I splashed along the Hebridean shoreline on a beautiful summer day. For company I had the birds and an occasional seal. I even spotted a few small basking sharks surprisingly close to the water’s edge. I couldn’t understand why TPR would want to hide away in the gym on a day like this. Still, I would meet him later at the pool for a swim.

When I found the car and retrieved my bathing costume from the boot I discovered that I had forgotten to pack my my bikini bottoms. However, I was determined that this mishap would not get in the way of a swim. I would simply wear my yellow cotton knickers in the pool. They wouldn’t go transparent in the water – or would they?

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One of my colleagues was pondering a job offer in the US. I told him that not even the promise of fabulous facilities on campus would ever draw me there. The fact was that if you took up a position as an academic in America, you would be obliged to live there too. The latter was not even worth the most casual consideration.