Category Archives: Uncategorized

Detention for a naughty school girl (Rousse)

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Dreamaticus

GW and I sat up at the front of the minibus next to the driver – a 15 year-old blonde girl dressed in her pale blue school uniform. While I fiddled with my camera settings in an attempt to keep … Continue reading →

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A new reality TV star (Belle)

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Dreamaticus

My friend JB had become the unlikely star of a new reality TV show. Cameras at a supermarket car-park filmed members of the public attempting to park their vehicles in bays that were slightly too small. JB had won over … Continue reading →

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Rousse reveals a mean streak

Posted on March 12, 2013 by Dreamaticus

J was surrounded by a mess of papers and five pound notes. On closer inspection I discovered that the papers were newspaper cuttings about all her former triumphs, and it dawned on me that what she was doing was waiting … Continue reading →

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Burnt breakfast and a wet trip to Edinburgh Zoo (Rousse)

Posted on March 12, 2013 by Dreamaticus

All the ingredients were laid out in the kitchen so I made a start on breakfast: one slice of bacon and a fried egg for me in one pan; three fried eggs for TPR in another. While all this was … Continue reading →

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A wasted trip to the University of Birmingham’s Muirhead Tower (Rousse)

Posted on March 11, 2013 by Dreamaticus

I found my timetable on a scrunched up piece of brown paper in the bottom of my handbag. I’d looked at it so infrequently that I was unsure as to which way it read: were those the hours across the … Continue reading →

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A relationship break-up and a reunion (Rousse)

Posted on March 11, 2013 by Dreamaticus

My husband and I separated. He got to keep the flat and I moved in with a woman who had also just suffered a similar relationship break-up. I survived just one night without TPR. I missed him so much, just … Continue reading →

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The bicycle rack thief (Rousse)

Posted on March 10, 2013 by Dreamaticus

Petty theft in the Scottish highlands was at an all-time high. We came out of our bed and breakfast one sunny morning to discover that someone had stolen the bike rack from the roof of our car. Strangely the yellow … Continue reading →

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Mafia threat over late PhD (Rousse)

Posted on March 10, 2013 by Dreamaticus

The Mafia boss grabbed both my wrists, pulled me within inches of his ugly mug, and spat out his threat: “If you don’t finish that PhD soon, I’ll sue you for the sponsorship money”.

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Student presentation overload (Rousse)

Posted on March 9, 2013 by Dreamaticus

This was going to take forever. Every student that I had ever taught was lined up to give a 5-minute presentation. I most pitied those at the back of the queue. What a wait it would be for them!

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A bad job interview soon forgotten (Rousse)

Posted on March 9, 2013 by Dreamaticus

I’d been drafted in to help recruit some new research staff for Sunderland University. The panel members compared their notes after the interviews. We agreed that one of the candidates was hopeless. The chairman also noted woefully that it would … Continue reading →

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