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alt_sinistraStudents - I have had a few questions about whether writing up observations about the aurora might be worthwhile (to your marks, that is.) Since I believe in encouraging you to look at the heavens and pay attention, the answer is, as always, “Yes! Please!”
Obviously, greater detail (or additional research) generally earns greater credit, but even brief observations are rewarded as long as they’re thoughtfully done and accurate. To count for this term, you can submit additional reports until the week before end-of-term exams (December 10th, this year.) If you’ve questions, please ask here, or stop by my office hours.
At any rate, I’m sorry I missed Saturday’s aurora, though Tuesday’s was delightful. Quite rare we get two inside a week. Almost makes one think there’s meat to the folklore, really.
On the rest, life does move forward, and now that matters elsewhere have settled down, I admit I’m glad to be turning my attention back to smaller and less urgent needs.
We have, in fact, formed a committee to discuss the possibility of work on an updated and significantly revised astronomy text. Due to a number of commitments for various parties, we expect this will be a lengthy project, with hopes of a new text going to print in time for the 1997-1998 school year. Cantus Deverill is chair for the project, but any of the committee (and that includes me) are glad to take comments. More info in Georg Bright’s journal.
And on a more personal note, it was a particular pleasure to see my extended family at my father’s birthday party yesterday, and an even greater joy that Raz was able to join me, and meet my aunts, uncles, and many of my cousins. (Dad: a very happy birthday and many more wonderful years to you. And to Mum, Auntie Gera, Diane, and my other siblings, brilliant show organising a lovely afternoon.)
Obviously, greater detail (or additional research) generally earns greater credit, but even brief observations are rewarded as long as they’re thoughtfully done and accurate. To count for this term, you can submit additional reports until the week before end-of-term exams (December 10th, this year.) If you’ve questions, please ask here, or stop by my office hours.
At any rate, I’m sorry I missed Saturday’s aurora, though Tuesday’s was delightful. Quite rare we get two inside a week. Almost makes one think there’s meat to the folklore, really.
On the rest, life does move forward, and now that matters elsewhere have settled down, I admit I’m glad to be turning my attention back to smaller and less urgent needs.
We have, in fact, formed a committee to discuss the possibility of work on an updated and significantly revised astronomy text. Due to a number of commitments for various parties, we expect this will be a lengthy project, with hopes of a new text going to print in time for the 1997-1998 school year. Cantus Deverill is chair for the project, but any of the committee (and that includes me) are glad to take comments. More info in Georg Bright’s journal.
And on a more personal note, it was a particular pleasure to see my extended family at my father’s birthday party yesterday, and an even greater joy that Raz was able to join me, and meet my aunts, uncles, and many of my cousins. (Dad: a very happy birthday and many more wonderful years to you. And to Mum, Auntie Gera, Diane, and my other siblings, brilliant show organising a lovely afternoon.)
Private message to Poppy and Pomona
Date: 2012-11-19 03:32 pm (UTC)I - sorry, I just couldn’t manage to talk. To pretty much anyone, about pretty much anything. (Though, Poppy, thank you, for the times at supper you and Irma had manageable topics in hand. Meals just got worse and worse, really. Making nice with Dolores is clearly necessary, but it is such hard work.)
Anyway. Improved now, and I’m hoping things stay that way for a while. Tea, sometime soon? Separately or together. I’ve stories for both of you from Dad’s party that might amuse. (And Poppy, Cousin Mel particularly wanted me to send her best, and was very glad indeed to hear you were doing well.)
I’m free any day but Tuesday or Thursday this week, after classes.
Re: Private message to Poppy and Pomona
Date: 2012-11-20 02:56 pm (UTC)Yes, I should very much like tea with you. And Pomona, as well, but I shouldn't like to have the opportunity to see you slip by in trying to find an afternoon we could all three manage. And I'm afraid we've reached that time of term when we may be interrupted here at any hour. I've had such an uptick of business recently!
Would Wednesday or Thursday be possible for you, Aurora? (I expect you're away from the castle this afternoon.) Or we could wait for the weekend, if that's better.
