First of all, Lake Weekend 2009 has come and gone and I am spent. I won't write too much about it since I gave such a lengthy anticipatory pre-amble last month, but I will post a picture soon that encapsulates the physics-defying capacity of the inner tube, the invention of tube jousting, and a rare moment where it appears as if GP has better balance than I do. It was, as predicted, a fantastic trip that somehow serves as a microcosm for an entire classic american summer vacation, efficiently squished into one weekend. This year saw the introduction of new toys (the disk), tricks (the flying V), and activities (the first inaugural tube-a-ment). Of course, old traditions also endured (Darron burgers, Lake CD exchanging, and mobile handstands). As always, it was bliss.
Speaking of bliss, when I was in Bloomington I had a weekly appointment with my Swahili gal pals, Joanna and Lauren, to try and cling to our language skills between visits to the motherland (East Africa). It was wonderful-- not only do I adore Joanna and Lauren, but our weekly rendez-vous became a much-needed therapeutic confessional for the three of us. Because we were all in different worlds work-wise, most of the characters in our true stories were anonymous. This, in addition to speaking in a language no one nearby could understand, was very liberating conversationally. During the 6 years I was in Indiana, it provided a welcome break during stressful periods (exams, dissertation writing, etc.) to know there was one hour a week during which we could step outside of our rush-rush, brou ha-ha lives to talk and reflect and to tell each other our deepest darkest secrets, at least those for which we had the vocabulary. When we didn't know the word, we could always use a whistling sound and eyebrow gestures to convey our meaning. Lauren worked in Tanzania for years before doing her PhD at IU, which compared the effectiveness of different forest management strategies in that region. She recently started a post-doc in Ann Arbor (send details Lauren-- I want to post a picture or link here!) and I won't be surprised at all if she ends up playing a key role in conserving what is left of the forest (and therefore water supply) in that part of the world. Joanna is an artist and jewelry maker (check out her unique paper jewelry and love of words at her
blog site), in addition to being one of the best cooks I know and a collector of mints (actually, she is really good at everything she tries-- here is a picture of a creation in her garden using a cool quote from E.E. Cummings). She recently seeded my own mint plantation on the patio by sending along three varieties (yes, there are varieties of mint with very different flavors)-- berries and cream, orange, and black peppermint. They are trying to thrive despite the inferno they now live in (summer in Texas)-- perhaps there will be mojitos to help me do the same in a few short weeks.
(click to enlarge)
Speaking of bliss, when I was in Bloomington I had a weekly appointment with my Swahili gal pals, Joanna and Lauren, to try and cling to our language skills between visits to the motherland (East Africa). It was wonderful-- not only do I adore Joanna and Lauren, but our weekly rendez-vous became a much-needed therapeutic confessional for the three of us. Because we were all in different worlds work-wise, most of the characters in our true stories were anonymous. This, in addition to speaking in a language no one nearby could understand, was very liberating conversationally. During the 6 years I was in Indiana, it provided a welcome break during stressful periods (exams, dissertation writing, etc.) to know there was one hour a week during which we could step outside of our rush-rush, brou ha-ha lives to talk and reflect and to tell each other our deepest darkest secrets, at least those for which we had the vocabulary. When we didn't know the word, we could always use a whistling sound and eyebrow gestures to convey our meaning. Lauren worked in Tanzania for years before doing her PhD at IU, which compared the effectiveness of different forest management strategies in that region. She recently started a post-doc in Ann Arbor (send details Lauren-- I want to post a picture or link here!) and I won't be surprised at all if she ends up playing a key role in conserving what is left of the forest (and therefore water supply) in that part of the world. Joanna is an artist and jewelry maker (check out her unique paper jewelry and love of words at her blog site), in addition to being one of the best cooks I know and a collector of mints (actually, she is really good at everything she tries-- here is a picture of a creation in her garden using a cool quote from E.E. Cummings). She recently seeded my own mint plantation on the patio by sending along three varieties (yes, there are varieties of mint with very different flavors)-- berries and cream, orange, and black peppermint. They are trying to thrive despite the inferno they now live in (summer in Texas)-- perhaps there will be mojitos to help me do the same in a few short weeks. 
(click to enlarge)
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