All about V.

V.  continues to enjoy her Art and her creative writing and will most commonly be found engaged working on her latest drawing project on her IPad in her bedroom. 

After a long period of remote learning, she is now back at school and, while she is still finding it a challenge, she seems to be a gradually getting used to the routine of in person teaching although due to the long periods that she was out of the classroom, she has a lot of ground to make up in terms of GCSE materials that she has missed. 

For someone who has always prided herself on doing well in class this has proved a major cause of anxiety particularly with her mocks coming up after Christmas and her Exams in May - she is making good progress but there is a lot to be done so fingers crossed that she is able to continue on her upward trajectory.

She has maintained her close circle of friends (although most of their interactions are on line) and as the weather gets cooler she will hopefully feel more inclined to venture out and about a bit more and I am looking forward to resuming our rides together. 

In terms of school subjects, English and Art remain favourites although most recently she has been full of anecdotes from her chemistry classes - as mentioned in an earlier blog, the interaction between students and various practical experiments has been a rich source of excitement and potential jeopardy which seems to delight and appall her in equal measure!

All about A.

So our eldest and tallest child has flown the nest and headed off 3000 miles North to University after a very successful set of A level results in the Summer which allowed him to get into his first choice. We were obviously delighted with his results and he was clearly relishing the chance to spread his wings.

Due to V. starting the new term at the beginning of September, E had to remain in Dubai so A. and I headed to UK for a week’s worth of quarantine down in Devon with my Sister and her family and then a rather hectic couple of weeks catching up with everyone after over 18 months of pandemic induced absence in Dubai. This included Grandparents and my Cousin C who had contracted a very nasty immune system virus which reduced him to a wheelchair (fortunately walking again now).

A. is attending the same University where E and I met and it was a real trip down memory lane (he is also in the same Hall of Residence where I started off). The weather and campus were at their best and I managed to look up some of my old haunts - it was quite piquant to say goodbye to him in his new room surrounded by unwrapped duvet covers/new cups and kettles, and assorted other paraphernalia of student life. 

He seems to have settled in well although all of us remaining back in Dubai (including the cat) have missed his presence - they always say that nothing prepares you for a new baby but I think the same can be said for the departure (even if temporary) of your first born.

Boosterism

Readers of this blog who have even following my adventures of late will have surmised that my Covid test (undertaken in the wilds of Crayford) was negative given my reappearance in the sandpit and there was more Covid related news today when we finally received our notification of eligibility for the Pfizer booster shot. 

My original vaccination was completed in March and I had rather hoped to have had the booster before going back to the UK and had been following the various updates on eligibility and availability avidly. 

To date, the Pfizer booster had been limited to various at-risk categories of people and to those who had originally been vaccinated with Sinopharm so the text both E and I received this afternoon advertising the booster was welcome news and so we have both booked in to get our shots tomorrow afternoon - sadly the vaccination centre next to my office has closed but the alternative near Mirdiff is reasonably convenient so we will be meeting there.

In other news, A. sent a photo of him sitting in the snow outside his Hall of a Residence at University looking very pleased with himself and V. spent 6 hours in her Art mock GCSE today (with 4 more hours tomorrow).

Bicycle race

 

Early start this morning, but as the pictures show, this morning’s practice ride at Al Qudra

was played out in near perfect riding conditions. There were over 400 participants following a 45

km loop in the desert passing various wild-life including Oryx. Managed to keep up with the rest of the team - this was the second practice ride with two more to come followed by the main race in February next year over 92km so still a lot of work to be done but given the fact that I have spent the last week eating and drinking for England on holiday, reasonably pleased with the days work.

Lounging around

As I was flying overnight, I decided to upgrade my economy seat for business class for some airmiles and £90. The Emirates lounge at Heathrow was open so I was able to enjoy some nice food and a couple of glasses of champagne - definitely worth the investment and I was able to enjoy the bar on the A380 as well as a foldout bed. 

Whilst the 6 hour flight was not really long enough for a proper sleep, I certainly arrived back at DXB more relaxed than normal,

Taxi for Mr M

Apologies for the lack of posting yesterday but I was travelling back from UK. I was in fact intending to try to write something in the airport lounge but got caught up with some work so will do something on that as a “bonus” blog later today but for now I though I would talk about my trip to the airport and in particular the fascinating taxi driver who took me.

