where art collides philosoperontap

The Online Arts Festival

Up at 5.30 am this morning. A comment made by Colin Dudman last night made me think. Colin was debating whether to have one final glass of wine before going. It was getting late. He had to be up at 7am. I queried why this was so. Colin is in his 70s and is mostly retired (musicians never really retire). His answer was that he was at the piano by 7.30am, practising and composing. Life is short. You gotta cram things in. He is right.

Colin was round our house for the first Philosopherontap Online Arts Festival. This started at 7.30 pm and officially finished at 9.30 although people were still posting after that. It was a great success. I don’t really know how many people came along. The live jazz stream with Colin and subsequently son John has had 288 views at the time of writing. Some will be viewers watching more than once but it gives us an idea of attendance numbers. Got some very complimentary feedback on the live broadcast. Also had one by Neil McRae demonstrating a pinball game.

There were over 50 posts of quite a variety of material and I think it was generally considered to be a success. Going to have to do another.

Before it started I took a call from Betti George whose programme I am appearing on BBC Radio Cymru (rad dee oh come ree) in the near future. I’m off to Cardiff later today to do the recording. Staying with Nest. Was staying with Sue but she informed me she had to jet off to Toronto on Monday so that was out the door. It’s a 4 – 5 hour drive including a stop en route so I’ll need to set off early for a 3pm slot in the studio.

So now I’m downstairs. The house is dark apart from two dim lights in the conservatory. I took the empty wine glasses from last night into the kitchen and it was near pitch black. This is good. Means not much light pollution. The street lights will be on out the front.

Anne had her first meeting as chair of the Friends of William Farr. She had a good turnout I think and has enough volunteers to do the drinks at the Christmas Concert which we unfortunately will miss as we are in London for the LONAP Xmas bash. Also yesterday booked a table at Fortnum and Masons Ice Cream Parlour for a bit of a treat on my birthday on the following day, 9th December.

Good night’s kip. Awake at 6.15 and downstairs to book a hotel for Tom in Sheffield using my HHonors account and Amex. It’s  all about avios and Anne and my first class jaunt somewhere far away in 2 years time.

Now back in bed with a cup of tea and a cuddle. Not at the same time obvs. Oh and clearly there is a laptop involved somewhere. Anne has already got up to begin the process of taking John to school.

This is one of the benefits of a home office. It only takes two minutes to get ready for work. Plus breakfast. Today I have options: bagels, toast (home made bread), bacon, sausages, weetabix, banana pancakes. Will let you know but doubt there will be meat involved.

Today is the big Philosopherontap Online Arts Festival. I put a few quid into Facebook yesterday to advertise the event. Already had a few contributors turn up. I need to nip out today to buy some cheese and wine for the evening. I have three posts in mind.

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You won’t have noticed but I am now up. Also my timetable has altered slightly as Anne has just reminded me that I am doing the school run today. Oops. Don’t worry. I’m onto it. Banana pancake and toasted bagel in the machinations.  Means a shower will have to wait until later though. Pooee. Outside it is quite a bright morning albeit still cloudy.

En route home from school I will be stopping off at Waitrose. There is a small shopping list. Anne is off to Newark for a Retired Teachers trip to the Civil War museum. Followed by fish and chips. She won’t be wanting much to eat tonight. Probably nibble at my cheese. She also has a Friends of William Farr School meeting. This year she is Chairman. Chairperson?

The first pancake was binned. An abortive attempt. The pancake cookers amongst you will know that the first one is the hardest to get right. I’m assuming it’s all about pan temperature. Finished my bagel. Now just waiting:)

While I wait I notice that there are still roses on the bush around the archway in the back garden. They last well.

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Bought 6 tickets for Trent Bridge next July. 3rd day v South Africa. Friday and Saturday were pretty much sold out but I don’t have a problem with Sunday. Potentially a good day’s cricket. Only £60 each. An Ashes match would have been more like £85.

Picked up 2 bots red and one white from Waitrose with three cheeses and a French stick. Now all set for this evening.

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Booked table for 9 at Fortnum & Masons Ice Cream Parlour for my birthday. The schedule is  V&A Museum, Fortnums, Waldorf for cocktails and then Cafe Pacifico for a Mex. Mortgage applied for. Featured image is not the aforementioned rose but one in the front garden.

early to rise?

Up at 6.15 to make the tea. Nice cuddle in warm bed. Now up and at it. Weetabix with blueberries. A day of getting bits and bobs done ahead of me. VAT return. Apple picking – still a load on the tree at the bottom of the garden. Rearrange tomorrow’s train journey as meeting has been pushed back a week. Out for a walk after lunch. Did consider going to the pool this morning but not sure it makes sense with this cough. A second cup of tea is in prospect.

