Saturday 4 August 2018

A False Creation

...proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain 
[So says Shakespeare in Macbeth, when he sees a dagger before him] I really have found it hard to think straight in recent weeks.
I have been conscious of completely misunderstanding things, my head  feels as if it is on fire, my thoughts are fried. 



For Instance, here is a sign on the construction site just outside the Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre.
I walked past quite slowly on Thursday, tired from my train journey.
"NOTICE - PPE required beyond this point" it says.
And I found myself thinking "it must be really hard to get a job as a labourer nowadays, if you are required to have a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics" - until I remembered that in this context, it means Personal Protection Equipment.
I sent Bob a text to let him know i had arrived safely, and he replied with a string of emojis.
 

"Two little green men are less than three" I read. Well, this is undoubtedly true. 
It was only later that I realised that symbol may mean less than three to a mathematician, but the rest of the world sees it as a heart on its side, a symbol of love! But in all this sun-induced confusion, I have learned something interesting -
I've not blogged about the great Bronte-fest going on at the minute [it is 200 years since Emily's birth]. I've never been that excited by Wuthering Heights [I blame our English teacher, a Yorkshirewoman, who succeeded in putting me off the book by making it all so boring] I was exceedingly pleased when Liz sent me a chart from the Guardian showing I am taller that Charlotte Bronte [Jane Eyre was always my favourite of the Bronte heroines anyway]
So there I am, just between Charlotte and Thomas Hardy [and bigger than an Emperor Penguin too!] It is good to know one's place in the order of things.
I think I need to go lie down in a cool, darkened room...






8 comments:

  1. Thankyou for your post Angela, the PPE comment made me laugh out loud- so welcome at the moment! Yes mathematical symbols do not carry the same meaning for us non mathematicians. I always read, rarely comment. But a big thank you for all of your posts, I used to be in education, and I used to know your part of the world quite well.
    It really is too hot for coherent thought, isn't it?

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  2. Thanks Veeknits, I'm glad you enjoy the blog. I am absolutely melting in this heat, and conscious I am not working very effectively.
    I keep putting off doing the ironing, as I cannot bear the thought of adding more warmth to the room[that's today's excuse, anyway]

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  3. I'm just between Thomas Hardy & Bramwell. and don't worry too much about how you are feeling - apparently it is actually a fact that we just don't think as early when it's so hot. Something about our brain and bodies concentrating on cooling us down.
    I've always been more of a Jane Austen fan than the Brontes but perhaps it's time to give them another chance. I've read all "the classics" but still actually prefer Austen.
    Try to keep cool.

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    1. That should have been "think clearly" - auto correct drives me crazy some days!

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  4. I'm right there with you. Today I made everyone toast for breakfast by buttering one side of the toast and spreading chocolate spread on the opposite side. Thank goodness for flannels is all i can say to that one!
    X

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  5. I wouldn't have known what PPE stood for. A similar construction notice here would say "Hard Hat Area"! At 4' 11 1/2", I am between Charlotte Bronte and Thomas Hardy. :)

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  6. Margie - I cannot 'think early' in this heat! Fishcake- I love the idea of your kids turning their toast over and over in wonderment - Bless, we are the same height!

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  7. I'm taller than Emily Bronte. I was SO glad to be away from the heat in Essex and come to the cooler weather in Northumberland. I was so sleep-deprived in that searing heat.Xx

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