The British Museum

Incredible, fascinating, breathtaking, jaw dropping, brow lifting, educating, and so much more! We can't wait to go back.
Here are some pictures from the Assyrian palaces. There were six rooms filled with these treasures.

From a sign in the museum:
Assyrian kings competed to make each new palace finder than the last. Carved reliefs decorated the interior walls, while colossal man-headed lions or bulls stood as guardians of gateways.
The tradition of decorating royal residences with sculpture began with Ashurnasirpal II who reigned from 883-859.

In 612 BC, the Assyrian cities were looted and destroyed by invading Babylonians and Medes. The sculptures remained buried in the ruins until the mid-nineteenth century, when many were exacavated by British and French archaeologists.

The area was then part of the Turkish Ottoman empire which granted excavation and export permits. As a result, London and Paris have the largest collections of Assyrian reliefs outside Iraq.

Prince Caspian Trailer out this weekend!

The trailer for Prince Caspian should be out in the cinemas this weekend. It won't be online for another week or two, but the one in the theaters will have Dave's work in it. Rumor has it it's before National Treasure 2.

If you see the Prince Caspian trailer, Dave's piece is an aerial shot looking straight down at a river. Aslan roars and a blast wave emanates from him. Dave did the blast waves, the wind whipping water off the crests of the waves, and the river replacement. Basically, he created all the water in that shot - except for one small splash on the right side that a Telmarine soldier makes as he jumps into the river. That was a real splash.

Dave Working in Narnia

There's a lot of confusion about Dave and his position at Framestore in Soho, London, England. I'll do my best to summarize how it all came about.

Dave has a friend, Peter, who told Dave that Framestore was looking for someone who knew a computer animation package called Houdini. Dave not only works with Houdini, but he used to teach classes on Houdini. Peter was in London working on the movie based on the second book in the Chronicles of Narnia ("The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" was the first book) called "Prince Caspian." When Dave found out the job was working on a C. S. Lewis book, he had to know more!

For those of you who may remember, Dave interviewed for an animation position on "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" a few years back at Sony Pictures. Because he has zero film experience, he couldn't get on. He almost accepted a job working on another film just to gain film experience, but it's not film Dave wants to do. It's been a dream of his to make a movie based on The Chronicles of Narnia for almost 30 years, since he was in high school. He even wrote those who had the rights to the books (quite few years ago) to find out if he could make a movie based on them. They said no.

Several years have passed and Dave still has his dream to work "in Narnia." When Dave told me about the job in London, we knew he had to pursue it! Whatever it took, we had to do it.

Dave had a few strikes against him, including zero film experience. BUT the fact that Peter highly recommended him, he knew Houdini, AND the gal he interviewed with at Sony Pictures a few years ago was now working for Framestore, he had a chance.

Negotiations with Framestore took place in a very short time frame, his current job with Northrop arranged for him to work part time from London, Dave got his papers in order (work permit, Visa, passport, etc.), the five of us got our passports, we rented our house a week before we left (thanks Ron and Cindy!), and we flew. It was a whirlwind departure.

Dave arrived in London a month before the kids and I got here. He found us a place to rent (no easy task) where we all spent our first few nights in an empty house full of love and totally happy that we were finally together again. Dave and I took a couple of trips to IKEA to get mattresses, bedding, kitchen supplies, two kitchen table and chair sets (one for the kitchen and one for Dave's desk), two book cases, and a chair - my chair. : ) When we save up enough money, we'll get a couch.

Dave was hired by Framestore to work on the river god, a character in Prince Caspian. Water is the most difficult subject to animate, so he was thrilled to be able to take on the challenge. He and a fluctuating team of eight to nine people who worked on the river god sequence for several weeks. To everyone's surprise, another company (Scanline in Germany) was also working on the river god. The other company knew Framestore was working on the river god, but Framestore didn't know they were also working on him. For three weeks, Dave and the team worked around the clock to create the best river god they could. Every other day, they were told they'd know if they got the piece or not. That went on for three weeks.

Finally, they all got the news. On the 19th of November at 5:01pm, I got this email from Dave: "Just got word, we lost the river god. Talk to you soon."

Again, we raised the situation up in prayer and waited. We were up for whatever God had planned.

