Pretentious Haberdashers Peddling Gloss,

I have returned from my international business trip. I was required to be present at a meeting at Oxford Yooni; the meeting was to discuss the progress of the different groups that also are part of the project which funds my livelihood. It’s collaboration between 4 different yoonis.

We flow down to Heathrow and travelled onwards by bus. It was my first flight ever. I thought it was a bit dull and the feeling of having my head mashed created by the pressure changes is not particularly nice. Aeroplanes are at an altitude too great to see anything really interesting. I set off at 0845hrs on Tuesday, I thought my supposed catchphrase, “We’ve gone too high.”, was apt because the aeroplane has to keep climbing on past the height where I could see perfectly. All there is up high is the possibility of seeing a foo fighter. The flight back was at dusk, it was reasonably interesting to see the lights of the settlements and roads, but it was impossible to know where they were. I love maps thus I felt quite disappointed; it was like having a big map laid out in front of me, only, it was a map absent of information. Night time Embra from the sky is quite lovely, the darkened Arthur’s Seat creates a unique signature.

The meeting was alright. I can’t contribute much knowledge or results yet. The project has many aims but I feel that I have my own agenda, which I will press on with. If the results I generate turn out to be useful, so be it. That appears selfish. I just feel the meeting concentrated so much on an aspect which has the least applications in the real world.

I don’t want to be swallowed by the academic world; many of them have lost a sense of reality. I’m a man of the people. London. I don’t trust it. I found another reason why over these last two days.

The hotel was in an area of super houses, in fact, there are no ordinary houses in Oxford. I got the duffer room. The shower didn’t work. I couldn't get it to spray water to wash with but it did supply me with a constant drip of water. I didn’t think the hotel lived up to the billing, my room could have been cleaner. It was Linton Lodge Hotel. I would have liked a radio. I missed radio most. I had to watch TV. I missed Scotland Today news.

I think I found compensation for all my gripes on the bus back to Heathrow, it was in the sky. They were red kites. There were loads of them. I was amazed. They’re still very rare but apparently, they are resident in the area. They are beautiful birds. We can’t even have magpies in the Kingdom of Fife; it’ll probably be a long time before I see a red kite here.

People will ask me how Oxford was, I’ll tell them that I saw some red kites. They won’t find that right.