I couldn't phone on Sunday like I normally do (the day of the in-caving ceiling )

Have you dollar store afficionados visited Big Lots yet?

Ooooh - I love Big Lots

We got our bedroom furniture there and we are going to pick up all the tiki stuff for our housewarming luau next month!!!

not that they make a mess, they hurt at 70 mph on a motorcycle

I just got my social security card in the mail!! Now I get to change my bank account to a resident one instead of a non-resident one Yippee!!

Cheesy Hawaiian music obnoxious floral shirts and Grass skirts ?

Or roasting an entire pig over a spit? With an apple in its mouth of course...

Oooooohh Hog roast

I discovered the allure of Big Lots when I was in CT. Bruce (being perhaps the world's greatest skinflint) went gaga; I may have even detected a small string of drool dropping from his lips when I took him to the DIY section. I visited the North Hollywood Big Lots on Monday which is a little on the small side, but warrants further investigation.

Did someone say luau?

The Big Lots in Venice was amazing - but now it closed to make way for a Whole Foods.

Times are changing in the neighborhood.

A GIANT WF, I might add (we cycled thru it Sunday).

There's still one over on Sawtelle/Jefferson...

biggest in town if not the whole country - my yuppie food needs will be catered to (though Bay Cities is my first love)

Wtf is Bay Cities?

off topic is over here.

You don't know Bay Cities in Santa Monica? I love Bay Cities! It's next to Swingers - you can get all manner of posh foodstuffs (mostly Italian) at a pretty decent price and they have a pretty great deli (like if I lived next door, I would never cook dinner). GREAT cheese and wine selection. Lots of nice coffees. Every manner of truffle oil. You must stop by there one day - though pretty busy on the weekends.

I think about moving back to England every single day.

Your not the only one out in the desert! I've been in Tucson, AZ for just over a year now and I really like it out here. I love the dry heat and the monsoons in the afternoon

Morning Everyone,

All this talk of Dollar stores makes me envious, all we have in plymouth is crappy poundstretcher and so nasty pound shops.

Oh I live in Dollar Store Heaven. Nasty Family Dollar, some dollar store without a name, Mr. Dollar (which this morning had a cat sleeping in the window...I wonder if it was only $1?), random Mexican dollar store, dollar store that is likely a front for some sort of raquetteering scheme...

In my neighborhood there is no shortage of Dollar Stores and Taquierias!

^Personally, I like the Dollar Tree. Usually pretty clean and a decent selection of things.

Oh yeah, Stu's in the air on his way here! POE will be Chicago.

Great news, Shan! Hopefully it will be pain-free.

Dollar Tree is known in this household as the "Idolatry"; this is from the same man who alternately refers to Home Depot as "Home Despot" and "Home Sexpot."

(cue groaning)

Well if I knew that I would have a welcome wagon full of Heinz Beans and Cadbury's Digestives waiting for you and him!

How long are you in town?

Well in one of the dollar stores near us they have luau party bags - packs of 12 for $1!!! We're going to make random party bags with leis and fake coconut bras and things for the guests We also found a Tiki party and luau CDs in the dollar store - haven't listened to them yet but am hoping they are really dire


Aww no - traditionally the kalua pig gets cooked in a pit but I think the gardeners would have a blue fit if we started tearing up our garden!!! We're going to try and recreate it in the oven though We have the Hawaiian salt and things we picked up in February and some mix to make haupia as well


You're welcome to come!! We don't have a date set yet and we have no spare beds (just a sofa...) but I can give you the details nearer the time Will try to make it for a Saturday night Of course we're not really expecting many people to turn up because they all live on the other side of Cabazon so... It might just be me and Jeremy at this rate!!


Wow - you get monsoons in the afternoon? We get 15-20 days a year and Cathedral City, next to us is in a state of emergency after some ridiculous amount of rain in Sunday's storm. That's the only rain we have had so far - it is just hot and dry all the time... the sprinklers are cool though as are the misters in the heat

I think it is just that there are so many people I know living in LA that I am a bit envious that I am o far out - otherwise I would at least have some friends in the area but here it is too hot to even go outside and do anything in the day - a walk to the store is really pushing it (and have to take a drink with me or I dehydrate really fast) so meeting people is a bit of a challenge right now - I've been looking up groups online but...


