Rule Britannia

( this was the charter of the land )

( While thou shalt flourish great and free )

( And every shore it circles thine )

Queen Elizabeth II addresses the General Assembly

"“When people 53 years from now look back on us, they will doubtless view many of our practices as old-fashioned...But it is my hope that, when judged by future generations, our sincerity, our willingness to take a lead and our determination to do the right thing will stand the test of time.”

Alright, so I might be more than a little proud of her.

[George]
It does a British heart good, to see one's monarch after all these years abroad. I trust you enjoyed the festivities?

David Cameron on Bloody Sunday report: "I'm deeply sorry"

I can't tell you how happy this makes me. He actually apologised!

Maybe this time, Kathleen will stop harassing me for a while. At least she's on a different continent - though I swear, she deliberately calls in the middle of the night, pretending to forget about the time difference...

But enough about my annoying sister (not Vicky, by the way - I love you, sis!)

Who's been glued to the telly, watching the World Cup? It makes for some sleepless nights, but it's fun. And maybe some day, we'll get an Irish team in there?

I also found an interesting cover on the England-US game, which I just had to keep. Apparently people over here haven't quite grasped the concept of the other game of football - or at least, the scoring part.

What a week.

First, a thank you to all who attended that dinner the other night. I know they raised quite a bit of money - and hey, where else can you get to see our own Consul-General belting out hits from the Rolling Stones, all in the name of charity?

( sent to all those who attended the dinner )

Alas, it's time to put away the party shoes and get back down to business again, as Lizzy the Queen officially opened the new session of Parliament after the election. It's the first coalition government in over 70 years - between the Tories Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats - so it will be interesting to see how this situation unfolds. Oh, why did I have to leave my country in the hands of a slip of a girl who basically embodies 'Cool Britannia'?

Another piece of news which I know Enola will not be so pleased with - looks like the Brits have decided to follow their American compatriots and open Pandora's Box. Or in Foreign Secretary Hague's words: "We believe that the time is now right to be more open about the weapons we hold." Which is a lot less than I thought we had. 160 active? Good Lord, France has more than we do.

We also have mascots for the London Games now. And they're....distinctive.

Gordon Brown resigns as UK Prime Minister

I don't normally play favourites when it comes to politics. But this result was just that little bit sweeter for purely personal reasons - even if it means we have a coalition government with those Liberal Democrats.

And now that's out of the way and while the welcome power boost lasts, I have a little something I've been working on, to support those who are tirelessly helping to clean up the city in the aftermath of the recent blackouts. We Brits live in this city, too, after all.

Posters and flyers are delivered to all members of the British expatriate community in New York (yes, Tea, that includes you), regarding "Hands Across the Water", a charity event organised in conjunction with the Consulate-General and the British Council, to be held on 21 May at the British Memorial Garden. Funds raised at the event will go towards those organisations involved in relief efforts after the recent city-wide blackout.

All Celts living in New York (and Tea) will recieve a flyer in the mail. A personal handwritten note is attached. No more than one line, but the message is fairly clear.

I hope to see you there.
~ B.

The past day has felt like the Blitz all over again - except instead of German planes overhead, it's shadows in the dark. Which, quite frankly, is far worse. After all, with the searchlights working, at least you could see the Messerschmitts. Unseen and faceless enemies...well, that's another story altogether.

Whoever was in charge of this - you've managed to get our attention. Now what?

Of course, once everything had settled down, there was somewhat worrying news from home in that the election has produced a hung Parliament, and no clear winner in sight (unless the Liberal Democrats decide to play nice with the Tories).

I should have been paying more attention, then maybe..

[private to Celts]
Is everyone all right?

Little sister actually came good and managed to learn the currency. So of course, I had to keep up my end of the bargain and take her to those talks in Washington. Sam had a whole deskful of work to catch up on, so it was just Erin and myself in D.C.

She was thrilled beyond belief to be in the same room as the taoiseach and the President - Sam pulled some strings to get us to some pretty interesting places on St. Patrick's Day. Breakfast with Brian Cowen at the VP's residence, followed by lunch on Capitol Hill hosted by the President. And of course, the interesting tradition of presenting the President with a bowl of shamrock.

Ireland has always been a sore point for me - if Erin and Kathleen could get along, the world would be a much better place - but as the Beatles so nicely put it, "it's getting better all the time....can't get no worse." It would have been nice to see all four Irish leaders meeting with President Obama - but you know what they say about wishes and horses.

And I've got something else to keep an eye on - Gordon Brown announced earlier this month that the next general election will take place on 6 May. And already, things are looking very interesting.

I'm not quite sure what to think about those English Democrats....

President Obama welcomes NI justice deal

Living in America has been fun, but I miss home. There's all these important things going on, and I'm not there to see it. Maybe I can get Vicky to take me to Washington when Prime Minister Cowen comes to visit.

Anybody who knows - how do they celebrate St. Pat's day over here?

I am pleased to note that the public hearings of the Iraq War Inquiry are well underway.

I confess to being a little worried that this wouldn't happen, given that the Labour government is still in power. I am still a little worried about what is to be done with the information gained from the Inquiry. One hopes that it doesn't all just get swept under the carpet...but I wouldn't bet the farm on that one.

