Now for Kalamazoo

I was hoping to make Kalamazoo and the International Congress on Medieval Studies last year. Unfortunately I had a family event in New York scheduled for the same time. However I am registered and will be attending this year.

I have not been since 2015, my longest gap since I first went in 1999. The basic reason was work, at least through 2019. I had a new position beginning in 2014 – they called it a promotion but going by the paperwork-to-pay-raise ratio I’m not sure. With the new responsibilities I never got there and since COVID things have been a bit disjointed.

Based on the schedule it may look very different from when I last went. There are three days instead of five and it seems that the epicenter has moved from The Valley to West Campus. I have a Kalamazoo section of this blog but I’m not sure it’ll be much use any longer, other than the weather being uncertain – anywhere from snow flurries to heat is possible (and sometimes both in the same Congress).

My last couple of years attending I had thought about getting a hotel room rather than staying in the dorms. Leeds convinced me that this would be a mistake, at least for me. At Leeds I was staying in an airbnb downtown, about a mile from campus. When sessions ended I just walked back there. I had almost no socialization other than brief conversations following sessions. I am not a part of the Medieval Academic Community. I have no projects I’m working with people on, no real existing networks. When I have been at Kalamazoo in the past, by staying in the dorms I have made connections with people, drunk some free mediocre wine, gone out to dinner, etc.

So while I’d likely sleep better in a hotel, I will be on-campus. Even this will be different. The Valley dorms are still available (for one last year) but I’ll be staying in the Western Heights Residence Halls. This appears to be a bit of a communal living area. Individual rooms but a common area for about 15-20 people as well as shared bathrooms. None of this bothers me and it looks far more “plush” than the Valley Dorms which I have referred to as “camping with walls.” There may even be temperature control in the rooms!

Leeds vs Kalamazoo

I’ve had people ask me to offer my thoughts on comparing Leeds with Kalamazoo. This will be briefer than I initially thought it might because, quite frankly, I found them similar. Sessions were quite good and the format is largely similar though I do like the use of strands to offer thematically similar sessions – however you see that at Kalamazoo with, for example, Sessions I, II, and III of “Exploring Late Antiquity Frontiers” (not real sessions, I don’t think). The largest difference, as I mentioned, had to do with my accommodations and not staying at the Leeds Conference.

Leeds is a bit more compact though I suspect Kalamazoo will be this year. However going by my 2015 and earlier memory, Kalamazoo was much more spread out with sessions in the valley area as well as the Western section of campus. While there are shuttles this often involved a great deal of walking. Sessions in The Valley area were also subject to excessive heat during warm years. I had plenty of 3 p.m. sessions where I needed an extra caffeine boost to get through, even after windows went up. I didn’t notice this at Leeds though the weather was moderate enough that temperature control may not have been needed.

A big difference between the two is the amount of signage. I mentioned this in a previous post. You have to work pretty hard to get lost at Leeds. I was quite impressed by this. In Kalamazoo you sort of wander around a bit before finding your building though with smartphones and map apps this is likely less troublesome these days. Each building – I believe – also had complimentary coffee (and, I assume, tea).

Food was hit or miss. The main dining hall where I took evening meals had a very good selection. The midday meal was another story. The queue at the main dining hall was impossible unless, I assume, you were right next to it when it opened. There were various small cafes in other buildings. There the food was less dependable. I generally ended up with a pre-fab sandwich wrapped in plastic and a bag of chips (crisps).

I would certainly attend Leeds again if it happened to fit in my schedule. Absent some strange happenstance, like having free airline points I’d need to use or lose on a trip to England before the end of July some year, I’d be hesitant to pay the extra airfare. Certainly if it fit with one of my trips to Europe or the UK I’d be happy to. Though I’d stay on campus this time.

