It was on this day in 1260 that the cathedral in Chartres, France was dedicated in the presence of King Louis IX. If I ever go to France, that’s the one place I want to go to more than any other, just to see if I can get out of the cathedral the same things Joseph Campbell did. Now for the friday5.org Friday Five.

1. Where’s your favorite beach?
I am not a beach person. I don’t like to tan, and swimming seemed to lose its appeal to me when I turned 16 or so. Then again, with Lake Erie as polluted as it is, it’s not like we have that many good beachscapes around here.

2. Where’s your favorite place to spend money?
I don’t think Amazon.com counts as a place, so I’ll say Barnes and Noble here. I’ve been buying so many books lately it’s not funny, especially given how little time I have to read them.

3. Where’s a good place to watch people?
People-watching is scary to me. At the same time, it’s also the best way for me to find inspiration for characters for my stories, so I do a lot of it while I teach.

4. Where’s a good place to be totally alone?
My room. If I’m looking for the next-best thing, I’ll either head to Wildwood or the Toledo Botanical Garden, or the less-busy coffeeshops around town.

5. Where’s a place outside of work (or school) where you’re likely to run into people from work (or school)?
I don’t know, because I keep my work and personal life separate. That being said, I do have a small network of ex-students I keep in touch with electronically, and I am grateful for that; I may even meet a couple of them for dinner here in the next couple of weeks, probably after the election and all of its craziness.