I’ve been tidying up. I found an old work book from my last year at primary school. On the 7th September I wrote a story called The Magic Sweets. I have no memory of writing this, but I present it here. The Magic Sweets One day I went into a shop I had never been …
Category Archives: Personal
A rather different week.
This time last week I knew that the week ahead might look a bit different than I am used to, but I didn’t realise it would end up with me being interviewed in the Times and on Radio 4 and being broadcast on German radio too. We published a scientific paper that’s been in the …
Lockdown 3, Week 1
I didn’t document lockdown two, as it really didn’t seem to change things much. Work happened as normal, my cycling dropped off somewhat due to the weather and other issues, and I started using the tube again to get to the lab. The District Line heading west was mostly empty unless you hit particular times; …
2020
Well, that didn’t go as planned. One trip out of the country, to Iceland in January, followed by lockdown travel restrictions and an opportunistic infection trying to eat my right arm off at the elbow. The enforced home-staying did mean I got to do a lost more astronomy than I otherwise would have, but this …
Considering Phlebas
I went sailing for the first time in 30-something years. Many thanks to Alan for hosting me and trusting me with the wheel of his pride and joy. From Thorpe le Soken to Felixstowe and back again. O you who turn the wheel and look to windward, Consider Phlebas, who was once handsome and tall …