Foggy, foggy night

A deep mist has decended on the south of England trapping many miserable travellers at Heathrow and Gatwick. Only half of all flights are getting out, the rest having been cancelled completely. We are onto day two of deep fog so there is already a back up and the fog is forcast to continue tomorrow as well. Most of the cancelled flights are domestic within the UK but some short haul flights to Europe are also being cancelled. Long haul flights are mostly going ahead. I guess they need more space inbetween landings and take-off to ensure safety so they can't get as many flights through. Like I said, down to 50% capacity so we will just have to keep our fingers crossed!

The Grinch Mellows

Those of you who know me, know I am a bit of a Grinch when it comes to Christmas. Usually can't stand all the Christmas hype and start to get hives when all the shops start blasting carols and trees appear everywhere. In fact, I refused to put a single decoration up for years and it was only after much cajolling (and the promise that I could make it orange) did Kevin break me down enough to get a tree. The first time was in Calgary and then for 2 years in Toronto there was no need to decorate as we went home for x-mas. Last year I was still adamantly refusing to decorate even though we spent it in Oxford and even hosted dinner for stragglers stuck in the UK without family around. But Kevin ignored my Grinchy attitude and went out about bought lights last year.

But, I think I might be mellowing in my old age. This year I went out and bought a live holly wreath, mistletoe and a mini-potted pine tree (already decorated) for our flat. I put up the lights Kevin bought last year and was playing christmas songs (nice tasteful ones on the CD that Lauren and Mario made us last year) when Kevin got home from work one day last week. He was delighted that I have caved a bit and the place is looking a bit more merry these days.

Also have had fun listening to the Barenaked Ladies holiday compliation Kevin bought which is cheeky and irreverent and pokes fun at Christmas a bit. One lyric is 'Jingle Bells, Batman smells, Robin laid an egg' and 'the streets are full of Christmas cheer, at least it's only once a year'. However, I still couldn't bring myself to any 'real' decorations as everything I bought is plant matter that will be recylable after the holidays. Yes, a bit of the Grinch remains as the thought of a box of decorations relevant only 3 weeks a year taking up space all year still gives me mild hives.

Chocolate and Sucky Movies

This was my day on Saturday. Agatha was visiting and it was about all I could cope with. Poor Kevin who had grand plans of a big bike ride got sucked into the movies too and sat down with me for a few scenes.

Later that night we went to a potluck at with Kate, Thabs, Tim and tim's friends Tom and Tonya. Food was great as Tom and Tonya are vegetarians too so we had quite a veggie feast. The evening progressed to Perudo (Tim and Rachel will be happy to know their game is getting good use), which Kevin won the second round of. He's pretty good at keeping the guy next to him guessing about the number of dice under his cup so he kept everyone entertained.

Sunday we went to a carol service and then to a friend of Kevin's from work for tea and cakes. The carol service was nice, a big old church lit by candlelight, a full orchestra and a choir to lead us in song. However, the melody and words are a bit different here to some of the old classics. 'Oh, Little Town of Bethlehem' confused the heck out of me and I couldn't quite get the new melody down. Fortunately, I wasn't singing loud enough to be noticed hitting all the wrong notes. Charlotte made delightful cakes and provided excellent wine so it was a nice evening all around.

Graham is the winner!

The most expensive dessert Ive ever eaten was £8.95 which is around $18 CND. It was tasty, but not that tasty! Good guessing blog-readers.

Guesses

Those are some expensive guesses. I will give one more day for people to post how much the dessert cost and then will relieve the burning desire to know how much my 'most expensive dessert ever' actually was. :)

Most Expensive Dessert Ever

Ok, so last night we went out for dinner at Gee's which is a very nice restaurant (and where we went for our one year anniversary incidentally) with Kevin's work group and new boss. It was a very nice meal and when it came to dessert time I couldn't make up my mind about what I wanted. Then I spotted the 'dessert platter' with a little bit of everything. Some home made berry ice cream, chocolate pot (basically an espresso cup full of chocolate truffle) and winter berry brulee. The containers were tiny but the dessert was excellent. Typical at these fancy-schmancy type places.

Ok, so blog readers, I want you to guess how much the 'dessert platter' cost. Post your guesses and in my next posting I will let you know who was closest and how much it actually cost.

p.S. You have to guess in £ not Canadian dollars. Although good luck finding the £ key on your computers at home.

Update

So what have we been doing since Friday? Well, Saturday we did a nice long ride with a friend named Kirsty and some of her riding buddies. It really makes the long rides more fun if you go with a group. Also it is cool to be riding with a lot of other women although they are quite kick ass compared to me (although definately not Paige-quality).

On Sunday we cooked a nice healthy meal and then it turned out that Kevin's boss Xavier and his wife were on their way into town and had to stop by to get the key to their rented flat (Kevin had it). So we invited them in for dinner and dessert. I attempted Pecan Pie but it sort of turned into a dry pecan cake because I got lazy and decided not to make a full on pie crust (also do not have a proper glass pie dish). Sort of wung a different crust which turned out ok but not spectacular.

Last night we did a big spin in front of a Jackie Chan movie. I know they are all the same after a while but he really is quite funny (at least the film made me laugh out loud many times). I felt good and am getting myself ready for our big bike trip to Tuscany in May. Apparently there are lots of hills so I am trying to build up my strength so I can keep up with Paige and Kevin.

That's all the news. Sorry it's so dull!
P.S. I got all my x-mas letters sent but not gifts to family and friends, sorry team, it is probably going to be arriving sometime in January.

Siemen's Christmas Party

Those of you who remember last year's party might be wondering if Kevin got his wetsuit out again. This year however, was a black tie event at a swanky new hotel on the outskirts of Oxford. I haven't been to an event where I needed a gown since grad so I ended up borrowing a dress, earrings, a shawl and sparkly hair pins from a friend Meghan. Kevin rented a tux and looked quite the James bond. It was a fun night and although we took our turn on the dance floor (as you know we love to do), we were home around midnight. It was a fun party.

Pilates

Kevin has been getting up early to swim and run and has been doing two workouts a day for the past week or so. But I think it might be a bit too much as we decided to do a bit of Pilates at home tonight and Kevin fell asleep in the middle of them. There I was breathing through pursed lips and working out my abs and I look over and my pilates mate is snoozing! So I picked him up and put him to bed and then finished my workout. :)

Fire Fingers

Made pad thai tonight for dinner. It was tasty. Except that my fingers are burning, especially under my fingernails from chopping the chilies. Need to go soak them in some yogurt. Ahhh...

Catching up

Was so nice to have Kevin back from Chicago. Had a nice lazy day and an early x-mas. Kevin did a whole lotta shopping in the good old U S of A. Consumer goods are MUCH cheaper there so I was treated to some new running shoes (they are orange!) and an awesome new red biking jacket. Kevin got some cool new threads both for work and casual. He looks hot! That evening we went for a nice stroll around Oxford popping into a couple bookshops and then a nice dinner at a Thai place over by Kev's work. Then came home and watched Cold Mountain which was quite a bit better than I thought it was going to be. Renee Zellweger deserved the Oscar I thought.

Next day we went for a long ride (the steeds were anxious to get out of the barn, especially the Guru which was missing his rider). But it was super windy so the way out was very fun, going quite fast without much effort. But then when we turned around it was a bit of a slog. But still fun to get out.

