Abigail Sustar

There’s a new medium coming to Eckerd.  But don’t think newspaper!  And don’t think underground newspaper, either!  Social commentary is a thing of the past.  According to two high-achieving juniors who presented the idea to my journalism class, they are scrambling to put together a hyper-local forum. An outlet.  A small community manifestation on the internet.  Finally!  Students are encouraged to write whatever they want about whatever they want.  But first, the staff will ask that we please submit our ideas to them so that they can help us formulate our ideas.  Then, once it’s written, we submit it back to their staff for it to be edited.  So when we write whatever we want, we have to be sure it’s also exactly what they want.  Which actually makes sense.  Who wants to read a student 's piece that’s a total querulous complaint?  Or chock-full of libel?   Nobody.  Nobody does.  If these two high-achievers can pull this off, it seems like the forum will be one of the best ways for a student to “Voice” an intelligently crafted complaint, research, or praise about our community in a way that will produce reform and, ultimately, make people think.  As if that's not enough, it will also be a great place to advertise student activist events or progressive club meetings where other activists and progressive thinkers will be sure to see them.  Smart.

This week, the Interdisciplinary Arts students have their work on display in our very own Elliot Art Gallery.  For art students with “varied interests and talents,” this is their chance to exhibit their films, photography, installations and yes, even musical instruments.  I don’t know how he did it, but one genius IA Major combined his love of music and physics to create a stringed instrument.  I’ve never seen him use it and I have no clue how it works, but man oh man does it look cool.  Another student collected jars of crickets to set at the base of her artwork, which, obviously has to do with nature and the like.  Talk about sensory overload!  They even provided the most delicious iced tea I’ve ever tasted at the opening on Sunday.  Raspberry Mint.  (If you’d like to know more about the IA Major at Eckerd, just go to http://www.eckerd.edu/academics/interdisciplinaryarts/ )

Well, I hate to say it, but I have to go.  It’s time to dig out my spandex and my rollerblades because tonight there is a skating party for Resident Advisors at a local skating rink.  I haven’t been to one of those since all the stinkin’ way back in the 90’s.  I’m crossing my fingers for some Brittany Spears tunes, because, when you think of the 1990’s, can you even think of anything OTHER than rollerblading and B. Spears? 

“And in his hands he still carried many, many languages. So now he tossed these languages in all directions. Now the people didn’t understand one another. There were so many different languages. And the Creator had left the sky too low. Tall people were bumping their heads against the sky. And some of them were climbing into the Sky World.”    -Margaret Read MacDonald

Native American History class was a real spectacle today.  First, our professor was mysteriously absent… in her place was a Storyteller who came to teach us how to be storytellers, too.  She truly looked the part with a floor length skirt and a thrift-y looking suede vest and lots of beaded accessories.  Just the way a Professional Storyteller should look.  She brought a basket of rattles made of llama hooves and turtle shells.  She lit sage ON FIRE in our classroom and “smudged” us with the smoke (which really only means she waved it with feathers toward each of our faces as she sang, I was secretly nervous that the sprinklers would pop on and ruin everything but thank Creator they didn’t).

For the rest of class we learned how to tell stories as the Native Americans do.  Sometime this semester, our class will visit the guest speaker’s home where we will tell our own stories around a ceremonial fire pit.  And we’ll be graded on it because, apparently, moonlit ceremonies are the new exams.

Before classes began this week, I made sure to enjoy my last weekend without loads of homework. And it was easy to do because Eckerd’s Waterfront put us in a boat and whisked us off to a sandbar out in the bay. Then, they stranded us in ankle deep water where we played volleyball, lounged on floats and drank water out of plastic bottles. Braver, and much more ambitious students than myself, went wakeboarding and kayaking while I watched all their hard efforts from my very own inner-tube. 

And then the weekend was over. 

Still, I’m managing to fit in some fun. For instance, yesterday my friend and I went to look for pet turtles at a local pet store appropriately named, Animal House. Who knew it was “THE LAW” that any turtle smaller than four inches can only be sold for research or educational purposes. I guess salmonella is a pretty big deal. No matter! It just so happens that my friend with the turtle-purchasing interests is also a Marine Science Major …! To a Marine Science student, what’s more educational than a turtle? Not much. Ended up that she didn’t buy the turtle just yet, which means, maybe I’ll have the chance to go back with her and look at the Fancy Hamsters some more. It would be a nice break from the library.  

