I almost studied for this qualification a year ago, but I was so worried about money and my lack of work that I could not focus on it. So delayed a year. However the sad truth; this year my financial situation is even worse. In a couple of days time my work ends. When I switched to this work I had hoped that my temporary status would become permanent and things would be okay or I could try and treat the summer holiday as that despite being unpaid and therefore a time in which to study like mad before hopefully finding work in September. Instead I am just getting more and more demoralised. In fact worse than that.
On Saturday I was supposed to be visiting a conference on my research topic. Various disasters on route,where I thought I needed an Oyster card top up, then could not remember my pin number, took an hour to get the top up,then realised that I did not need it in the first place meant I got to the conference two hours late. The bits I heard were worth hearing. But it means a great opportunity to make contacts was probably lost. I was lost too I tried a different route home and landed up going back on myself. Stress. So on Sunday I was too shattered to attempt another trip to London to catch up with the rest of the students. I am not sure who was supposed to be there, but I was hoping to see two students who have offered to help with my research, but have not sent me anything so far, unless they have done my online survey.
Some of the participants at the event included artist Gloria Ojularia Sule. http://www.gloarts.co.uk/. I asolutely loved some of her work, large murals, just the kind of thing I would like to paint. She was not brought up by her Nigerian dad or her British mum, being put in a home instead, but the power of her heritgage and the need to engage in it, shines through her work, as you can see in the picture above.
I also heard Dr Kevin Searle, I don't know enough about his story, but he said that he was not a great achiever, working in Tescoes when the lyrics of Rap made him start to really engage in education. He now has a PhD in the subject. He delivers his views a bit like a rap artist, young, energised, passionate, a bit unco-ordinated and very interesting, definitely a different type of academic. Though most I come across are infinitely more hip than I remember last time round. I gave him a copy of my research questionnaire, but do not know if there will be a chance to follow up on it with him.One good thing on the rare occasions I get around to reading I really enjoy the information I am gaining. A book on Masculinities had a lot of illuminating stuff and amazingly the chapter I have just read on research ethnography in another book was also good. I feel I am really updating my theory knowledge in this field, just massive amounts to go.
