More thoughts from a new home

After two months of being in England I continue to learn the bus routes. I take a bus to get to my job and now am able to relax and enjoy the ride without fear of missing my stop. Two stops before mine, I zip up my coat and start to put the ruck-sack back on. I believe I've mentioned what a ruck-sack is, but just in case I didn't, I'll say it again. A ruck-sack is a back-pack and is used by men and women both, not just school aged kids, but adults as well. It's great to haul your meals and snacks for work in. It's great to haul your groceries back home. And yesterday, I found out how strong my back is when I put 20 pounds of kitty litter in it and hauled that around for a few hours before making it home.

It has been said to me that the British are a tough lot and I agree with this statement. Through generations of not having much, they have managed to make an art of budgeting. Of making delicious meals that not only fill you up but don't cost an arm and a leg to make.

Speaking of food, would you believe that the milkman still survives and still delivers? That during the spring and summer you can still hear the chimes and bells from the ice cream truck coming down the road? That there are stores that sell fresh fruit and vegetables and nothing else? That the corner butcher is still in business? Businesses that closed up years ago in America are alive and quite well in England.

It would take three England's to be the size of Texas, roughly the size of Alabama, England boasts over a dozen daily newspapers. Can Alabama make that claim? Or even Texas? I really don't know that answer but it amazes me to go to a store and see all these newspapers on racks waiting to be purchased.

Now that things are starting to settle down, I am hoping that The Dream Store will re-open in the very near future. While serving customers in America will still be a priority, more emphasis will be on England and our European neighbors.