London Calling

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London, England, UK.  I love it.   Always expensive, yet always exciting and fun.  Usually my travels are last minute thoughts but this trip was months in the making.   When AFI first posted their European tour dates I gave it small thought. I do enough damage with shows here in the States. Then an online friend indicated that she might travel the great distance from South Africa to see them.  It would be her second time, once again in London.  “I’m in! Buy a show ticket for me”, I wrote. Let the plotting begin. 

One month before, my friend (AR) became ill.   Up until the last moment she was not sure if she could travel. With plane ticket and hotel already booked, she waited for the doctor’s approval.   I too waited.  She had my show ticket!  In the mean time, I was panicking because I did not have the right week off!  I had official vacation the week BEFORE the concert.  This took some finagling on my part, seeking out an upper lever manager to ask for a change.  I was granted the correct time off and made my own plans.

We arrived at Heathrow about 7am.  Train to Paddington and a very short walk to our hotel.  Dropped the bags, added a layer of  warmer clothing and headed off.  First stop Abbey Road. It’s a busy road and you have to time your “walk” between cars and busses lumbering by.  There is actually a site (I suppose there is a site for everything these days) so you can watch people as they Beatle-ify themselves.  No one took his shoes off though à la McCartney.  The weather was rather brisk.   

Some of the underground trains were not operating due to maintenance so we hopped buses.  Slower, with all the holiday traffic and pedestrians, but definitely better for people watching.  On top of the crowded double-decker bus we listened to the other tourists and locals on their phones. Had me wondering if there were any Brits in Britain this weekend. On the crowded upper deck of the bus we heard not a word of English.  French, German, Arabic, several Eastern European languages. Most of the places we ate, the workers had strong accents.  Our breakfast and late night coffee café workers were Croatian.

When in Rome, or London, we try to eat in local places.  If you wanted to pub crawl, there seems to be a certain order to do it.  Or so it seems. The Cock, The Bung Hole, and Dirty Dick. Probably in that order.

London is where you can still find people walking the streets, not just at shows, in full punk regalia. Parts pierced that even made me look twice.  Perfect ’hawks.  Clothing accentuated with metal and rips. I felt right at home in my comfy SWAT boots.

What to see…Wellcome Collection.  A free destination for the incurably curious.  This was so interesting we spent over three hours wandering and reading.

Identity: Eight rooms, nine lives. What influences or determines our sense of who we are? What makes one person distinct from another? How does science inform human identity? This major exhibition explored the tension between the way we view ourselves and how others see us. Twins, phrenology and brain imaging, gender and sexuality, 

race and prejudice, and acting and improvisation

Then a short trip to Brixton to scope out the venue. It’s in a rather “ethnically diverse” area but had a nice center of town calm spot to sit.  Markets galore. Spitalfields/Brick Lane. Old fruit and veg market and several very interesting shops.

Brief stop at the Bristish Museum where we learned a little bit of American History of the indigenous peoples of North America.  Funny…our last trip here we saw the Early Virginia Settlers collection. 

The Tate Museum is always a stop.  We have seen “The Crack”, Olafur Eliasson's spectacular Weather Project,and this time, Miroslaw Balka's black box

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/visual_arts/article6873401.ece

Then we headed to the wharf area, not Camden, but the OLD section.  But there is no OLD section any more.  Just tall buildings and shopping malls.   The sun was setting and the wind picked up.  Quiet and peaceful strolling, but too late for the little museums there.  I finally connected with my AR and made plans for the next day.

Turns out AR’s hotel is a 2 minute walk from ours.   Man and I find her in the lobby and exchange gifts and new-friend hugs. Then, off to the S&M café.  The man had found this eatery on his last business trip.  The web site was slick and I expected a kitchy place.  Not so.  I was just another hole-in-the-wall eatery, but the food was very good and the staff friendly.  Sadly they were already out of Potatoes in Jacket.