Spent the evening talking which was so great. Kevin has been against us getting a TV and I complain about it sometimes but ultimately it is a very good thing, because we do end up talking instead of just flipping on the tube. Had some good conversations catching up about everything that happened while he was away and thoughts about what we are going to do next with our lives. No real decisions yet but it sure was nice to have a best friend to talk about it with. I'm so lucky to be married to my best friend!!

Lance in 2:59

http://www.ingnycmarathon.org/news/story_27
Lance ran the New York marathon in 2:59 and said it was the hardest thing he's ever done. I don't believe him. Unless maybe, if he was on drugs when he did the tour and he did the marathon clean.

Mmmm... Jamba Juice

Most of you probably know Jamba Juice.
But did you know there are secret smoothies?? Check it out at :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamba_Juice
And next time you are in go for the Strawberry Shortcake.

The silver bean

C-dot

Ah, life in N.America. Its nice in C-dot. Reminds me of T-dot. It is very nice here, its just not as old as O-ford and not as cold as c-spot. Time is not on the UK's side :) There are no floods here, but the prarie sculptures are beautiful! The forecast for getting home on Friday is not good... I hope the planes are still flying as I miss Brownie.

Flooding

Here are some photos of the 'meadow' behind our appartment. Yes, it used to be a meadow but is now a lake. The river leaked over its banks and created this lake. The second photo is of the little stream right behind our place. It is creeping up but I think our complex is still safe. Has a long way to go before it bursts the bank I think. But there are other places in town that might not be so lucky. On my run this morning I could see how high the river is. For those who have visited, the sports fields just opposite the Christ Church meadow are flooded, right where the weird metal sculpture is if you can remember it. Forcast is for intermittent rain. Yikes!

Sport Infrastructure

What do the Iraqi's have for sport infrastructure? Has anyone tried to build them cricket pitches, or maybe some ice rinks as part of the restructuring efforts? Maybe a chance to play a little softball and sip on some soda sitting on the cooler after the game would be a welcome outing... a little bit of something that everybody can play. Just a thought.

The Homecoming

Monkey Left arrived home safe and sound (although a little dirty and smelly) on Thursday night. Kitten was overjoyed to see him and Monkey Right is delighted to have her partner back home.

Funky Vibe

I was picking up a funky vibe on my run this morning.... through millenium park, past the big silver bean, the plate armour mouse, the Grant Park, the museums, along the water front.  Watched the sun come up over the great lake and said hello to the Canadian geese looking for breakfast along the shore.  Stuck my hand in the water and added Michigan to the list.  Considered swimming but its a wee bit cold.

Friendly faces, lots of museums, ball diamonds, an outdoor skating rink where skate rentals are £3.50 - knock yourself out.  And grand buildings - why is it that 'trump towers' are never quite finished?

I thought about Tim rocking out at the ampitheatre during a music festival, and having a walk down Michigan on a power lunch during a break at work or maybe grabbing a beer or window shopping at the designer stores and buying a real nice pair of expensive shoes :)

 

Cheers,

 

Kev

 

 

80 odd hours till I'm home....

Right Monkey, Kitten and Kevin... I will be home soon!

With the help of Miss Piggy and Rubber Ducky we have secured a bus! Miss Piggy distracted the driver while Rubber Ducky snuck in through the window and unlocked the door. I've been managing the steering wheel, Miss Piggy runs the pedals and Rubber Ducky is reading the map. We're not really very sure where we are right now, but he figures it will take a couple of days to get there.

Anyways, I'm looking forward to seeing you all :)

Love,

Left Monkey

Blog-Readers - Where are you?

Are you out there blog-readers? Let us know what you think of all the stuff we've been doing/posting. We love reading your comments.

Monkey Left and Monkey Right

So glad you are ok Monkey! From now on you are going to be called Monkey Left ... for obvious reasons.

Where are you? And how is Miss Piggy? What can she do to help you? And what about Kermit, he found his way all the way to Hollywood from the swamp once. Are you somewhere over the rainbow?

I can't do all the work keeping kitten's hands warm. I have been doing double shifts. And the scarf and mitten box is lonely without you.

Come home soon!

Love Monkey Right

The Other Place

LJ and I were wonderfully entertained by our doubles in cambridge this weekend. Lucy (Emily) and Kevin moved to Cambridge amonth ago, so we went by for a visit.Upon arrival everything got off to a great start - nachos and port and fun conversation until three in the morning.On Saturday we toured the town center and saw some fantastic old colleges- St Johns and Trinity. There is a great craft / artisan market where Lucinda bought a delicate and pretty bracelet made out of old recycled silver British coins. The artists website is www.hairygrowler.co.uk
Next we watched Kevin play soccer for Emannuel's JCR team. We caught the second half which they tied. For dinner we ate at Emmanuel (Emily's college) and then went to the college bar for some drinks, fuseball and pool. My impression is that this Kevin is ahead in the overall standings although that Kevin is winning the trash talking competition.We each took turns being the group leader but made the most progress when the rocket (LJ) was taking off after some hot chocolate with a little bit of Bailey's.We walked the town a bit more but were back at the house in time to squeeze in some ruthless capatalistic exploitation with a game of Monopoly.Today we visited Kings College cathedral which is simply inspiring. The biggest fan vaulted church in Europe and an excellent example of late Gothic architecture. It was finished by Henry the VIII who commisioned certain parts for some of his wives while they were still in his good books.Thanks to Kevin and Emily for the fun weekend :)

Found some help

Kitten,

I have some friends that have said they will help me make my way back....

I hope to be back soon!

I miss you and of course my other mitten buddy.

Monkey.

Don't worry Kitten...

Dear Kitten,

Don't be so sad! I have made my way to a computer, and am sending you a little note, in hopes that you can help me find my way home!

I fell out of your pocket and spent a cold wet night alone on high street - and got run over by several of those double decker buses.

Then somehow I ended up here... I will contact you as soon as I can.

Monkey Mitten.

Paul Martin

Today I heard Paul Martin give a talk on globalization. Additionally, as a member of the executive of the Canadian Society I got to take part in a short intimate discussion with the former Prime Minister in the senior common room at University College after the talk (which I would never normally be allowed in side of). He was extremely down to earth and quite genuine in his hopes for Canada. He was also articulate and knowledgeable on all the topics thrown at him from the talk (globalization, climate change, UN security council, the war on terror, sending troops to Afghanistan but not Iraq, G8 summits, the emerging role of China and India, the softwood lumber dispute with the US, NAFTA, creating an economic union for Africa and the plight of Aboriginal people in Canada) and those we brought in the smaller discussion (Quebec as a nation, western alienation, joining the civil service). It was pretty cool to meet him and I think he is part of a generation of political figures that is a dying breed in Canada. In the 60's a lot of Canada's intelligensia and educational elite went into the foreign service, public service and politics. Now they all go into business (or bail to the US). I mean, Harper is just no match (although perhaps I should reserve judgement until I meet him). :)

Ok, so maybe there are some good things about being in Oxford.

P.S. Dad, I would have loved if you could have been there. Maybe up close Liberals aren't as bad as they seem? :)

Have you seen this mitten?

A poor little kitten has lost her mitten somewhere on the grey and wet streets of Oxford. Which is quite sad as these were said kitten's favourite mittens which made people smile and laugh whenever she wore them. :(

Popcorn balls

Went out for dinner and then were thinking about dessert and Kevin said, 'why would I buy dessert here when my wife can make better desserts at home?'. So we went home and made popcorn balls. It was quite fun and made us feel like kids again. :)

Bike purchase?

