No, these things are in no way related. At least as far as I'm concerned. But they've been on my mind today as I distract myself from writing a paper on public relations and public policy.
So the new Whole Foods down the street is attracting mobs and mobs of people. It's the talk of the town. I have not yet ventured in. Why would I? I like Whole Foods, but I can't justify spending money there when I don't darken its doors back home for the very same reason. The ridiculous exchange rate forces Heidi and me to take the bus to Clapham, where the very cheap, very efficient Lidl saves me about half the cost and offers me Brie for 59p. God bless wholesale pricing.
Tony Blair gave an astonishing speech yesterday, lashing out against the British media, calling them "feral beasts, just tearing people and reputations to bits." Ironically, he's largely to blame for his own complaints, given his manipulation of the media when he first took office; he admits as much at the beginning of the speech. But this speech seems to be a swan song as he will soon leave office. It won't have any real effect on his reputation, although it will be discussed for some time to come. Perhaps it's a release of anger that's been fermenting since the invasion of Iraq, when the majority of the British press opposed his decision and commenced souring their relationship. Frankly, I'm happy he used the word "feral."
Read The Guardian's synopsis of today's papers' views on the speech.
Lastly, I'm frantically finishing the fifth and sixth Harry Potter books before the seventh comes out on July 21. Everyone I know has been on the Harry Potter bandwagon except for me, until now. I'm not absolutely crazy about them, but it's good to get in the game for the final seconds. I can't wait to see the next movie here in London (July 11th!). And J.K. Rowling is doing a moonlight signing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at the Natural History Museum, which is literally down the street from our flat. I'm not going to enter the contest, but perhaps I'll go stand outside the museum at midnight - and if the moon is full, I might turn into a werewolf like Professor Lupin.
Hey, could you guys get your hands on movies 3 & 4 so I can watch them when I get to London before the the 5th movie comes out? I don't want to go to the trouble of trying to find them here, find the time to watch them, and return them all before I leave. Thanks.
Yes, master, anything you say. Hopefully we can watch them on a TV downstairs.
Regarding movies over there: have fun with the Region 2 coding! :)
Yeah, that's an annoyance, which is why we want to watch movies on the TV here and not on our laptops.