There is one significant difference which concerns me when it comes to Kalamazoo. My sense is that Leeds would get along fine if no Americans were there. Sure, it would lose some numbers and a few presenters, but it would soldier on. I don’t believe the reverse is true for Kalamazoo. At least when I attended it seemed as if international scholars made up a large portion of attendees and presenters. I’m not going to add numbers or anything but this is my impression. With travel budgets being slashed and an increase in remote/distance interactions it concerns me with Kalamazoo.

This may be a reason why Kalamazoo is now three days instead of five. I am hopeful that it is as rich of an experience as it has been in the past. I’ll report back on that after the Conference, as well as detailing how many books I leave with.

 

Leeds IMC – Yes I Made it

I’m here! Actually this is day two of the Leeds International Medieval Congress. But I was pretty tired after yesterday. Today was no shorter but I’m much fresher.

You really can’t miss it when you start getting into IMC territory.

I’ll save a longer post comparing my thoughts of Leeds vs Kalamazoo though to be honest, it doesn’t feel that different. Sessions have been quite good and there are medievalists all about. The biggest difference so far isn’t between the conferences but with me. At Kalamazoo I always stayed in the dorms. Here I’m in an apartment a mile away. So my socializing/networking is much reduced.

The other big difference? Not buying any books. And I want to. 75% off display copies? And I have to pass? Painful. But I don’t want to think about shipping costs and most of these folks will be at Kalamazoo next May.

Aaaarrrggghhh!!! All those books – and none will be going home with me.

I do need to give a shout to the conference organizers. There is no doubt that a portion of campus has been taken over by Medievalists. I’ve had three people ask me what’s going on.*

And you can’t get lost. Not if you can read a sign. They have these banners pointing you toward every relevant building you might want to get to. I really appreciate this.

These signs are great – and they’re everywhere.

So I’ve made it here, to an event I’ve been wanting to attend since making my first Kalamazoo in 1999. Life is good, except for going home bookless. I’ll post more on it when I’m back in the states.

*Is there something about me where people think I know where places are? Except for London, every city I’ve been I’ve been asked how to get someplace, including a truck driver in Shrewsbury trying to work his way through the one-way streets. Except for one person asking me where an IMC building is, I’ve disappointed them all.

 

Kalamazoo 2015 Saturday Update and Wrap-up

Well, Saturday was another warm one but absent the rain for the most part. I went to the first two sets of sessions and took the third one off for a nap. This wasn’t so much to make it through the rest of the day but so I could drive home today(more on that later). Once I got up and cleaned up I hit the mead tasting, grabbed my two display copies of books, and headed to the Pseudo Session.

I don’t review the Pseudo Session – I mean, you have to be there, right? I believe this may be the best session I’ve ever been to for overall quality of “papers.” I’d rate two as outstanding – worth being on my list of all-time greats. The other two were very good though you did have to really follow along for one of them as it was a textual analysis. Besides, learning more about the Vikings, IKEA, Petrarch, King John and Anselm is always useful. I should note that after however long he’s had the job – he was doing this at my first Kalamazoo in 2000 or 2001 (I forget) – Richard Ring is stepping down as the organizer of the Pseudo Society Sessions. He’s put a lot of work into this for a lot of years and the program always delivers. There are some folks taking over but we’ll all be sad to see him go (though I really think he needs to give a paper next year).

I did make it to the dance but didn’t hang around long, really for two main reasons. First I was bored and didn’t work very hard at not being bored – you get out of things what you put into them and I didn’t put much into it. Second, my back was bothering me. As you age, you’d think you’d want to be sedentary and sit around. For me it’s the opposite. If I sit much over multiple days my back tells me it doesn’t appreciate it and by Saturday night I’d sat a LOT. I don’t know if dancing would have helped or hurt things and didn’t want to chance it so I headed back to the dorm and went to sleep.

Which brings me to why I’m posting at about 10 a.m. Sunday. What! you may ask – does Kalamazoo not last through Sunday? Do they not have sessions? It does and they do. I was planning to attend an 8:30 but not a 10:30 session as I didn’t see one which really interested me and that would get me on the road sooner. Well, I woke up this morning – wide awake with my brain not giving any hint that sleep might return any time soon. This was at 4 a.m. So after thinking on it a bit I decided that I might as well put wheels on the road which I did and I got home right about when the first sessions would have been starting, around 8:30.

