Very little progress on the health-front I am afraid. The bug seems to have fallen for me, ever so truly, madly, deeply. Argh. I am still unable to speak due to the soreness of me throat, but that stops me not from eating frozen yoghurt – O Timothy, wherefore art thou an idiot? Salt water gargles help a huge deal, which is the theme around which I have based this current bout of sickness of mine – getting well without the aid of western medication. So, I have been trying these home remedies, including (and not restricted to) – salt water gargles, massages of the nose bridge, application of traditional and mentholated Chinese balms, etc. Of course, I then negate any benefit they might be bringing with eating frozen yoghurt, or sipping a cold glass of diet coke. Hallelujah. I must admit though, that this day I feel much better. Not sneezing as much, and not coughing my heart out. I even managed to talk with my bro on the phone for around an hour without incident! This is in stark contrast to yesterday, when the weather was so bright and sunny and I just couldn’t stop sneezing and coughing the whole day.

This of course spells disaster for my plans for this weekend. The namesake and I had planned a visit to jolly ol’ Aachen this weekend, and having us a merry time at the local keeps there, not to mention rounding off the trip chez Pallas. It would have been an amazing trip, had it not been for this darned illness of mine, which also made me miss the Witte Donderdagloop at the OU. It is such a shame, for it seems they had ever such a great time at the loop thingimajigger! Grr arrgh harrumph!

I have been trying to utilize this down time for something other than just plonking myself in front of the idiot box and watching some random movie. In accord with YMI’s recommendations last Monday, I have been exploring the work done in Ontological extensions to IMSLD complaint courses, in order to better formulate a strategy for TDA classification of the IMSLD aware tools and their characteristics so that I can have a more up-to-date and complete SOA. I spent the better part of the last two days researching this angle, and though in my opinion there is not much direct relevance betwitxt the what I wish to accomplish and the Ontological definitions using LOCs (as recommended by Mizoguchi -due to the incomplete implementation of the Ontological models for the three IMSLD levels, as well as the fact that Ontologies come into the picture at a higher level from the authoring system which at best can make use of Ontological definitions of existing UoLs to better locate, reference and embed the LOs in the course), I can see a correlation, which will help me in better structuring my paper, talking with authority about the proposed approaches to TDA implementations in my SOA.

I shall start editing my article again, restructuring it to better mirror this classification. A long day awaits.

Update@16:37

It was indeed so touching. The Frenchman dropped by for a final goodbye, saying that he could not leave, without first having said goodbye to me. He was his usual effervescent self, and we joked and laughed around like old times. It is going to be ever so difficult to have him not there in the ApeCage anymore, when I rejoin work on Tuesday. With his uniquely quiet mannerisms and low profile that he maintained, we at the Cage got to know him, a tad too late – the first time in Lunteren, and from then on he became “Ze Frenchman”, the one who inducted me as an honorary “Frenchman”. We have had some great times and greater laughs, times we shall never forget indeed. Do keep in touch good ol’ Koné. Goodbye, farewell and Amen.