Happy Birthday Davey
It seems to be the week for birthdays, and my friend Davey (aka Kev G) is 21 today. Happy Birthday!
The last couple of days have been fairly mundane. I was woken up again at 5.15 today by the guy with the petrol powered street vacuum cleaner. Words fail me, particularly as today there didn't even seem to be any rubbish on the pavement - I watched him blow air around in a random manner for a good couple of minutes and feel that he achieved precisely nothing for the cleanliness of the city centre, the wellbeing of its inhabitants or the environment. I also can't understand how it can make so much noise. In the year that I've lived here I've got used to the noise of the random drunks and the drone of the buses, but this vacuum thing defies belief. Even when the guy had ambled 100yards down the street, I could still hear it above everything else!
If you're an employee of Oxford City Council, may I suggest that you employ your street cleaner man to clean up your garden at 5am tomorrow. That way you will understand why it's getting to the stage when I no longer feel responsible for my actions.
On Sunday our Chaplain hosted drinks at his new house, which is very impressive. Sat in his period living room brought about one of those classically 'Oxford' evenings, and I really enjoyed it. A friend was there who provided interesting discussion about recruitment for the Secret Service and why it would be fun to invade Calais. I was fascinated to learn that Oxbridge Dons used to (and perhaps still do) play a part in Foreign Office recruitment, and enjoyed listening to stories of past students who've 'mysteriously disappeared from all records'. Something else I learnt during the course of the evening was that none of the 20th Century British Prime Ministers ever attended any university bar Oxford or Cambridge. Interesting.
Time now to get on with some work methinks...
The last couple of days have been fairly mundane. I was woken up again at 5.15 today by the guy with the petrol powered street vacuum cleaner. Words fail me, particularly as today there didn't even seem to be any rubbish on the pavement - I watched him blow air around in a random manner for a good couple of minutes and feel that he achieved precisely nothing for the cleanliness of the city centre, the wellbeing of its inhabitants or the environment. I also can't understand how it can make so much noise. In the year that I've lived here I've got used to the noise of the random drunks and the drone of the buses, but this vacuum thing defies belief. Even when the guy had ambled 100yards down the street, I could still hear it above everything else!
If you're an employee of Oxford City Council, may I suggest that you employ your street cleaner man to clean up your garden at 5am tomorrow. That way you will understand why it's getting to the stage when I no longer feel responsible for my actions.
On Sunday our Chaplain hosted drinks at his new house, which is very impressive. Sat in his period living room brought about one of those classically 'Oxford' evenings, and I really enjoyed it. A friend was there who provided interesting discussion about recruitment for the Secret Service and why it would be fun to invade Calais. I was fascinated to learn that Oxbridge Dons used to (and perhaps still do) play a part in Foreign Office recruitment, and enjoyed listening to stories of past students who've 'mysteriously disappeared from all records'. Something else I learnt during the course of the evening was that none of the 20th Century British Prime Ministers ever attended any university bar Oxford or Cambridge. Interesting.
Time now to get on with some work methinks...
Comments
Your friend, Starsky.
I enjoy the entries...
Humphrey
hutch,
your cardigan wearing well wisher