Play it again Sam #notdryJanuary

It's never quite All Work and No Play is it...?

Especially when you have access to mama's phone.

We also spent a rainy Saturday exploring the submarine Espadon in the main port of Nantes called Saint Nazaire, about a half hour away. It's also the centre of France's wind turbine industry so we looked around the museum too and spotted this ode to the West Wind:

The Espadon is a 78-m long electric submarine that was built in Le Havre and started its service in 1960. Her career lasted 25 years and circumvented the earth 17 times. Although it was active during the Cold War, she was never involved in military conflict. 

Side note. We also [finally] finished installing all the lights in the house. I find the finished result quite fun!

Workin' 9-5 #andalittlebitextra

Looking back, if I had to sum up January, I'd probably say it was a little lot lot lot about work. But of course nothing is ever really totally about work. 

But we'll start with work. First stop:

Twice.

In snow and ice and sun. Often all together.

I chaired a half-day meeting with my PhD student's funders, spoke at a Policy-Research Symposium, taught my classes, visited the Edinburgh Business School and had some interesting side conversations to help me prepare for a conference I am organising in June.

And found this in a University bar on campus.

Then the other worktrip that took up a whole week was the one to Maputo, capital of Mozambique. I'm the project director on a Swiss-funded development programme to develop market systems in local agri-food value chains. These were all client and partner meetings so it was a very ex-pat introduction to Mozambique, and the flashy money that comes from those connected to donor programmes.

Flashy hotels too. Although I spent a LOT of time in air-con rooms trying to do work, catch up on work, manage work and delegate work.

Still, on the last day my colleague and I did take a taxi ride the long way to the airport and got to see a little of the Portuguese influence on the city.

Next time my work will take me to see the field sites in the north of the country, and I'm sure that will be quite a different story.

Still, saw these cool bag holders in the loos in South Africa!

Ray of Light...and Unicorns #Iris

Turning 5. I think the world would be happier with more unicorns. True story.

Happy New Year! #saysitall

And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
"Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown". 
And he replied: 
"Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way". 
So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night.
And He led me towards the hills and the breaking of day in the lone East.

So heart be still: 
What need our little life
Our human life to know, 
If God hath comprehension? 
In all the dizzy strife
Of things both high and low, 
God hideth His intention.

God knows. His will
Is best. The stretch of years
Which wind ahead, so dim
To our imperfect vision, 
Are clear to God. Our fears
Are premature; In Him, 
All time hath full provision.

Then rest: until
God moves to lift the veil
From our impatient eyes,
When, as the sweeter features
Of Life's stern face we hail,
Fair beyond all surmise
God's thought around His creatures
Our mind shall fill.

M.L. Haskins