(no subject)

[ewt]

Looking for a career change? Thanks to 7leaguebootdisk for pointing this one out. I won't be going for it, I'm too far entrenched into my current life.

Might have a gig playing the Bach B minor mass in France, end of September. Not sure. Have to double check dates and things. And if it's paid, I can't do it, because I'm not eligible to work in the EU. Must sort out British citizenship so I can do this sort of thing. Arse thorns. Still, Bach B minor Mass! I'd have to start practising, like, today. Hmm. It's annoying; I need to replace my Canajan passport as soon as I can, really, and then I'll have to send it off to get the indefinite leave to remain thing transferred into it, and all this is going to mean time when my travel outside of this country is restricted whilst I wait on bureaucracy. And getting citizenship sorted woudl be good but will also require waiting on bureaucracy. I suppose I should do it before they make the exams any harder. Le sigh. Thing is, I don't want to do loads and loads of working in Europe - but it would be good to have the option if I need it.

Today I mostly tidied my room in preparation for the arrival of yady and koresh. Many thanks go to pfy for company and elderflower champagne (not as fizzy or as alcoholic as mine was last year but perhaps in a few more weeks it will be), and to Amy who is not on LJ. There's still a fair amount to be done, but I think at this point it is do-able without having to resort to just indiscriminately chucking things in bags and boxes, so a minor victory.

The HP Jornada I bought from claire_wain arrived today. Hooray! I need a 3V CR2032 battery to use as backup battery. So far I am very happy with the device. Yay for entering my teaching schedule into it this afternoon (between cleaning) and knowing I won't have to do this again for Quite Some Time. I can't begin to explain how tedious it was to write this stuff down every week. Let's just say I forgot more often than not, and ended up double-booked on a number of occasions - something which costs me precious time and money to rectify and does my reputation no good at all! I have decided the device is called critter.

I also had my assessment results back. Mid to high 2:1 (that's a B to you Norf Americans) across the board; not bad considering the mental health issues I've been struggling with this year. I'm especially pleased with the comments on the performance assessment: "a well-controlled, versatile tonal colour," "spirited with a nicely spaced cadenza," (hey I improvised that cadenza on the spot!), "The viva revealed an intelligent, committed and thoughtful musician." And the not-quite positive stuff was all useful as well, even if most of it was really down to performance on the day rather than anything I hadn't tried to deal with. As far as written work is concerned, my extenuating circumstances claim has been approved and I have until September to finish up the bits and pieces. Going to see if I can go for getting it done before the end of July, though. it would do me a lot more good. Really between now and then I've got to go all out to get academic stuff sorted and earn some money.

Amy wants to see proper British countryside. She wants to do this without spending an arm and a leg travelling from London to somewhere far away from London. Suggestions? We thought maybe Epping because it's right on the Central Line, but are open to other suggestions.

I've written two rough drafts of settings of my grandmother's poems, now, and started a third. I am enjoying being so prolific. I want to get on with arranging some Brahms for wind quintet as well; will have to get to the library and take some photocopies of the ones I like so that I can work on them without carriyng around a huge heavy book.

Now I sleep - a long day of teaching tomorrow, and I still have some things to sort out so that my guests all have somewhere to sleep.

YAY iced tea, even if I did make it a bit on the strong side.

Comments

[weatherpixie.livejournal.com]

Amy wants to see proper British countryside. She wants to do this without spending an arm and a leg travelling from London to somewhere far away from London. Suggestions? We thought maybe Epping because it's right on the Central Line, but are open to other suggestions.

Bit further out than Epping but not stupidly far out, if you head out from Charing Cross station and get a train down into Kent it's only about an hour out, a cheap day return won't cost you all that much (depending on how far out of London you choose to go). If you're really sneaky, you'll get hold of an OS map of the place you go to and go off and walk a footpath or too...

http://www.heartofkent.org.uk/site/five-kentish-towns/sevenoaks/

[the-elyan.livejournal.com]

Other reasonably close areas for countryside:

The area round Amersham, particularly the Chilterns up past Chesham and toward Wendover and Stoke Mandeville.

The area round Saffron Walden is full of pretty villages and such, but needs a bit of planning re public transport. Finchingfield and Thaxted are particularly nice. Nearest train station is Audley End.
A little further across, Lavenham remains my very favourite place in the UK, and in lovely rolling countryside, esp between there are Bury St E's.

The area between Gatwick and Brighton (ie the South Downs).

Rye (one of my other favourite places) and the Romney Marshes.

[caradea.livejournal.com]

Barnet Church is open every Saturday in July/August. It's £3 to go to the top of the church. On one side you can see pretty hills and such, on the other you might be able to spot the dome on really clear day.
http://www.stargazy.org/metasite/churchtower/index.html
I guess it's not loads of countryside though. Not bad for a 5minute walk from a zone 5 station though.

[feanelwa.livejournal.com]

Come to Cambridge and then walk a few miles West?

[poggle.livejournal.com]

It is quite cheap to go on the National Express Coaches to most places. I can go from Leeds to London and back for £20 so imagine if you are staying closer to London it wouldn't cost much.

[fwuffydragon.livejournal.com]

Or Surrey ... if you want to come down to Woking sometime we could go for a picnic! We have car.