Milano Summer

D reached home in record time. He drove home at 150km/h with another conference presenter O who had to also catch a 6pm flight to Boston. He was planning to catch a bus from Kingston but it would have been cutting it very close. So we had enough time to have a nice pizza lunch alfresco before the taxi arrived. O has a very young daughter, he also works in the area of VC and his marriage is also bi-racial. So much in common but he is knee deep in the quintessential publish or perish problem. He has just moved to another University because he is having trouble publishing, which we find strange as he has a BSD (big swinging d*%k) supervisor. Usually that will ensure a smooth path. He is torn between finding a great home for his family in his new location or just finding one that has the specs to ensure easy resale when he moves on to the next University (if he publishes) or moves cities if he decides to get out of the game (perish). We suggested to him that if he cites the right people (ehm ehm) he may just find some very friendly referees.

In the rush of getting everything sorted out and loaded in the taxi, we only realized that we had forgotten the stroller when we reached the airports. We had the new Pikollo front pack for Dylan that I had just bought so it wasn’t that much of a problem at the airports, but we knew we had to get one in Milan as I would be stuck in the hotel without one. Lugging a 32 pound baby on my back while dragging along a whiny Sash to the Duomo would just be self inflicted torture.
The flight out was uneventful other that the realization that Dylan is an absolute handful on flights. He is usually pretty hyper at home but at least we are able to let him burn off all that energy and determination by letting him crawl around..on flights he had to be on our laps at all times so he was just a bundle of hyperactive joy. Sash was an absolute gem and pretty much entertained herself by “doing work” on her Cinderella laptop. We bought Sasha a couple of outfits she liked when we arrived in Milan to thank her for listening to us. We are rethinking taking Dylan on any other flights until he turns 5 when we can put him on an earlier flight on his own as an unaccompanied minor.

When we arrived in Milan D and I were just about ready to pass out from lack of sleep but the kids were up and ready to go and we knew we had to find a stroller so upon the concierge’s advice, and after a couple of espressos, we found a baby boutique a couple of blocks from our hotel. Not our usual sort of destination when looking for baby gear but with the language constraints (we spent about 10 minutes at another store where the proprietor nearly sold us a doll stroller) we just decided to bite the bullet. Initially we were thinking of getting the cheapest umbrella stroller but the cheapest they had was €95. Instead, we opted to spend a bit more and get a travel side by side double stroller, the Maclaren Twin Triumph. It folds like a dream and is so very light. It really wont replace our Phi&Teds as that is narrower and maneuvers in all weather, but at least we wont need to take that along with us on flights. I have had people ask why we don’t just let Sash walk, but I have to remind them that when we take in the sights, Sash may be expected to walk all day, and as I do this on my own when D is working, a single stroller isn’t the most practical option. We have already invested so much in the flights and hotels, so why not a bit more in the required equipment to make it an enjoyable experience.

After dinner we had trouble getting Dylan to bed as he was extremely tired, and his crib was not his own. He cried for what seemed liked ages and we even received calls from the management. A man who had a room downstairs knocked on our door and told us he was trying to sleep and to “do something with the baby!” I was getting pissed mainly due to sleep deprivation and also because my baby was upset and some fuckwit had the gall to suggest that we were not trying to deal with it. Did he think we liked the screaming? We finally got Dylan to bed but I was still upset about that man. In the morning, D went down to breakfast as he had to be at the conference early. He rushed up before he left to tell me that he arrived at the restaurant to fin Mr. Fuckwit sitting with my supervisor J who is also here for the conference. D said he had a “Oh my God what have I done” when J introduced them both and mentioned that I was D’s co-author and also his student (PhD students are never ex-students..we will always be tied to our supervisors in some inexplicable manner. A few weeks ago I presenter a paper at a conference in Toronto and D’s supervisor was in the audience. It sort of freaked me out as in my mind it was sort of like having my father in law in the audience. No, let me correct that. D cares more about what his supervisor thinks than what his Dad thinks). He asked if the kids were here and that we should meet up later this afternoon. So we all had G&Ts this evening in the bar downstairs…J was able to have a nice chat with Sash and we explained to her that when she does her PhD J will be her teacher. She seemed resigned. After drinks I went off for dinner while D went off to his dinner. He came home early to tell me that at his table, sitting 2 seats away there was a woman telling the rest of the table about this baby crying in her hotel..and she said “Why couldn’t they just stick a pacifier in the baby’s mouth?”. She also proudly told everyone she called management to complain. D just said “Well, that’s funny. I am at that hotel and I have a baby with me. He was having trouble adjusting after our flight from Toronto.” That’s all D said and excused himself as he was just too tired to deal with Ms. Fuckwit. The thing is we realize that the crying may have disturbed many people, but to suggest that we were what, enjoying the bloody spa while we let him cry?? Just goes to show that as easy it is to make contact with potential friendly referees, it is just as easy to make some unfriendly ones remember you for life.