Today’s big news is the “supermoon”. Supposed to be 7% bigger than normal. Oh. The weather forecast is cloudy with some rain. I doubt that we will see anything earth shattering. Miserable git eh? It’s newspaper hype. 7%? Nobody will be able to tell. You would at the very least have to have the two moons side by side for comparison. Aint gonna happen is it?

New Zealand has had two major earthquakes within a day of each other. Another historical reference point. 100 year old woman pulled out of the rubble alive. Good news. Her time is not yet up.

Really here we live a dreamy existence. What are our daily concerns? Whether I have the right yeast for today’s bread? Was given a wodge of fresh yeast by a baker in Tesco yesterday. The result is a definite improvement. Not quite there yet. Need to figure out how to get the best rise after knockback. Done it before. Need to be able to do it every time. It’s about warmth. Lurve:)

I can see a career in baking ahead of me. Amateur of course. Just for personal consumption. Just need to crack the basic techniques right at the start. Once you are up and running to doesn’t take much effort to make nice bread or cook nice food. Most people just don’t put in the time to crack the techniques up front. Bread takes 15 minutes to get going. 5 mins of grabbing ingredients and 10 mins kneading. Maybe I’ll add another 5 to the kneading to see if it will make a difference. John is up. Yesterday’s load has been given the thumbs up.

Good bread is a real luxury. Good food generally. Much of the stuff in supermarkets has lost the quality that made it great pre globalisation and the era of the supermarket. Bacon is generally poor quality, unless you pay top dollar and even then I’m unsure it matches the product of old. I’m sure there are other foods that sit in this category. Out of season fruit and vegetables. Tomatoes grown in industrial quantities without ever seeing soil.

Anne and John are gearing up for the school run. I am sat in the TV room in my pyjamas. Tapping away. It’s a good job we have the word processor these days. My handwriting is very bad. I’d never have been able to churn stuff out at an useful rate had I had to rely on pen and paper. Maybe it would be less voluminous but higher quality. Dylan Thomas wrote over 200 versions of Do Not Go Gentle Unto This Good Night before he was satisfied. I rarely look at something twice.  Not in the same league obvs. I am however still alive and he is dead, albeit it he was of an earlier generation. He was 39 when he died. At the peak of his creative ability.

They have gone now, Anne and John. Engine roaring. The first time the Peugeot has  been used on the school run. Gosh. I have to clear up the breakfast things and get stuff lined up for my day.

This morning I have put out the call for a decision on the Christmas Dinner meat. It’s going to be beef but I thought I’d give them the opportunity to choose. Anne is still very much a turkey lover so I feel a little guilty that she doesn’t have the chance to have it on Christmas Day. Maybe I’ll do a chicken or a turkey breast as well. We always have the relevant trimmings anyway. Pigs in blankets etc. Maybe even stuffing.

This year because we aren’t going off anywhere on boxing day I might invest in a bigger beef joint as we will be around to eat it afterwards. Nothing quite like cold roast beef, medium rare. You only get it when you cook a large joint.

Enough of this. More in due course…

morning

The news is the dough hasn’t risen in the tin. I’ll spare you the photo. This is the second time in a row this has happened. I suspect the yeast. Having just looked at the container it says refrigerate after opening. This is did not do. Wouldn’t have thought it would have that much effect but it seems to have. The dough rises initially but not when in the tin, or at least not as much. This morning I head to Tesco in search of fresh yeast.

The kettle is on in the kitchen. I am in the TV room waiting. Only because that’s where the laptop was and it is warmer in here on the feet. I also have the oven preheating. I’m going to bake the loaf anyway. This is all a good learning experience provided I do crack it eventually.

Anne cooked a lovely risotto last night. Afterwards I ogled Alice Roberts for an hour and then we watched the remembrance concert from the Royal Albert Hall. Bed early at 9.45.

Today it’s me and John only for lunch. Pork chops. Anne is off out for an “afternoon tea with Sherlock Holmes” event. I think. She did tell me:).

Joe and Charlotte are having a good time in Peel. She has changed her profile pic to one of her jumping at Fenella Beach. The tide is out. She wouldn’t have been able to do that if it was in, especially at this time of year. The sea can get impressively ferocious there.

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Bread turned out not really edible. Too yeasty and not risen enough. Disappointing. Ah well. We have a little of the older white loaf left although that too did not rise properly. I am now cooking sausages slowly in the frying pan. There is no rush. Test Match Special is on the wireless. Actually TMS is on the wifi on the phone but it’s the same thing. A virtual wireless set.

