This is just a brief announcement to explain that as this publishes I should be off on my travels again. This time I’m going further than ever before (no, I’m not travelling by standing on the shoulders of giants). I’m off to…
Australia!!!!
Yay, and I’m doing it without first having to break any laws. The official reason for this is to do some work: finish off writing some papers we started years ago (if we have the time, we might prod bulbous squidges with a sharp stick), and also perhaps start some new stuff that we won’t finish for another half decade. Of course, the real reason is to make GrrlScientist really jealous see a new country, and take photos of bits of it.
So, for the next couple of weeks I’ll mainly be in Townsville, which seems to be most of the way up the eastern side of Oz. I’ll also be in Cairns for a couple of days, to build another small pile of rocks.
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The Original Cairn, which I will be nowhere near
I’ll endeavour to blog about my travels there (Day 36: First draft of Introduction completed, almost out of fingers. Hordes of budgerigars still at the windows, desperate to show us their new cycling tricks). So, ironically, I might actually do more blogging whilst I’m away: when I’m at home I’m constantly being distracted by hordes of parrots desperate to remove my fingers because I didn’t scratch their head correctly. And as for the rams…
Whilst I’m flying, your homework is to read up on why my beliefs are now protected in the UK workplace. If you don’t hear from me for 5 weeks, it probably means I decided to take the boat.
As a zoologist, I object to the thought that you might be prodding bulbous squidges with sharp sticks. Bulbous squidges, related to Throbbing squidges, are on the IUCN Red List of Squidges Most Likely To Become Extinct Sooner Rather Than Later.
We won’t prod the bulbous squidge that hard: we’re aware of how fragile they can be.
Enjoy your trip. Townsville is way up north, it’ll be warm there… 🙂 Shame you’re not popping over the Tasman to New Zealand. You’ll already know, but be careful with mosquitos – there’s apparently a touch of Dengue fever getting about in Townsville.
I might be in NZ in a year or two: Dunedin seems to be the place to be: everyone’s moving there.
Rather than poking me with a stick, I think smuggling me into Australia in your suitcase would have been preferable. Mind you, I might be perceived as an invasive species – like Brits generally…
Have fun, anyway – love to Barb and Ralf…I think I need some kind of “mini sabbatical” to actually get some proper work done. What am I doing this week? Oh, audits and contract meetings. Marvellous.
I’m wondering if I should visit you for a week, not just to get this stuff going, but also to talk about spatial models: I need inducting in their dark arts. More fun than audits.
You’d be more than welcome, of course! Better still would be finding somewhere with fewer distractions…I could probably get funding for me to go on a research visit (I’m owed research time). I think I did more actual “stats” work during that week in Frankfurt than I’ve done in any other week for years…
Sounds almost like a plan: you’d be welcome to visit us in Frankfurt again. Or we could all meet up in Kiwiland next year. I’ll mention that to Barb.
I am this: jealous.
Also – being Australian, the Bulbous Squidge is likely venomous, and possibly also capable of kicking you to death. Do be careful.
This particular squidge is English (but dispersed to Scotland, presumably not due to climate change), and is more cuddly than venomous. I’ll look out for his more dangerous relatives over here, though.
Have a great time, and watch out for those squidges / mozzies / spiders / snakes / jellyfish / drop bears!
BTW, I’d just like to say how glad I am that I’ve matured past the stage when my first response to hearing that someone was going to Australia was “ooh, ooh, can you watch Neighbours and tell me what’s going to happen?” Ah, the late 80s / early 90s, such a cultural highpoint for me…
I’ll try. I have my drop bear spray (I got it off the internet, so it’s bound to work).