I don’t have a long wrap-up. I enjoyed it as always. I appreciated having the chance to talk to several medievalists, particularly Guy Halsall and Cullen Chandler, more extensively than in the past. As always, I like interacting with grad students. I really appreciate their enthusiasm and it always fires me up too, a little. There are worthwhile things going on and a lot of good, young people involved in doing them. I enjoy this when it’s in agriculture and I enjoy it here too. Plus while everyone is a discoverer in life, quite often I find myself more on a par with grad students when it comes to where they are on the voyage, at least when it comes to history. I’m afraid in my field I must come across as an old fogy.

I’m a bit surprised how many people recognize this blog, which also means I’m feeling guilty for not posting more often over the past year or so. The sessions were good but it surprised me that it took me a couple to really get in the flow of following arguments. I don’t recall that from the past few times I’ve attended so evidently a gap of one year between hearing papers isn’t enough to atrophy my brain but three years is. We’ll see how that works when I get to session summaries. Medievalists construct arguments differently from what I’m accustomed to plus it’s largely textual where I’m used to charts, graphs and numbers. I know in general I think a bit differently from historians, at least when it comes to looking at evidence and this was another reminder.

And finally, we should talk books. I ended up with 21. That visit to Powell’s sent me above my goal of 20. I was right on target until, while making a last scan, I spotted a translation of, On Anatomical Procedures by Galen for $10. My shopping was very different this year. I only visited about 8 booths, those where I have historically bought a lot in the past. It helped me to keep from getting tripped up though I had to work very hard to stay out of Brepols. Love their stuff but I don’t need to be buying high end monographs right now. If you’re interested in seeing the damage, you can check out my LibraryThing account for books tagged, “ICMS 2015.” Hopefully the link works.

I’m glad I had the chance to meet and talk with some of you. For those I didn’t see, maybe next year. Something could always come up but as of now there’s nothing on the horizon which should keep me away in 2016.

I’ll close with an image which you’re welcome to take a look at any time you start to miss Kalamazoo.

 

Kalamazoo Friday Update – Social Time and Not Farming Naked

It’s Saturday morning and I’m waiting for it to become late enough to head to breakfast. This year I’ve generally been sleeping well, but not long. I’ve awoken each morning around 4:30 a.m. The downside of this is that in pretty much every session I’ve been to, there’s been some point where I had to fight to keep from nodding off. I’ve not snoozed my way through much, but there have been struggles and I suspect there will be again today.

Yesterday started out with light rain but that stopped early and by midday the sun was out and it warmed up. I spent the entire day in Schneider and went to three very good sessions, including my first Anglo-Saxon one in some time. I also got some work done during the break which was necessary. The intern I’ll have starting at work next week will now have a job description.

I did the solitary dinner at Bilbo’s thing, then went to the Early Medieval Europe Reception in Bernhard where I ran into Cullen Chandler, Chris Armstrong, Guy Halsall, Julie Hoffman (briefly) and several grad students, some of whom recognized this blog (one said it’s an inspiration which was very pleasant to hear).

This was evidently my evening to be a party animal as I rejoined several of these same people back in Valley III for more libations. I’m not absolutely certain but I believe these were hosted by Brill and the University of Pennsylvania Press. Brill might argue as I own only one of their books but I have enough of Penn’s that I don’t think they’ll mind me having a drink or two on them.

I very much enjoyed getting a chance to talk to some of these folks. The evening was also interesting in that I was able to discuss some aspects of my real job with several people, particularly a cover crops project I’m just getting started. Remember – don’t farm naked! Anyway, for a few minutes here and there, I actually wasn’t the least intelligent person at this conference.

Today will of course mean more sessions, Pseudo Society, possibly the dance for the first time since my first Congress 15 years ago, and I still haven’t gone through Powell’s at the book exhibit. Current book count stands at 14. I’ve been very good.

