I wish the title were "Time Travel," but that's another post and another genre.
Since finishing finals, I did a lot of packing, a lot of seeing people, and some other fun stuff. I played a game of D&D with a fantastic group of friends, visited the Museum of Science and Industry where I was blown away by the integration of art and science, saw some fantastic student theater, and spent some time in the city. I really like my city days :) Oh, yeah, and I watched all of Dollhouse and started watching Lost.
Dollhouse is a Joss Whedon series about an organization that uses neurotechnology to make programmable people. The people sign contracts because they have faced serious trauma in their real lives such that they are willing, desirous even, to give up their lives for a number of years to have time to forget. The ethical issues are raised and addressed very well and the complexity of the situation makes you change how you feel about if the characters are good or bad at various points throughout.
I'm almost done with the first season of Lost and I think like it. I'm going to get the second season to watch on the plane.
Yesterday, I attended the honors ceremony for commencement, and this morning was commencement. The college convocation is tomorrow, and then I'm off to China!
I think the most exciting part of my week was meeting Dr. Paul Farmer, who was this year's commencement speaker. He did a small meet and greet/Q&A with the Global Health students, and I got to go. The remarkable thing was that he was so present and engaged with us the entire time and wanted to stay longer rather than stick to his jam-packed schedule. I asked him a question, and when answering, he spoke directly to me and made tons of eye contact. It was so inspirational to see such an influential person care so much about the current generation of students in his field. I have to admit that he was better in the small group than in the large speech, but that might be because of how miserably hot I was while he was speaking at the ceremony.
Now that all the ceremonial graduating is done, and I've done all of my shopping for both clothing and preparatory medication, it's time to pack, and then go study in Beijing! I'll be trying to keep a blog there (don't know how internet regulations will affect things), so hopefully this summer will be documented on chinasteph.blogspot.com if you'd like to follow.
So, until August, today is awesome because I'm getting time with my family before going far away for an extended period of time.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
To The Seniors of 2012
As this school year ends, I am realizing what amazing friends I have in this year's graduating class. A significant number of my friends will be leaving the university, and I will miss them terribly. I know that we will both continue to live our lives and grow, but I want to take a moment to reflect on the time we have had together and let you know how much I appreciate our friendships.
I can't start with anyone but my brother. He is graduating this year, and while he doesn't read my blog, I would be remiss to leave him out. At first, we did not want to be at the same university, but after the decision was made, it was really nice to have that one person to turn to when I didn't know who else to call. He met me at a bus stop at 6:50AM to go to a doctor's appointment with me in October, and I couldn't have asked anyone else to do that for me. I am so proud to be his sister and know he will be doing great things as he begins his job in August.
Esha: I met you when we were in sociology class together in the fall, but then when I moved dorms, you became my CA and such an amazing friend. I love hanging out with you, talking about the random stuff we would never actually do, and also the deep conversations we have had about life, religion, and dealing with tough situations. I know you won't be far at medical school next year, but things will not be the same without you.
Kaitlyn: Sitting on the couches will not be the same without your meows and hugs. You are a wonderful friend, and I can't imagine what college would have been like if I had never met you. Whether we're working on a show, sitting together in class, or just hanging out, you are a joy to be with. I love that eye contact is meaningful, and I will miss your hugs. It's hard to come up with words to sum up all the feelings I want you to know I have about our friendship, but know that there's a lot I can't figure out how to say.
Aaron: You are the reason I do student theater. We were dropping cable during the first week of Ragtime, and we were talking about a lot of things. You asked me to work with you on Into the Woods before I even knew what it meant to do student theater here, you taught me how to get the job done right the first time, and through working with you I have gained confidence in my abilities. Your snarky sense of humor, the fact that you care no matter how much you say you don't, and your random yet fascinating variety of interests make every moment with you interesting. I know you're staying in this city, but I know that being on campus and knowing you aren't here too is going to be the strangest feeling in the world.
Brad: We have been through a lot this year. It has been amazing to work with you on 4(ish) shows, and I think we were a pretty awesome team in theater, but beyond that we've become great friends. I love chatting with you about D&D, Joss Whedon, and other various nerdy awesome things. When Skittles asked me what I was going to do without you next year, I kind of shrugged it off, and while I know there will be other people around, I will miss you terribly. I am so proud of you for securing a job, and hope that you continue finding a way to be living your dream.
Josh: You were the first person to pass my Nerdfighter test. When I met you, I was wearing one of my ALL CAPS t-shirts, and you knew who they were. I had been waiting for somebody to understand since my first day at university, and it took until February, but I love sharing the excitement of fandom with you. From YouTube to Harry Potter to Doctor Who, we have the same obsessive excitement about the same things, and it's so much more fun to love things when you can be a fan with other people in real life. I am so excited to see where you end up, and I can't wait to hear all about your work with the Harry Potter Alliance. I'm sure I will see you at some cons :)
Moe: I truly respect how knowledgeable you are, but the way you can manage to crack a joke that is perfectly timed, perfectly themed, and perfectly hilarious is a talent that is irreplaceable. You will be amazing at law school, and I wish you the best.
