The place where lost socks go...

Our lease on the new flat began on Friday. We are currently in the process of moving from the old place to the new one, and expect to be entirely out of the old apartment by the end of this coming weekend. In the meantime, here are so initial thoughts on the new space:

Cons (major):

• Size: New flat is definitely smaller than the old flat. Which is saying something!

Cons (minor):

• Location: New flat is further from the Oxford city centre (about two miles, compared with our previous flat which was about one mile away).
  
• Management: New flat is run by a professional company, meaning more interference into our lives.
  
• Rent: New flat is £45/month more expensive than the old flat.
  
• Showers: Thus far, water pressure is not impressive. Nor is the hot water supply. We shall see if something can be done about this.

Pros (major):

• Location: New flat is much closer to the Oxford Tube stop (a five minute walk, or three minute run, compared to a fifteen minute drive). This will also make it easier to take my bicycle on the coach, helping to shorten the London side of the commute.
  
• Location: New flat is also on a bus route that brings cheshcat directly to work.
  
• Location: New flat is in an active neighborhood -- directly above shops -- so there is life outside my apartment. And I can see it just by looking outside of my living room window!
  
• Condition: New flat is in much better condition than the old flat! Much!! (For one thing, there doesn't seem to be rampant mould growth, which the old flat suffered from -- due to insufficient insulation -- every winter!)
  
• Dishwasher: We have one now!

Pros (minor):

• Facilities: Two full bathrooms! Excellent!
  
• Management: New flat is run by a professional company, so any problems that we have will hopefully be tended to. (As opposed to the last landlady who did absolutely nothing ever about anything -- not even returning letters, calls, or e-mail)
  
• Neighbors: I live next to the Shark House! How bloody cool is that??

In short, the new place[**] is not perfect... but it is an improvement, especially given the location of our current jobs.[***] These are just the initial impressions. It will be interesting[****] to see how they evolve as time goes on.

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[*] Apologies to the Barenaked Ladies for my subject line...

[**] Which still has not officially been christened. Chesh favours calling it "Skullcrusher Mountain II", whilst I tend to favour an original name.

[***] In all fairness, the old flat was much better suited to the location of our previous jobs, for both of us. Had we lived at the new place whilst working at those jobs, it would have been very inconvenient.

[****] At least to me.

Two and a half years ago today, cheshcat and I arrived at Heathrow to start a new life in Oxford. Thus, this is the halfway point in the five years that we must live here before we are eligible to apply for that holy grail of Indefinite Leave to Remain.

Thirty months living living in Oxford now. Thirty months since we left Chicago and the Event Horizon behind. Hard to believe, really. Part of me feels like it was so very recent, whilst another part of me feels like it was a lifetime ago. We knew virtually nothing and no one when we arrived, but this has finally become Home.[*]

( To commemorate this [non-]event... )

On that note, I think that I will acknowledge that this entry has descended into sleepy babble... and will thus take the hint that it may be time for bed.

Happy Friday to all, and to all a Good Night!

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[*] For a guy who calls himself Nomad, the concept of "Home" can be somewhat complicated. See, for instance, this thread. Oxford has definitely become Home -- the gradual acquisition of community that started at PolyDay 2007 was the final step in making this place Home. However, Chicago and the Event Horizon are also most definitely Home for me -- much more so than when I wrote the comment in the link above. Also, New York City is still Home, and I suspect that it always will be.

Definitely back in England now. If, for some reason, I were confused about my location, the weather would be a dead giveaway. It is grey, chilly, and wet.

Ah, I miss Summer. At least I had nearly three weeks[*] of it while in the States! Indeed, I lucked out with the weather on that trip -- all my outdoor activities (e.g., the Billy Joel concert, the Event Horizon party, the Hurricane Harbor trip) were met with clear blue skies! I don't even mind rain -- the flash floods at Starwood, for instance, had quite a powerful appeal -- but the consistently gray drizzle is not to my liking.

Enough grousing, though! The above paragraph just about fills my quota for the month! There are plenty of nifty things happening, so I shall focus my attentions on them.

For starters, I should note that, as I type this, The Boy is providing great entertainment by getting excessively drunk on catnip. resourceress found a place that sells particularly potent catnip toys and we just restocked our supply. Meanwhile, the kitten -- who has been named "Aethelbert of Giles", or just "Giles" for short -- is sitting nearby and watching. It is very cute! He doesn't understand yet what catnip is -- he is too young for it to affect him.

Next, I am pleased to say that -- at long last -- my coins from the Royal Mint came in while I was away. I now have a complete uncirculated set of the new Royal Shield of Arms series! In actual circulation, all I have so far is the 5p coin -- two of them by now -- but I can enjoy the rest under plastic.

