High Street, Oxford
George Street Restaurant 
Bringing in the hayChrist Church Meadow
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Photo Gallery Part 2
We are off to London for the day, so not much time to blog, but we thought we'd put up some more of our favorite photos.
High Street, Oxford
George Street Restaurant
Bringing in the hay
Christ Church Meadow
High Street, OxfordGeorge Street Restaurant Bringing in the hayChrist Church Meadow
Thursday, July 24, 2008
The Exotic of the Everyday
(Phil writing). I don’t really like to travel. We were reflecting today on how many different places we have been, both on this trip and on others, and I realize what a rich set of experiences it has been. Yet I don’t like to travel.
I enjoy seeing the sights, and we have seen a lot since we have been here—colleges, churches, gardens, towers, paintings, and so on. That is what we do when we go on vacation. But for me the most interesting part of our time is what goes on everyday—going to work with everyone else, shopping at the same grocery store, reading a newspaper, watching TV. With the internet and the dominance of American culture, most of our normal daily activities from home can also occur here. We can watch reruns of Law & Order or CSI, we can read the Philadelphia and Seattle newspapers, I can follow baseball games live, we can have coffee at Starbucks, and we can listen to the same podcasts and radio stations. Using Skype, we have probably talked to Alison and Andy more since we have been here than we do from home.
So here are a few everyday things that are different—the exotic of the everyday. Being a good Meneely, I will concentrate on food. The grocery stores (Tesco and Marks & Spencer) carry many of some items that we have at home, and even most of same brands, although usually at a much higher price. We try to look for those things that we can’t get at home. We mentioned earlier the range of different cheeses, and they are used in different ways. We don’t usually put brie on our sandwiches (or baquettes), but it is quite common here, and it tastes good. It is hard to find pretzels, but there is a very wide selection of crisps (what we would call chips) with flavors like Thai chicken or scampi. We have been trying some different soft drinks as well. A few days ago I brought home a bottle of soda pop labeled Dandelion and Burdock.
I had no idea what it tasted like or what burdock was, but it was worth a try. (For the record, Deb knew that burdock is related to the thistle.) So this is made from two weeds. I can’t describe the taste, but is actually pretty good. It is dark colored, like a cola. It has a floral aroma, and a sweet and somewhat fruity taste. According to Wikipedia, it is somewhat related to sarsaparilla—which we only remember from Old Westerns—but, if you get a chance, have a taste.
Another curiosity of grocery shopping is the pricing policy. Imagine buying liquid dish soap. It comes in a range of scents and colors but as long as it comes from the same manufacturer, the prices for different scents and varieties are the same. Not so here—the lemon scented soap costs less than any other variety. Similarly with soft drinks, hand soap, candy bars, and many other small items. It makes a certain amount of sense, but I had never thought about the fact that a cola drink and a lemon-lime drink probably do not cost exactly the same to make, even if we pay the same for Coke and Sprite. But limeade, lemonade, cherry, and orange are all different prices—not a lot different, only a few pence, but slightly different.
So even if I don’t like to travel, I am finding some exotic experiences in our everyday living.
I enjoy seeing the sights, and we have seen a lot since we have been here—colleges, churches, gardens, towers, paintings, and so on. That is what we do when we go on vacation. But for me the most interesting part of our time is what goes on everyday—going to work with everyone else, shopping at the same grocery store, reading a newspaper, watching TV. With the internet and the dominance of American culture, most of our normal daily activities from home can also occur here. We can watch reruns of Law & Order or CSI, we can read the Philadelphia and Seattle newspapers, I can follow baseball games live, we can have coffee at Starbucks, and we can listen to the same podcasts and radio stations. Using Skype, we have probably talked to Alison and Andy more since we have been here than we do from home.
So here are a few everyday things that are different—the exotic of the everyday. Being a good Meneely, I will concentrate on food. The grocery stores (Tesco and Marks & Spencer) carry many of some items that we have at home, and even most of same brands, although usually at a much higher price. We try to look for those things that we can’t get at home. We mentioned earlier the range of different cheeses, and they are used in different ways. We don’t usually put brie on our sandwiches (or baquettes), but it is quite common here, and it tastes good. It is hard to find pretzels, but there is a very wide selection of crisps (what we would call chips) with flavors like Thai chicken or scampi. We have been trying some different soft drinks as well. A few days ago I brought home a bottle of soda pop labeled Dandelion and Burdock.
I had no idea what it tasted like or what burdock was, but it was worth a try. (For the record, Deb knew that burdock is related to the thistle.) So this is made from two weeds. I can’t describe the taste, but is actually pretty good. It is dark colored, like a cola. It has a floral aroma, and a sweet and somewhat fruity taste. According to Wikipedia, it is somewhat related to sarsaparilla—which we only remember from Old Westerns—but, if you get a chance, have a taste.
