Greetings from bleary, chilly New Haven, where I am at this conference (previously mentioned in this space). Or rather, I am in the divinity school library, skipping out of a session of said conference, because I have overdosed on peopleness and still have several hours to go before I can just be alone.

I drove from Chapel Hill to New Haven yesterday in more-or-less a straight shot, much to the amazement of friends and family. It's a 10-12 hour trip, depending on how the traffic is around New York and whether you miss the exit for the Jersey Turnpike, so I'm not sure why they're surprised that I made it a one-day trek. I didn't really save money compared to flying, and I certainly didn't save time, but it was still worth it for the portable autonomy. I'm like a turtle carrying her metal house on her back, which gives me the freedom to move around as I wish, to modify my itinerary on the fly, and to escape the teeming hoards of pastors when it just gets to be too much.

I'm not going to say anything about the conference proper at this time, because the library is about to close. I am happy to be here; let not my comments about the too-maniness of people suggest otherwise. I love people (some more than others). I just know myself well enough to know that I can only take so much of them.