We used to have a driver who we would religiously use to take us to the airport but he retired a number of years ago and so subsequently we have tended to use one of the local firms. However, we were introduced by some friends to their regular cabbie and so I was given the opportunity to chat to him on the way to Heathrow. 

There was not a dull moment. From hearing about his son and his “accidental” religious journey to being a tour guide for pilgrims to the rest of his family with their various interests and businesses, I said that he had enough material to write a soap opera. Very nice chap and a certainty someone we will be using again.

‘astings

I am sure that I have previously written about our love affair with Hastings but I hope my reader (s) will forgive another pean to it’s continuing position as a source of delight and (excellent) crabs. 

Whilst my early relationship with the town was somewhat rocky - mainly in consequence of it being the location of the White Rock Pavilion where I was required to play piano in various competitions in front of an audience (a hugely stressful but ultimately character forming experience from around my 9th to 12  birthdays) - over the years it has become a source of pleasant days out, good food and happy memories. 

Today was no exception as Dad, B and I headed down on a fairly mild and slightly overcast day pitching up a Roc-a- Nore at around lunchtime and meeting an old childhood friend J who has recently started working there - definitely a chance to kill two birds with one stone as I had not seen J for a couple of years due to the pandemic (and his mother sadly just past away so wanted to pass on condolences) as well as renewing our acquaintance with the various seafood shops next to the Old Town 

Our usual haunt Whites was closed for the day so we ate at a place called Taylor’s - opposite the Adventure golf - which did excellent mussels and Clam chowder and then had a brisk walk to the pier (Dad whizzing along on his scooter) for a cup of tea before heading back to the seafood shop to pick up a couple of huge crabs and a pint of prawns. 

Due to heading up the A21 and the school run, it took us a while to get back home but the crabs and prawns were definitely worth waiting for and a perfect day was topped off with a re-run of the weekends rugby.

Going to the Dogs

I spent much of yesterday trying to select a PCR Covid test provider who could satisfy three key requirements; the right type of test (RT-PCR or nothing as far as the UAE authorities are concerned - none of this rapid antigen rubbish was deemed suitable for those of us returning to Dubai); the right price point (and boy is there a wide variety of prices - some even more eye watering than the test itself) and a reasonably convenient location.

It was the last of these that proved the most challenging as most of the clinics/providers within any reasonable distance of  my Father’s house did not do the required version of the Covid test. 

In the end I plumbed for a “pop up” clinic (in fact a small caravan) located in a car park outside Crayford Greyhound stadium in a particularly unlovely part of Dartford. For the princely sum of £99 I got to self administer the test under the supervision of (I assume) a nurse in a tiny room with only one seat (and a very effective heater).

The location was also notable for a huge Sainsburys next door to which I repaired having arrived just in time for the testers lunch break. Notwithstanding the size of the store and the pictures of various hot dishes plastered on the walls, the in-store cafe had the most meagre selection of hot meals I think I have ever seen in a place claiming to serve hot and cold food on a professional basis.

I ended up with a warmed up bacon roll (best of a very limited choice). Definitely hoping that the test results (due within 24 hours) are more satisfactory.

Successful Day

 The long saga of trying to open a bank account for A. has (I hope) finally come to an end. One of the disadvantages of being a teenager who has predominantly lived out of the UK for many years is that it is not at all straightforward to open a student current account. 

There are no utilities bills or other types of proof of address available and the fact that he has no drivers licence (provisional or otherwise) seems to count against him to the extent that he had tried pretty much all the recognised High Street banks (despite the fact that he had savings accounts with a couple of them) with a distinct lack of success. 

Two months into his first term, he was finally able to convert a savings account into a current account but only after he had applied for internet banking (and been through the rigamarole of getting one time passwords etc) and then  applied for a current account. 

The strong message we received from  all our bank interactions was that it is next to impossible to open a current account in person at a branch and everything has to be done on-line (and woe betides you if you don’t have an acceptable proof of address).

We have certainly learned a lesson, and are already planning ahead for V. if she decides she wants to go to University.

To celebrate our success, A and I successfully procured a new pair of smart shoes (from the one and only Golden Boot - purveyors of fine shoes and personalised service - very much at a premium in this neck of the woods) and some smart shirts so at least he is prepared for any future job interviews!

He is heading back to Uni. tomorrow and it has been great to catch up with him.

Broadsword calling Danny Boy

Film evening tonight for the three generations of the family on the male side and what a cracker. 

