Days like this, walking around, make me very much aware of the fact that I really love this place called Wesleyan. Everything is still green, and the weather is still unseasonably warm, and people are laying out on the hill, some are playing catch, friends are conversing, and everyone seems to have an extra bounce in their collective step.
I saw President Bennett for the second time of my Wesleyan career. I nodded my head and said, “Good afternoon.” For a split second, I think I saw a look of relief on his face. He must be a pretty stressed-out dude, what with all the angst of most Wesleyan students directed towards him.
In my continuing quest to do at least one good deed each day, I helped an old lady into a car today. Her and her driver seemed very thankful. I realized that I do these things about 51% for personal gratification and 49% to, in some little way, better the world. Plus, after my run-in with angry-pickup-truck-driver-Middletown-resident a week or two ago, I think it’d do this community a lot of good if Wesleyan students got involved and showed the population that we aren’t all a bunch of snotty rich kids, but that we’re people, after all.
I am excited about debate. I really want to excel at it, but I know that it will take a lot of practice and probably a lot of defeats in the beginning. I’m still unsure as to whether I’ll be staying for the tournament we’re hosting, which is the weekend of Fall Break. I’d like to get home and see Chris and Eve and Andrew and all the Marshfield kids.
Erica, if all goes according to plan, should be here Friday. That’s another exciting event. I hope her driving to and fro is safe.
I have hundreds of pages of Aristotle and history to read, and a philosophy paper to write on Aristotle that I must get done tonight. I really can’t afford to continue the procrastination that has been the prominent feature of my academic life for the past month. It’s really fucking me over now that papers and exams are coming around.
I’m really happy with life here, and most especially with my friendship with Jeffrey. We stay up together until 4 AM most nights and talk and play Unreal and such. I’m also incredibly fortunate that my friends from last year—my housing group, Mad, and myriad people now scattered all around campus who I miss so incredibly much—are still friends and still talk and hang out, though less so than last year in terms of those myriad people. Having such a tight-knit group of friends makes a lot of things easier.
Last night I read much of Ben Franklin’s autobiography, and I find him to be much like me, only with infinite more motivation to actually do things. I plan on going over some of that book again and learning some lessons from the man.
I hate realizing that there’s so much out there that I won’t ever know.
