England - Round The World Tour 2003 T-19

pre-departure

Leigh-on-Sea

Saturday 22nd February

Back from Richard & Kay’s this morning. We had a really good time with the kids yesterday. Not a lot to do activity wise where they live but did eventually have a blast on a new go-kart racetrack nearby. The go-karts have very powerful petrol engines and extremely low ground clearance. Sitting with your bum less than a couple of inches off the ground, you really feel the speed as you power around the curves and bends. Although they only go about 40 mph, you feel like you are doing more like 60 mph down the straights! Richard, the three kids and myself raced around for about 20 laps altogether. I would have had the best lap-time too if it were not for Richard bumping me on the penultimate lap, sending me spinning into one of the chicanes and causing me to loose valuable time. Bastard! He probably derived a great deal of satisfaction from this as I was winning for most of the race and almost constantly waving taunting hand gestures in his direction most of the time. Yes, the sibling rivalry is alive and kicking still J We also spent some time at the park, playing ball, and finished up the evening in front of the TV watching a rental DVD.

Today we went shopping with Jacqueline for the household’s weekly sustenance. Honestly, trying to follow Jacqueline around the supermarket floor is like trying to catch a recently decapitated chicken through a barnyard full of foxes. Trying to push a several hundred pound shopping trolley that is so full to the brim that loose boxes of cereal and such go flying down the isles every time we took a turn at full speed, didn’t make the errand any easier either.