Murmuring of Innumerable Bees

Tags: araucaria, crossword clues

Would any French readers be able to tell me whether La Nouvelle Star is a "concours de petites talentes" or a "tele-crochet"?

Tomorrow does not always bring the thing
we hope. December marches into spring
with yellow flowers and higher clearer skies.
Still, our sight depends upon our eyes.

Tomorrow hardly ever brings the things
we wish. The January songthrush sings
to celebrate another year
for those who have the ears to hear.

The bony trees extend with bare black ribs
into the iron sky. Their silhouettes
Make graceful curves above the rush-hour cars.

I could attempt to scry a metaphor
to life - these scabby elms could hold a clue.
Beyond the clouds we could imagine stars.

Or I could work less hard, and be less witty:
As driving home from school through my drab city
I saw these trees, this sky; and thought them pretty.

Tomorrow I'm to face Year Nine again
That bunch of teenage kids who drive me mad
Exasperate me with their constant noise
And inattention and dislike of French.

We're not the same: we live in worlds apart
Where theirs is colourful and far more fun
Than mine. And yet their little lives
Have not seen half the landscape of my own.

But still we are alike. Like Sauron's ring,
Curricula and frameworks bind and hold us.
We're stuck together in a room, as if
This helps Enlightenment to find and mould us.

To be a leader is to model hope
And trust in what each person can become
And to be fair, and manage complex things:
I hope that this is what tomorrow brings.

Tags: iambic poetry

Today I'll be spending quite a bit of time in the attic. Finally, the kids and I are sorting out the assorted junk which has grown up there of its own accord, ie chucking it away, and putting in its place a few inches of loft insulation. It gives me a sense of enormous satisfaction to finally do this job which has seemed intimidating for far too long, and so seems entirely the right thing to do on this day.
Later on, I believe some roast chicken will emerge from the oven and a bottle of white from the fridge.

• Christmas 2008 has been staying in a nice warm house with someone else doing all the cooking.
• it has involved watching an almost obscene amount of tv and film, including Twilight
• relatively little alcohol, in fact, although large amounts of food, and more meat than I have eaten in months
• despite the nice bed I have trouble getting to sleep and staying there
• and I have a persistent ache across my shoulders which no amount of ibuprofen seems to fix
• Christmas morning was spent on the beach, which I think should be a new tradition for us
• I have been soldiering through Brisingr but somehow failing to be enthralled by it.
• I'm sort of looking forward to six days of work which might be just enough to get it done
• maybe I can do some swimming in between
• I hope that knocking off this work will make me feel more confident about teaching next term
• I am hoping to have a proper summer holiday with my kids somewhere exotic or visiting our european friends this year, which we will properly deserve if we make it through my PGCE successfully

Current Mood: awake

Many happy returns !

Amazing sunsets this past week. Driving back from difficult days, vibrant colours draw you upwards.

Asus fixed my webcam and it all works perfectly now. Just a shame that their courier only collects 9-5 weekdays.
I take so much for granted in the ICT world, based on years of interacting with Windows. I expect plug and play with any given printer. Linux doesn't have the same gratuitous eagerness to please, and won't talk to my laser printer. I have to download drivers and write instructions and god knows what else.
Swings and roundabouts. I love my eee and am happy to not be in slavery to the market leader. But.... if only i could print.

Tags: eeepc