Today, the 20th of November at 4:03pm, I got this email from Dave: I just had a wonderful chat with Fiona. She said that they were hoping I would stay and that there is a short list of people they want to keep on for Prince Caspian and I'm at the top of the list. She was concerned that I was here for the river god specifically, and that since we didn't have that anymore, that I might want to leave. But when I explained that I was here for Narnia in general, she was quite happy and said that fundamentally, nothing would change, just the content of what I am working on. Woo Hoo!

Dave's status with Framestore hasn't changed, just his assignment. He's gone from FX TD on the river god sequence to FX TD on Prince Caspian in general. He'll know more towards the end of the week how many shots he'll have and specifically what is involved. They still need to sort out their staffing issues.

Is that so cool or what?!? Dave didn't ask to work on the river god, he just wanted to work on Prince Caspian. Since the river god is in Prince Caspian, he took it. Now, he gets to stay with Prince Caspian and live out his dream. Simply awesome.

"Darn! These shoes are too big."

I saw a cute little grey mouse running across our kitchen floor three weeks ago. Last week, a company came and strategically placed a few boxes with tempting mouse "treats" inside. I know, I know. Wa! Wa! Wa! The poor little life of the mouse. Gee, how about the health of my poor little children? How about the mouse droppings on our bed sheets? Ya, the mouse is out-a-here. God gave us dominion over the animals. This is a great time to exercise that authority!
The exterminating company said it would take five to seven days and we shouldn't see any more mice. Today is the seventh day. Guess who came to try on my shoes? Look! It's Jerry!
Dave's buddy at work, Sebastian, says the mouse is either very clever not to eat the poison, or very dumb not to eat what is laid out for him. Where's that nice neighborhood cat?
Jane, a new friend here in London, says the mice will start coming indoors because it gets so cold outside. They're just seeking warmth. Hmpf, find it elsewhere.

Home School Moment: The Letter P

We're all sitting around the kitchen table enjoying each other's company during lunch, when C starts asking Q what sound the letters of the alphabet make. Q is doing a great job, then puts us in stitches when C asks, "What sound does 'P' make?" With a straight face, Q replies, "Sssss."
: )

Started out cold - Turned out "O Happy Day"

Okay. Today was cold. The wind was howling (we thought it was the train pulling in), the cold rain came showering down, and our umbrellas went up. We toughed it on our walk to the train and on our walk from the train to church.

We warmed up the second we entered the door of CCW. After we took C and Q to their class, we made it into the sanctuary just in time for "O Happy Day". Any flower children out there? Remember that one? Just imagine, our church is mostly packed with God's black skin - Shout Hallelujah! We were surrounded by black, soul-filled, Holy Spirit moved, Bible huggin', arms stretched high, bodies movin', praising God, shoutin' out voices, glorifying Jesus! I wish everyone could have been there!!! (When we got home, I searched the internet for even one version of "O Happy Day" that came close - nadda, but Edwin Hawkins comes pretty close: /Users/kjohnson/Desktop/Oh_Happy_Day-(Edwin Hawkins).mov )


Pastor Alwyn's teachings are always packed with inspiration, encouragement, and challenge; leaving me thirsting for more. Each one of us looks forward to the next Sunday when we can worship together again. Check out their website and please keep them in your prayers: http://www.calvarylondon.co.uk/CCW/Home.CCW and: http://www3.calvarychapel.com/london/about.htm Above is a picture of Gloria and Alywn Wall (FYI: Their kids are all brunette.)

In search of lunch, we walked to the Underground to catch a ride to a pizza place Dave knows of that's comparatively inexpensive. We decided to try something new and use the pedestrian subway to get closer to the station and stay dryer. We picked up the strollers and headed down. We twisted and turned, then walked up a long set of stairs. Weee! We made it across the street. Oh, brother. It would have been four times quicker to just cross the street.

The Underground was closed for the day, so we caught a bus. I love riding the bus 'cuz you can see so much on the way to wherever you're going. It was time to disembark, so Dave grabbed one of the strollers and headed towards the front of the bus to get off. The bus was so jam-packed that the rest of us couldn't get off out the back! I waved good-bye to Dave, as he ran after us.

