Last night’s chat was great fun. A lot of people showed up for Devon’s dialogue chat and I managed to get a couple of questions in myself. Devon is one of those tutors that offer full and interesting answers to all the questions, which are packed with lots of useful advice. You get some tutors that either give one sentence answers so they can get through lots of questions, but nothing meaningful ever gets across, or keep referring to their book on the subject and give you just enough to make you want to know more. Good marketing, but that’s not what the conference is about.
The chats are meant to supplement the courses. They’re meant to be a chance to “speak” to the tutors and ask questions, not be talked down to in the hope you’ll buy their latest publication. At least, that’s what I thought. Devon’s what was so in-depth I gave up taking notes and resorted to getting a hold of the transcript afterwards.
I had quiet a relaxed morning; mediocre lie in (until 8am) coffee, bought a paper, but spent what time I had before the afternoon event by polishing the four articles from my second batch of articles for TLB. I got them completed and sent them off, swiftly followed by the invoice for all the work.
Then it was off to the afternoon event with Gail. Now, I wish I could tell you more about this but I can’t. What I can tell you is that it was pretty tiring stuff packed with protocol and double-checking of one’s own appearance. It’s not what I would do with all my Saturdays had I the chance, but it was very interesting.
Some of the things I witnessed and people I met would probably not be believable if I put them down on paper. I will, though, probably in a novel somewhere; perhaps even a short story. If I were to sum my afternoon up in one sentence, I would say it was most fascinating, not particularly enjoyable as such, and I saw everything that is wrong with Edinburgh under the one roof.
When we got back a quick cup of badly needed coffee was administered to my veins, before our friends Sarah and Rob arrived with their two children, Charlie (4) and Ruby (<1).
At the end of what was a very tiring week and busy Saturday afternoon, it was great just sit to sit back with a few beers, enjoy some chat, and top it off with a finely prepared Indian meal. We shared chicken pakora and onion bahjee to start, and for my main I had a roasting hot, deliciously balanced with garlic and herbs dish of lamb madras with pilau rice, nan bread and chapatti.
Stuffed? I probably resembled a Weeble!
Did I care? Not in the slightest.
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Freedom from the Mundane 
I’m glad you found the chat useful.
My attitude towards the conference is that, if you’re not willing to go full out for and with the students, writing-wise, don’t call yourself a presenter.
I’ve got a theory about the origin of the word Weeble, but I’ve never been able to prove it. Huevos is spanish for ‘eggs’, and my guess is that it’s a corruption of ‘huevos’. Am I a sad bastard? Yes.