Being a Brit I thought—out of the goodness of my heart—I ought to share some tips on how to make a proper cup of tea. Not only does a (proper) cup of tea do you good, but the making of a cup of tea does you good, too. Because it is a beautiful ceremony. Boiling… Read more »
Posts Categorized: British
Typed on an Olivetti Lettera 32
This is an Olivetti Lettera 32 typewriter (1963). It is one of the first portable typewriters. And how fitting because it is an extremely well-traveled typewriter. A globe-trotter. It’s lived in: London, Uganda, Kenya, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Oxford and now New York City. (Like me.) It was my mother’s and she gave it to me… Read more »
A Quarantine Christmas Kit
This Christmas when we are distanced, here are some ways to bring each other closer. Watch something special The Old Vic’s A Christmas Carol, featuring performances by chronically ill children who play Tiny Tim The Old Vic’s free activity kit London Philharmonic Orchestra’s Christmas at Claridge’s (best watched with your cream tea!) A Christmas Eve Service… Read more »
Long live the Queen!
On September 9th (this very day!) Queen Elizabeth II will become Britain’s longest reigning monarch, bumping her great-great-grandmother Victoria from that top spot. (Victoria ruled for 64 years until her death in 1901.) The Queen’s has had 12 prime minsters. So far. Her first prime minister was Sir Winston Churchill. She is the most popular… Read more »
the art of simplicity
It’s hard to believe… but Miffy, that adorable white baby bunny, turns 60 this year! In 1955, on a rainy seaside holiday in North Holland, Dick Bruna sketched a little bunny for his young son. The bunny kept hopping about. Each evening he would make stories up about the bunny and… Miffy was born. I… Read more »
Happy Independence Day (from a Brit?)
The independence we are celebrating today is, of course, independence from the likes of me. Brits. (Excuse me but first of all, what is a Brit doing posting on Independence Day? I know. It’s cheeky but there you have it. We are nothing if not cheeky.) When I first came to the States, I visited… Read more »
happy coronation day
I recently had an audience with the Queen. Well. With Helen Mirren (if we’re being picky) who played the Queen in the spectacular production call The Audience. The most moving part of the whole play for me was at the end of Act 1. The soaring music, the frailty of the woman, the greatness of… Read more »
Happy Birthday, Eeyore!
“Eeyore Alone”. Alone. Poor Eyeore. Of course, he would be alone on his birthday that no one has remembered. Did you remember? No of course not. I didn’t either. But the Guardian remembered. They wrote a whole article about him and how great a literary character Eeyore is (“archetypal” is what they said). You can… Read more »
Happy Birthday Penny Black!
Today, in 1840 — 175 years ago! — the first ever postage stamp was born in Great Britain. Before then it was awful because the person getting the letter had to pay–upon delivery. Rates were high and never the same and very confusing–so, not surprisingly people often refused to pay. But a teacher saved the… Read more »
holy ground
“Pilgrims often journey to the ends of the earth in search of holy ground, only to find that they have never walked on anything else.” Scott Russell Sanders “We shall not cease from exploration And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first… Read more »