Vi vågner op
til et snedækket landskab igen – måske 2-3 inches (8-10cm). Brrrrrrrr!!!!!!
vores
forhave i formiddag
baghaven
husets
bagsiden
09:30 Lois
skynder sig ind i køkkenet for at lave en kalkunpie, mens jeg sætter mig foran
computeren for at udprinte de første vers af et middlengelsk digt ”Perle”, der
blev skrevet sidst i det 14. århundrede – Lyndas U3A ”Making of English” gruppe
holde sit månedlige møde den 5. januar, og ”Perle” er gruppens nuværende
projekt.
Jeg kender
ikke dette digt. Jeg ved kun, at forfatteren har mistet sin ”perle” – en
kvinde. Er det en eks-kæreste eller måske sin kone eller datter? Det er ikke
helt klart. Han falder i søvn i en dejlig have, og drømmer, at han ankommer i
en himmelig have, hvor han ser en kvinde, som han tror er sin perle og han
snakker lidt med hende. Kvinden står på
den anden side af et mysteriøst vandløb.
"Pearl":
forfatteren drømmer, at han ser sin ”perle” bærende en krone
på
den anden side af et mysteriøst vandløb – yikes, uhyggeligt!!
Digtet lyder
ikke ret interessant – det må jeg indrømme, men indtil jeg har lidt fritid til
at læse den, er juryen stadig ude om det. Jeg håber på, at der ikke er for
meget religion i digtet - lidt religion
er ok men hvis der er for meget teologi, kan det være lidt af en
stemning-killer i vores gruppe, ingen tvivl om det. Yikes (igen)! Medlemmerne
af vores gruppe elsker at grine og vores vittigheder kan være ganske sjofle nu
og da. Vi samles engang om måneden i Everyman-teatrets bar, og nogle gange
bekymrer jeg mig for, at teatrets ledelse før eller senere vil beslutte at
sparke os ud.
Det er
interessant, at vores forfædre dengang stavede det engelske ord ”pearl” på den
samme måde, som danskerne (også franskmændene og tyskerne) gør i dag, dvs ”perle”.
Endnu en gang er vi briter nu ude af takt med de fleste europæere.
15:00 Lois
kigger ind i soveværelset, mens jeg ligger inde i sengen i gang med at tage en
gigantisk eftermiddagslur. Hun siger, hun skal smutte ind hos naboerne (Bill og
Mary) for at snakke lidt med Mary. Mary blev kørt
hurtigt på skadestuen tidligere på ugen på grund af alvorlige
vejrtrækningsproblemer, men hun var tilladt at komme hjem for 2 dage siden. Hun
lider også af mild demens, og
det er hårdt arbejde at snakke med hende, men Lois er så varmhjertet. Hvis bare
jeg lignede hende mere!
17:00 Lois og
jeg mindes pludseligt, at Joy, et medlem af vores U3A danske gruppe, gav os et
puslespil som julegave, og vi beslutter at forsøge os med det, i stedet for et
spil scrabble eller kort. Stor fejl! Jeg bliver hurtigt klar over, at dette
puslespil vil give os en masse hovedpiner (fysisk udover psykisk), tage lang
tid at fuldende (flere uger?), og begrænse strengt det maximale mulige område
af bordet vi kan bruge til at spise mad på. Pokkers!
Og jeg syntes,
at Joy kunne lide os! Hvis du vil irritere nogen, giv dem et puslespil med et
ærgerligt billede! Dette billede er mørkt og kompliceret med en masse detaljer:
det hele består af to dele – Londons Waterloo-banegård i krigstid, og
Waterloo-banegården i fredstid, fyldt til bristepunktet med mennesker.
Påklædningen
af menneskerne i fredstidsbilledet og krigstidsbilledet er lidt anderledes, men
bortset fra alt det der har vi væsentligt samme figurerne, for eksempel, et par
kærester, der omfavner hinanden, en række folk, der sidder på bænke og venter
på det næste tog, grupper af soldater osv. Alt i alt, 1000 stykker, og 27 x 19
inches (69 x 49cm). Du godeste, et totalt mareridt!
Det
(bogstaveligt talt) ”mørke” puslespil, Joy gav os som julegave -
du
godeste, et totalt mareridt!!!!
To
timers arbejde, og ikke ret meget at vise frem – uha!
Efter en time
får jeg en hovedpine så jeg skal tage en pause og se lidt fjernsyn. Heldigvis
ved jeg, at Lois altid hurtigt bliver besat af puslespil, og vil nyde at gøre
hovedparten af arbejdet, gudskelov.
20:00 Vi ser
lidt fjernsyn, en interessant dokumentarfilm, der handler om et eksperiment
involverende robotter i familie-kontekster, hvor 6 robotter er blevet designet
i universiteter, specifikt for at hjælpe familierne med deres forskellige
individuelle problemer.
Amanda, en
enlig mor til 6 børn, der bor i Blackburn, har fået leveret en robot, som
hedder ”Tutorbot”. Tutorbot er blevet programmeret til at hjælpe Amandas 5-årige
søn Isaac, der lider af en sjælden form for dværgisme, og har
læringsvanskelligheder.
