Observation

Today I did an excellent day's training on workplace safety and managing difficult client emotions and behaviour. It involved by far the most proficient use of an online 'classroom' I have seen: the tutor not only asked questions of specific trainees on the basis of their experience - gleaned from our round-the-group introductions - but also enlarged the image of the person being asked so we could all see the interaction between the two of them. Even better, he changed his background in order, for example, to show us the context of interactions between videoed people or, even more impressively, to put himself in court and cross question one of us.

Usually in online 'training' (uninspired lecturing with added tech glitches) I'm doing at least one other task in parallel. This was 6½ hours (less breaks) of my attention held. Very impressive.

It involved a sobering short exercise demonstrating how unobservant most of us are most of the time. I know that I am unobservant; what I wasn't expecting was that most people in the group were even worse than I was.


On my way out of work I was surprised to spot this grafitti'd-black patch. I walk past this wall twice every workday. The last time I remember it, it looked like the extra. That was on 30 November. When did it change? No idea.


Some of you will recognise this as the Oxford Odeon. After I blipped its front three months ago, I took up SpotsOfTime's challenge to find out how many bricks it contains. At least she will be interested in the British Brick Society's answer to my email:

I only have very general information of the special interests of the members of our Society but after checking the listings I don’t think any of them would have the information you ask about.

As you say an estimate of the quantity of facing bricks could be calculated from the areas of exterior brickwork but that would only be indication of the facing bricks of the outermost surface of the external walling and that is likely to be thick and not be consistent throughout its height. The building is typical of its pre WW2 period of construction and its thick external walls, foundation masonry and internal partitioning would also be of brickwork and would account for a much greater number of common bricks.  Without detailed construction drawings a meaningful estimate is not possible.

I'll just have to count them as the building is demolished.