A. did not recall seeing Where Eagles Dare before (although I am pretty sure it must have formed some part of his childhood) but it certainly struck the right note after some fairly intensive sightseeing around the wilds of Kent and dining in various pubs and cafes today. 

Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood make a slightly unlikely combination but the mixture of Alpine scenario, an extraordinarily complicated plot, lots of explosions and gunfights and a happy ending made for a great evenings viewing for A., his Grandfather and me (despite having to switch to viewing the movie from a digital version to one of Dad’s trusty video cassettes half way through).

Day out in London

Travelled up Town today to meet A. off the train at St Pancras. Met him below the station clock which now has a statue of an embracing couple beneath it presumably to ensure there are no misunderstandings as to where to meet.

We headed off to the British Museum with two bags he had brought down from university one of which felt like it had his world possessions in it rather than some clothes for his trip and some bed linen for washing as he claimed. We had a nasty moment at the Museum where it looked like, it e would not accept the bag at left luggage as it was almost twice the weight limit but the women behind the counter eventually relented and allowed us to divide the luggage into a a crate and two bags so we were able to walk around unencumbered after.

After a swift visit to the ever magical Rosetta Stone and the Easter Island we made good progress around the Enlightenment   Galleries and then had lunch outside in Bloomsbury at a restaurant called savoure faire (the boullabaise was excellent). After another hour or so at the Museum we headed back to the station only to find the train was cancelled so ended up meeting my sister at Ebbsfleet from where we just about got back in time to meet my cousin K to go to Dinner at a local pub. 

Great day but exhausting!

Falling towards New England

 The title to this post is not some clever riff on a song from Billy Bragg but more of a homage to the beauty of Autumnal Kent. I am very rarely in UK at this time of year so I guess the multiple shades of brown, gold and red that are splashed across the “Garden of England” have rather faded from my memory as a consequence of my lengthy sojourn in the desert.

However, today the extraordinary palette of  rural England was much in evidence as my Sister and I took my Father for a drive through the country roads and by-ways around Cranbrook, Benenden and Frittenden in the backwaters of the South-East.

It was a fairly overcast day but the sheer variety of colours and shades in the trees, fields and roads as we drove around the gently rolling hills of the Weald were lovely and whilst I am sure that Fall in the US State of New England is truly spectacular, there is certainly strong competition closer to home. 

No doubt having just me, my Father and my sibling in the same car with no particular calls on our time made the trip special (I cannot recall the last time we did this). However, the golden framing of our drive today made it truly memorable.

Greenwich Mean Time

I was always fascinated by GMT - stepping on both sides of the international line of longitude when in Greenwich Park and apparently it is now known as Coordinated Universal Time although for those living in UAE we general calculate local time as either 4 hours ahead of GMT or in the Summer months 3 hours ahead of British Summer Time.

Today I am taking advantage of the fact that I have travelled back to the UK so that I have managed to publish this post on 18 November rather than at 2:44am on 19 November 

Bunsen Burner

Had a fascinating chat with V. tonight after she got home from school about her chemistry lesson earlier in the day. 

It sounded as if it was pretty incident packed - a practical experiment involving hydrochloric acid and powdered marble - lots of near misses with spilt acid and overheated testing flasks. Her teacher sounds like a particularly patient man. However, it was when she started talking about how the students had heated up the flasks housing the acid/marble mixture that my interest was piqued as it seems that the old fashioned Bunsen burners - much beloved from my school days - are still very much in use and it seems that the design is pretty much the same.

Maybe I should not be surprised that the basic equipment - gas taps set into the lab counter and attached to the burner by way of a rubberised tube pulled over the narrow point of the tap with a splint used to light the thing after the tap is turned on - has not varied. However, in my day there was so much that could go wrong (or used incorrectly - I seem to recall one of our teachers using the rubber tube as a weapon on miscreant students on the basis that it would not leave any marks) that I assumed a safer design would be developed or at least the gas taps would have been made less easy to surreptitiously turn on whilst the teacher was engaged elsewhere (so that on when the lit splint was  rough near there would be a satisfying “whomp” as the build up of gas exploded). 

Apparently not. Good to see the old traditions are being maintained!

Driving like the devil

 Back in the day, most of my journeys by car were taken by taxi. This was particularly true of Hong Kong days where bus or taxi were a reasonably cheap and hassle free mode of transport although we did have a (pretty ancient) car which was mainly used for trips to the shop or beach. 