Oh I know - UK pound stores are so skanky it isn't even funny - tacky ornaments and junk. Of course, dollar stores have those too but they also have neat stuff. Like glass ears of corn...

Luau in PS! Just let me know when it is and I'll try to make it.

Off to San Diego this afternoon for an evening conference. I hear it's cooler there today than it is here in the Valley, which I hope is true. I had to head out to Target this morning at around 9.30am and it was already roasty-toasty.

Yippee! It'll prolly be at the end of next month but will defo give you details when we have them!!

Been putting together flat-packed desk and taking a break as just can't seem to get some of these screws in far enough Really annoying as wanted to have it all put together for when Jeremy gets home but it looks like I will need his help after all

Hehehe i just remebered one of my drunken student escapades go to the pound shop and see how many items the guy will tell you the price of before they throw you out

Well it as funny when i was a student

Hahaha - that sounds pretty cool I wonder if it would work here... I mean if I can get asked what my native language is in England...

Hello from Miami!!! Hope everyone's well. I'm pretty wrecked but recovering from the jet lag. We hit the road at 6.30am yesterday, and were supposed to be in transit for about 13 hours, it ended up taking about 25 hours.

Our plane was 3 hours late leaving JFK to come to Shannon, so we left Shannon 3 hours late. They had rebooked our connection for a later flight, but when we finally got to JFK, our new connecting flight was cancelled. We got booked on to the last 2 seats of a flight going to Fort Lauderdale instead. That plane was supposed to leave at 7.20pm EST, i think we actually got on the plane around 9pm, and finally took off at maybe 11pm, i don't know, I was catching some sleep by then. Crappy sleep too. Got in about 2.30am EST this morning and finally got to bed around 3.30am. I'm zonked.

So hi to you all. xxx Poit

Heh! When we were really little kids, the game was to go into the corner shop and ask "How much are your penny chews?"

It was funny then, too

Im still chuckling to myself now and im sorely tempted for the weekend

Hey Poiteen glad you made it safely shame about the hassle with the Flights. Was POE painless as well?

Welcome to America!

Welcome to America Poiteen!

Thank you guys!! I showed it to my OH, and he was chuffed that there was nice people like you guys on my internet. He only hangs out with rude people on his forums

Already got myself booked in to get a learners permit and driving lessons. I might take the test here or wait till I get to LA, I think maybe i'll take it here and get it over with.

POE was fine I suppose, the first officer was very friendly and sweet, the people in the secondry processing was also ok, but I had that feeling, you know when police question you? You know you haven't done anything wrong, but you feel like you have or something. I don't know, I don't find those experiences very comfortable, but it was fine. They also kept telling me that I should remove conditions before our 2 year anniversary, I said 'oh do you mean the second anniversary of my entry?'. They ignored me. I left it at that.

It's midnight at home, so I'm flagging now. We got a nap earlier, but I need to sleep early I'm just going to give in and sleep. It was a rough day yesterday, not going to deny myself when there's a nice bed waiting for me! I do think that I might try to gradually ease myself to pacific time, before getting out to LA, so I can hit the ground running.

Poiteen - wait on your license - you will need to re-test in cali if you have an out of state license!!!!

If there is one thing I would not want to do in Miami it would be learn to drive - I think if there's one state with worse drivers than California it's Florida, with Miami being the worst!

Yay!! You made it!! By the time you hit LA, you'll be about as far away (ok a little further maybe) from me as you were in London

You're brave with the driving already! We can't afford a second car - we need to change Jeremy's as it is so I prolly won't learn to drive until we get somthing smaller with better mpg. I don't need to drive right now anyway and it will take us a while to even be able to afford two cars so...

As for where - personally even without the out of State license issue, I would always opt to learn where you are going to live - it will give you a bit of a head start on some of the roads while you have someone in the car with you instead of getting used to a place you may not drive again

Well, you know, I figure I need to learn asap, I don't really mind having to re-test, it might help my confidence.