Tag Archives: Edinburgh

In defence of the ‘Nonsense Norwegian’ (Rousse)

Posted on April 20, 2025 by Dreamaticus

The residential staff retreat was a dreary affair. As I stood in a queue waiting for my turn to take part in the next ‘exciting’ activity – charity shop shopping – my mother-in-law lifted my woollen jumper to check that … Continue reading →

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A view of Edinburgh Castle and a cat in the dentist’s car seat (Rousse)

Posted on March 21, 2025 by Dreamaticus

TPR and I didn’t miss the city when we moved to the outskirts of Edinburgh. Our house was a luxurious new-build with an extraordinary number of bathrooms. From a thin window on the top floor, we could see in the … Continue reading →

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Identifying elite US and UK universities (Rousse)

Posted on March 14, 2025 by Dreamaticus

I told a gaggle of American students that everything that I had ever learnt about elite US universities came from watching films. They were impressed that this ‘strategy’ of mine was so successful. I then asked them if they could … Continue reading →

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Rude relations (Rousse)

Posted on January 12, 2025 by Dreamaticus

My sister J and her husband M decided to move to Edinburgh. They took a quick look at my flat, pulled out a pad of paper, and drew up some plans. Their big idea was to buy my flat and … Continue reading →

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Amol Rajan: rubbish railway worker

Posted on December 31, 2024 by Dreamaticus

Amol Rajan had given up in journalism for a job selling train tickets at London King’s Cross. When he failed to find me a split ticket for the route London-Newcastle-Edinburgh, I recommended that he return to his old role. He … Continue reading →

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An Edinburgh pied à terre (Rousse)

Posted on December 15, 2024 by Dreamaticus

J and GC beamed with pride when they announced that they had bought a pied à terre in Edinburgh. ‘How exciting!’ I exclaimed. When I entered the poky two-bedroomed ground floor flat on Broughton Road, I managed to hide my … Continue reading →

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Teenage behaviour amongst the middle aged (Rousse)

Posted on December 4, 2024 by Dreamaticus

Two middle aged men called over to us from the other side of East Claremont Street, Edinburgh. ECM and I didn’t immediately recognise them as ST and PN. However, as soon as we did, we were transported back to our … Continue reading →

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Trick-cycling, pogo-ing, and the real purpose of a private education (Rousse)

Posted on September 12, 2024 by Dreamaticus

After watching a friend’s son trick-cycle his way down the yellow-painted banister of an Edinburgh tenement staircase, I took my pogo stick and bounced along the streets to my new girls’ school. So much for school fees: the teachers at … Continue reading →

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Self-catering apartments in Edinburgh, with dogs (Rousse)

Posted on August 7, 2024 by Dreamaticus

My American friend JG bought the old mews building a long time before I moved to Edinburgh. I did see her there once with her sister A – but only because I had mastered time travel. My sudden appearance rather … Continue reading →

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Wedding speaker shamed (Rousse)

Posted on August 4, 2024 by Dreamaticus

VAE stood up from her pew seat, marched over to the speaker, and admonished him in front of the whole congregation: ‘This is a wedding of a couple very much in love. It is customary to speak about them during … Continue reading →

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