Author Archives: Dreamaticus

Innovation at the British Library (Rousse)

I sat in the futuristic auditorium surrounded by the great and good of the British Library. Above each pod was an electronic name tag that identified its occupant. Since they shared the same surname, I wondered whether the woman on … Continue reading →

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Dilemma during final of University Challenge in French (Rousse)

My boyfriend was called Phil. We’d been seeing one another on and off for a while now so it was good to make it official. He was a nice man, though a bit posh – and a lot younger than … Continue reading →

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A half-written report, a lazy student, and a planned death (Rousse)

WM sat at the kitchen table with her half-written report in front of her. Another couple of students were milling around, but not the one that WM was after. When her quarry eventually appeared WM shouted at him for not … Continue reading →

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Irish politics and star of the Voice Fionn Gardner (Rousse)

My companion was a highly intelligent Irish woman. When she started talking about politics, I was grateful that I had paid attention to the radio news that morning. She seemed impressed that I was able to pass on some information … Continue reading →

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Ski innovations (Rousse)

My brother-in-law MF invited me on a ski-ing trip. I hadn’t taken to the slopes for years so was interested in the new form of ski-ing on short stumpy blades that were held together across the front by a small … Continue reading →

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Getting creative in the garden and the office (Rousse)

Creative KT spent the whole day in her narrow sloping garden, tidying it up in anticipation of the arrival of J’s grandchildren. She even pitched the huge embroidered tent that I had bought in the charity shop. TPR had told … Continue reading →

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President suffers a blow at Peebles library (Rousse)

The head of Peebles public library service was furious with me. The CCTV footage revealed the reason why. When I had run out of the reading room and into the concourse to my unguarded Mac I had allowed the glass … Continue reading →

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A novel solution to shortage of office space on campus (Rousse)

Space was at such a premium on campus that they converted the ladies’ toilets into a staff office. Then they split the tiny school office in two: one half housed desks, and the other a fully functional bathroom. All that … Continue reading →

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A double birthday surprise – with Moomins (Rousse)

The first part of my birthday treat was an afternoon spent in the luxury top apartment of the block. We simply did a switch with our landladies (one of whom was friends with David Bowie) for the weekend. While we … Continue reading →

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When will I die? (Rousse)

We were relaxing with our French friends, including the M and D families, and PG. I asked about the red cardboard constructions on the grand piano. With their black and gold lettering they looked like Chinese New Year decorations or … Continue reading →

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