In summer 2013, a literary scavenger hunt had us scouring London’s Chelsea neighborhood, searching for blue plaques marking the homes of writers ranging from Mark Twain to Bran Stoker. You can read about that in the previous post. However, Chelsea also charmed us with its pretty streets, variety of lovely homes and beautiful gardens.

Take a walk with Nerd Trips through London’s Chelsea neighborhood to see the homes of some famous literary figures, including Bram Stoker, Oscar Wilde, Mark Twain and George Eliot.

Nerd Trips has gone international! For the first time since I started the blog, we exported our nerdy pursuit overseas.
My friends invited me to stay with them in London, and were they in for some nerdy adventures. Here’s a preview.

It’s the event where hundreds of people sit in the broiling Texas heat to watch a high stakes verbal sparring match of puns, words and wits. That’s right, we went to the O. Henry Pun-Off World Championship in Austin, Texas!

As we finish our tour of the O. Henry museum in Austin, our tale now turns to embezzlement, prison and the birth of “O. Henry.”

Before visiting the O. Henry museum in Austin, my knowledge of this famed American writer could be summed up in just a few words: “The Gift of the Magi,” the tale of a financially strapped young couple who, through a clever plot twist, discover the true meaning of gifts and giving.

But if this sentimental short story was my only impression of O. Henry, we got quite a plot twist as we learned about the writer himself, a hard-living and colorful character worthy of any story he could write.

The O. Henry museum sits on prime real estate in downtown Austin.

When I told my friends about starting a blog chronicling my “Nerd Trips” to sites associated with U.S. presidents, my college roommate Susan had an immediate and strong reaction, “That’s sexist!” Actually, I don’t think I can be held responsible for the fact that the United States has not had any female presidents. However, in celebration of Women’s History Month, I decided to tackle this topic: Are Nerd Trips sexist?