Frustration

Frustration on several fronts at the moment. I cannot get into the website at school where my source material I want to use for Tuesday's lecture is to be found. The site is down, probably for maintenance. It means having to make up a framework now and fill it in tomorrow. There is already enough to do tomorrow, most of it positive, with McCarthy's Bar top of the list for three lessons in my class. I'm looking forward to it.
And Newcastle continue to slide. They lost again yesterday, a combination of poor play and shocking luck. There is a total lack of confidence in the team now, they don't believe in themselves. John and I agreed that keeping Martins on the bench for so long is a mistake. He is the one player who looks as if he could score a goal, the most sure-fire way of finding self confidence of course, but Kev only brings him on in the second half when the damage has been done. John fears the bottom of the table scramble. There are several teams who could go down and now we are amongst them. Derby will go, which leaves two others. Frustration is only the start of it.
It is a lovely Sunday morning and Kev and I have already sampled the fresh air. If it isn't too icy, I would like to go a bit further afield afterwards. I need to blow some cobwebs out of my brain!
The Athens trip is hanging in a thin but strong thread. 4ooo is a lot to pay for what is on offer, but if the school is willing to bring forward my overtime bonus, I am prepared to spend it on the flights and the hotel. I must ring the university tomorrow and find out what things cost and have a word with A.V. It looks as if a few days on Santorini or Crete combined with two days in Athens before the course starts should be possible. It would be nice to wander around and visit places I have read so much about without having to consider anybody elses' wishes. And think of the sun tan I will have before the rest of the group arrive!!
I have bought a book about English cathedral architecture for E. Have I already mentioned this? It should get here soon and is probably too late for her essay or whatever it was that she asked me for material about, (what a sentence...). I have a feeling I am just prolonging the agony but have promised myself and her that she is welcome to ask for anything I can help/give, but that I deserve more than the typical Norwegian reaction for it. So it looks as though that particular frustration is soon at an end because what little I expect won't happen anyway. Just as well I suppose in light of what is happening elsewhere. Giving her the book will be an interesting tactical exercise, the Readers'Digest's old method about watching your post box for a package wrapped in anonymous brown paper (!) lends itself as a funny way of getting rid of it. Don't suppose she'd see it that way though. Still, I've got nothing to lose when you think about it. I just feel so stupid about the whole thing and all I want to do is make her life a bit easier in my own tiny way.

It was very icy. It's a pity because I love being out and this just makes me irritable and poor company. Skidding about, afraid of falling in some dog shit from last year and not being able to relax and see all the wildlife is frustrating by any definition of the word. There was one lonely blackbird singing far away early this morning. I thought it was my mobile at first. He soon gave up though when no other bird fancied joining in. It is a bit early in the year for the dawn chorus. We will get enough of that in about four weeks' time. I'm looking forward to the racket, even though it starts at about half past three, always being opened by a robin. These birds don't seem to realize they should be in bed at night, they sing in the dark!