I SEE THE CONSULATE'S CLIENT APPOINTMENT SERVICE HAS IMPROVED SINCE I LEFT

We've been saying all along: call ahead and book your planned visit, and good things will happen.

I just hope this level can be sustained

(UPDATE: apparently not)

THE LLDD-BABY MAKES HER CASE FOR INCLUSION IN THE APEC CULTURAL GALA

And British accents aren't even part of APEC!

TEAM BURNING

So team building is apparently a thing now, with offices visiting various places of interest outside the metropolis with a view towards personal bonding, efficient work-planning, and karaoke cultural immersion.  My unit held its version recently, but I won't recap all the Dilbert-esque activities that took place. Instead, I'd just like to give a shout out to our venue, Green Canyon, a beautiful  easy-to-get to resort. . .

. . . with an eco-artistic edge to it . . .

. . . including some fine work made out of nothing more than recycled wood, imagination, and a freakin' blow torch . . .

. . . and if I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: I don't know much about art . . .

. . . but I know what I like. 

And blowtorches.

HALO-HALLOW

I think I forgot to post anything about last year's Halloween, the first time ever I got to really dress up for the thing.  In the UK, the holiday appears to be more for the grown-ups than for the children -- I don't think I ever saw kids trick-or-treating in the neighborhoods, but I did see many a drunken werewolf in London stagger out of office costume parties. 

Anyway, we were lucky enough to join a family Halloween gathering organized by an embassy colleague during our last year there, and we were quite happy with our makeshift ensemble.

witch, please

Back here in the PHL, I find the opposite to hold true: not that many adults dress up or hold Halloween-themed parties, but there seems to be a lot of little monsters roaming the subdivision streets. Now, I'm aware there's an ongoing debate whether Halloween really fits local culture, but I'd just like to say this: nothing has joyously empowered the LLDD-Baby more than being asked to make up a character, put together a costume, and fly fabulously through the halls of a pre-school. Like so!

I must go.  My people need me.