h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Next week I'm presenting at the UK stroke forum. Actually no, it's not 'next week' it's Wednesday, and I'm nervous. Very nervous.

The last time I spoke to a room of 500 + people was when I was a student. I was presenting at a national conference on sex education. I was presenting on 'LGBT issues in sex education'. One of the slides was a list of all the questions about gay sex that we had been asked during our sex education programme.

I have a distinct memory of explaining what 'rimming' was in a very large lecture theatre, In the front row was a delegation from a certain African country. These group of devote Christians, who had started an HIV testing and treatment service in their city were clearly horrified that 14 year old boys knew about such sexual acts, and that some were likely to want to take part in them.



Wednesday is different. There is no sex involved in this presentation. There is controversy though. Hopefully there will be lots.

My boss gave me a useful tip, 'Don't worry about how many people there are, think how exciting it is that there are all these people here to listen to what you've been working on for the last 18 months'.

And that is exciting.

I'm sure you'll be great!

The UK Stroke Forum isn't what I thought it was, is it?

B

*wonders what Master B thought that the Uk stroke forum actually is*

*Wanders past*

Sounds like a good event. Weds morning, I'll be talking about forests to 300 people in Paris - we could swap slides - that would confuse them...

sprout

good luck!

Hmm. I enlivened (if that's not too strong a word) my last presentation by slipping in the phrase 'My hovercraft is full of eels' translated into Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Esperanto and Klingon. On that basis, I see no reason not to lighten the mood by mentioning rimming.

I'm sure you'll wow them. And the next time I see you, remind me to tell you the story about my Aunt Freeda and the mechanic.