Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Marketing madness and the Scottish country dancing queen

The last of the student care services marketing events in the library today – thank goodness, we cry!... It hasn’t been a roaring success – to put it mildly – and I’ve been really glad to get it over with. Grand total of people who’ve popped into see us over the last three weeks at our display: six. Though to be fair, I did have one email query today as a result of my electronic flyer, which I’ve sent out over the last couple of weeks to try to drum up interest. Unfortunately that student couldn’t come, but at least I could give some virtual advice. The only other response was a lass asking about her library books. Hmm, I suspect I may not entirely have got the message across then, Carruthers … Somebody pass me my rifle and put us all out of our misery …

Apart from marketing traumas, I’m afraid not a lot else has happened in my working day, though I have been attempting to unearth the online annual report from where I must have hidden it. Thank goodness I hadn’t got much of it done, as I feel I might need to redo it next week. Sigh. We’re also having an ongoing discussion in the office over where to put the big map of the UK, which is really too big to be where it’s been for the last year, and which finally fell down this morning. I think it might end up next to my desk – but that’s fine by me as maybe it’ll give me the chance to attempt a stronger link with the outside world, ho ho. Rather than living 99% of my life in the sewage system that constitutes my head. We can but hope, eh.

Tonight, I am strutting my stuff (so that won’t take long then) at the taster session for the Scottish country dancing beginners class. I’m wondering whether or not to wear tartan and carry a sword. Oh, sorry, that’s my usual get-up. So I’d best wear something different. Must admit to being excited as I really love dancing, but distinctly nervous as I really hate meeting new people. Especially new people who’ve already formed their personal groups in the weeks they’ve been doing it before and who will look on me with horror as “a stranger round these parts” when I pop my head round the door. Lordy, but I’m paranoid. But at least I know it.

And I must remember to video “Heroes” just in case I’m not back in time – the class ends at 8.30pm, but Guildford traffic can be wild. I am already traumatised by missing “Oz and James’ Wine Adventure” last night when out at Guildford Writers, but Lord H has nobly downloaded and saved it for me, so all is not lost!

Oh and here’s a piece of flash fiction for the Writewords Flash Fiction Group II challenge – which was to come up with something including the line of dialogue I have at the end:

Waiting for the Question

Gerald McFly strode down the High Street wearing his usual placard inscribed with the legend: The end of the world is nigh: please ask for details. He’d been doing this every Saturday morning for the last ten years and it hadn’t ended yet. But he was hopeful. Neither had he ever had anyone approach him. Usually they hid in shops or ran away laughing. He tried not to mind, but he would have liked a friend or, at least, someone who might understand. With a sigh, he kept on striding. Even if nothing ever changed, the cause was all; he must remember that!
Today, much to his surprise, would turn out to be very different indeed.
‘Young man! Young man!’
Gerald turned round to see an old woman hurrying towards him. Her grey hair was tied up into a bun and her plaid skirt was flapping in the breeze. He waited for her to catch up.
‘Young man,’ she said again, eyes blinking rapidly behind enormous spectacles.
‘Yes?’
‘I’d hate to miss Panorama. So can you tell me what time this end of the world might be occurring?’
Gerald smiled his first smile of the day.
‘I’ve always wanted somebody to ask me that,’ he said.



Today’s nice things:

1. Getting the last of the wretched marketing events done and dusted, hurrah!
2. Flash fiction
3. Scottish country dancing

Anne Brooke
Anne's website

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great flash fiction.

As far as the marketing is concerned, they obviously are so well looked after they don't need student care!! (Not helpful I guess :-))

Sue x

Anne Brooke said...

Thanks, Sue!

And hey one can only hope!...

:))

A
xxx

Lexi said...

A lot to say about this post...

Your first paragraph made me laugh out loud - a good start to the day.

Don't be rude about the contents of your head; it's not true or positive. Consider yourself rebuked.

I envy you the Scottish dancing. Many years ago, I saw part of a Panorama programme on happiness, and the conclusion they came to was that the best thing you could do to make yourself happier was to join a Scottish dancing class. Because;

1. exercise increases endorphins
2. music is good for you
3. mixing with other people cheers you up.

So I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

And your flash fiction reminds me of the 'Less Lust' man, dead now and much missed, who used to patrol Oxford Street with a placard. It urged people to avoid certain foods (and sitting) which led to lust. He sold pamphlets for a small sum, and I always wish I'd bought one.

Anne Brooke said...

Glad you liked it, Lexi! Though I do see nothing wrong with a sewage system (when I worked in insurance a zillion years ago, we insured quite a few sewage plants and they were all fab places, with some great people)!

And you're right about the dancing - it was fab too!

Hugs!

:))

A
xxx

Casdok said...

Can we hear about your Star Trek personas??!!
Glad you recieved check.
x

Anne Brooke said...

Oh Lordy, don't you think it might be just too scary, Casdok??? Just between you and me, babe, I used to be a Lieutenant in the Star Trek fan club characters section, plus I was the second person in the queue when the ST exhibition first came to London as I wanted to be sure to get in early. Um, we queued for three hours before the place even thought of opening. Yes it was cold!...

Not only that, but I have every episode of DS9 (my fav series) ever made on video, every single Star Trek magazine ever produced (I'm a keen subscriber and have been from Issue One). I also have Teach Yourself Klingon, and the Klingon Guide to Tourism (Buy or die ...). I've always, ALWAYS wanted to be a pilot on the bridge and having adventures ...

My real life, as they say, is most definitely up there, and the one we're in now is only a Holosuite programme. Oh, and I've always been in love with Spock.

==:O

A
xxx

Casdok said...

Wow!
And yes i love Spock to!
Dont worry, i wont tell anyone!!

Anne Brooke said...

Spock is mine, Casdok - he's mine!!!

:))

A
xxx