 

Kalamazoo Eve

Thought I’d drop a quick note before I start running through my program book and finalizing which sessions I’m attending tomorrow.

Got away from home around 2:30 p.m. after I finished mowing my pasture. After a stop at a McDonald’s that didn’t realize they’re part of a fast food franchise I got here a little after 6. Saw Lisa Carnell and Marca of Medievalist in Transit and chatted a bit, plus gave Lisa my bottle of wine for the Blogger meet-up. Saw ADM very briefly as well a bit later.

I almost left my fan at home. I figured that with highs in the mid-70’s and low’s in the 40/50 range I wouldn’t need it but I threw it in at the last minute. Good thing. My room’s on the West side of Eldridge and with the sun shining in all day and the windows closed it had to be 90.

So I opened the window, turned the fan on and got the heck out of there. I sort of hung around the lobby for a few minutes, didn’t see anyone I knew so I decided to head to Bilbo’s. I looked around for a bit and still didn’t see anyone I knew (though I think I later saw Scott Nokes – his table was full anyway, if that’s who it was). So I sat down next to a guy at the bar and it was James McNelis. Now I’d never met James before but his name was sure familiar as he and Larry Swain run the Congress Facebook Group. James and I talked about a whole bunch of things before he left. Then I started chatting with some grad students but when they started doing what students are predisposed to do in a bar I got out of dodge. At one time alcohol was fun – now it’s a poison, at least more than the one beer I’d had.

I have decided to return to my old Congress standby where I introduce myself as “the least intelligent person here.” I’ve appointed myself the Colonel Klink of Kalamazoo.

I’ve also decided to finally come out with it and call medievalists crazy. See, they write these papers, THEN present from them. That’s just plain backwards. It is SO much easier to present first and write second.

Here’s how it’s supposed to work. A couple of weeks ago myself and a colleague from the University of Wyoming gave a webinar titled Enhancing Biosecurity at Fairs and Shows. There were maybe 40 or so on the live show though hopefully more will watch the recording. Anyway, after we were done we stayed on the line to debrief and one of the first comments from one of the organizers was, “That was great, you guys should put together an article on it.” Present first – that’s the easy part, THEN put a paper together.

The humanities have been doing things their way for a long time so I don’t suppose a note from Colonel Klink will get them to change things but this process sure seems easier to me. Guess that’s one of the reasons why I’m not a historian.

If you’re at Kalamazoo hopefully I’ll run into you over the next four days. The description still fits – fat guy wearing a baseball cap who describes himself as “the least intelligent person here.” That’s OK, I’m on vacation. And starting at 8 a.m. tomorrow, that means the book exhibit. I just hope I can control myself.

 

Next Stop: Kalamazoo

I’ve been waiting to get excited about this year’s Congress. It finally happened this afternoon while I was mowing pasture. I have no idea why.

Yup, this is the source of my finally getting fired up for Kalamazoo. It’s funny – I bought a new tractor last fall. All the bells and whistles, but I still like put-putting around on this one to mow.

The plan for tomorrow is as follows. My truck is all packed, with trash to haul to the landfill. Need to do that, run a few errands in town and I still have a few hours’ worth of grass to mow, about 6 acres or so. Once that’s done I’ll clean up and head north. I have no idea what time I’ll get in. And other than the blogger meet-up, I have zero social plans.

And this year’s book goal? No more than 20. I have a mortgage again.

Hopefully I’ll see some of you there.

 

Kalamazoo Registration is Up!

What’s more, after a two-year absence, I’m registered. For those interested, here’s Western Michigan University’s Congress page. The registration link is on the left menu bar.

For those wondering what this is about, each May a couple of thousand medievalists, along with a scattering of ignorami such as myself, attend the International Congress on Medieval Studies in Kalamazoo, Michigan. This year’s Congress will be held May 14-17. Click on the Sessions link on the left menu bar of their page to get an idea of the program. Plus there are all those books …

If you want an idea of what I think of it, you can take a look at my Kalamazoo page on this blog. There’s a lot there but this post from 2010 captures why I like it as well as any of them. There have been a few changes over the past few years (the free wine used to double as furniture polish, I’m certain of it, and now it’s fairly passable) but most of it’s reasonably accurate.

