BrokenTune

Good evening,

I can't believe it is Sunday night already. Not that I have been so busy that I didn't even notice the weekend flying by, on the contrary, but it flew by all the same. 

I spent most of the last two days decompressing from last week: I returned from my trip to Paris late on Tuesday night and spend much longer days at work than anticipated for the rest of the week. By Friday night I was exhausted.

So, apart from pottering about and sleeping and unpacking, I have done as little as possible.

This included reading. We've started our buddy read of Patricia Highsmith's A Game for the Living yesterday, but I didn't even have enough focus to manage to make a real dent into the book until this afternoon, after I had cleared my head with something a little lighter yesterday. And even this was only possible because of extra reading fuel.

Oh, and I also picked up a book in Paris. Shocking, I know, but look at the restraint!

Actually, I was looking for a copy of Simone de Beauvoir's The Second Sex, but the bookshop I was in only had a the latest translations (which apparently suffers from some translation issues) and then I spotted this one, proudly took it to the desk, and the bookseller even commented that she really enjoyed the book. To say that I'm excited about the book is putting it mildly.

My only real break from sleeping, reading, and pottering about came last night when I attended a panel discussion about women in politics, where local councillors, MSPs (Members of the Scottish Parliament), and MPs (Members of Parliament) of  various political persuasions discussed ways to get involved in local politics and what differences women might face to men when doing so. This was organised by a local group that has been running events throughout the year to commemorate Women's Suffrage in the UK. 

It was a fascinating debate and I'm glad I went: not only because I thought it was great of the politicians who attended to take part, but also because there don't seem to be a lot such open and collaborative discussions across parties.

I must admit that I also liked the setting. The Town House is a rather nice venue.