15 minutes, to be continued.
So in my previous post when I took Karen Pinkus's "15 minutes to acclimatise to LA" as a signpost, I think I've got my glimpse of the equivalent tonight.
For all the horror stories of the competitive environment that is grad life, we've been blessed with a perfect cohort. There are five of us in the Comp Lit intake. Sam, as you'd know by now, is simply a bestest friend. Lindsay is my housemate so has been a strong source of support. Seth, who just lives across the street, has such a gentle, poetic soul (with an amazing wife who is resident and LA County Hospital and was president of the Medical Students Pro-Choice Association in Long Island -- and two darling dogs). Catrina is such a beautiful girl from Siccily and who knows Polish, Italian, English, Yiddish, Hebrew, the Cabbala, etc, all topped with the greatest humour. We all have such disparate interests but the extent to which we have such patience and understanding towards each other's perspective and field is just, simply, unbelievable. I didn't even know I have the capacity for that kind of bonding till I arrived here, seriously.
Tonight we had a first-years' gathering at Seth's place. A gorgeous apartment so tastefully decorated. When I stepped in and saw Picasso's Guernica, I knew I liked their apartment already. Books lined the study room and living space. Dark wood shelves, hardwood floors and an extensive but non-showy display of collectibles they've amassed from travelling around Israel, Europe, Argentina, India, and Japan. We had a BBQ at their courtyard with the two dogs June and Zoe running around smelling the bushes for skunks, and the neighbour's great dane shyly sitting there. We talked about everything from the Cabbala to Tyra Banks. The food was great, the bottles were emptied at the speed I liked it. And LA was at the center of the discussions since everyone was concerned as to how I, having traveled the longest distance to get here, am adjusting to it. At that moment, I thought that that was enough. I was at the beginning of my "15 minutes" by the sheer grace and genunine concern of my peers. Intelligent and kind, our batch got along so well like the myth of the humanitas that sometimes becomes more than a myth.
So despite all my difficult negotiations with some aspects of my course, I know things can be 50 times worse. Plus today, I received the parcel from my folks. With the first arrival of my books, my Derridas, Kant, Hegel, Nietzsches lined up on my shelf, and photos of old friends up on my wall, plus my metaphorically bloodstained ballet pointe shoes on my door, this feels more and more like home. Also, I made my first frivolous purchase in LA -- they were selling dresses on campus and I was thus detracted from my library route. Well, nothing like a little frivolity to comfort myself from the wretchedness of courtly love. :)
For all the horror stories of the competitive environment that is grad life, we've been blessed with a perfect cohort. There are five of us in the Comp Lit intake. Sam, as you'd know by now, is simply a bestest friend. Lindsay is my housemate so has been a strong source of support. Seth, who just lives across the street, has such a gentle, poetic soul (with an amazing wife who is resident and LA County Hospital and was president of the Medical Students Pro-Choice Association in Long Island -- and two darling dogs). Catrina is such a beautiful girl from Siccily and who knows Polish, Italian, English, Yiddish, Hebrew, the Cabbala, etc, all topped with the greatest humour. We all have such disparate interests but the extent to which we have such patience and understanding towards each other's perspective and field is just, simply, unbelievable. I didn't even know I have the capacity for that kind of bonding till I arrived here, seriously.
Tonight we had a first-years' gathering at Seth's place. A gorgeous apartment so tastefully decorated. When I stepped in and saw Picasso's Guernica, I knew I liked their apartment already. Books lined the study room and living space. Dark wood shelves, hardwood floors and an extensive but non-showy display of collectibles they've amassed from travelling around Israel, Europe, Argentina, India, and Japan. We had a BBQ at their courtyard with the two dogs June and Zoe running around smelling the bushes for skunks, and the neighbour's great dane shyly sitting there. We talked about everything from the Cabbala to Tyra Banks. The food was great, the bottles were emptied at the speed I liked it. And LA was at the center of the discussions since everyone was concerned as to how I, having traveled the longest distance to get here, am adjusting to it. At that moment, I thought that that was enough. I was at the beginning of my "15 minutes" by the sheer grace and genunine concern of my peers. Intelligent and kind, our batch got along so well like the myth of the humanitas that sometimes becomes more than a myth.
So despite all my difficult negotiations with some aspects of my course, I know things can be 50 times worse. Plus today, I received the parcel from my folks. With the first arrival of my books, my Derridas, Kant, Hegel, Nietzsches lined up on my shelf, and photos of old friends up on my wall, plus my metaphorically bloodstained ballet pointe shoes on my door, this feels more and more like home. Also, I made my first frivolous purchase in LA -- they were selling dresses on campus and I was thus detracted from my library route. Well, nothing like a little frivolity to comfort myself from the wretchedness of courtly love. :)