Mundanity from Scotland

Moving from the States to Scotland isn’t like moving to Rwanda (which my sister-in-law just did!). We speak the same language-ish and eat similar-ish foods, etc. But it is strange how different the day-to-day things can be.

1) I’ve mentioned it before — tea! Lots and lots of it! I even sometimes drink it out of this Gilbert and Sullivan mug. It doesn’t get more British than that, does it? I am the very model of a modern British American.

 

2) Crumpets. Better than anything else at soaking up pats of melty butter and dollops of jam/jelly:

3) 24 hours a day: extra feetsie warmth. These are my very old mukluks that I’ve had for 18 years or so. Cath and I used to wear them over our pointe shoes back in our bunhead days.

5) Our dryer! I bet you are incredibly impressed at our mound of clothes on drying rack. Sorry this is such a miserably ugly photo, but this is what our kitchen looks like half the week. Most people here do not have dryers. Instead we have washers that spin nearly all the water out of your clothes (soon I’ll be wearing tatters) during a 3 hour cycle. Out of all the countries in the world, you would have thought Scotland would embrace the dryer rather than the clothing rack (below) or clothes line (outside — OUTSIDE in the rain and wind!). Maybe that’s just a spoiled, energy-guzzling American talking.

6) Treacle. Matt likes it and says it makes his porridge palatable. I’d rather eat marmite.

6) My house/flat keys! I feel like I live in a story book whenever I look at these! They, however, do not open castle doors or lead you into mysteriously magical wardrobes. I’ve tried both.

7) Coasters! We have a semi-fastidious landlord — wonderful man (are you reading this James?) — but he insisted on coasters on his furniture. I went one step further to ingratiate ourselves with our Scottish landlord with my Authentic Clan Tartan coasters picked up at our local Oxfam.

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Dear Kitcath,

Trying a new hairstyle. I just pin bits and pieces up and try to make it look effortless (it is not). Tried to send these via skype but I think you must be away from your desk. Missss youu!

xoxox,

Larbar

p.s. Sorry if this post is a bit mundane! I promise to go to a castle or something old a crumbly soon, and take lots of pics. xoxox

 

16 thoughts on “Mundanity from Scotland”

  1. AHHHH! Tea and crumpets and ancient keys. I cannot WAIT to come visit! What’s so funny is that this post is the opposite of mundane to me. you are living a magical life!

  2. I love that you’re giving us the daily details of your everyday life! It makes you even more real. even though I’ve met you in person.

    I love your PS. “something old & crumbly”. LOL.

    NOW W-T-Fuck is treacle? I’m going to Google that RIGHT NOW.

    I can’t wait to do “my mundane details of life” in Hawaii.Across a second pond.

    MISSYOU, my darling. Loving that you girls are updating more and more.

    Come visit us on our little volcanic rock someday, OK?

    xx{ish.},
    Mae Lu @ thereafterish.!

  3. Ugh, one of the things I absolutely HATED about Korea was not having a dryer. If you did have a dryer, you’d have to run it for like 2 hours to get everything completely dried. This is kinda gross, but try not to wash your clothes too much. You’ll ruin them too quickly. Febreeze is thankfully imported into Korea, so that was my best friend last year.

  4. ahhh crumpets! and thick socks – much needed here too in canada.

    those keys look like they would make cute necklaces.

    Not having a dryer sucks for towels – must be a drag!

  5. i love the keys! how cool are they!

    i do feel bad about your lack of a dryer though. i mean, that is one of my favorite smells (warm laundry). nothing better than throwing on warm laundry.probably because i’m almost always cold.

    looks like you are having lots of fun over there though. i have to say, i love this new asiancajun layout.

  6. I covet those keys. Some day you will have to return yours to your landlord, of course, but what a great souvenir if you could find discarded ones at flea markets. They would make interesting jewelry, as Liv mentioned above, or be incorporated into a Joseph Cornell style box. If they were brass and could be polished up, I might even hang some on my Christmas tree. Or just use a big one as the anchor of my real key chain. Or as fobs on the pull chains of my ceiling fans. (Getting carried away now.)

  7. So you actually found a magical wardrobe, but just couldn’t get your flat key to work on it? That’s disappointing. You should call a lock smith, or “a keymonger” or whatever they call them there. I expect to be let inside the magical wardrobe when I come to visit.

  8. Keep the “mundane” updates coming! I enjoy living vicariously through you. I hope that you get through the adjustment grumps soon. I’m sure a visit from your other half in December will help!

  9. Yep it’s true dryers really aren’t all that common in the UK. Also unless your lucky enough to have space for a separate laundry room washers are in the Kitchen not the bathroom.

    On the flip side I was really startled when I moved to Vancouver to find that a lot of apartments don’t have a washer. You have to either drag your arse to the basement or the laundrette. Almost all rentals I’ve ever looked at in the UK came with it’s own washer.

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