I saw Irma trying to catch your eye at supper last night, but then I think Bathsheba steered her away. I had to get back or I'd have tried to intervene there. Poor Irma. She's not very good at disengaging from someone like Bathsheba when she's got going. And if she does try, it always comes across as irritation. Irma's always either stern or silent, which puts her at a disadvantage in social moments.
Re: Private message to Poppy and Pomona
Date: 2012-11-20 03:10 pm (UTC)You're quite right I'm in New London this afternoon and evening - if you do get a word with Irma, let her know I'll catch up with her tomorrow? (And do you need anything? My afternoon is largely fittings postponed from the past two weeks, but I'll have a little time for errands.)
Wednesday? There's something I'm mulling over I'd like to discuss with you sooner than later. Well, both of you, but better not in the journals.
Private message to Storm Sinistra
Date: 2012-11-19 03:45 pm (UTC)I owe you. All of you. Don’t think I didn't notice everyone managing things - from the seating, to the timing of the mingling after. (And how on earth did you and Dad and Uncle Silvanus coordinate conversation at lunch? I thought I knew all your tricks. I was sure Auntie Alphecca was going to get mired in the difficult topics the entire time.)
And then after - Temp throwing herself on Auntie A's desire to give advice to keep her busy and then Auntie Gera redirecting Auntie Canora. (Did you spot that? It was a thing of beauty.) And don’t think I didn’t see you and Orion lurking in earshot, just in case, and keeping Theo off Raz’s back about the obvious.
We’re back to what you said last week, about family being about not having to do all the difficult parts yourself, aren’t we? Still thinking about that. I guess I didn't trust it’d be that smooth. (And yes, that’s all my own baggage about being the odd one out for so long. Old stories.)
To say what I didn't get a chance to yesterday, since we didn't get a private moment. I’m managing. It’s a lot better now he’s back, and we've had a chance to talk through enough of it. (I really envy you and Dittany, sometimes, you know? There’s so many pieces we have to be so careful about, and it’s not by either of our choice.)
Beyond that, would still like a spot on your couch soon. Next Tuesday’s probably my best bet. I should be able to get clear after about three, and stay until - well, elevenish, but you can kick me out earlier. If you’re sure Dit doesn't mind. Anything I can bring?
Private Message to Aurora Sinistra
Date: 2012-11-20 03:17 am (UTC)To follow up on our conversation of last night: I have arranged for tea (or rather, "tea and strategy") with Minerva for tomorrow afternoon, and she seems receptive to my offers of assistance. I will not mention your name, but I will make it clear mine is not the only wand willing to stand at her service; I do not think she will mistake my meaning, as you and I are well known to be close. I will keep you informed.
As for the rest of what transpired in our absence, I am still thinking about that conversation of Dolores, Septima, Acton, and Rolanda's you relayed -- and, more importantly, about what it might portend. I have made overtures to Septima, and will continue to do so as much as I might without being obvious.
So: no true progress, but no true setbacks either, and the potential for some progress in short order. And yes, dear heart, I am resting. With a pile of essays to mark, but I am resting.
To sleep, as soon as I finish the last of the papers from the sevenths,
T
Re: Private Message to Aurora Sinistra
Date: 2012-11-20 03:32 am (UTC)I believe the arithmancy on that all adds up to "somewhat reassuring", but, you know, I am not entirely sure.
I do appreciate the update, mind. (As if I'd say anything else.) Do let me know whatever you can of your next steps? I admit I'm very curious how your conversation with Minerva goes in particular. And I've reason to talk to Septima sometime soon, the usual cross-over of our respective fields.
I don't know. I keep coming back to that conversation, and whether there's anything else worth circling around. And I've had more than a bit of time on the tower tonight, thinking. Flickers and shadows, mostly - nothing at all as clear as what we went through in detail.
