I think I've been starving a little for academic talk. I didn't realize it until I spent three hours talking to Stephanie the other day, and it was brought home to me even more when I just spent an hour and a half talking to Nnedi. We talked about composition for maybe fifteen minutes -- the rest of it was about being a grad student in an English Lit. with Creating Writing Emphasis Ph.D. Which is what she's doing here at University of Illinois (the school Kev teaches at, the one next door to me). She's in her first year, I'm in my third, and it was really nice to be able to tell her some of the things I figured out in my first two years, especially since it looks like she may end up in my field, as a post-colonialist, though her specialty there will likely be African literature (in English), rather than Asian-American literature. We'll be reading the same theorists! I got to enthuse about Spivak to her! And warn her about Bhabha...whom I do like, but he takes some work, y'know?
Anyway, the whole conversation was just a rush for the academic in me (in much the same way that the Oregon workshop and WorldCon were rushes for the sf editor in me). Much fun, and made me miss my department a bit. I'm busy and Nnedi's busy and Stephanie's busy, but maybe the three of us can get together periodically and be all academic and supportive and stuff. That'd be good.
Finished Unbearable before lunch; on to Hunted. At some point this afternoon, Roshani may stop by -- it's her birthday, and I have presents for her. Presents!
I still owe Karina and my little sister presents. I have been so bad about presents lately. Sigh.
