A few days ago, there was a meme making the rounds in which people were supposed to sum up 2010 in a single word and then encapsulate their hopes for 2011 in a different word. Not being one for memes, I did not participate. However, recent days have involved many plans for the new year.[*] Additionally, it will soon be time for me to make my annual "goals list" -- which I do in lieu of resolutions -- so I have been giving some thought as to what I am hoping to achieve in 2011.

In terms of theatre, the new year already seems to be richly stocked! My beloved [livejournal.com profile] cheshcat and I already have fifteen sets of theatre tickets for the first third of 2011. Not too shabby, especially as I am planning to spend a month working in Japan during that time! Eight of these shows are in our most frequented venue, the Oxford Playhouse, with a couple of others elsewhere in Oxford -- Marlowe's Dr. Faustus performed by Creation Theatre in the basement of Blackwell Books and an adaptation of Shakespeare's The Rape of Lucrece at the Burton Taylor Studio. The five other plays will take us further afield: The RSC's new theatres will be the venues for The Tempest, Romeo & Juliet, and another rendition of The Rape of Lucrese. Milton Keynes will be where we see Derek Jacobi as King Lear, and in Woking the lovely [livejournal.com profile] miss_amaranth joins us for Chess. For the past few years, including this one, my annual theatre count has tallied in the high thirties. With such a strong start, I am aiming to break 40 shows in one year for 2011!

With regards to travel, I have been looking at where the obvious holes are in our English sightseeing and attempting to fill them in. Thus, at a minimum, in 2011, I want to visit Windsor Castle, Chester, Westminster Abbey, the white cliffs of Dover (as well as nearby Hastings and Battle), the South Downs National Park, and the Broads. Also, at D&J's Thanksgiving Party, TH and I made plans for where to go cruising this Summer on his narrowboat; looks like in 2011 we will be cruising the Thames upriver from Oxford -- should be fun! Additionally, [livejournal.com profile] cheshcat and I want to complete the tour of Wales that we started on our fifteenth anniversary in 2009. Back then, we spent five days exploring South Wales; in 2011, we plan to take a similar amount of time in the North. Outside of Great Britain, I would like to take a long weekend off from one of my Japan trips to finally visit South Korea. I had been planning a nice lil' trip to Seoul back in May this year but, to paraphrase Mr. Burns: "The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men... can be thrown asunder by volcanic ash!" The other travel question is what to do with the eleven day holiday that has been brought to us by the Royal Wedding. Possibly a road trip to somewhere on the continent? Must ponder further...

Looking at Pagan events, [livejournal.com profile] cheshcat and I are no longer responsible for running the Super-Sekrit October Pagan Festival, but we will surely be attending. Indeed, 2011 will make my fifteenth consecutive year of doing so! Besides, the circle that we opened for P**T*** 2010 is still in place and we need to be there to take it down! For my Summer festival, I am a bit more perplexed. This year, I found Brushwood's new SummerFest to be very..... okay. I had fun, but it just wasn't anywhere near the intensity of Starwood. I miss that. So, for 2011, I am currently undecided about whether to return to SummerFest, whether to sample Brushwood's larger and more established Sirius Rising, whether to follow Starwood to their new home at Wisteria, or whether to make a long-overdue return to Free Spirit. Ah, would that I had all of July off to sample three in a row! Any thoughts from you fellow Pagans? Where will you be going in Summer 2011? Additionally, [livejournal.com profile] cheshcat and I have plans to get more involved with local Pagan community in Oxford and the UK. Nearly five years after moving to the City of Dreaming Spires, we are still feeling the lack of community on the East side of the pond and we are hoping that this will fill an open need.

In bell ringing, I would like to ring my first quarter peal on a working bell. Thus far, I have only rung QPs on a covering tenor or a hunting treble. In 2011, I would like to ring tower bells for a quarter of Plain Bob Minor or Major. Plus, I would like to ring the trebles to a QP of Plain Bob on handbells. I would also like to get to the point where I feel competent to ring touches of Grandsire (Doubles or Triples), and Stedman (Doubles and Triples). Finally, if I reach the stage where my plain courses of Cambridge Minor are smooth, I will be a happy camper; touches of Cambridge can wait for 2012.

Interestingly enough, I have a very difficult time in assembling professional goals for the coming year. It is a very exciting time for T2K and I want to continue working with my students to get some physics results. But framing specific goals for the next twelve months? That is proving to be more elusive.

