Last weekday of half-term break, the family decided
to head to town for the day. Did I wanna go with them? (Is the Pope a
Catholic?!)
Prior to that invitation I had gone to bed the
night before with two goals in mind for the following day – both of which I had
been working towards the entire week: to get a flu shot and to return my completed
library book, Tom’s Midnight Garden. I’ve come SO close on both, but have never
been able to nail the basket.
That night I had stayed up late slaving away over
the computer – then right before midnight, just as I had determined it was due time
to call it a day, Scott skyped me and we chatted for a couple minutes. After
that I read the scriptures, and then thought as well as I’m up, might as well
read for a while, (I have started Wolf Hall, first in the Hilary Mantel trilogy
on Thomas Cromwell. I had asked Myfanwy if she’d read her stuff, and turned
out, not only had she read SEVERAL, but she owned the first book in the series and
loaned it to me on the spot. Now I didn’t have to worry about not being able to
finish it in a short (for me) three-week period of time.) all of which lead to
my sleeping in much later than usual.
I had planned the order of my day, first, to check
at the surgery (doctor’s office) a couple blocks from home to see if I would be
able to get an injection there, and following that to keep right on walking over
to the Selly Oak Branch Library, a day when they’d be open – for which I had patiently
been waiting. (Due to limited resources they’re closed on both Wednesdays and
Thursdays.) As I said, got up-and-going pretty late in the morning, and just as
I was beginning to untangle myself from the cobwebs and had started thinking
about maybe getting dressed and putting together something to eat for
breakfast, Leah rang up to let me know about their day’s plans (one
specifically, she mentioned, was to take the kids to the central library) . . .
AND they were leaving within the hour. While I had been willing to forego the
satisfaction of realizing my objectives in exchange for an anticipated day of
fun in downtown Birmingham with the Wards, the amazing thing about the compromise,
it turned out, was not ONLY were we headed to the library, but there was a
large Boots Pharmacy* establishment in the same vicinity. Library and a shot in
one slam dunk – how perfect was that?! And all I had to do was wake up – and
get going. Life is good!
We met up at the train station, where for a mere
two-pound-ten (€2.10) we were able to get to – and back – from our home of
Selly Oak to Birmingham New Street – the quickest, and cheapest, possible
route. It was a straight shot – whereas the bus would have been almost double in
price, and have bedazzled us further with a billion stops.
Downtown Birmingham, in scope and appearance,
seems to me just as extraordinary as any other colossal metropolis. The astonishing
Bullring Shopping Center alone is marvelous to behold, then add to that the
pedestrianized heart of the city, with all its myriad of shops and department
stores. Doesn’t miss a lick – staggering in its magnificence. You will just
have to come and see for yourself – to see if you think my estimation is
correct or not! All I can say is that in my way of thinking it can hold its own
– right up there with New York, Boston, or Paris.
Spent some time in TK Maxx, then some other
smaller shops looking for some specific winter items for the kids. About the
time we began to get hungry, I suggested, ‘anybody interested in my favorite
place to eat – Pizza Hut (because of the price AND its buffet?’ Hurray, they
had the same inclination – and EVEN knew one of the more out-of-the-way
locations where there’d be less of a wait! (Leah said there were like FIVE Pizza
Huts in this area of the city alone!) Can you believe what a small world it is?!
(Remember this is a BIG city with MANY persons about on the streets!) First we
came across Oliver’s last year’s Nursery teacher (one of those ‘you mean my
teacher exists outside of the classroom’ sort of things) on our walkabout, and
then in Pizza Hut, who should we bump into, but our sister missionaries, Sister
Wheatley and Sister Stucki, as well as a mom and her teenage daughter, Amanda and Paige, from our ward.
(And Leah’s claims this is one of the more obscure restaurant locations – yeah,
right!) They had come to town to do some
street tracking with large poster banners of the Book of Mormon which they’d made.
This was especially significant and meaningful because Paige, the daughter, was
had chosen to be baptized this upcoming Sunday. (see Day Hundred Twelve.)
