Losing... will... to... post...
Must... type... this... entry...

This is my last entry for the month of November. A month where we participated in NaBloPoMo and posted everyday of November. That's 30 posts in a row. I think that has to be a record for FuShMuSh.

It was actually much harder than I thought it was going to be. I spent a lot of time brainstorming topics to blog about. I maintained a list of back-up posts in case something fell through. Our internet at home was not 100% reliable, so there were also a few late night dashes to internet cafés for emergency web access. All in all, a lot of time and effort was expended on our daily posting. Well done team Wilson! (Jess is the ideas man, Andrew is the details man.)

I think we've earned a break. So FuShMuSh will be quiet for next few days or so. It will give me a chance to work on some of my side projects. We're also going to squeeze in a mini-break to Slovakia (yay for mini-breaks!).

FuShMuSh resumes normal transmission...

(special guest post by andrew)

After waiting 4 weeks for BT to get our phone line installed (and suffering various stuff-ups along the way), getting internet at home has been refreshingly straight forward. It would seem as though there is a company in this country which understands customer service. The timeline for our DSL application went something like:

2006-11-22	Wed	18:00	Initial request for DSL made on website
2006-11-24	Fri	14:00	Received notice that the router had been dispatched and DSL service would be activated on 2006-11-28
2006-11-27	Mon	19:00	Router delivered (Andrew proceeds to hack at the CLI for the next several hours)
2006-11-28	Tue	10:00	DSL service activated and internet is live

That's 3.5 working days!

We are now connected at home, and our internet is all you can eat and it's faaaast. So pull out your webcams and say g'day!

(Second last post for NaBloPoMo! Hurrah!)

I sprained my ankle a few weeks back. I actually sprained it twice in a period of two weeks. It hurt... a lot. Unfortunately, this means that I've not been able to play Ultimate for the past month. I've missed out one winter tournament and our team's weekly Sunday training sessions. I really have missed it too! I love my Frisbee. (I'm sure you all already know this.)

It does mean that I have Sundays all to myself. Andrew treks off to run around in the mud. I get to go out and do something touristy; usually something that I know Andrew probably wouldn't enjoy.

This week I decided that I should cross Harrods off my list of tourist targets. (I wonder what kind of search enginge hits 'tourist targets' will generate?) I popped into Harrods on my way home from a Christmas shopping excursion to Oxford St.

Harrods is obviously popular with the tourists, especially the blue rinse set. The place was packed with grannies. To me, it was a more expensive, more elaborate version of David Jones. Everything was crazy expensive; even the standard plastic Harrods branded carry bags were £14. I found the Food Hall to be the most impressive section. (Although, I could hardly move in there because it was so crowded.)

Unfortunately, claustrophobia prevented me from spending too much time in Harrods. I'm not sure if it's always like that or if it's a combination of tourists and Christmas making it so busy. Maybe one day I'll venture back to see.

Some Harrods Trivia:

• The store occupies a 4.5 acre site and has over 92,000 m² of selling space.
  
  
• At night the facade of Harrods is lit up with 12,000 light bulbs, 300 of which need replacing each day.
  
  
• Harrods was the first store in England to install escalators. They had staff on duty to assist shoppers who might be overcome by the experience.
  
  
• Harrods is the only department store in the UK to sell fur clothing.
  
  
• There is a (tacky) memorial to Princess Di and Dodi Al-Fayed on the basement floor.

(Third last post for NaBloPoMo! Hurrah!)

Ok, so I've been whinging a bit about not being able to eat my favourite Aussie foods. Well, it's not entirely impossible to find these items here in London. You just have to be prepared to travel that extra mile or pay that little bit more.

Before Tash left, she entrusted us with the location of an Aussie haven here in London. What is the secret password to gain access to the sanctuary? It is: "How's it going? Can I have a pack of Twisties, mate?". Yes, the Glow Lounge in Clapham sells Twisties to those in the know. They also have Caramello Koalas, Solo, James Boags and Coopers. And they do a beautiful brunch of poached eggs with smoked salmon and hollandaise sauce.

The Glow Lounge is a bit of a trek for us (an hour on the tube) but definitely worth it when we're feeling a little homesick. Sadly, it's certainly not easily accessible when we're in dire need of a hangover remedy consisting of a big brekkie.

There is also the Australia Shop in Covent Garden. They have a huge selection of Australian products; it's just like shopping in Coles at Broadway. (I was actually surprised at some of the things in the store. I didn't realise that Snakes and Strawberry Creams weren't available over here. The Poms are missing out!) However, at £3 for a pack of Tim Tams (3 mullion AUD) and £1.15 for a Giant Caramello Koala (1 mullion AUD), it's a treat that we'll be saving for special occasions.

(I could always travel that extra, extra mile and come home for a visit. I just checked the weather back home and it's 20 degrees at 4am! Mmm, sounds toasty!)

A weekend in pictures:

Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2006 Natural History Museum

Nik's Birthday @ Bodean's BBQ, Soho

Harrods