Saturday, January 27, 2007




Too much ping in the pong

Who thinks a librarians’ life is quiet?

Yesterday my mate ‘Caff’ appeared after perhaps a 2 year gap with an enquiry & I tried to source his needs. However he carries so much baggage & is so far ‘out there’ he wears me out. He talks so fast about everything & anything I found it difficult to focus. Its odd to recollect that his partner is so calm & teaches tai chi (she taught me at one point).

After this, perhaps it was due to this freaky visit, I got totally whitewashed at table-tennis. I mean, I consider myself a decent player, although I didn’t begin until I was almost 30 & working in the Mitchell Library. Later I was chosen to represent King Saud University College of Agriculture at the game. Although I have not played since grudge matches in Glenmore perhaps 15 years ago, I would have expected to have retained some skills. My colleague, Tommy gave me a quick lesson on how far I still have to travel. It was like playing Shane Warren. The ball was spinning embarrassingly & I totally failed to read any of his serves.

I had tried, & failed, to get someone to sort out how to stop 41 year old toilets from smelling. It reminds me of Batha or Harra in Riyadh or Mumbai on a bad day. I decided to bring stuff from home. Will this stop the pong? Watch this space. Do you remember Ping’s House on Dumbarton Road?

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