Category: Personal

November 2023 round-up

Brrr… it’s really cold in my part of the world, at the moment. While we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving in the UK, I will say that I am immensely grateful that I have a warm house to return to, without having to worry too much about energy bills. I am also grateful to live in a country … Continue reading November 2023 round-up

September 2023 round-up

September was about going back to routines and tackling life admin – the kiddo was back to school and training; we are back to spending Sundays by the side of an ice-rink; various medical check-ups were scheduled and attended; and so on.  This month, I also joined a life drawing group. I hadn’t done any life-drawing … Continue reading September 2023 round-up

August 2023 round-up

August was a travelling month. First, to attend a conference. Then, for time out with the family, which included one week with my parents at the beach (it’s been 20+ years since we last holidayed together. Bliss!). There was some work done around these, even if not much was “shipped”. Research The main event, research … Continue reading August 2023 round-up

July 2023 round-up

July was such a fun month! I am sure that that feeling was largely influenced by my 2-weeks’ holiday with the kiddo, which included a haphazard (but heartfelt) celebration of his 16th birthday. Though, that feeling also came from working on a handful of exciting projects, on the other half of the month. https://www.instagram.com/p/CvGRpnlIONP/ On the research … Continue reading July 2023 round-up

June 2023 round-up

And, just like that, half of 2023 is gone. Woosh. Though, to be fair, I am very glad that the GCSEs are done with. Over. Behind us. Check. This month we also celebrated child 1’s birthday, and child 2’s ice-hockey tournament with England’s U16 team. Very sadly, I also learned that someone I had been … Continue reading June 2023 round-up

May 2023 round-up

May was busy. There were several big things happening at the same time, and I constantly felt being pulled between different demands on my time and attention. As much as possible, I tried focusing only on the task at hand, rather than let myself feel overwhelmed about everything that had to be done. This is … Continue reading May 2023 round-up

Day in the Life of an Academic #15: The research sandpit

While the previous DITL post focused on something that I do regularly (i.e., teaching), this one looks at something that I had never done before: participate in a research sandpit.  UKRI, the UK’s government main body for funding research and innovation, defines research sandpits as residential, interactive workshops bringing together “a highly multidisciplinary mix of participants (…) … Continue reading Day in the Life of an Academic #15: The research sandpit

April 2023 round-up

This month saw progress on various research projects. I got selected for an innovation sandpit*, which I am really excited about (except for the guilt about being away from home while child 2 has GCSE exams); and took the first steps on a project related to improving attitudes to learning among an at-risk population. The … Continue reading April 2023 round-up

March 2023 round-up

The month started with a presentation about the online health information project at the Multiple Sclerosis patients’ day, to gather feedback about the idea from the very people that live with the condition. Later in the month, we did another two presentations for neurologists, again to gather feedback. I found these sessions really helpful to … Continue reading March 2023 round-up