The weekend before Thanksgiving

On Friday Vicky and I arrived home to find that Moms new fireplace had arrived!

I had a choice, I could help build it straight away, or wait until Saturday morning.  With the Manchester City game on live here, I opted for erecting it in the evening.

It's a beautiful piece.  I took my time assembling it, knowing my luck, I would scratch it!, and Vicky helped me position the heavy top into place.  The fireplace even comes with a remote control!  Sadly we've had to remove the vcr (no bad thing), as there is only room for the blu-ray player and the cable box.

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Afterwards for a treat, we watched a couple of Tom Jerry cartoons.  A recent blu-ray purchase.  The first 30 odd T&J cartoons have finally been released uncut and with their original title cards.  All cats are now seen smoking and 'black face' gags are back in.  "Tom and Jerry Golden Collection Vol 1 is intended for the Adult Collector and May Not Be Suitable for Children"

Yesterday after the manchester city game I had my second driving lesson.  Last week I drove around a school car park, and then a residential area.  This time we took to the motorway!  Essentially the lesson involved driving for an hour in one direction with the odd traffic light and turns, then after a short break, we came back the same way.

Today we watched Dial M For Murder.  A film I had never seen before.  Previously I have seen the stabbing scene many times.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I loved the Inspector, and there were some wonderful lines.

Boys and their toys

Just a little update so far.

Still no interview at work.  They keep putting it back all of the time.  There is a rule where a company can buy me from the temp agency for free after three months of employment.  This would have been the middle of October.  I just want to get it over with.


Yesterday afternoon I had my first driving lesson.  I think it went ok.  It's the first time I've been behind a wheel since last year.  Vicky drove me to a deserted car park, and I had a go for an hour or so.  Next Saturday (after the match of course!), I'm going out for a two hour lesson.

Here is one of my new 'toys'.

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It's an internet radio.  It connects to thousands of radio stations worldwide.  From the picture, you can see I'm listening to BBC radio 5.  I can use my computer to listen to english radio, but to do it from an actual radio is very cool.

Here is a wireless speaker.  It works via bluetooth so I can stream any sound from my computer anywhere in the house.  It has a rechargeable battery, and is also mains powered too.  I have used this to listen to football back in England, just because I can!

A lucky exiled football fan

On May 22nd 2011, I sat in the stadium of Newcastle United, in the same seat I had been in for the last eighteen years.  I witnessed Newcastle score three goals against West Bromich Albion before conceding three for a draw.
After more then twenty years of football.  This was my last game in England.  I emigrated to America a couple of weeks later, and I was concerned if I would ever see my team in person again.  Moving to another continent between seasons helped, I wasn't distracted by the english media.  The closer it got to the start of the 2011/2012 season, I started to rely on websites for news about my team.  I had to.  The American media never cover the English Premiership.  Occassionally Manchester United and Chelsea will have
a tiny footnote dedicated to them in the sports section of a major newspaper.

Once Newcastle started their first friendly games, I found myself using the website Twitter every day.  Fans and Journalists would 'micro blog' about their day before the match, and I would be able to follow their thoughts during the games too.  Not always about who scored, or who was sent off, users would tell the world which player was playing well, and who wasn't.

As an ex patriot, Twitter has become my lifeline for news about my team.  Newcastles first game of the season was broadcast live on Fox Soccer Channel, and the next few were as well.  My cable company has a few dedicated sports channels, the others by ESPN.  Both networks also have their own website that streams English Premiership.  The quality of the picture is excellent. 
As of writing, I have seen all but four games live.  Two were not shown in America.  The League cup game against Nottingham Forest, and the Monday night game at QPR.  I haven't missed a goal either, one of the channels has a nightly highlights program.  I see a lot more football here in America.

I feel very fortunate that I can keep up to date with the ongoings of Newcastle United Football Club, I can follow Twitter and the bbc sports website anytime.  Apart from physically being at the match, I find out what is going on instantly.

Following a favourite team from abroad isn't so hard after all.

This blog entry was thought about as I mean to update you all with some new 'boys toys' I have purchased recently.  One being an Internet Radio!

Expect pictures this week.