It’s official

November 17, 2006 By Paola 3 Comments

Well I hate to bang on about it – but the weather here has been dreadful.

As of November 15th it is officially the wettest Seattle November since records began and we’re only half way through the month!

Today, though, we had a brief respite and for the first time I could see the point of living here. The sun glistened on the sea, the air was crisp, one could see mountains in every direction and the autumn leaves and berries were spectacular.

Unaccustomed as I am to such splendour, I had of course left my camera at home and so was unable to record all the loveliness.

Which is a pity, as another ferocious storm is forecast for the weekend.

Dancing with the Stars

November 16, 2006 By Paola Leave a Comment

So we settled down tonight to watch the Dancing with the Stars results show (so weird to have the results show on a different day, instead of a couple of hours after the main event).

There were only two celebs in the final – Emmitt Smith, apparently an ‘NFL legend’ of whom I have never heard, and Mario Lopez, a freshfaced and very pretty latino actor of whom I have also never heard.

It warmed the cockles of my heart to see both Len Goodman and Bruno Tonioli on the judging panel, though I really missed the cynical objectivity (except when it comes to Emma Bunton) of Craig Revel Horwood, as both Len and Bruno seemed to have gone native in their over-the-top exuberance and uncritical praise.

Anyway, Emmitt (clearly the American Darren Gough – built like a brick outhouse and oozing cheek, charm and charisma) beat Mario (the American Colin Jackson -the better dancer with a sweet nature).

Here’s Emmitt’s cha cha cha from the semi-final which I enjoyed more than his dances in the final. Note that the camerawork is ten times better than Auntie Beeb’s awful swirly efforts and that the band is simply superb.

I also offer, by way of comparison, Mark Ramprakash’s hot salsa from last week in Strictly Come Dancing, just because I can really.

It is quite ridiculous and rather sad how in love I am with this programme. The Husband has rigged up a weird and wonderful system whereby UK programmes are recorded onto a computer back home and then downloaded to us over the Internet, so I’m still able to watch all the Saturday night shows, plus a lot of the week night ‘It Takes Two’ shows.

And when we’ve worked out where we’re going to live permanently here in Seattle, I’m going to sign up for ballroom dancing lessons.

Notting Hill

November 15, 2006 By Paola 3 Comments

One of the reasons I’m feeling so homesick is that our last week in Notting Hill was such as lovely one.

The weather was spectacularly good – amazingly warm for the beginning of November, with cloudless crisp blue skies. It seemed impossible that it could ever rain in London.

After we moved out of our flat, we stayed at Guesthouse West on Westbourne Grove, the hotel where we’d held our leaving party a couple of weeks previously (which I just didn’t have time to blog about).

It’s a lovely little hotel, though it must be admitted that our room was rather cramped, what with a baby and a cot and the fact that we were maxing out our inflight baggage allowance and had a ludicrous number of suitcases.

But the staff were friendliness personified – as they had been at our party – the public rooms inordinately comfortable, and the location to die for.

So I spent the last few days lunching at 202, lounging with friends in the hotel bar, popping out to Tavola and playing with the make-up in Space NK.

Some girlfriends and I dined in the labyrinthine gothic cosiness of Julie’s – a Notting Hill institution if ever there was one – renowned for its incredibly sexy ambience (it’s the nooks and crannies that do it) and dreadful food, though even that rose to the occasion by being really quite edible.

I also finally found the time to use the gift voucher for the uber-hip Cowshed in Clarendon Cross which I’d been given for Mother’s Day and treated myself to a ‘Cowgroom’ – two therapists working together to give a facial and a manicure, with all sorts of extra head, shoulder and feet massages thrown in. I think it was utterly blissful, but can’t be quite sure as I fell asleep half way through. My skin and nails sure looked fabulous afterwards though.

All in all, and for a brief few days, I got to experience what Notting Hill must be like if you’ve got unlimited money and unlimited free time, or indeed if you’re the woman in the therapy cubicle next to mine, who could be heard declaiming loudly, ‘yes, darling, I’ve got a premiere tonight and I can’t possibly go with hairy armpits’.

Yes, I was DYING to see who it was, but at the time was half-naked and pinned down by two beauticians, so couldn’t go and peek through the curtains.