Of course, there are other goals that do not fit into specific categories. I would like to go SCUBA diving again in 2011, I would like to try gliding again, I plan to compete in an Olympic Triathlon, and I want to write the book that has been percolating in my head. Plus, I am toying with the idea of reading my entire Iron Man collection, starting from 1963's Tales of Suspense #39 up to the present day.

Those are my initial thoughts as the list of goals for the new year start to come together. What about you, gentle readers? What are you hoping to accomplish and achieve in 2011?


[*] Indeed, there are so many plans falling into place that my next completely free weekend is that of June 3rd to 5th! Not sure how that happened. It used to be usual to find that weekends for the next two to three months were full. Six months, however, has come as a bit of a surprise!

[ETA: Why does the emoticon for "thoughtful" always look so sad? Being thoughtful is not a bad thing!]


From: [identity profile] xirpha.livejournal.com


I am lucky to have any plans that I can count on doing a month out.

From: [identity profile] anarchist-nomad.livejournal.com


*grin* I don't actually count on planning so far ahead, except where theatre is concerned (so we can procure good seats). Somehow, it just sorta happens!

Speaking of which, I should be in Chicago from about the sixth to the tenth of January. Would definitely like to see you, get in some gaming, catch up, et cetera!

From: [identity profile] xirpha.livejournal.com


The sixth to the tenth of January is less than a month away. Any day of the weekend is OK, just pick the date.

The 6th will be Polyoke at SideKicks.

From: [identity profile] anarchist-nomad.livejournal.com


Oh, that's an excellent point about the January Poly Karaoke! I'll put that into my book now because, yes, I definitely want to be there!

As for the rest of the time, let me get back to you as I'm still having plans sliding into their various places. I'm leaning towards Friday night, but let's see...

See you soon, my friend!

From: [identity profile] dcseain.livejournal.com

Re: Thoughful


Well, there's thoughtful (contemplative), thoughtful (worried), thoughtful (analytic)...

So, mayhap you really wanted contemplative?

From: [identity profile] anarchist-nomad.livejournal.com

Re: Thoughful


A very thoughtful response, my friend!

I have done some research and it seems that the emoticon for "contemplative" is just as pensive as the one for "thoughtful"... because share the same icon. In contrast, "worried" looks much more upset... and (*gasp*) there is no emoticon for "analytic". Hurm.

Must contemplate this further. (Or perhaps I should analyze it...)
(deleted comment)

From: [identity profile] dragonmamma.livejournal.com


1) Derek Jacobi , King Lear, Milton Keynes. Where exactly? when? How much?
2) If visiting North Wales you simply must also do Anglesey. Some fantastic places there, will bring list and map.
3) Your friends handbell ringing is in London - damn, but am trying to find some up here. Meanwhile Seniorsis is doing all right with the big bells. Now allowed to practice simple rounds and very basic changes with the clapper uncloaked in with the rest of the group. She says sometimes she even gets the timing right!!! but not bad for 8 weeks (we wont mention the broken stanchion!!!!)
Hope to see you next weekend with FK for a cer5tain person's birthday .

From: [identity profile] anarchist-nomad.livejournal.com


  1. Jacobi's King Lear is going on tour, so Milton Keynes will not be the only stop. I believe that they will also be in Richmond and Glasgow. To answer your questions: "Where exactly?" is the Milton Keynes Theatre (http://www.ambassadortickets.com/Milton-Keynes-Theatre). "When?" is Tue 15-Mar through Sat 19-Mar. And "How much?" is £10 (for the absolute back of the upper circle seats) to £32.50, though I imagine that concessions may be available.

  2. Thank you for the recommendation of Anglesey! It is definitely on our list -- partially because I want to see the Menai Suspension Bridge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menai_Suspension_Bridge) featured on the 2005 pound coin (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4036/4306303937_3d6b078a98.jpg), and partially because it features significantly in a very bizarre play by Hugh Hughes called Floating (http://www.thestage.co.uk/reviews/review.php/29575/the-wonderful-world-of-hugh-hughes-floating-). List and map would be most appreciated, thank you!

  3. I'm not sure who you are referring to here. I do most of my bell ringing in Oxford, but there are places most everywhere in England that ring. Also, congrats to Sensiorsis for making such progress as she did in eight weeks! Well done!

