Finally, we’ve been having some nice weather! The past few weeks have been a bit odd, with temps going down into the 50s…wearing a jacket in June just isn’t natural. This week’s weather is perfect:

Whenever the temperature is anything above 75 degrees, the radio announcers like to say “Watch out, it’s a scorcher out there!” I just laugh, because what would they say about the 120 degree summer temps in the Coachella Valley? “Watch out, we’re in hell!” Well, they wouldn’t be that far from the truth…

One thing that isn’t so great when the temps get a bit “high” is having to ride the tube. It’s absolutely miserable down there…tons of people packed into a tube car like sardines, and no air conditioning.
And you know what’s really, really bad? When the Tube becomes stuck in the tunnel.

I like this part: “continually investigating new technologies to achieve this aim.”
Yeah, uhh…that new technology, it’s called air conditioning. If the pathetic DC metro system (True or False: DC Metro – worst subway system in the world?) can install A/C in its cars and stations, then why can’t London?

Other London related news…
We’re getting a beach, we’re getting a beach! Or wait, maybe not!
Plans to create a “beach” on the South Bank have unexpectedly been thrown into disarray.
The beach, which would be created at the Hungerford coach park site, near the London Eye, would be used by sunbathers and tourists during the day and as a venue for open-air cinema screenings and barbecues in the evenings.

According to this artist’s rendition of a beach on the Thames, it will be a surfing friendly beach (notice the boards next to the lifeguard tower). Well damn, if I had known this I wouldn’t have left my board back in California…oh wait, nevermind, NO WAVES here.

Mayor Ken wants to import snakes into London:
Britain’s only poisonous snake, the adder, is on the verge of extinction in the capital, the mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, has warned.

Mr Livingstone said yesterday that the situation was so grave he was considering bringing in adders from other parts of the country to stop the species from becoming extinct in London.

Yeah, importing poisonous snakes sounds like a great idea…

Book your tickets now for Air Scotland’s upcoming London-Stansted – Baghdad route!
The airlines founder, Iraqi-born Dhia Al-Ani, said of the plans: ‘We obviously won’t be flying through hails of bullets and missiles and giving parachutes to passengers, but I’m very hopeful the situation will be much calmer by November. Already there are flights going into Baghdad from Jordan and Dubai with no problems. The only tricky bit is getting to the airport.’

Hmmm…yes…getting to the airport. What, no free airport shuttle?

KGB Spies Had Guidebook for Keeping up Appearances in London
Secret intelligence papers made public in Britiain have revealed that KGB spies had a special guide to help them blend in to pre-WWII England. Carry smart luggage, ensure your AA membership is up to date and never travel south of the river, was just some of the advice given to Soviet spies in 1930s London.

Heh…I live south of the river.

From Russia with secrets
Tell an Englishman that an assassin might choose to kill someone innocently waiting for a London bus by jabbing him with an umbrella tip containing a pellet of the rare and virtually untraceable poison ricin, and the Englishman’s first reaction will be to laugh in disbelief. Why bother with such elaborate cloak-and-dagger tactics? If you want to bump someone off, why not just push him under the bus?

Oh yeah, and in non-London related news, I saw “Batman Begins” today. I liked it…

Related posts:

1. Boris Johnson puts an end to the Circle Line Party Not much fun, are you, Boris? But I will admit that he has an awesome first name. And how can you not love the guy’s hairstyle? Last Call on the London Tube: London’s new mayor, Boris Johnson, left, said that he was banning alcohol on the city’s public transportation...
2. It is FINALLY Spring! Today’s temp was in the mid 80s.  I am very happy.Everyone in DC, you like this weather?  This is what I go back to for winter break while all of you are freezing your asses off in NY and NJ.One request – can someone please turn the air conditioning...
3. To tube or not to tube? Interesting article from Newsweek: The latest analysis of evidence that led to last summer’s Code Orange alert suggests that Al Qaeda operatives were plotting a “big bomb” attack against a major landmark in Britain but had no active plans for strikes in the United States, U.S. intelligence sources tell...
4. “So we open the Press Enterprise this morning…” My mom sent me an e-mail yesterday saying that she was surprised to see this article and my picture in the paper on Friday morning. My friend, Kim, had asked me to send her an e-mail giving a general feeling for what it was like to be in London...