The tiny black speck at the top of this mountain is Dan waving. He is in training for a trip to Peru next - a student who has his priorities in life sorted, huh!. Though to be fair he is going on the trip after raising £3k for charity last semester. But it doesn't take long for your children to take you back to your own youth. This summer break (and the only joined us for a week - first time ever) he and Abbi have been chatting about next year, when both are going Inter-Railing (separately) through Europe and they and their partners (Lewey Louis and Katie Logie-Beard) intend meeting up in Prague. Now I remember Inter-Railing, getting on at Calais and waking up in Marseilles, getting on in Marseilles and waking up in Venice, via Bologna (where there had been a bomb in the station). Life repeats, I envy him Peru though and South America is on my list - beginning with Cuba (lest we forget its not yet absorbed into the USA). And yesterday I wrote another
new song, just as the sun was going down. Sitting at the table with coffee and a guitar and its working out well enough. And so during the evening down time in August you will find me in the Brighton attic. The days will be too busy though, with a chapter to write, an article to write, a book to edit, 2 PhDs to viva, a book proposal to write, a funding application to get right and an application for funding to re-submit, the kitchen and bathroom to paint - isn't it great we academics have long holidays (to compile a list)? But right now, its a coffee sitting outside at this table, laptop open just as pictured, while I write this, the house is still asleep and I will be slipping into the pool for my underwater lengths (improves the breathing - and as we all know, the secret of life is to keep breathing). Its bliss here, and do you know, I can't remember what day it is - how good is that. There was a blue moon this week - this is a blue moon song, I guess I could work this tune out before I swim - just once, in a very blue moon (ps - book of the holiday - and there have been some rejects drop-kicked into the sea - well the charity box - Ali Smith, How to be Both):
