Losing a Family Member

Today the husband and I sadly had to say goodbye to our dog Bandit (pictured above with me in 2009 at a friend's Nags Head cottage) who had been my loyal companion for just shy of 15 years. Bandit never met a person or animal he did not like - even if he enjoyed playing Kamikaze to my late cat. He was a gentle little soul and I remember moments like him sitting all day with my late father in my dad's near final days to lying on the bed with me when he perceived me as being sick (i.g., hung over) to playing "crazy dog" when he would race around the house. He saw some of my darkest days during my coming out saga and was always there to give his unconditional love.  He will be much missed.

Bermuda 2019 - Day 1

We traveled to Bermuda for the wedding of a young woman the husband has known since she was a child.  Amazingly, our flights on American Airlines were on time - the first leg we even arrived early.  There are a small number of folks from Hampton/Newport News - most of the guests are from Boston - so we will have our own group within the larger group. We are staying at a lovely B&B not far from the wedding venue at the Coral Beach Club.  Attire for the wedding for men will be "Bermuda formal": tuxedos except with Bermuda shorts (yes, I will post photos). The welcome dinner Friday evening will be at the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club.

After settling in and having our first cocktail, we joined friends from Newport News for dinner at the Ocean Club at the Fairmont Southampton - shown in the photo above - one of the grander hotels on the island. Today, we plan on lunch at The Reefs - a fabulous hotel once owned by dear friends, the husband of the couple having passed away recently. The afternoon will likely involve a ferry ride into Hamilton and some shopping since I managed to leave part of my outfit for Friday evening at home. I will also try to get some beach or pool time in - the B&B has a gorgeous pool.

Blogging, it goes without saying, will be reduced during this trip.  A friend is staying at our home house/dog sitting while we are away.

Key West 2019 - Day 4

A mini Chesapeake Avenue reunion at La Te Da - click image to enlarge.

Things got lively yesterday at Tea Dance at La Te Da, especially with it being St. Patrick's Day which gave folks in Key West even more motivation to enjoy their cocktails.  The music  by DJ Rude Girl was great and LOTS of folks danced, including just about everyone in our group.  As in past years, we saw a number of locals who we see annually at Tea Dance.

Dinner yesterday evening at Martins was wonderful as we dined under the stars.  Overall, it was a great day.  Today we have not set plan or schedule for the first time this trip. Some of our friends have headed back to Fort Lauderdale and Hampton. Other than checking office emails later in the day, it will hopefully be a lazy day of reading and relaxing by the pool. 

A Key West realtor we see each year.

Dancing with one of our Hampton neighbors.

Key West 2019 - Day 3

Yesterday was a largely non-stop day, especially for the husband who did hair for three of of friends (who are long time clients).  One of the highlights of the day was lunch at Lattitudes on Sunset Key where the image above was taken on the island's pier.  As is the tradition, our "Auntie Mame" friend treated.  The food was wonderful as were the beverages.  Two Key Lime Martinis caused me to need a nap when we returned to the Equator.  We dined at a restaurant called Michael's just a block or two from the Equator with our friends from Light House Point, Florida, our former neighbors who now call Key West home, and current neighbors to celebrate our neighbor's birthday.

Today will be more laid back with no set activities until Tea Dance at La Te Da this afternoon (an annual tradition), followed by dinner at Martin's an amazing German restaurant.

Key West 2019 - Day 2

Despite early rain, day two of our 2019 Key West pilgrimage was terrific.  The homes tour was over the top.  While typically focusing on old homes, this year a number of newer or significantly enlarged homes filled with amazing art work were the focus. Those thinking of visiting can check things out here as to when tours take place.  Later in the afternoon, the husband and I went by Local Luxe, a great and reasonably priced jewelry store at 515 Fleming Street, a few blocks down the street from The Equator Resort (the owner, Barbara, is very nice).  

Our evening consisted of dinner at Hot Tin Roof - where the photo above was taken - and seeing Young Frankenstein at the Waterfront Playhouse (the acting was superb as was the singing and dance routines.

Today, 12 of us will do lunch at Lattitudes on Sunset Key - an annual ritual - and this evening we are having a dual birthday dinner for two friends on the trip with us.  The afternoon will consist of lazing by the pool at The Equator.

