October 15, 1999 – In Which I Meet Birmingham’s Deputy Lord Mayor

I find out that Borneo Bill’s name is not Bill, rather it’s Sieve (pronounced See-ev). He is very chatty. He is a teacher at a university in Malaysia. He likes salsa dancing and Outward Bound. His English is very good. He has a British accent that is peppered with American colloquialisms from his days studying at Texas A&M.

Dean picks me up just after 9:00 AM and we’re off to Warwick on site visits today. We drive first to the University of Warwick. The professor rambles all over the place, not giving us a lot of information about the Best Value pilots. He seems to want to talk about politics comparing the new Labour government to the Tories. At one point, he says that everyone thinks Margaret Thatcher is a “stupid old bat.” I think of my Cotswold tour guide who loves Maggie. Well, maybe not everyone.

We have lunch at the Aylesford Hotel―a very cute restaurant. I have a pint of Scrumpy Jack cider, which makes me sleepy. Our afternoon appointment is with Steve Freer, the County Treasurer for Warwickshire County. He is very enthusiastic about Best Value, but also realistic.

We drive back to Birmingham and Dean drops me off at Glenelg with a promise to pick me up later for the reception at Council House. We have both received an invitation to a reception sponsored by the British Council to welcome International Student Award Holders. I can’t wait to see the inside of the magnificent council building on Victoria Square.

Caroline comes up and knocks on my door. She tells me Tony is worried that their new guests—a Japanese couple with a loud, two-year old child—will disturb me. I assure Caroline that they do not bother me.

Later, as I am waiting for Dean to pick me up, Caroline asks what I am doing over Christmas. She assures me that I am welcome to have Christmas lunch with the family. My heart flows over.

Dean picks me up while Tony is in the yard. I laugh when Tony says to Dean, “It’s a wonder the Lord Mayor didn’t send a car around to pick her up!”

On entering the Council House, we are greeted by an impressive main staircase which is topped by a magnificent ceiling dome. On the landing between the first and second floors is a statue of Queen Victoria on one side and Prince Albert on the other. The chandeliered reception room has floor-to-ceiling arched windows that run the full length of the room and provide impressive views of Victoria Square outside. The reception area leads to a balcony where on special occasions, like Buckingham Palace, dignitaries can wave to the minions below.

Reportedly the ghost of Joseph Chamberlain, who was thrice mayor of Birmingham, haunts his old office in the corner of the building on the first floor.

Although the Lord Mayor is not here, the Deputy Lord Mayor is and I can’t wait to tell Tony. She makes a few inspiring and passionate remarks about Birmingham. Chris Gately brings her over to meet Dean and me. She wants to meet us because she has been to the U.S. recently. During her trip she visited with Mayor Daley and, in not so many words, she conveys how unimpressed she was with the Chicago mayor. Aren’t we all?

We meet several interesting students from India, Botswana, and the U.S. Protectorate of Samoa. The student from American Samoa is sweetly funny. He went to the University of Hawaii and lived in Washington D.C. for a time. He is desperate to talk to people from the U.S. He has been in Birmingham for three days and we are the first Americans he’s seen. I saw him earlier looking earnestly in our direction, but the crowd swept him away before he could approach us. Dean invites him to the School of Public Policy for lunch.

The young woman from Botswana is studying toxicology as it relates to pharmacies. She says pharmaceuticals are not recognized in her country as part of the legitimate medical profession. A man from India is there with his wife and two children. He introduces us to his wife, who only reluctantly shakes my hand and immediately steps to the side while he talks to us. He talks about the current state of politics in India and Pakistan. I ask him if Indira Ghandi’s granddaughter won the recent election. She did not. He compares the Ghandis to the Kennedys.