Another curiosity of grocery shopping is the pricing policy. Imagine buying liquid dish soap. It comes in a range of scents and colors but as long as it comes from the same manufacturer, the prices for different scents and varieties are the same. Not so here—the lemon scented soap costs less than any other variety. Similarly with soft drinks, hand soap, candy bars, and many other small items. It makes a certain amount of sense, but I had never thought about the fact that a cola drink and a lemon-lime drink probably do not cost exactly the same to make, even if we pay the same for Coke and Sprite. But limeade, lemonade, cherry, and orange are all different prices—not a lot different, only a few pence, but slightly different.
So even if I don’t like to travel, I am finding some exotic experiences in our everyday living.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
978-0-19-921982-7
How many of you know what this number is referring to? Deb's librarian friends have a real advantage on this one. It is an ISBN-- that is, International Standard Book Number. And not just any ISBN-- it is the number for Philip's textbook-- Advanced Genetic Analysis:Genes, Genomes, and Networks in Eukaryotes.
Yes, his book has been assigned an ISBN and is now available for pre-order. Click here to order your very own copy from Amazon or if you want to order it directly from OUP-- click here. Philip will get 10% of the cover price for each book sold and we plan to retire on this income, so order your copies for holiday giving now! With the book now being offered for sale on the web, it means the book really does need to be finished. (Technically, it is all finished but is still with the typesetter. Any day now, they will turn back the proofs for a final reading.)
For those who are curious, here's a little lesson in ISBN syntax: From 1970 until 2007, all ISBN numbers were 10 digits long. But then they ran out of numbers, so they added 3 digits to the front end. Currently, all ISBN-13 codes begin with "978". The next digit indicates the language in which the book is published, with "0" denoting English. The next two digits identify the publisher, in this case, Oxford University Press. The last group of digits uniquely identify the published item worldwide.
Yes, his book has been assigned an ISBN and is now available for pre-order. Click here to order your very own copy from Amazon or if you want to order it directly from OUP-- click here. Philip will get 10% of the cover price for each book sold and we plan to retire on this income, so order your copies for holiday giving now! With the book now being offered for sale on the web, it means the book really does need to be finished. (Technically, it is all finished but is still with the typesetter. Any day now, they will turn back the proofs for a final reading.)
For those who are curious, here's a little lesson in ISBN syntax: From 1970 until 2007, all ISBN numbers were 10 digits long. But then they ran out of numbers, so they added 3 digits to the front end. Currently, all ISBN-13 codes begin with "978". The next digit indicates the language in which the book is published, with "0" denoting English. The next two digits identify the publisher, in this case, Oxford University Press. The last group of digits uniquely identify the published item worldwide.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Tea "on the High"
Yesterday, our friend Dave Greenhalgh, dropped in for tea. Dave is a professor at Eastern University in St. David's, PA and had been in England this week visiting some cousins. They were kind enough to bring him into Oxford for a quick visit. We met at The Mitre, a restaurant "on the High" (which is the way locals refer to High Street) for what is called "cream tea".
Teatime
Here's a little lesson on tea terminology. Cream tea is a snack usually served in the late afternoon --about 4:00pm-- and usually consists of tea served in individual teapots, and scones with jam and clotted cream. (This is where the cream comes in.) The best clotted cream comes from Devonshire. High Tea is served later in the day, about 6:00pm, and is considered more of a meal, with sandwiches and fruit served in addition to pastries. The High come from the fact you eat it at a main dinner table, rather than at a small tea table. We understand that High Tea in recent years has been reserved for special, more formal occasions in British life. However, it is very common to meet friends for cream tea in the afternoon at a restaurant or tea shop.
Back to Dave. It was fun to hear about his week up in England's Lake Country and particularly about his opportunity to attend the British Open at Southport one day. As Dave reminded us, the tourneyment is referred to here as "The Open", as if there is no other.... We enjoyed getting to know his cousin and her husband as well.
--Deb
TeatimeHere's a little lesson on tea terminology. Cream tea is a snack usually served in the late afternoon --about 4:00pm-- and usually consists of tea served in individual teapots, and scones with jam and clotted cream. (This is where the cream comes in.) The best clotted cream comes from Devonshire. High Tea is served later in the day, about 6:00pm, and is considered more of a meal, with sandwiches and fruit served in addition to pastries. The High come from the fact you eat it at a main dinner table, rather than at a small tea table. We understand that High Tea in recent years has been reserved for special, more formal occasions in British life. However, it is very common to meet friends for cream tea in the afternoon at a restaurant or tea shop.
Back to Dave. It was fun to hear about his week up in England's Lake Country and particularly about his opportunity to attend the British Open at Southport one day. As Dave reminded us, the tourneyment is referred to here as "The Open", as if there is no other.... We enjoyed getting to know his cousin and her husband as well.
--Deb
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