Key West 2019 - Day 1

We arrived safely in Key West yesterday at 11:15 am.  In keeping a promise to the husband, I stayed off the computer and office email all day, although I went through over 100 office emails this morning.  We lazed around the pool at the Equator and reconnected with guys we see here each year this same weekend.  As always, we enjoyed the cocktail hour at the Equator before heading to Duval Street for dinner at Mangoes (see image at left) and then another cocktail at Bourbon Street Pub where we saw one of our favorite female impersonators, Porche (see image below) who doesn't do costume changes but instead changes her demeanor and voice to mimic numerous singers.  Her Carol Channing, Judy Garland and Janis Joplin imitations are wonderful - and she is hysterically funny.

Today, more friends - including our European travel companions - arrive and after some time by the pool, we will be doing the historic homes tour this afternoon and biking around the island. Later, the daily cocktail party and then dinner and a play down at the Red Barn Theater. 

2019 Key West Pilgrimage

Early tomorrow, the husband and I head to Key West for our annual visit.  As in past years, we will be staying at the Equator Resort (pictured above), and are looking forward to seeing former neighbors who live in Key West now, other neighbors who will also be visiting, two of the husbands clients who winter in the keys, and our friends who took us to Europe last September. On the home front, one of the husband's salon employees will be living at our home while we are away (he's here now) to house sit and dog sit our Chihuahua.  Posting frequency will be likely reduced, although I will give updates on our adventures. 

National Coming Out Day: Stigma Against Gay People Can Be Deadly

With my husband in the Windsor Suite of the Greenbrier Resort. 

Today is National Coming Out Day which operates on the concept that one of the most basic forms of activism is to "come out" to family, friends and colleagues and live an authentic life as an openly lesbian or gay person. Stated another way, homophobia thrives in an atmosphere of silence and ignorance, and that once people know that they have loved ones who are lesbian or gay, they are far less likely to maintain homophobic or oppressive views.  I came out roughly 17 years ago and lived through periods when Virginia's sodomy law was still binding law and when same sex couples could not marry. (For the record, I am also the survivor of two serious suicide attempts driven by the adverse consequences of "coming out.")

Obviously, ending homophobia runs directly counter to the efforts of the Trump/Pence regime and the Republican Party to continue to demonize gays and lesbians and to role back LGBT rights.  These efforts are aimed in part to endear the GOP and Trump/Pence to Christofascists who continue to use the bogeyman of LGBT rights as their number one fundraising scare tactic.   Nowhere in the calculus of this vicious agenda is the very real harm done to real people.  A piece in the New York Times by a licensed physician looks at the documented harm such homophobic efforts cause.  I maintain that these "godly Christian" folk care little about "religious freedom" and instead are focused on inflicting cruelty on those who are different, even if such cruelty drives individuals to suicide.  Here are article highlights which look at the harm being done to individuals and often their families:

I’ve never been sure what to expect when meeting someone who’s just tried to take his own life. But I’ve learned to stop expecting anything.

Yesterday, my patient, a 20-something graduate student, swallowed a jumble of unmarked pills, hoping to die, after his father told him never to come home again. Today, he greeted me with a soft smile, his delirium starting to clear, his heart beating normally again.

“Whoops,” he said.   He’d been a happy kid who aimed to please. He once felt so bad for lying about having done his homework before playing video games, he told me, that he’d grounded himself. Sociable but square, he didn’t drink until he was 21, even though he’d gone to a college with a reputation for partying. Deeply religious, he was gay but desperately wanted not to be.

Now his father’s disavowal pushed him over the edge, capping a string of stigmatizing experiences at home, at school and at church. He’d had enough.

For decades, we’ve known that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals experience a range of social, economic and health disparities — often the result of a culture and of laws and policies that treat them as lesser human beings. They’re more likely to struggle with poverty and social isolation. . . . . L.G.B.T. youth are three times as likely to contemplate suicide, and nearly five times as likely to attempt suicide.

Some of these disparities have interpersonal roots: social exclusion, harassment, internalized homophobia. But often they stem from an explicit denial of rights: same-sex marriage bans, employment discrimination, denial of federal benefits.

Sexual minorities living in communities with high levels of prejudice die more than a decade earlier than those in less prejudiced communities.

But civil rights advances and growing public acceptance of L.G.B.T. individuals in recent years are among the more transformative social changes in modern American history. And evidence increasingly suggests this shift has measurably improved health care access and health outcomes for L.G.B.T. populations.

