The conference paper gets ever more annoying. I need to just finish the damn thing. I hate writing things I don�t like. In this case, I know in my heart of hearts that it�s just because I�m sick of this particular topic and not because it�s inherently awful. Still, it could be better. I could use some more theory behind it. But I can�t seem to find much that fits easily. And given the panel that I�m on, it doesn�t seem to matter much. Not only am I in a slot that is traditionally poorly attended, but one of the other three panelists has bailed out and they are now trying to more the time even later in the day, which means the chances of anyone coming are slim. I don�t really want to kill myself for such an event. On the other hand, you never know who�s going to be there and I would like to look professional and intelligent. So I should probably try a little harder.

Still, my hotel reservation confirmation informs me that my �mind body and spirit will be energized.� So it shouldn�t be a total loss.

I wonder how much money I�ve spent on conferences in the last two years? I really need to get a job with an expense account.

Instead of finishing my paper, I have been honing my research skills by tracking a movie trailer I caught sight of the other day on a video AJ was watching. It was for a forthcoming film called Doogal. The commercial featured a very familiar-looking dog that looks like he�s been taking styling tips from a caterpillar. I seemed to recall being obsessed with a dog that looked very much like him on a kids� TV show I used to watch when we were living in London, where his name was spelled Dougal. �The Magic Roundabout,� as the show was called, was a totally psychedelic program that revolved (quite literally, given the roundabout) around Dougal and the girl who owned him, Florence and a handful of other characters, including a hippie rabbit whose name is eluding me at present. The show aired for five minutes each evening before the news -- we lived for those five minutes. Even as a child it seemed to me that it might be the kind of thing older kids would watch while under the influence of artificial substances. It was my first introduction to British children�s programming (keep in mind that in the dark ages when I lived there, there were only three television channels and programming of any kind was minimal, especially programming for kids), the system that also gave us the Teletubbies � a cross between gumdrops, televisions and the Snuggle bear - and Boohbah, which features flatulent animatronic balloons. Psychedelia should be no surprise.

I am somewhat mystified by the sudden appearance of staples of the British period of my childhood to American mainstream media � Nurse Matilda, in the guise of Nanny McPhee, is the other example. I am also amused by the �translation� that occurs � Nanny McPhee for Nurse Matilda (lest Americans think Nurse was an actual nurse), Doogal for Dougal (lest Americans pronounce his name �DUGGLE�). �The Magic Roundabout� clearly would be a puzzling title stateside, however. Actually, there seems to be some confusion in England, too. Roundabout means both a carousel and a traffic circle (or, if you are from Massachusetts, a rotary). I am reminded of the confusion of writing up an accident we had when I was a kid in which we were �contacted by a semi-articulated Woodpecker lorry in a roundabout.� Or, in other words, we were whacked by a semi carrying a load of hard cider in a rotary.

There is apparently another Magic Roundabout, located in Swindon (which, thanks to my watching of the BBC version of The Office, made me very happy to see, as I am now envisioning �the Swindon lot� going around and around and around). It is indeed an awesome roundabout. Actually, it looks more like the design for a pinball machine. See for yourself at this site. Not too much less psychedelic than the TV show, come to think of it.

This repetition of childhood programming feels meaningful, somehow, even thought the programs are not. Or perhaps I have just been reading too much Walker Percy � repetition and certification through reengagement in a particular way is significant for him. In any case, I have a sudden taste for hard cider.

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