Recently, whilst at the ECMO conference, I met some people who were interested in my thoughts on what to do in New York. Now, New York is a fantastic place, somewhere I've spent quite a bit of time, have family and friends, have worked (in various ways, although none of them paid), and generally enjoyed myself. I thought I'd be able to help them....

Well, first off, I'm listening to Heap, a rock 'n' roll band of some friends of mine. We often meet to drink in a bar called >Milanos, a cool little Irish number with a long thin room and a bar extending two thirds of the way, juke box and a few tables at the back, good beers and excellent shots - my experience being limited to Captain Morgan's, and buying rounds of Jamiesons for my friends. Next door, on one side, is Time's Up, a radical political gathering place, although there is a heavy emphasis on getting involved, do it yourself, cycle workshops and bicycling. There are frequently parties here, either after Critical Mass rides, or to raise money for the ongoing defense campaign necessitated by the ongoing City Police Department repression: a wonderful film was made and premiered just under a year ago, in May 2005, during the (city sponsored) "Bicycle Month" (culminating in the Critical Mass ride, heavily advertised by the festival!).

Telephones - I'm not too good with them. I guess a lot of people could tell you that anyway, but I'm really not, and I dislike them, too - whatever happened to letter writing, sticking to agreements (like, i'm gonna meet you at such-and-such a time) or just doing the work cos it's a) enjoyable and b) got to be done - not watching the clock?

I'm reminded of all this as the phone just rang and I couldn't figure out how to answer it. Ha! It had rung yesterday and I'd assumed the battery hadn't charged properly because the phone might have been askew on the stand. Turns out, it wasn't charged again today, either, which prompted me to start pressing buttons at random. And, lo! It works.

Going back a little while, I got the news that my sister is getting married... having only remote contact, my father sent an email, which included the following description. I showed it to a couple of people and was, today, surprised to hear it being quoted back to me by a friend who pronounced it the highest form of praise:

[Orion] is a specialist registrar at the [Northern] Peadiatric Hospital in [Northern England]. He's specialising in intensive care for heart-lung transplant and other cardiac patients (children). He has dreadlocks, no new clothes, lives alone and gives all his money away! [His younger brother] is on his way to making his fortune with a niche product in the web-based recruitment field. He has swanky offices, designer clothes, an adorable girlfriend (he doesn't deserve!) and debts.

Doesn't that say it all?

My grandmother died today:

Oxxxx, Sxxxxx (nee Kxxxxxxxx) Oct. 13, 1913 - Nov. 27, 2005; Sxxxxx’s energy, vitality and commitment to making the world a better place will be missed by all those who loved her, but especially her daughters, Nxxxx, Exxxx and Txxx, her sons-in-law, Wxxxx and Jxxx, her grandchildren, Dxx, Mxxxxxx, Axxxxx, Txx and Axxx, her 4 great-grandchildren, and her partner, Cxxxxxx Kxxxxx.
In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Sxxxxx’s name either to the Center for Constitutional Rights, Attn: Development Office, 666 Broadway, 7th floor, NY, NY 10012 or the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Attn: Dr. Karen Dahlman, Mt. Sinai Hospital, Box 1230, 1 Gustave Levy Place, NY, NY 10029. A memorial service will take place at the end of December.

She was ninety-two - which you'll realise, if you've done the calculations. I'd previously made a presentation - oops, not uploading for some reason - about care homes for patients with Alzheimer's Dementia in Manhattan which was based upon my time spent in New York earlier this year, primarily caring for her. Much of that is documented elsewhere.