With the help of a very nice man, we started making our way to the back exit. He was the only one willing to help us. Everyone else looked at us like we were interrupting their tour of the city or something. What an imposition we were! When the bus came to a stop, we hadn't even made it to the exit door ("way out") in the three blocks we'd traveled. I told you! We weren't getting any help from anyone but the man who was now behind us. I began my disembark politely, then I went for it and just said, "Excuse me!" to those I ran over with the stroller or bumped my children into. : ) Hey! We had to get off and they all knew it. Ello?!?

We all got off the bus, and headed back the way we came. We made it to the pizza place and ordered our pizzas. The pizza was good, but the anchovies were saltier than any I'd ever had before - more water please. The rain was pouring down by the time we finished lunch, so we walked to Dave's office to check the internet for a place to find inexpensive rain coats or warm jackets.

M was moving a bit too fast and not looking ahead, when he ran into a curb and Q flew out of the stroller! We buckled Q in after that. : ) You'd think we'd learn. Earlier that morning, M was hurrying across the street pushing C in the stroller when he ran into the curb and sent her flying! She's been buckled in every since too. I guess, like the Israelites, it takes more than once to get a point across.

After a potty break and an internet check, we headed for Primark (similar to K-Mart and Target, but they only carry clothing) to find a coat - I didn't bring one to London. A thirty minute walk there (yes, it's still raining - and now it's dark) and we found nothing. That was "fun". (Note to self: To avoid crowds, never shop on a weekend. Shop during school hours.)

C and Q were fast asleep as we walked to the Underground where we caught the Tube, then a second Tube, then the Train. It was a wet walk/run home, but we were all thrilled with Dave's surprise: Cadbury drinking chocolate (just add hot soy milk) and cookies! We quickly consumed the chicken soup I made and moved right into dessert. : )

Peacock Kelly

Would this be considered cross-dressing?

Natural History Museum

Wow! This is London's Natural History Museum. I just wanted to sit outside and study its architecture. The inside was almost as breathtaking as the outside. As I type, they are restoring the mosaic tile work on the floors. Fantabulous! We all had a great time, but we must return. We only finished one of five sections and part of another. At one point, we took a lunch break. What you see on the table cost sixty-eight American dollars for six people. No, I'm still not used to the price hike. It's twice as expensive in London as it is in California.
Enlarge the picture of us in front of the Pliosaur by clicking on it. C is totally freaked out! She could barely hold it together. I thought she was afraid of the Pliosaur, but she told me she was afraid it was going to fall off the wall and land on her. It truly was HUGE.
It's always nice to spend Sundays with Dave. XO Afterwards, we tubed it and hoofed it to Calvary Chapel Westminster where we're going to church while we're living here. It too is in an architecturally beautiful building.

Ice Skating

Outdoor Ice Skating in London!

Remembrance Day

November is the time of the year when red poppies are worn in memory of those who sacrificed their lives during wars. Remembrance Day is also known as Poppy Day, because it is traditional to wear a red poppy. (Why a poppy? Visit this link: http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/remembrance/poppy.htm) Red poppies are sold by the Royal British Legion, a charity dedicated to helping war veterans. At 11am on November 11th, 1918 the guns of the Western Front fell silent after more than four years continuous warfare. This is a special day set aside to remember all those men and women who were killed during the two World Wars and other conflicts.

On Remembrance Sunday, which is usually the Sunday nearest to 11 November, special services are held at war memorials and churches all over Britain. A national ceremony takes place at the Cenotaph in Whitehall, London. The Queen lays the first wreath at the Cenotaph. Wreaths are layed beside war memorials by companies, clubs, and societies. People also leave small wooden crosses by the memorials in remembrance of a family member who died in war. The Last Post is traditionally played to introduce the two minute silence in commemoration ceremonies; usually played on a bugle. In military life, The Last Post marks the end of the day and the final farewell. The First Two Minute Silence in London (11th November 1919) as reported in the Manchester Guardian, 12th November 1919:

"The first stroke of eleven produced a magical effect.

The tram cars glided into stillness, motors ceased to cough and fume, and stopped dead, and the mighty-limbed dray horses hunched back upon their loads and stopped also, seeming to do it of their own volition.