Re: Private Message to Aurora Sinistra
Date: 2012-11-20 03:49 am (UTC)And I out of everyone will not mock your flickers and shadows: my own have proven quite useful of late. If you would like me to talk you through the remembering again the way I did last night, you know where to find me. The meditation techniques in the book I gave you might help, but for chasing down shadows, a guide's voice is often more helpful -- well, you've seen the value of it already. If your intuition is telling you there is more to be run to ground, it might be worth a try. At very least you might want to try explaining the topic of your thoughts to me: I achieved the bulk of my own realisation when briefing Lucius over breakfast, for instance. There is something about forcing yourself to lay things out neatly for another that often prompts the connections one cannot achieve on one's own.
Meanwhile: Reading tone and nuance through the lines of these journals is damnably hard, but if I am not mistaken, you are still somewhat out of sorts. Are the past two weeks still weighing on you? I would offer my couch and my shoulder tomorrow evening, but you no doubt have plans already, it being Tuesday, and Wednesday and Thursday are a bear for us both, but say the word and I will find the time for you, or create it no matter the cost.
Yours,
T
Re: Private Message to Aurora Sinistra
Date: 2012-11-20 04:07 am (UTC)Oh, I agree. I feel much better knowing you are aware and alert and thinking of solutions. (Raz too: I told him the outline last night. He may be by for a look at the stone, if he hasn't been already.)
On the rest, well. I plan some more time with the stars tonight, and if that doesn't sort it out, we can revisit the meditation work sometime later in the week? You are quite right that I'm booked tomorrow. (Muslin fitting for the wedding dress, and then another fitting appointment for winter holiday robes. And then some time with friends - and yes, a fresh stock of marzipan and pastries.)
As to my mood - well. Up and down, as is probably quite obvious. I do still feel out of sorts, though I've been making an attempt to mend some of that, in various directions. And pondering the places where mending is not, perhaps, the right solution, right now. (Good grief, but the last two weeks rubbed some odd places in people I know. Or maybe in me and I'm seeing the reflection. I can't even tell anymore.)
I have not Raz's gift for setting things aside. Not yet, anyway. Give me a few days, and I'm sure it will settle. Or at least find some more useful outlet.
-A
Re: Private Message to Aurora Sinistra
Date: 2012-11-20 04:21 am (UTC)(We have spoken before about change, and it being the only constant one can rely upon in both Our Lord's service and in study of the Arts; nowhere is that more evident as in the relationships one has with those who do not walk those same paths. It is not surprising that you have found yourself fitting oddly of late in spaces you'd thought comfortable, but that does not make the process more easy to bear. Be kind to yourself.)
I am to bed, then, but if you've need of me, you know where to find me -- and if not, I will wish you a quiet night, and clear skies.
Yours,
T
Re: Private Message to Aurora Sinistra
Date: 2012-11-20 02:26 pm (UTC)I’m sorry for leading you to fret. (Though, “little sunshine”? Really?) I am slow to deal with change and new things. Always have been. But truly, I come to it in time.
A long dose of dark skies and myriad points of light did eventually help. And sleeping in my own bed was better, in the end, than it might be. (I did not wish to risk startling Raz - or making him go short on sleep, for that matter. And after two weeks, I admit the daybed in my office was wearing on me. See, I am being as forthright as I can.)
At any rate, you are quite right about change. It’s Sunday, with my family, that I kept coming back to last night. I am - well, I was a fiercely independent child, and very much the odd one out growing up for one reason and another. (So very devoted to my stars.) And unlike the rest, I never lived with my parents after leaving school, much as I do love them both. Just visits, and never more than a week at once.
But Sunday they - every single one, down to Theo - did every possible thing to make sure that Raz and I would have as enjoyable a time of it as we could. Diverted the difficult conversations. Distracted the Predictable Aunts. Kept the cousin I can’t stand - I admit, I’ve been holding a grudge since we were 16 - away from me. And every bit of it, without a hint of the effort and coordination it took.
And I don’t even know where to start with that. I wouldn’t have dared ask for it. And especially not on a day that should have been entirely about my father. I do have time planned with my best brother, next week, which - well, he can help me untangle as much as anyone can. And watching him work with his hands is entirely soothing.