Tutorbot
hjælper Isaac med at tale bedre, men det er klart, at robotten af og til lider
af software-problemer, hvilket sandsynligvis er utrolig frustrerende både for
Isaac og hans mor. Hvis jeg var Isaacs mor, ville jeg sparke robotten ud og
ansætte en terapeut. Tilbage til tegnebrættet, Amanda.
... og smilene forsvinder hurtigt - uha!
Desværre lider robotter af software-problemer af og til,
hvilket
ville gøre dem til et absolut no-go, hvis jeg var Isaacs mor.
Stakkels
Isaac!!!!!!
I byen Beam i
Hampshire-grevskabet bor en familie på 4, hvor faren skal arbejde i Spanien og
vil gerne nyde tættere kontakt dag ud dag ind med sin familie i England. En
hjulrobot med en computerskærm betyder, at han kan føle sig hjemme i sit
engelske hus, og døgnet rundt kan kommunikere med sin kone og 2 børn.
barnets ”robotfar” snakker med ham fra Spanien
kvindens ”robotægtemand” vækker hende op
om
morgenen, til hendes total overraskelse – du godeste!
Det hele
minder Lois og mig om et morsomt afsnit af Big Bang Theory-sitcommen, hvor
Sheldon kommunikerer med sine venner og arbejdskollegaer via en mobil virtuel tilstedeværelse-enhed
(MVPD), fordi han ikke længere har lyst til at forlade sin lejlighed.
Penny
sammen med ”Shelbot”
Det er
forbløffende, hvor meget computervidenskab, fysik, biologi osv Lois og jeg har
skaffet os i årene, vi har kigget på denne morsomme sitcom. Jeg føler som om,
vi kunne diskutere strengteori med nogle af de skarpeste hjerner i det vestlige
verden, men måske vildleder vi os her – der er juryen stadig ude om.
21:00 Vi
fortsætter med at se lidt fjernsyn. De viser en interessant dokumentarfilm, der
handler om Steve Coogans ”Alan Partridge” persona, siden den først blev fandt
på i 1990’erne, og hans karrieres livsbane, der svingede voldsomt mellem succes
og fiasko: Partridge, sportsjournalisten, der blev til tv-chatshowvært, og
senere til dj på Radio Norfolk, en lokal radiostation ude på bøhlandet.
Partridge-karakteren
fyrer op, når han har en mikofon i hånden, men i sit privatliv er han en smålig
mand, der jubler over ubetydende triumfer. Efter sin karriere og sit ægteskab
mislykkes, er han nødt til at bo på et motel til nedsat pris i nærheden af
Norwich. Motellet tilbyder morgenmad med alt du kan spise, men tallerkenerne er
kun 8 inch-diameter. Men med en triumferende udtryk i ansigtet betroer han Lyn,
sin langmodige personlige assistent, at han holder en speciel 12-inch tallerken
i sit værelse: typisk Partridge.
Lois og jeg
har aldrig taget stor tallerkener med ind i hotelrestauranter, der tilbyder morgenmadbuffet
med alt du kan spise, er jeg meget glad for at kunne sige. Men vi har af og til
fået et par æbler med tilbage til vores værelser.
Jeg mindes, at
Lois og jeg engang boede i et massivt hotel i Ungarn, hvor gæsterne plejede at
tage enorme tasker med ind i hotelrestauranten, og fyldte dem op med mad til
frokost og aftensmad, men personalet var på udkig, så de måtte være snedige –
og diskrete. Helt morsomt at kigge på, ikke desto mindre.
22:00 Vi går i
seng. Jeg læser 10 sider af min sengetidbog, ”The Quantum Astrologers Handbook”,
før jeg glider over i søvnen – zzzzzzzz!!!!!
English translation
We wake up to a snowy landscape again - maybe 2-3 inches
(8-10cm). Brrrrrrrr !!!!!!
our front garden this morning
back garden
the back of the house
09:30 Lois hurries into the kitchen to make a turkey pie
while I sit in front of the computer and print out the early verses of a
medieval poem "Pearl" written in the late 14th century - Lynda's U3A
Making of English" group is holding its monthly meeting on January 5, and
" Pearl " is the group's current project.
I do not know this poem. I only know that the author has
lost his "pearl" - a woman. Is it an ex-girlfriend or maybe his wife
or daughter? It is not clear. He falls asleep in a lovely garden and dreams
about arriving in a heavenly garden where he sees a woman who he thinks is his
pearl. He chats a bit with her. The woman is standing on the other side of a
mysterious stream.
"Pearl" : the author dreams that he sees his
"pearl" wearing a crown
on the other side of a mysterious stream -
yikes, spooky!!
The poem does not sound particularly interesting, I have
to admit. But until I have some spare time to read it, the jury is still out on
that one. I hope there is not too much religion in the poem - a little religion
is ok but if there is too much theology, it may be a bit of a mood killer in
our group, no doubt about that - oh dear.
The members of our group love to
laugh and our jokes can be quite filthy now and then. We meet once a month in
the Everyman Theater bar, and sometimes I worry that the theater management
will sooner or later decide to kick us out.
