I was in downtown Palo Alto for a quick dinner when I thought I could smell burning.  Then a couple of fire engines screamed down University Avenue.  I have never seen a real fire so I rushed down the street to see what was going on.  I was hot on the heels of a newspaper reporter.  He had no furry microphone.  There were no inexplicable celebrities.  What can I say?

The street was closed off and smoke detectors were going off at Mad and 5th.  It was so exciting!!

Take a look at the pictures … no digressions here …

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Much has been made in the US media of the passing of the US newscaster and journalist Walter Cronkite.  As a foreigner, I missed his era in its entirety.  I was vaguely aware of his name and of ‘the voice’ from TV clips shown since I arrived in the US, but that is it.  It is a different perspective, looking at this as a spectator.  Someone asked me what I thought about him and I said “He meant nothing to me” … which was clearly insensitive, but true.

I read in a post (and comments) from the NYT MediaDecoder blog, that back in the day, there were only a few newscasts to choose from and that may have added to his iconic status.  Growing up, I had 2 newscasts to choose from (BBC and ITV), but in reality only 1.  My parents would not tolerate ITV, so I watched the BBC.  Frankly, the news bored me stiff until I was in my late 20’s.  Now I absorb news like a sponge from both the TV and the internet.  And yes, I do get some of my news from Jon Stewart!

Anywho, I digress …

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Am I alone in thinking of Davros every time I hear a news item about Iran?  Davros strives to be the Supreme Being.  Doctor Who strives to keep him at bay – it is always a last minute affair.  Don’t worry, we have nothing to fear 😉  Well, Hello Davros!

I have very fond (!) memories of hiding behind the sofa during episodes of Doctor Who.  The one with the huge green maggots was particularly scary … when I was 8.  I have seen those episodes recently. Good grief, how embarrassing!  What was I thinking?

Anywho, I digress …

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Building the flag

Have you noticed all the people wearing red today?  All the bars advertising red beer.  Badges and hats that say “Kiss me. I’m English”?  Me neither.  Substitute green for red and Irish for English and you have St Patrick’s day – the big Irish holiday.  Well, today is St George’s day – the modest English day.

I thought I would take this opportunity to clear up the confusion around the difference between English/British/Scottish/Welsh/Irish, United Kingdom/Great Britain/Britain and the Union Jack/Union Flag.

This wasn’t in the least bit important to me when I lived in the UK.  In fact I didn’t know much about the flag or the different country terminology.  Now I do and I am going to share that with you.  Oh you lucky, lucky people.

Anywho, I digress …

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Saw this article today.  Although I have encountered my fair share of tourists, I still don’t think of SV as a tourist destination.

I spent my teenage years in Paignton which is a magnet for holidaymakers (the generic British word for tourist) and SV is nothing like it!   Believe me, in Paignton, tourists shop at the supermarket in their bathing suits and are smothered in suffocating coconut oil.  Sadly, I used to take the same bus.  Never a good idea to sit in a seat once occupied by a slippery tourist – pretty funny though, when the bus pulled up sharp.  Tacky tourists all over the floor covered in bits of bus debris 😀

Tourists are called Grockles in Devon and Emmets in Cornwall.  These are not complimentary names.

Anywho, I digress …

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I just “survived” an earthquake!

Check out the USGS website for all the details.

Lisa.