Christmas Market

 My train from Sheffield to London was delayed for an hour and a half due to a track repair, so I had to ditch my original plans for the afternoon.  After I checked into my hotel, I went down to Piccadilly Circus to find a bookstore, and then when I was wandering around, lo and behold, there was a Christmas Market!  It was delightful.  I was not tempted by the fake snow for sale, though. :)

 

Beautiful Sheffield

 The conference I was attending was all day Friday and Saturday, and the hotel was located so close to the University that I didn't really see much of the city.  But I had a chance to walk around this morning, and it's lovely!  (One of the local folks told me that it's also very compact; the city ends and the moors begin.  Of course, since this conference was based in literary studies, the way he put it was, "Walk 20 minutes and you're in Wuthering Heights!")

Another fun fact about Sheffield: apparently their local government has been socialist for quite some time, and has invested heavily in education, so their schools are very good.  And they also have a very low crime rate (apparently people come from other places to try to figure out what makes Sheffield so special).  Apparently that education is working!

Also, Sheffield is perhaps best known for being the setting for the movie the Full Monty.  So, I was pleased to find a poster for a performance of the play version!

My talk was the last one of the conference (which was nice because it gave me time to get over the jet lag!)  For a longer talk like this, I usually read an excerpt of a story to get people into the topic (the experience and effects of getting immersed/transported into a story).  I almost cut that out this time, since it was an audience of experts, but I decided to leave it in. And it turned out they LOVED that part.  ("I can't believe you read us a story!")  Who knew?

Math Games

 The other week, Jamesie's class had Math Games (a half hour where parents come in and the kids play math games).  A ton of parents were there!  It was fun to get to see his classroom.  (Needless to say, James did not need my help with the very simple math involved in the games!)

Leaving the Country :)

 I'm in England for a conference.  The conference is in Sheffield, but I had an afternoon in London to revisit my old stomping grounds (the area near the British Museum and Covent Gardens).

There are Christmas decorations everywhere in London, but I will forgive them, since we need some cheer at this difficult time. :)

New Wheels

Mattie outgrew his old bike, so now he has a shiny new one!  (Orange and blue, of course.)  He and Mike went for a 12 mile ride today on the Clarence trail!