There’s so many things I can’t talk to them about - not even Storm. But maybe there’s other ways of being, and being loved, and... Ah, well. Now I’m entirely tangled again, though in a different place in the skein. Progress, at any rate.
Re: Private Message to Aurora Sinistra
Date: 2012-11-21 03:50 am (UTC)Do you know, I hadn't even noticed I had called you that? It is an old family nickname -- a sign of my affection for you, I suppose. And fitting, since you have been thinking of family of late, and I suppose I have as well. But we have spoken of that before, have we not? I suppose it's the impending holidays; they make me somewhat melancholy.
(At least melancholy is better than furious. I came so very close to losing my temper utterly with the fourth-years today; half of them did not turn in assignments at all, or turned in something that was clearly written in haste over the breakfast table. While several of them had the excuse of being closely related to someone who joined in the fight, and thus worried for their relations, others simply appear to have seized the opportunity to ignore their studies entirely. Had it been any other week I no doubt would have been able to approach the problem calmly; as is, I am surprised you could not hear me yelling across the castle before I reined in my temper. I am trying so hard to be patient, truly I am, but today has tested my patience sorely.)
As to the rest of it -- I am, I suppose, not the best person to advise in familial matters, not having had much experience with the type of brood yours clearly is. But it seems to me from what you have described that the hallmark of your family is a certain generosity of spirit, perhaps best demonstrated when one of yours is in need. If they are willing to smooth your way, during a time that is difficult for you, it might be taken as a sign that though they do not wholly understand you, nor your choices, they are still yours, and you theirs, and they are showing it in the best way they know how.
That you have been avoiding your bed even now troubles me -- I am well aware that your inner turmoil first manifests in sleeplessness -- but I suppose I am being more of a mother hen than I ought. Which is likely a cue I should seek my own sleep. I will try to catch you tomorrow to brief you on my discussion with Minerva, in which less was decided than I would have liked but which is, I believe, an excellent start.
Yours,
T
Re: Private Message to Aurora Sinistra
Date: 2012-11-21 02:26 pm (UTC)As to old nicknames - ah, in that case, I will spare the comments on daytime scarcely being my preference, and take the fondness for what it is.
Your fourths - I had all of them last night, and I heard more than a little chatter about it. You did make quite the impression. But - you remember that conversation we had back in September, about demonstrating that you could be pushed to the edge of patience, but yet not become the Carrows?
From what I heard, sounds like this may, in fact, have done some of that for you. (Of course, the less said about how much they weren’t paying attention to me, the better. But that’s their lookout, not mine, if they do badly on their end of term exams as a result.) We're off a week anyway, because of the aurora last week - I could not resist the chance to discuss it in depth - so I'll have to adjust anyway.
Are your fifths better? I gave them a long-term assignment - that meteor observation - and I’m waiting for next hour to see the patterns in who did things on time and who didn’t. But really, they must learn long-term project skills at some point. Or if they're the type to put it off to the very last, how to produce something worthwhile quickly.
On my family, you’re quite right. It’s just - surprising, I guess. It is very generous of them, and very thoughtful, and I - oh, I guess I feel like I’ve not held up my end in the family as well as I might. If that makes any sense at all. (And related, I've been feeling that way with more than one friend, which is why I think I keep coming back to it.)
And speaking of circling back, why are you fretting over me so much? It’s enough to tempt me not to mention things that might remotely worry you, and I’d rather not make that a habit. I’m a grown woman, none of my issues with sleep are new, and on the whole, they are now entirely predictable. And I manage, Tosha, dear, truly. The afternoon nap is a fine thing and an ancient invention.
One part complex schedule. One part that I really do sleep far better when with Raz than otherwise (but it is five months before that can be a nightly habit). And one part, yes, response to stress, but there are things that help, and as responses to stress go, at least this one is easy to keep an eye on. (And when it gets too bad, there are potions, much as I hate them.)
And yes, on wanting to hear about Minerva. I’ve been wondering. Alas, I didn’t get a chance to talk to Campanella last night - she’s still working flat out - or I might have more news about Dolores and her plans to share. If you'd rather in person, I could stop by at 5.