I have not done one of these personal posts in quite some time. The pandemic was part of that. Tenure prep related things are part of that. Family stuff is part of that. But also, I haven’t gone to the movies in quite a while, and that turns out was a lot of what I would write about here. Also, some of my creative efforts went into a D&D podcast that is out there.
So, what are some things worth writing about on the personal side of my professional academic website?
Travel
Claire and I were able to take a handful of trips since the pandemic kicked off, most scheduled very quickly (that’s how we’ve been rolling lately). We went to Colorado in 2020 to drive around and visit some national parts (I think I planned it 6 weeks out). We went to Alaska in 2021 (like 2 months out through Lindblad). We went to French Polynesia in 2022 (that was a leisurely 2 month trip where we hired a travel agent so, very cushy on my end). Then we went to Paris and the South of France in 2023 with the whole trip planned in 4 weeks or so.
Most of these trips weren’t planned quickly on purpose, but I have found some value in booking and going. First, a lot of the stuff that you have to plan for, we can’t do. So, in some ways that is really freeing. Some place isn’t open, is booked up, whatever, go somewhere else. For most of the places we went, there were plenty of things to do and see so being confined meant that we were forced to satisfice all the time, which has worked out just fine so far. As Claire says, as long as we can do X thing then everything else can be worked around, which I think is a good way to live life.
Also, I tend to over plan. If I have time to tinker and think and consider, I will. So, one of these years when we book something a year out, I’m going to be thinking about making it the best for months. That isn’t always the worst (I had time to train diving and snorkeling before we went to the Galapagos which was time well spent), but I just know that if I have time to fret before we go on an African Safari that I’m going to want to take photography classes or buy a giant lens for my camera. That isn’t all bad, but it can be too much.
The Expanse
Since I last posted here, the single thing that I have fallen deeply into would probably be The Expanse. I watched the first season of the show after Season 4 was picked up by Amazon so I suppose I am a johnny come lately. It became the show I watched when I was traveling to MA or out there for work. I thought Season 1 was okay but there was so much world building and different threads that I wasn’t really sure what I thought. Season 2 picked up steam and Season 3 I thought was excellent. Around here was when I stopped traveling due to COVID and got into season 4 which, among other things, is about an apocalyptic event. The companion podcast The Churn was an excellent companion and I quickly listened to the excellently narrated Audiobooks. I don’t think that The Expanse is the best thing ever, but it is very thoughtfully produced television and I honestly prefer the TV version of events to the book version of events for seasons 3 on (minus some elements of book 6). The world and politics are very interesting and there’s a lot to chew on from someone who is interested in groups and teams.
So, what is The Expanse about? Hmm, well, it is a sci-fi show set in a distant future where there are 3 major powers: Earth, Mars, and a loose coalition of peoples that can only live in microgravities due to being born in it called “the belt.” Various wars, political struggles, and outward expansions are setoff by the discovery of something very old and not from around here. One of the more interesting elements of The Expanse though is that the points of view of the characters are very narrow so it is sometimes hard to know what the broader picture is. You can work it out but the books don’t hand it to you which is kind of nice.