Easy As Mauling With Some Mice.
by: >^^<
part: 346

I was just about to leave for work, using my bike as per my plan to get fitter, when Tom stopped me. “Be careful, some cyclist using the cycle path got attacked last night.”

“Any reason why?” I asked.

“Not that I know of, I heard it just now on the radio.”

“Whereabouts?”

“Down near the harbour.”

“I’ll stay clear of there anyway, too many lorries.”

“See you in the office, I need you to look at a submission from York about the mammal survey.”

“Fine, what time?”

“See Pippa when you get there.”

“Okay.” I left him to lock up as he would theoretically get there first. However that depended upon the traffic and it had been awful recently. I sped off on my Scott and had done over a mile before his Land Rover passed me, belching diesel fumes.

A mile later, I passed him in the grid-locked traffic, even managing to bang on the side of his car as I passed. “Bloody cyclists,” followed me down the road, I nearly fell off laughing.

The grumpy security guard must have made some enquiries about me, because when he saw me pushing my bike through the corridor, he said nothing, in fact he removed himself, so I didn’t have to deal with his snotty banter, which suited me fine.

When I got to my office, there was a bunch of flowers from Sophie waiting by my door. Thankfully, they were in a plastic wrap thing which also contained a bulb of water at the bottom. I decided they could stay in my office instead of me taking them home. I locked up my bike and changed quickly in the loo.

I went up to Pippa’s office, which was bigger than mine! “Grumpy wants to see me sometime this morning.”

“Cathy, I think you should show some respect to your elders and betters, Professor Agnew, deserves…”

“Lots of respect, he’s worked hard at being a grumpy old sod, now when should I see him?”
“He’s free at eleven.”

“Nah, I’ve got a tutorial then,” I glanced at my Blackberry.

“Could do twelve, but he’ll be wanting his lunch.”

“Hopefully it won’t take too long.” Famous last words, I thought to myself as I said it.

“Don’t you two ever talk to each other?” said Pippa.

“All the time, but we don’t talk shop, if we can help it. Any chance of a cuppa?”

“Go and make yourself one then,” she frowned at me and I skipped off to the ‘kitchen’ and switched on the kettle. It always tastes better with fresh milk than the UHT stuff, I have to buy, but they have a fridge I don’t —not since health and safety found my milk in one we use for storing dissections. So, it tasted of formalin, you can get used to anything in time.

I checked my emails, only work ones, mostly from Des. Then a text, from Stella. ‘Doing gr8, can come home 4 wkend. Can U get me. Stella.’

I immediately sent one back. ‘U bet. Wot time? C.’

A little while later my phone beeped indicating a text. ‘Fri eve, N E time. Let me no, when UR on UR way. Stel.’

I replied, ‘OK, C U fri. LOL C.’

That was something to look forward to, I sent a text to Simon who offered to take us out to dinner. Can’t think why I love that man, hee hee.

After my tutorial, which was very tedious. How can someone who can hardly spell, ‘amoeba’, let alone ‘meiosis’ or even ‘haploid’ be doing a degree? I suspect they have difficulty spelling their name. Of course they always mention dyslexia, yeah sure, yet I’ll bet they can spell Stella Artois! If they used some punctuation it would be easier to read, but one long sentence lasting four pages. I gave it back to them as unreadable, it isn’t my job to teach them English.

“Who’s stolen your lollipop?” said Tom when I went into his office.

“David Flynn, that boy can hardly read and write. How did he get any A levels?”

“He got them, and we accepted him and we get funding for him and he owes a lot of money, I suspect, like they all do.”

“Wouldn’t he have been better suited to becoming a carpenter or a plumber?”

“Ours is not to reason why, ours is just to enrol or die!”

“Ha ha, you’re not teaching the morons. Stuck away up here in your ivory tower.”

“Well if you hadn’t pissed off the Dean, you might have had one foot on the ladder yourself. Still, to business.” He passed me a letter from York University and some submissions they had made about deer on the Yorkshire moors.

“This looks very good, I wonder if we should put them in touch with Exeter, because this should work on Dartmoor too.”

“I did think about that, but I’ll leave it to you to sort out. I have my lunch to think about.”

“Oh, meeting the Dean are we?” I asked sarcastically.

“Yes, pity you and he don’t like each other, you could have come too.”

“I’m quite happy with a sandwich from the canteen, it also helps me to keep my weight down.”

“What weight, Jesus, girl, if you get any thinner, you’ll be worse than Stella.”

“Oh, that’s a point; she’s coming home for the weekend. I have to go and get her, so I wondered if I…”

“If you shot off early, like after lunch you mean?”

I smiled at him, “You are so kind as an employer.” I kissed him on the cheek and dashed out before the startled look on his face turned to, ‘NO.’

I’d had time to clear my Friday afternoon, I’d only had one tutorial, which I switched to the morning, so things were looking up.

I looked at my flowers and smiled, they were really nice. I sat eating my wholemeal roll, although the cheese salad would have been suitable for lactose intolerant diners, there was so little of the Cheddar, when there was a knock at my door.

I shouted, “Come in,” then coughed as the lettuce, which I suspect was really cactus, stuck in my throat.

The door opened and in walked Sophie. “I wanted to say thanks for your help on Friday.”

“You did, already,” I nodded to the flowers.

“I hope you like them.”

“I do, very much, thank you.”

“I’ve done my assignment,” she handed me her folder.

“Thank you. I’ll see you on Friday morning then?” This was her usual tutorial time. I’d now have to find time to mark her work before then.

“Yes.” She left and I went back to my search for the missing Cheddar.

The rest of the week went in a blur, Des came down and built a set for filming the baby dormice. He showed me the rushes and they looked as if he was in the woods somewhere, this would be especially so once he edited in some shots of trees and things which would distract the viewer.

I was so busy, that Friday morning was on me before I knew it. Instead of riding, I drove in and was ready then to go and get my favourite sister in law. So a quick lunch after my two tutorials and I set off for Sussex and Stella’s clinic.

I listened to the radio as I went along. Radio Solent, the local BBC station had a good signal and it was background noise. The news came on at 2.00 pm and the top story was, ‘Cyclist attacked near Portsmouth University.’

My stomach flipped as I listened to the report of some young woman who was hit off her bike and kicked several times by a man, who was described as six feet tall, thickset and wearing a hoodie. The attacker escaped through Victoria Park. No reason was given for the attack.
#######################
Comments are allowed, in fact they are encouraged. I'm using them to teach Bonzi to read - he finds the back of a Whiskas can rather too easy now, so it's your comments. 8)