Outside the sun lies low over the allotment. Because of it there is no need for light in the kitchen. Our kitchen is a big one and can get dark during the day. We have in the past easily sat 16 for a meal. The limiting factor has been table not floor. The only problem with a low sun is that it reveals the fact that the windows need cleaning.

Cricket going well. It’s the last day and India need 310 to win off a minimum of 49 overs. They are 71 for 4 with 25 overs left. Exciting.

Silent night holy night

Anne was practising the sax and this tune entered my head. She is getting ready for her first major performance at our Christmas party. The light is fading outside. I am sat in the kitchen listening to England v South Africa whilst waiting for the dough to rise in the bowl. Today I’m making a 65% wholemeal/35% seeded white with some pumpkin seeds added to the mix. Yesterday I either gave the initial rise too long or the one in the tin not enough. That ain’t going to happen today. The wholemeal flour did say best before end 2014 sometime but I think it will be fine. The heating could do with kicking in.

Feeling very cosy sat here in the kitchen. Very domesticated. Anne is pottering about doing different things. She thinks that because I sit at a laptop typing I’m not doing anything. Making bread gains approval. We are both off out to the Morning Star for a few sherbs early doors. It isn’t time yet. I want to get some dough risen and put into the tin before we go out.

It is still some time before Christmas but I am gradually getting my brain into gear. Thinking ahead. All the major decisions that require long term planning were taken ages ago. Tadcu flights and hotel etc. I’m not making a cake so nothing else really needs doing until much nearer the time. I do like baking Christmas cakes but hardly anyone eats it so it is a bit of a waste of time effort and money.

The kettle is on. The boiling noise sends a shiver of relaxation through my shoulders.

Featured image is my Black Yak hat. V warm and cosy.

urday

Breakfast time and Anne is tucking into a healthy porridge with grapes or some such fruity ingredient. I’m just biding my time before a bacon sandwich. Bit of poetry there. I’m not going to elaborate on the bacon sandwich other than to say it will also have mushrooms.

A little stiff this morning after our perambulatory efforts yesterday. Today I have an appointment at the bank and I also need to pop down to Coops’ with the Citroen docs. The insurance is cancelled. Just need to cancel the tax now. Anne is picking up her car at 9am this morning.

Other than that we have nothing planned for today. Meeting Adie and Zara in the Star for early doors. John is playing hockey at the Lindum. It’s a wet day so it will be an indoors day. You will likely see lots of ritin from me. Maybs.

We also want to chat with the Isle of Man today. Jose and Charlotte have gone over to see Tadcu. Last night they were eating at the Creek and this lunchtime it will be the Boatyard. Cramming in the culinaries. Joe was also talking about cooking tonight. The issue I imagine is whether they will be able to fit anything else in. Anne has also given them a cream tea bogof voucher for the Harbour Lights Cafe. That might have to wait until tomorrow. Their flight home is at around 4pm I think.

…

Back from the bank. Looking at a four year fixed rate mortgage. I think it makes sense considering the uncertainties this world is facing. Also dropped off docs though Coops not there.

This is real “funeral in Berlin “ weather. Totes miserable. Not quite sure why there were so many people downtown. They can’t all have had a bank appointment. They were getting ready for the civic remembrance ceremony in front of the cenotaph on the High Street. Didn’t know they did a separate one – MP, mayor, judges etc. Seems to me they could have all gone to the main on in the cathedral tomorrow. Whatever… Weather was suitable for this activity too. Remembering those who sacrificed their lives for us doesn’t need good weather.

It is interesting to consider that their sacrifices all happened because we had rogue leaders pushing their countries towards war. Kaiser Bill. Adolf. Nothing to do with the common man. This is still a relevant observation today. We as a species are particularly aggressive. Why can’t we all just live and let live.

Got the perfect free parking spot this morning btw.  At the end of the row outside the telephone exchange. Result. Maybe there weren’t that many people in town really.

In other news there seems to be a bit of a leak in the conservatory roof. At least there is some water on the table. It’s not much and I can’t quite see where it’s coming from other than it’s dripping off one of the struts.

it must be a walk in the Wolds

Fry up this morning before kitting up ready for the walk. Adie tells me it is only a stroll really but that is fine. Still need the right gear. John has Radio 1 on in the kitchen so I am out of the way in the TV room whilst he has breakfast.

Still got the cough but there is a scenario that the walk will kill it. Of course the opposite may happen and I could end up in bed this afternoon:) Bought new inners for my boots. See how they go. Going to slap some Voltarol gel on before I head out which combined with the new inners will hopefully sort out the sore feet problem.