Fashion update

November 14, 2006 By Paola 4 Comments

Fresh from her triumph on the cover of French Vogue, Paris Hilton (accompanied by my Canadian friend) is seen here modelling her new wellies with cherries, an essential look for Fall in Seattle.

She is carrying the latest It bag, (which contains stylish pink plastic accessories, such as mobile, carkeys and makeup, as well as a small finger puppet of Tinky Winky), which can be found at your nearest branch of Toys ‘R’ Us.

Can someone please explain why my daughter, who refused point blank to wear sunglasses throughout the summer, now spends most of the day in gloomy Seattle sporting shades? I am also amused to note that when she is not wearing them they are to be found balanced on the top of her head. Can’t think who she has seen doing that.

And look what we saw today!

November 11, 2006 By Paola 3 Comments

Yes, the mountains do exist. The thick layer of cloud is of course lying over Seattle, but at least it’s not raining.

If you’re not utterly bored with the view from my balcony, then the Space Needle has a rather fab webcam. Our apartment is at about -90 degrees west of the Space Needle.

Very excited today as my very good Canadian friend is coming to stay for a couple of days. We met while we were both working as investment bankers in London but had been finding it increasingly difficult to stay in touch after she moved back to Vancouver about 10 years ago. After years spent exchanging sporadic emails and Christmas cards, we met up again in February when we all came to Seattle for the Husband’s interview. And now, since she now lives in Victoria on Vancouver Island, we are only separated by a two-hour ferry ride or 10 minutes in the seaplane. Isn’t it funny how things work out?

Look what we saw today!

November 10, 2006 By Paola 6 Comments

For the first time in five days, we saw some blue sky.

I must admit I’m really enjoying our view out over the Sound with all its changing moods.

Happy-er

November 9, 2006 By Paola 2 Comments

This morning a strange golden orb appeared in the sky over Puget Sound, (you can just see the snow-capped mountains turning pink in the distance, though they disappeared into the clouds soon after this was taken).

We also braved the horrors of Toys ‘R’ Us to buy something for the Minx other than the eight books we had brought with us on the flight. She absolutely adores it and finally stopped badgering me to put on Teletubbies DVDs, for, oh, several minutes. I was, however, somewhat perturbed to find her putting the baby doll to bed in the large double bed, the daddy doll to sleep in the cot and the mummy doll to bed in, er, the bath.

In the same shopping mall we came across a fabulous cookshop – full of all the impossible-to-find-in-the-UK American gadgets that Nigella is always mentioning. I will definitely be going back as soon as we get a proper kitchen here, so I can stock up on bundt tins in the shape of football stadiums.

And then, most importantly, we found a supermarket selling Green & Black’s Almond Chocolate, which is one of my favourite things in all the world. Things are definitely looking up.

Happy

November 9, 2006 By Paola Leave a Comment

Had some good coverage just before we left for Seattle last week.

The bathtime selection box (now back in stock!) was featured in November’s Happy magazine and then, by great good fortune, that very page was repeated as part of an ad for Happy in this week’s issue of OK!

Which meant I had a great excuse to buy low-brow celeb rags and update myself on the minutiae of Jordan’s love life.

If you were Bill Gates

November 7, 2006 By Paola 16 Comments

and had all the money in the world, would you really choose to live HERE?

I’m afraid Seattle is not doing it for me just yet.

This is the view of Puget Sound from the other side of our apartment (the one which the aliens have not yet attacked). The smudges in the middle are huge ships.

For literally five minutes on Sunday morning I saw that beyond the boats there is a view of the other side of the bay and beyond that the snow-capped Olympic mountains. For the rest of the time we’ve been here there have instead been Olympic quantities of rain.

I hate to speak ill of the Husband’s employer but Bill must be stark, staring mad.

Sleepless in Seattle

November 7, 2006 By Paola 9 Comments

We made it.

2.30 am on Sunday morning and the jetlagged Minx is full of beans and ready to begin her ‘day’. Her mother is not quite so full of beans and is languishing exhausted on the sofa.

Note superb view of Seattle’s Space Needle from our apartment window (and the reflection of a somewhat dubious light fitting).

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