17:27 Parliament Hill... today there is smog over all the city... the tall buildings at Canary Wharf are almost invisible... there is a slight wind from the northeast... 2 traction kites are flying lazily and almost falling out of the air...
...i speak with a man from Islamabad who works for Mr Murphy, the owner of the construction company whose equipment park is nearby... i learn that Mr Murphy is over 90, drives an inexpensive car, is approachable by his employees and began in the industry as a labourer... it's so nice to hear of a large company that is not just an abstract corporation but the lifework of someone who is himself a legend...
...about 10 children arrive with about 5 adults - they are screaming and running about and throwing balls and changing this quiet hilltop into a lively and communicative bedlam... no sign of aggressiveness, only excitement...
...and now they are gone and our civilization returns...
...approaching the tumulus i saw a man holding an inverted umbrella who was looking closely at a gorse bush and tapping parts of it ... i went to sit in my habitual seat and wondered what he was doing... then i asked a woman standing nearby if this was ancient British ritual (for at the tumulus i've sometimes seen people enacting celtic songs and dances)...
...she explains that her husband is an entomologist and is collecting insects in the umbrella... i realised that what seems like eccentricity, even madness, turns out to be a respectable activity when it is known to be scientific!... perhaps all our actions are like that: crazy to strangers?
...he said he was surprised that no one is investigating the tumulus itself - especially as that can now be done without disturbing anything... when i mentioned that this is said to be the grave of Boudicea he said 'it's theoretically possible'... what a pleasure to meet someone who is accustomed to speaking with precision...
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© 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 john chris jonesIf you wish to reproduce any of this text commercially please send a copyright permission request to jcj at publicwriting.net