The Daily Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 2808 by Angharad Copyright© 2015 Angharad

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This is a work of fiction any mention of real people, places or institutions is purely coincidental and does not imply that they are as suggested in the story.
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Episode 234 doz for dodecaphiles.

The weather for the rest of the week remained mild, wet and at times very windy, the storms at first being denied and then named as they alternately drowned or destroyed things. However, all the leaves Si had swept up remained on the compost heap because they were soggy and presumably sticky as well.

It was a pain travelling to and fro the university in the rain or sunshine—the latter being low in the sky tended to blind anyone trying see where they were going through the windscreen of a car. It was also difficult to know what to wear, skirts in the wind tend to fly around the place and feel very draughty, whereas trousers never feel quite so smart. Thankfully we had no formal requirements, so much of the week I wore jeans, corduroy variety and a shirt. I know, I go to such lengths to legitimately wear skirts and end up choosing trousers most of the time—they’re just more convenient much of the time.

I also wore flat heeled lace up shoes with them which are more comfortable. Next week, I had to do the annual Christmas lecture. Every year one of the professors has to do a lecture in the main hall to anyone from the university who wants to come. It has to be in simple language so everyone can understand it. I decided to do one on evolution including some ideas by Professor Brasier from Oxford and his observations of fossil and living foraminifera.

I spent much of the morning drafting the outline of my lecture and what slides I’d need to organise to illustrate it. This is essential for non-biologists otherwise they may struggle to understand what I mean. Pictures always help the understanding of unfamiliar objects.

Being anthropocentric creatures many of us believe the evolution of humans from a shared ancestor with the apes to be of huge importance, leading to Homo sapiens. It isn’t. Much more important happened about one to two billion years ago when two single-celled simple bacteria decided to merge or one swallowed the other. This was the moment from which complex cells could exist.

Over a period of hundreds of millions of years, during which time the earth was fairly stable the symbiotic nature of the two simple bacteria presumably benefited both bacteria and one became part of the other but with a nucleus that had a separate membrane around it—a historical hint of what happened.

In the case of green plants, their forerunners got together with cyanobacteria, the latter eventually forming chloroplasts which ultimately is thought to have been the founding moment of all green plants. They provided the oxygen which most species require to prosper, as a by-product of photosynthesis. They also provided glucose for the partner cell to consume and which in return provided protection. This is demonstrated quite clearly in some algae such as spirogyra.

I left a list of species names and other items I wanted as slides to illustrate my talk and gave them to Diane to run down and obtain pictures. I’d warned John, one our technicians he might have to help her. As she’s quite an attractive woman, I suspect I know who’ll be doing all the running around. He might have to take some photos from microscope slides, but that’s what he gets paid for, otherwise, we’ll have to beg, borrow or steal things from other universities or the internet. We had a week to acquire the slides and make any PowerPoint ones I’d need. I’d be talking for about an hour with some time for questions afterwards, then it’s mince pies and tea in the refectory and the term is officially over. Sadly, that doesn’t mean I can stop, though the technicians will take care of the animals, including the hibernating dormice over the holiday so I don’t have to go in to do that, neither does Tom.

I collected the girls from school and they told me about their day. Apparently, they can’t go long without one of them getting involved in something that causes me to be requesting to see the headmistress. That would be tomorrow morning as she had to go out that afternoon.

When I asked what had happened and they’d better tell me, because if the headmistress does first, whoever it concerns is in big trouble with me, let alone what the headmistress wants to do to them. I didn’t mind defending or apologising for them providing I knew what was happening and wasn’t caught unawares by the headmistress.

Danielle eventually owned up amid much blushing and finally tears. I notice she’s also got one or two spots, presumably from the oestrogen. If I understood things correctly, the boy she’d fancied and over who she’d practically come to blows with Cindy, had asked Cindy out. She was doubly upset because she’s been done, courtesy of Pia, and Cindy hasn’t. Also, Cindy doesn’t have any spots but does have her original genitalia. She could see the irony but didn’t find it particularly so.

The boy of course goes to a local comprehensive and may have been put off with dating the convent’s football team captain, county and England cap; he plays soccer, the boy that is, and might feel inadequate with Danni, a bit like I do with Trish talking about physics.

I tried to tell her that sometimes it was more important to see herself and Cindy as friendly rivals and that her friendship was possibly more important than a few boys who they’d outgrow when they went off to university.

“How can she be my friend, she betrayed me.”

“I suspect that’s a bit melodramatic for what happened, Danielle.”

“But we agreed, neither of us would go out with him as long as the other was interested.”

“You said he asked her out?”

“So she said.”

“She didn’t exactly betray your trust, did she?”

“She went out with him—what’s that then—Scotch mist?”

“No need to be cheeky, young lady, I’m trying to help.”

“Well, you say such stupid things.”

“Thank you.”

We got home and she ran off up to her room. David looked at me and I mimed, ‘Don’t ask.’ He shrugged and continued making the dinner. Isn’t life with teenagers such fun?