It seems apt, after a long absence from this blog and months spent wrangling with a thesis chapter focused on time, that my returning post should focus on age. This morning I revisited drafts of old blog posts to see whether I had material I could still use to get back to a more regular blogging schedule.

​I decided to resurrect a draft post which explores my experiences as a mature student, and enhance it to bring it up to date. 

Over the last couple of months when I wasn't tearing my hair out over the state of British politics or getting ready for my move to Yorkshire in early June, I was working on a number of panels and a paper for Leviosa 2016. For those of you who don't live and breathe Harry Potter fandom like I do, Leviosa is a fan convention with lots of academic and fannish content which took place in Las Vegas this July.  Together with focusing on Harry Potter canon, the programming schedule also included plenty of fannish content, talks by YA authors and discussions about the contemporary YA market. The schedule featured a number of multi-fandom panels and meet-ups - Marvel, Sherlock, Inception were all popular alternatives. I was fortunate enough to have a number of proposals accepted as part of the programming. So, on 5 July I flew into LA and on 6 July I embarked on the four plus hour drive to Las Vegas and The Green Valley Ranch, where the convention was held.

This week's massacre at Pulse nightclub in Orlando was a direct attack on LGBTQ+ people and predominately queer people of colour. The bars which have provided a safe space for generations of LGBTQ+ people were violated again. Again, because it is not the first time these spaces have come under threat. LGBTQ+ spaces are constantly under threat from closure, but as recent events have highlighted, the threat of violence also remains. Whether people attack with bombs like the nail bomb at Soho's Admiral Duncan pub in England, firearms like those used in the Pulse shooting in America, or their fists because individuals dare to hold hands walking down the street or kiss in public.