4am seems to be the waking hour of choice for this particular bout of jet lag - sigh. And there was no going back to sleep. Even listening to ABC radio (the Aussie version) didn't send me back to the land of nod. Surrender and resignation are the only remedy. The day dawned crisp and clear, with a slight breeze- in other words a perfect autumn day. Before I ventured out I had breakfast here - perfectly satisfactory in a manufactured way, with pre-peeled boiled e...

Well readers,when we left our fearless adventurer he was at LAX in the Alaskan Board Room. By stint of great perseverance he went from a sitting position there (courtesy of his 30 day membership of American Airlines lounges) to a sitting position on a smaller US Air flight to Philadelphia, to yet another lounge to a still smaller plane to State College (still seated). Landing at State College PA took place on time at 10.54 pm, some 30 hours after getting the cab ...

Just a quick note of celebration. The stars have aligned so far for this trip to Penn State and Ontario - about 70% work and 30% family. Yesterday I got a text to say my points upgrade to premium economy came through, so a bit of space and comfort for the long haul. Then, one of the benefits of our new address, from calling the cab to emerging from customs and immigration it was just on an hour. Alleluia. So even if LAX is at its ugly best, we're off to a good s...

Greetings from LAX. We landed pretty much on time after an uneventful flight. I passed the time watching a series called The Knick, out of the HBO stable. Not in the top flight - if you'll pardon the pun - but a good watch, and a little strong with scenes of surgery in early 20th century New York, and some telling scenes which address racism and attitudes to women as well as the incredible belief in the power of science that was so much a part of that time. I ha...

This blog entry will be the last of the current series- picking up the last couple of days with Anthony and Jayne. On Sunday, a working day here for many, despite Eid, Anthony had to do a day of training and assessment on emergency procedures. Very generously, Jayne played host for the early part of the day, leaving the kids to do homework while she drove us around the "terraformed" Palm - a man-made island shaped like a palm tree, with another similarly constr...