mccullochblog

Marking Time

America is obsessed with numbers. The Oscars were not simply the Oscars last week; they were Oscars #83. The SuperBowl is never just "this year's Superbowl"...it's always SuperBowl XXXIV or some such. (Are the Roman numerals meant to make us believe gridiron was played at the Colluseum?) Even the White House is not immune: the 44th President of the United States, anyone?

The obvious explanation for all this 'adding up' is that modern America is not terribly old and Americans feel strangely compelled to hide the fact.

This seems very strange to Europeans like me, because in Europe, basically everything is old. I recall, for example, being on a walking tour of Boston back in 1992 when the guide pointed out that the State Hall there dated back to 1713. "Wow!" gasped the mainly American crowd, but not I. I grew up in a town that had a castle dating back to 1180.

Anyway, I can sympathize with both the numbers obsession (I studied Maths, after all) AND with the desire to hide the real age of things, although in my case, I'm erring on the side of making things seem younger.

For example, i consider that I am still firmly in my mid-thirties, on the basis of the mid-thirties stretching from 32 to 38. I may decide that 39 is also a mid-thirty number when I hit that landmark in June.

That, actually, is more-or-less the reason I'm writing today. I need an awesome destination-location for my 40th birthday next June. It has to be a family-friendly location some place in between London Heathrow Airport and San Francisco international. Any thoughts?

Come on! I need ideas. Washington DC? The Great Lakes? What should it be, friends? Iceland? Newfoundland? I'm open to suggestions so long as the proposals include (a) something cool to see, (b) somewhere nice to stay for a few days...and (c) well, some sort of proximity to an airport!

RSVP!

 

Three Weeks of Bliss and Torture

It's been a while since I last blogged...and for good reason! Emma, William and I have been on an extended trip to England and Italy for our summer hols.

Suffice to say we have hundreds of photos, a few hours of video, and enough stories to last several dinner parties. For now though, here's a quick summary of the new life experiences we've totted up since I last wrote (both good and bad!):

Gained: Shopping list of new music as a result of attending the Glastonbury Festival. Highlights: Stevie Wonder, Shakira, The XX, Pet Shop Boys, The Magic Numbers, Marina and the Diamonds, Paloma Faith and Ellie Goulding.

Lost: One World Cup Final. Okay, okay...so the Dutch played in a manner more befitting WWF than Total Football....but damn it, we nearly won the World Cup, and it hurts to lose! On the other hand, beating Brazil in the quarters was SWEET!

Gained: Newfound appreciation for Michaelangelo (during visit to Florence). That chap really was pretty handy with a chisel and chunk of alabaster. I never thought I'd say I was moved by a sculpture, but the eight-feet-tall 'David' ain't no ordinary sculpture, folks.

Lost: Hanging baskets, jasmine shrubs, lawn etc. Must remember to ask neighbors to water plants next time we go away for two weeks.

Gained: Plenty of good times with family. William single-handedly charmed the entire clan, of course, not least with his ever-expanding repertoire of words, which now includes: "bike", "night-night", "hot" and "cheese" (whenever anyone points a camera at him!)

Lost: Any last semblances of belief that long-haul air travel with an infant is a good idea. On the flight to London William threw up all over Emma and I. On the way back, he slept for two hours, then required constant feeding / play / reading for the remaining eight-and-a-half. I suspect if someone had offered us a nanny for $10,000 during either flight, we would have willingly maxed the credit card.

Gained: Pounds. Not British money, but ounces in abundance as a result of delicious Italian gelato, pizza, pasta, wine etc. Lovely stuff. I tell ya, Italy has gone up greatly in my estimations.

Lost: Hundreds of Euros. On a car rental in Italy. When you see how the Italians drive (nose-to-tail at 80 mph on the motorway) all the extra insurance seems a VERY wise investment.

Gained: Huge admiration for Tuscany. Wow, that place is beautiful. I'm lucky enough to have seen a good chunk of the world, but I've honestly never seen towns, cities, architecture and countryside as beautiful as that which we saw in Tuscany. Siena is the most beautiful city on the planet, and the little medieval hill towns of San Gimignano and Volterra...well, words don't do them justice, so here's a peek:

Hilton Dishonors!

Inspired by George's Clooney's character in "Up in the Air", I decided to sign up for the Hilton Honors awards program when I checked into my New York hotel this week.

"Do you usually prefer a king bed or two double beds?" the hostess asked, as she helpfully filled in the form for me by running through a few questions.

"A king," I replied.

"And do you prefer a low floor or a high floor, sir?" 

"A low floor, I added."

"And close to the elevator, or far from the elevator?

"Far, please." I concluded.

"Very good, sir. And your room tonight will be room 4012." 

She handed me the key.

A few moments later, I discovered that Hilton Honors and I hadn't got off to the best start.

Room 4012 contained two double beds, was on the 40th floor, and was adjacent to four elevators. nonpublic

On the bright side...I did get this view.

In the beginning

Inspired by a visit to the geekfest that is PC Forum (and by my impending sabbatical) I decided it was time to join the one milllion Web bloggers and create my own "stream-of-consciousness" place on the Internet. This will be the place where I record and share tales of experiences during my travels to Portugal, England, Holland, China, Nepal, Viet Nam, Cambodia and Thailand between June and September. It might turn out to be a place to comment on other stuff in the meantime, or it might just stay a bit blank until then! We'll see.