We took a brief rest at the hotel and changed into appropriate BLACK clothing.  LOL  AR and I headed off to Brixton and the man went to see Hair.  The line system was very strange.  Usually we are told to “hug the wall”. This venue had us doubling, then tripling up.  There was no DF line but an O2 phone line.  Didn’t matter for us as we had Upper Level tickets and headed to the front row while most of the crowd scurried for the rail. The show was incredible, as always.  The acoustics great, but NO CROWD SURFING. Well shucks, three goes MY fun.  The show was extra fantastic when they did Days of the Phoenix and one of my faves, File 13.  Of course I bought more T shirts.  It’s only money, right? :-\ We couldn’t hang around as AR’s leg was acting up and the trains stopped running at midnight.  So the two Cinderellas headed back to hotel land to say good night and goodbye.

 

Our last day took us to Kensington Palace – a palace for everyone. Well, not everyone as we agreed that £18 was too steep. So we enjoyed the grounds. Then we headed out to Teddington, near Hampton Court.  The man’s coworker and his wife invited us to visit.  We had a great lunch, caught up with our lives, and then headed out for a bike ride.  Mind you, it’s been near 15 years since I rode this much!  The weather was chilly and drizzly.  I borrowed a windbreaker and bravely set out.  Through the park, along the Thames. I admit I was a bit slow as the day wore on, but I hung in there.  We biked into town, browsed the bookstore, and then had yummy Indian.  

Five nights is longer than I usually stay.  Had to buy another package of Wispa bars as we depleted the first package in the evenings.  Missed a few of my planned tourist stops with holiday closings and location logistics. There’s always a next time for London.

Cheers.

AFI Charlotte Filmore in Charlotte , NC 3 / 13

5 out of 5
AFI Charlotte
Filmore
in Charlotte, NC 3 / 13
Posted 3/19/10 by lorra  for LiveNation

                                             From the back rail by sound guys. Phone pix.

My good buds were going. “Sure”, I said. “I’ll go too!” So I booked a hotel and I bought a show ticket, and hopped a plane.

As we drove to the Filmore we saw many peeps attending festivities and wearing GREEN. “Where are the people in BLACK”, I lamented. Finally we turned a corner and there they were: the DF and diehard fans waiting. Old friends and new met up. As the sky darkened and rains poured, we huddled under shared umbrellas. The drain overflowed with muddy water sucking at our feet. There were no port-a-potties for relief. Then the doors opened…

Good spots for viewing on the upper rail if you wish to avoid the Pit. Drinks on either side. Bartenders really nice. Restroom easy to get to. Best of all, the acoustics VERY GOOD.

As always we endure the opening bands. Scarlet Gray was good though. Then the reason we are there. AFI takes the stage. Davey forgoing his full gold suit for black jeans and his Zu shirt again. Jade and Hunter as energetic as fleas on a summer dog but much more bewitching. Adam stepping forward for On the Arrow is always lovely.

The voice: Better than ever, maturing gracefully. The music: Great mix of new and old and one very old. The show: Way too short. I could listen to them all night and sing along to every song.

If you’ve never been, it’s like a religious experience. For me, it was the 7th time this tour. Amen.

London Calling

London calling to the faraway towns
Now war is declared - and battle come down
London calling to the underworld
Come out of the cupboard, you boys and girls.

Well, here we go again!    Headed to London for mischief and Mayhem.  Man is coming with.  (yay) Meeting up with online friend, and seeing AFI.   What could be better?  Spring time may bring rain but I shall pack the 'brolly.    Wish us luck.  

More later.

Grave Matters

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“The fence around a cemetery is foolish, for those inside can't get out, and those outside don't want to get in.” Arthur Brisbane

We never drove past a cemetery without my father asking two questions:

“Why is there a fence around that cemetery?” and “How many dead people are buried there?” I have continued this silly little tradition with my own family. But seriously…I am NOT one to hang around grave yards, although they do make an interesting place for an occasional visit. My children have made rubbings of my grandparents’ headstones, both buried in Arlington National Cemetery. We’ve seen some very old graves in Massachusetts and here in Texas. This past week I visited enough to last me for a while.

I started out in Vicksburg National Military Park, which preserves the site of the American Civil War Battle of Vicksburg, waged from May 18 to July 4, 1863. The park, also commemorates the greater Vicksburg Campaign, which preceded the battle. Reconstructed forts and trenches evoke memories of the 47-day siege that ended in the surrender of the city. Victory here and at Port Hudson gave the United States control of the Mississippi River.

