Too much Tengo

I have recently been digging* New Jersey's finest, Yo La Tengo, so much so that since my arrival in Sheffield I have bought six of their albums. (If you don't believe me then look at the picture.**) I only just counted these albums and I'm pretty impressed with myself. Anyhow, it's all good stuff, but my favourite track by far is Pass the hatchet, I think I'm goodkind, which none of you will be surprised to hear is more than ten minutes long. Not that you'd bother listening to it anyway. Harumph.

*Dig, for those of you who are deaf to the modern, is a word used by the kids when they like something. For example, one tracksuited youngster at the back of a bus might say to the other, "Man, I'm really digging that tinny rattle coming out of your phone. Turn it up so that everyone else can dig that shit too!"

**The lizards are just for scale, but then so are all lizards, with the obvious exception of the chameleons, who are there to verify your colour balance.

It is cold and Charlie Brooker despises me.or"Why has this rubbish aspirational ornament got only one mouse button?"

Point One: It is cold. If you don't believe me then just look at the picture. (The Loch Ness Monster is just for scale.) Moreover, I live up a big hill, so that in the words of our charming neighbours the house is "above the snowline we call it the snowline don't we it's more like the highlands than Yorkshire." So it's colder than everywhere else, though maybe Edinburgh folk can disagree.

Before getting to points two and three, a challenge: look carefully at the photo. At the back you can see the aforementioned neighbours' interesting shed, a marvellous concoction which stays in one piece despite being made entirely of roofing felt. However, slightly closer you can see another outhouse. What do you think it is? Remember that I live in the north of England and appeal to your knowledge of cliche, but don't mention whippets.

Point Two: I have a pretty new computer! It's a Mac laptop thingy, and it's lovely. If you don't believe me then just look at the picture. It does more or less everything I could want, especially by allowing me to blog! Also it lets me bluetooth pictures from my phone, hence the poor quality of this post's illustrations. It is so much fun.

Point Three: Charlie Brooker, of whom regular readers will know that I am not a small fan, hates Macs and the people who own them. If you don't believe me then just follow the link. I like to think that this is entirely to do with the questionable adverts featuring Mitchell and Webb, but maybe he really does hate me. Never mind though: the aforementioned ornament will mean an increase in (no-longer-non-seriousness-shame-inhibited) blogging, which can only mean more fun for you, my readers. Aw.

Walking!

I had heard stories about the topology walks organised by our leader. Horrible stories! Mud-spattered tales of relentless forced marches up hill and down dale, through mile-high peat bogs and thick clouds of driving rain; tales of hapless mathematicians in heavy water-hugging wind-welcoming coats and disintegrating shoes, armed with only a Kit Kat for their lunch.

So it was with some enthusiasm, and a pair of worn-in Berghaus walking boots, that I agreed to go on the latest topology walk last month. The walk lived up to expectations very well indeed. First, the weather leading up to the walk had been ceaselessly vile, with just a glimmer of sunshine, lots of wind, but no rain predicted for the day in question. LIES! Well not entirely: it was dry for the whole morning, and someone who knows these things worked out that the wind must have been at least gale force eight*. However, by mid afternoon the rain had arrived, horizontally , and then we got lost, so that by the time we made it to the pub we were tired and wet. But no matter! It was still great fun to be out and about with my nice new colleagues, and best of all we got to see Kinder Downfall being blown upfall by the wind.

*You could google to find out how strong this means the wind is, but the correct definition is "feels like it'll blow your glasses off your face".