Of Writers and Dinners

 It's been an interesting few days since I last updated!

Sunday afternoon, I went to a talk featuring Philip Pullman and the Dean of Divinity.  Philip Pullman is a really fantastic fantasy author; he wrote the His Dark Materials trilogy, which I adore.  (My cat's named after the main character, actually.  Well, technically; her real name's Lyra but we all call her Rara...  but that's beside the point.)  He's recently written another book called The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ, which retells the Christ narrative as though Jesus and Christ were two separate people: twins, actually.  Pullman is an atheist himself, so it's fascinating to see what he does with the story.  I haven't read it yet myself, but it seems like it's quite good, and the Dean of Divinity wasn't too harsh with him when discussing it.

The talk itself was held at New College, which is actually quite near Hertford; I'd be surprised if we didn't share a wall or two with them, actually.  It's a much grander college, with a tower and dark stone cloisters and whatnot; much larger than Hertford, too, I think.  I got a bit lost afterward with my friend Nike, so we accidentally explored for a while, which was nice.  The discussion was held in the main chapel, which was gorgeous; high, high, high ceilings, with stained glass windows and dark wooden pews.  I didn't feel comfortable whipping out my bright pink camera and clicking away during the event, as there was a very respectful atmosphere throughout (and rightly so,) so I don't have any photographic evidence of the talk, but afterward...!

Afterward, there was a tea where Mr. Pullman sold and signed books.  Conveniently enough, I'd happened to go to Blackwell's bookstore before the event and pick up a hardcover compilation of all three His Dark Materials books, so I waited patiently to get it signed.  To my utter delight, not only did Mr. Pullman sign my book, we actually ended up having a fascinating conversation!  I introduced myself and told him that I was studying at Oxford for the term; he asked what I was studying, and I told him, and we ended up discussing my thesis ideas!  He held up the line to talk to me for...  probably a good minute or so, and it was one of the most spectacular feelings.  Thanks forever to Nike, who took this picture for me.

Last night was another interesting new experience.  Apparently, over the course of the year, the principal of Hertford College arranges a buffet supper every week for students, so that by the end of the year every student is given the opportunity to dine with him.  I was the first of the new William and Mary students to get an invitation, so I was sent to "scope it out" and prepare the others for their turns.  Plus, who am I to reject free food?  As always, there was a fair bit of awkward smalltalk, as I didn't know a single person there, but I soon latched on to a small group and made friends.  The principal came and chatted with us over drinks before dinner, and we discussed the late Icelandic volcano; he had been stuck in New York for a conference, and I explained how I'd barely made it in.  Dinner was quite good, though I actually spent considerably more time on the appetizer plates, and the evening honestly flew by; it certainly didn't seem like 9:00 when we were ushered out.  Considering that I had a pretty brutal headache from reading for about eight and a half hours that day, it was very pleasant and I enjoyed it.

The weather's been a bit more tumultuous than our first week or so; back to being cold, and we've actually had rain.  I was lucky the other night; I managed to get home just about five minutes before it began to pour rain.  It's funny: British people aren't nearly as put out by rain as we are.  It starts pouring down on their heads, and they just give a sour glance at the offending sky and continue on their way at the same pace in the same posture.  I do actually really like when it rains and I'm in my room; I just crack the window, shut the curtains, and feel utterly cozy in my little accommodations.  I'm not allowed to put anything up on the walls, but I've made it feel a little homier; a scarf draped over the chair, a few little posters propped up against the wall on the desk.  I feel right at home.

I got my first real letter from home today, too; Aunt Lorene is just about the sweetest woman in the whole world, and my entire family should be immediately dispatched to tell her so.

To conclude, here are some more Things I've Noticed

• British people love to dress up.  Tuesday afternoon, going for coffee?  TIME FOR A SPORTS COAT!  (I actually love this, though I constantly feel under-dressed.)
• The bad teeth thing is kind of true.  It's not everybody, but particularly among the older generation, there are a bunch of not-so-pearly-whites.  It's not just a class thing, either; there are some pretty respectable people I've met who could use a nice set of braces and a whitening strip.
• The Golden Compass from the His Dark Materials trilogy is actually called Northern Lights.  They changed it in the US because they didn't think we could handle titles with different forms; the other two are objects (The Subtle Knife, The Amber Spyglass.)  I do appreciate the uniformity there, but I don't like that we're known as a country with obsessive compulsive disorder. (On that note, can someone tell me why the US has Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone and it's actually [...] the Philosopher's Stone?)
• Quiet in libraries is a whole new level.  I was told the other day, "I can't study in the Radcliffe Camera!  It's so loud!"  I'll just say that I think the Rad Cam is the quietest library I've ever been in.
• All the green buses in Oxford are double-decker.  I just noticed this today.

Well, I should be reading The Moonstone; I got through all 870 pages of Bleak House in three days, but there's more work to be done!