*Boots is a large chain pharmacy, plus anything else
you could possibly want. So extensive, in fact, that while I was hanging around
the store for an additional five minutes (to make sure I didn’t go into anaphylactic
shock or something), I availed myself of their extensive perfume counter where
I was advised by an cute, young olfactory expert, just like you might find at any
major department store. She really knew her stuff – next time, I’m ready to
buy!
Sad to say we never did get to the new library
facility, which I have yet to experience. Before we knew it, Martin had
realized it was time to make our way back to the train in order for them to get
to swimming lessons on time. But first, one last dash to Selfridges to check out
Paperchase’s Christmas fare on the way. (Because everybody was on semi-holiday,
the whole family had a family swim during the hour between Oliver and Katya’s
lessons. Fun!) I went home to do a couple things before meeting them back at
Aldi’s a couple hours later, halfway between me and the Tiverton Pool. As we
were walking out to the parking lot, Leah said, ‘guys, look at the clock tower!’*
(I’m not fooling when I say this is the most well-known landmark in the whole
area – and the great thing is that I can see it as plain as anything – both day
AND night – right out my bedroom window. Cool!) What Leah was referring to was
that the clock tower was glowing pink. Leah knew instantly that it was in
reference to breast cancer awareness. I learned later that the following day,
October 26th, Jenny’s birthday, had been designated as Wear It Pink Day, in honor of October
being named as breast cancer awareness month in the UK, that the University
of Birmingham was joining other iconic buildings and historic landmarks across the UK and Ireland – like Big Ben, Buckingham Palace
and Trafalgar Square – to lend their support by ‘dressing up’ with pink
lighting. The soft blush on the face of the clock made for an unexpected,
magical moment.
*The
University of Birmingham will join along with other local shops, schools and a
number of individuals in the 10th annual Wear It Pink Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign. Breast cancer
is the most common cancer in the UK with around 48,000 people diagnosed in this
country alone each year. The University is one of the UK’s leading centres for
cancer research turning pioneering research into life-changing new treatments. The 110-metre high clock tower is one of the tallest
buildings in Birmingham and nicknamed ‘Old Joe’ after Joseph Chamberlain, the
University’s first Chancellor (father of Mrs. Martha Winterbourne, see Day Ninety
Three).
We returned to
the Wards where we were joined by the Pilkington family (mom, Sue, counselor in
Primary, dad, Paul, and daughter, Sam, who had been a frequent babysitter for the
Wards when Katya and Oliver were younger) for some game-night revelry. Serendipitously, this very week I had come
across what looked to be a very fun board game called ‘Destination Birmingham –
Where to Guv?!’ The premise is that you
are a taxi driver and must maneuver through the eminent streets of Birmingham’s
central district (Corporation, Pinfold, Curzon, Bull, Great Row, Holloway Head,
Ladywood Middleway, Colmore Row, Smallbrook Queensway, and Horse
Fair boulevards, to name only several) to various notable local venues (City Center
Gardens, the Hippodrome, the Rotundra, the Council House, the Bullring Shopping
Centre, and the Royal Birmingham Society of Artists, to list but a few), with all
the expected set-backs – and monetary rewards – one would expect to encounter
in this type of a situation. The game was worth every bit of the £2.50 I had paid for it - and more! Leah had made some yummy savory – and some sweet –
snacks.
Photos_
1- is calling
it a jab supposed to make it feel any better? Really?!
2-4 sights
in the Bullring and surrounding thoroughfares
5- indoor
bungee bouncing
6- gimmick
to sell dance videos (got a devotee here!)
7-8 comfort
food
9- Ella as pudding (one of Ella’s dad’s favorite terms of endearment. Found the perfect costume: didn’t get it, however, just too expensive for a one day wonder.)
9- Ella as pudding (one of Ella’s dad’s favorite terms of endearment. Found the perfect costume: didn’t get it, however, just too expensive for a one day wonder.)
10- contentedly weary family on train
11- clock in the pink
