Maxson Central

This post is more of a placeholder/reminder for me; however, I stumbled across some pictures on the Internet of a place called Paddock.  This got me searching and I found this Wikipedia article on Paddock and these pictures.  Turns out it was an underground bunker that was made for Churchill’s War Cabinet as a refuge of last resort during WW2.  It still exists but is privately owned.  It also was only used twice for meetings (and those were trial runs).  It is open two days per year for the public to view.  Paddock’s opening schedule can be found here.

I’m going to try to go next year. 

P.S.  The image isn’t mine but it is a public domain image I got from wikicommons.

…an ingrown toenail.  I had poked around at it but it wasn’t getting better.  So, after asking a few people here, I gave up and called our surgery for an appointment.  I wasn’t hopeful, but after talking to people, I thought they would numb my toe and take off part of my toenail….in otherwords, I wouldn’t waste my time going.

So, I went yesterday.  And then came home with…..antibiotics….and instructions printed off the internet about how to soak the toe and push the skin back.  The odd thing about this is that as a general rule you won’t get antibiotics if you turn up with a sinus infection or something, but I got them for an infection in my toe.  crazy.

While there, I asked about things you could buy at the chemist (aka drugstore) like outgrow.  The dr said the closest thing she knew of was iodine liquid but you couldn’t get that any more here.  ARG.  So, For the next 5 days I’m taking my antibiotics and using a cotton bud (aka qtip) to poke around at it.

Image from ksbuehler via flickr

English.  The heart language (native language) of most people in the US.  It is also the heart language of many people in the UK.  But they aren’t the same.  Oh no.  I would say there is 70% (or more) overlap; however, there are differences.  In fact, there is a whole page on wikipedia about AME and BE differences.

I’ve been reading it today and it has been so long since my English classes that I don’t understand lots of it.  Verb tenses are hard.  Sure, I understand past, present, and future; however, it gets harder when speaking about past-perfect, etc….  This section was especially difficult to understand.

I’m thinking about coming up with a quiz for kids at youth group….along the lines of:  What are braces called in the US or something (btw, they are suspenders.  Suspenders in the UK mean a garter belt).  But that may take some time.

[Update 2011-10-15 15:54:51] I wonder if this might help?

Image from richard cawood via flickr

…one learns all sorts of new things.  Like, for example, everyone knows who Queen Elizabeth II is (the current reigning monarch of the UK and the Commonwealth countries).  However, until I moved to the UK, I didn’t know her husband was not the king.  He isn’t the king because the king can only be the real king if he was the heir-apparent.  Instead, he was given the title of Duke of Edinburgh (if I understand everything right).  He is also called Prince because he was the (or a?) prince in Greece.

So who will be next?  Well, the current line of succession has Prince Charles, then Prince William.  But what happens if William and Kate have a girl as their first child?  She is not the heir-apparent (again, if I understand everything).  The heir-apparent would be their first male child (I don’t know who would be next if they only had girls).

But, David Cameron is pushing a bill through Parliament to change that.  However, it also has to be passed by the other commonwealth countries.  Supposedly, there will be a constitutional crisis if this doesn’t happen….I don’t claim to understand it all.

In the end, there are always new things to be learned when you are in new situations.  Just ask questions and be patient.

[Update 2011-10-28 15:34:44] David Cameron and the other Commonwealth countries have agreed.  The first child of William and Kate will be the ruler.

Image from Steve Punter via flickr