When we first arrived in Dubai I continued to use  Taxis and I have previously posted about some of the more hair raising journeys I have taken both here and in HK. 

But in more recent years I have tended to drive myself and since the pandemic I have normally driven to work functions or meetings in my own car and where necessary taken a safe driver (a very Dubai arrangement where if you want to have a couple of glasses of wine, you can pay someone to drive you home from an event or restaurant) home.

However, due to a particularly hectic schedule this week, I have taken a couple of regular taxis rather than Uber/Careem or my own car and boy has it been a reminder of some of the more white knuckle journeys from years gone by and tonight’s trip home was a particularly good example. 

In Dubai there is a warning sound on taxis when the speed limit is exceeded and throughout our journey there was a constant electronic chirping as we sailed through the night roads at top speed, hard up the rear end of the car in front and much flashing of lights to encourage greater speed or a move to one side to let us past.

In consequence tonight’s ride home was certainly the quickest for many years although I suspect I will soon be returning to my own car as a less rapid but more comfortable mode of transportation.

Burg view

Short post tonight, as it is now past midnight. However, worth recording a new favourite place in terms of bars with a view. The Burg views from City Walk La Ville hotel are definitely worth a visit and a viewing - not quite on the beach but a very  central location so will happily come again.

T20 World Cup Final

 Whilst sadly England had been knocked out in the semi-final, tonight’s final between Australia and New Zealand was an entertaining affair. I had decided to support NZ (on the basis that I was attending the match with an Australian friend) and clearly the weight of expectation was too much for them although Kane Williamson made a decent effort to win the match singlehandedly. I also managed to take the attached photo - it is a long time since I have tried to uploaded anything so fingers crossed!

Morning ride

 With many hundreds of kilometres of bicycle paths and tracks through the urban areas and deserts, UAE is the ideal location for a cycling enthusiast and today was no exception. A flat terrain, minimal wind and a soft autumn sun,  this morning’s ride was lovely - a reasonably steady pace and some new joiners to chat to and old friends to catch up with, it was a perfect start to the day. 

Whilst the flat geography in this part of Dubai is very welcome the rides in the desert do not offer much protection from the wind so when it does blow,  it can by a harsh taskmaster. Having said that,  although the temperature in the Summer months can make it feel like you are caught in  a hairdryer, I suspect that those riding in Northern Europe (or indeed any part of Europe in the Winter months) will be rolling their eyes and thinking that the cyclists of the UAE have it easy (and they are probably correct!).

Table with a view

 We have some friends in Town who are staying at the One&Only Hotel and they invited us to have lunch with them. Normally our lunchtime meals will be at one of the cafes/restaurants near where we live such as Shakespeares or the Lime Tree Cafe and so both E and I were looking forward to trying out somewhere new and the beach bar and grill did not disappoint.

We had a “staycation” at this hotel at the end of last Summer and remembered it as being quiet and fairly low-key although the restaurant where we met our friends was over the other side of the complex at the far end of the beach. The menu was mainly steak or grilled fish and I started off with some grilled octopus that was lovely and then we all had the ribeye steak. However the real star of the show was the view and atmosphere from our table outside on the verandah - we were perched on the edge of the beach looking out towards the Palm with the gin palaces jostling for position just offshore. The music could best be described as Ibiza chill out and really added to the laidback atmosphere.

It was a very pleasant and leisurely lunch (we did not finish until 4:30pm) and is going to make it very difficult to return to our regular haunts!

Dubai days

 Very pleasant day hacking around a golf course in the early winter of the UAE. This is the probably the best time of the year. Perfect temperature, a slight breeze and a clear blue sky and I was fortunate enough to be able to take part in a gentle stroll around a verdant landscape with wildlife and suburban living jostling for attention.

As is always the way, there is a competitive element but today there was certainly a feeling that those fortunate enough to be involved should make the most of the opportunity and while my golf score was not particularly optimal, in terms of satisfaction it was a lovely day.

Touch of Success

 There are a many things that the pandemic has made more difficult, complicated and/or confusing but one that has been brought into sharp focus in recent weeks with the return of “in person” meetings has been the etiquette of business greetings and in particular whether to shake hands, bump fists (or elbows) or just simply smile from a distance.

