Tuesday, May 31, 2011

What I Do As a Professional Bum Now That School Has Ended and PC Is Yet To Begin

With the end of May has also come the end to my lease on my apartment, but not my desire to stay in Berkeley, so I have subletted an apartment from a friend who is leaving for June, and have become the new roommate of my dear friend Fuh. Fuh is a brilliant film major who took a feminist film class last semester, so now we get to talk about representations of women in media and I can get all feministy and she doesn't mind.

This summer she is taking a class from the art department on creating film, but since it is from the art department, she has to make the really awful types of films found in film installations in modern art museums that make you want to plug your ears and close your eyes after two minutes. I have been serving as a sounding board during her creative process, validating her as she does actual filming, and acting as what I consider to be akin to hired muscle against the stares of  passersby while filming random things on the street. I also tend to overly provide input on the overarching themes in her films, even when she does not intend them to be there. I am like an English student who bullshits because I can do nothing else.

This afternoon, while reviewing her most recent addition to her film-in-progress, I made another such comment about how something in her film alludes to the theme of whatever I have projected into it, which lead to this memorable exchange....

Me: I think I would be stoned if I were to ever take an art class.
Fuh: I would think it would be better to be stoned while in an art class.
Me: No, I mean stones would be thrown at me.

Notes:
1. This is probably one of those times where this is only funny to me and Fuh.
2. I only said "bullshit" in my blog- which I think is a word that is potentially inappropriate for this medium- because it conveyed my intended meaning and Fuh said it was artistic, and the next month is going to be all about being artistic.
3. The overarching theme of this entry is that I have too much time and nothing to do now that I only have a part time job and am no longer in school.

Friday, May 20, 2011

99 Woods But a Brick Ain't One

After adding my blog to Peace Corps Journals, a current Tstan PCV found me on Facebook, and has been providing me with great packing advice. One of my questions for her was if it was silly to bring my favorite board game with me- would I have an opportunity to play it? Of course, she says, and actually, PCVs right now are obsessed with this one board game... Settlers of Catan...

WHAT! That is the board game I am bringing (and Seafarers)! Not only has Settlers taken over the Berkeley scene, but it is popular on the other side of the world, too! How does this happen?....

Thank you Rohan for introducing Geeti to Settlers, who introduced it to the rest of us, which lead to countless hours avoiding studying during finals. Miss you, D Unit!

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Now I Have An Alma Mater

Grades have been posted and I have officially graduated! I am a student no longer, but, in Ric's words, a "vagabond." For reals, though, I'm gonna be "in between addresses" for the next two and a half years, at least.