Back in the United States

The trip to Britain was lovely and mostly successful. I sat on Lyra and Will's bench in the Oxford Botanical Gardens, rode on Duncan the Tank Engine, saw the window of Dorothy Sayers' study and stood on Cadfan's rather muddy Way. I drank soda with blackcurrant in the company of gramarye1971, avariel_wings and innerbrat, because the bartender misunderstood me when I said "cider". I spent time with several old and dear friends, some of whom convinced me that I like Bollywood movies.* I managed to avoid Live8, G8, the announcement of London's Olympic victory, and some terrorist attacks. I went to a parade at St James' Park in honor of the sixtieth anniversary of the end of D-Day, and saw the Queen and Prince Philip riding along the parade route.

I came home too soon to get a British copy of Harry Potter, alas.

Also, I did research.

I'm in Philadelphia now, where I will be for... two weeks? I do seem to keep coming and going this summer.

*Sidenote on Bollywood movies: prosewitch, you must see a film called Paheli. It involves a young woman whose husband is replaced by a spirit, and it clearly requires a folklorist's eye.