So, here's my dilema - what kind of bike to buy next.  Have a good road bike - love it.  Got a good mtn bike - never use it, but am afraid to get rid of it in case I need it for a race some day.  Got a crap commuting bike that almost falls apart every time I ride it - but that's good cuz no one steals it - and Oxford SUCKS for bike theft.

 

Here's the catch - tax free bike purchase at work ie: 40% off.  Can spend up to 1000 pounds. Could buy a nice touring bike - or a cyclo cross  - or a better commuter - but then it might get stolen.  Also, don't have any more space.  Already have 2 bikes in our bedroom.   Input required.

Re: Bike purchase?

So, here's my dilema - what kind of bike to buy next.  Have a good road bike - love it.  Got a good mtn bike - never use it, but am afraid to get rid of it in case I need it for a race some day.  Got a crap commuting bike that almost falls apart every time I ride it - but that's good cuz no one steals it - and Oxford SUCKS for bike theft.

 

Here's the catch - tax free bike purchase at work ie: 40% off.  Can spend up to 1000 pounds. Could buy a nice touring bike - or a cyclo cross  - or a better commuter - but then it might get stolen.  Also, don't have any more space.  Already have 2 bikes in our bedroom.   Input required.

Can I have a Half Kevin Half Smokey the Bear?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/11/06/uembryo106.xml

Pumpkin Carving Party

It was really fun! (but did you expect anything else?). Had a good selection of people and only a few with carving experience. Had a very mixed nationality group: Canadian, German, Irish, Dutch, English, French, NZ, Danish and South African. Only the Canadians had carved pumpkins before but it was fun to see the creativity and different approaches from people who've never done it before. Kevin designed and excuted a masterpiece. It was a figure running into the gaping mouth of a city complete with skyscrapers, marathon finishing flags, eyes and eybrows of the city and even a moon. It was quite spectacular. We even had one group of trick or treaters come to the common room and get some candy. Don't think they've done it before as the kids eyes just lit up when they saw the bowl of candy and the handful I put in their pillow sacks. I'll post some pics when I have more time.

Thanks to Lovely Lauren for the most excellent Halloween decorations. Put the towel, soap, wreath and book to good use. Thanks so much for the wonderful package!

Overall a good halloween. Got to dress up and carve pumpkins with friends so I was happy.

Pumpkin Carving, Frodo, Vacation Planning and Car Shopping

We are hosting our annual Pumpkin Carving Party on Tuesday night (Halloween) and are quite excited about it. We are having to break in our new friends to the tradition especially those 'foreigners' who don't really get Halloween. The caretaker of our building Stephen (super great guy from NZ) said suspiciously 'so what do I do with this thing' when we handed him his pumpkin. We replied 'just bring it on Tuesday night and we'll explain everything'. He then asked 'so can I cook it after I've carved it'. What do you think blog readers? :)

Went to a halloween party on Sat. night at Kim and Mike's place (Kim works with Kev and Mike is at Linacre). The place was decorated wonderfully, the bathroom was a scene from Psycho with 'help me' in blood on the mirror and a ripped and bloody shower curtain. YUCK but excellent Halloween spirit (as you all know Halloween is my FAVOURITE holiday of the year). Unfortunately as Halloween is not well celebrated or understood here they don't really get dressing up as anything other than stereotypical things like witches and vampires. No-one knew who I was even though I had my spectacular Frodo cloak, elvish leaf clasp and sword (although I must admit that the key parts of my costume such as hair for feet, pointy ears and vest are still in the Halloween costume box in mom's basement). One person asked me if I was He-Man and another person said (once I held up 'The Ring' on a chain around my neck) 'oh, you're from that movie, with the ring and all that'. I tried very hard to smile. Another person said 'I thought you were a hobbit but then you're a girl and I didn't think girls like to dress so they were short and hairy'. Yes, most of the women at the party were sexy witches or devils. Those LOTR fans out there please feel my pain!!!!

Vacation planning has progressed and we are narrowing in on Morocco. No flights or tours booked yet but we are getting more excited about it.

Went car shopping this weekend. Rented a SUV and went to car dealerships nearby. I am excited about the Honda Jazz which has 'magic seats' which can be tucked away so neatly that you can actually fit two bikes inside standing up! (not possible in the Nisan SUV we rented). However it is a pricy little thing and not super Kevin friendly (seat doesn't go back quite far enough). But at least we did a bit more information gathering which was fun. Also took the bikes up to Chipping Norton for a fabulous ride in the morning. Went through Great Tew where we went with Mom and Dad when they came but didn't have time for lunch at the Falkland Arms which is a delightful pub.

Anways, should really get back to work as I'll never get it done if I'm blogging all day. Later peeps!

The Update

So my supervision has officially changed. Lynda is no longer my supervisor and I am will be co-supervised by Jean and Suzanne. I think this will be a good thing as they have more of a corpus linguistic focus which is where I want to take my project. Am meeting Suzanne today and am hopeful that she will have some good advice and guidance for me. Jean is very supportive and wonderful which I am thankful for. Keep your fingers crossed for me that I can get my project back on track. It is much better than it was a few weeks ago so I think I have bottomed out and am now on the rise (but am trying not to get too excited in case there are a few more dips yet to come).

Monopoly

Have you ever played socialist monopoly? Its easy. All the players just put all everything you own in the middle and share it. Properties, cash, community chest cards etc. The rest of the rules are the same. Play away and see what happens!

I went for my tempo run this morning. Very lonely without Tim there. How will I fool someone else into waking at 6am to run every morning, and always be upbeat? Hmm.....

Lord of the Rings: an allegory of the PhD?

This link is absolutely brilliant!

http://www.jacobite.org.uk/dave/odd/lotr.html

Vacation Planning

Spent the weekend trying to plan our belated honeymoon which we plan to take soon. We want to go somewhere hot and do some sea kayaking but it costs a lot of money to get some where hot that has decent kayak trips. So then we modified the search to look at hiking or biking or skiing. Man, you can search forever trying to find something. There are always more websites. So many, many, many hours of clicking later we still have no trip planned. But at least we have a few more ideas and a lot more information. Whatever we do, it will be a nice break from Oxford.

Guilty as Charged

Ok, I threw down the guantlet and now I have to respond. It has been so long, I don't know if I can get my head back out of the sand - high enough to reach the keyboard. For full effect, please point your Media Player to Jesse Cook's Querido Amigo and double click.

So, its been awhile, and a few things have been happening...

June
A week in Germany hiking in the Alps and watching world cup in the evenings on satellite TV whilst eating Cheese Macaroni and drinking Beer. That's what they call it there.... beer. You don't order a brand - you just say 'beer'. If its high end they may have a light and a dark. Favorite moments: hiking the ridgelines, photo ops with wild flowers, home made pretzels and ice cream in front of the tv, cheering for Australia and the US - cuz they didn't dive, and hiking in the alps :) How about Owen Hargreaves http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owen_Hargreaves - grew up playing for the Calgary Foothills... I guess I made a difference! Unfortunately Owen has broken his leg recently and hasn't secured his move to lovely Ol' Trafford yet. I wonder if he really knows what the difference in Life style will be like in Manchester vs. Munich ???

The Tragically Hip at the Shepards Bush in London - man they are weird! One could think that rock is roll is devil worship! Loved the music! The late night food scene (11pm) in that part of London is weak. Bring some chopped carrots from home in a ziplock for after the show.

