- Autumn term: September to December (half-term, October)
Spring term: January to Easter (half-term, February)
Summer term: Easter to July (half-term, May)
So everyone is either already gone or are getting ready to go. Trips are ranging from going to France or Switzerland to ski, or to head to Barbados. In its British Empire days, Barbados was known as Little England. It was the first colony to declare war in 1939 and cheered Britons with a cable that read: "Don't worry. Little England is with you." Today, the island is independent but still cherishes Anglo-Saxon civility, cricket and high tea. After 350 years of colonization, Britain has left its mark and added much to the beguiling charm of "Little England in the Tropics."
As luck would have it, I, too have a trip planned, but it isn't anywhere in Europe. It's in Las Vegas [Vegas-baby yeah!]. I've got to be honest with you, I am looking forward to it. The original purpose of the trip was to celebrate Dad's birthday [happy 65th!]. We are going to see Bette Midler at Ceasars Palace! This will be my third time seeing the Divine Miss M perform. The trip has morphed a bit and the celebration will be a bit larger than a party of three. I have a friend, Kristin [spitting image of Trisha Yearwood] who recently moved from Chicago. And I have several friends from Semester at Sea who were already planning a pilgrimage to Sin City [bit of an oxymoron] and scheduled their trip for the same weekend. Look out Vegas! Here we come!This last week, the Commercial Sales leaders gathered for the annual selling year kick-off gathering, and for the first time in five years, I wasn't there. And I missed it. Of course, I am only ever a phone call away. In particular, a 1:30am phone call [my time] as the phone was passed around the hotel bar where some of my former colleagues had gathered on Sunday night. I miss you guys, too.
I spent another week in Gloucester. It is not raining. Finally. And I found out that this 
town is celebrating it's 1,000th year since it's founding. The region was originally settled by the Romans. You can see evidence of the Romas by looking at old bridges built with arches for strength, and in the names of the surrounding towns. Towns ending in the phrase "cester" all have Roman roots, such as Cirencester. The eastern part of the county is in the Cotswolds one of the most beautiful areas of the island, and is commonly used for sheep grazing. Many Londoners spend their weekends her on walk abouts.
New Words/Phrases -
Navel gazing. I had to stop the meeting just to clarify that this was indeed what I had heard. It means to be in a self-absorbed state. Had a good chuckle on that one.
Hostage to fortune. Means having to act in the interest of money alone.
Battery hens. There has been quite a lot of discussion here recently on the plight of the chicken. Battery hens are raised in close quarters, pens stacked on top of each other, and with limited access to light. Recently, celebrity chefs such as Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Jamie Oliver have begun very public campaigns against factory-reared chickens and are advocating for free-range and/or organic chickens. The interesting thing about watching this unfold here in the U.K. is the community invovlement. Similar campaigns were started a few years ago for eggs and the market moved from 20% free range to 60%. Jamie Oliver started a campaign for better meals in schools a few years ago and this year the government passed a requirement for all students to take "cookery" [nutrition] classes. Looks like my Home Ec degree would come in handy here. Who knew?
