If it's raining, this must be London

We've had two days of rain now. Not steady rain, mind you, but a mix of drizzle, downpour and puddles as big as a pond.
I'm not really complaining. I don't mind the rain so much. I rather expected that we'd have a lot of rain, so we came equipped - we both have raincoats and somehow, we've ended up with four folding umbrellas - actually 3.25. One of them is really on its last legs.
It was raining pretty hard when we set out this morning so we rode the bus instead of walking. Public transportation - especially very crowded public transportation - is an experience. I stood beside the smelliest man on earth on the bus today. I couldn't move because the bus was too crowded. The long bus ride gave me time to think. Just how long would you have to go without bathing to smell that bad? Wouldn't you realize that you smelled that bad? Do you reach a point where you just don't care?
I'm such a philosopher.
Today's wanderings took us over to the Bloomsbury Square area. Last year when we were visiting we stayed in this area, and I just fell in love with this big umbrella shop on the corner. It reminds me of something out of Mary Poppins. It's a huge store - they must have every kind of umbrella in the world.
We had to find printer ink and a USB cable today, as well as paper. Electronics stores - plentiful in the Tottenham Court Road area, near Bloomsbury Square - are so different that what we see in the states. No big showrooms for you to browse and play. These are stores with a big counter and clerks behind the counter - you tell them what you want and they bring it out. And we noticed a lot of radios in the shop - not something you find so much at home.
We bought reams of paper at Ryman the Stationer - that name just cracks me up. Ryman reminds me of a store I grew up with, Hinkle's Book Store. It was the back-to-school tradition to head to Hinkle's for notebooks, pens, pencils and paper. They had this huge gray barrel full of Hinkle's pencils beside the cash register - you always had to fish through and pick your favorite colors. I know this sounds like a digression but it's really not - in many ways, you get that feeling about London - a throwback to the way things used to be. Small shops instead of warehouse stores.
But ... obviously, London is very cutting edge. One of our errands today was to activate a cell phone that belongs to the university. Cell phone stores are everywhere - Orange, O2, Carphone Warehouse, Vodaphone - and pay-as-you-go cell service seems to be very popular. There are signs everywhere urging you to "top off" your phone. We did just that with this Nokia phone today. We bought 15 pounds of time - I think that would about cover the monthly taxes and fees on my phone at home.

Last week I bought this cool rolling cart that has come in very handy for shopping. Today it was great since we had heavy paper reams to tote. This bag is quite sturdy. I see a lot of bags like this about town - some are far more elaborate - but I like mine just fine.
Last night we went to Porter's for Keith's birthday dinner. It was excellent, as it always is. I had the same thing I always get there - Fisherman's Pie. This is a little casserole with salmon, cod, prawns (shrimp) in a white sauce with fresh dill and topped with mashed potatoes and cheese. Keith had the steak, Guiness and mushroom pie with a puff pastry crust. All very traditional British and thoroughly enjoyable. I think he had a great birthday - he got more than 50 email and Facebook greetings, so he felt pretty good! After we left the restaurant last night, we walked through Covent Garden, then out to the Strand, which is part of the theater district. I took this shot - it's not very clear, but see that strip of silver between the two buildings? That's a part of the London Eye.