Tag Archives: Birmingham

How to get (another) PhD (Rousse)

Posted on November 4, 2012 by Dreamaticus

The Birmingham University reunion switched venue to Aberystwyth. There I caught up with SC, HW and CP and others – supposedly to reminisce about our undergraduate days, but in practice to moan about the deficiencies of the modern-day husband. Also … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged assessment, Birmingham, Birmingham University, films, French, husband, husbands, language, literature, novels, pact, panic, PhD, strategy, undergraduate, University of Birmingham | Leave a comment

Gothic goings on (Belle)

Posted on October 26, 2012 by Dreamaticus

It was past midnight and I had no idea why the dog and I had been socialising in this part of town. Walking up Ludgate Hill we were suddenly plunged into complete darkness and I had to feel my way … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged bat, battlements, Birmingham, black cat, castle, chorus, dog, duvet, London, Ludgate Hill, singing, South Bank, taxi, vase, window | Leave a comment

An embarrassing handshake (Belle)

Posted on October 21, 2012 by Dreamaticus

I was at a school reunion in Birmingham when a friend I hadn’t seen for years marched across the empty dance floor towards me. I knew that my old school friends would be impressed. This London friend was quite a … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Birmingham, celebrity, dance floor, famous, Friends, handshake, kiss, London, school, school reunion | Leave a comment

Synchronised surf-boarding and questions of copyright at Birmingham University main library (Rousse)

Posted on September 27, 2012 by Dreamaticus

Single study rooms were at a premium in Birmingham University’s main library, especially the ones with beds. Fortunately I managed to secure one for myself, although I was disappointed to find that the sheets were torn. The last user had … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged acknowledgement, action, bed, belongings, Birmingham, Birmingham University, black and white, copyright, dissertation, gold, library, main, main library, medal, owner, photo, photograph, photographs, photos, picture, pictures, professional, reinforcement., room, rooms, sheet, sheets, single, study, surf, surf-board, surf-boarders, surf-boarding, surfboard, surfboarders, surfboarding, surfing, sychronised, Team GB, torn, university, University of Birmingham, user | Leave a comment

A patchwork quilt, property in Perthshire, and a stay at the Palace (Rousse)

Posted on September 16, 2012 by Dreamaticus

My parents were selling up and disposing of their possessions, as was the University of Birmingham. If I wanted to save anything, now was the time to act. I wanted nothing from the White House, but was keen to retrieve … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Birmingham, carpet tacks, cottage, dentures, evidence, false, family, holiday, house, Manor, Manor House, palace, parents, patchwork, Perthshire, photo, photograph, Pitlochry, Queen, quilt, rent, restoration, royal, sell, stair, stationery, Stockton-on-Tees, teeth, university, University of Birmingham, White House | Leave a comment

Accommodation for a single husband, cycling safety and wedding dresses (Rousse)

Posted on August 30, 2012 by Dreamaticus

I was running late for my meeting, but the issue of TPR’s accommodation was a higher priority. Thank goodness he had dismissed the suggestion of moving back to the Manor House at the University of Birmingham. However, he still seemed … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged accident, accidents, accommodation, bike, Birmingham, Birmingham University, collision, collisions, contract, cycle, cycling, design, designer, dress, dresses, gown, gowns, husband, late, Manor House, meeting, prize, room, single, TPR, University of Birmingham, visit, wedding | Leave a comment

Rousse’s rubbish reunion

Posted on August 18, 2012 by Dreamaticus

This was the most peculiar of university reunions. First the woman across the table congratulated me on another successful event. “I didn’t organise this!” I responded. (I secretly added “Had I been in charge this would have amounted to far … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Birmingham, bus, class, congratulate, crowd, dentistry, difficulties, disgrace, domestic, drab, event, impostors, Leith, logic, Manchester United, mittens, party, primary, reunion, running, school, table, tea, university | Leave a comment

Daily Mail Eurovision Song Contest hoax (Rousse)

Posted on August 16, 2012 by Dreamaticus

It had all been such a rush that none of us – not even E – had remembered to print off boarding passes for the flight from Birmingham. So here were all three of us forking out an extra £20 … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged airport, bag, Birmingham, Boarding, boots, containers, contest, Daily Mail, Eurovision, fake, flight, fly, German, hand bag, handbag, impostor, joke, liquid, Macedonia, Macedonian, official, pass, passport, perfume, scissors, song | Leave a comment

Central Birmingham palace “sponsored” by Asian airline (Rousse)

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Dreamaticus

We travelled in a smart black stretch limo to see the new house of Z and SM. This was the most appropriate form of transport for visiting multimillionaires. In short, if we turned up in our own (modest) car, we … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged airline, Asian, Birmingham, car, computing, drive, driving, elephant, entrance, hall, hot tub, house, IT, limo, limousine, logo, millionaire, millionaires, multimillionaire, multimillionaires, new-build, palace, room, stretch, tile, tiles | Leave a comment

A cat-assisted attempt to avoid divorce (Rousse)

Posted on March 24, 2012 by Dreamaticus

There was only one way that I would find time to do my own research ever again: to register for a second PhD. I considered several options. I could return to the University of Birmingham where I had studied as … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged African, Annandale Street, attempt, badge, badges, Birmingham, Birmingham University, boyfriend, cat, Claremont Crescent, dance, dancing, director, divorce, door, doorbell, dress, East Claremont Street, Ediburgh, ex-husband, eyes, garden, home, husband, identity, initials, lecturer, lights, marking, metal, Newcastle University, Oxford Internet Institute, Oxford University, parent, parents, PhD, railings, reconciliation, research, TPR, university, University of Birmingham, University of Newcastle, University of Oxford, wall | Leave a comment