Vicksburg National Cemetery is within the park. It has 18,244 interments (12,954 unidentified). That’s 71%. Date of Civil War interments: 1866-1874. Along with the Vietnam “War”, the Civil War Years have to be some of the saddest days of our history.

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The small square stones are for unidentified soldiers.

"BIVOUAC OF THE DEAD"

http://www.cem.va.gov/hist/BODpoem.asp for the entire poem.

He just looks so cold and lonely.

We also took a side trip to Natchez, MS, the oldest city on the Mississippi River. The Natchez National Cemetery is located on the Bluff overlooking the river.

These "draped vases" always make me think of they are "headless".

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Church Streeet in Port Gibson. The “Hand to God”? We had to stop and take a closer look. It beckoned us as we entered the city.

Ivy on church Street

This past weekend I was in DC/VA and visited the Historic Congressional Cemetery, founded in 1807. My sister and I entered the gatehouse and were welcomed, handed a map, and directed to the sign-in book. The woman asked if this was our first time. Yes… She then asked if we were going to work inside or outside. Uhhh, we’re tourists. Is it OK to just walk around? LOL It was volunteer day and as we soon saw, the house was filled with people doing paperwork and more outside doing lawn work. She told us to feel free to clean any of the graves as we wandered.

Armed with a map, we began our wandering. One of the first graves we noticed was that of Leonard Matlovich, gay-rights activist and Air Force veteran. I was very moved and immediately knelt down to clean this gravesite. We brushed the leaves away and uncovered the little plant growing in the corner.

On a less somber note, there is the grave of Mary Ann Hall. You can use your cell phone to dial up the “story’ at different sites.Mary was known for her famous "house" and the infamous women who lived within, and the famous men who visited!

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Mary Ann Hall, long a resident of Washington. With integrity unquestioned, a heart ever open to appeals of distress, a charity that was boundless, she is gone; but her memory will be kept green by many who knew her sterling worth.

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http://www.si.edu/ahhp/madam/index.html

Figure Mary Hall's plot.

Civil War photographer Mathew Brady He was hit by a bus in Dec but lived until mid-January. There are two headstones for him. I guess someone jumped the gun a bit on the first one.

f W

Many of the tombstones have tilted or tumbled from extreme fluctuations in the weather. art e of distress, a charity that her st

What is this.. a picnic table?

There are two Cemeteries I still want to visit.

One is Père Lachaise Cemetery, established by Napoleon I in 1804. Although I’ve been to Paris several times, this is just one place we never got around to seeing. Along with must-see Oscar Wilde (I’ve read everything) and Jim Morrison (The first person to die that greatly affected me at the time.), there are quite a few interesting and famous souls there.

Rossini, Italian composer

Seurat, artist,

Simone Signoret, actress

Honoré de Balzac , writer

Bizet, composer

Chopin , composer (although his heart is entombed in a pillar in the Church of the Holy Cross in Warsaw, Poland)

Colette, Writer

Jean-François Champollion, Egyptologist, decipherer of hieroglyphic text

Eugene Delacroix, painter

Édith Piaf

Proust

The other is the Long Island National Cemetery, where my father is buried. I have never been back since the day of his funeral. Gone too soon. Miss you Dad.

US NAVY KOREA

DATE OF BIRTH: 12/01/1930

DATE OF DEATH: 08/25/1977

Oh, almost forgot… ;-)

A: People are dying to get in

A: All of them.

Once again, it is travel time

Update:  PUT YOUR NAME ON IT!   In the bag, on the bag.  Somewhere on EVERYTHING you might leave along your travels.   I also include an itinerary/address  Home address and info as well as where I am headed and for how long.  Personal address or hotel info.
I say this because over the years I have come across so many items people lose.  Wallets, phones, books, ear buds, makeup bags, purses, jackets, folders with your work material.   Yes, wallets and purses.   

As we approach this seasonal travel time, this is just a reminder to travelers, whether you are a frequent one or a once-a-year flier.