July
The Tour de Farce! The best part of the tour this year was remembering the skits that Saturday night live did after the Ben Johnson's bust for the 'all drug olympics'. There is a great pub just down the street (well, actually there are about 5 on our street) that isn't very busy and has a couple of TV's - but do you think they would want to put the tour on? Not cycling... that doesn't fit in with deep fried food -- incompatible. Maybe tri-athletes and soccer players don't use performance enhancing drugs... right? The other best part is when David Millar public states 'I will complete the tour de france without drugs' - and none of the other riders join in or take offence - but instead just kind of look at him and grin like they think he's crazy.

LJ and I got away for a nice anniversary weekend to the coast. Beautiful scenery in Exmoor. We even did some body surfing - the beaches are nice here!! A little bit of a get away - nice Thai dinner, wonderful memories of a year ago, and the last 12 years together!

August
Vacation to Canada, eh! Lauren and Mario got married. They are so beautiful! Give them a call and tell them you love them. Because you do. Even if you haven't met them yet. Thanks for including us.

Then off to Calgary and Invermere - to see family and friends. Wow, a whirl wind tour. It was so nice to see all of you. I'm sorry we didn't have more time to chat. It was a well iced cake, with a cherry on top.

September

Missed whitefish.

My commuter was stolen. No it wasn't locked. I always lock it up... really! No, really. BUT, this time I left it at the front door while I ran in groceries from the basket of the bike. Put a couple items in the fridge, came back out 5 minutes later to head to the wine store, and my 15 year steed was gone. Argh! I'm having a tough time letting it go...

Had visitors --- finally. Donna and JR. Chris and Michelle. Pat and Dennis. Kathryn and Wayne. Simon and Claire. Don't worry, they didn't all come at once - sort of :)

Before they were gone I was off to Athens for work. Big city. Lots of smog and history - Kind of like a grande decaf latte. Sounds nice, has some good and some bad, but in the end not really all that satisfying. I got out for a uber kool run up the hill on the east side of town, between the centre and the airport. Don't know what its called, but the views were great. That town could use an Opa!

Bought a bike from a co-worker. His old commuter. He's owned it for over 20 years. Its been in his shed for the last 5 - but still works great. Coventry Eagle is its name. He brought it into work on Monday. Took it home, cleaned the chain, adjusted the seat, tightened the breaks, attached light brackets, pumped up the tyres, etc. Rode to work the next day. Rode it home. Stopped at the bike store and bought a new lock. Woke up on Wednesday morning. It was gone. Lock cut. Argh! Had to tell my co-worker - he was in shock. Now, no one wants me anywhere near their bike :) Back to walking.

Its kind of neat not owning a car. It's also kind of cool walking everywhere - to work, to the store, everywhere - for a few weeks. It would be even cooler if I also owned a bike I could take when I'm late.


October
Ran in Amsterdam and had a really fun weekend with Tim. It was our last weekend hanging out as they (Tim, Rachel and little Max) have now moved back to the States and are most likely headed for Brisbane Oz. He has a line on some work there, and apparently the weather is good. We will miss them.

In Amsterdam - we had a grand time, met some folks from France - enjoyed dinner together. They are adventure racers! First ones I've met since I left Canuckland.

The marathon served us well, and probably to our expectations. Tim did amazing since he has been struggling with bad shin splints for the last month (since his Nike Air Max's got a puncture and went Air Min) but still achieved a PB. Thanks to everyone for the well wishes and support! Its so nice. Check us out on the web .. they actually have video of us at different points in the race.. but do me a favour and don't watch my finish line video --- not looking so good. Oh ya, but, if you do, check out the body check from the outside lane. I think that guy mistook me for the race leader or something :)

Another set of friends we have made here - Kevin and Lucy from Canada (Kevin plays on the Linacre football team and works with computers while his wife Lucy is studying Psychology) are moving as Lucy has had a better offer from Cambridge. They too will be missed! Back to friend seeding...

Got a new boss! He is french and will be moving to Oxford in the new year. Should be exciting, as my previous boss was based in Chicago - so will have more direct access to the 'power' now.

Tim has arranged for me to have Emanual's bike - since he and Malia are also headed back to Oz. Its a wee tad small, but hey, it rolls, and no one has stolen it yet!

Work is going really well. I'ld tell you all about here but then I'ld probably get fired. I should probably learn more German, but I'm tempted to learn more French. Give me a call and I'll tell you what I can. In the mean time, buy a Play Station 3 and help find a cure for Alzheimer's! http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/PlayStation_3_will_be_used_to_help_cure_cancer_and_Alzheimer's

For fitness - I don't know what's next? Take another 8 minutes off the marathon, start swimming again or lace up the boots for another season of footy. My new boss is an expert windsurfer, and I miss skiing. Did I mention orienteering and ultra running? The mtn bike is very lonely, and I'ld also like to buy a kayak since we live on the river cherwell, and it connects to the Thames, which connects to the English Channel....

Thanks for checking in on the Grove, and for putting up with the Mango, and even more so for reading this awfully long entry.

Miss you!

Enjoy.

a day in the life of a grad student

9 a.m. - check email, wonder how much longer I'll be a student and have this account.
11 a.m. - have just read through all the notes I've made since the beginning of my first year. I have no topic. I have done nothing worthwhile this year. I am doomed.
12 noon - heartwarming phone call from husband. 'Whatever you decide to do I am behind you 100% my darling'. Thank God for Kevin!
12:45 p.m. - phone international student office to find out about what happens to my visa if I quit. Tears flow.
1:30 p.m. - Meet Linacre advisor. More tears.
2:45 p.m. - Maybe there is a way out of this mess. At least I've got a few more things to try. Maybe I won't have to quit after all.
3:30 p.m. - conversation with SU graduate rep. Hey, I'm not the only one going through this.
5 p.m. - arrive home and think, 'I can do this! You Oxford bastards can't keep me down!! Write down some ideas for how project might be able to progress.
6 p.m. - Feeling a bit better. Bake some banana bread and listen to Ella. Ella fixes everything. :)

Weekend Update

I went up to Chorley to visit Reva this past weekend. I was really nice to see her and catch up on all the news in her life. Watched her riding lesson which was great. I am quite scared of horses so to see her racing around on a big horse was impressive.

Kevin was in Amsterdam this weekend with Tim. They both ran the Amsterdam Marathon and did personal bests. Kevin 'raced like the wind' and got a time of 3:08. Tim also ran well and did 3:28. Kev's time is good enough to qualify for Boston but I'm not sure how that all works out. They met a few groups of nice French people, had dinner and worked on their language skills. They also brought back some nice orange socks for me and bags and bags of stroop waffles. Yum.

Sorry this is short but gotta press on for this silly dphil thing.

Down but not out

Had a meeting on Tuesday with my supervisors which did not go well. At the end they recommended that I take a suspension of status until I could work out what I'm going to be doing, how to move my project forward and basically get back to the place I was as when I started last year. Apparently I've regressed to having less of a project/idea than before I even got into Oxford. Sound fishy to you? Anyways, was devastated when I heard this and was on the verge of quitting my dphil altogether. But for some strange reason I just can't seem to quit. Talked to a corpus linguistics professor in Germany and realized that my project does has merit and that my problems may be caused by working in a department that doesn't understand what I'm trying to do. Anyways, I have hope that I can still make progress and for the moment I'm am still continuing. So I am down but not out.