The halting, patchwork nature of L.G.B.T. rights expansions across the country has allowed researchers to study the effects on health and well-being by comparing states that expanded rights to those that failed to introduce protections, or actively curtailed them.

After Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage in 2003, mental health visits dropped significantly for gay men across the state. Other states that followed suit saw a 7 percent reduction in suicide attempts among L.G.B.T. adolescents. Nationwide, legalization of same-sex marriage is linked to increases in the likelihood that gay men have health insurance and a regular doctor to see.

By contrast, in states that passed same-sex marriage bans in 2004 and 2006, L.G.B.T. individuals experienced a marked rise in mental health problems, including anxiety, alcohol use and mood disorders. (No such increase was found in neighboring states that did not pass bans.)

But it’s more than just marriage. L.G.B.T. individuals who live in states where it’s legal for businesses to deny people service based on their sexual orientation have a higher risk for mental health problems. One study found a 46 percent increase in the proportion of sexual minorities reporting depression, anxiety and other emotional problems in states that passed denial-of-service laws. Again, no increase was observed in states without these laws.

But there’s reason to believe progress in L.G.B.T. health may be imperiled by a political and social environment that is growing less friendly toward sexual minorities. More states are trying to pass “religious liberty” laws that allow for discrimination based on gender and sexual identity. Several federal health surveys will no longer include questions about sexual orientation, making it more difficult for researchers to study disparities. And the Trump administration recently established a new division in the Department of Health and Human Services to defend health professionals who refuse to provide care to people or in situations that conflict with their personal beliefs, which could include the right to treat L.G.B.T. individuals. (L.G.B.T. patients already face discrimination at concerning rates.

I think of my young patient in the hospital bed who had attempted to kill himself. I remember the pain that remained even as the toxins he ingested left his body. And I worry that a new wave of anti-L.G.B.T. rhetoric and policy will mean that he — and people who love like him — will end up feeling more stigmatized, in poorer health, or no longer with us at all.

CCV Racing - An Escape from Politics

Waiting for wind and the start.

Sometimes I feel I suffer from an overload of politics and stress in general.  Other than surfing, which I sadly have not done regularly in several years after having a 70 month period of never missing a month surfing, I find sailing a great stress reliever.  I pursue this endeavor through racing at the Hampton Yacht Club where I have been a member since 2012. Today, I raced in the CCV Fall Racing series on a boat owned by a friend with whom I have raced before on a number of occasions. We took second (2nd) place overall and had a wonderful time.  As with surfing, once a race is underway, all else fades away and your focus becomes, the boat, the wind, and the competition.  The camaraderie is also wonderful and the connection with nature is unique (something power boating cannot offer in my view).   Above and below are photos from today which started off slow until the wind picked up but turned into a great day.

The Laser 28 that I crewed on today (and a number of other times).

Some of the 18+ boats competing today.

A view of Hampton Yacht Club - the husband and I were the first publicly recognized gay couple members.

One of our competitors motoring to the start.

Reflections on Paris and London 2018

Two weeks ago the husband and I along with two friends flew out of Washington Dulles to start our 2018 visit to Paris and London.  For me, it was likely the 7th - or more - visit to Paris and like the 5th or sixth visit to London.  My first visits to both cities were back in the 1981-1983 time frame when I was in-house counsel working for an oil company handling various international matters.  Our travel companions, a straight couple, but gay friendly, had never been to either city and were paying our airfare and accommodations in exchange for us planning the trio and serving as tour guides, if you will.  The goal was to show them an amazing time and to also indulge our love for both cities, each of which is a world capital yet so very different in so many ways (both are very LGBT friendly and when we went by London City Hall today, a rainbow flag was flying)

If pushed to choose which city I love more, my vote would go to Paris.  I love the architecture and the way in which the central city has been spared from modern monstrosities or soaring towers which are a total disconnect with the beautiful historic buildings.  London, in contrast is often modern next door to 18th century buildings in part because sections of London were destroyed during the blitz in World War II.  Paris escaped destruction due to the commanding German general's refusal to destroy parts of the city notwithstanding Hitler's orders to do so.

Both cities offer wonderful dining opportunities with London perhaps having more diverse offerings.  But for the nearly 100 miles we walked over the last two weeks - the husband and our travel companions all had apps that measured the amount of their walking - I hate to think how much weight we would have gained.  

