Giving a speech will never be my favorite thing to do...

But it's not so bad, I guess. Helps when the audience is actually interested in what you're saying. I'm one of the few people from an aid organization who actually saw the riot break out in Smichov back in November. I guess that makes my impressions worth hearing, although I was relieved there weren't any... voyeuristic questions afterwards, for lack of a better explanation.

Damn, I was wound up, though. Came home and crashed, and now I'm watching some bizarre news segment about this archaeological site on the Iraq/Syria border. There's at least one latter-day Schliemann claiming it's the Tower of Babel. What is it with the need to have a historic Babel, or a historic Troy, or a historic King Arthur? Maybe it's the history degree talking, but I don't get the popular urge to verify legends. Takes some of the mystery out of life, to have everything explained and pinned down...