yesterday was my first day back at school; i had one seminar, two meetings with professors, and my weekly reading in child library with rikita, and the weather was rotten, whipping wind and chill rain and drowned pavements and i thought of giants of the earth and icy deaths. and i was somewhat nonplussed how many people knew about my accident. i had asked the dgs to inform my professors.the three other people who knew anything were my roomate and the friend who was here when i blacked out and rikita. no silent reentry for me; people were asking after me as soon as i came into the department. a fourth year i know only slightly called out "how's your back?" as i was passed him on the stairs. people held doors for me and asked if i needed handouts. one of my professors came around to my seat before lecture started to ask how i was, another had sent an email the day before. the nicest thing, though, was nick watson stopping (he was on his way to a medievalist tea with derek pearsall, who was here to visit.) saying welcome back. i like being back as part of the department, which i sometimes think is a much warmer place than what we like to complain it isn't.