Daylight
Not liking the Beatles is as perverse as not liking the sun. -- Anthony DeCurtis, The Rolling Stone Record Guide Well, I'm not liking the sun these days. Also the Beatles suck, but that's another blog post. You Say Yes, I Say No Amy and I
Craig Riecke
Born in South Dakota. Moved to New York State. Bumbled my way into Scotland ... but I think they're gonna kick me out any day now. Until then I am filling up on Cullen Skink and Dalwhinnie.
The Reverend John Dorcas
I need a kilt. At the Ceilidh dances, I look like an American tourist, what with my Levi's 505 jeans and all. Disgraceful. Look. I can do the Gay Gordons, the Military Two-Step, the Virginia Reel, the Strip the Willow, the Canadian Barn Dance, the Dashing White Sergeant,
Three Intermezzos
One of my favorite writers is Amy Hempel. She specializes in writing really really short stories, like one or two pages long. Hempel was once asked for a writing tip. She replied, "cut out all the boring parts". Westminster Abbey Amy and I are in Westminster Abbey and
Living in Metric
The US government almost did something bold, sweeping, deep, and utterly rational in the 1970's. I know Millenials will find this hard to believe. But I lived through it, so I know. They almost switched to the metric system. As a 9 year old, my school (Lincoln Elementary
Ottolenghi
Amy and I are in Yotam Ottolenghi's restaurant ROVI in London. Our server pops over and pours us glasses of tap. We ask if Ottolenghi is hanging around. "I just started working here," she replies. "I don't think I'd know him
Gone to the Dogs
When Amy found the Scottish Kennel Club All Breed - 4 days of rollicking canine mayhem at the Royal Highland Showground in Ingliston, I wasn't exactly jazzed about it. I'm not a "dog person". Not their target demographic. I said, "Meh, I'
Giving Blood
TL;DR The post-donation snacks are better. Having said that, I am only in the UK for 6 months. I sign up to give blood the second week I'm here. I tell the intake person at the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service, and she asks, "You are
Ceilidh!
At a Scottish party, no one gets left behind. No one! The word ceilidh (pronounced KAY-lee, just like it looks) means "visit" in Scots Gaelic. But of course a ceilidh is more than a visit. The object of a ceilidh is to dance your ass off. Or, more
Boo Hewerdine
There's a difference between The Best Album and Your Favorite Album. It's hard to accept this fact, especially if you're passionate about music. If you love the album so much, it must be objectively better than other albums out there. But then you start
Auld Reekie
I woke to the smell of tomatoes and macaroni. My mother used to make tomatoes and macaroni routinely for lunch. It was literally a handful of macaroni cooked with a jar of home-canned tomatoes. Maybe some salt and pepper, I dunno. I wasn't paying attention. But it was
Chloroform
In Edinburgh, I find things worth a double-take. Like the above. It's a brick from the flat on 52 Queens St. Ah yes. Chloroform. The serial killer's best friend. Put some on a rag, grab some innocent victim from behind, shove the rag in their nose.
Tea and Scones
My opinions of the British Monarchy come courtesy of the Sex Pistols. It was 1977, Axtell Park Junior High, Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The upper classes in journalism cranked out a regular mimeographed newsletter - I forget the name of it - and tossed copies into a wooden rack in