Toronto

I'm in a state of inspiredness upon my return from a conference in Toronto. The conference was held in downtown Toronto at various venues around the convention center, including the Royal York Hotel (where the queen stays when she's in town). My hotel was right next to the CN Tower, a wonderful navigation aid for finding my way around. The weather wasn't too cold, but scarves, hats, and gloves were very welcome. A series of covered walkways and underground tunnels made the trek between meeting locations much warmer.

The two newsworthy events of the conference were the interview with Jacques Derrida (between 1,500 to 2,000 people attended that event) and the debate over the authenticity of the inscription recently deciphered on the ossuary that perhaps once held the bones of James, brother of Jesus.

After attending a last session on Tuesday morning, I took off on a knitting adventure. Kate had recommended Romni Wools to me, and I spent a happy couple of hours browsing all their aisles of wool and boxes of patterns. I ended up buying only a couple of pattern leaflets because I was too overwhelmed by all the choice. The store is located in a garment district, and I walked back along Queen Street window shopping at the funky thrift shops, fabric remnant stores, ethnic restaurants, hardware stores, grocery stores, etc., with not a chain store in sight!

It's good to be back home, and I feel more inclined to tackle my studies. Now we'll see if feeling translates into action....