A springtime haiku

A blossom drifted
Landing softly on my arm
And then it was gone.

Snow Day, or Why Mother Effing Russia is WAY Too Close (Geographically Speaking)

So it turns out that there's some freaky-deaky cold front whipping through England from RUSSIA. Yes. MOTHER EFFING RUSSIA. That crazy thought aside, the bitter cold of yesterday--with a wind so sharp it burned the nose and ears--has morphed into snow. All night snow, all day snow, and according to reports, snow tomorrow til forever. It's apparently 'the worst downfall seen in southeast England in 18 years.'

And of course London has completely shut down. All bus lines have been suspended due to the 'dangerous conditions' (I can hear my Wisconsin friend laughing at this) and the tube has ground to a shuddering halt, leaving only a few trains limping around town in a self-pitying fashion, carrying the grisliest of public servants. Because this is a day in which NOBODY is leaving their home and in which EVERYBODY has turned into a pajama-clad telecommuter, doing little more than watching weather reports, experiencing strange bouts of giddiness, and sneaking in the occasional film from the safety of the blankets on the couch in between 'calls' to coworkers in the pretense of discussing the Business of the Day.

I am trying out my new slow cooker today; in six short hours, I will have chicken and dumplings and a glass of grenache-mouvedre to warm the soul. And it is good.

It is NOT Day Two.

It didn't rain today. This confirms my theory: the infamous London rain is a myth. 'Watch out for the worst few months of your life,' they all inform, gleeful about their cold, wet wet winters. But so far...it's rained once since December. And before that, MAYBE a half dozen times since October, random short downpours, mid-afternoon or mid-dle of the night. So yes...my suspicions hold fast: there is no such thing as Famous London Always Rain.

Day One is officially renamed 'The Day It Rained in London.' No, wait. The Day It Rained HARD in London. Yes. That is right.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go curl up with a brick of Weetabix. Kisses.

It rained today!

Today was Day One of the infamous London Rain. I label it Day One in anticipation of a Day Two. I anticipate a Day Two given the dark and torrential nature of today; it was a downfall so intense that it does not seem to be self-contained or fleeting, but instead rather ambitious and focused. If it does NOT rain tomorrow, then I shall have to rename Day One 'The Day It Rained in London,' which just isn't the same.