It is interesting that our ancestors used to spell the
English word "pearl" in the same way that the Danes (also the French
and Germans) do today, that is, "perle". Once again, we British are now out of line with most people in Europe.
15:00 Lois pops her head round the bedroom door while I'm
in bed in the middle of a gigantic afternoon nap. She says she is going to
swing by the neighbors (Bill and Mary) to talk a little with Mary. Mary was
rushed to the emergency room earlier this week due to severe breathing
problems, but she was allowed to come home 2 days ago. She also suffers from
mild dementia and it is hard work talking to her, but Lois is so warm-hearted.
If only I was more like her!
17:00 Lois and I suddenly remember that Joy, a member of
our U3A Danish group, gave us a jigsaw puzzle for a Christmas present, and so
we decide to try it instead of a playing game of scrabble or cards. Big
mistake! I quickly realize that this jigsaw puzzle is going to give us a lot of
headaches (physical as well as mental), will take a long time to complete
(several weeks?), and severely limit the maximum possible area of the table we
can use to eat on. Damn!
And I thought Joy liked us! If you want to annoy someone,
give them a jigsaw puzzle with an annoying picture! This picture is dark and
complex with a lot of detail: it is made up of two parts - London's Waterloo
railway station in wartime, and the Waterloo train station in peace time, both filled to bursting with people.
The dress of the people in the peace-time picture and the
wartime picture are a bit different, but apart from all that we have
essentially the same characters, for example, a couple of lovers embracing each
other, a number of people sitting on benches waiting for the next train, groups
of soldiers etc. All in all, 1000 pieces, and 27 x 19 inches (69 x 49cm). My
god, a total nightmare!
my god, a total nightmare !!!!
Two hours of work and not much to show for
it - oh dear!
After one hour, I get a headache so I take a break and
watch some television. Fortunately, I know that Lois always gets quickly
obsessed with jigsaw puzzles and will enjoy doing the bulk of the work, thank
goodness.
20:00 We watch TV, an interesting documentary about an
experiment involving robots in family contexts, where 6 robots have been
designed in universities, specifically to help families with their various
individual problems.
Amanda, a single mother of 6 children living in
Blackburn, has been given a robot called "Tutorbot". Tutorbot has
been programmed to help Amanda's 5-year-old son Isaac, who suffers from a rare
form of dwarfism, and has learning difficulties.
Tutorbot helps Isaac with his speech, but it is clear that
the robot is sometimes subject to software glitches, which is probably
incredibly frustrating for both Isaac and his mother. If I were Isaac's mother,
I would kick the robot out and hire a therapist. Back to the drawing board,
Amanda.
... and the smiles suddenly disappear - oh dear!
Unfortunately, robots occasionally
suffer from software problems
which would make them an absolute no-no if I
were Isaac's mother.
Poor Isaac !!!!!!
In the town of Beam, Hampshire lives a family of 4 where the dad has to work in Spain, and he wants to enjoy closer contact day in
day out with his family in England. A wheeled robot with a computer screen
means that he can feel himself to be at home in his English house, and can
communicate with his wife and 2 children around the clock.
The child's "robot father" can chat to him from Spain
The woman's "robot husband"
wakes her up
in the morning, to her total surprise - my
god!
The whole thing reminds Lois and me of a fun episode of
the Big Bang Theory sitcom, where Sheldon communicates with his friends and
colleagues through a mobile virtual presence device (MVPD), because he no
longer wants to leave his apartment.
Penny with "Shelbot"
It is amazing how much computer science, physics,
biology, etc. Lois and I have acquired over the years that we have been watching this amusing sitcom. I feel like we could discuss string theory with some of
the sharpest brains in the Western world, but maybe we are deluding ourselves
here - the jury is still out on that one.
21:00 We continue to watch television. An interesting
documentary is on, all about Steve Coogan's "Alan Partridge" persona
since it was first dreamed up in the 1990s, and about Alan's career's trajectory
that has swung dramatically between success and failure: Partridge, the sports
journalist who turned into a tv chatshow host, and later into a DJ at Radio
Norfolk, a local radio station out in the boonies/sticks.
The Partridge character comes to life when he has a
microphone in his hand, but in his private life, he is a small-minded man who
glories in petty triumphs. After his career and his marriage fails, he has to
live at a cut price motel near Norwich.
The motel offers breakfast with all-you-can-eat buffet,
but the plates are only 8 inches in diameter. But with a triumphant expression
on his face, Alan confides to Lyn, his long-suffering personal assistant, that he
keeps a special 12-inch plate in his room: which is typical Partridge.
Lois and I have never taken large plates into hotel
restaurants offering a buffet breakfast with all you can eat, I am very happy
to say. But we have occasionally brought a couple of apples back to our room for later.
I remember that Lois and I once stayed in a massive hotel
in Hungary where the guests used to take huge bags into the hotel restaurant
and fill them up to use later for their lunch and dinner, but the staff were on the look-out so they had
to be sneaky - and discreet. Great fun to watch, nevertheless.
22:00 We go to bed. I read 10 pages of my bedtime book,
"The Quantum Astrologers Handbook", before I drift off to sleep -
zzzzzzzz !!!!!
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