While I am writing this blog in Toronto Airport, it really covers the last few days of my stay at the farm and in London. The second day on the farm was one of those perfect autumn days- air like cut crystal, sharply chilly without getting to your marrow and laced with frost wherever the sun hadn't reached. I spent a good part of the morning helping Ron shuffle the corn wagons between the combine and the dryer. With the plenty of this harvest the yield was such ...

This entry covers two very busy days. Alex met me right on time at the Greyhound after an uneventful trip. The bus I was on was en route to Chicago eventually! I don't recall this from the past. As always it was a warm welcome, and Alex and I had been chatting for a couple of hours when Mary B got back from a card night - so the conversation continued into the wee small hours. About 1.30 we headed off to bed- Alex had to be up about 5.30! After a leisurely b...

There's really little to say about the trip to Peterborough yesterday. All went smoothly and I arrived at the Super 8 here around about 5. It is significantly better than the place I left in PA. I knew that the place was close to the School Board, but hadn't realised quite how close- less than 5 minutes on foot. The temperature has dropped to an unseasonable low, catching even the locals by surprise. My layered approach to travelling light is working ok when I we...

This entry actually begins with the conference dinner on Friday evening where I was privileged to receive the Authentic Leadership Award from the Consortium for the Study of School Leadership and Ethics. It was nice that Charles Burford presented it on behalf of the Board. Despite a forecast of rain - and overnight falls- the day dawned clear, so my morning walk was cool but dry. Temperature about 4 centigrade and my layers are keeping me warm. The first session...

A day largely spent indoors at the Nittany Lion Inn, our conference venue. The program began with breakfast at 0730 - which meant a brisk 15 minute stroll to get there for me. the first keynote was delivered by Moses Davis of Penn State who works in cultural diversity. He spoke about the importance of self in creating a world of difference, and focussed on manifestations of racism with an interesting slant on the difference between intent and impact, and what he...