As far as I know, no one I know has died in the disaster. A couple of close shaves, but thankfully they survived. My thoughts are with everyone who is still waiting for news, and those who have suffered.
If you're not a rescue worker, doctor, nurse, or someone who has applicable skills, then please donate to one of the following instead:
15-17 Broadwick Street, London W1
The last time I had dim sum I arrived a couple of hours late. I argued with the restaurant about the bill being far too much, only to discover later that my friends had actually eaten that much. So I had to find a new dim sum place.
My aunt recommended this place to me, and apparently so did the friend I went with on Sunday. The ground floor was a brightly lit tea room, serving a variety of teas and lots of cakes. We descended to the dining area and proceeded to sit on a shared table.
The chairs only had one arm rest. A 20 ft fish tank ran the length of the bar. The dining area was apparently dimly lit, but I could see very well. Obviously they have paid lots of attention to the style and feel of the place. Our coats were whisked away as we were seated, and our menu presented. The menu had a good broad selection, which we proceeded to evaluate. As we worked our way through another region's dumplings, and the Italian gents got their ribs, some Japanese ladies sat down on the remaining spare seats. All of us ordered very different things, and I believe we were all very pleased.
The trip to the toilet confirmed my suspicions that this was a ridiculously stylish place. Apart from the custom made lit urinals, they had thick luxurious paper (very silky) towels for wiping your hands on. I really should have seen what their toilets looked like.
The bill came to £20 each, and the only disappointment was that they had run out of Jasmine tea. The food was extremely good, and the service was superb. I think it has just become my regular place for dim sum.
This weekend saw H celebrating her 30th. Her boyfriend organised a fantastic surprise party, starting off in Jiva Juice in Camden.
Anish prepared for us various juice smoothies laced with a variety of alcohol. Some included peanut butter and nutella; others were full of berries. All had us nicely fueled for the rest of the evening.
If you're in Camden and fancy something healthy, then do head over there.
(Note: alcohol was a party addition, and is not normally served with your lunchtime smoothie)
What a great gift for Christmas. Although it should have been earlier, and for other reasons, it is still fantastic news.
Maybe Dubbya might consider a similar gift to the world.
Wandering around Covent Garden in the freezing cold today, almost felt like Christmas, apart from the not so subtle profiteering. I was cheered up by this Australian lady, selling Santa hats, whirling to a nearby busker's tunes.
A friend of a friend of a friend was playing in a band at the Gardening Club this afternoon. I have been before for drinks (it is a nightclub), but did not realise that they have a battle of the bands every Sunday.
A reasonable £4 to get in. The atmosphere was very chilled and relaxed. Four different styled bands played one set each of about seven songs. Thoroughly recommended if you want to see some real bands play some original music. I will be returning for sure.
My shipment of inks from the Writing Desk arrived last week: Two bottles of turquoise, which are off to Dad for Christmas, one tall bottle of Aurora Black, and a fat bottle of Diamine Monaco Red.
I have been using Diamine Monaco Red in my daily writer for the past week. It is a dark, blood red with a subtle hint of brown. Recommended for anyone looking for a writer, as opposed to a highlighter.
The pen is nearly dry; I have to consider what ink to use next. Normally I use Waterman Havana, a dark chocolately brown. However, I'm itching to try out the Aurora Black, which came highly recommended.
I thought buying inks would be cheaper than buying pens. Sadly, I have discovered that the more inks you buy, the more pens you need to have access to all your new inks. It's a vicious circle - proceed at your own risk.
This month's Linux Format (LXF61) has the SUSE 9.2 Live Eval DVD/CD on the cover.
See if 9.2 will run on your hardware and take a peek at the new offering. Note that the DVD version needs 384MB of RAM, the CD can run on 256MB.
You can of course download the Live Eval instead.