In UAE the default position pre-pandemic was to shake hands unless you were greeting a Muslim lady in which case it was a simple hello and exchange of business cards. The current position is uncertainty - even in my own mind I am not entirely sure quite which approach I am comfortable with and during last weeks Long Lunch, the problem was particularly acute with so many people to greet - I would guess I shook hands, bumped fists or elbows or a combination of all three with probably 40 or 50 people.

It was interesting to observe the different techniques adopted by different people. Some took a decisive step forward with hand outstretched leaving no doubt that the handshake was on offer. Others - probably the majority - left their options open until the last moment waiting for a cue  which lead to some awkwardness if the cue was misread or there was a last minute change of mind with fist bump meeting handshakes or elbows - a kind of formal version of rock, paper, scissors!

Unless there is some kind of universal protocol adopted I cannot see the problem going away any time soon, and it will be interesting to see if the ubiquitous handshake ever regains its top spot in the business greeting hierarchy.

Sweet smell of Success

My enjoyment of my morning bike rides has over the last couple of days been increased by the blossom appearing on some of the trees in our development. 

Whilst the white flowers are in themselves pleasant to look at, it is the sweet smelling bouquet from the buds that wafts around the paths and roads as I trundle by that is truly special - after the long hot Summer, it is this and the lowering temperatures that signal that Winter  is just around the corner. 

We have been living here for over 4 years now and I have not found any where else in Dubai that has these trees in such profusion. I have often complained that the designer of the community I live in showed remarkably little imagination in either its name or layout (even after 4 years, I can still get lost given the uniformity of the road layout, the similarity of the names of the roads and the cookie cutter nature of the Villas). However, the one thing they certainly did get right was their selection of trees and shrubs.

Food for thought

Whilst we have been lucky enough to have D. and currently G. as Helpers who are very good cooks, they have tended to stick to traditional Western cuisine rather than Phillipino food so I was recently able to extend my experience of authentic Asian dishes when we were treated to some food from the Philippines as part of a “World Tour” of cooking through work. 

It was a fairly eclectic mix of various different dishes which mixed Asian and western foods including curries and deep fried fish dishes and some extremely brightly coloured deserts. I thoroughly enjoyed it and reminded me a little of when I first arrived in Hong Kong where my previous experience of Chinese food in UK was mainly sweet and sour dishes and  “Chop Suey” (interestingly one of the Phillipino dishes  we were offered at the work event). 

As it turned out “Chinese” food, I learnt very quickly, came in multiple shapes, forms and levels of spiciness ( I seem to recall I was particularly taken by Szechuanese food when I was first in HK where the extensive use of extremely hot peppers were something of a trap for the unwary), and I was quickly transported into a whole new world of tastes and sensations.

Whilst I suspect that the food of the Philippines is likely to be less extensive than the various regional cuisines of China, I am very much looking forward to further opportunities to investigate it based on this first proper exploration!

Homeward Bound

 I have just booked a short trip back to the UK towards the end of this month - my second journey in a couple of months having dropped off A. at college in September so after over 18 months not setting a foot outside of the UAE, I am embracing the return to travel. 

Our return in September required no less than 5 PCR tests including one in UAE, three to comply with UK restrictions (notwithstanding our quarantining in a cottage in North Devon) and then one to return to the UAE. I am hopeful that my next trip will not require quite so many tests but the flight itself was a welcome return to something approaching normality. Before Covid I was probably averaging around a trip every 6 weeks (although some of those were short hops around the Middle East for work reasons). 

I am not sure whether that level of travel will be required in the future and what the new normal will be but I have noticed some changes in booking/taking flights (other than taking PCR tests and face masks). 

In particular, whilst they are still only flying to Heathrow so far as London airports are concerned, Emirates seem to be offering more variety of options when it comes to seat bookings - including a premium economy seat so it will be interesting to see how that compares with the usual economy seat. I will be meeting A. at my Father’s house so he too will be embracing an unfamiliar form of travel - in his case a train - taking advantage of the rail card that his Aunt bought for him. Not much opportunity  for train travel in the Middle East so it will be interesting to see how he gets on navigating the journey from the Midlands to the South East!

Sharjah always on my mind

There is already a strong sporting theme to my posts this November, and for all you sports fans out there, the theme continues today (albeit tangentially). 

For those unfamiliar with the geo-political set up of the UAE, there are 7 Emirates roughly laid out in a line with Abu Dhabi in the South at one end, and in the North we have Umm Al Qwaine, Fujairah and  Ras Al Khaiamah.