In terms of getting around, both cities have amazing mass transits systems that make most American cities look very pathetic at best.  In both cities we bought unlimited 7-day travel cards and we made extensive use of the Metro/Underground systems which make New York City's system look very poorly maintained in comparison.   The train systems for travel outside the cities make Amtrak look positively horrible and the speed at which the trains travel - not counting the Eurostar which is in a class by itself - are amazing.  America could learn a great deal from both the UK and France on how to build remarkable and cost efficient mass transit systems (they could do the same on the issue of healthcare, especially France).

Since this is an LGBT blog, I'd be remiss if I did not mention the local men in each city.  Both being world capitals and deeply involved in the fashion industry, both cities have LOTS of handsome men (and women for female LGBT readers), but the men of Paris, in my opinion are the "hottest" - to quote the husband - and most style conscious.  

If you have never visited either city, I recommend that you do so.  There are economic ways to do so, including looking for discount flights, sharing an apartment with friends, using travel cards as we have to get around freely, and getting a "London Pass" or the "Museum Pass" for Paris which saves a considerable amount of money - the London Pass even got us free rail travel to Windsor Castle.

I'm not sure when I will return to either city, but I suspect I will see both again, especially Paris.  As for blogging tomorrow, we head to the airport in the morning and then need to drive back to Hampton after we arrive in Washington Dulles International.  Post will be sparse at best.

Paris 2018: Day 1 and Day 2

Plaza Athenee from Avenue Montangne

Plaza Athenne - Cour Jardin

Looking up from the Cour Jardin

Our arrival in Paris was delayed due the closure of Dulles International on Saturday evening due to severe thunderstorms which closed the airport for roughly 2 hours and 20 minutes.  The result was that we missed out connection in London to Paris and had to catch a flight 3 hours latter than planned.  Our apartment on Rue de Perche is a wonderful two bedroom, two bath apartment in a early 1800's building a block from the Picasso Museum. We spent our first afternoon walking around the Marais and end up having dinner at Vito's, a restaurant that at lest on Sundays is the equivalent of Annie's in the Dupont Circle area of Washington, DC.   We ended the evening with a nightcap at Raid Bar on Rue du Temple, a gay bar.  

Yesterday, we had a lazy morning and then had lunch at the elegant and opulent Hotel Plaza Athenee, a hotel I stayed at frequently during my days as in-house counsel for an oil company.  While extravagant, it was my "thank you" treat to our friends who treated the husband and I to this trip where we are the trip planners and tour guides. We followed that with a stroll up Avenue George V and then the Champs Elysse to the Arch de Triomphe.  We rounded out the afternoon with a visit to a favorite men's boutique on Rue de Rivoli back in the Marais (I bought two sport coats). 

Reduced Posting - Paris Here We Come

The husband and I are headed to Paris with friends.  We drive to Dulles International and then will fly to London on Virgin Atlantic and connect on Air France to Paris.  We will spend a week in Paris followed by a week in London.  Posting will be reduced for the next day or so while we travel, but I will post about our experiences as is my normal habit.  On the home front, the house sitter/dog sitter is all arranged.  This will be our friends' first trip to either city so the husband and I have served as trip planners and will be the tour guides, if you will. We kick of Paris with lunch at the Plaza Athenee where I staid many times in my days as in-house counsel.  Bon voyage! 

Plaza Athenee courtyard restaurant.

Key West 2018 - Day 1

Sunset Key and Latitudes with Key West in the background.

The husband and I will be up well before day light and headed to Norfolk International Airport to begin our annual trek to Key West.  If all goes well, we will be in Key West by 11:26 am.  We will be staying at The Equator on Fleming Street.  Two friends from Hampton will be traveling down and we will also meet mutual clients of the husband and me who are driving down from Fort Lauderale (they are taking us to Paris and London in September, but more on that later).  We will also see former neighbors who now live in Key West full time as well as two of the husband's clients who winter in the Keys and who will join us for lunch at Latitudes on Sunset Key on Saturday.  Sunday we will do the annual pilgrimage to La Te Da for tea dance.

We have a friend staying at our home and babysitting our dog - we lost our little one on March 9, 2018 - and otherwise holding down the fort.  The only downside of the trip is that I will be working on a large hotel refinance part of the time, but at least I will be doing so in gorgeous surroundings.

Posting will be on vacation mode and I will post thoughts and commentaries as time and activities allow. 

