Stimulating handful of days here in Stavanger for the Petrocultures conference, at which a bunch of us Climaginarians performed yet another instance of the increasingly sprawling Carbon Ruins extended cinematic universe. Lots of interesting panels and talks, obvs, plus the productive cognitive dissonance of enviro-critical scholars holding an event at a national oil museum… and when’s the last time you went to a conference that was (partly) held on a boat, hmm?

Feeling rather more awakened from the summer’s arid stasis, intellectually speaking, but I nonetheless seem to be fairly sleepy at a more physical level; perhaps we can put that down to the fairly intensive introductory pilates course I took before coming, but it’s more likely the traditional tiredness of travel and social stimulation, amplified by the absence of either over the last few years. (I mean, to be scientific about it: lots of people reported feeling tired, and they weren’t all doing pilates last week, so, yeah.)

So now just the long journey home. Our LU crew travelled here by train via Gothenburg and Oslo—and a very nice journey it was too, for the most part—but we’re heading back by overnight ferry to Hirtshals, then crossing Denmark by train to return to Skåne… where, I’m told, the weather has a distinct “summer’s over” vibe.

Well, summer is over, isn’t it? Autumn’s here, with things-to-do a-bulging from its basket… and I had meant to make a start on those this afternoon, but it seems that I’m sat in a bar-cum-bookshop, scribbling down story ideas and writing blogposts instead. At least I’m consistent, eh? So if you ever find yourself in the oil capital of Norway, well, you could do worse than spend some time in Bøker og Børst, which is charming, a little tatty, well provided with beers, and a welcome respite from the rivers of identikit cruise-ship tourists shuffling up and down the streets.