…

All set now. Right gear retrieved although I can’t find the pouch for the Leatherman. Am unlikely to actually need the Leatherman but it’s one of those boys things. You never know when you are going to need to saw up a tree that has fallen across the path etc. Flask of tea made, 2 cliff bars packed. They went out of date at the end of September but I’m sure they will be fine:) Don’t have owt like crisps in but I understand we could end up at a pub for lunch so that is not a problem.

Will post this before I go and take pot luck that I’ll get some decent pics en route for a featured image.

Brilliant concert by Erv last night btw. Fundraiser for ADHD before he goes on tour to China. I left at half time because of my cough but the bit I heard was great. Erv puts an enormous amount of emotion and physical effort into a concert. Told me once he rehearses for up to 10 hours a day for six weeks before a big gig. China will be exhausting for him.

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Back at 5pm from a longish walk in the wolds. As distances go it was roughly the same a the shortest days on the Coast to Coast but it was hard enough seeing as I hadn’t walked for some months. The Voltarol gel worked for the first few hours but as the effects wore off my feet grew sore. I wasn’t going to remove the boots to slap on more gel though.

We did have a comedy moment. Stopped for a very pleasant lunch at the White Hart in Tetford. It was Alfred Lord Tennyson’s local and near Adie’s dad’s church – he was the last vicar of the area. After lunch we walked on and Adie soon realised it had been a mistake not to use the pub’s toilet facilities. We aren’t talking weewee here. Eventually we arrived at another pub – the Massingberd Arms in South Ormsby. Unfortunately that was closed. Adie manfully soldiered on until we came across a vacant house that was having some building work done. Out the back was a portaloo for the builders. After knocking at the door to ascertain that noone was in Adie made use of the portaloo.

After that the pace picked up and we made it wearily back to the car for 4.15 and home by 5.

All the pics here.



White Hart Tetford – Tennyson’s local

inexorable tide

Down to a very pleasantly autumnal conservatory. It is cold out but the Dyson heater is on and the room should soon be comfortable. Breakfast was a particularly magnificent two slices of white toast using my home made bread from last night. See this previous post on toast🙂

The leaves are piling up outside. Anne will have the bit between her teeth later. Today I have a couple of specific jobs. One is to sort out the insurance for Anne’s new car. The other is the VAT. VAT is quick and easy. The new car insurance will be a bind – it is never quick and easy to do car insurance. Also want to nip to GoOutdoors to look at new insoles for my walking boots and I need some more toothpaste – Sensodyne. It’s an age thing. Dad has also asked me to sort out the insurance on his Micra.

The news this morning is that the death toll from the Croydon tram accident has risen to 7. The tram driver has been arrested and they are trying to establish why the tram was travelling too quickly.

Today we have John’s parents evening. His first in the sixth form. Will find out how he is doing. The we are off to see Erv in a concert at the minster school before he heads off on a tour of China. Exciting for him.

My tea will have brewed…

…

Bumped into Adie Smith at GoOutdoors. He was buying stuff for one of his kids and I was buying new insoles for my boots. We are off walking tomorrow morning. Somewhere in the Wolds. Looking forward to it. Weather is going to be ok if somewhat colder than the Coast to Coast but I have the gear I think. It isn’t going to be a slog so should be fine.

Spent half the day sorting out insurance for Anne’s new car. Peugeot 107. It’s a nightmare trying to do this kind of thing. There are so many variables. For one I need an insurer that will accept 17 year old learners. The other thing is that learner wants to go on in February when he turns 17 but we need the insurance for tomorrow. So you have to find an insurer that will accept 17 year olds but allow me to add him to the policy in 4 months time.

Ended up with Lloyds Bank. It will do. The car is cheap to insure and has no road tax. Bit of a difference from my old 3 litre jeep Commander where the combination of insurance and tax was north of £1k.

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Good parents evening at school. I won’t elaborate but John knows how it went. Picked the lad up from sax lesson en route home and had beans on toast for tea. Have had to make another loaf this evening. Dough is rising near the radiator. It’s an endorsement. My green jumper is now somewhat clogged with flour though. Sleeve got it full on. Adds a bit of character innit. Now having a five mins sit down before we head out for Erv’s gig.

errands and more errands

Woke up twice in the night and checked the US Presidential Election results. It’s the nightmare scenario. We live in very turbulent times. Some of the biggest US news media have also weighed in with similar comments.

Did a few errands today. Took a cheque to the bank that had been returned because it was incorrectly addressed. Ie had the wrong name. The bank has me down as HT Davies. The cheque was payable to T Davies. Must have taken me half an hour in the bank to sort out.

Picked up a “sign for” item from the Firth Road depot. Hannah’s Spanish Business Diploma or some similar cert. Fair play.

