After so much fun listening to the audio book versions of the the first two installments of the Hornblower saga, imagine my disappointment at learning that the third book, Hornblower and the ‘Hotspur,’ also read by Christopher Radeska, was unavailable in audiobook form! Have no fear, gentle reader! Happily, my father had the entire Hornblower... Continue Reading →
Lately, pretty much every conversation I have begins with something along the lines of: “So…when are you actually going to go to the UK? Why don't you have your visa yet? What's taking so long?” Just for future reference, these are top on the list of the worst questions you could ask someone applying for a... Continue Reading →
No news is good news, as the saying goes — which only goes to show that whoever coined that phrase was not waiting for UK Borders and Immigration to respond to her spousal visa application. We have not as yet received any news regarding my UK visa, and although that might only indicate that the... Continue Reading →
Part I: AC/DC Power Much of living on a boat (especially living on a boat affordably) consists of maintenance and upkeep - and not the kind of upkeep where you’re happily polishing the brass while whistling a jaunty sailing tune, but the kind of upkeep where you’re servicing engines, monitoring voltage outputs, and repairing faulty... Continue Reading →
After finishing Mr. Midshipman Hornblower (audiobook version), there was no way that I was going to be able to stop myself from listening to the entire series. In fact, the instant the first book was over, I pulled into the nearest gas station and downloaded the second one. Not one moment of my heretofore miserable... Continue Reading →
There hasn’t been a Pas de Deux update in a while. And there’s a good reason for that: there hasn’t really been anything to keep you all up to date on. I’m still in the USA, waiting on the decision about my UK visa. I cycle through states of despair, anxiety, and unbounded optimism on... Continue Reading →
First of all, to clarify: sheets on boats are what normal people refer to as ropes. They are also sometimes called lines. Most of you probably already know how to clean bedsheets. It involves either a washing machine or a trip to the laundromat. Great news, readers! A boat’s sheets can easily be cleaned in... Continue Reading →
Yes, Treasure Island is one of the greatest adventure novels of all time — but don’t be lulled into thinking that it’s nothing more than a swashbuckling tale of life on the high seas. Treasure Island is, in fact, an instructional text of significant educational value. In writing Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson has done an... Continue Reading →
England is famous for its fierce and furious coastal gales, which whip up off of the water and crash against the fishing villages and seaside towns that line the coast, endangering lives, ruining well-planned holidays, and generating enough evening news excitement to compensate for the lack of gun crime in the UK. I had seen... Continue Reading →
