Back in Glasgow 8 months later . . .

Hello again!

For those who haven't heard me blab in crazy excitement about it, I am back in Glasgow thanks to a grant from my school to study Scottish author and Robbie Burns/Sir Walter Scott contemporary James Hogg. For those of you haven't heard of him go buy his book (Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner) on amazon right now! Besides my obvious bias this guy really was a genius, incredibly before his time and unfortunately shadowed by the literary heavyweights he called friends, and limited with a reductively imagistic name as 'The Ettrick Shepherd' (cue images of rolling hills bah-ing sheep and whistling shepherds in the Scottish lowlands). SO. m-f 9-5 I get to have my literary nerd-attacks on the 12th floor of the glasgow library in the special collections thinking 'OH MY GOD I am touching something famous writers (and the less famous that I also love) touched!' I have read some pretty awesome and hilarious things (like that Hogg thinks the most dangerous prospect for young women is love before marriage, BIG no-no in his book--and yes, he actually wrote a book on the three perils facing young women, and alternately a partner book on the three perils facing young men, ha!), but have also gotten a ton of interesting research done already. Some of my initial research questions I have had to scrap after the first few readings, partially because it turns out Hogg was insane in terms of his writing process. In my poetry classes my Prof has always reassured us that no famous poets/writers EVER really just spit out a poem, and we have looked at countless first drafts for poems that end up epic and begin as, lets say, potential cast-offs. BUT, to my surprise and slight insecurity on my first day of research I am reading this letter Hogg wrote to a buddy talking about how the only way he writes is by composing the poem in his head before-hand line by line while herding the sheep, writes it down and BAM he's done. He went on for paragraphs about his biggest patron in his small town insists that he must revise and draft, but his response is basically, "mehr, the more you read something the less the weaknesses are apparent.' HA! I was pretty shocked by this first of all as a writer, and second of all as a researcher because that was partly what my research questions were focused on--the growth of his work through drafts given the influence of the major literary world's stereotyping him as 'The Ettrick Shepherd.' But, there is enough un-published or published only once work for me to now look at the progression of his work from piece to piece throughout the years, so this is not at all a case of oh crap, what do I do now??

A pic of the Uni Library that is REALLY trying to make it look good--it actually looks like a building from Communist Russia. I would put up a pic of the Collections, but you can't take pictures in there and I can't find any on the internet, sad!

A view from the 12th floor (actually the bathroom, ha!), but basically the view from the Collections

View from the 12th floor of the Uni library (well, the bathroom actually) but basically the view from the collections!

It has been pretty interesting traveling by myself, definitely a first time experience. While I can't say that I believe I am really the best solo traveler, I am enjoying some parts of it. I am a lovely dinner partner and I am excellent and reading quietly at a cafe, and I am a superb people watcher. And, the best part is that I am always agreeable in terms of food choices, it makes it so much easier!

Besides the research which I could blab on and on about it is great to be back in Glasgow. I am staying in an area that I actually never really got to explore while I was here before, which is odd because it's just on one side of the Uni. But, I am loving it! There are some great restaurants and funky grocers and vintage shops (which I love), so it's nice to get a taste of more Glasgow while obviously visiting all my favorite cafes and shops from before.

Alright, must get back to my fine meal of chicken kabobs and 3 pound wine, delish! but here are some pictures until next time-

The lovely river with some high-class park front neighborhood in the background.

The Kelvingrove Museum--my Scotlanders notice anything different about the foreground?

An awesome apartment/storefront building right on the river. May I live here please?

By the river front