Struggling On

This is what it feels like at the moment. Everything inside the four walls of the office is a struggle. Things outside aren't so bad. The trouble is that not enough waking hours of the day are spent outside. It was a struggle getting home tonight too, the high winds playing havoc with the overhead power cables causing shorts and trains stuck in the wrong places. Mind you, the weather is so wild that I was happy for once not to be cycling back, especially as I've had a few pints this evening at the wonderful Fanny's Ale House.

It's rare for one of my team to depart the company but we said goodbye to G tonight, who has moved on to pursue a project very close to his heart. It's such a worthy cause indeed that we had no choice really but to let him go. This lovely guy has become displaced from Syria and is going to pursue research into ways of using technology to provide pop-up educational facilities for the hundreds of thousands of children from his country trapped in refugee camps. A whole new generation is growing up in a kind of cultural vacuum, knowing nothing about life beyond the incredibly meager existence lived out within the confines of their temporary camps - which are beginning to assume a frightening permanence. He's very passionate. We all wished him the very best and expect to keep in close touch. It was a lively evening of rich conversation. Once again, I was reminded how privileged I am, despite all the stresses, to be working with such a bright and lively group of people.