Drinks with the Puma, finally claiming a 250, and the submission of the Phall...

Family,

And a good morning to you from across the Pond on a BLISTERINGLY SUNNY day in the Mother Country. February is over - BRING ON SPRING!!! Seriously, I am SO EXCITED about sunshine and the prospect of warmer weather (even if it is just a few degrees).

So yesterday was a great day. For starters, Owain and I rolled down to Tiffinbites, where we had lunch with th Puma. Apologies that I don't have a photo yet, but the Puma is elusive, and recording him on film is always a tricky proposition.

After work, we met for the "mandatory Friday meeting" in "Conference Room Double C" - that would be the Cat & Canary. En route, we did notice that progress is FINALLY being made on the CrossLink rail in Canary Wharf. Project folks familiar with the walk to the Cat - check out the area beside our building that's just been drained for the next phase of the project!

It was a great couple of hours at teh C & C amongst rotating parties, including Lord, Owain, the Puma, myself, and Lynn Barron, another one of our teammates who was over from the states. The highlight of all this? FINALLY, Sammy's got a "250" glass, baby! That's right - the commemorative pint glasses to celebrate 250 years of Guinness greatness on the planet are precious commodities, and I now own one (thanks to a quick snatch and grab, of course). This is VERY exciting news - after all, we desperately needed some more pint glasses...

I then hopped the Jubes to meet up with muffin at home, who was leading a "clear the fridge of booze" crusade of her own. However, she's just finished an Abbot and a Sol before I arrived, so we promptly turned and hit up the Rajdoot for the marquee event of the evening: Taylor vs. Phall.

So for those of you who don't know, Indian food has several levels, with every restaurant being somewhat different. Here are the categories:

1. Passanda - made with fruit - TOTALLY mild with no Spice (this has TOM PRICE written all over it)

2. Korma - made with coconut milk - about 4 BILLION calories and very tasty, but in no way spicy

3. Massala - made with creams, garlic, saffron, and cardamon - a good start for beginners who like heat, but not much there

4. Ceylon - some spices and some coconut powder along with a few de-seeded chili's. This is a VERY tasty dish for those looking for a moderate challenge.

5. Rogan Josh - stew in some tomatoes and add some spices - warning - newcomers will feel this.

6. Madras - Gettin' toasty, this is a tomato gravy loaded with chilis.

7. Vindaloo - this is 100% breathing fire. This is basically a recipe of nothing but chilis with some spices added late. Note: Until last night - this was where I always stopped.

8. Phall - This stuff is basically kerosene poured into a plate, lit, and then filled with whole chili's. If you think Vindaloo is remotely warm, avoid this like the plague.

I am happy to report that I not only survived but DECIMATED this dish. That's right - Sammy's taste buds are gone - I FEAR NO FOOD EVIL!

That being said, on the way out, our waiter (the guy we always see) said, "Mate -in 3 weeks we are getting our first shipment of Naga peppers (incidentally - the HOTTEST peppers on the planet). You come back then, I'll make sure our chef makes you something MUCH hotter than Phall." This was a "Man vs. Food" moment, and I said, "Brother - I can't wait." The countdown is on. Dinger - I'll make sure and get it on video so we can compare it with the Habanero adventure...

We then rolled back home, where Jenny told me that our clothes dryer/hanger thing had finally collapsed. Knowing that we couldn't POSSIBLY survive without one for the next 4 months, muffin rocked into John Lewis and picked up a 40 GBP STEEL CLOTHES HORSE. Check this monster out! Apparently it folds into like 458 different positions for optimal drying based on type of clothing. All I know is that we just dropped $67 USD on a clothes line.

Okay, we're now up after a 12.5 hour sleep, and the sun is shining! We're gonna get a "late" brekkie at Ozer before going down to check on tickets for a show this evening. We're then gonna roll over to Green Park and enjoy some of the sunshine. IT'S THE WEEKEND!!!!!!

Okay, that's all the news that's fit to print. Chat tomorrow!

Love,

Sam and Jenny