Homework Words

As some of you may know, spelling is a tricky art for me. Luckily, modern technology is a BIG help in covering my tracks. So it's with some small wonder that I find myself being teacher for YS's spellings.

Today we did

• work
• world
• house
• also
• little
• friend

Oh, yes, he's still inside by comfort zone ... for the moment.

But what will happen if I accidentally (or accidentially, as I just typed, only to get a squiggly red line to suggest I might think again - or "squiddly" - you see how technology protects you from my random spellings) ... anyhow, what will happen if I accidentally teach him my way of spelling diary when I'm feeling pretty confident that diary should have two Rs? Or insist that Brain ought to be Brian?

Lots of people can respectably duck out of helping with maths homework. Being rubbish with maths is nearly a badge of normality.

No one actually cares if you know the capital of Slovenia - Ljubljana by the way. And really no one values if you know General Rommel's first name (Erwin).

But spellings have a special place in fidgety people's heart. It's as if there's a little Daily Mail Reader inside us all.

Dropping Down a Gear

Argggggh the weekend, and seemingly nothing conscious planned - well one client session and a bit of flappy-armed tai chi. But basically just a big open space with nothing much to do aside from some boy-care and a spot of food shopping.

And after the last two days Noah conditions, it seems it will be dry.

I quite fancy tinkering with my Personal Wiki that I'm going to start using to bring order and reason and cross-referencing to my CPD reading. A bit geeky, but surprisingly satisfying.

Oh and I told my supervisor we'd email her our/my workshop proposal for an up coming conference. But I guess I can leave that to Monday then.

Feels good to have dropped down a gear from the frantic training weekends / assignment writing weekends of last academic year's final taught year of my Master's. Four years at that pace was a lot, and now I'm actually enjoying reading new psycho stuff. Mainly sex just at the moment - well you've got start nibbling the goodies first!

So there you go, a quite content Bobo

Resisting Petty Yoga Fascists

I got up early this morning and joined the yawning mouths of the Yoga for Health session (presumably so-called to avoid confusion with the Yoga for Masochists and Yoga for Excessively Bendy People sessions).

Anyhow: Big mistake!

Firstly, it seemed to have escaped me that I don't like bending much. Given that, even as a skinny tall boy I was I quite incapable for touching my distant toes. Now that there is a little puppy fat in between, that's just a remote dream.

Secondly, these things are inevitably stuffed full of women. Now don't me wrong. Women are largely fab. If I hadn't been a man, being a woman would definitely have been Plan B. But woman are, basically, in general, pound for pound, a lot more bendy. No man is ever going to look good in any class where putting your leg somewhere strange while twisting your body is valued: Where is the crass strength? The showy-offy puffy-out chest? Or the guttural grunts? All core man skills, and all irrelevant.

Thirdly, Yoga, what's the point? Contorting yourself whilst trying to remember to obsess about your breath, how does that help?

So I'm sticking with the Tai Chi - nice flappy about arm people without any unnecessary twisting, humiliating doubling over, or touching of things can be perfectly well reached by the simple mechanism of bending a knee - touch my toes, easy.

Time to Blossom

I've been BUSY, ok? So, anyhow, as I was saying …

What was I saying. Oh I don't know, I seemed to have lost the plot, or the ummmph to blog. This summer has been rich and full (aka busy … but I don't want to over do the excuses). Doing holidays and family stuff and coming to the end of the start of the middle, or some such.

I feel in a transition, and not just in a body shape way, as we follow the not as strict at Hullaballoo makes out diet. (Really, not having pats of butter hardly constitutes secondary starvation.)

Of course the whole birthday thing came as a bit of a shocker. I was reluctant to join the ranks of the Hawaii Five-0 brigade, but actually, on the day, it felt really good to enjoying the savoury benefits of a good woman, and joys of family building one year on, settling into Edinburgh and it's fabulous diversions, fascinating work, and the clearing away of old left-overs.

So, just now, I'm full of optimism and excitement for the next year: the roots have been put down, now it's time to blossom!

Politics is Sexy, Elsewhere

While UK politics descends into a mire of moats and chandeliers, in Canada (and also Australia I believe), politics has taken on an altogether more adult turn:

www.thesexparty.ca

Yes, the Sex Party, already polling over 2% of the red-blooded electorate.

Of course, you'll noticed my iron willed self-control, not to go all end-of-the-pier Carry On. But don't let me stop you.

PS: If you haven't seen the popumentary "Sounds Like Teen Spirit"do do do .... Hulla and I suffered mild internal laughing injuries watching it.

Does this laptop make me look fat?

You know, sometimes it's hard to be a woman, when parasitic corporate scumbags try and leech your hard earned money out of our purse by patronising you from an Olympically condescending height.

Step up Dell Computers and their new sales site for women - or at least for fres- faced white professional women aged between say 24 and 36: Della

Warning, this site is Not Suitable for those without a Sick Bag
http://content.dell.com/us/en/home/della.aspx

Please share you're most hated content. I'm rather liking the Stepford Wives emphasis on looking up recipes and charting your exercise routine. Though I'm more than a little staggered that when the idea was first mouthed by a crass marketing executive, no one said, "Oh come off it! That's ridiculous!"

Of course, you could always be patronised about buying a car, if you fancy.

Learning to Relax Again

Heavens. That WAS a busy busy time: three weeks of back-to-back conferences and case studies and exhibitions. Phew!

And at end of it, I'm left feeling a little school holiday-ish … except I'm still working. BUT, I'm going to have a weekend with no work, no training, no writing, no travelling. Just me, Hulla, and on Sunday OS is birthday boy and we're having a family outting.

I wonder if I'll settle into the free weaving groove, or be left with a nagging doubt that I'm not doing something that I should?

Maybe conjoining the words "Spring" and "Clean" might be a way of coming down from my hyper life. Or alternatively, how about "Gin" and "Tonic"?

Nothing to See, Move Along Now

If you ignore

• preping to fly down to the conference
  
  
• Easter Egg hunts
  
  
• taking Older Son to his first ever lesson in Rugby
  
  
• Older Son learning how to swim, doggy style
  
  
• Younger Son becoming puppy diving boy, endlessly fetching a weight thrown into the pool and bring it back in his small paw
  
  
• My own rather dignified impressions of a boy eating sea monster
  
  
• Finger missile battles with tickle mega-tonnage warheads with Younger Son
  
  
• New armies of plastic soldiers
  
  
• oh, and the Fire (see Hulla)
  

If you ignore all that, then nothing has really happened ... other than I'm writing put a small case study.

Gym

After a …

cross-train
cycle
row
weights
sit-ups
swim
frolic
sauna
steam
jacuzzi

I seem to have signed up for a gym for a month.

Hullaballoo was most insistent.

She's hardly been out of lycra all week.

Her extra curly hair is even curlier.

I wonder what it will do for me?

We're planning to go for breakfast tomorrow.

Yes, we are enthusiasts … at the start

85% Narcissism?

Well, I'm off for four hours Group Therapy in an hour.

I'm feeling a bit 85% Narcissistic.

But vanity seems such an agreeable character flaw. I agree with Al Pacino, "Vanity is my favourite sin".

What character flaw would you pick to keep and cherish?




PS: "There are no grades of vanity, there are only grades of ability in concealing it" (Mark Twain)