The Great and Random Ramblings of Cannwin

When moving (next time) remember to avoid Western South Dakota in early August. Holy Moly! I know I said before that South Dakota was a hopping place but let me reiterate, this place is crazy. There is this little get together called the Sturgis Bike Rally that just happens to run the first part of August. It brings in around 50,000 bikers... and we had to drive through it. Have you ever tried to drive when you knew a motorcycle was in the next lane? When you can't see them, but you know they are there? Well, imagine it with the two wheeled monsters everywhere, you are in a huge 4-door Ford F-150, trailing behind an even bigger U-Haul (with attached Mazda). You look left, you look right, you look in your blind spot... three times... and still you hesitate. The roar of engines is all around you, you wait just a moment more and out of seemingly nowhere a Harley passes you on the right. How did you miss him? You've counted six cops so far. You're literally going 10 miles und...

When I was in England, I learned all kinds of fun new things. I learned about the diversity of a single language. And how easily it is to misunderstand someone simply because their slang is different. For example, I was told by our coach driver that one time he was driving a bus load of American teenager's. It was near the end of the trip and they were all tired so he made the comment "Come on boys, keep your pecker's up." (or something) The boys- being teenager's- all burst out laughing and he had to ask what was so funny. Evidently, pecker is slang for chin in England. I also learned that they weigh themselves in stones over there. Stones? Yeah, that's about how I reacted. So today I looked it up. A stone is 14 pounds or 6.4 kilograms (as if that really matters to us). It is a measurement greater than pounds, so your weight would come out stones with the left overs being in pounds. Example: I weighed myself this morning in stones- since my totally cool digit...

In England people have some wierd names for some pretty basic things. A Water Closet (WC) is a bathroom, for instance. But they also have some words all mixed up... poor people. I feel a need to help straighten some things out for them. This: Is a scone. This: Is a really bad picture of what a biscuit is... with chicken in the middle and evidently a $2.25 way towards an early death. It is NOT a scone- see above. And this! Is called a cookie, and as you can clearly see... looks nothing like the biscuit that you keep calling it. Hope that helps. Any questions... you know where to find me. ;)