Kew Gardens

I took the four children into the office today while Bec stayed with Henry. The boss had kindly invited us out to lunch, and there was another visiting employee here from America that I was particularly keen to meet. This was well worth while. Our American friend, a genuine man of his nation, endeared himself to the kids by inviting them to help themselves to his suit case full of lollies. After this we made our way over to Kew Gardens where the head of the single stocks desk (my English counterpart I suppose you'd say) had invited us over for dinner. This was really nice. A great change of pace, and a shame that Bec and Henry couldn't be there. Before eating we decided to go for a walk around Kew Gardens. This was very nice and the highlight was stopping to bowl a few balls at the local cricket team practicing in the nets. This particular team consisted of the staff from the Gardens. They were very friendly, but made the Blue Mountains comp look like test level. Elizabeth, Hugh, and I all bowled and went quite well, but immediately noticed the difference in the duke balls they use over here. The seam is very narrow, which makes it hard to use your normal grip without having your figures almost touching. I've heard the top players talk about them being different and now appreciate what they mean.