While on the topic of nice things, I want to thank suzaw for the virtual gift that she sent me! That was very sweet of her! And a rubber duck? I love rubber ducks! Don't even get me started on stories about rubber ducks -- especially ones involving cheshcat and angryjim! da_pupdetz are pleased with this, too. They actually evolved from ducks and so this gift has certain sacred overtones for them.[**]

Finally, now that I am back in Oxford, it is time to resume some of my regular "extra-curricular activities". cheshcat and I started tonight, by going out to see the Creation Theatre Company's outdoor production of Much Ado About Nothing in the courtyard of the Oxford Castle. I had not seen this show before, so it raises my Shakespeare count by one. I have now attended live performances of twenty-three[***] of the Bard's plays, with fourteen[****] more left to go. I very much enjoyed this comedy! Plus, it was a really good production -- I was particularly impressed with the actor playing Benedick and the actor playing Dogberry. Beatrice was pretty good, also, as was Hero. Damn, but the latter was quite compellingly hot when she got all angry at Claudio after her "resurrection"! Claudio himself was a bit too monotonic and left room for improvement. But, hey, they can't all be winners! Adding to the experience was the actual location of the show. The Oxford Castle dates back to 1071, which means that when Shakespeare was writing his plays, it was older than the plays themselves are now! The Castle itself was not explicitly used in the show... but just having its towers constantly in my field of view enhanced the evening for me. What can I say? I like old things!

Anyway, I should be off to bed somewhat soon, so that I might conquer the Deaded Jetlag before the weekend, when cheshcat and I will be going away. So, gentle readers, I bid you adieu until the morrow!

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[*] I should point out that, while on vacation, I fell way behind in reading my f-list on LiveJournal. Especially after Starwood, where I spent a week having no communication whatsoever with the outside world. If there is something important I should know, please tell me. Otherwise, I think I will not attempt to catch up but, rather, will just jump in to current events. Apologies to all my wonderful friends! And even some of the less wonderful ones!

[**] Indeed, the so-called Big Duck in Flanders, New York, is revered by them as a God.

[***] Eight histories, ten comedies, and five tragedies.

[****] Two histories, six comedies, and six tragedies.

So I think that I am having a good week -- a really good week! Only trouble is, I just may be a tad too busy and too tired to be sure!

Here are selected highlights, one for each day:

Monday: As already mentioned, I did really well on the ice rink during my skating lesson -- thanks, in large part, to the lovely danaeris for her private help!

Tuesday: Remember that invited lecture that I gave, back in April for the "Dark Side of Astronomy" course at the Oxford University Department of Continuing Education? Remember how I said that it went "extremely well"? Apparently, I was not practicing the art of self-delusion... because the coordinator of the OUDCE's annual Astronomy Weekend invited me back to speak at next year's event -- this time on cosmic rays.

Wednesday: I was supposed to ring at Saint Cross. Really I was! However, on Tuesday evening, the opportunity arose to procure excellent seats to the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of The Merchant of Venice. Thus, Wednesday evening found cheshcat and I piled into Peter and making our way back to Stratford-on-Avon. As one would expect for RSC, the production was very good. Maybe not quite as excellent as the History Cycle... but those are big shoes to fill! I have not seen this play before -- so now I have seen twenty-two of Shakespeare's plays performed on the stage, with fifteen to go. It is a very... interesting... play to watch in the current era. In particular, I refer to its unapologetic racism and -- even more so -- the religious discrimination that is so central to the plot. With the exception of Bassanio, I don't think that any of the characters were likable... but my sympathies really do lie with the so-called "villain" of the piece, Shylock! As for the oft-heard claim I have heard about how Shakespeare wrote no strong women -- other than, arguably, the Lady Macbeth -- all I have to say is this: See The Merchant of Venice! Portia is undeniably the strongest character in the entire play (though Shylock comes in as a close second).

Thursday: I have a job!!! Okay, yes, I already had a job. But my current contract ends in October and, due to the major financial crisis afflicting my field (see this entry for details), there will be no chance of renewing it. Once my contact ends, the position will cease to exist for lack of funding -- I will not be renewed and there will be no new post-doc to take my place. However, I now have a job lined up for when my contract ends! And it keeps me in the worlds of academia and particle physics! This is a Very Good Thing, indeed! More details later perhaps... but this really has been a ridiculously busy week -- even by my usual standards -- and I have much to do before I can sleep.

Oh! Lest I forget: Since there have been several requests, expect kitten pictures later...

As mentioned last week, I've been taking a bit of an LJ holiday... inspired by a bad sprain in the left wrist. One week later, it is definitely improved, but not back to normal. This may be in part due to the fact that I really have not been resting it much. Ah well.

In any case, I am now taking a break from my LJ break to just summarise the highlights of my life from the past week. Not terribly interesting to anyone else, I know, but I want to remember certain bits of it. So here they are:

Last week:
Was pleasantly surprised on payday by a rise. Just three percent -- the annual inflation adjustment -- but welcome nonetheless. With large vet bills and seven weeks as a single income household, this year has been a bit tight and any attempt to give me additional income will not be turned away at the door. Actually, the University has been fairly generous in this regard; after twenty-six months here, my salary is nearly 21% higher than it was when I started. That's equivalent to a 0.73% monthly raise -- not too shabby!

