Happy Birthday!

Today is the birthday of William Jefferson ("Bill") Clinton and Mary Elizabeth ("Tipper") Gore, but more importantly, it's my birthday! If you believe in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, then as of today I am the meaning of life, the universe, and everything.

However, I am also back from my travels in Europe. I have seen €uro coins from every eurozone country except, oddly enough, Austria. I have amassed a pile of newspapers from across the Continent. I have talked politics with Europeans, American ex-pats, Americans on holiday, and even European ex-pats on holiday back in Europe. I got sunburned while tromping about the ancient (pre-World War II!!) shrines of Delos. My arrival in İstanbul was greeted with great fanfare by about two dozen musicians playing instruments I can't even name. (Some might think they were there to greet the entire ship full of tourists, but I prefer to take that one personally.) I even picked up the new Harry Potter book on its first day of release.

I have turned comments back on for this blog, since I am here to monitor for any spam or other abuses. However, since it's my birthday (and I've got wicked jet lag), I'll save the rest of my travelogue for later.

Welcome back to the Third Path, obsessively blogging for six of the last twelve weeks!