I’ve been to 8 or 9 of these since my first Congress in 2001(I think) and always enjoy myself. I had a hot streak from 2009-2012 where I made four in a row but missed the last two years. I’m looking forward to this year though I need to control my book-buying. Unfortunately, I’ve said that before.

 

Why This Blog May be Quiet and Why I’ll Likely Miss Kalamazoo

I have quite a bit to post about but am having real trouble finding the time, at least to make the kind of posts I want to make. I have a fair amount to write on Origen, though this will not approach the time I spent on Tertullian. I’ve had a draft post on Irenaeus sitting around since last August and I think I may be ready to offer a few thoughts on some of the ways in which ancient philosophy impacted the evolution of Christianity.

There’s a reason for this. I was going to wait until the project was finished and then apologize after the fact but I’ve had a couple of e-mails this week asking me if I would be at Kalamazoo. I’ve been debating my attendance and finally have decided this would be foolish. The reason can be summed up by the following image.

Eventually things will be placed on top of what you see here – wood and shingles and bricks and wires and other stuff. The problem, related to Kalamazoo, is that the house is due to be finished in late May. That means that when Kalamazoo is going on is about the time when I’ll be talking to the builder to finalize things like fixtures in the kitchen and baths, the placement of lights and outlets throughout the house; all of the detail sort of things which I might actually have something to contribute to. If they’d be in the middle of framing or placing trusses it would be a different story but for this I need to be on site.

The problem’s not money, though a Kalamazoo book bill in the thousands probably wouldn’t be the wisest move (considering I just splurged on Oxford’s annual spring sale I wouldn’t let this stop me though) but I need to be here.

When it comes to impacting this blog, as an example, I spent most of yesterday walking through various shops looking at furniture, art, and antiques. I’m not normally an antique-er but I’d like the place to have a bit of character. On finishing this post I’m heading to Indianapolis to visit a home show (technically a flower and patio show but there are plenty of interior booths there too) to look at kitchen and bath items. I’ve sort of decided where I’m going in those areas but nothing’s final until it’s final so I’ll take my plans with me and talk to some folks.

So I apologize both for missing Kalamazoo which really disappoints me, as well as for my expectation that this blog will be relatively quiet for a while. The one consolation I have is that if this is finished by the end of May, I might be able to head to Saint Louis University for their conference in June. We’ll see. There is a possibility of a significant delay (no reason to expect it, but there is always a chance something may come up) which might change my Kalamazoo plans but this is where I’m at right now.

 

2014 Kalamazoo Registration is Up

The online registration for the 49th annual International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University is open. This year’s Congress will be held May 8-11 at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Great conference which I always enjoy though I wasn’t able to make it last year and it’s questionable if I’ll get there this year, though I have hopes.

If anyone wants way more information than you probably want to read, you can check out my Kalamazoo page for recruitment posts, tips, and summaries from the past three times I’ve attended. Wonderful event and a lot of fun. I encourage you to attend if you can.

 

Art History Resource at Princeton

Thanks to Genevra Kornbluth of Kornbluth Photography for posting this to the Mediev-L discussion group.

Princeton University has started electronically publishing the proceedings from Art History Conferences. Art History is one of those aspects of historical study which is extremely important and which I am woefully uninformed about, though I have hopes of correcting this, someday. As of now there are two conference proceedings up but I expect this will change in the future. Some proceedings are in the form of papers while others are PDF’s of powerpoint presentations, complete with images.

Here’s the link: Index of Christian Art online at Princeton University

Happy reading!

I still need to put up an Irenaeus post but am having trouble finding the 6 hours or so it’ll take me to put it together. I’m behind at work again, which I didn’t realize until this past week. But it is coming.