Too much weekend, not enough work!

It has been a fun, but very full weekend! Friday night was a special session of Danceoholics Unanimous (a sub set of the Tasmanian Folk Federation who don't think that the once a month large dance is enough dancing). They normally meet on the First Friday of the month (and did this month, but I was at an SCA social night that week), but the organizer, David (the same friend we went on a serendipitous hike with recently) decided that he'd organize an extra one this month to entertain some people coming down to Tassie to do some IT work for the Wilderness Society. What a fun evening! We had about 20 people, which meant enough for either one good set for contra dances or two full squares. There were enough experienced dancers there that we were able to keep dancing pretty much non stop, with only short breaks for teaching the next dance.

Saturday I did do a bit of uni work during the day, and then we went out to enjoy a night of Medieval Music with Harlequin <http://harlequintas.googlepages.com/home>. Much more fun, and more dancing for the half a dozen of us who were confidant enough with Medieval and folk dancing to just get up and dance (we'd listen to a couple of bars, and say "I think that ____ dance fits to this one, and off we went!). I will never understand how the rest of the audience could just sit there and listen--the music makes me want to move!

Sunday some of us drove up to Launceston to the Baroness's Birthday event at the Standing Stones at the Punchbowl Reserve. I'd not been to the Standing Stones before, they are cute. No where near on the scale of Stonehenge, but they are between my height and 6.5 feet tall--a circle of eight of them, made of dolerite, a common Tasmanian fine-grained igneous rock, also called "blue stone" for its lovely bluish-grey sheen on its fresh surface, though it weathers to a dull orangish colour from the iron within it. I couldn't resist getting a boost onto one (my SCA shoes do *not* make good climbing shoes--these boots are too loose!) when the shade moved around to it, and sitting up on my perch to stitch. Only a couple of children and one other lady followed my example (and none of us were able to gain the top of a stone without assistance!).

Too much weekend, not enough work!

It has been a fun, but very full weekend! Friday night was a special session of Danceoholics Unanimous (a sub set of the Tasmanian Folk Federation who don't think that the once a month large dance is enough dancing). They normally meet on the First Friday of the month (and did this month, but I was at an SCA social night that week), but the organizer, David (the same friend we went on a serendipitous hike with recently) decided that he'd organize an extra one this month to entertain some people coming down to Tassie to do some IT work for the Wilderness Society. What a fun evening! We had about 20 people, which meant enough for either one good set for contra dances or two full squares. There were enough experienced dancers there that we were able to keep dancing pretty much non stop, with only short breaks for teaching the next dance.

Saturday I did do a bit of uni work during the day, and then we went out to enjoy a night of Medieval Music with Harlequin <http://harlequintas.googlepages.com/home>. Much more fun, and more dancing for the half a dozen of us who were confidant enough with Medieval and folk dancing to just get up and dance (we'd listen to a couple of bars, and say "I think that ____ dance fits to this one, and off we went!). I will never understand how the rest of the audience could just sit there and listen--the music makes me want to move!

Sunday some of us drove up to Launceston to the Baroness's Birthday event at the Standing Stones at the Punchbowl Reserve. I'd not been to the Standing Stones before, they are cute. No where near on the scale of Stonehenge, but they are between my height and 6.5 feet tall--a circle of eight of them, made of dolerite, a common Tasmanian fine-grained igneous rock, also called "blue stone" for its lovely bluish-grey sheen on its fresh surface, though it weathers to a dull orangish colour from the iron within it. I couldn't resist getting a boost onto one (my SCA shoes do *not* make good climbing shoes--these boots are too loose!) when the shade moved around to it, and sitting up on my perch to stitch. Only a couple of children and one other lady followed my example (and none of us were able to gain the top of a stone without assistance!).

stress will show

I have never had any problem with anything resembling allergies, and am rarely sick. However, this summer I've experienced something which may well be allergies, though if it is, I strongly suspect that it is more due to stress (I am *not* as far along in my uni work as I would like to be!) than anything else. Fortunately for me, even this reaction is mild compared to what others experience. I have seen friends and loved ones so miserable from allergy attacks with symptoms of runny noses, itching, and more that they couldn't do anything, and sometimes even resorted to using drugs to try to feel better. Me, on the other hand, have noted this summer that at random intervals I will suddenly sneeze a time or three, and sometimes my nose is a bit runny. Not the easy to expel mucus of a cold, but a small amount of a very liquid substance which doesn't accumulate enough to easily expel. However, other than meaning that it is a good idea to keep a handkerchief within reach, this phenomena hasn't been an inconvenience yet. With luck, it will never be. I do strongly suspect that if I manage to make sufficient progress on my writing so as to feel like my deadlines are achievable, the "symptoms" will go away. Therefore I'd best put this down, and get back to work!

stress will show

I have never had any problem with anything resembling allergies, and am rarely sick. However, this summer I've experienced something which may well be allergies, though if it is, I strongly suspect that it is more due to stress (I am *not* as far along in my uni work as I would like to be!) than anything else. Fortunately for me, even this reaction is mild compared to what others experience. I have seen friends and loved ones so miserable from allergy attacks with symptoms of runny noses, itching, and more that they couldn't do anything, and sometimes even resorted to using drugs to try to feel better. Me, on the other hand, have noted this summer that at random intervals I will suddenly sneeze a time or three, and sometimes my nose is a bit runny. Not the easy to expel mucus of a cold, but a small amount of a very liquid substance which doesn't accumulate enough to easily expel. However, other than meaning that it is a good idea to keep a handkerchief within reach, this phenomena hasn't been an inconvenience yet. With luck, it will never be. I do strongly suspect that if I manage to make sufficient progress on my writing so as to feel like my deadlines are achievable, the "symptoms" will go away. Therefore I'd best put this down, and get back to work!