Wow, it’s been a long time since I posted anything! What have I been doing? Work-wise, I have been busy helping my Ph.D. student, Clare McGovern defend her dissertation. Yay! you’re done Dr. Clare!! I have been busy writing papers with two PhD students in Econ (Bert Kramer and Adlai Newson – both amazingly smart). The paper with Bert examines the impact of pension regimes on parliamentary careers in Canada. The paper with Adlai looks at the links between rising literacy, the onset of electoral competition, and the transition to programmatic politics in Victorian Britain. My co-author, Oliver Proksch (McGill) visited, and we worked on our parliamentary opposition paper. I’m also revising a manuscript at CPS and I am now co-editing the LSQ. I just returned from giving talks in Vienna (EPSA conference) and ANU… lots of air miles this year. Frankly, I’m gassed – no rest this summer at all.
Outside work, I’ve been biking a lot. Finally did a Gran Fondo – the Axel Merckx Gran Fondo in Penticton. I did OK: 160km in 5 hrs 2 min, good for someting like 320th out of 1150 riders in my age group. (66th on the KOM, though!! I’ll get one of those polka dot jerseys one day.) My riding buddy, Jamin, rocked it finishing 80th/1150… wow!! It was a great weekend and much fun was had by the whole family. Hadrian did the piccolo fondo. (Hadrian needs a new bike: his cranks are so tiny; he pedals and pedals but doesn’t go anywhere fast.)
I am going to skip the Cypress challenge this year. All the data entry I have been doing has taken a toll on the body. A stand-up desk has really helped my back, but now I have terrible tendinitis in my shoulder from the computer mouse. Getting old sucks!
OK: That’s it for updates. Now onto election thoughts.
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