Dropped in to Wright Vigar to sign off trefor.net accounts. Picked up some supplies from Morrissons. Packed away the campervan awning. We had a new enquiry for a tomorrow start. They have opted to rent one in Derbyshire. I think they must be bonkers. It’s snowing in Derbyshire.

Am making some bread. Done the kneading and now leaving the dough to rise.

Now deleting some emails from dad’s inbox. He has reached his storage limit. Unsubscribing to some of the more persistent senders so hopefully it will not fill up so quickly in future.

Cricket going well in India. Won’t say any more than that in case I jinx them:)

It’s grown dark a I sit here. Trees now silhouetted. A little bit of movement at the top branches. I feel a relaxing quiet evening coming on. I didn’t have lunch until 2.30 so won’t want to eat with the others who are off out anyway. Anne is going to her dance classes and John to Jazz Vehicle. I’m taking him and will have my curry when I get back.

Once the dough had risen I knocked the air out. There was a very satisfying sound of escaping air. Suggests I was doing it right innit. Will be interesting to compare this with my last one. Different flour mix. This one is straight strong white flour.

Still full of cold btw.

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Bread turned out great. I’ll be experimenting with different flours and techniques over the next few weeks.

2016 – a mark on a historical timeline

Today is election day for the US Presidential Elections. A worrying time for us all. If Donald Trump gets in it would probably be regarded as a milestone in history. We, the world, could be facing instability and disaster. Even more than is already going on.

For readers in the future 2016 has been a turbulent year. A (small) majority of people who voted in the EU Remain/Leave referendum voted to leave. The leave campaign was driven by lies about the financial benefits of leaving (eg NHS £350m a month better off) and played to people’s prejudices about immigration. The remain campaign was run by an ineffective Prime Minister called David cameron who history will record as one of the worst leaders we have ever had.

The Middle East is full of instability and war, a situation that has created millions of refugees who have in turn fuelled the anti-immigration fire. Russia is once more becoming expansionist escalating East West tensions and creating concerns that we might be facing another cold war situation.

Why do we do this to ourselves?

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Trump was elected…

checked in on BA873

Still full of cold this morning. It’s our last day in Krakow. Actually I’m at in the Euro-IX conference all day. Anne has gone off walking again with kay. They are talking about doing a Jewish Quarter tour today.

Great dinner at the salt mines last night. Amazing place. You must go and visit. Good to chat with lots of industry friends from around Europe. Featured image is the main church in one of the salt mine chambers. amazing. Hand carved by three people over decades.

Made it home for around midnight ish I think. Don’t fully recall. Fitful night’s sleep because of coughing all the time. Feel sorry for Anne who is a light sleeper at the best of times.

Now sat in the conference listening to Nick Hillyard talking about exporting SFlow telemetry. Trying to check in online but unfortunately we are not seated together. Did try last night from my phone but the app wouldn’t play ball which is a shame – we might have been sat together.

Currently down to get a taxi at 4pm although I’m not sure my lightning talk starts until then. Will have to see how we get on.

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Here we are again. Another flight. this one is BA873 non stop from Krakow to LHR. Anne and I are in seats 1A and 1C. I think it’s worth treating ourselves when we go away on trips together. No lounge at Krakow airport though. At least not one we could get into with a BA Club Europe ticket. We spent the time near to gate 15. I sat in the cafe/bar having a beer with Ignas from Equinix and three linx boys whilst Anne read her book. The time went quickly enough.

This flight takes me to within 10 tier points of a BA silver card. My year runs out on 8th may so I’ll definitely do it. The benefit of silver is automatic lounge access (assuming there is one, fast track through security and the ability to check in and therefore reserve a seat 7 days before take off. I don’t always book a club ticket and even then I can’t reserve a seat without paying. Anne and I were in different rows on this flight home. It’s only because the guy sat next to her was ok with moving that we are sitting together. Not that there is much communication between us. I have my Bose phones on and she is nodding off. We have both finished out books. At least I’ve read as much of mine as I want to. History of Wales by John Davies. I’m not interested much beyond 1830. The early 18th century is very poorly documented. I am interested in 1700 – 1800. At the moment. Carmarthenshire and Cardiganshire.

Also interested in Irish history but one step at a time. My Foreign Birth Registration docs have been sent off as you know. The Irish side is I think going to be a lot harder to trace. We were farm hands and illiterate nobbut 3 generations ago. My great grandmother was the daughter of a farmer and signed her name with an X. My research there may have to be more general historic stuff. The church records may save us. I suspect they may be more complete than in Wales. There is nothing wrong with the illiteracy. Go back far enough and we were all illiterate. Just makes the ancestors harder to trace I suspect. One of my Welsh ancestors was a poet. Not been able to trace anything of his stuff yet but I may still get here once I have put the effort in.

