Cloud 9

After eight weeks of stressful rehearsal, it's extremely satisfying to finally perform Cloud 9. Not that the play itself is stressful, but the commitment did inspire me to write a blog post about the trials and tribulations of finishing homework while staying dedicated to the play. The only problem now is convincing people to come and see the show and K students are really weird about what they go to see. Improv comedy shows and a cappella concerts can sell out in ten minutes, but only seventy people may show up for a play. It's okay because I have the perfect tagline for when I verbally advertise the play: "It has an orgy in it!" 

Rethinking Revolution

During my first quarter here at K I had the opportunity to take an Introduction to Society and Culture course with visiting Professor Matt Birkhold. It was an incredible class! The majority of what we read came from James and Grace Lee Boggs and we discussed at great lengths how race, gender and capitalism all intertwine. It opened my eyes to many of the problems that exist in society today, but instead of just complaining about those problems, my class took an initiative to fix them. A couple of other passionate students and I thought it would be a great idea to go beyond our classroom and create a means for other people to also be involved in what we had learned. Thus, the seminar “Rethinking Revolution” was created, which we would use as a platform to educate others (both on campus and in the community) about how we define true revolution.

Worried about winter?

Winter quarter usually comes with some stigmas attached to it. Cold. Grumpy. Cloudy. But this quarter has been surprisingly nice as far as the weather goes. However, that is in contrast to last winter quarter when we had Snowpocalypse and a crazy ice storm! So, there is really no predicting a Michigan winter; that being said, this one has been incredibly mild.

Even though the weather has been nice, there is still some sort of drag that winter quarter places on everyone. It might be because fall quarter is so exciting: the start of a new year, seeing friends again, meeting new people, etc. and spring quarter is so awesome: Day of Gracious Living, the annual Frelon show, beautiful spring weather, etc. Winter quarter is just that awkward middle child that doesn’t get any attention and stays huddled in his room all day.

Culture shock... at home?

After five months in China, getting back to my real life in northern Michigan hasn’t been all that easy. The CIP at K warned us that reverse culture shock is actually pretty tough, and as weird as it seems to be uncomfortable in your own skin, it’s actually a difficult feeling to get away from. Home seems very mellow and quiet, and on my drive to Kalamazoo last night I felt a little suffocated by the dark open spaces and the lack of cars and buildings. It’s not that I’d want to be stuck in the urban jungle of Beijing forever, but it’s interesting how adept you become at reevaluating everything after giving something new an honest go.

Plays and study

For the past month, it feels like I've been living on stage. From 6:30 until about 10:30 on Sundays through Thursdays I found a way to momentarily forget all my other commitments to assignment due dates and social obligations and transform into another character onstage, complete with an entirely new set of goals and dilemmas. However, after the stage manager enthusiastically shouts, "See you all tomorrow actors!" and I step out of the warmly-lit Balch Theater and into the cold unforgiving Michigan night air, the weight of all my unfinished assignments suddenly hits. "You going to the library with us?" one of my fellow co-actors would ask. Thinking about an unfinished paper or upcoming Spanish test, I would nod and drag my exhausted body across the street to the library.