Canadian Thanksgiving

Thanks so much mom for all the decorations! As you can see on the table they looked great. Also the cookies and fudge were a big hit, gone in the first hour. The pumpkin pies turned out pretty well considering that I doubled the recipe but forgot to double the milk. Whoops! Everyone loved them saying stuff like 'I haven't had pumpkin pie since I left Canada' and 'I was feeling so sad about being away from home and having pumpkin pie and being around all this Canadians has made me feel less lonely'. Mission accomplished. It was a lot of work, I had to construct (with Kevin's help) a special pie transportation system (to get them from my place over to St Johns). But in the end I think it was worth it. The group photo is of the CanSoc (Canadian Society in Oxford) Executive Committee. From left it is

Social Secretary / Minister of Fun - Alex O'Reilly
President / Prime Minister- Sarah Orton
Secretary / Minister of External Affairs and Communications Officer / CEO of Canada Post–Anne Rimmer
Ministre de la Francophonie - Gregoire Webber
Social Secretary / Minister of Fun - Me
Sports Representative / Minister of Sports and Rec – Kevin McGlynn
Treasurer / Minister of Finance- Matt Marshall
Absent was Webmaster / Minister of Publicity- Atulya Saxena

The map was a thing we did at Fresher's Fair to see where all the Canadians come from. Someone from every province except Newfoundland, although there was someone from the middle of Labrador which was pretty cool. We even had people from PEI and the NWT and Yukon. Lots from Trana and a few from Alberta. Someone even from High River. Was a neat excercise anyway and a conversation starter.

Freshers Fair: A View from the Other Side

I staffed the CanSoc (Canadian Society in Oxford) booth today at the Freshers Fair. It was very interesting to be on this side of it remembering how I felt as a fresher walking through there last year. I felt so overwhelmed by it all and couldn't believe how many activities there were and was thinking about what I could get involved with. Very open minded. This year I am more clear about what I want to do and how much time I have to do it. Basically will do CanSoc, mentor people at Linacre and in English (through mentoring programs), and acting as the Sewing Machine Coordinator at Linacre (which just means making sure no-one destroys it and taking it for a tune up once a year). Exercise will be running, biking and Pilates. No soccer this year. It just takes up too much time and I am too old (I don't feel like I fit in that well with the rest of the team). Felt a bit bad saying no as the Football booth was right across from CanSoc and I had to tell them my decision right when they are trying to recruit all these new people. But you gotta do what's right for you. Oh yeah, i'll also be doing my dissertation this year. :)

Breath

Life is not about how many breaths you take, it's about the moments that take your breath away.

Quote for the labouring grad student

'Sometimes writing a dissertation is a bit like having a serious, but not mortal, illness: it takes enormous energy just to sustain life.'

Joan Bolker

Pumpkin

Made pumpkin soup and tofu pumpkin pie out of the 'Tim' pumpkin today for all my guests. Everyone dutifuly ate my wares and seemed to enjoy them (I foisted half a pie on Simon because I actually don't like pumpkin pie myself). It is the Tim pumpkin because one day when Kevin and Tim were marathon training Kevin urged Tim to go on ahead because he was too tired to keep up. Tim did so saying that if he went too fast he might turn into a pumpkin. The next morning outside our door was a nice round pumpkin with the words 'Told ya!'' written on it. But we have subsequently seen Tim so we know he is only masquerading part time as a pumpkin. Need to get a hold of him today and offer him some soup and pie (again, need to off load the pie as it will never get eaten here).

Visitors

Wow! So interesting to realize people still check the blog even after all those months of silence. As many of you know I have been struggling with my dphil so it was really hard to get motivated to write anything chipper when all I wanted to do was eat chocolate, read Harry Potter again and avoid school work. However, weve had a number of visitors from home who are all blogging so we got inspired again.

Had a GREAT time with my folk touring around Oxford, eating scones and tea and debating the National Energy Policy. It was hard to see them go. But I just keep reminding myself that even if I don't know WHEN I will see them next at least I know I definately WILL be seeing them again.

Wayne and Kathryn and Simon and Claire, all friends from Toronto, are here now and it has been wonderful to spend time with them before they start off on their respective adventures. Wayne and Kath are off to Tajikistan for a few years to run an adventure travel company (here is their blog www.tajktravels.com ). Simon and Claire are off for a year long tour of the world (their blog is www.threeappleshigh.ca).

It has been such a nice piece of home to be surrounded by people who really know us and care about us the last few weeks. Lucky us!

12 hours of dark, or 12 hours of light?

We have zipped past the equinox, and are now back into light caching mode - making the most of the suns hours.


On the subject of blogging, we have been very absent lately. I kind of wonder how many people are affected because it had seemed like a very one way affair lately -- typing in, little reading going out.

Maybe drop a comment if you miss the Mango content and maybe some words will start to flow again...

Syllabus

Hi all, in case you're wondering about what I'm teaching this summer, here is my syllabus:

Outline
Week 1
Lesson 1 - Tuesday, July 4
Hand out syllabus and give overview of the course. Ice breaker games to learn everyone’s names. Outline expectations for the course on assignments, homework, reading and behaviour in class.

Lesson 2 – Wednesday, July 5
Today will be an overview of fantasy covering general themes of the genre. We will outline the role of Oxford in the creation and nurturing of fantasy and its relation to speculative fiction (which contains science fiction, fantasy and horror). There will be a tour of Oxford focusing on things related to Tolkien, Lewis and Carroll.

Lesson 3 – Thursday, July 6
Today we discuss Tolkien’s essay ‘On Fairy Stories’ with the goal of developing an understanding of Tolkien’s view of what the fledgling fantasy genre should look like.
Reading: ‘On Fairy Stories’, J.R.R. Tolkien, published in Tree and Leaf, 1964, London: Harper Collins Publishers, p. 8-81.

Lesson 4 – Friday, July 7
We will welcome guest speaker Dr. Stuart Lee, author of The Keys of Middle Earth. We will discuss the influence of Tolkien’s great knowledge of mediaeval texts and old Norse, Celtic, Germanic, Finnish, Greek and other mythologies on his work.
Reading: The Keys of Middle Earth: Discovering Medieval Literature through the Fiction of J.R.R. Tolkien, Stuart D. Lee and Elizabeth Solopova, 2005, London: Palgrave MacMillan, p. 7-11, 25-31 and 50-53.

Lesson 5 – Saturday, July 8
We will discuss the role of war, battle, violence and killing in Tolkien’s work and in fantasy as a genre. We will also outline Tolkien’s involvement in both WWI and WWII and the fact that many of his close friends were killed in these wars.

Week 2
Lesson 6 – Monday, July 10
A Discussion of ‘evil’ in The Lord of the Rings will take place. Evil characters such as Orcs, The Watcher in the Water, Saruman, Sauron and the Ringwraiths will be compared to other lesser evil characters such as Grima Wormtongue, Denethor and Boromir. We will address the question of how evil drives the narrative of the story.
Readings:
‘The Monsters of Middle Earth’, p. 78-80
‘Adolescent Monsters: Harry Potter’, p. 81-83
‘J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings’, p. 60-71
all from Fantasy Fiction: An Introduction, Lucie Armitt, 2005, New York: Continuum International Publishing Group Inc.

Lesson 7 – Tuesday, July 11
As this is a short class due to the excursion to Broughton Castle, we will head to Christ Church meadow and play fun games to highlight and summarize the knowledge students have acquired to date.

