Swedish class was tough tonight. Really tough.
We’re currently doing some areas of grammar which, frankly, I struggle with in English.
Well, I don’t struggle with it, as I know this stuff inside and out, in both the written and oral formations.
But of course, I’m part of the experimental generation where grammar wasn’t emphasised. So the challenge is identifying what grammatical formation is in play, and then determining the Swedish variations.
Anyway, it was still fun, as always. And I got a “mycket bra” (“very good”) for my homework from last week.
Wearing glasses for the first time is also a bit tough at the moment.
When I put them on, everything is clear. And in the office I’m able to move easily between close up work on the computer, reading, and having face-to-face conversations. Walking, however, remains a bit of a challenge.
Still, I wore them as much as I possibly could today. And I’m trying to walk around in them as much as possible to get my brain to understand what it needs to recognise.
Work was pretty good, though, as I achieved a fair bit.
And I caught up for a coffee with my retired former boss, which is always a good thing.
And I’ve booked some tickets for a forthcoming dinner put on by the Historic Houses Trust.
Colonial gastronomer, Jacqui Newling, and Elizabeth Bay House curator, Scott Carlin have consulted historic recipe books by Antonin Careme (1817), Dr William Kitchiner (1829), Eliza Acton (1845), Edward Abbott (1864) and Isabella Beeton (1859) to create a menu that both reflects 18th-19th century dining and the flavours of the spice trade.
Guests will have a unique opportunity to take their first course by candlelight in the dining room at Elizabeth Bay House, overlooking Sydney Harbour with later courses in the magnificent domed central stair hall or saloon. Guest will be shown the secrets of spices and be treated to gentle atmospheric music of the sitar.
Sounds great, eh?
So even though there were some tough parts of Tuesday, there were some good things also.