Shamefully, it's taken me 7 years to get around to attending a play at the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival, despite many half-hearted attempts in previous summers to motivate myself sufficiently to organize a look-see. Happily, happily, I finally went to see The Taming of the Shrew last Friday night and it was so wonderful, and I loved it so much, that I'm really cross the festival is pretty much over for this year and I'll have to wait nearly 12 months for my next outing.
It is HOT these days... seriously, we're actually having a proper summer for a change. I'm not sure how I feel about this; on the one hand, it's very nice not being soaked while trying to get places on my bike and of course sunshine is all cheerful and jolly and so on, but on the other hand, it's really hot. And a bit samey. I shouldn't complain though; the evenings are beautiful and everyone is in a good mood and it feels like I'm on my holidays. Long may it continue!
Yes, the Science Festival ended ages ago (23rd of March, ahem) and I'm only getting around to writing about it properly now... but it'll still be wonderful, I promise!
So, in addition to the talk I went to on stress and anxiety in modern life (see here), I attended three other events, titled as follows: 1. How languages are built 2. In science we trust 3. It's simpler with symmetry It's March! And it's all lovely and springy and the birds are singing and it's getting bright in the evenings... pretty soon I won't need to wear my fluorescent get-up when cycling to/from work (although, I do look the business in it), and I might finally be able to venture outside without my woolly hat and gloves.
I've wanted to write for so long - I've noticed that I'm definitely not posting as much as I used to and that makes me a bit sad. For sure it's because of my line of work; being all editor-like all day, and then in the evenings I really can't face doing more work on the computer. I miss it a lot though; having that time and space to write and think and formulate. It's so easy to race through life, going to work, coming home from work, meeting with friends, doing stuff all the time, and it's incredibly important to stop every now and then and let it all pass by. **NOTE: After publishing this I realised that my past three posts have all started off with a commentary on the prevailing weather conditions of the day (i.e., grey). This is probably not quite as exciting to others as it is to me, so I promise there'll be no more weather updates (unless something monumental happens).
Original post: Apparently it's December now. It definitely doesn't feel like December. The weather has been disappointing, at best: it's been grey and petulant and soggy and unremarkable, and I'm not very happy with it - this time last year it was all snowy and magical (I choose to selectively forget how much I complained about the cold and the slippy footpaths, and the dilemma of having to wear thermal trousers in the mornings when getting to work - the Liverpool St train has it's very own icebox ecosystem - and then spending the day melting with the heat in my centrally-heated office. I suppose I could have taken the thermal trousers off when I reached my destination. But then I'd have to put them back on again in the evening. This sort of thing makes my brain hurt so I ended up doing nothing, and just tried to ignore my extremely hot legs during the day). So, this is a bit of an experiment. I've done something indefinable to my right wrist/hand (I totally feel like I've been in the wars lately) and it's SORE. And pins-and-needles-y. And a bit hot, for some reason. But it's not EXTREMELY sore. Or swollen. Or with bits of bones sticking out. So I can't really go to a doctor (this is what the internet says). And it's only been a few days. However, as typing/using my mouse is quite painful, I've had to restructure my workstation to make it more ergonomic. I've elevated the keyboard using a mini-cushion, and am typing mainly with my left hand and right index finger (my wrist/hand is most sore on the little finger side), while I've deployed Anthony's glasses case as a wrist-rest when using the mouse. So far, so good - let's see how we get on!
I haven't posted since the 5th of May because I've been running around like a headless chicken recently, and I'm hoping to get two (two!) posts up today... let's see! It's a bank holiday, the sun is shining (for now), I'm on my second cup of hot water (I don't drink tea or coffee; I know, it's weird), and I'm ready to go...
The Pint of Science festival was on in Cambridge a couple of weeks ago and I went to two Brain events. So, let's explain this Pint of Science thing: what happens here is that academic scientists give talks about their research areas in the PUB - yes! This festival took place simultaneously in Oxford, Cambridge, and London between the 14th and 16th of May, and covered three research areas: Brain, Body, and Biotechnology. The final CAMPUS Masterclass in the current series took place this week, and featured Alexandra Pringle, former ARU alumnus and Editor-in-Chief at Bloomsbury Publishing (home of Elizabeth Gilbert, Margaret Atwood, Colum McCann, and sometimes Will Self, amongst others). Alexandra spoke about a career that has taken her from being Editorial Director of the feminist Virago Press for 12 years, to moving to Hamish Hamilton in 1990, to becoming a literary agent in the mid-nineties, before joining Bloomsbury in 1999.
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About my blog
Really, it contains a little bit of everything, from a celebration of science and the English language to the joys of travel and the Shipping Forecast. The title ('Meanderings') is a fairly accurate description of its content: I write about different things as the mood takes me, but hopefully there's something in here for everyone... Categories
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March 2021
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And on another note... |
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