MaW’s Blog

Or in my case, my computers. They’re in the new flat, I’m in the new flat, my other stuff is in my new flat and the upshot of this all is that I’ve moved into my new flat. It’s not perfect. Some things need fixing. Some things utterly defy belief or logical explanation other than sheer negligence on the landlord’s part (although it also makes one wonder about the previous tenant). I get no phone line until the 25th when an engineer can come over and look at it, and ADSL’s likely to take a week or so after that. Fun fun. Quick overview of the kinds of things that are wrong with this place:

• TV aerial’s pointing at the wrong transmitter
• Bathroom light switch pullcord base is behaving like it wants to come out of the ceiling
• Curtain rail in the living room wants to fall out of the wall
• Oven is filthy and the elements appear to be damaged
• Windows are sometimes difficult to close fully, although they’re improving with use and judicious application of WD40

That’s the broad overview of course. Some of it I should have caught when I looked around — next time I will know to look in the oven, for example. Just because the top’s clean doesn’t mean the interior is.

However, this place is a good size — not too big, definitely not too small. It has a washer/dryer, it’s on the first floor, I’ve got my own front door, curtains, decent windows, a dining table, a sofa bed, lots of wardrobe space… it’s good. Just need to get internet and these things fixed up and it’ll be wonderful.

Although I would rather like to redecorate…

Congratulations to the latest friends of mine to become parents — Toby and Sara. Sara gave birth to a beautiful baby girl at 11.05 this morning. Her name is not yet officially decided, although they seem to be going with Emily for the time being.

What a contradiction, but it’s true. I like going places, I like to see things and meet people. I also like to stay at home, stay in my comfortable surrounds, and be geeky with my computers. At the moment I’m in travelling mode, and some of it’s good. Yesterday I went to Cardiff to see Luke and Jenny, two friends of mine from the old Netland White Tower site, get married. Luke’s nearly as tall as I am, and having just passed his PhD subject to minor corrections he’s clearly having a good week. It got even better when Jen arrived in the back of the hall, adorned with a stunning wedding dress that showed off her perfect figure and flawless shoulders to perfection.

Jealous? You bet! But I wish them every happiness, and intend to go over to Boston, MA and see them some time next year, for they will be making their new lives in the States.

Tomorrow the real stress starts: an 0638 train from Nottingham takes me to Bristol for the Automated Reasoning Workshop. At least I should get a good dinner in the middle of it — the restaurant where we’re having the meal looks gorgeous. I return to Nottingham on Tuesday, and have a few days of relative peace before turning out again to the Midlands Graduate School in Leicester, another four days causing me to have to miss the April meeting of the Society of Recorder Players, something I’m displeased about as due to the holidays I’m currently deprived of the opportunity to play with other people. I can’t wait for life to return to some semblance of normality.

Around all this I also need to finish off some other things, and somehow find some time to sleep and not go mad.

I cannot wait until May.

It’s quite the fashion to post a brief or not-so-brief overview of 2005 on blogs at the moment. An arbitrary dividing line between years might not be the most sensible of things to have, but since it’s loosely related to midwinter, it might be of some minor celestial significance.

The television coverage from London last night shows that even if it didn’t have such significance, we’d give it all the necessary significance ourselves. New Year is probably better than Christmas, I would say, but I won’t go into the reasons here because that’s mostly just an ill-defined opinion that I have little real justification for at the present time.

So to my retrospective on 2005. What did I do? Well, I:

• started a PhD
• started playing the recorder again (and got a teacher)
• won my third National Novel Writing Month
• met some brilliant people
• went to GUADEC
• missed a number of social engagements due to apathy and/or schedule conflicts

There’s probably more than that, but that’s what stands out. Next year I hope to:

• visit Germany (again) and the south of France
• do an ABRSM exam for the recorder (and pass, but preferably something a bit higher than grade one)
• play the recorder in a concert where I don’t finish a piece a beat ahead of everyone else and where the harpsichord doesn’t go wrong halfway through
• make my own lunches instead of buying them, thus saving lots of money
• join the Special Constabulary (not going to happen, just like last year)
• get some accomodation I don’t hate

Hmm. How dull.

Things progress as they usually do. Much baking has been done. I have peeled many Brussells Sprouts. Ham has been roasted, stuffing has been made. And it’s not even five o’clock yet (quite).

I now have a gallery of Christmas photos. Enjoy, but try not to drool while looking at the mince pies.