I’ll preface this with a comment. There is a tendency in some circles to believe the opinion of someone simply because they hold positions of power {and presumed responsibility?}. This tendency is unwarranted. It is like asking Trump or RJK for a medical opinion and expecting an answer which does not come from some geezer they met down the golf club. What they say is the sort of thing that people gob off to each other about but has no scientific or factual basis. People do gob off to each other a lot.

This dream comes not long before we head back to France.

The dream starts. I am observing some kind of grouping of people / task force / inquiry asking around about me. They are asking various figures in English academia about me and trusting the answers they are getting. They speak to one let’s call him prof T. He is “senior” and perhaps known to government. T is suggesting that I am after power, positional power and influence. He is worried in case I somehow and mightily weirdly challenge his power base. Way back I remember that he considered me some kind of political threat in an academic context. He was out to undermine me. People are listening to him and buying the narrative that I am seeking power. In the dream I think that they are Garry Glitter- my gang – numpties. Nobody has any current knowledge of me and at best what they say is old, back from when they were trying to make it. They are in a weird time warp. It is an English power trip maya-illusion.

The scene changes and I am in some kind of academic setting. They want me to give a presentation on my Ph.D. thesis to an audience and in front of a panel “gang” of academics. They are behaving like a boy’s club and having low degree mutual pissing up the wall point scoring banter. I have not prepared; it is a long time ago but start to present some of the work from my thesis on hydrogen bonded molecular clusters. The idea being that under certain circumstance we might enable gas phase proton transfer in a system tractable for study at ab initio quantum chemical levels.  I quickly get into my stride and thought pattern As the talk progresses, they interject to show their cleverness. They are pre-emptive because the next steps in the talk answer the questions. They are trying to show off and put me down, in my place. I decide that this is silly so add a comedic part to my delivery which the audience enjoys and engages with. They are being pompous. I finish my talk. The audience are jocular and enjoying the comedy

Someone else is going into the room to present. I wish him luck. I note that he has not taken his overhead projector marker pens.

As I come to, I am reminded of how clubby and cliquey things can be, how those in the club think they “know” but are very mistaken in their jocular chumminess. Back slapping is not wisdom. ….plus ça change

The dream ends…