On my way home again, after three days away. Lately I’m catching the train to the airport as late as possible, just to minimize the amount of time I’m spending here. If the coffee were better (read “cheaper”) and the seating more comfortable, it might not be so bad, but as it is, it’s not a patch on the city library in Uppsala.

These final weeks of the year are busy and hectic, with me traveling nearly as many days as I’m at home. It will be after midnight when I pull into my own driveway tonight, and I’ll be heading back this way on Monday after dinner. I’ll be in Uppsala until Thursday afternoon, which means it will be my longest trip yet. In terms of hours, it’s not much different from normal, but it will be the first time I spend three consecutive nights away from home. The week after that I’m gone only one night, and then I’ll be home for four glorious weeks.

Reading that last paragraph, you might think that all of this was wearing on me, but apart from the actual traveling bit, that’s not the case at all. The more time I spend at the university and the more I get to know the people I’m working with, the more I love it. The only thing that keeps it from being a perfect experience is that it’s a strain on my family. It’s nothing we can’t manage, of course, but it probably doesn’t need saying that things would be easier if I were studying on our home turf.