Eckerd students were given an opportunity to volunteer on Friday through a program called, INTO THE STREETS. Every year, The Service Learning Office organizes trips to off-campus sites in need of that four letter word, H-E-L-P. For instance, some students traveled to Ft. Desoto for a beach clean up, others packed sack lunches and distributed them to the homeless in downtown St. Pete, and others prepared the fields of an urban farm for the fall.

Since I’m incapable of ever signing up for anything on time, I wasn’t able to choose where I volunteered. But I love surprises, I mean, who doesn’t? So, Service Learning surprised me by sending me to Lakewood Elementary! And not to play with kids, either! Because that would too easy! No, no, no. This trip’s purpose was to tend to the Edible Peace Patch Garden. What’s an Edible Peace Patch Garden? Well, it’s exactly what you think it is. And if you don’t know, you can always visit http://theedibleschoolyard.blogspot.com/ … (college kids + little kids + seeds + lessons in Floridian Horticulture = fresh food for Lakewood) When we arrived at Lakewood, which coincidentally has neither lake nor wood anywhere near it, I took one look at the “garden” and thought to myself, “That is not a garden.”  I was immediately corrected by someone who said, “Welcome to The Edible Schoolyard!” And then I realized: all of the planting and weeding and green-thumbing the Eckerd students and elementary kids had done during the last school year, all of it was overtaken by monster weeds. Our job was to spruce up the garden so that the youngin’s can get back to being little gardeners when they start school next week. Apparently, the Edible Schoolyard has captured their tiny <3's and they absolutely <3 learning about fruits, vegetables etc.  By the end of our day in the garden, all was weeded, mulched and pruned, and the volunteers left with warm feelings, a few blisters, dirty shoes, sore muscles, dehydration and sweat stains. 

On my way out, I was stopped by a teacher who was impressed by everything we had accomplished, and explained how much it meant to herself and the little ones. I could tell she was one of those elementary teachers who believes children are made of sunshine and fabric softener and rainbows. It was lovely.

Other than hunger, I left Lakewood with some new friends. All of the volunteers were either Environmental Studies or Biology students, which meant, I had zero things in common with them (academically speaking). But, no matter! Turns out, science majors are people, too, and they also like to volunteer, so I just wanted to say, thanks Service Learning for putting together such a great day. Also, a tiny rumor floating around: this year was the highest number of INTO THE STREETS participants since the program was started! Congrats Eckerd.

Well, my word! It’s me again. Campus is positively buzzing with freshmen, and lucky me(!), I am here to help them acclimate to this strange new world called College. 

When I’m not throwing s’more parties at the bonfire pit, going to black-light dances in orange highlighter shorts, or cheering on my residents at kickball tournaments, I like to take a little time to have some fun. For instance, last week I played capture the flag with other Resident Advisors (still sore), ate cookies at an evening pool party, and spent all day at the beach (twice). 

As for the freshmen, yes, they go to all those ridiculously fun, school-sponsored, nonsensical events, but they also have to attend a little something called Class. In addition to class, they must complete a portfolio of journals and programs and events, and at the end of the day, they do that darned thing called homework. It's not as tough as Fall/Spring semesters, though. Freshmen are only required to take one class (of their choice) during Autumn Term (examples: Existential Imagination In France, Breaking U.S. Oil Addiction, Exploring Musical Instruments In Clay… for a full list of Autumn Term classes see: http://www.eckerd.edu/newstudents/index.php?f=autumnterm09 ). And the true purpose of the portfolio is to familiarize new students with all the clubs, sports, organizations, and academic opportunities Eckerd has to offer.  

Aside from all the Freshmen-centric activities, Residence Life put together a little lunch ditty last week where the housekeepers and RA’s were able to spend quality time dining together. I met some of the most wonderful people at that luncheon, all hardworking, all friendly and all dedicated to making Eckerd spotless. Thank you, Housekeepers!

Last weekend I took my clothes off for the homeless. I know what you’re thinking! But trust me, it was done tastefully because ECHO (Eckerd College Homeless Outreach) threw an underwear party in our very own Triton Pub where students could come and donate their old clothes right off their very own backs, dance, drink, and listen to RAP. Mmm, rap music. My favorite…

In other news, The Ape’s parents are in town, and (so far) I’ve gotten two free meals out of it (The Ape = Aprille = my roommate). We went to Bonefish Grill, a snazzy seafood restaurant AND Fresco’s Waterfront Bistro in downtown St. Pete. I’m not as a big of a mooching roomy as you might think though, because I treated the whole family to Ben and Jerry’s afterwards. Because I’m nice. 

