Clever title

Happy Birthday Dad. Sent a couple of cards. Hope they arrive on time. 

Took another extended bus trip yesterday. This time, only had mesel’ and chose to do this on purpose. I picked the #20 bus to Sunderland. Saw some of the area that I hadn’t seen yet. Wrote a little while on the bus. There were some fairly interesting bits of architecture that I’d like to explore … A collection of imposing red brick buildings and what appeared to be (from a distance, on a hill top, through rain) ruins of a Roman-ish temple. At first, while I was on the bus, I thought I was mistaken and that it had other uses (grain elevator?) But I get to the Sunderland bus station and there’s a painting of what I saw from the bus. A temple-like building: 5 or so pillars, with lintel. But with a little rooting around on the internet, found out that it was built in 1844 in the Doric style (Greek) as a monument to the first Earl of Durham.

I got excited over a reproduction. But then again, millions of visitors to the Disney theme parks get excited over those castles, so I’m not alone.

Today, we’re shooting for Hartlepool’s Tall Ships Races 2010. It’s time we showed Natalie a larger body of water than the River Wear.

update 12 hours later: verdict- disappointing. bus ride home- horrendous. Natalie- very good.

Have learned some disturbing bits of information about the universities here… They cost £3000 a year…ALL OF THEM. Cambridge, Oxford, Durham all cost the same as say, the University of Sunderland. And that you can only apply to 6 total. So I imagine that if you get rejected by all 6 then you’re screwed. No college for you. And you can’t apply to both Cambridge and Oxford. You can only apply to one or the other, not both.

As you can see, I have learned how to put pictures in the blog only slightly. Still working on this.