Hope all is well, and looking forward to seeing you soon! *wink*

From: [identity profile] xirpha.livejournal.com


If the default emoticon for thoughtful is too serious, you can select a happier emoticon and just change it to thoughtful.

From: [identity profile] miss-amaranth.livejournal.com


Wow. That is a lot of plans. Then again, I wouldn't expect anything else from you *grin* *kiss.*

Like you, I don't do 'new years resolutions,' as such. Am currently thinking about my own goals and aims for 2011. I might make a post about it later this month when it's a little more formed in my mind!

I love you!
xxxxxx
xxxxxx

From: [identity profile] anarchist-nomad.livejournal.com


Then again, I wouldn't expect anything else from you

*grin* Exactly! And I would hate to disappoint you, Love!

I'm still putting together my 2011 goals list. The above is just a very rough ordering of my thought processes on some of the major topics. Should have it down soon after I get back to the UK, I imagine. I want to consult a couple of past lists to see if there were things I'm forgetting that should be added.

I would be interested in seeing your own list, when it is done... and I shall look forward to seeing the post that you might make later this month!

Love you, Sweetheart!
xxxxxxxx

From: [identity profile] selki.livejournal.com

Re: When Tomorrow Comes


1) I have seen Marlowe's Dr. Faustus, a production last year or so by The Rude Mechanicals in the DC area.
2) Like so many others, my bell ringing knowledge is pretty limited:
a) that Dorothy Sayers Lord Peter Wimsey mystery
b) a one-hour class in (handbell) change ringing at a dance/folk festival

From: [identity profile] anarchist-nomad.livejournal.com

Re: When Tomorrow Comes


I love the name "The Rude Mechanicals" for a theatre company! Nice!

I have read Marlowe's Dr. Faustus but not yet seen it on stage. Indeed, thus far I think that Edward II is the only play by Marlowe that I have seen performed live. As such, I am rather looking forward to seeing this in February! The idea of setting it in the basement of a bookshop seems particularly novel[*] -- check out the spiffy promo shots here (http://www.creationtheatre.co.uk/show-two/)!

Interestingly enough, shows in the UK seem to arrive in clumps. Not only is Oxford's Creation Theatre (http://www.creationtheatre.co.uk) putting it on in 2011, but so is Shakespeare's Globe (http://www.shakespeares-globe.org/theatre/annualtheatreseason/)! Similarly, I've never seen a theatrical adaptation of Shakespeare's The Rape of Lucrece advertised before... but now we have tickets to see it twice in the third third of 2011 -- once at Oxford's Burton Taylor Studio (http://www.oxfordplayhouse.com/aboutus/btstudio.aspx) and once at the RSC's new Swan Theatre! I am particularly looking forward to that one!

As for change ringing? The very fact that you know of it puts you ahead of most people outside of England! Campanology is very much an English folk art. According to Dove (http://dove.cccbr.org.uk/home.php), of the 7123 change ringing towers in the world, 6692 of them are in England! That's nearly 94%! Of the remaining 431 such towers, more than half of them (226) are right next door in Wales... which has been a principality under English control for centuries longer than change ringing itself has existed! In contrast, there are only 46 change ringing towers in the whole of the United States -- barely more than twice the number found in the city of Oxford alone, which has nineteen! Before I moved to Oxford in 2006, I certainly had no idea what change ringing was.

Also, I ready The Nine Tailors back in 2006, shortly after I got into ringing. I should go back and re-read it now that I know much more of the jargon and lingo. By the way, for writing that book, Dorothy Sayers was made an honorary member of the Oxford University Society of Change Ringers (http://users.ox.ac.uk/~ouscr/) -- one of the ringing associations that I am also a member of! :-D

Brokie-dokie, methinks that I have been babbling at you long enough. Have a most excellent morning... and I shall see you very soon! (Yay!)


[*] Pun intended, I'm afraid. ;-D

From: [identity profile] selki.livejournal.com

Re: When Tomorrow Comes


The Rudes do a lot of Shakespearean plays, but also occasional ventures into other playwrights (Oscar Wilde). Remind me to babble about their intriguing Cleopatra. Incidentally, I was at a birthday party Sat. night with several of their actors and a director, and heard a bit beyond my interest level about their board politics. That was my cue to leave! ;-)
(it WAS a fun party, but getting on to midnight and I had to drive home)

I think I have seen a movie treatment of Edward II, but don't know if it was based on Marlowe at all.
.

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