Lesson 8 – Wednesday, July 12
Christian themes in Tolkien’s work will be analyzed including exploring Valinor as heaven, Sauron as the devil, the ‘gift’ of death and resurrection to the race of men, the grace and redemption of Frodo and the mercy and pity showed to Gollum by both Bilbo and Frodo. The majority of the day will be taken up with a tour of Bodleian Library, where many original works by Tolkien and Lewis are kept.

Lesson 9 – Thursday, July 13
The issue of race and class in Tolkien and Lewis’ work will be examined. The social hierarchy of beings in both in Middle-earth and Narnia will be deconstructed shedding light on the impact of class on these authors.
Creative Writing assignment is due.

Lesson 10 – Friday, July 14
Today is the Creative Writing workshop with award winning fantasy author Mike Scott Rohan. You will have the opportunity to ask questions and share your work.
Reading: ‘Chapter 2, The Apprentice’, The Anvil of Ice, Mike Scott Rohan, 1986, London: Orbit, p. 23-61.

Lesson 11 – Saturday, July 15
Today’s theme is ‘The Creation of the World’. Passages from The Silmarillion (Tolkien), The Magician’s Nephew (Lewis) and Genesis (the Bible) will be compared exploring similar and dissimilar elements in these stories of creation. This class will take place in the Botanical Gardens (weather permitting) where we can sit under Tolkien’s ‘Party Tree’ and see ‘Lyra’s Bench’ from Stephen Pullman’s Dark Materials trilogy.
Reading:
‘Ainulindale, The Music of the Ainur’, The Silmarillion, J.R.R. Tolkien, London, HarperCollins Publishers, p. 3-12.
‘Chapter 9, The Founding of Narnia’, The Magician’s Nephew, C.S. Lewis, [1955] 2001, London: HarperCollins Children’s Books, p. 125-139.
Genesis: 1:1, 2:2, 3:2 and 3:3 - The MacArthur Study Bible, New King James Version, Thomas Nelson Bibles, p.13-21.

Week 3
Lesson 12 – Monday, July 17
Christian themes in the Chronicles of Narnia will be discussed in conjunction with close reading of passages from The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Last Battle. We will analyze the description of Alsan’s country in comparison to Christian descriptions of heaven. The class will take place in Magdalen College (weather permitting). We will trace the steps of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and Hugo Dyson as they walked down Addison’s Walk, the site of Lewis’ reluctant but lasting conversion to Christianity.
Reading:
‘Chapter 16, The Very End of the World’, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, C.S. Lewis, [1952] 2001, London: HarperCollins Children’s Books, p. 255-272.
‘Chapters 12-16’, The Last Battle, C.S. Lewis, [1956] 2001, London: HarperCollins Children’s Books, p. 156-224.

Lesson 13 – Tuesday, July 18
Today’s topic will be Women in Fantasy. The role of women in Tolkien and Lewis’s work as well as the fantasy genre in general will be considered.
Reading:
‘Other Desires: Homoeroticism and the Feminine’, p. 90-100
‘Mothers and Mirrors: Harry Potter’, p. 100-108
Both from Fantasy Fiction: An Introduction, Lucie Armitt, 2005, New York: Continuum International Publishing Group Inc.

Lesson 14 – Wednesday, July 19
Who was Charles Dodgson? The controversy surrounding his relationship with Alice Liddell and his photography will be discussed. The majority of the class will be taken up with a tour of Christ Church where Dodgson was a fellow. The tour also includes seeing the room that inspired The Great Hall in the Harry Potter movies.

Lesson 15 - Thursday, July 20
Today we will discuss passage from Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland. This will be a short class due to field trip to Warwick Castle.
Reading: TBD (a portion of Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland)

Lesson 16 – Friday, July 21
This class will incorporate a discussion of a passage from Through the Looking Glass.
Reading: TBD (a portion of Through the Looking Glass)

Lesson 17 – Saturday, July 22
The theme for today’s class is ‘Adaptations of Fantasy to Screen and Stage’. We will discuss the Narnia film, the Lord of the Rings trilogy by Peter Jackson, the cartoon version of The Hobbit by Rankin and Bess and LOTR musical currently playing in Toronto. Portions of some of these films will be shown highlighting the challenge in adapting literary work to the screen or stage.

Week 4
Lesson 18 – Monday, July 24
There will be a summary of course material to date, highlighting what students have learned over the course of the past few weeks.
Student will give their final presentations.

Lesson 19 – Tuesday, July 25
Students will fill out course evaluations. Then you will embark on a Scavenger Hunt, adventuring around Oxford, gathering items related to the course material. We will meet for lunch at the Eagle and Child, where the group ‘The Inklings’ including Tolkien and Lewis often met to discuss their writing. At the Eagle and Child the results for the Scavenger Hunt will be tallied and prizes given to the team that collected the most items.

Literature and the Fantastic

Firstly, apologies for the severe lack of entries on the blog lately. Just seem so busy! But have to realize that there is no way that I am going to catch up on all the things we've done lately so just need to get a few lines down to keep all the folks out there in the Mango Grove happy.

I started teaching Literature and the Fantastic (Tolkien, Lewis and Lewis Carroll) to American kids aged 14 and 15 on Monday on a program called the Oxford Prep Experience. It is a lot of work but I am really enjoying it. Dare I even say that I'm finding it fun? Think teaching is a good thing for me. Funny thing happened in class though.

My guest speaker Dr. Lee got the students to read some bits of old english and old norse texts that influenced Tolkien. He gave one group a whole list of old english riddles and asked them to compare it to the riddles Gollum and Bilbo tell in the Hobbit. Presenting back to the class the group chose to read out one of them aloud.

As soon as she got through the first two lines Dr. Lee and I exchanged blushing and horrified looks, as the point of some of these riddles is that they have two meanings usually one that is innocent and one that is not and people of the time would amuse themselves trying to find the innocent meaning (as the not-so-innocent one was usually very obvious).

We were amazed when not one kid in the class got the not-so-innocent meaning. Guess they still are kids and a lot more naive than I thought!

Here is the riddle:
I have heard of something that grows in a corner,
swelling and standing up, lifting up its covering.
Upon that boneless thing a proud-minded woman
gripped with her hands; with her garment a lord's daughter
covered the swollen thing.

The innocent answer is dough. :)

Gutentag from Deutchland!

Meagan tried desperately to teach us some german but I'm afraid our linguistic skills were paltry (although I did learn to count to ten by the end of the week). Booking the alpine huts was toungue wrenching as Meagz tried to explain from a sweaty payphone that we wanted to book beds and dinners for vegetarians three days from now (meat is a huge part of every meal in Bavaria). She starred though as when we arrived at each hut they were expecting us and noted 'spreckenzie English'.

Kevin chipped in with this question:
Why don't vegetarians eat sausage?
Because it's the wurst.

Tee hee.

Hut to hut hiking was a huge highlight. We did a portion of the E4 or Maximillianweg a trail that traverses (or transverses if you are mathemetically minded, or tired and low on body salts) the lower half of Germany (their TransCanada Trail but much older and with a lot more side options). Ridge walks with stunning views were served up daily and had us clinging to the bolted in cables, gushing over the alpine flowers and intrigued by the gemse (their mountain deer). The huts were DE-LUXE: running water, electricity, homecooked meals (although Kev and I were a bit tired of cheese dumplings but the end of the trek - the only veggie option) and even showers. We even got to watch world cup soccer on tv at most of the huts. By day four we finally got our hiking legs but it was time to move on to Munich.