Abby: I love sharing literary fandom with you. Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Divergent...I am so excited to go to the book signing with you!! Your ideas about these fandoms are so thought-provoking and often change my perspective on things that I had been thinking of a certain way. I will miss your mind when you're not here to share it with me.
Sean: We bonded once you found out that I like Doctor Who, and the rest is history. From the shows we've done together to the interpretive cross-committee dances at DM, moments with you are never dull. You are already employed and staying in town, and for that I am very happy on your behalf. Keep being your creative, caring, and wonderful self.
Laura: So much DM and Pocs love!!! I think we've bonded through the impossible things that we find so thrilling. Your ability to keep calm during all the craziness is one of my favorite qualities of yours. I love having life chats with you and your hugs are always a highlight of my day. I look forward to seeing you come back as an alumna, and I wish you all the best in what you pursue.
Jon: Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy, but we did some freaking awesome work on that crazy show, became friends, and now you're graduating and leaving me behind. Your attitude about teamwork and the way that the Pocs family sticks together is an inspiration, and while your driving is probably frightening for those outside the car, I really enjoyed our adventures driving around for build and strike. You're going to be an amazing teacher next year, and New York is lucky to have you. Looking forward to letting you into the alumni section next year.
Greg: Your random, pithy texts and gchats leave me grinning. Not everyone can get away with saying "Morning" when it's already 2:00! You are another person who I got to be friends with at the end of the year and now you're abandoning me, but I'm so happy for you to have a life to graduate into. Keep being your awesome, youthful-joke-loving self, because it's wonderful.
There are others, but these are the ones I could somehow verbalize something to say to and about. This is the hardest post I write each year; I have literally been working on it for a week. Since I couldn't work out my language for certain people, I want you to know that if you aren't written to here, you were on the list, but then the words didn't come, and I still love you. Please don't feel hurt or left out.
This pairs with the John Green quotation, "Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia" in my mind. I have been obsessing about this quotation recently because this time of year makes me get caught up in the nostalgia of imagining the future. I know what day to day life is like with this group of friends; it hurts to imagine what things will be like without them. It's a tough change that happens every year, and it will happen until I'm the one doing the leaving.
This came up in my tumblr dashboard today:
“In Greek, ‘nostalgia’ literally means “the pain from an old wound.” It’s a twinge in your heart, far more powerful than memory alone. This device isn’t a spaceship, it’s a time machine. It goes backwards and forwards, it takes us to a place where we ache to go again.” — Don Draper, Mad Men
This pairs with the John Green quotation, "Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia" in my mind. I have been obsessing about this quotation recently because this time of year makes me get caught up in the nostalgia of imagining the future. I know what day to day life is like with this group of friends; it hurts to imagine what things will be like without them. It's a tough change that happens every year, and it will happen until I'm the one doing the leaving.
There is yet another quotation by John Green, from his novel Paper Towns, that I always seem to come back to when I'm leaving or being left: “It is so hard to leave—until you leave. And then it is the easiest goddamned thing in the world.”
It's all a progression. Seniors, I love you. You have made college what it is, and you've been amazing friends to me for these past two years that I have known you. I look forward to seeing you live your dreams, and hopefully our lives will intersect again in a meaningful way.
Today is awesome because I finished finals and I finished this post!
I can't start with anyone but my brother. He is graduating this year, and while he doesn't read my blog, I would be remiss to leave him out. At first, we did not want to be at the same university, but after the decision was made, it was really nice to have that one person to turn to when I didn't know who else to call. He met me at a bus stop at 6:50AM to go to a doctor's appointment with me in October, and I couldn't have asked anyone else to do that for me. I am so proud to be his sister and know he will be doing great things as he begins his job in August.
Esha: I met you when we were in sociology class together in the fall, but then when I moved dorms, you became my CA and such an amazing friend. I love hanging out with you, talking about the random stuff we would never actually do, and also the deep conversations we have had about life, religion, and dealing with tough situations. I know you won't be far at medical school next year, but things will not be the same without you.
Kaitlyn: Sitting on the couches will not be the same without your meows and hugs. You are a wonderful friend, and I can't imagine what college would have been like if I had never met you. Whether we're working on a show, sitting together in class, or just hanging out, you are a joy to be with. I love that eye contact is meaningful, and I will miss your hugs. It's hard to come up with words to sum up all the feelings I want you to know I have about our friendship, but know that there's a lot I can't figure out how to say.
