I'm Back!

I do apologize for the long drought of posts here. Other bloggers post polite warnings when they anticipate being unable to blog, but I've never felt bound by the cultural expectation in the bloggy world that bloggers should give a warning when they disappear. After all, I blog because I like blogging, not necessarily because I feel I have an obligation to my readers. :)

At any rate, the end of my first semester teaching was marred by a bout with pneumonia. That, coupled with the exhaustion of having survived teaching and simultaneously completing a dissertation, brought a brief interruption to blogging.

I'm looking out my window now at the rain--and yes, it is rain--and I think I'm in a perfect November day in Boston. Houston is experiencing a bit of wintry weather; it's about 34 degrees and there are some isolated patches of ice. This has brought city and university to a standstill. Classes were cancelled this morning, and the faculty club was closed (thank goodness I brought my lunch!). Yesterday evening major roads were closed *while* road crews applied sand. I'm still reeling in shock from that one. I didn't realize cold weather on its own could bring life to such a standstill...