June 21, 2006 - Serbia & Montenegro vs Ivory Coast, first round Fifa World Cup match, Munich Got to experience the brand new purpose built stadium that has no right angles and lights up with the colours of the home teams that play there (blue, red and white). Were in the Ivorian section. The dancing and jubulation were infections when the Elephants in orange pulled off a win. Both teams were already out by the time this game was played but the atmosphere was still energy charged. Only downside was the sardine packed (and boiled) transportation experience on the way there. They had guards hired to shove people onto the trains. But the crowd was in such a good mood that songs and chants kept errupting spontaneously regardless.

Lazing around was now required so we headed to Kochel and Walchnesee for two days of beaching and day hiking. Two alpine lakes nestled in the mountains but warm enough to swim in. It was divine.

Then back to Munich for some more crowd watching, shopping and world cup atmosphere absorption. Saturday night was charged! 10 minutes before game time (Sweden vs Germany played in Munich) the streets were deserted but the beer gardens, pubs, cafes, homes, hotel lobbies (anywhere with a tv) were PACKED. In our search for a veggie restaurant wandering the streets was surreal. You knew exactly when a foul was given, a close shot just missed the net or a goal scored by the swearing, ohhing and cheering you could always hear (even if you couldn't see anyone). It was so hot that all the windows were open. We found an AMAZING restaurant (Carmen I might have to say that it rivals Rebar) that served only vegetarian food. We were in heaven after 5 days of cheese dumplings. Place is normally packed/reservations only but we had the place almost to ourselves. Was so good we went back the next day for lunch.

All good things must end and we arrived back in Oxford on Sunday night, tired but satisfied.

Maxwell James

Tim and Rachel had their baby. Maxwell James arrived on Sunday, June 11 around 7 a.m. and was around 7 lbs. Rachel is doing amazing. Moving around like lightening and so relaxed. Max is a dream. Got to cuddle him a bit at the hospital on Monday and yesterday while Rachel went to greet her mom at the bus stop. So neat to see Rachel and her mom meeting up and the first sight of the grandson. Pretty special to get to be a part of it all. I also got to be there for about 30 min. while Rachel was having some of her contractions at the beginning. Was amazing to see her in labour and then 24 hours later to see the little 'bug' (as they call him) all swaddled up and sleeping. Really is a miracle!

Poor Tim is in the midst of assignments and studying for final exams so we are trying to support as much as we can with food and sharing our flat. But they are both so matter of fact and practical about it, with such a 'can do' attitude. I am impressed with how they are coping and not even seeming like it is hard. Hope I can be that kind of parent someday (assuming I ever want to be a parent of course).
;0)

Meagie, Meagie, Meagie!

Yay! Meagan arrived from Calgary and we spent a day and half together before she headed up to Scotland for a few days. We played football in the park with an Aussie, two Americans, a Torontonian and an Englishman which was fun. It was smokin' hot out. Then off for the Tolkien Tour which was not as polished as I'd hoped. Kept getting distracted and not sticking to the script. Whoops! (and not like Lucinda to deviate from the plan).

Snuck into some colleges (Magdalene and Merton) and saw some of the neat old buildings in Oxford. Wanted to go punting but 'didn't fancy the queue' (translation into Canadian- 'didn't feel like waiting in line'). Then headed to a pub for some grub, cold bevvies and to watch the Argentina v Ivory Coast game. Then home to bed as the Meagz was fighting jet lag. So fun to have my friend here!

We are off to Germany soon and can't wait to pick up the world cup vibe there, hike in the gorgous Alps and see the fairy tale castle that inspired the Disneyland Castle. Yay!

Sock Monkey

Those of you who know me know that I like to do silly little crafts. Got this idea out of the back of the great cookbook that Paige got me for my birthday. Kevin was kind enough to donate a pair of his socks and Voila! We have a sock monkey.

This is how I spend my time when I'm not working on 'metaphorically constructed computer-or internet-related neologisms'. Sad I know. :)

Biking San Luis Obispo

The tour de San Luis County was on yesterday, with the American trained Canadian domestic versus the untrained English Canadian import. It proved that having trained and knowing the route were distinct advantages, although its been rumoured that the limey is blaming a flat and the resulting low tire pressure. On examination by the equipment committee the results appear somewhat inconclusive.

San Diego

Click to enlarge.

Milestone

Yes folks, I have reached the first major (explicit) milestone of my DPhil: I handed in my transfer paper yesterday! June 5 has been circled and highlighted (in orange of course) on my calendar and has been looming before me. This is the only piece of work that I am assessed on all year and it will determine if I am allowed to 'transfer' from Probationer Research Student status to the DPhil proper. I was heartily sick of that thing by the time I handed it in but I hope it is up to snuff and that I will squeak into second year.

This week will be taken up with getting ready for the English Graduate Conference that I am helping to organize and presenting at. Have not even started writing my presentation yet (egads!) but have a few days to pull it together. Bummer of all bummers, I will be watching Marina Warner present 'Come to Hecuba: Ghosts and Tears' at the conference instead of the opening ceremonies and first game of the world cup. Somebody has her priorities all mixed up I think. :) Check out the conference details at:
http://www.english.ox.ac.uk/events/conferences.htm

Then Meagan gets here on Saturday. Yay! Cannot WAIT to see her. Am so excited to have a visitor from home and am going to drag her all over Oxford pointing out everything related to our lives here. She is also going to be subjected to the Tolkien Tour (which I'm preparing in anticipation of the class I'm teaching this summer), punting on the Thames river, formal hall at Linacre and Blenheim Palace. Poor Meegz, get ready for some super-hyper-over-enthusiastic-Lucinda-action-happening.

Am glad to be able to feel finally excited instead of just anxious. Don't think I realized the weight that transfer paper was having on me. Ah well, it has been cast into the Fires of Mount Doom now so I am free of it (at least for a little while).

NOTE: This is not my general feeling about my whole dphil project. In fact I feel excited about doing some more reading and exploring my topic but was just dead sick of that particular piece of writing.

Biking

Went for two gorgeous bike rides on the weekend. The weather was glorious (for once!). Now I understand what people mean about how nice it is to live in Oxford in the springtime.

On Saturday I just rode out to Islip about 1 hr 10 min. in total. Stopped in a nice old churchyard and just rested on a bench for half an hour in the sun. Was nice and relaxed.

On Sunday I rode up to Blenheim Palace and tried to find the secret way in where you don't have to pay. Was foiled in all my attempts. Also learned that although it is possible to bike all the way up there it is not preferred. The bike path just goes along the highway so its not that scenic. Better to take the bus up and then walk around the gardens. Met some nice neighbors in the complex after my ride and they gave me the scoop on where the free entrance is into the Palace Gardens. Will need to scope it out next time.

So you have probably been able to figure out that because I've been exercising I am feeling better. Yay! But I'm still not 100% but heck, I'll take 90%. Better than no functioning at all!

Orange Blob

Had this terrible dream last night that Jim, Lorisa and Lee Ann were consumed by this orange blob like people get assimlated by the Borg on Star Trek. Spent the whole dream fighting and fighting to escape the orange blob myself and to free my siblings from it. I kept talking to the blob and telling Jim, Lorisa and Lee Ann to hold on and to keep a hold of their identity and that I would find a way to get them out. Finally got the blob to release some guy named Darren by the end of the dream but he couldn't tell me much about anyone else in the blob. How weird is that?

