Saturday, January 16, 2010

Quelle joie! Le calcul des variations est arrivé!

We were in the apartment all day yesterday apart from mid-afternoon when we wandered through the fast-diminishing slush to Waitrose to restock. Of course the DHL people chose that precise moment to try to deliver a package: we found the card when we returned.

This morning we drove to the DHL service centre near the M4. The place was packed, the queue long and everybody had a story. One person, after queuing for three quarters of an hour, was told that his parcel wasn't there because it had been left with a neighbour.

"But it doesn't say so on the form!" he complained indignantly, pointing to the unchecked box. The assistant politely agreed and handed him a complaint form as he furiously vacated the premises.

We were similarly unsettled as the minutes went by, people behind us retrieved their parcels while we waited and waited. Finally a big parcel from the OU appeared. Yes, it was M820: Calculus of Variations.

The first assignment is due in early April.