Also had a nice "phone date" with frogcastle last week. It has been nearly six months since last we saw each other, as her Spring visit to Oxford was cancelled on account of her needing surgery. Happily, Starwood is next month (!!!) and we will see much of each other again there!


Weekend:
On Saturday, cheshcat and I had a nice day out. The weather cooperated with us, so we spent most of the day out of doors. We started by getting lunch at The Trout. Sitting next to the Thames, we enjoyed our meal while watching the water flow by us. Afterward, we went to the Oxford Botanic Garden, where we enjoyed the first of their summer picnics. In the evening, we went to Lincoln College to see an outdoor production -- our first of the year -- of Twelfth Night. I had not seen it before, so this makes twenty-one of Shakespeare's plays that I have seen performed on the stage, with sixteen more to go.

Sunday's biggest news was, of course, another visit with our new kitten, which I have already written about. The rest of the day was pretty ordinary and involved things like ringing bells for services at St. Giles and preparing the cryostat for this week's work. Not terribly worth writing on.


This week:
A couple of interesting things have happened this week. I already mentioned passing the level three and level four appraisals in my final ice skating course of the term on Monday. On Tuesday I received my first circulated[*] 2008 coin -- a shiny penny, still with the old reverse. And today I made a blood donation, my seventh since moving to England.

At work, we successfully managed to record an alpha-spectrum (using radioactive Americium) with our proto-detector. I talked about this several weeks ago, but it took some time to see a result. Electronics troubles -- most particularly interference from ground loops -- slowed things down and needed to be sorted first. In any case, as of Wednesday morning, we have an alpha-spectrum measurement, which is quite a satisfying step forward.

My ringing has been making steady and noticeable progress. At Mary Mag, I have been having further gos at Plain Bob Major. I am still quite rough at doing this on tower bells, but the practice is precisely what is needed. At St. Cross last week, we did an interesting exercise -- ringing called changes with our backs turned away from each other, using only our ears to guide us. Eeep! Nerve inducing, but quite useful, really. At St. Cross this week, I rang a touch of Plain Bob Doubles... and I thought that I handled myself quite well in it! Very encouraging! Indeed, I am reaching the point where Bob Doubles -- and, yes, I know it is a simple method -- is coming instinctively, without me needing to concentrate intensely on it to ring correctly. Tonight -- in about an hour -- I have another practice at St. Giles, first on handbells and then on tower bells.

Finally, if all this babbling about my life has not driven everyone away, here is a reward for any Batman fans out there. I was completely unaware of this until cheshcat found it... but there is an animated Batman movie coming out later this year[**]. The trailer does not give away much of the plot, but the animation looks really cool... and the voice of Batman & Bruce Wayne is being done by Kevin Conroy, who also was the voice actor on the most excellent Batman: The Animated Series. Here is the trailer:

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[*] I have a complete set of uncirculated UK coins from 2008 already, all with the old reverses. I ordered it from the Royal Mint in December and, indeed, had it before 2007 was out. However, there is still something nifty about receiving one's first coin of the year from regular circulation. At least to me there is.

[**] Direct to DVD, I'm afraid.

First, I want to wish a very happy 21^st birthday to my friend and comrade, robertrabbits. Have a great one!

For the rest of this week, I will probably be a bit quiet and hermit-like, as I need to put together a one hour talk on experimental searches for dark matter, which I will present on Saturday at the Oxford University Department of Continuing Education's Dark Side Of Astronomy weekend. The target audience is an educated general public. Should be able to do a reasonable job of this, I expect.

Meanwhile, cheshcat and I went into Summertown last night to see the Creation Theatre Company perform Shakespeare's Measure For Measure at the new North Wall Arts Centre. The set and the performance was good, though I have to say that I was less than impressed by the play itself. Definitely not one of my favourite works from the Bard. Nonetheless, I intend to see every one of his thirty-seven plays performed on the stage, so it had to be seen.

Before moving to England, I had only seen four staged Shakespeare performances: Hamlet, MacBeth, Henry V, and Richard III -- although I had, of course, seen other plays (e.g., Othello, Romeo & Juliet) performed on film). Since crossing the pond, I have increased that number from four to twenty and, indeed, I have seen here all of the plays that I had seen there except Hamlet (for which I have tickets to see RSC perform in August). Definitely much more Shakespeare going on here -- can't think why! Anyway, ( twenty down, seventeen to go. ) Five of those seventeen will be performed this summer by either the Royal Shakespeare Company, at Shakespeare's Globe, or by Creation... so I will be moving ever closer to my goal.

Meanwhile, all three of the above companies will also be performing A Midsummer Night's Dream this summer. If I were a particular fan of this play, I could gorge myself on a surfeit of it! However, I did see the Oxford Shakespeare Company perform Midsummer last summer, and cheshcat saw both this and a performance at the Oxford Playhouse. So I suspect that we will be giving this particular show a miss -- or, rather, three misses -- this year.

Tonight, aside from working on my talk, I will be taking a break to ring bells at Mary Mag. We are still out of term, but a few of us are getting together for some extra practice. Other than that, though, I expect to be chained to the desk, producing slide after slide on dark matter searches. Wish me luck!