Giddiness

Do you have repeated attacks of sudden disabling giddiness?

This is symptom number 9 of 21 on the medical portion of the UK provisional driving license questionnaire. I absolutely loved the question and I laughed it up with Mike. I diagnosed myself  with occasional sudden disabling giddiness...interspersed with bursts of tears here and there.

I thought it was so funny I didn't realize that I checked the corresponding box and invalidated my first attempt to procure a provisional license. Because one may not and shall not drive whilst giddy.

Last winter holiday, when Anna was unable to travel to England due to 4 inches of snow at Heathrow airport (chronicled in the post Yes) I was struck by a frightful attack of disabling giddiness mixed with wild crying, very firmly at the tail end of my wits. We received a Christmas gift of a travel journal from our California family. I was reading quotes from the pages out loud to Mike and William, and this one got me going.

One does not discover new lands without consenting

to lose sight of the shore for a very long time. 

André Gide

A lot of truths in that.

It hit me like a donkey kick to my innards. I was living it, and it was getting to me.

At any rate, I started laughing like a crazy person. Then crying. Then laughing, crying, laughing and crying. Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. I was so beyond control that I scared William. "Mom......are you okaaay?"

The UK recognizes all sorts of drivers licenses from all sorts of countries: all European countries, plus Australia, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Hong Kong, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland (not a European country?) and Zimbabwe. Some of them I get, some of them I don't. As US citizens, we can drive on our valid licenses for 12 months, then we have to get UK licenses.

The tests are said to be very difficult, both the written and the driving. One of the potential questions addresses how many chest compressions per minute you should give someone who is having difficulty breathing.

"None" is not a choice.

We gave ourselves 5 weeks to complete our tests before the 12 months are officially up.

Beginning the process we realize now how mistaken we were in assuming 5 weeks was enough time. It may take three months, just to SCHEDULE the driving test. Not to mention, what if we flunk it? And, we can't schedule the test until we have our provisional licenses, which may take 4 to 5 weeks.

There are 4 DMVs in our hometown of Tucson.

I know that people who come from other countries to live in the US must get frustrated by the way we do things. In the UK, we are officially frustrated about the drivers license situation.

Trying to address this dilemna, Mike spoke with a guy who suggested he call the home office. Mike asked if he could give him the phone number.

"I don't have it."

"Ok, the home office of what?'' Mike inquired. "The DVLA?"

No, that wasn't right. He seriously suggested that Mike type in the words 'home office' into "a google search engine" and see if he could find the number that way.

The truth is, I don't even want the license. Today I just want to go home.

I miss my children, I miss my home. I am dreading the dark of winter. Today I want to take back my consent to leave the familiar shores of our desert home.

I read the post I wrote last December about moving always in the direction of life, saying yes to life. I need to get that back, somehow find the energy to enjoy this new land and pass that damn driving test!

 

With Mr. Cheese, in tanner days.



Date with Michael

Intoxicating scent! I wish I could share it. On the Thames path to Henley, leaving Shiplake.

This past weekend Mike and I decided to divy up the boys and have some alone time. It was my turn for a date with Michael.

He was very disappointed.  Clearly daddy and Dominic were going to have a better time than we were.

"Are we going to a museum?" he wimpered. He knows me so well.

We visited The Vyne, a National Trust house near Basingstoke.
 

Tea and chocolate cake soothe a sad tummy.
Tea, scones and clotted cream for me.

Originally built as a great Tudor 'power house', The Vyne was visited by King Henry VIII on at least three occasions and later became the Chute family home for more than 350 years.

William and I visited the Vyne this summer. It was also visited by Jane Austen! At the time, there was a young woman living with the family, a poor relation.



It is suggested that she was the inspiration for the character of Fanny Price in Mansfield Park.

Michael and I had a great time. He took off his shoes and tried to climb a giant tree. He marveled at the amount of goose poop on the lawn. I listened to riveting stories of the Hulk, Cyclops, Mr. Fantastic and a character of his invention, "Muscle Man."

We skipped the home tour and explored the gardens.

Fig tree in walled garden.

Mid story.

Apples.

We discussed who might be happier, the family who lived in this home, or our family.

Chickens!

Michael said he thought we were happier, because we love each other so much, and family is really important to us.

Lady Feathington Von Clucksworth

 But we both agreed, it would be pretty fantastic to have both our happy family AND live at The Vyne...

 

Master of bubble blowing. Always with the bubbles!
Every single time he washes his hands.

Longmoor Bog

I took a walk to California Country Park, hoping for blackberries.

Not a lot of blackberries, but an 8000 year old bog!



Longmoor Bog

It is very pretty and strange looking. There is a reddish-brown, mushy looking mat where the ground might be, with watery streams cutting through.

This wooden path takes you over and through the bog.





Friendly inquisitive horse or frightening attack horse?

There is also a lake.

The backside of lakeside trees. Reminded me of looking under ladies' skirts.

The horses are used to control vegetation.

If you want to visit, the postcode is RG40 4HT and you have to pay to park.

London Zoo

A few weeks ago I took the boys to the London Zoo. We caught the train at Wokingham. It took about an hour and a half, changing trains in Richmond.

Dominic devised a way to make his hands do Spock's live long and prosper greeting.

It was momentous.

Two tips regarding the London Zoo.

Buy your tickets online! The line to buy tickets is very long, a good time to eat your lunch. I had no food and my boys stared uncomfortably at our queue neighbors feasting. If you have your tickets ready to go, there is another entrance.

Tip #2, maybe skip it altogether. I was excited to see the gorillas, and for some reason there were only two to see, even though a poster showed the troop to have five members. 

This is the crowd watching the sleepy gorilla.



Empty outdoor enclosure.



I think £50 for the three of us ($80) is too much.



Hog nosed turtle, I want one!



This is the spot where Harry Potter chatted with the Burmese python!

We saw two sleepy lions.

My friend Andrea told me the Whipsnade Zoo is better...