Home (at last!)

Canterbury Kent (as opposed to NZ): another BAAS conference over. Phew. Finally finished faffing with the paper and delivered it okay (despite technical difficulties with videos and OHPs etc...)

Also despite plans to the contrary due to jet-lag I did NOT manage to keep to the no/limited alcohol rule. So spectacularly badly did I break this that, within 30 mins of finding out my lovely colleague and fellow-BAAS junkie Annie was in the next room to me, we were in the bar and drinking wine. It was an odd conference (I'm not about to make the mistake of last year in providing any details of the papers here - and you've already had the conference panel list anyway), but its always good fun to see academics dancing, especially when you are safely in the bar able to mock them with abandon.

Anyway, a good time was had by all/most. And we avoided at least one major incident by strategic relocation of our gang out of range of potential conflict (NB it is never good to have fiesty feminists seated near lecherous lothario male academics who are busy pawing at colluding young female academics and gawping down their cleavage. It creates just a little tension! If you're going to engage in conference flirtation or liaison, at least have the good grace to have some taste in your chosen conference compadre...) And with bar-vaulting, repeated discussion of favourite films, and the inaugural BAAS conference paper of my colleague, it was a memorable conference in lots of ways. At times surreal (drunkenly group listening to an i-Pod: note, we did not have speakers...) we made full use of the kitchenette areas to continue drink and conversation till approximately 2am each night. What more can you ask for!!!

And, you gotta love an occasion where on the opening night you can spend an hour in the company of one of our most lovely BAAS members delivering an inciteful and informative paper on Depression-era songs and Woody Guthrie that included some wonderful performances of said songs. Of course, this meant he wasn't just hawking a suitcase home with him afterwards, but also a fiddle, banjo and guitar. But man it was worth it! Go Will!

So, now I am home.

And what do I find Cloud has bought me? The Doctor Who Adventures magazine. Because I am of course 10 years old (NB anyone who has actually seen the DT sticker with it and the second listed caption sticker next to it will understand my gritted teeth glare at Cloud's over-perceptive imagination for getting it for me...)