I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night.

Raz -

I have another one to add to the pile of Pink Parchments.

But, oh, it’s nasty. Mean-spirited. And more than a hint of obsession. Apparently my eyes lingered on you for thirty seconds too long in the hallway on Tuesday, and I smile too much when I sit next to you at meals. (There are uglier things, too, but I shan’t repeat them here.)

And this time, I’m sure it’s a student - it was dropped into a pile of assignments sometime earlier today. Besides my classes, there’ve been hordes of students in and out all afternoon, so not much chance of narrowing it beyond that.

It also had a harsh little hex on it that would have left my fingers sore for a few days. (Have no worries: I spotted the hex before opening - I’m suspicious of all pink parchments these days. I opened it with tongs rather than disarming it, so you can look for yourself.) I do think it may be the same as one of your Pink Parchments - the hand looks familiar.

Any chance you’d be up to taking a look at some point? I’ve got double sessions tonight and marking I really need to get ahead on, so tomorrow’s better for me.

(My other mail brought me another five invitations, and we should probably talk about two of them. Also - and far more welcome - a package from Mum, with a bottle of scotch she suggests you might like. I’m not sure what to make of that. I think she’s trying to be friendly without being pushy. Or something.)

First, a note for students: It's possible we'll have a guest observing our classes some day this week. I know you'd all behave well, but a little notice sometimes makes it easier to concentrate (and those of you preparing for OWLS or NEWTS can't afford to waste a day of class, hmm?)

After the hustle and bustle of last week's excitements, it took a while to settle down to work again. And of course, there's the regular grading of papers and star charts to get through - especially for the older students who need a lot of feedback as we get closer to exams so they know where to focus.

I did get time for my weekly chat with Poppy. She admits she's gotten quite interested in my specialty from our conversations, and I've offered to loan her my personal telescope. (As some of you might remember, it was a gift from my parents when I got this position, so I'd have something to work with when I was on holiday or home visiting.) I obviously don't use it much during term time, since we have much more elaborate telescopes to work with here, and Poppy is so careful of her equipment I have no fears of loaning it.

I had quite a good time this morning selecting some introductory books and simple star charts to take down to her for use as a guide, too. It's easy to get into the habit of using our textbook (which is fine, and well-suited to what students need to learn), but there are also good introductory texts out there, and I don't always remember to review them as often as I should.

Found quite a good description of the myths behind the Orion constellation in one, and a really interesting discussion of the Pleiades in another. Both are visible to the naked eye, of course, but there are details that you can only really see with a good telescope, even my portable one.