Ft. Lauderdale Get Away - Day One

We arrived on schedule on Monday afternoon (Christmas Day) and had good luck with our first attempt at using Turo - sort of an air bnb for cars - with no delays in having the car dropped off to us.  The guest house we are staying at - the Windamar - exceeded our expectations as well (booking online one never knows what the reality will be versus the website) and is located two blocks in from the beach about five blocks north of Sebastian Beach pictured above.  

Monday evening after dinner, we went and saw the movie "Call Me By Your Name" which was excellent, although I liked the book even better.  I can see why there is buzz about both Armie Hammer - who is very "hot" - and ‎Timothée Chalamet doing well during awards season.  Sadly, the movie has not yet played in perennially backwards Hampton Roads.  If it does come to the area after we return, I will likely see it again. 

Yesterday, we went by the home of some friends and picked up beach chairs and an umbrella before heading to Sebastian Beach for several hours.  Later we went shopping in Wilton Manor and bought tuxedo jackets to wear to the Inaugural Ball on January 13th at Mix, a men's clothing store that we always visit when in Ft. Lauderdale.  We followed that outing with dinner at Ethos, a wonderful Greek restaurant on Wilton Drive.    After that, we went back to the guest house and crashed.

Not sure what we will do today as yet. Thursday evening, we will dine at the Lauderdale Yacht Club, pictured below.

Click image to enlarge

Early Morning Rant: "Call Me By Your Name" and Hampton Roads' Backwardness

Yesterday began the United States release of the movie "Call Me By Your Name" which has received rave reviews and Oscar buzz ever since it premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier in the year.   Outlets as diverse as the New Yorker, Vanity Fair, Wall Street Journal, Variety, The Independent, New York Times, Rotten Tomatoes, etc., have all lauded the movie and its actors and directors.  All of which, of course, means it is NOT showing in Hampton Roads and cannot be found among any of the "coming soon" information" although it appears to be coming to Richmond next week.  With a strong gay romance theme, my fear is that other than the Naro Theater in Norfolk, few theaters in the region may show this movie that likes to view itself as "world class" and sophisticated - Virginia Beach perhaps laughably is trying to court Amazon for a major headquarters facility - yet has a huge Regent University/Pat Robertson display at Norfolk International Airport (which has no international flights).  Talk about telling visitors the area is not sophisticated or accepting!

The irony to me, of course is that places like Hampton Roads - Southwest Virginia even more so - need to see this movie and perhaps have their parochial eyes opened to the reality that love is love (reading the book which the movie is based on, which I have done, would be equally good).  In many ways the husband and I have a very nice life in Hampton Roads, but this is yet another occasion where I am reminded that this is not where I really would prefer to live.  There is a reason why all of our vacations are to truly progressive cities and/or foreign countries (Ft. Lauderdale in a month, Key West in March, and London and Paris next September).  

Yes, Virginia is set for another four years of progressive Democrat leadership under Ralph Northam, Mark Herring and Justin Fairfax which hopefully will improve things over all - an employment non-discrimination law protecting LGBT Virginians would be a nice start.  But socially and culturally, Virginia still has a very long way to go.  As shocking as the concept might be to Virginia Republicans who daily prostitute themselves to right wing religious extremists  best embodied by The Family Foundation, it takes more than low taxes to attract world class, progressive businesses.  Meanwhile, the husband and I will persist in doing our part to open minds in this area even though it gets exhausting at times.

New York City Weekend - Day 1

Looking forward to a fun weekend in NYC, starting with Hello Dolly tonight with the divine Bette Midler.   Once again, we are staying at a friend's apartment at 30 Christopher Street in the West Village.  Posting frequency may be down as we see friends, family that live here in NYC, and some of our favorite haunts.   On the home front, the Ralph Northam staffer that we have been housing since July 4th  weekend will watch after the house and the two Chihuahuas who have become very attached to him.  The photos are of the view flying in earlier today! 