*3-1-1, is still in effect…"three ounces (of liquid), a one-quart bag, and only one bag per person".

*Passports required for all international travel.

*TSA now requires the name on your boarding pass to match exactly to the name on your ID.

And the latest: To scan or not to scan.

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/screening/index.shtm

This site actually has very good information about special needs and travel with family.  However, if you "opt opt", be prepared for the best sex you've had in years!   LOL  (Just Kidding)  But you WILL be patted down and felt up as the TSA look for whatever they think you might be hiding.  I have been told you will need to remove things usually left in your pockets.  Plastic, leather, and other non-metal items.  Also you must remove your belt.  Hope your pants don't fall down! 

 Special note to the ladies: Gel-filled bras are permitted through security screening and aboard aircraft.  ;-)

It doesn't matter if you are going home for the holidays, headed for the beach, or just taking time off from school or work. If you are traveling by plane, LISTEN UP.

Know the local time. When you start out in NYC and connect in MSP for another flight to LAX, you pass through several time zones.
There are 24 hours in a day, so there are 24 time zones. If you are traveling in an easterly direction you move your watch forwards, if you are moving in a westerly direction you move it backwards. Your flight will be departing using the local time!

Gates Change. Every morning gates are assigned for the day. However if one plane is late leaving, (mechanical, waiting for bags, waiting for passengers, getting the cockpit windows cleaned, changing a tire) then the next plane assigned to that gate has to park elsewhere. So before you go running to the gate posted on the boarding card that you got very early in the morning, check the TV Monitors or ask an agent.

Most gates have some sort of signage...an LED sign, or one that the agent manually posts, that displays the destination city over the door. If you see a city that is NOT where you are headed at the gate listed on your boarding card, DO NOT JUST SIT THERE!!!! ASK SOMEONE!

(See Gate Change above)

Boarding cards. This is not the bible. Nor is it written in stone. LOOK at yours. Is there a seat assignment? Does it say CHECK IN AT GATE? If you do not have a seat assignment, it might mean that your flight is oversold. Airlines typically sell more seats than a plane actually has. You need to let the agent working the flight know that you need a seat. (They already KNOW this but a polite I am here is always good.) Usually they will ask for someone to take another flight for compensation. YOU TOO may ask for this compensation.

Why do airlines do this? Well, sometimes people miss flights. They sit in the bar thinking they still have another hour before their flight leaves (See local time above) Sometimes they sit at the wrong gate either watching Airport CNN, using a laptop, or talking on the phone. (See gates change above)

Weather. Or not. You look out the window and the sun is shining. You call your sister in SFO and she says the sun is shining. The airline says there is a weather delay. You say WTF?

There is the possibility that there is weather enroute. Planes fly through clouds. You do NOT want to fly through storm clouds. If the pilot does not want to fly into or around bad weather, I would agree with him! If the pilot doesn’t want to up in the air, then YOU SHOULD NOT WANT TO EITHER. He (or she) is the better judge and also has the last word on whether it is SAFE to fly.

Did you know that if a plane CANNOT land at its destination, because of weather, it WILL NOT TAKE OFF until it is assured that it can land when it gets there!

ATC. Air Traffic Control. Often related to weather. Flight delays often occur when too many planes are scheduled to use the runways. Some are held in a circling pattern until there is space to land.

If you are delayed and miss your connection because of weather or ATC, the airline is not obligated to provide amenities or compensation to you. They will NOT hold the plane for you. Unless you are a group of at least ten. Or more. Then maybe they will hold the plane. But don’t bet on it.

Documentation. If you leave the United States, you need some proof of citizenship to return. You probably need this same proof to enter a foreign country. Canada and Mexico eh? que? are NOT part of the United States.

We can no longer flow easily across borders and sometimes the Immigration officials like to mess with us. Originals are needed. Forgeries and your fake college ID are NOT to be shown to anyone official. This will NOT get you a drink.

If you are a UK citizen traveling anywhere outside the United Kingdom or Eire you will need your passport. Even if you travel within the European Union (where the free movement of people has been established under the Treaty of Maastricht), you will still need your passport. If you are from one of the other member countries of the European Union you can travel to member countries using your identity card instead of your passport.

