Tag Archives: chat

A book group climbing hero (Rousse)

At the very last minute all members of my book group were able to meet at my flat after all. I quickly set the table with our ‘fun’ Champagne glasses – largely because DM had served drinks from similar glasses … Continue reading

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Tall men and a surprise trip to Paris (Rousse)

I could sense that the person approaching me from behind was tall. Indeed, at almost 7 foot in stature, he was very tall. We struck up a conversation and the man told me that he was Dutch. Just as I … Continue reading

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Rogue primary school teacher gives up ‘research fellow’ disguise (Rousse)

My immediate thought on waking in my office was whether or not I had any clothes to change into from my red fleece pyjamas. What I thought was a pair of black and white spotted knickers on a bookshelf turned … Continue reading

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An audience with James Herriot (Rousse)

When I heard the exciting news that the guest speaker was James Herriot (or, more precisely, James Alfred Wight) I altered my plans so that I could stay a bit longer at Sighthill and meet the famous veterinary surgeon turned … Continue reading

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Sleeping with Claire Skinner (Rousse)

Claire Skinner was fast becoming my best friend. Throughout the whole time I spent with her she behaved as if we had known one another for years. We lay side by side in a big double bed at night, chatting … Continue reading

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A generous death (Rousse)

I was calculating how much work to pack. The train journey to Aberdeen took three hours, and the return trip the same. If we sat together, I would probably spend much of the time chatting with CI and ET. However, … Continue reading

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The brain in the box and the wrong partner (Rousse)

Everyone was there, including TPR, JM, DT, KJ, NP and SF. JLW arrived a little later with a present for me: some fun photos of the pair of us that she had purchased from a Blipfoto booth. At first it … Continue reading

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Academics work through the night to cope with workload (Rousse)

I was both amazed and appalled to discover an office full of colleagues on campus working at 02:00 in the morning. One was just about to pack up and go home to his wife and children, but would only manage … Continue reading

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Magic tables only a partial solution to University accommodation problems (Rousse)

I was dismayed over the state of my accommodation. I had been allocated a tiny desk squeezed into the corner of a large computer lab populated by PhD students. My computer and printer took up most of the desk’s surface … Continue reading

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A coping strategy for the strangely blind (Rousse)

I suffered from an extremely rare form of blindness. Although I still had my sight, what I saw was completely different from what everyone else could see. I did all I could to disguise my disability by listening very carefully … Continue reading

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