Hurricane Irma Just Hit Category 3

With the recovery i east Texas still not even started, yet a new potential menace to the United States east coast is developing: a new Atlantic hurricane, name Irma just hit category 3 and is projected to hit category 4 before it makes landfall either somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico, Florida or the Atlantic coastline.  For the husband and I, it is always the "I" named storms that have hit Hampton Roads and resulted in flooding in our home: Isabel, Ida and Irene.  Now we have Irma headed westward from the eastern Atlantic Ocean. Since Ida and Irene, we have made the first floor of our home water resistant up to 3 feet above floor level, have installed a whole house generator and have installed 3 industrial grade sump pumps in the hope of never having standing water in our home again. Since the installation of the pumps and generator (which runs off natural gas and turns on automatically) we have never been tested.  The Atlantic looks at this new potential threat to America. Here are excerpts:

As Harvey moves on from southeastern Texas and floodwaters start to recede, meteorologists are tracking another storm brewing in the eastern Atlantic Ocean that they say could potentially approach the United States in the coming weeks.

Irma became a Category 3 hurricane late Thursday afternoon, making it the season’s second major hurricane. The hurricane now packs maximum sustained winds of 115 miles per hour, with stronger gusts.

Irma had already quickly transformed from a tropical storm into a Category 2 hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center. It exhibits an unusual—but not unprecedented—rate of growth, according to meteorologists.

Like Harvey and other Atlantic hurricanes, Irma started as a tropical wave off the coast of Africa and began a slow, westward churn across the Atlantic. Irma will spent the next few days traveling toward the eastern Caribbean region. Beyond that, it’s still too early to predict exactly where the hurricane will go, meteorologists say.

The high-pressure system could launch Irma toward any number of targets, including the Bahamas and Bermuda and U.S. states like Florida, North Carolina, and Texas, McNoldy said.  “There’s no certainty. It has to go somewhere,” he said. “We just don’t know where.”

Perhaps the husband and I are gun shy, but Irma bears watching.

London 2017 - Day 2

Yours truly

Today was a wonderful but long and busy day.  The highlight was our visit to Highclere Castle located about an hour and a half west southwest of London (even though the show, Downton Abbey place the estate in Yorkshire to the north of London).  The estate is spectacular and the grounds are amazing.  Due to the early hour involved in heading to the estate, not posts were feasible after I had dealt with my usual office emails and preparing a few document.  Once we got off the tour coach, we visited Harrod's - which is amazingly opulent, albeit very expensive. 

We then took the underground back to the Soho area.  After a visit to Compton's of Soho for a cocktail, we ended up at a wonderful restaurant called The Ivy of Soho.

One thing that has been noticeable is the extreme dislike of Donald Trump literally everywhere we go.  We constantly have to stress to Brits as well as other Europeans we have met that we did NOT vote for him and that we find the man to be just as foul as they view him.  Indeed, perhaps even more negatively than the non-Americans do. Polls have shown that the good opinion of the United States has plummeted since November 8, 2016, and the drive factor is Donald Trump.   Believe me, the polls are 100% accurate.  Those planning to travel abroad had best get ready for statements that "you people elected him"

The husband

London 2017 - Day 1

Yesterday was exhausting with the drive to Washington Dulles airport taking over 5 hours due the growing gridlock on I-64 and I-95.  The trip was a reminder of why we rarely visit Washington, DC. Thankfully, our flight on Virgin Atlantic left on time- the service was very good - and we actually arrived early.  The downside of the early arrival was an even lengthier wait to get through passport control.  We took the Heathrow Express into Central London and then made our way to Soho and our hotel on Firth Street.  Our room wasn't ready so we got breakfast and walked a great deal, including going to Saville Row.  The clothing was gorgeous, but the prices were generally astronomical.  I would one pair of dress pants for 75% off and the husband and I both score with a sale on jeans.

The husband is taking an afternoon nap after little sleep on the flight - I will do the same shortly - then we''\ll shower, get dinner and then check out some of the plentiful gay clubs in the neighborhood.   More posting tomorrow morning.

Reduced Posting - London Bound

The husband and I are hitting the road to Washington Dulles shortly to catch our flight to London on Virgin Atlantic.  We booked this trip six moths ago and cannot wait to arrive.  I have not been to London since my in-house counsel days and it will be the husband's first trip to London.  We have our "London Passes," tickets to Buckingham Palace and on Wednesday will spend the day at Highclere Castle  - one of the husband's bucket list items.  As in the past, I will post as our schedule allows and post photos of our travel adventure.  Our Ralph Northam campaign staffer who is living with us through November will be house sitting and taking care of our dogs.  Since he's been with us for a month already, even our high maintenance, six pound Chihuahua, Sassy, has warmed up to him.  We are staying in the theater district and looking forward to all of the clubs and menswear shopping. :)