in no particular order:
- i fell on the ice twice on my way to work today and then it was too windy to go outside during lunch.
- the south dakota legislature will be introducing a new abortion ban with exceptions for rape and incest. read: abortion may very well get banned in south dakota this time around. what a waste of time and money, i just wish this state would get itself known for something innovative politically, like dealing with the environment or local food rather than bullshitting about with abortion.
- speaking of bullshit- vermillion's school district received $15,000 of homeland security money to put in stupid "security measures" such as bullet proof glass for the security guard. um, when i develop some sort of crazy disease because i had to breathe in toxic wtc air for months when the government didn't want to admit to the truth, i will remember that.
luckily i'm not mad about everything. yoga was today, complete with hysterical yogi conversation re: the proper form of cleanse. i'm going to read my writing class people's pieces now and write comments.
Monday, January 29, 2007
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
lots of things
but I don't feel like writing them all. luckily, i'm taking a creative writing class, so I can just put things up from class. This is a haibun, look it up on wikipedia:
Lansing
Thinking of you I see us talking- there we are tumbling around our dorm, our campus, our city, up and down hills at a breakneck pace with arms flailing. Anxieties (mine) and ideas (yours) pouring out like revelations. Once a week I would sit on my couch waiting for you to appear in Jeffrey, the most ramshackle car on the road, looking forward to us coasting past campus, past the mall, until we reached the kind of serenity that the Finger Lakes are famous for, planning out our lessons along the way. At the facility we signed in, surrendered our possessions and waited for the guard to buzz us through the door. Then we waited for the adolescent girls to be filed into the library, each in their uniform of navy blue sweatpants and a ratty matching tee-shirt, we would explain the lesson after they got settled. Motion shifted- each movement, each piece of paper, each pencil was carefully accounted for by the guards- but the rhythm in each student’s writing was encouraged and shared. Oftentimes that was all their pieces had-- rhythm at the expense of expression, movement absent feeling and context. When class was over the students would line up again, not going back to their rooms until they were still, some of them sneaking in goodbye waves to us. Some weeks we would drive back along the lake, looking out over it as the sun set, windows down, speakers blaring, students’ papers being lifted by the wind.
road dips and rises
the bright orange sun falls on
Lansing behind us
Lansing
Thinking of you I see us talking- there we are tumbling around our dorm, our campus, our city, up and down hills at a breakneck pace with arms flailing. Anxieties (mine) and ideas (yours) pouring out like revelations. Once a week I would sit on my couch waiting for you to appear in Jeffrey, the most ramshackle car on the road, looking forward to us coasting past campus, past the mall, until we reached the kind of serenity that the Finger Lakes are famous for, planning out our lessons along the way. At the facility we signed in, surrendered our possessions and waited for the guard to buzz us through the door. Then we waited for the adolescent girls to be filed into the library, each in their uniform of navy blue sweatpants and a ratty matching tee-shirt, we would explain the lesson after they got settled. Motion shifted- each movement, each piece of paper, each pencil was carefully accounted for by the guards- but the rhythm in each student’s writing was encouraged and shared. Oftentimes that was all their pieces had-- rhythm at the expense of expression, movement absent feeling and context. When class was over the students would line up again, not going back to their rooms until they were still, some of them sneaking in goodbye waves to us. Some weeks we would drive back along the lake, looking out over it as the sun set, windows down, speakers blaring, students’ papers being lifted by the wind.
road dips and rises
the bright orange sun falls on
Lansing behind us
Sunday, January 14, 2007
internet works at home!
I left (a short trip to Chicago) and came back, again. It seems like I've been doing that a lot. Chicago is a great city, yet another place tempting me to move there. I didn't realize that Chicago had eco-city pride, but apparently it is making a name for itself as a green place. It seems like there are a lot of ideas there for green business incubators, etc. which is always interesting to learn about since I feel like there is a never ending supply of green things to learn about.
It turns out that I enjoy the power trip of being in charge of other people (I was leading 7 USD students and a faculty member through Chicago), but I think I have a lot to learn about how to get people to reach their potential. I can't really put myself in their position sometimes, like, why be on this trip? What are they looking for? I guess in that way I could do better, but I like that everyone listens when I talk and I get to design and implement something so clearly.
Tired now, and cold because it is SNOWING and sticking out there. I am going to enjoy my last day of no work for what will probably be a long time.
It turns out that I enjoy the power trip of being in charge of other people (I was leading 7 USD students and a faculty member through Chicago), but I think I have a lot to learn about how to get people to reach their potential. I can't really put myself in their position sometimes, like, why be on this trip? What are they looking for? I guess in that way I could do better, but I like that everyone listens when I talk and I get to design and implement something so clearly.
Tired now, and cold because it is SNOWING and sticking out there. I am going to enjoy my last day of no work for what will probably be a long time.
Saturday, January 06, 2007
back in So. Dak
Sojourn to NYC is over and I am currently back in Vermillion, sitting at the Coffee Shop, syncing up my new iPod and having Kelsey help me take the knots out of the scarf I am knitting for my dad. I was scared for awhile that I would leave NYC and freak out, wishing that I still lived there and wondering what the heck I'm doing here, but honestly, I'm liking it here. Inspired by Lindy (I know, I know, we're linked!) and my dad's many comments, I am back to the blog.
Last night I went to a home basketball game in Gayville-Volin, go Raiders! It was pretty atrocious. I saw kids with tattoos of the Budweiser logo and, tragically, the Michael Jordon logo. Tragic because the kid was not a great basketball player and his team has not won a single game this season. Add that to the list of tattoos not to get.
my iPod is all synched up with almost all of my music in the world and I have 28GB of free space. Anyone have CDs?
Last night I went to a home basketball game in Gayville-Volin, go Raiders! It was pretty atrocious. I saw kids with tattoos of the Budweiser logo and, tragically, the Michael Jordon logo. Tragic because the kid was not a great basketball player and his team has not won a single game this season. Add that to the list of tattoos not to get.
my iPod is all synched up with almost all of my music in the world and I have 28GB of free space. Anyone have CDs?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)