Back to the Cam

For Christmas, I bought Taylor a plane ticket to England. While we have been dating for nearly 6 years, we have never spent more than a few days together. For New Years, we were in London. We watched fireworks and the light show from directly behind the London Millennium Eye. After New Years, the city was all but abandoned. So, we spent a few days wandering the city in the rain and fog. We saw Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, The British Museum (See: Rosetta Stone), and various abandoned markets. In fact, the city was so dead that we struggled to find places to eat. I also introduced Taylor to the delicacy of an English breakfast. With London thoroughly vetted, we took the bus back to Cambridge. Upon arriving, we settled back-in and went to sleep.

Over the next week, we wandered throughout Cambridge, exploring various areas that I had not found. To properly welcome Taylor, my friends hosted a mini-dinner party, which was quite delicious and complete with bottles of champagne. In return, Taylor and I made homemade tomato basil pasta, a cherry tomato/mozzarella/olive oil sauce, and marinated chicken for fifteen of my friends. The real purpose of my return was an examination which I completed on the 10th of January. Meanwhile, Taylor set to work making my house more home-like. She completed the puzzle map of Kinsman that she got me for Christmas and framed it. In addition, she helped me revitalize the garden, which is currently a work in progress. While I did work her pretty hard, I also walked her to death. For example, we covered around 10-12 miles one day as we walked around the whole of Cambridge and then to Granchester Orchard, where we took lunch and tea at the same spot as Virginia Wolf and John Maynard Keynes. While I had avoided scones to some degree, I finally had the courage to try-one. It was quite a moment as I don't believe that I had had a scone since my grandmother passed away during my freshman year of high school. Fortunately, I now have her recipe, which was part of a "family" cookbook that my aunt made for me. It included all my grand-mother's favorites.

Before Taylor departed, we returned to London . Here, we discovered Leiceister Square and the Tower of London. The former contrasted greatly with our previous "market" experience as it was bustling with people and stands. We also ventured out to Portobello Road. Yes, "the street where the ages are stowed.," which was a childhood dream since seeing Bedknobs and Broomsticks. While we arrived too late in the day, we planned to return on a weekend when the street shuts-down and carts and barrows are rolled out into the road. In a bit of a hurry, Taylor and I returned to the hotel and dressed-up to go the theater. Earlier in the day, we purchased tickets for Backbeat, which chronicles a back-story of the Beatles, complete with live musical performances. It was a tremendous show.

In the morning, we enjoyed a quick breakfast before heading to London Heathrow with the good intention of taking the Tube (London Underground). However, our train was behind schedule and taken off the line. We then switched trains with a long delay. I then took us to the wrong terminal for US Airways, which meant another delay and another train ride. In all, we arrived with enough time for Taylor to check-in and to part. It was once again time for us to say an all too frequent word: "goodbye".

With much work ahead, I set to it. I currently await the grading of a problem set, an essay, and an examination, which adequately consumed me for the last few weeks. In the interim, I have also attended the District Council Meeting, which was a lovely affair. Of particular interest, Rotary International British Isles (RIBI) reform was debated. RIBI is a unique structure in Rotary as it is a governing body between Rotary International and the District-Level. RIBI is contentious because many people feel that it is unnecessary while others think it an important coordination tool. The debate was contentious. In addition, I also attended a Rotary of Cambridge Guest Evening, which covered drug use in England. While some proposed decriminalization of drug users vice legalization, others argued for legalization with control. Still others argued for strict enforcement (a minority). It was a weird mix of emotion and rationality of statistics and anecdotes. Overall, it has made me think about the problem in a whole new light. Does the media provide enough coverage of drug fatalities with informed information? Does respect for the family and privacy limit knowledge of such fatalities and prevent social lessons from being learnt? Can drugs really be "controlled"? Aren't prescription drugs abused everyday? Is the death or suffering of an individual enough to create/change a policy? How do you derive "statistical significance" when you are talking about human life? These questions have led to a lot of thinking, but not many answers.