Anyways, for everyone out there...FIGHT THE BLOB!

La Manche

I got to sail the La Manche (English Channel) this bank holiday weekend from Portsmouth to Cherbourg and back. The way over was rough, and a night passage to boot. A real introduction to sailing apparently. I quite enjoyed the adventure.

Cold update

I am now on day 16 of my cold. Lucky me. However, I think I am finally coming around. Throat is still sore and swollen but have not been coughing as much and managed to work all day on my transfer paper yesterday. A week today from the deadline so will be hammering to get it done. Need to send it to my supervisor one more time to prevent any 'howlers' as she called them. :)

Meet up with Reva

On Sunday I went to Birmingham to meet up with Reva. It was a good compromise at is in between Chorley and Oxford so neither of us had to travel too far. Didn't do much except the important stuff, visiting and eating! It was really great to catch up and can't believe how lucky I am to have seen Reva so much this year. Here are some pictures (courtesy of Reva).


When I got back to Oxford and rode my bike home from the train station I realized how truly unique Oxford is compared to other cities in England. The buildings are so old and steeped in history. I can understand the hordes of tourists (yes, the tourist season is upon us. It is Banff crowdedness but without the mountains, signs in Japanese, and dumb people taking pictures of elk with the flash on. Instead they back up to take pictures of the beautiful buildings and step right in front of the bike traffic!).

T Dot and C Spot

My supervisor suggested I check out an online dictionary called urbandictionary.com. It was quite entertaining. Mostly slang. But they had entries for T Dot (hip term for Toronto) and C Spot (slang for Calgary). Thought that was quite funny as I've heard and used these terms before but never imagined they were in high enough circulation to make a dictionary (even if its just a slangy online one). Check it out for a few good laughs and to update your vocabulary.

Have been horribly sick for the past week. Have pink eye, very sore throat and a nasty dry cough. Can't seem to shake it and deadlines are looming. My transfer paper is due June 5 and I have so much to do on it yet and the sickness makes progress slow. Can't you tell I'm getting close to hitting the panic button? Ah well, it will all work out in the end. It always does!

The Weekend

This weekend we didn't do too much as I was (am) suffering with a nasty cold.

Went to a play in the gardens at Univ (University College) called the Country Wife. It was a 17th Century bawdy play about mistresses, cuckolding, sex and fooling around. Basically a horny guy gets his doctor to spread a rumour around that he is a eunich. This means he can be seen with all sorts of women in dubious places and times without raising a scandal. However, he lets one to many ladies in on the secret and the husbands start to get suspicious. It was fun and amazing to be in this gorgeous old Oxford college with lush flowers growing watching students perform an old English play.

Then went to see Jakob (my fellow mentee in English) perform in the Oxford Wind Orchestra. He plays the Euphonia which is a small tuba. It was held in the chapel at Keeble college which is a big old cathedral looking thing (but in oxford these are called chapels because they are smaller than the 'real' cathedrals) with gorgeous red and white stonework.

Just made me appreciate the truly great environment at Oxford in terms of culture, architechture and history.

Oh yeah, and I also watched a lot of LOTR (thanks Reve) because I felt to sick to do much else. :)

Great Quote

Heard a great quote today from a woman who just submitted her DPhil thesis.

"Getting a dphil is 90% stamina."

I'm only a quarter to a third of the way there so need to dig deep on the stamina card I guess! :)

Tough Love

Wayne's Tough Love was too much!
This is a 3 hour indoor training video for the road bike which I pulled down from the shelf, dusted off and plugged into the DVD player tonight. It appears I require more base work -- and then I can attempt the second half at a later date :)
Thanks Wayne.. its good to have goals.

My Birthday

I had a lovely day on my birthday. Had been working REALLY hard to get a draft of my transfer paper into my supervisors. Basically working 10 hour days. The staff at the library knew me well, especially since they had to kick me out every night as I would have stayed longer if I could. Anyways, felt prepared enough to take my birthday off and enjoy it.

We went for a run in the morning and then met up with Rachel for a tour of the botanical gardents. So much had changed since Rachel and I were there last. Watched these amazing birds, called coates I think, building a nest. Then off to London for tea at the Ritz. Everyone laughed at me taking pictures but I didn't care. How often does a girl get to go to the Ritz!

Tea and scones with clotted cream, strawberry preserves, 6 different kinds of tea including a weird smoky one that Kevin braved, sandwiches with the crusts cut off and delicious pastries. Felt like a princess with all the fine silverware and solid silver tea pot (that didn't drip even)!

Was a wonderful day. Sorry mom and dad couldn't be there to celebrate as originally planned but thought about them lots and appreciated the wonderful gift of tea at the Ritz!

EGO Dinner

Went to a formal 'black tie' dinner for EGO, which stands for English Graduates at Oxford which is the student association in English for grad students. It was the first black tie event we've been too. It was a nice night and as always we had a great time with Kristina and Jakob. The dinner was at Mansfield so I now have one more college on my list of formal dinner 'conquests'.

The Lower Classes

Could not believe the advertisement that came over the Linacre Lines publicity email for a bop at St. Antonys. A 'Chav' is a stereotype of someone who is working class, kind of equivelent to 'trailer trash' or 'white trash'. My jaw dropped at the idea of 'dressing like the lower classes', because of course, there are no lower classes in Oxford. Us 'uppers' can mock them freely at our fancy, posh, insular little parties. Yes, Oxford is an experience.

The copy is below:

Chav Bop
ere, wt u duin? All u chavs, scallies, neds n townies r ded comin2 tha Chav Bop. Saty frm 9. L8 bar. Cheap Stella.

St Antony's next Bopping Ball shall take place this Saturday evening,the 6th of March, from 9pm. I can assure you it will be inexpensive and quite possibly entertaining. The theme of attire shall be the"lower classes." Tally ho!

Down in Flames

The Flames go out 3 - nil in game 7 of round 1. What happened? Any comments? Go ahead, click the little comments pencil right down in the corner there.....

On another note, we had a local election today, and Lucinda and I voted - as colonial citizens (colonites?) we have some democratic rights and responsibilities! Just think all you Canadians out there could sign up for the electorate roll and bring some "Peace, order and good government" back to the motherland. Or, on the other hand, we may further divide the vote and reduce the government to a smaller minority power? Or, maybe we could elect a Colonite to the head in the UK and have her instate the War Measures Act to convert all pubs into Tim Hortons. But that would just put more money into the pockets of the evil share holders. I'm sure we could arrange for it to be a Crown Corporation over here.... 'Fund education and healthcare, eat more tim bits!'

CKUA

scroll down

For those frequent blog viewers I invite you to scroll down (a long way). Kev finally had a full day off work and spent some time backfilling entries with little tidbits and pics.

Enjoy!

Biking in The Cotswalds

We finally got around to trying out the car hire in Oxford, which was quick but not painless. Something about car rental agencies that just makes my skin a little itchy! But in the end it was very worth it, as it was real exciting to be out on an activity day with our bikes in the back, the radio, albiet not CKUA or CBC, pumping out some tunes (Dar Williams has a cool cover of Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb out), the driver and the navigator suited with shades, and activity planned!

The rolling hills the of gloriously English Cotswalds. Very pretty sheep, and towns rich with character from 300 years ago. And an hour and a half on our bikes :)
































After the ride we went for dinner at the Kensington Inn in Bourton-on-the-Water (all one word). If you want to see picture book England town, this is it! Very nice and traditional, except that the pub was run by German's :)