internet troubles (and more)

apologies for the long gaps between posts:

in the two weeks of the SMS @ Montréal, i stayed in a dormitory building that had no internet access, so all my recent posts were written at coffeehouses and the university maths building (where the lectures were held).

also: last thursday my laptop and passport were stolen, which may explain the lack of posts in the last few days.

on a related note, i learned a few things:

1. despite the hassle of it all, you must file an official police report in order to get a replacement passport;
2. if you don't make an appointment in advance at the U.S. Consulate, then you are put to the very back of the line.

on a related note, i'm glad that i brought a notebook and pens with me [1]. i think i had scrapped out 3-4 ideas before they called me to the passport window .. which was fairly productive, actually.

in particular, i have a new idea to attack the usual conjectures that i'm obsessed with. almost surely, they won't work, but i might learn something that could be useful, later on. (-:


those things said, i still like the city of Montréal. to be honest, i think it would be a fine place to live; too bad they don't seem to be hiring .. \-:

[1] due to issues of security, large bags and knapsacks are not permitted in U.S. Consulate buildings. i'm glad that i was warned of this in advance: instead of spending hours being frustrated at what i couldn't prove, i would have spent hours being frustrated and with nothing to do (and in particular, not being able to be frustrated at what i couldn't do, anyway).