This is the second time I'm traveling through the new Heathrow terminal 5 (each time on my way to India) this year - what better time to catch up on my blog? I'd set aside this Fall as the period when I'd be staying at home and writing - but it's turned out to be a lot more travel than I anticipated.
Two weeks ago, the Blazer lecture at Lexington, Ky went well, plus I got a chance to go to the races (where I almost bet on winning horse number 6 in race 8, but changed it to number 9 at the last minute - I can't even blame it on dyslexia - just one of those odd quirks).
Last week, I went to Emory University and the Atlanta Queer Lit Festival - great audience, but I got the impression that the festival (and audience) leaned more towards poetry than fiction. Attended my first poetry slam - wasn't sure which word the emphasis lay on - finally decided that the way to enjoy such events is to look at them as performance art more than anything else. (The performers were very young, very energetic and very earnest.) The true delight was meeting my co-speaker Staceyann Chin - besides being a terrific stage presence and a wonderful writer, she also has a way of genuinely making you question your assumptions. And in food news, I met the octopus of my life - grilled and served on pork belly stewed with onions - I'd return to the new 'Iberian Pig' restaurant in Decatur just for that.
Mumbai's going to be interesting on this trip - I'm hoping to see the way through the difficult parts of my next novel by making the same trek that the characters do - from Mahim up to Juhu, and perhaps beyond. Let's hope the right inspiration shows up along the way.