Aaron: You are the reason I do student theater. We were dropping cable during the first week of Ragtime, and we were talking about a lot of things. You asked me to work with you on Into the Woods before I even knew what it meant to do student theater here, you taught me how to get the job done right the first time, and through working with you I have gained confidence in my abilities. Your snarky sense of humor, the fact that you care no matter how much you say you don't, and your random yet fascinating variety of interests make every moment with you interesting. I know you're staying in this city, but I know that being on campus and knowing you aren't here too is going to be the strangest feeling in the world.
Brad: We have been through a lot this year. It has been amazing to work with you on 4(ish) shows, and I think we were a pretty awesome team in theater, but beyond that we've become great friends. I love chatting with you about D&D, Joss Whedon, and other various nerdy awesome things. When Skittles asked me what I was going to do without you next year, I kind of shrugged it off, and while I know there will be other people around, I will miss you terribly. I am so proud of you for securing a job, and hope that you continue finding a way to be living your dream.
Josh: You were the first person to pass my Nerdfighter test. When I met you, I was wearing one of my ALL CAPS t-shirts, and you knew who they were. I had been waiting for somebody to understand since my first day at university, and it took until February, but I love sharing the excitement of fandom with you. From YouTube to Harry Potter to Doctor Who, we have the same obsessive excitement about the same things, and it's so much more fun to love things when you can be a fan with other people in real life. I am so excited to see where you end up, and I can't wait to hear all about your work with the Harry Potter Alliance. I'm sure I will see you at some cons :)
Moe: I truly respect how knowledgeable you are, but the way you can manage to crack a joke that is perfectly timed, perfectly themed, and perfectly hilarious is a talent that is irreplaceable. You will be amazing at law school, and I wish you the best.
Abby: I love sharing literary fandom with you. Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Divergent...I am so excited to go to the book signing with you!! Your ideas about these fandoms are so thought-provoking and often change my perspective on things that I had been thinking of a certain way. I will miss your mind when you're not here to share it with me.
Sean: We bonded once you found out that I like Doctor Who, and the rest is history. From the shows we've done together to the interpretive cross-committee dances at DM, moments with you are never dull. You are already employed and staying in town, and for that I am very happy on your behalf. Keep being your creative, caring, and wonderful self.
Laura: So much DM and Pocs love!!! I think we've bonded through the impossible things that we find so thrilling. Your ability to keep calm during all the craziness is one of my favorite qualities of yours. I love having life chats with you and your hugs are always a highlight of my day. I look forward to seeing you come back as an alumna, and I wish you all the best in what you pursue.
Jon: Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy, but we did some freaking awesome work on that crazy show, became friends, and now you're graduating and leaving me behind. Your attitude about teamwork and the way that the Pocs family sticks together is an inspiration, and while your driving is probably frightening for those outside the car, I really enjoyed our adventures driving around for build and strike. You're going to be an amazing teacher next year, and New York is lucky to have you. Looking forward to letting you into the alumni section next year.
Greg: Your random, pithy texts and gchats leave me grinning. Not everyone can get away with saying "Morning" when it's already 2:00! You are another person who I got to be friends with at the end of the year and now you're abandoning me, but I'm so happy for you to have a life to graduate into. Keep being your awesome, youthful-joke-loving self, because it's wonderful.
There are others, but these are the ones I could somehow verbalize something to say to and about. This is the hardest post I write each year; I have literally been working on it for a week. Since I couldn't work out my language for certain people, I want you to know that if you aren't written to here, you were on the list, but then the words didn't come, and I still love you. Please don't feel hurt or left out.
This pairs with the John Green quotation, "Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia" in my mind. I have been obsessing about this quotation recently because this time of year makes me get caught up in the nostalgia of imagining the future. I know what day to day life is like with this group of friends; it hurts to imagine what things will be like without them. It's a tough change that happens every year, and it will happen until I'm the one doing the leaving.
This came up in my tumblr dashboard today:
“In Greek, ‘nostalgia’ literally means “the pain from an old wound.” It’s a twinge in your heart, far more powerful than memory alone. This device isn’t a spaceship, it’s a time machine. It goes backwards and forwards, it takes us to a place where we ache to go again.” — Don Draper, Mad Men
This pairs with the John Green quotation, "Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia" in my mind. I have been obsessing about this quotation recently because this time of year makes me get caught up in the nostalgia of imagining the future. I know what day to day life is like with this group of friends; it hurts to imagine what things will be like without them. It's a tough change that happens every year, and it will happen until I'm the one doing the leaving.
There is yet another quotation by John Green, from his novel Paper Towns, that I always seem to come back to when I'm leaving or being left: “It is so hard to leave—until you leave. And then it is the easiest goddamned thing in the world.”
It's all a progression. Seniors, I love you. You have made college what it is, and you've been amazing friends to me for these past two years that I have known you. I look forward to seeing you live your dreams, and hopefully our lives will intersect again in a meaningful way.
Today is awesome because I finished finals and I finished this post!
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