Right, we’ve hit the halfway mark on the Desert Island Books (and music) list, so this looks like a good time to put those on pause. I’m off to Moniack Mhor on Monday, and that’s going to be a full-on week of teaching and mentoring – which I am really looking forward to – so I don’t expect to be blogging or doing much, if any, social media, until I get back.
I do have one more piece to post, which will follow this. Retrospective posts are all well and good but I’ve also been reflecting on the current state of play in politics and culture. We need to start thinking more seriously about what’s going on at the toxic intersection of fact and fiction at the moment. If you’re going to tell lies, what’s your justification?
Right, now I have workshops to prepare, student submissions to critique, and the fun and exciting game of working out how much warm clothing I can pack in a suitcase that meets Flybe’s size and weight requirements for hold luggage. It’s a nine to ten hour journey on the train from Oxford to Inverness, so I am taking a train to Birmingham airport and flying from there instead. In a plane where I suspect goggles and a long white scarf will be issued on check-in. Mind you, the Highlands are currently warmer than the Cotswolds, according the BBC Weather website.
I’m just back from Monicak Mhor, and I had a wonderful weekend; a poetry masterclass with Caroline Bird. It’s lovely there right now, I hope you have a great time.
Good to know 🙂 I am really looking forward to it.
I don’t live anywhere near there, but would strongly advise being able to do a “layers” approach, not least because the weather could be completely different next week, and even, say, -5 outside on Monday but +10 on Friday.
That’s pretty much the plan – great minds think alike etc 🙂