Kalamazoo ftw

So the problem with going to the International Congress on Medieval Studies in Kalamazoo this year was that I enjoyed it way too much. I like standing up in front of a room full of thoughtful, interested people and telling them about an idea I had, and then listening to other people tell me their interesting ideas, and then all of us discussing it together. Which sounds strange, coming from a 100% introvert like me, but really. And I felt like a for-real, legitimate scholar again, which is a feeling I haven’t had for a while and so was pretty exhilarating.

Of course, it helps that I spent most of my time at the Arthuriana booth hanging out with people who I only see once a year, at Kzoo. I actually only went to one panel—mine—and when I wasn’t at the booth, I was wandering the exhibit hall or watching the cygnets on the pond with B. He came to the exhibit hall too—his first word was “book!” and his first sentence was “read da book!” so naturally I had to show him around. I bought a couple books—one of them because as soon as I walked in, my best friend took me by the elbow and dragged me over to it and put it in my hands :-) and one because it’s by an author I’ve been wanting to read and seems to hit the sweet spot where my personal interests and my research interests intersect. I bought nothing because it was on some sort of obligatory reading list or bibliography.

I also bought myself a hot pink t-shirt with a dragon picking his teeth with a sword after finishing off a knight. “Sometimes the dragon wins.”

Traveling overnight by myself was fun—I realized after I got home that this had been the first time I’ve done that since college, and the first time ever that I’ve stayed in a hotel room without any other adults. Taking a trip with just me and B was peaceful and pleasant—he and I are pretty laid back and prefer to just entertain ourselves quietly when in the hotel room and take in the scenery when out and about, so we’re perfect travel companions. Even if he does kick all the blankets off. Violently. All night.

So much space! Just for us!

Leftover Bilbo's pizza by the pond. Also a closeup of where he lost his unicorn horn.

I had been dreading going, to be honest. It seemed like it was going to be a big hassle just to give one little 15-minute talk for a line on a CV that no one was going to care about, but I’m glad I went. It felt more like a little vacation than a trip for work because it recharged parts of my brain that had gotten sluggish over the winter. I got new ideas for research and writing projects out of the discussion at the panel, plus new enthusiasm for working on them, thanks to some time spent talking shop with other academic-types. I hope it helps me build on that sweet spot, so that maybe someday the things I research inside and out and the things I care about will be the same things. That would be lovely.