"Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the
arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make
out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that.
It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly
dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons,
mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old
friends..." -Love Actually (2003)
I said that I would be diligent with this blog and write every week-and here we are not even 2 months of installments in, and I have skipped a week. Quelle horror! I could blame it on my continued Manhattan Magical Mystery Tour which dropped me at my cousin's doorstep on Election Night... so I will!
Big shout out to my cousin Matthew and his girlfriend Micha for hosting me, bag lady extraordinaire, on my final night of the MMMT. It was so fun spending the night Karl Rove had a complete meltdown on national television with you guys. My major disappointment on Election Night, by the way, had nothing to do with the outcome and everything to do with the fact that my polling place had run out of 'I VOTED' stickers. I mean, really. If I have to go through polling place hell, I should at least get a sticker. And why is it that there are always WAY more people in the A-M line than N-Z? Going to vote tends to be more painful than going to the doctor. They should not only give out stickers, but lollipops too. It's impossible to be annoyed when you get a lollipop for your trouble. I am also fascinated by the people who make the projections as to who wins a state. Sometimes I think that I would have paid more attention to math if I had realized how advanced skills were applied in the real world. But let's be honest, probably not. Math was never my forte. But Social Studies was- and so I love Election Night. Actually, I mostly love the Tuesday after the first Monday in November because it signals the end of the long national nightmare known as election season.
I am very interested in learning about the British electoral process. Maybe it is less dysfunctional than our own. What little I know about British government I have learned from Hugh Grant as Prime Minister in 'Love Actually'. I probably should do some more research. I am pretty sure that 'Elizabeth' is no longer accurate. Which brings me to the topic of today's post; my immersion in British culture via Hollywood.
I have decided that a most excellent way to prepare myself for my impending relocation is to think back on the many movies that I have seen that take place primarily in London. Among these are-Cartoons: The Great Mouse Detective, 101 Dalmations; Musicals: Mary Poppins, My Fair Lady, Oliver, Sweeny Todd, A Hard Day's Night, Help!; Black and White Movies with Predatory Males: Gaslight, Witness for the Prosecution, Suspicion, Dial M for Murder; Movies with Tennis: Match Point, Wimbledon; Post-Apocolyptic Movies: 28 Days Later; a genre I will call simply 'Hugh Grant': Four Weddings and A Funeral, Notting Hill, Bridget Jones's Diary, About A Boy, Love Actually, & Bridget Jones-The Edge of Reason; and (in a category by itself): To Sir With Love. How else should one prepare oneself for a new culture? This is full immersion, right here!
From the above I can conclude that much of London's lower class sings its days away to escape their sorrows. The men are predatory and like to keep their women subservient by making them feel like they are going crazy, or they are framing them for murder. In the case where the woman is wealthier than her husband, the man does this to get his wife's money. Tennis will be an integral part of my life. I may turn into a zombie. I will meet Hugh Grant, he is everywhere. And finally, unless Sidney Poitier is my child's teacher, said child is screwed.
I now feel fully prepared for whatever London may throw at me. And if I'm not, James Bond will be just around the corner to save me...
Big shout out to my cousin Matthew and his girlfriend Micha for hosting me, bag lady extraordinaire, on my final night of the MMMT. It was so fun spending the night Karl Rove had a complete meltdown on national television with you guys. My major disappointment on Election Night, by the way, had nothing to do with the outcome and everything to do with the fact that my polling place had run out of 'I VOTED' stickers. I mean, really. If I have to go through polling place hell, I should at least get a sticker. And why is it that there are always WAY more people in the A-M line than N-Z? Going to vote tends to be more painful than going to the doctor. They should not only give out stickers, but lollipops too. It's impossible to be annoyed when you get a lollipop for your trouble. I am also fascinated by the people who make the projections as to who wins a state. Sometimes I think that I would have paid more attention to math if I had realized how advanced skills were applied in the real world. But let's be honest, probably not. Math was never my forte. But Social Studies was- and so I love Election Night. Actually, I mostly love the Tuesday after the first Monday in November because it signals the end of the long national nightmare known as election season.
I am very interested in learning about the British electoral process. Maybe it is less dysfunctional than our own. What little I know about British government I have learned from Hugh Grant as Prime Minister in 'Love Actually'. I probably should do some more research. I am pretty sure that 'Elizabeth' is no longer accurate. Which brings me to the topic of today's post; my immersion in British culture via Hollywood.
I have decided that a most excellent way to prepare myself for my impending relocation is to think back on the many movies that I have seen that take place primarily in London. Among these are-Cartoons: The Great Mouse Detective, 101 Dalmations; Musicals: Mary Poppins, My Fair Lady, Oliver, Sweeny Todd, A Hard Day's Night, Help!; Black and White Movies with Predatory Males: Gaslight, Witness for the Prosecution, Suspicion, Dial M for Murder; Movies with Tennis: Match Point, Wimbledon; Post-Apocolyptic Movies: 28 Days Later; a genre I will call simply 'Hugh Grant': Four Weddings and A Funeral, Notting Hill, Bridget Jones's Diary, About A Boy, Love Actually, & Bridget Jones-The Edge of Reason; and (in a category by itself): To Sir With Love. How else should one prepare oneself for a new culture? This is full immersion, right here!
From the above I can conclude that much of London's lower class sings its days away to escape their sorrows. The men are predatory and like to keep their women subservient by making them feel like they are going crazy, or they are framing them for murder. In the case where the woman is wealthier than her husband, the man does this to get his wife's money. Tennis will be an integral part of my life. I may turn into a zombie. I will meet Hugh Grant, he is everywhere. And finally, unless Sidney Poitier is my child's teacher, said child is screwed.
I now feel fully prepared for whatever London may throw at me. And if I'm not, James Bond will be just around the corner to save me...
I mean... YOWZA!
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