Category Archives: Uncategorized

The draw of Guatemala (Rousse)

Posted on April 10, 2021 by Dreamaticus

The garden of my great-grandparents’ house was crammed with people I knew, from TPR’s sunbathing ex-colleagues to my board gaming PhD students. The latter group was my target. I promised them the full experience of the mess and quirkiness of … Continue reading →

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Portrait painting in the compost corner (Rousse)

Posted on April 10, 2021 by Dreamaticus

JLW had long dropped out of our friendship group, so what was she doing in my garden standing next to an easel in the area usually reserved for the compost bin? She was teaching techniques of portrait painting to a … Continue reading →

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Lost audience, sight, and a Dutch cap (Rousse)

Posted on April 5, 2021 by Dreamaticus

When responding to the question as to how I had met my boyfriend, my first job was to correct the enquirer. We were simply friends from University who had first met at a bus stop on the Bristol Road South … Continue reading →

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Flood, theft, and burglary (Rousse)

Posted on April 1, 2021 by Dreamaticus

It rained so heavily that the entire garden turned into a massive, muddy, swamp. Our tandem was stolen in front of our very eyes. When I stepped out of bed onto the rough surface of an inferior replacement for our … Continue reading →

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Cake, china cabinets, and Charles Dickens (Rousse)

Posted on March 31, 2021 by Dreamaticus

When LM and I returned to campus, we were shocked at the neglect that it had suffered in the past year. We hoped that the new students would not be disappointed with their choice of university. Whatever their opinion of … Continue reading →

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Stephen Fry turns up nose at roll up soap bag (Rousse)

Posted on March 29, 2021 by Dreamaticus

For years, my little sister scoured the sales for bargains. Many of her purchases had been stored away unused for years, the majority still in their original packaging. I took a pile of these goods to a posh toy shop … Continue reading →

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Wool and sheep, sex and turkeys (Rousse)

Posted on March 29, 2021 by Dreamaticus

TPR and I were checking (a) the stream that was coursing all the way from the pond to under our bedroom window, and (b) the encroachment of teenagers on our property as they partied in the catacombs beneath the Edinburgh … Continue reading →

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Bars, cocaine, prostitutes, tattoos – and a gargoyle (Rousse)

Posted on March 27, 2021 by Dreamaticus

He was staying out all night in dodgy bars, snorting coke, and seeing prostitutes, but it was the tattoos that really marked the end of my marriage to TPR. The first was a patterned band located beside his watch strap, … Continue reading →

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Pink dungarees for Kitty Bennet (Rousse)

Posted on March 23, 2021 by Dreamaticus

The speaker hesitated. Who were the Bennet sisters in Pride and prejudice? The audience helped out with four names – Jane, Elizabeth, Mary and Lydia – but nobody could come up with the fifth. We were meeting in a public … Continue reading →

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St Cuthbert and a staircase (Rousse)

Posted on March 21, 2021 by Dreamaticus

I had heard of people trapped in lifts, but what about trapped in a staircase? The irony was that I had told skinny June in the high heels that I was taking the stairs because it was safer. I was … Continue reading →

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