Someone took off his hat, and with a nervous hesitancy the rest of the men bowed their heads also. Here and there an old soldier could be detected slipping unconsciously into the posture of 'attention'. An elderly woman, not far away, wiped her eyes, and the man beside her looked white and stern. Everyone stood very still ... The hush deepened. It had spread over the whole city and become so pronounced as to impress one with a sense of audibility. It was a silence which was almost pain ... And the spirit of memory brooded over it all."

"A Pittance of Time" is a song/video written by Terry Kelly. It's worth your time to view it.

Tracks after the rain

Waiting for the train is always a new experience. Today, after the rain, the clouds opened up and the sun shined through. It was simply breathtaking.

Feeding the seagulls

This gal passed time by feeding the seagulls. The rain had just stopped, the sun was setting, and it was gorgeous. I'm sure the gulls were thrilled to have some non-soggy food. : )

Doctor Visit #4

No, this is not our car. We walked by it and I had to have a pic. It matches my sweatshirt!

The short story is that the kids and I left our place at 2:30pm to walk to my appointment with Nurse Stella at 3pm. We returned home at 8:30pm.

The long story is that the kids and I left our place at 2:30pm to walk to my appointment with Nurse Stella at 3pm - on time!
Nurse Stella asked the front office staff why I was seeing her since she can't write prescriptions. The cranky lady explained that she'd already told me I needed to see the doctor and that I didn't show up for my appointment with him last Tuesday. She told Nurse Stella that I'm a private patient and I must pay for an office visit. My husband is working, so he does not need to pay, but his children and his wife must each pay 50 pounds ($100) before we can see the doctor because we are visiting and are not residents. (Side note: we can't get travel discounts because we are residents.) I couldn't get a word in, so I just sat there quietly.

After the cranky lady left the room, I told Nurse Stella that I was too sick last Tuesday and could not make the thirty minute walk to the office and that I called to let them know. When I called again last Thursday, the office staff set me up with her, even though I told them I needed prescriptions filled (they don't fill prescriptions written by American doctors). I told her I was doing the best I knew and that all I was really concerned about was getting my prescriptions filled. In addition to other prescriptions that I'd been out of for two weeks, my arms have been in pain with their tendonitis and no medication to help them. Nurse Stella told me not to let the office staff trouble me and that she'd take care of it. She did not have me pay to see her, but I did pay to see the doctor later that day at 5pm.

In the meantime, the kids and I walked to Pekham Library, built in the year 2000. We were each able to get library cards because we are all residents (I showed them a bill for our water with both Dave and my name on it). Kiana and Malakai took off to find books while the Chloe, Quinny, and I hung out in the young readers section. We all had a great time, and left at 4:30 to make it to my 5pm doctor appointment.

We were twenty minutes early. The sign on the door clearly states that we are not to enter if we have an appointment after 5pm. So, we walked to the nearest corner market and bought something to drink ($2 each for a small juice). We slowly walked back, one minute early for my appointment.

At 5:15pm, I paid my 50 pounds and got to see the doctor. I explained my situation (sweet Nurse Stella had already pre-informed him) and he did what he was able. England doesn't have the same medications as America, so he matched them up as best he could. He told me the kids and I should be able to see him at no charge because my husband works for England, is paid by England, we pay England to live here, we pay England property taxes (can you believe we rent, but we pay the property taxes?!?), etc. All he needs is a note or phone call from the NHS and we won't need to pay $100 US dollars to see him every month to get my prescriptions refilled - and the cost of the prescriptions on top of that.

The doctor notified his friend at the pharmacy (across the street from the Pekham Library) that we were coming. The kids and I walked to a pre-known area (yipee!) and gave the pharmacist the prescriptions the doctor had written for me. When we finally got my prescriptions, it had been a little over an hour. In the meantime, Quinny needed to go potty.

I asked the gal at the register if he could use their bathroom, but she said they didn't have one and to go next door. Quinny and I went next door, used the toilet (in a closet with a large trash can and office supplies stacked to the ceiling with no sink to wash up) at the doctor's office, told the office staff, "Thank you," and walked out.

A woman's voice was yelling, "Excuse me! Excuse me!" over and over again, so I turned around to see who she was talking to. It was me. I went to her and she yelled at me for using her bathroom (Quinny held on to my leg tightly). After she was done venting, I told her the gal at the pharmacy told me to use this bathroom for my three year old son. I apologized and told her I won't use her bathroom again. She said, "Very good. No need to ever return."