Have finished the meal on the plane. couple of gin and tonics first. Then a chicken skewer with caesar salad. Ok. Nothing special but in a scenario where expectations were low it was fine. Two small bottles of red and some stilton. Mellow. Taxi picking us up from LHR. Laptop now out and typing.

Now playing Mood Indigo. Satchmo and Duke Ellington. What a combination.

This flight is 2 hours 40 minutes. It is long enough for them to offer a properly boozy service. The outbound flight seemed a little more constrained in terms of the service. Half and hour or twenty minutes shorter. Maybe it was just the staff. This steward has been quicker off the mark.

splutter dead pig

Monday and it’s the first day of the Euro-IX meeting proper. A nice gathering of folks. Been coming to these meetings for 4 years or so now and know a lot of the people here so it is nice to catch up.

Nice social last night although I only stayed for an hour – needed an early night to try and shake off the lurgy. Did consume a few of the fruit and vodka cocktails, for medicinal purposes. Also had a small bowl of tomato soup with bread and butter and a couple of small ham rolls. Anne stuck around and she came up just before the end of the do at 9.45pm.

Now sat in the meeting room listening to a talk on the proliferation of 100GigE connections.

Tonight is a big one. Dinner in the salt mines. The food has been very good in Krakow and tonight promises to be no different. If you have never been you must come here. Poland is impressive and the people are very friendly.

where it rains

Somewhat groggy start to the day occasioned by the copious amount of wodka dished out in between courses at dinner last night. Was a very good night out. Many thanks to Elisa Jasinska for organising. Pleased to discover this morning at breakfast that everyone else was also feeling the effects.

Today it is wet and miserable in Krakow. The building site we look out upon from the bedroom window is deserted, it being Sunday, and very wet. I doubt there would be much building going on even had it been a working day. Wonder what they do on wet Sundays hereabouts.

On the advice of the receptionist, Richard has gone to the shopping mall next to the hotel to buy a hat. Assuming it is open. Maybe that’s what people do on wet Sundays. Bet it’ll be packed. Lots of bored looking yooves hanging around.

At 12.30 we are going on a guided tour of the city in large golf buggy type vehicles. Everywhere we went yesterday probably except being sat down and with someone actually telling us what we are looking at. “The building on the right is the church of St Stanislau the pious” etc

The hotel appears to be a lot quieter this morning. It’s been full of very noisy Jewish boys who have been in the habit of knocking loudly on each others’ doors shouting at those inside. They may have moved on. Now the hotel is filling with not quite so noisy Euro-IXers. It will get noisier as the day goes on.

The St Stanislau bit was a pure guess btw. He may have existed but it just sounded right for the purpose of this post. St Stan for short.

Still got a bad cough btw. Makes my voice sound all gravelly. At least it sounds like that to me. I was born under a wandering star.

…

Back from the Sunday afternoon social. A golf cart ride around Krakow. Although it was somewhat of a whistle stop tour viewed through the heavy plastic sides of the cart (not nice weather) you did get a very good feel for the city. It also explained the existence of the Jewish Quarter. When the Jews were expelled from Krakow in the middle ages all they did was go to the next town of Kazimierz which was only a few hundred feet away. Odd that they would establish another town so close. I guess in those days towns were very self contained.

We moseyed along to the Ghetto which was very thought provoking. During WW2 the Jews were moved out of Kazimierz and over the Vistula to the Ghetto where thousands of them were eventually murdered by Nazi firing squads and others carted off to concentration camps.

Also saw Schindler’s factory. Hadn’t seen the film so didn’t know the story of how Schindler saved Jews by “employing” them. Being on his list of employees was a life saver.

Lunch was at 14.30 in a very atmospheric old Polish restaurant called Ogniem i Mieczem. No booze fortunately. I think we had all had too much vodka the night before. Walked back to the hotel in the rain and we are now relaxing in the room.

this lift is winding me up!

Sore froat this morning. Ah well. It’s a beautiful sunny day in Krakow. 5 of us arrived last night on the BA872 from LHR. Had a few drinks in the lounge and on the plane en route. Dropped Will off at the Sheraton and Rich, Anne Kay and I continued to the conference hotel, the Galaxy. Check in, 30 mins to get sorted and then downstairs to meet in the bar.

