Better Than a Frowning Liar.
Today was the Progressive Fest in Petaluma, CA and I was tabling there from about 11:30 to 6:15. Luckily I was not on my own; Alana Steadman, a Spring '04 Woolman Alum, lives a block and a half from Walnut Park where the festival was taking place and kindly joined me for the venture. It was a very successful day, I feel. We met several students that seemed very interested, several teachers who'd like visits or want to send a few students our way, and people just generally interested in and/or supportive of our program. Lots of pins and pamphlets were given out.
There were so many quirky people there. This one guy in a stall across from us, some organization that wants to impeach Bush and had lots of buttons saying so, was particularly amusing. He came and visited a lot, and made faces and just kept us on our toes. I was over at his stand at one point, looking at the buttons, and laughing about them, when this conversation took place:
Button Guy: You're having too much fun!
Me: *laughs* How does one judge what's too much?
Button Guy: Well, obviously when you're smiling that much.
I laughed, and then bought two buttons (that are being sent out as random presents to my brothers) for a dollar each. I handed him a five, but he gave me four ones in return. The bills, btw, had a speech bubble stamped on them by George Washington and said, "Bush Lies!"
Me: Why did you give me four dollars back?
Button Guy: Oh, did I? Well give me that back! *snatches dollar*
Me: You see, I'm honest!
Button Guy: Yes, and you smile.
Me: I smile while being honest!
Button Guy: That's a great thing to do. That smile and honest streak are going to make some guy very happy one day.
These people in California freaking love me are very quirky people.
We also met a man who wore no shirt or shoes while trying to get people to sign some petition. His bike was leaning against a tree to our right, so we saw him a lot. He was funny. I told him to do jumping jacks to keep warm, so he did and I told him it was the highlight of my day. I met someone wearing an Elmo hat, as you will see in a photo below. The table to the left of us was a September 11th conspiracy theorist, and that was definitely interesting. He had all these documentaries on the subject and quite a lengthy diatribe about it. It made me wonder how people have so much time on their hands.
The Abramsons are absolutely wonderful. Very welcoming. Their eight-year-old daughter, Felicia, is quite the precocious thing, but I had a fun time watching her last night while Dave and Jenny went out to dinner and a movie. I was talking to Dave tonight about earthquakes in California and volcanoes in Hawaii. It's continually amazing to me all the things there are in the world that I don't know about and are fascinated to discover.
I am going to sleep now. I have my first classroom visit tomorrow and I have to be at Casa Grande High School by 8:20am, and it's at least a thirty-five minute drive. I met the teacher whose class I'm visiting, Todd Siders, today at the festival, as well as a lot of his students, so I'm excited by their enthusiasm and slightly less nervous because of it. I don't think I'll know what I'm going to say until I'm standing in front of them. We'll see if that's a terrible idea or not -- somehow, I think it's going to work perfectly.
Route 50.
This made my heart cry out for home so badly.
Stoned House.
Ryan and Tuui in my room in the Stone House.
Progressive Fest.
Alana standing with our table at the festival in Petaluma, CA.
Progressive Fest.
A very kind man let me try on his hat/scarf/back-warmer. Obviously, a dumb look was required.
Quaker Query of the Day: How do you feel supported by your community? How do you not?
I feel supported by the Sierra Friends Center community, in that every single person there believes that I will do wonderfully as the Woolman Semester program's representative, and told me so. I feel supported by my community back home, from all my family (especially my mother) and my friends (especially Dannie, Jess and Josh) who completely understood my need and desire to come here, back when I wasn't so sure of those feelings myself. At this moment in my life, I feel completely supported by everyone who is a part of it.
There were so many quirky people there. This one guy in a stall across from us, some organization that wants to impeach Bush and had lots of buttons saying so, was particularly amusing. He came and visited a lot, and made faces and just kept us on our toes. I was over at his stand at one point, looking at the buttons, and laughing about them, when this conversation took place:
Button Guy: You're having too much fun!
Me: *laughs* How does one judge what's too much?
Button Guy: Well, obviously when you're smiling that much.
I laughed, and then bought two buttons (that are being sent out as random presents to my brothers) for a dollar each. I handed him a five, but he gave me four ones in return. The bills, btw, had a speech bubble stamped on them by George Washington and said, "Bush Lies!"
Me: Why did you give me four dollars back?
Button Guy: Oh, did I? Well give me that back! *snatches dollar*
Me: You see, I'm honest!
Button Guy: Yes, and you smile.
Me: I smile while being honest!
Button Guy: That's a great thing to do. That smile and honest streak are going to make some guy very happy one day.
These people in California freaking love me are very quirky people.
We also met a man who wore no shirt or shoes while trying to get people to sign some petition. His bike was leaning against a tree to our right, so we saw him a lot. He was funny. I told him to do jumping jacks to keep warm, so he did and I told him it was the highlight of my day. I met someone wearing an Elmo hat, as you will see in a photo below. The table to the left of us was a September 11th conspiracy theorist, and that was definitely interesting. He had all these documentaries on the subject and quite a lengthy diatribe about it. It made me wonder how people have so much time on their hands.
The Abramsons are absolutely wonderful. Very welcoming. Their eight-year-old daughter, Felicia, is quite the precocious thing, but I had a fun time watching her last night while Dave and Jenny went out to dinner and a movie. I was talking to Dave tonight about earthquakes in California and volcanoes in Hawaii. It's continually amazing to me all the things there are in the world that I don't know about and are fascinated to discover.
I am going to sleep now. I have my first classroom visit tomorrow and I have to be at Casa Grande High School by 8:20am, and it's at least a thirty-five minute drive. I met the teacher whose class I'm visiting, Todd Siders, today at the festival, as well as a lot of his students, so I'm excited by their enthusiasm and slightly less nervous because of it. I don't think I'll know what I'm going to say until I'm standing in front of them. We'll see if that's a terrible idea or not -- somehow, I think it's going to work perfectly.
Route 50.
This made my heart cry out for home so badly.
Stoned House.
Ryan and Tuui in my room in the Stone House.
Progressive Fest.
Alana standing with our table at the festival in Petaluma, CA.
Progressive Fest.
A very kind man let me try on his hat/scarf/back-warmer. Obviously, a dumb look was required.
Quaker Query of the Day: How do you feel supported by your community? How do you not?
I feel supported by the Sierra Friends Center community, in that every single person there believes that I will do wonderfully as the Woolman Semester program's representative, and told me so. I feel supported by my community back home, from all my family (especially my mother) and my friends (especially Dannie, Jess and Josh) who completely understood my need and desire to come here, back when I wasn't so sure of those feelings myself. At this moment in my life, I feel completely supported by everyone who is a part of it.