Nothing to write home about
I have never been big on anthropomorphising things - attributing objects or other animals with human qualities has never had that much appeal to me. My transportation devices, however, seem to be different. My cars gain names, even ones hired on holiday, and usually not names you would want to give to a person (a… Continue reading Transport with personality
I have posted before about some sights from my London commute via train and tube (both people and places). Despite these positives takes, I have never been much of a fan of my journey to and from work. I have become a much bigger user of mobile technologies and e-reading to make the time productive… Continue reading Work-life balance and commuting by bike
On my journey to work there is a point where the train line rises above the roofs of the houses and I can see all the way across the city. It is fleeting so I have to avoid falling into my commuter cocoon before I get there so I don't miss it. Each morning I… Continue reading A break in the commute
Standing idly on the train station platform this evening, I decided there was nothing better to look at than the shoes of the people swarming around me. I prefer to think that still says more about the station and my computer-tired eyes than my proclivity for shoes. A train pulling in provided me with an… Continue reading People watching and shoes
When I was in Canada recently I learnt to appreciate the scale of animal, insect and bird migrations a little more, particularly the huge journeys made by hosts of salmon, geese and Monarch butterflies. It was not that I didn't know about these before but there is always something about witnessing events or their… Continue reading Canadian return migration: salmon, geese and butterflies
I have just finished re-reading Tolkien's The Hobbit, inspired to return to a childhood book by the forthcoming film. This reminded me that Bilbo's journey and subsequent memoir are a perfect depiction of what it means to return home after living abroad or, as in The Hobbit, after an extended trip away. Since this is… Continue reading There and back again: a hobbit returns home
Madeleine Hatfield 