Work

Given I’m leaving the UK for such a long time, I’m also leaving my jobs.

I have been working at the Natural History Museum and last Friday was my last day there. I’ve been there for 3 years and I’ve made some good friends in that time. And while I’m leaving the museum, I’m keeping the friends! My last day was in the museum (which I don’t do very often, I mostly work from home in Cambridge). I spent the last hour wandering through some of the collection spaces with some of my excellent colleagues (massive thanks to them all). I saw the first ammonite that Darwin collected from South America and saw the labels he put on it. Not the prettiest of ammonites (the one from Antarctica was stunning), but it was quite amazing to see. I saw moa eggs, a desiccated moa head and foot, some fossilised moa feathers and some not fossilised moa feathers. I learnt that octopuses have arms (not tentacles) and saw an amazing fossilised octopus where the ink sac is visible. The spiky trilobites have too many legs but are beautiful nonetheless. The opalised belemnites have the most incredible colours! It’s always great to see the actual specimens (and their housing) given that they really are the centre of everything the museum does.

I’m teaching my last dance class with CDC tomorrow – three glorious hours of Waltz. I’ve been teaching these classes since just after Covid, and it has been an incredible journey for me (and my amazing students). I’ve had so much fun and become a much better teacher as a result. 3 hours of perfect joy every week. I will really miss this while I’m away.

I’m also a trustee at Red Balloon Learner Centre in Milton. I’ve got one more meeting this week before wrapping this up too. It has been such a privilege to be able to support this incredible organisation and work with their fantastic staff. Who knew that GDPR and Health and Safety and pay review frameworks could be so much fun!!!

I wonder what I’ll find to keep myself occupied with all this impending free time??? 😉