Month-in-a-Minute Update

We just finished with November's video - our visit to Canterbury. It's about 10 minutes long and includes a little tour of the city and, of course, the fabulous cathedral. You'll hear/see one of the world's only medieval choirs singing inside the cathedral, and see an old British gentleman explain the history of Thomas Beckett. Cool. If you want to watch it, go to the link on the top-right of the page.

Also, on an unrelated note, Ben got a new part-time job at the Globe Theatre doing bookings for educational workshops for school groups. It's fun, easy, and really flexible - a perfect way to get a few extra 'quid.' Mostly, though, it's just nice to say "I work at the Globe."

Also also, on another unrelated note: you never know who you might run into around London. It turns out that more than one famous British actor lives in Chiswick. Waiting for the train the other morning, who should come into the station and sit right next to me than Richard Briers, a veteran stage actor of 45+ years. If you've ever seen Monarch of the Glen, the Scottish BBC drama, he played Hector. He's also been in quite a few movies, including Kenneth Branagh's versions of Hamlet (he was Polonius) and Much Ado About Nothing (governor of Messina). He very generously agreed to a picture:

He was incredibly nice, and quite chatty. I rode all the way into central London with him and we talked for about 45 minutes. It was a great way to start the day - you don't often get a chance to acutally have a conversation with a famous person.

My next goal is either Emma Watson or Gwyneth Paltrow, both of whom are said to use the Tube regularly. :)

One and One and One is Three...

Turns out there will be one more Lawrence living in London this year.

We're having a baby!

It's due on July 14, but we're hoping it'll arrive early and be born on the 4th of July - in England. Then we could name it all sorts of fun British names. :)

We'll know in March if it's a boy or girl, so we'll keep you posted.

Fun Facts about King's

OK, so this is kind of random, but I thought it would be fun to share some info about King's College London. Most of it is stuff that I was surprised to find out, so I figure you will be too. Here we go:

King's is part of the University of London, which includes the London School of Economics, which is where Mick Jagger went to college, and of course Mick Jagger hung out with the Beatles. So, thanks to King's, we're only 3 degrees away from the Beatles.

King's was recently ranked #22 University in the world. (By a British newspaper, of course.)

There are some very well-known people who have graduated from King's. Among its alumni are: poet John Keats, writers Thomas Hardy and Arthur C. Clarke, physicist James Clerk Maxwell, nursing pioneer Florence Nightingale, and my personal favorite, the Archbishop Desmond Tutu!

Way to go, Desmond.