In the middle lies Dubai and its next door neighbour Sharjah - DXB airport effectively provides the dividing line between in the centre of town so there is no formal border crossing but the two Emirates are like chalk and cheese - Dubai very high rise and relatively affluent with 5* hotels coming out of its ears, whereas Sharjah is much more Industrial and gritty with its roads choc-a-bloc in the mornings/evenings as its residents make their way to and from work in the other Emirates. It is very much a conduit to the Northern emirates and whilst it does have some impressive buildings on the Corniche as well various museums ( including a maritime museum and a vintage car museum), the combination of a lack of decent hotels and the fact that it is “dry” means that it is not a tourist destination in the same way as the other Emirates.

Tonight I made my second trip in a week to the Sharjah cricket stadium with R and J although disappointingly England managed to lose their T20 World Cup match to S.Africa. 

Even on a Saturday, the traffic along the main highways was heavy. However, the stadium does have a certain ramshackle charm and hopefully there will be more opportunities to come back for some more cricket in the future.

Rugby Long Lunch

One of the highlights of the Dubai social calendar returned after a two year hiatus, with the Rugby long lunch being the traditional curtain-raiser for the Rugby 7s - held at the JW Marriott - so  for the first time since I have been attending over the last 10 years or so away from the Intercontinental at Festival City.

 James Haskell and a very droll Ben Ryan were the speakers with Chris McCardie from DubaiEye as MC (I have listened to him on the radio for many years and had pictured him as an Alan Hansen lookalike - he is very different!).

We had a good selection of guests on our table including our global head over from London and it was terrific to get to see so many familiar faces on what must have been one of the largest  in person indoor gatherings since the pandemic began.

Unfortunately someone managed to walk off with my jacket (luckily I had removed my wallet and phone) so I spent some time wandering around and surreptitiously checking various jackets slung over the backs of chairs before giving it up as a bad job and heading home at 1am  - way past my bed time and so today was a very quiet day! (I got a rather sheepish text from the chap who had taken it - he had found some of my business cards in the pocket so hopefully I will shortly be reunited with it). 

Sporting chance

November in Dubai generally means plenty of sporting action, and after nearly 18 months of pandemic induced absence, sportsmen of every shape and expertise are back with a vengeance - the calendar is now full of top quality events. 

I have a friend in town who is a big cricket fan, so we have already seen England beat Australia (in Dubai) and Sri Lanka (in a rather sweaty Sharjah) in the T20 World Cup with Jos Butler superb in both matches (his century against Sri Lanka with a six off the last ball will live long in the memory). 

We also have tickets to the S. Africa game on Saturday as well as the semis and the Final, so we will not be short of cricketing action. 

Tomorrow is also the Rugby Long Lunch - a mainstay of the annual social calendar, and over the next couple of weeks we have golf and tennis both in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. With EXPO 2020 also in full swing, Dubai is very much the place to be, and judging by the increase in UK visitors over the last few weeks, we are not alone in taking full advantage!

Starting as I mean to go on?

Not a particularly good start to my blogpost per day endeavours for the month of November - failed to post anything yesterday and spent a disproportionate amount of time today faffing around trying to remember the password. Anyway, I am now back into the blogosphere (probably not what it is called any more) and will do my best to post regularly over the next 30 days. 

In keen anticipation of the advertised publication of his next volume of diary entries earlier this year (as it turns out the publicity on this seems to have been somewhat premature),  I went to Micheal Palin’s website to see if I could place an order. Still no sign of Volume 4 of his excellent series. However, there was a good post/story on why he started to keep a diary (mainly it would appear, because he had just given up smoking and was looking for a new distraction). As a consequence, I was inspired back in July to start writing my own daily diary and unlike previous attempts, I have so far managed to keep at it (admittedly some days are shall we say more cursory than others). 

What is the relevance of all of this I hear you ask? It is possible that this is a pre-emptive excuse as to the likely quality of the content of these posts going forward - there has only been so much material that I am able to muster sufficient enthusiasm to record for posterity at the best of times over the last few months so having to now generate half way readable prose for a blog and a diary obviously risks diluting what is already content of questionable interest even further (and using the same material for both is going to be tricky as I decided my diary entries would have to be much blunter than what I would normally commit to a medium which might be read by others if I was to retain my enthusiasm). I guess we will see how I go (I also promise to try to reduce the length and prolixity of my sentences....).