We went back to the pharmacy, when Quinny told me he needed to go potty again. I asked the Asian guy (with a British accent) at the counter if he could use the bathroom they use, and he took us through a locked door with a key code, then another locked door with three locks. When Quinny was done, I picked him up so he could flush with the tank above by pulling on the chain - another fun experience. Again, no sink. There were signs everywhere to "Wash Your Hands", but no sink in sight.

Fifteen minutes passed, and now Chloe had to go. Oh, dear. I looked at the gal I'd asked earlier for Quinny and explained to her that now my daughter needed to go and could she please use the toilet they use. I told her I got yelled at by the doctor next door and she responded with a crazy look on her face, "Yes, she's evil." What?!? All kinds of thoughts went through my head, but getting Chloe to the toilet was my priority.

Finally, my prescriptions were ready. To my surprise, the doctor I'd seen earlier had called and asked his friend to give me a discount. He gave me 5 pounds ($10) off!

We left the pharmacy and walked to a large market. They make you pay one pound ($2) to use a shopping cart. Anyway, we did our shopping and walked home. I like to try different routes, so we went home a different way than how we came. We went way out of the way. Oh, well. We got to see a new street (Rye) we didn't know of before. (It reminded me a lot of the streets in Thailand.) We'll return, but by bus next time!

On Rye, I saw the first person since I've been here greeting those she passed by. I wanted to me her so badly! I had a good excuse - we didn't exactly know where we were. As we were about to cross paths, I excused myself and asked her if I could bother her for a minute. I told her she was the first person I've seen saying hello to those she passes and I thought she'd be a good person to talk to. She had an English/Jamaican accent and was very helpful. She told us we were on Rye and in the market section. She told me how to get home and I wanted to give her a big hug!

We arrived back home at 8:30pm. We'd been gone six hours and were ready for dinner and bed!

Underground

One of my favorite things about the Underground is the variety of talent and entertainment.
If it were clean, I'd hang out there and have a picnic with my kids, but it's not so clean and usually very crowded.

However, this Sunday it was comparatively clear. For a moment, it had an air of relaxation, elegance, and pride; much like the music created by this talented man. I almost didn't notice the odor.

Incense

My favorite corner market sells a variety of incense. I was curious, so I read the labels to see what my Cypress man carries. Yum! One of my favorites - Patchouli. I kept looking and came across one called Frankincense and Myrrh. Well, I had to find out what it smelled like, so I bought it. What a treat! We all (except Dave - so we burn incense when he's gone) love it and can't wait to burn it at Christmas. How royal is that?!?

Which way now?

Trying to figure out where we are and which way to go, but I can't quite read the sign.









Oh, okay.

"Super"malt

We were in our favorite corner market when a woman ran in, grabbed a package from the candy section, and rushed to pay for it. Out lout I said, "Wow! What do you know that I need to know?" I looked at the package and it read, "licorice and anise flavored candy" Out loud I said, "YES! You do know something I need to know!" I told her how I love licorice and I hadn't seen any since arriving in London. We talked for a bit, then the market owner from Cypress told us that if we loved licorice so much, we'd love a drink named Supermalt. It comes fizzy and non-fizzy, so we chose fizzy. We couldn't wait to get home and try it! Oh, yes; we also bought a bag of the licorice candy. : )

Upon arriving home, we opened the bottle of Supermalt, poured it into cups, tasted it, and threw it away. Blech. It was gross. I'd describe it as prune juice plus soda water - definitely NOT licorice. The candy, on the other hand, was delicious. It was a hard candy with a bright licorice/anise flavour. I don't know that I'd buy it again, but it certainly was good. I'm still on the lookout for something closer to Panda licorice. : )

Thinking of Cheshire

We miss our Cheshire.

Do we live here or not?

I've tried to find travel discount cards for our family, but we don't qualify because we're residents of London.
I've tried to see a doctor to get my prescriptions refilled, but I can't do that because I'm not a resident.
So, am I or am I not a resident? (By the way, we're responisible for the property taxes on the house we're "renting".)