A Fancy Shmancy Summer

I have been terrible at blogging this summer :( truly a disappointment to myself. But I promise it's been with good reason. Here come some major end of summer updates, starting with a very special trip I took to:
California, by way 
of London! 
Thanks to some convenient work of Papa Richie's, and some summer availability of CSR's, there were wonderful times to be had. It was my grand return to the UK after a 22 year absence. They seem to have got on alright without me, but I could also tell they were excited I was there. Overall, a really sweet respite from Harlem and momentary reveling in an adult-type budget. (Thanks Dad!)

Like any good Richie, I made careful documentation of the food we had! My culinary trip included 2 high teas, a shepherds pie, lots of scones, even more flake bars, and some very swanky steak at an Argentinian place with cow hide wallpaper.

And like any good actor, I took in the best of what London's theatre (note the spelling please) had to offer. First was Doctor Faustus at Shakespeare's Globe which was not only wonderfully done, but in an environment so rich with thoughtful design and heritage, it almost made me want speak in verse for a living. We also took a tour of the place and actually read the little signs inside the museum. The play was a perfect mix of beautiful language, intriguing theology, and dancing puppets; truly something for everyone in our family.

The pinnacle of our entertainment was, without a doubt- Phantom II: Love Never Dies. Yeah, you heard right. Go ahead and take this opportunity to be jealous. I relished every moment of this awesomely bad spectacle, from a maskless Phantom, to Dia De Los Muertos-esq costumes, to a bastard kid, to Jan Brady moments. The only downside was when I tried to buy a t-shirt and the vendor told me that the only size they had left was an x-small and it would "Clearly not fit me". Thanks, pal.

Other excursions included Windsor Castle (here depicted), Stonehenge, Oxford, The Tower of London, Thanes boat tour, the National Gallery, and a night out at the Ministry of Sound (a club that makes me cool since I went, but lame since I'm blogging about it). Through all this, my sister and I thought Paddington Bear's travel tag said it best. In a country where we don't know where we're going and must rely on the kindness of strangers, "Please look after this bear".

From London I had a precious short two days in Tejas filled with sleep and food at home and limeade's and movies. Quickly, however, a group of amazing ladies beckoned me westward, and to the (now) Jen Kraushaar's bachelorette extravaganza I went!





We did all kinds of adult type things like wine tasting, and jungle safaris, and ordering pizza in the hotel, and catch-phrase, and water fighting and .... wait... that doesn't sound all that mature. Well hey, we can only be ourselves! Quality time at the Perkins' and a midnight curfew with my girls all contributed to the feelings of homeyness and joy. I still am always caught off guard by how friggin' much we laugh when we're all together. Two week vacation- EPIC WIN.