Some countries of the European Union have signed the Shengen Agreement which has effectively removed all barriers between them. It is possible to travel from one country to another without any border controls at all. Passport and custom controls are used when you leave the Shengen Agreement area.

Although this sounds simple, the situation for UK citizens is slightly more complicated. Each member country of the EU has to say which of its citizens are accepted as European citizens. Because the UK has not approved some nationals as full European citizens, you need to be clear on your position traveling to Europe.

Please check the rules which apply to YOU before you depart.

Pack what you need.

Food: Knowing you will not starve to death while on the plane is nice to know.

Medication: NEVER,EVER put this in a checked bag. It is very difficult (sometimes impossible) to retrieve your bag when you need that Rx.

Stuff: If you have children, pack things for them. EXTRA diapers, food, small entertainment.

Security checkpoint. It is a part of life now. Whether we like it or not, whether we support the system that put it in place or not, we WILL need to pass through the metal detectors. You will need to show ID. You will need to remove your shoes (note to self: wear socks without holes) If your usual attire includes studs, chains, multiple piercings in concealed places, and other assorted metallic bangles, well, yes, you will beep. Deal with it. You already know you look hot.

Crowds. Plan on it. Traffic. Plan on it. Remember, it is better to be a lot early than a little late.

Now. Go watch Home for the Holidays with Holly Hunter and Robert Downey or Planes, Trains & Automobiles and send me a post card from someplace exotic.

PHEW… "Maybe NOW I can get back to filing my nails and reading my magazine", said the gate agent.

Update on 2009: So Far So Good.

Well, I made it to Chicago without a hitch. Ride from ORD, and dinner with my sis-in-law. The next morning (up WAY too early) she drove me into town. I had a room at the Hard Rock Hotel. Now, I have never even been to a HR Café, but this hotel had the best location and the best room rate. I was on the Rolling Stones floor with Bono etched on my mirror.

I stopped to ask the concierge about train info. He was rather snooty to me when I could not remember the name of the venue! I did have the address so I asked him to google it…please. He asked who I was seeing there. I grinned…AFI. He paused and then said…”Oh that man is SO nice, such a sweet guy. They stayed here last time they were in town.” WHAT!!!!????? And not THIS time!!?? He was much nicer to me after that, even taking me to the room before I left when I thought I had left something behind.

The train was a block and a half for the hotel, and a block and a half from the venue. Got there early and met some nice people in line. The show was sold out and the DF line was long. I got a good spot on the second rail. Some guy right below me did a double take on me and said “Hi mom”.

I replied. “I am not mom today.”

“Don’t you have kids here?”

“Nope. I am here for the show. I am a huge fan.”

Seems he did not believe I was a true fan. So I showed him my latest ink. He asked if I had seen him today before the show. Nope. Got that in PIT. He still didn’t understand. I explained that Jade signed my shoulder in PIT and I had permanently inked it upon my body with the Crash Heart around it. Then I showed him my Sing the Sorrow band and only then did he believe! LOL

Then we waited outside. Two hours later a club security guy said the band had gone out the front door. Some left but several still waited. Smith came out and told us he was the “consolation prize”. He’s so nice. I told him he was Saint Smith for all he did.d He said, “Awww I’m not a saint.” I asked for a pix with him. But the pix was blurred and I said I had no idea how to work the camera. He took it and bingbingbing he had it in the correct mode and gave it back to me. I asked him to sign my wristband and he drew a little pix with hat and beard. Told him he looked amish. LOL Yeah… he really is a saint. At 1:30 am I finally gave up, heading off for the train and hotel.

There were only two others waiting for the train. I felt a bit unsettled but these two guys didn't seem to be interested in bothering me! Then I discovered the HEAT BOX! OMG it radiated warmth as I stood there in my T-shirt. Why does NYC not have these? I could have used them when I commuted. But... by the time the train arrived the platform was filled with people and I never felt a moment of alarm.

Back in the RW after spending the whole day trying to get on a flight out of ORD. Ahh the perks of my job. But I am happy I got to see the boys one more time. Next week HOUSTON!

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