“Snuck up on ya’! Like sixty feet of…stealth” joked the bus-driver. Seattle is very different to London. Not only are the bus drivers able to put together a sentence, they can also deliver jokes. Also drive in a relatively smooth manner that does not induce nausea within 20 yards. The buses here might be very bendy and very long (hence I did not hear the engine – it was 60ft away), but they are perfectly suited to the big, wide and generally straight roads.
it’s just gone 3 months since I set foot in the Emerald City and much has happened. Generally day-to-day life is better, brighter & easier. I’ve also done things I wouldn’t have done back in Ol’ Blighty. For your edification, here is a list.
- Learned to shuck oysters, which are plentiful and cheap here.
- Driven an electric car & a 5ltr 4×4. Truly a land of contrasts.
- Taken a ferry to somewhere I could have driven.
- Jumped into a freezing cold but crystal clear lake.
- Spent time in a desert that is surprisingly only 2hrs east of moist Seattle.
- Gone brown. Really tanned. On my face and arms, at any rate. Legs still whiter than a KKK meeting.
- Been to a proper American wedding – just like in the movies.
- Seen the NY Yankees play – and be beaten by – my local baseball team.
- Looked out of the living room window and seen a mountain sunset.
- Applied for the (mythical?) Green Card.
One thing I didn’t learn until last night was: wear gloves whilst shucking oysters. This morning I note that my hands are in tatters and look like those of a talentless razor-juggler. Writing – well typing – a painful process.
I’m guessing the raw fingers are responsible for the slippages of ‘r’ and ‘e’ into ‘hear.’ Tsk tsk, m’lord.