I Do Things Joe Would Want To Do... Without Him... Again

This happened once before, when I was at WDW on Joe's birthday. I celebrated by doing all of the things that I thought he would most like to do. But seeing as he doesn't really care for WDW, it was no big. This time, I got to the end of the day and realized that I'd spent it entirely doing things that he would want to do if he were here. So, I hereby dedicate July 10 in honor of Joe. Here's how it all went down. After class we hopped on the tube and headed for the Sherlock Holmes Pub for lunch, where we had fish and chips (surprise, surprise, right? Actually, Joe doesn't like fish, so he can ignore that last part.). We then trucked on over to 221b Baker Street and spent some time in the company of Sherlock himself. Well, in his gift shop, anyway. I got a picture of the plaque over the door. There's a museum there now, and you can go in for 6 pounds, but seeing as none of us are truly die-hard Sherlock fans, we opted out. (You know, I say that, but then I remember my love for BBC's Sherlock and Detective Conan...I guess you could call me a fan by association? I like Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law as Holmes and Watson...heck, I love a good bromance more than a lot of other things. Sorry. Anyway...) I got Joe (and another roommate!) souvenirs and we walked around Baker Street for a while longer (found a Chipotle, of all things) and then headed back home. But the day was only half done at this point. At 6:00 we headed out, dressed pretty spiffily if I say so myself, and headed off to the Queen's Theater, where we spent the evening watching Les Miserables. (That was the point where I realized I'd done "Joe-stuff" all day.) Holy Goodness, it was incredible. On principle, any man who is able to sing Jean Valjean, and do it well, is pretty much a hero in my book. The cast was as good as you would expect for a West End production. Let me here have a moment of silence in honor of Javert's bass, which I felt resonating inside of myself. By far, my favorite scene was the confrontation between Javert and Jean Valjean at Fantene's death bed. The actors had fabulous chemistry and the entire scene was electrifying. I would go back and watch just this one scene again if I could. For a show that translates roughly to "The Miserable," there is actually an incredibly bright message of hope, redemption, forgiveness, and love. The love of God can change our hearts and help us to learn how to be more like Him, and a life of trying to love and show mercy will be rewarded in the end. As Fantene the Angel puts it right at the end, "to love another person is to see the face of God." But enough of that. I know I went on and on about Les Mis, but it truly was a highlight of the trip, and my thoughts are a little scatterbrained at the moment (secondhand smoke headache right here. Thanks, Europe!) More updates coming soon! This was for July 10, so I obviously have a couple more days to cover.