Leaving my office this afternoon, I thought I'd try again to do a bit of shopping. I desperately need new shoes (my current pair has a growing hole in the side of one). I hate shopping though and, just as on several other recent occasions, as soon as I walked in to a store, the revulsion at the combination of crowds and consumerism caused me to turn on my heel and fight my way back out. Ignoring other shops, I worked my way down to Charing Cross Road, where the bookstores of London congregate.
I was on a quest to find a copy of Kerouac's "Pomes All Sizes" to check the layout of one of my favourite little Kerouac poems (see companion post containing "Perm"). I did eventually, to my surprise, find a copy of it in Foyles. I resisted the temptation to buy it, so as not to insult my existing copy (a battered gift with a perfect inscription) which sits neglected in my parents' attic. As consolation, I picked up another City Lights Pocket Poet Series of Kerouac poems along with Seamus Heaney's "Seeing Things".
In one of the many used bookstores, I bought a copy of "Mr. Midshipman Hornblower". I've yet to read any of the series and I'm sure that Horatio on his own cannot rival the perfect friendship of Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin, but I always find it comforting to sail the high seas at the same time as the captain and the doctor, even if not precisely with them.
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
"Perm"
The world goes on
The junkey drops his butt
Children yell 'Hallelujah
praise God!'
in the streets of sorrow parade
-Jack Kerouac
Cambridge Visit
On Saturday, I head to Cambridge for another math conference. This one is less directly related to what I'm doing, but at least they're paying for my accomodation and I've heard Cambridge is really nice. David Burns (from King's College) is speaking and a couple of his students are also going.
Hopefully while I'm there, I'll be able to pick up a copy of a thesis that is directly related to my work. The author graduated from the University of Cambridge in 1995, which was before mathematicians started making their dissertations electronically available to the world at large. I have a copy of the published paper based on his thesis, but I'm hoping that the full thesis will have more tables and information that will be useful for me.
If they're meeting in this off-term time, I might be able to check out the Go clubs of Cambridge too.
Hopefully while I'm there, I'll be able to pick up a copy of a thesis that is directly related to my work. The author graduated from the University of Cambridge in 1995, which was before mathematicians started making their dissertations electronically available to the world at large. I have a copy of the published paper based on his thesis, but I'm hoping that the full thesis will have more tables and information that will be useful for me.
If they're meeting in this off-term time, I might be able to check out the Go clubs of Cambridge too.
Monday, January 01, 2007
A New Year
After my dismal performance in the London Open, starting anew seems like a good idea. I did win one more game, but by that point, I was playing 4k's. It was a nice tournament nonetheless, and I'm glad I played. I met some new friends and it was a good introduction to the European Go scene. There were fairly large representations from Finland, France and The Netherlands and smaller representations from many other countries.
I need to play more and I need to be more diligent about doing problems. Of course, this year I also need to more or less finish my PhD. Santa didn't leave me a finished thesis either.
Some places have much more active Go clubs, in which the participants are really striving to learn and also seem to have much tighter bonds of friendship. They help each other and improve together. I've been wondering what makes this happen in some places and not others. Many clubs seem stale; the atmosphere seems unwelcoming to newcomers and the group peters down to a few smoky old men who have been playing the same moves for decades. One of my new friends from the London Open said he really enjoys his current club in St. Albans, which meets at a pub. Thus dawned my new theory that perhaps the difference lies in alcohol. Camille (who I met at Guo Juan's house), said her club in Paris meets at a bar and I believe Siu's club in The Netherlands does as well. Many players shun clubs that meet at bars for the noise, smoke or dim lighting. It certainly has to be a place that is large and comfortable enough for playing and even so, most bars can't accomodate a very large club. On the other hand, even in big cities, many clubs only attract those local to the area, so they can still fit in a sizable pub. Perhaps, as a test of my new theory, I can convince some of the more dynamic London players to start playing with me in a pub.
I need to play more and I need to be more diligent about doing problems. Of course, this year I also need to more or less finish my PhD. Santa didn't leave me a finished thesis either.
Some places have much more active Go clubs, in which the participants are really striving to learn and also seem to have much tighter bonds of friendship. They help each other and improve together. I've been wondering what makes this happen in some places and not others. Many clubs seem stale; the atmosphere seems unwelcoming to newcomers and the group peters down to a few smoky old men who have been playing the same moves for decades. One of my new friends from the London Open said he really enjoys his current club in St. Albans, which meets at a pub. Thus dawned my new theory that perhaps the difference lies in alcohol. Camille (who I met at Guo Juan's house), said her club in Paris meets at a bar and I believe Siu's club in The Netherlands does as well. Many players shun clubs that meet at bars for the noise, smoke or dim lighting. It certainly has to be a place that is large and comfortable enough for playing and even so, most bars can't accomodate a very large club. On the other hand, even in big cities, many clubs only attract those local to the area, so they can still fit in a sizable pub. Perhaps, as a test of my new theory, I can convince some of the more dynamic London players to start playing with me in a pub.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
