• Wearing our poppies with pride: ninety years of Remembrance

    At the eleventh hour on  Nov. 11, 2008, we will mark ninety years since the end of The Great War. In the U.S. you call it Veterans' Day. In the U.K., we know  Nov.11 as Remembrance Day or Poppy Day. Beginning in 1939, at the start of World War Two, the two-minute silence was moved to the Sunday

  • Conkering - one nut at a time

    Scared of spiders? Suffer from arthritis? Need a way to relieve all that pent-up energy that builds during the working day? The humble conker has many attributes that may not at first be apparent. I cannot attest to the power of the fruit of the horse chestnut to send the eight-legged ones scurrying

  • The joys of being separated by a common language

    It isn't often I would dare to say that I disagree with the playwright George Bernard Shaw who claimed that "England and America are two countries separated by a common language." I am not sure how much time he spent with Americans but I doubt he was as lucky as I am, spending each working day as

  • Paddington Bear - Britain's furry favourite reaches 50

    The topic of immigration can be a hot one on both sides of the Atlantic. However, this year Britain celebrates arguably its most beloved illegal immigrant who arrived 50 years ago from Darkest Peru. Paddington Bear arrived in the U.K. following the wishes of his Great Aunt Lucy, whose advanced age

  • In an English country garden

    A glorious green explosion has happened in my back garden. I can hardly believe that a few short months ago the trees were bare, the shrubs leafless and my perennial plants just small shoots poking through the soil. Every spare moment is needed to keep a degree of control as weeds struggle for space

  • The Eurovision Song Contest – Europe’s annual music jamboree

    When I was a little girl, my family lived in Germany for a number of years; my dad was stationed there with the Royal Air Force and I have the warm, comforting childhood memories of that time. Perhaps that's why I enjoy being so close to Europe and having such a diversity of cultures and languages

  • Saint David's Day, March 1

    Most Americans I speak to are very familiar with St Patrick's Day and all its associated fun and festivities, but few are aware that England, Scotland and Wales also each have their own national day named after their very own patron saint. The stories of these patron saints - St. George (England),

  • Mothering Sunday in the U.K.

    I often travel north to Yorkshire to visit my mother, but this weekend I shall have a special mission; it's Mothering Sunday in the UK. Mothering Sunday is the fourth Sunday of Lent. Since the date of Lent is not fixed, the date for Mothering Sunday changes every year. In 2008, it falls on Mar.

  • Feeling under the weather?

    Even if you have been on the base for just a little while, you have surely noticed how changeable our British weather can be. If you spend much time around British people, you will have noticed that our obsession with the weather forecasts isn't just a stereotype; it's a survival skill. You might

  • Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day: Feb. 5

    Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day -- all four terms refer to the same day: the day before the beginning of Lent. Since the date of Easter changes each year, so does the date of Shrove Tuesday. Shrove Tuesday is the day to reflect, to seek penance and to get ready for Lent. Many