Merry New Year

Season's greetings. I haven't been here in a while - nice to know my absence has been noted (looking at you, Nisbet). I've been back home in the UK for most of the time I was away, relaxing and enjoying the experience of not having any work hanging over me. I got back early on the 24th, which meant that it was pretty much straight into the festivities and round of required visits to family up in the Midlands. Before I knew it, it was New Year and time to come back to New York again.

I suppose there are two reasons I didn't update - one, because I really can't be bothered working over a dial-up connection such as we have at home, and two, because nothing of interest really happened. Lacking the cash (even before you factor in the exchange rate) to do anything very much, I didn't do anything very much. Just sat around, watched TV, ate, drank and was middling to average merry. Britain tends to shut down between Xmas and New Year, so there wasn't a lot to be doing even if I could have afforded it.

Apologies also due to Nobby and Tori, both of whom I was vaguely supposed to see when back, but circumstances conspired against me, in that it was the 30th before I had a day I could have done anything with.

So I'm back in NYC once again, with about ten days to go before the new term starts. I'm going to mostly be taking it easy, though I might want to get started on doing some more work on the research paper I submitted before Xmas; my supervising Professor e-mailed me on Boxing Day to say he thought it was "really good" and, with a bit of work, could be published as an article and/or made into a chapter of my PhD dissertation. I'd like to do both if possible; if I can get a few publications under my belt by the time I'm looking for jobs, it will be greatly to my benefit.

Kate's well, in case you were wondering; still dividing her time among me, working and doing up her place in Brooklyn. It's still a bit of a mess, but it's a very pleasant neighbourhood, and (quite unlike Manhattan) you can even see the sky and sun occasionally. Unlike Britain, of course - I don't think I saw the sun for more than four hours total in the whole time I was back. Nice to know some things never change.