We shall just have to wait and see if there is any dirty laundry that needs airing and prepare to sleep on the sofa, just in case

In other news, Richard Branson unveils his first Virgin Galactic spaceplane. The Americans may have been the first to put a man on the moon, but a British company will be the first to send fee-paying passengers into space.

Not sure how I feel about that particular honour.

They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eyes, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.

Sam and I were down in D.C for the Remembrance Day ceremony at Arlington. I know it's called Veteran's Day here, but old habits die hard.

After the ceremony, we sat quietly in the amphitheater, remembering times past. We both have seen our fair share of war, and it's good to know that those who died in the service of their country will not be forgotten.

Remember, remember the fifth of November,
The gunpowder treason and plot,
I know of no reason
Why the gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.

Though apparently, some people need reminding.

Virtual bonfire?! Honestly. There are some times when health and safety regulations can go a little too far in protecting us. Luckily, there are still some places in Britain which have got it right.

I'm feeling just a little homesick just reading that article thinking of having a good old-fashioned bonfire, myself. Who would be interested?

I've only been in the States a few days, but I think I like it! Even though I think Kathleen is here as well, and I don't really like her. But that's okay, Vicky will protect me!

They also celebrate Halloween here, which is really cool - though I kind of miss the days when they called it Samhain. Apparently there's some kind of party organised, and Vicky and Sam promised that I could go.

I don't have a costume yet, though. Any suggestions?

I know you're around, sister. Hibernia's been jumpy ever since she arrived here.

( extract from messaging log )

[public; but locked from Sam ]
I think I know who sent that message. And I don’t like the answer I’m getting.

[ Private ]
If there is one thing I've always disliked, it's my country being referred to as 'America's lapdog'. I can make my own decisions, thankyouverymuch. Without the assistance of someone else. Yes, even Sam.

And dare I remind everybody, there was a time when the United States of America was not the guiding power in the world?

Yet, I really do feel like kicking those damn Christians right where it hurts. So even though Sam asked if I might be willing to do some things on his behalf in the whole affair, this is my business. I am not acting as America-by-proxy.

Right?

Ah well. At least it'll give me something to do, to keep my mind off other matters.

[ Private to the 'warmongers' ]
Sam told me about what is going on with the Christians. This kind of behaviour from them is not acceptable at all. And they've been a thorn in my side for some time as well, back home.

So...

Please let me know how I may be of assistance.

I know all this talk about the Olympics may seem frivolous, compared to everything else that is going on in the world today. But for me, it's helping to keep the mind off my little email problem. I haven't had anything further from them, but it still does not put me at my ease.

Why do I feel like it's the calm before the storm?

Maybe I should buy myself one of those crossword puzzle books, or do the one in the New York Times? Anything to keep me from worrying.

It also reminds me that it's London's turn to host the Games in 2012. I hope they're managing to get everything in order. I've heard some rather disturbing tales....

We are still no further forward with my mysterious email. The boys at Computer Crimes were able to trace it to a server originating in the UK, but any further than that? No. Apparently my sender hid their tracks pretty well, which makes me wonder if they're in the spook business as well. Not a very comforting thought at all.

In the meantime, while the country goes wild over the recent Ashes victory (and believe me, I can feel the jubilation from here), some very interesting things are happening up north. Like, say, the Lockerbie bomber being released from jail. A most interesting development, indeed. And one which has attracted the ire of many, not in the least my new boss. Most in the office are not pleased with the decision.

Hell, I know Sam's not happy with it. We had more than a few choice words - especially after he practically bounded out of the office, brandishing a copy of that letter by that imbecile Director Mueller. And anti-British sentiment was running high in the office, worse luck.

Hell hath no fury like an American administration ignored, quoth the BBC.

Too true, says I. Thank God for the Ashes, or I'd have never gotten through the day without resorting to punching someone in the face. Which would have not improved the state of British-American relations in the New York FBI branch at all.

And frankly, at the moment, I feel torn by the result. I see both sides of the argument. I shouldn't. Am I becoming *too* American now?

Jock T. and I are not exactly on the best of speaking terms since he got his own parliament back, but I think we need to have a few words. A head's up would have been appreciated, my old man. Look, I know you lot are pushing for independence, but this is not going to help your case at all.

Note to self: get in contact with Hibernia again or whatever she's calling herself these days

Sam and I just returned from a spot of (re)training at Quantico a couple of days ago, and it's nice to see that my marksmanship still holds up after all this time riding a desk.

( Postcard from Quantico )

And then, there was this email, which I found on the server as soon as we arrived back in New York. It still continues to baffle me.

To: "Victoria Montgomery" <v.montgomery@ic.fbi.gov">
From: A Friend
Subject: RULE BRITANNIA

All I want you to know is this. You worry that our country has gone long without your constant protection and care. That you cannot be there as much as you used to.

There is someone who will take up the shield and trident.

Sam's talking about running it past the people at Computer Crimes to attempt to trace the sender. And frankly? I'm all for it.
I don't know whether to be flattered that someone has gone to all the trouble of burying through red tape to discover my identity, or be slightly more worried.

I'm leaning more towards the latter, at present.