Suzy Says

OK, here’s what’s been happening in the eon and a half since I have updated you on the Adventures of Suzy in Europe:

1. Got to Amsterdam and back in one piece. We went EasyJet, and although I have heard lots of complaints about them – all after I had already bought the tickets, of course – the flights left on time and arrived early. Finally, something I have no complaints about. Imagine.

Great to see my old friend Alice and to take my niece Cat and her friend Claudia around such a fabulous town. I have been to Amsterdam a few times, so it was fun to see the place through the new eyes of the girls, and I think they very much enjoyed having a local guide. It was shopping boot camp, as Alice took us to all the cool stores, including the fun and useful Condomerie and lots of great street markets. Ego boost: everyone took Cat and me for sisters.

We had dinner at the fashionable and gorgeous Inez, which is owned by Alice’s downstairs neighbor. The food was exquisite, and I don’t know which view was better: the city lights through the huge windows, or the guests coming and going to the private party hosted upstairs by the gay swimming team.

The girls had a blast, and it was great to see Alice again. There’s nothing like your really old friends, ones who have known you and loved you more than half your life. Especially when you consider the horrible fashions of the late seventies to mid-80’s. *shudder*

2. Discovered that Cat is not cartographically challenged, like her aunt Suzy and mother Beth. Beth drove, Cat navigated, and after the requisite 3 hours we arrived at the University of Bournemouth, where Cat is studying television production. Further ego boosting as I was continually taken for a student. Will have to declare ego as excess baggage.

It was hard to leave Cat there, even though she is a smart, strong, independent girl who can – and does – take care of herself. But for Beth, her only daughter won’t be living at home ever again, and is now taking her first steps on her own as an adult. And for her aunt, the daughter she never had is now an adult, out on her own. We all got all choked up in the parking lot. So un-English. Congrats, baby, and have some damn fun, ‘K?

3. Started sorting through and packing up my father’s things to bring home. I really might have to declare excess baggage for this one. I am also running out of time, since I have to spend Monday night at Heathrow before my boring and terrifying flight home on Tuesday. B&T not lessened by the knowledge that my mother will be there when I get home, living in my living room until her things arrive and she can move into her new apartment in Petaluma. Eeek. Also John might just greet me at the door holding nothing but divorce papers, after the hell of dealing with my family and their many crises during my long absence. Note to self: bring English candy and chips for John in an attempt to stave off divorce.

4. Took time off from sorting and fretting to sneak up to Town today and visit Kensington Palace, birthplace of Queen Victoria and London home of Princess Diana. In honor of the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, there is a special exhibit of wedding dresses worn by Queens for the past century, including the present Queen’s, her mother’s, and Queen Victoria’s. Really charming. Also displayed are splendid gowns from the early years of the Queen’s reign, and some of Princess Diana’s, too. So it was an enjoyably frivolous day. But now, back to work!

Love/hate for Friday, September 27, 2002
Inside Coffee vs. Outside Coffee

I firmly believe that there are two kinds of people: inside coffee drinkers, and outside coffee drinkers. I’m an inside coffee drinker myself, and I just can’t understand those outside coffee drinkers at all.

When I wake up in the morning, the first thing I do is stumble out to the kitchen and put on the kettle. The cats would like me to feed them first, but no. They have to wait until the kettle is on and the coffee is ground, waiting in its little French press. The coffee is always Caffe Trieste mocha java. No exceptions. It’s caffeine perfection. Just pour it in a cup and I’m done. No pollutants like cream or sugar to come between me and the coffee of bliss.

When the coffee is ready, I take it and my toast back to bed and read while consuming them. Then, and only then, am I able to face the horrors of contact lenses, make-up, getting dressed, and other necessary tasks for a civilized girl before unleashing herself on general society. I realize this means that I’m addicted to the caffeine (thanks to that summer in France when I was 17 and first developed a taste for coffee), but I feel it’s OK because I only have one cup a day. And otherwise, I have such a Puritan life: no liquor, no card playing, no dancing. Well, hardly ever, as the immortal Gilbert & Sullivan would say.

But the outside coffee drinkers…now, they are apparently able to do all these things without benefit of caffeine. They can get out of the house and practically all the way to work uncaffeinated. If you can do that, you don’t need the coffee. Or you don’t need it bad enough, my friend. Yet these people go to one of the five Starbuck’s on the block nearest their place of work and spend an outrageous amount of money on a drink they apparently don’t even need. I will never, ever get it.

I’m not saying that I’m completely immune to the considerable charms of having coffee in outdoor caf&eacutes, particularly in Paris or pretty much anywhere in Italy. It’s a wonderful way to people watch or allow one’s feet to recover from the joys of the Uffizi, for example. When in Rome, etc. But at home, I need coffee before I can even think about facing the day. I’m an inside coffee girl.