June 15, 2022 So this happened… A short recap of a weird past year (health-wise). For context: I have spent most of the pandemic at home—a nice change, surprisingly, after 35 years on the road. Travel, like teaching, exposed me to all sorts of bugs, and it was a rare year that wasn’t interrupted (at…

November 19, 2021 A New Chapter Begins  My last live speaking engagement was in November 2019, a little more than two years ago. Things were changing and for the first time in 35 years, I had nothing on my calendar for the following semester.  Jobs in US school districts and schools had gotten scarce, and…

May 31, 2016 Where has Jane been? I’ve been wondering that myself. I’m discovering unfinished or out-of-date posts on my site, correspondences I thought I had answered, a library book that got “lost” in the back of my car, even a bill I was sure I had paid. I’m finding things in the wrong places, often while I’m looking for…

When is it Too Late to Send Out Holiday Cards? It is July 12, 2015. At what point do I put away the stack of Christmas, Hanukah, and New Years cards that have been sitting on my desk since last Halloween? My intentions to send them out in a timely manner, along with much of the rest of…

Thinking about what I wanted to include in this year’s highlights. The choices were pretty easy, actually, as I’ve spent most of this year attached to my laptop, reorganizing piles of research and interview notes that started in early 2013 and continues to this day. The bright spots include the actual writing, and progress that seemed all…

What we did, what we saw Since several people asked, here is a list of activities, events, lectures, meals, and breaks during our week. I have added a few personal items to the official itinerary, which includes the purpose of these activities, referring to interactions with locals to develop a better understanding of their culture,…