Day 13: Because YOU Demanded It (Didn't You?) -- ANOTHER Week-In-Review Post!

I seem to have gotten myself into one of those all-too-common spots where I let a week go by without writing much of what I have actually done. To rectify that, here is one of the ever-popular week-in-review entries.

Last Saturday, cheshcat and I spent the day at Woburn Abbey... which is neither a woburn nor an abbey. Discuss. Seriously, though, the so-called abbey is really the home of the Duke of Bedford, who is worth roughly one billion dollars. The house sits on land that was once an abbey, before Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries in the late 1530s. Henry gave the confiscated lands to John Russell, ancestor of the current Duke: Anthony Russell. Although I really enjoy visiting this historic homes, it bothers me more than a little to see the ongoing privilege of the aristocracy. Basically, this guy is a billionaire simply because his great-great-great-etc-great-grandfather was cozy with the king. I much prefer visiting places like Leeds Castle, which have ceased to function as a home for rich people.

In any case, we still had a pleasant day out. Surrounding Woburn Abbey is a three thousand acre estate that serves as a deer park for a large number of species of deer. We drove through the park first, stopping frequently to take pictures of the deer. The inner part of the estate, near the house, has a fairly unimpressive informal garden, a few ponds, an antique shops, and other assorted curiosities. Here is a picture of me taken near the house itself:



The inside of the house contains a noteworthy art collection. Honestly, what probably impressed me the most about the entire outing was getting to see the so-called Armada Portrait of Queen Elizabeth.

Overall, it was a pleasant day out. Though, of the four Treasure Houses that we have visited thus far, we agreed that this one made the least impression.

On Sunday, I ran some errands, got Peter cleaned up a bit, refilled liquid helium in the K-400 cryostat, rang bells for services at St. Giles, and swam a mile at the sports centre. Overall, a quiet day.

On Monday, cheshcat and I played a couple of games of Skip-Bo. I won the first, fair and square. On the second game, however, it looked quite likely that cheshcat would win by a fair margin. For those unfamiliar with Skip-Bo, you start a two player game with thirty cards apiece and the winner is the first to get rid of all those cards. She was down to six cards and I still had fourteen. Then, somehow, a stroke of luck came my way and I was able to rid myself of thirteen cards in one fell swoop. This amazing turn brought me victory soon after.

On Tuesday, cheshcat and I went to see Floating at the Oxford Playhouse, as mentioned in this entry.

On Wednesday, after work, we brought Totoro to the vet. Not feeling up to riding my bicycle with a cat in tow, I carried the poor guy (see icon) down Banbury Road in his carrier. He was very vocal about his displeasure, though very well behaved once we actually arrived at the vet. His left eye has been bothering him, so we wanted to have it looked at. Thankfully, it does not appear to be anything serious. In the evening, cheshcat and I exchanged gifts to celebrate our 157^th month anniversary.

On Thursday, I rang Plain Bob Major on handbells at St. Giles and then rang tower bells as described in the previous entry. After practice, a few of us went to the Bird and Baby, a pub once frequented by J.R.R. Tolkein and C.S. Lewis, to chat over drinks.

Today, we finished installing several pieces of equipment into the cryostat and started evacuating the inner vacuum chamber in preparation for the next cooldown. In the evening, cheshcat and I did some work beating Skullcrusher Mountain back into livable shape... then watched two more episodes of Babylon 5. We have one episode to go until the fourth season is over... though it feels like the whole series could have ended now with no loose ends left untied. Soon we will not be the last people left on Earth who have not watched Babylon 5!

Tomorrow and Sunday both look to be good fun, as we have plans for both days. But this entry is long enough... so I will write about those events after they happen, and not before.

Day 13: Because YOU Demanded It (Didn't You?) -- ANOTHER Week-In-Review Post!

I seem to have gotten myself into one of those all-too-common spots where I let a week go by without writing much of what I have actually done. To rectify that, here is one of the ever-popular week-in-review entries.

Last Saturday, cheshcat and I spent the day at Woburn Abbey... which is neither a woburn nor an abbey. Discuss. Seriously, though, the so-called abbey is really the home of the Duke of Bedford, who is worth roughly one billion dollars. The house sits on land that was once an abbey, before Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries in the late 1530s. Henry gave the confiscated lands to John Russell, ancestor of the current Duke: Anthony Russell. Although I really enjoy visiting this historic homes, it bothers me more than a little to see the ongoing privilege of the aristocracy. Basically, this guy is a billionaire simply because his great-great-great-etc-great-grandfather was cozy with the king. I much prefer visiting places like Leeds Castle, which have ceased to function as a home for rich people.

In any case, we still had a pleasant day out. Surrounding Woburn Abbey is a three thousand acre estate that serves as a deer park for a large number of species of deer. We drove through the park first, stopping frequently to take pictures of the deer. The inner part of the estate, near the house, has a fairly unimpressive informal garden, a few ponds, an antique shops, and other assorted curiosities. Here is a picture of me taken near the house itself:



The inside of the house contains a noteworthy art collection. Honestly, what probably impressed me the most about the entire outing was getting to see the so-called Armada Portrait of Queen Elizabeth.

Overall, it was a pleasant day out. Though, of the four Treasure Houses that we have visited thus far, we agreed that this one made the least impression.

On Sunday, I ran some errands, got Peter cleaned up a bit, refilled liquid helium in the K-400 cryostat, rang bells for services at St. Giles, and swam a mile at the sports centre. Overall, a quiet day.

On Monday, cheshcat and I played a couple of games of Skip-Bo. I won the first, fair and square. On the second game, however, it looked quite likely that cheshcat would win by a fair margin. For those unfamiliar with Skip-Bo, you start a two player game with thirty cards apiece and the winner is the first to get rid of all those cards. She was down to six cards and I still had fourteen. Then, somehow, a stroke of luck came my way and I was able to rid myself of thirteen cards in one fell swoop. This amazing turn brought me victory soon after.

On Tuesday, cheshcat and I went to see Floating at the Oxford Playhouse, as mentioned in this entry.

On Wednesday, after work, we brought Totoro to the vet. Not feeling up to riding my bicycle with a cat in tow, I carried the poor guy (see icon) down Banbury Road in his carrier. He was very vocal about his displeasure, though very well behaved once we actually arrived at the vet. His left eye has been bothering him, so we wanted to have it looked at. Thankfully, it does not appear to be anything serious. In the evening, cheshcat and I exchanged gifts to celebrate our 157^th month anniversary.

On Thursday, I rang Plain Bob Major on handbells at St. Giles and then rang tower bells as described in the previous entry. After practice, a few of us went to the Bird and Baby, a pub once frequented by J.R.R. Tolkein and C.S. Lewis, to chat over drinks.

Today, we finished installing several pieces of equipment into the cryostat and started evacuating the inner vacuum chamber in preparation for the next cooldown. In the evening, cheshcat and I did some work beating Skullcrusher Mountain back into livable shape... then watched two more episodes of Babylon 5. We have one episode to go until the fourth season is over... though it feels like the whole series could have ended now with no loose ends left untied. Soon we will not be the last people left on Earth who have not watched Babylon 5!

Tomorrow and Sunday both look to be good fun, as we have plans for both days. But this entry is long enough... so I will write about those events after they happen, and not before.