Writing a post about the start of Michaelmas term has been on my to-do list for three weeks. I’ve been too busy to write about how busy I am. However, the weather today – an autumnal mix of sun, clouds, and light rain – inspired me to take a few photos. Here they are.

I work in Gibbs’ Building, directly across from the Porter’s Lodge which is the College’s front entrance. My office is in G2: The G staircase is through the door to the right of the central arch. My office is on the ground floor to the right, while G1 is to the left and G3-6 are upstairs. If you notice the changing weather, these photos were taken about an hour after most of the others (before and after lunch, in fact).

Two views from the central arch of Gibbs: Looking over the front court to the Porter’s Lodge, and looking over the Back Lawn to the Cam, Queen’s Road, and the Fellows’ Garden beyond. These spectacular views are what inspired this photo essay today. (I did a better job of framing the photo on the left than the photo on the right.)

The G2 set is allocated to Computer Science. The doors on the left leads into a short hallway and then into my office, aptly named G2L. On the right, the doors lead into the same shared hallway and then into G2R. That office is shared among the other Computer Science Fellows, who all have University positions, with private offices elsewhere.

When G2 was a Fellow’s residence, this room would have been the living room. Now it is a teaching and meeting space.

Note the high ceilings, the fancy chandelier, the mismatched furniture, the whiteboard on an easel. When I visited Swarthmore College this summer, I was blown away by the new, modern furniture and the wall-to-wall whiteboards. Gibbs’ Building is truly from another era. Not pictured: a large monitor on a table between the front windows.

My office, G2L, was once a Fellow’s bedroom. Same beautiful high ceilings, but growing shabby and rather unsuited to teaching computer science.

In the photo on the left, note:

• Behind the curtains, a sink, very useful for watering my plants. Also an electric heater, unplugged as I have not yet needed to use it. I may offer it to use in the living room.
• Lovely round table with rickety wooden chairs. When I first arrived, I had to screw the table top back onto its pedestal to stop it from wobbling. I’m not sure what’s to be done for the chairs. I sit on a modern office chair that was behind the writing desk when I moved in.
• Beautiful window with the radiator underneath. I bought the IKEA outdoor sofa cushions that luckily happened to be the right size. The curtains are so old and fragile that when I accidentally pulled on them instead of using the pull rope, they shattered.
• Continuing around the room, a grey IKEA-type sofa that was installed by some prior resident.
• I bought a small yellow IKEA cart to match the curtains. It is a side table on wheels (very useful for holding my tea mug!) and also stores whiteboard supples.
• In front of the sofa and car, a whiteboard easel and a large fan, left behind by the previous resident. The fan is absolutely necessary in the summer when the afternoon sun shines in.

In the photo on the right, you can see:

• A wall-mounted bookshelves, awaiting the too-many-yet-not-enough books I moved from the US.
• The closet door. I have a large bedroom-type closet that mostly holds my two gowns – my PhD regalia from the University of Washington, and the Cambridge MA gown I bought for formal events at King’s.
• In front of the closet, a writing desk that I use for piling things on because it’s far too tall for me to use as a desk, and a wooden chair that I use for hanging my coat on because it’s far too tall for me to sit on. My wastebaskets sit in the writing desk’s footwell.
• Next to the round table shown in the other photo is the coal-burning fireplace. Like the electric heater, it is unused. (Although I haven’t asked, I doubt I’m allowed to use it.) The mantle is handy for displaying my plants and organizing various supplies. It’s also where my office phone/watch charger lives.
• The painting above the mantle is just some guy, a past King’s Fellow but nobody famous. If I recall correctly, the artist is not famous either. Overall, the art left behind by previous occupants is a topic for another post – I’m looking forward to replacing it with things I chose myself.

I understand the College is fundraising for much overdue renovations to Gibbs’ Building – first occupied in the summer of 1732. Among other things, these renovations will shore up the building’s structure and create new, modern teaching spaces in the daylight basement.

Bonus photo: last Friday’s view out my office window.

Finally, a map to help make sense of the photos above. This is a screenshot of the official College map for visitors. Note the Porter’s Lodge in the front, looking across the Front Court to Gibbs’ Building, and beyond to the Back Lawn and the River Cam. The famous King’s College Chapel is on the right.