When we got back from Rome and got off the train from Stansted Airport at Liverpool Street Station and began walking back to our flat, I experienced the feeling of familiarity and ease that said “This is my neighborhood. I’m back home.” It was nice to get back to the flat.

I stayed up last night to watch the fourth (and, it turned out, final) game of the Mets-Cubs series. I’d missed the first two while we were in Italy and fell asleep and missed the third. Since they were all wins, it occurred to me that it might be bad luck for me to watch. But after Duda’s home run in the first, followed by another by d’Arnaud, I stopped worrying. I texted with Alex during the game and got to see the first six innings and the Mets take control of the game. By 3:30 AM, the Mets were ahead 6-1 after six innings and it was unfortunately clear that the game would go on until well past 4:30, not counting the celebratory stuff. I gave in to exhaustion since the lead seemed pretty safe and went to sleep and got the official good news when I woke up.

The idea of flying back to NYC for the World Series has crossed my mind and Judie suggested that I do it. But plane fare and baseball tickets would likely cost $2,000, which seems like too much money to watch a game while jet lagged. I have got a bottle of champagne for when they win. We have met some people who are Royals fans and live in St. Johns Wood, so I may suggest watching a World Series day game with them if the Royals make it, as seems likely. Do they have any day games in the World Series any more? It would be kind of hard to have a baseball watching party in the middle of the night.

I think the fact that Charles Darwin ins on the £10 note says a lot about the UK. Could you imagine Darwin on the $10 bill in the US, a country where something like half the population doesn’t believe in evolution?

In UK political news, George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Paul Ryan of England, is the sort of the Treasury Secretary here, but with far more power. He has proposed a budget that would slash payments to the poor and middle class that is so shockingly cold-hearted that even many of the other Tories (not a warm-hearted lot) are suggesting that it goes too far. It is really terrible and most of it will get through, which is the thing about a Parliamentary system. As a rule, they have to govern or there are new elections called. In the US, the Republicans in Congress can’t govern and don’t even seem to be interested in doing so.

And in the Rugby World Cup, for the few of you who are not following it closely, all of the Northern Hemisphere teams are out, leaving New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Argentina in the semi-finals. The All Blacks seem like to best team and are favored to win it all. It would be great to have a New Zealand v. Australia final, which I could at least watch during waking hours.

I love watching the BBC show at 11:30 where they review the front pages of the coming morning.

Judie is gone for the next week, so I’m trying to figure out ways to keep busy. I’m going to take a cooking class tomorrow and another on Monday and I’m thinking of going to see O’Neil’s “The Hairy Ape” at the Old Vic next week.