Space occupation

It's near the end of the month so I feel duty-bound to post something, even if it's not quality.

My jobbie conference at York University this month was enhanced by the waterbirds of the campus pond and environs- about 20 species by my count. I was totally taken with the waterfowl's attitude that it was their territory and not humans', prolly heightened by it being breeding season. Some of my fellow delegates felt menaced by the geese, who look you straight in the eye and hold their ground on the paths, giving you the odd hiss (much like Her Catness) when they perceive challenge. At closing time, the paths were assumed as dormitories by the sleeping birds, and it was a pleasure to see that they're in charge locally, and not us. The birdies, especially when they have an attitude, were pure pleasure and to a large extent much more fun than humans.

Why are moorhens so-called? They're neither hens nor moor residents, since they rely on ponds or waterways for nesting sites and forage, and are (to my knowledge) obligate waterfowl. I dunno. Coots (forgetting our anthropomorphic similes of baldness) are amongst the most curious and inquisitive of birds- very fetching creatures.

In the human realm, I've seen two recommended films this month- Armando Ianucci's 'In the Loop' (a feature length episode of BBC political satire 'In the Thick of It') and 'Teddybear'- (a charming Czech reflective/romantic comedy).

Reading has been Orlando Figes' 'The Whisperers' (historical documentary of Stalin's Terror) and Colin Thubron's 'In Siberia', a travelogue of a trans-Siberian journey conducted in the dying days of the Soviet regime in 1982. Currently, Colin has me in Tuva where (in Mircea Eliade's footsteps) he's trying to explain the anthropological crossover of shamanism and Buddhism.

H. etc., grieving quietly for Peter Ballox, took off for a week in Cyprus. She brought back photies showing at medieval royal tombs at Paphos the same 'clootie tree' you can find in Siberia, Tibet, Scotland, Ireland and Israel: a cross-cultural, presumably animist tradition adaptable to whichever colonising faith.

Apart from these, I work my arse off between the 50 hrs/week at the jobbie and the M.Sc. marking every night. I'm hoping to maybe get a clue what it's all about sometime soon.

Mostly, it's about the kiddos and how to get them where they want to go. That means kicking the Big Wan's arse to study more for his Higher exams this month, and gently enquiring of the wee wan why she needs to wear so much eyeliner when she's naturally gorgeous. Ah... what goes around comes around.

Hoping to get smart soon, but not counting on it.