Another bush fire disaster day?

It's strange to receive an apocalyptic sms from emergency services warning of the fire danger potential of weather conditions on Tuesday March 3, 2009. I wonder what other opportunities will be found for such global communications. I mean, I think it's a good thing that they can do this but I am having a problem knowing quite how to respond to it. I'm interested in the history of climate change, not so we can construct an argument against the human intervention and responsibility angle, but so we can analyse the similarities between our own times and those of times past, particularly medieval times. I will be using this as a way of "breaking the ice" in the first tute for Medieval Europe today. "What were you doing on Black Saturday and how have you been affected by the bush fire disaster?" I greatly fear that University adminstration will select today as the day to trial emergency evacuation of the Menzies building.

Mother of the "bride"

My daughter organised a festival of love for herself and her partner on the weekend past as a kind of avowal of love ceremony. Years ago we would have called this a wedding. It was great fun and really very moving for all who were there. I am surprised that this seems to be as much a rite of passage for the mother of the bride as for the bride herself. I am still in the liminal phase and feeling an odd sense of loss.