So some things are going really well...
Nov/16/05 13:59
We last saw our heroes
scrambling, figuratively speaking, up onto the
beckoning shores of the Old World, having braved the
hurdles thrown before them by an uncaring
bureaucracy, the mysterious workings of international
express delivery, and Mother Nature herself. Now, two
months later, let’s see what’s going
on…
Mostly, things are going pretty well. Cliff is quite settled in at the University, teaching and enjoying a life of relative leisure, as he doesn’t find himself grading an endless series of exams and papers. He is making progress on his research and editing projects, co-teaching a course on Revolutions in Military Affairs, and giving lectures for a variety of seminars and courses, in Swansea and elsewhere. He is also beginning to work on several proposals to revise and strengthen the curricula for Swansea’s interdisciplinary BA and proposed MA in War and Society. He loves being a 10-minute walk from work (through one park, through another park, past an abbey, et voilą!), and also having the opportunity to do lots of reading. Whole books, even, not just chapters or articles relevant to the next day’s teaching. Hannah is absolutely at home in Mrs. Roach’s class at Brynmill Primary School, and every dry afternoon is spent in Brynmill Park, just down the street. She is also enjoying Sunday School and “Springers” [sort of a play group] at the local Baptist church, and will probably start Rainbows [British version of Daisies or some such] this week. I am even experiencing a modest social life; Wednesday evenings I go to the Borders book store in Fforestfach for meetings of the Swansea Stitch-n- Bitch, where we knit, gab and eat cake. Our family has little entertainments and adventures; just last weekend we took the train to Cardiff and saw Circus Oz at the Millennium Centre theater; playdates and coffee shop visits and library visits round out our time. We even had a mini-reason to rejoice when the last two boxes of winter clothes we had shipped from home—in August—finally arrived on our doorstep in November. What’s a twelve-week wait, in the grand scheme of things.
Mostly, things are going pretty well. Cliff is quite settled in at the University, teaching and enjoying a life of relative leisure, as he doesn’t find himself grading an endless series of exams and papers. He is making progress on his research and editing projects, co-teaching a course on Revolutions in Military Affairs, and giving lectures for a variety of seminars and courses, in Swansea and elsewhere. He is also beginning to work on several proposals to revise and strengthen the curricula for Swansea’s interdisciplinary BA and proposed MA in War and Society. He loves being a 10-minute walk from work (through one park, through another park, past an abbey, et voilą!), and also having the opportunity to do lots of reading. Whole books, even, not just chapters or articles relevant to the next day’s teaching. Hannah is absolutely at home in Mrs. Roach’s class at Brynmill Primary School, and every dry afternoon is spent in Brynmill Park, just down the street. She is also enjoying Sunday School and “Springers” [sort of a play group] at the local Baptist church, and will probably start Rainbows [British version of Daisies or some such] this week. I am even experiencing a modest social life; Wednesday evenings I go to the Borders book store in Fforestfach for meetings of the Swansea Stitch-n- Bitch, where we knit, gab and eat cake. Our family has little entertainments and adventures; just last weekend we took the train to Cardiff and saw Circus Oz at the Millennium Centre theater; playdates and coffee shop visits and library visits round out our time. We even had a mini-reason to rejoice when the last two boxes of winter clothes we had shipped from home—in August—finally arrived on our doorstep in November. What’s a twelve-week wait, in the grand scheme of things.