We had pondered whether to stop in the hotel to eat but the beer in the bar wasn’t up to much so we taxied to the main square (12Polish) and hit a German restaurant called Sukiennice, or simlar. Twas v good although we ordered far too much nosh. I had a chicken schnitzel. The killer was the meats and cheese we had ordered as a starter. We had to leave half of it or risk not having room for the main. Rich ordered a meatball that turned out the size of a tennis ball. Straight to bed when we got back to the hotel and a relatively early night.

Now relaxing in the lobby having had a pleasant enough continental breakfast. No sign of the Irvings.

The polish word for lift is winda. Sounds appropriate.

…

Lurvley walk around Krakow. Very nice city. Lots of old stuff to look at. We walked to the Royal Palace and did the tour of the Cathedral. Magnifico. Lots of kings buried there. The composer Fred Chopin also. Significant I thought that most of the people there harked back to the middle ages. Not much royal action after the mid 16th century.

I lit a candle (2 zlotys) and stood there looking at it. Anne asked me who i had done it in memory of but I hadn’t realised that’s what you did. I thought it was just quite soulful. The bell tower was definitely worth a visit and the only place I took pics and vids. They didn’t let you in the church itself and there were no uniformed guards up the top to stop you.

We strolled on and found Cafe Zakatek hidden down an alley. Gem of a place. I had a banana milk shake, Anne had a coffee and apple pie, Kay had an Irish coffee wand apple pie and Rich had a beer.

Then bumped into Andrew Owens from Teraco in the main square. Called Joe to ask him about the story of the trumpeter. Apparently during a war a few hundred years ago a trumpeter played from one of the windows of the cathedral in the corner of the square. He was killed before finishing the tune. Now every hour a trumpeter appears at one of the windows and plays half a tune. We didn’t hang around to see and walked back to the hotel.

Now relaxing in the room before going for a bit of a dip.

twirly for foto

There’s a song that starts “It’s four in the morning…” That applies to me right now. Had 6 hours kip and am awake so came downstairs. I did have to think about it. That bed is toasty. Really nice. I knew that this would not be the case outside the duvet. However I figured I wouldn’t get much sleep now because the alarm is set for 6.15 in order to be ready for Handsom Cabs to pick us up at 7. Better to do something productive.

I put my glasses on in the dark. It’s amazing how they gave focus to darkness. The room was not totally dark because there was the LED from the clock and a faint glow around the top of the curtains from the street light outside. Still the blackness seemed to gain clarity when I put my specs on.

I am now downstairs in the TV room, blanket over my legs, tapping away. I didn’t leave the bedroom as quietly as I might have liked. The door made a noise opening and closing. Anne is a light sleeper. Hopefully she will now have a good hour and a half more kip without me there shifting around.

The clock under the TV is ticking. You don’t normally notice this during the day. It’s ticking my life away. Each tick represents an irretrievable part of my time spent on this planet. Normally I don’t think about it but with nothing but this room for company it is different. I almost resent the clock. I want to make it disappear. Disintegrate. Vanish into a different dimension. Irrational I know and not really like me. It doesn’t match my philosophy of life. I’ll move on.

Today we are off to Krakow. We are on the 07.30 direct train from Lincoln to London Kings Cross. We arrive in Kings Cross at 09.26 but our flight from LHR is at 14.30 so we have a bit of spare time. Let’s say we want to be at the airport by 12.30 and the Uber will take an hour to get there. Means we need to leave Kings Cross by 11.30 so we have two hours to kill.

We can either spend an additional 2 hours in the lounge or do something around Kings Cross. Not decided yet. We will have check in bags with us so need to take that into consideration when deciding. One option is to leave the bags in the Left Luggage place at the station (£12 for 2 hours for 2 bags) and stroll along to the British Library. They have an interesting “treasures” room displaying lots of famous books, first editions, Shakespeare etc. Also have a caff. We will have to discuss it on the train.

On the train we will partake of a full English breakfast. It’s not a bad breakfast fair play to them and the benefit of getting on at Lincoln is that it is right at the start of the journey and the food is fresh. I’ve normally finished it by the time we get to Newark. The tea is also fresh at that time. It can taste a little stewed later in the journey. Echoes of British Rail…

We are on our way to Krakow for an Euro-IX Forum. These are really nice events. They are the biannual get togethers of the IXP industry. We talk about IXP stuff. Internetty things. They move to different places in Europe every six months. Last one was Berlin. Not it wasn’t it was Luxembourg. Berlin was before that. We got stuck in a lift! The next one is Barcelona and the one after that Tampere in Finland which should be interesting. In 2018 they are talking about Svalbard. Population 3,000 with 5,000 polar bears! Its within the Arctic Circle. I think the 5,000 polar bears bit is only a joke but it gives you an idea of the location.

