List 44

Love: Listening to my old records on our new record player. It brings back a lot of memories of a time when pretty much 90% of the music I loved was from the U.K.

Like: Never Let Me Go. Last week I read the book, by Kazuo Ishiguro, and then watched the film. I guess the story would be characterized as literary science fiction, although it's very much a quietly observed character piece. It's set in the recent past (the 1970s-early 90s), and takes place in England. And while the film adaptation trimmed some of the book's details, both versions are ultimately haunting and touch upon fundamental questions of humanity. One reviewer of the book summed up its affect nicely: "Only after closing the book do you absorb the magnitude of what his characters endure."

Discovery: We recently had the good fortune, courtesy of our friends Gareth and Clare, to experience a proper English Sunday lunch. (Or linner? Drunch? Not sure what to call it when you eat at 4pm.) Apparently, lard is the key to brilliant roasted potatoes. Not pictured but definitely present: the requisite yorkshire puddings.

Obsession: Mr. Darcy. Sigh. Pride & Prejudice is such the boringly obvious girl thing to love, but I cannot help it. The book is an annual read, and both the 1995 BBC series and the more recent film bring the story (and the man) to life in very satisfying ways.

Complaint: My impatience for my Mini Countryman to arrive. It's currently on a boat crossing the Atlantic. Three more weeks to go. Bollocks.