Monday, September 25

 

 

Irma left first this morning. She cycled to the metro in order to get to a day-long conference in the centre. I waited for Sunshine to return from his morning walk, and then cycled off myself. When I got to Puotila I spotted Irma’s bike by the red cloth attached to the rear. I had given her this earlier to wipe the seat. The thick morning mist had soaked it.

I spend the morning making notes and writing emails, before going for a medical opinion about my right foot. The doctor (called Jussi but sadly not the same Jussi I saw last time) told me the technical term for my problem, plantar fasciitis, before explaining that the treatment involved doing nothing and waiting to see if it goes away. I had expected a treatment along those lines.

I could also apparently try experimenting with ibuprofen, lying down, losing weight, and different shoes, although not necessarily in that order.

At midday, back at Arcada, I met Arlene Tucker and Susanne Palzer and took them for lunch as a guest of Nathalie. They then gave a two hour workshop to Liisa’s first year students while Liisa and I attended kulturmöte and discussed the way we grade theses.

Afterwards we all had a further conversation in the coffee lounge, and at the end Susanne left for Sheffield with an Arcada mug through the simple expedient of asking whether she could have one at the exact moment when someone from marketing passed by.

At 16:30 I walk my plantar fasciitis to the tram where I journey to Puotila with Nathalie. We continue the discussion that started at kulturmöte and as we part at the metro station I notice an old Packard that has parked at the gas station periodically over the last week. I walk over to photograph it but forget to walk round the back to confirm the accuracy of my memory. It certainly looks like a Packard.

At home Irma will read me extracts from her notes from the seminar, and I will become more interested the more she reads. I will end up asking the names of two of the lecturers, because they sound as though I should contact them in terms of my research, should I actually have research.

Finally I will read, iron and play with Sunshine.