There are not many flight options to Krakow. We already had our Wednesday return cancelled. BA decided not to run a service on Wednesday so now we are coming back after the conference on Tuesday. It’s a 18.50 take off which means getting home really late that evening. We are booked on the 22.00 from Kings Cross. Urgh.

This is the last bit of international travel in 2016 afaik. Nothing else booked anyway. Just three trips to London, including the Christmas bash and my birthday which officially mark the beginning of the holiday season as far as I am concerned.

Bought a Peugeot 107 yesterday. Phoebe Wishart’s old car. It’s perfect for Anne and for John to learn to drive with. Tax is zero. Same as my VW T2 campervan but for different reasons. What’s more it does 60mpg (campervan does 23 ish) and insurance with John as a learner is only £330 a year. Result. Already sold the C4 to Coops and Anne needs to get rid of the Micra. It won’t fetch much but we might get a couple of hundred for it. We didn’t need three cars and now will have more room on the drive. Was always a little awkward having the three cars there.

It’s now 5.34. Came down at around quarter to. Time doth fly. The clock still ticketh. We get to Krakow at around 6pm. Collect the bags and taxi to the hotel. Should be there for 7 in time for a freshen up, a drink at the bar and then out to dinner somewhere. Maybe even dinner at the hotel. See when we get there.

When we got to Madrid we opted for a bite in the bar. It’s a long day’s travelling from Lincoln. Because of the distance I also add a couple of hours contingency to the timings. Hence the time to kill this morning. Who knows. The train could break down and use up all that contingency.

Not yet decided how to get out to LHR I’ve recently been catching an Uber. it’s more expensive if you are on your own but cheaper for two and not underground. Takes a little longer but you don’t have to cart your luggage around. The Heathrow Express leaves from Paddington which whilst it isn’t that far on the Tube does involve a bit of hoofing bags around. No brainer really.

In half an hour I will make the tea. I’m all packed so won’t really take that long to be ready. Just stick a last few things in the Osprey day bag, brush my teeth etc. The Bose headphones are charged, the Anker is charged. I’d only used 20% of the Bose battery but there is no harm in having it at 100% for the trip. They are fantastic for travelling. Really cut out the noise of an aircraft and also useful for blocking out inane discussions from the next table on the train.

Been looking at the return journey. We land at 20.30. Train is at 22.00. We have hold bags. Sgonna be touch and go. The only other train is at 23.30. Gets to Newark at 1am. 1.30 home. We don’t want to spend an extra night in a hotel in London. I think I’ll change the tickets when we get to Kings Cross. If we change the tickets in advance it will be cheaper than missing the train and copping for totally new single fares. Then if miraculously we do manage to get there for the 22.00 I’m sure we can blag our way on it. Will have to see.

…

The train attendants are very cheerful serving breakfast this morning. Very good considering they start work at some unearthly hour to get from Leeds to lincoln for a 7.30 am service. The full English was as usual very good fair play. Taken with two slices of white toast, orange juice and a cup of tea.

Anne is now in a zone. Earphones in. Listening to the Today Programme on BBC Radio 4. I may join her. In a zone that is. Not the same one. Maybe some funky tunes. Polish folk tunes? Why not? Don’t know any off the top of my head.

It’s fairly dull out there. Dull sheep in dull green fields. Some fields have already been ploughed and replanted and one or two are already showing a green sheen of new growth. Winter wheat or something. I’m not particularly up with agriculture. Should be. Should try to stay in touch with my ancestral roots. Everybody’s roots really. We were all farmers at one time. Hunter gatherers even. Not suggesting we need to stay in tune with hunter gathering. Perhaps we should 🙂 Waitrose is easier.

…

very unusual conversation going on a couple of seat pods away. Geezer with large belly and suit got on with younger suit, mid 30s say. Younger suit had a lapel badge. No idea what it was. Guard comes along and the belly tells him he must have picked up the wrong tickets and would need to pay an excess. He pays something like £140 (not sure I quite heard) for the two of them, including the return. When the guard had moved on the younger guy started talking about accommodation for some standards meeting they were going to in Paris. Ibis Hotel £40. Was a little bit of a whinge (understandably imho). This seemed slightly at odds with the fact that the belly had just forked out a load of dosh for making a mistake with the train tickets.

I’ve stuck my phones on to avoid having to listen to their totally uninteresting corporate chatter.

An executive decision has been made in respect of the two hour downtime we have in London. We are going to go straight to the airport. Expect copious amounts of (more) drivel from me on this blog. I have also decided to reuse the return tickets for another trip and grab a cab home. It’s not going to be any more expensive than changing the train tickets funnily enough and we will get home at the time we would have been catching the last train.