Hello friends,

I wish I could have written sooner, but my Fulbright stint turned out far busier than expected. I missed you. Also they shuttered my previous newsletter app and I could never quite stomach the replatforming admin. I’ve now switched to Buttondown, which seems pleasantly chill so I hope this email reaches you without incident.

I got home from America then immediately tested positive for Covid: my fifth circling of this particular drain, including two ruined Christmases. Still, I’ve had time to untangle some thoughts on my time in North Carolina. Presenting parts 1 through 4 of a series I’m calling ‘American impressions’:

1. Elon University · My pristine, earnest home for six months.

2. Flora and fauna · A love letter to cardinals, basically.

3. Teaching technology ethics · Including my syllabus, essay titles, reading lists, and assessment materials. The works.

4. The sport · The Hurricanes blow it, while I enter deep MAGA territory at the Coke 600.

I’ll email again in a week or two to share the concluding posts, on 5. life in the North Carolina Piedmont, 6. being a Fulbrighter, and 7. America’s trajectory. Then maybe we can talk about what’s next. (I don’t know what’s next yet. I’m electing to find this liberating for now.)

Enjoy the essays and, as always, feel free to drop me a reply. I’d love to hear from you.

Yours,

Cennydd