I really should go to bed now though, because I have to wake up early in the morning for Inside Nazi Germany class where a group of students will be debating the following proposition: 

“Explaining the motivation behind the perpetrators of the Holocaust is actually quite simple. Nurtured in an environment of extreme anti-Semitism, most ordinary Germans were convinced that the Jews were either sub-human or an immediate threat to German security. Because of their anti-Semitic background, the great majority of Germans were able to put aside moral scruples fairly easily and, when asked, to become Hitler’s willing executioners.”

To finish the year in Writing the Environment, we have begun reading Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer.  I’m certain if you haven’t read it, or viewed the film, you’ve at least heard the story.  Chris McCandless and his journey to Alaska.  It’s s a sensitive subject, spurning some heated discussions, not just in my class but amongst nearly anyone and everyone who “knows” about him.  In class, we explore the controversy, if and how we connect with the story, what we think about the publicity Chris has received, and whether or not it is right to analyze his life through mediums like Into the Wild (both film and book).

Today, we viewed a documentary by Ron Lamothe titled, The Call of the Wild.  Deeply moved by and attached to the story of Chris McCandless, Ron decided he would create a film that went beyond what was revealed in the book.  In it, he divulges his life story, how it matches up with the life of Chris, and some possible explanations about how/why Chris might have died.  The interesting thing: his film and Hollywood’s movie were made concurrently, so Ron treads through some testy waters when he tries to interview people.  Because Sean Penn owns the rights to Chris’s story, the people who signed contracts with the production company were bound by law to keep quiet about Chris.  How long must they go without being able to speak about his life, which inevitably means speaking about their own lives?  I believe Ron mentioned the word, “perpetuity.”  Scary. 

So, I ask, is any of this right?  If you have read the book, or if you know anything about it, I’m sure you would agree that none of this is what Chris or his family would have wanted.    

 If you'd like to know more, here’s a place to start. http://www.terraincognitafilms.com/wild/call_intro.htm

It feels like there were a million things to do on campus this past weekend.  That’s only an estimate, but it feels pretty right on.  So, since it would have been literally, physically impossible for me to do all one million things, I’ll just tell you what I did do.  Friday was Battle of the Bands! featuring some exceptionally musical students.  It was a magical event.  There were accordions, faculty judges, puppies, sound machines, banjos, kazoos and one cute, folksy, young student even played the saw.  

Saturday, I woke up bright and early like my friend the rooster to plant some trees on campus.  Students and members of the Gulf Coast  Jewish Family Services, Inc., Florida Center for Survivors of Torture, and Refugee Services came together to dig holes, pop trees into the holes, refill the holes, water the trees in the holes, then of course, mulch.  I met a lot of wonderful kids, which is always nice since I’m so accustomed to only being around people my own age.  

Later on Saturday, because I am always inclined to bond with Mother Nature, I went to a documentary called "TAKING ROOT: The Vision of Wangari Maathai."  It’s about a very brave and determined woman, Wangari Maathai- if you couldn’t guess from the title- and her Green Belt Movement in Kenya.  Planting trees never seemed so dangerous… so rebellious.  Talk about inspiration.  Really, you must see this… if nothing else, at least the trailer or the Green Belt Movement website:  http://takingrootfilm.com/    http://www.greenbeltmovement.org/ 

THEN, after all of this blessed, environmental goodwill, I went to see the student improve group, Another Man’s Trash, as they performed their last show of the school year.  It was very impressive.  I think during one part, I was crying and laughing and clapping all in the very same instant.

Even though I spent all day today doing homework, I know for a fact that my weekend was more eventful than yours.  And if you don’t think so, then I’d like to know about it.  And then, even if you told me, I know I would still disagree because I bet it did not include a cockroach scuttling across your dinner table at a Thai restaurant.  : O

This morning the folks from the campus chapel held a sunrise Easter service on the beach.  Well, Eckerd’s beach… not the real beach.  But still, it’s close enough, and it was beautiful.  Except for the sprinklers that just happened to be turned on at precisely the same time as the service.  Made the walk to the pavilion kind of tricky!  (Who wants to wear recycled water to an Easter Sunday sermon?)  It was a good morning though, full of cheerful folks, bagels, coffee, singing, birds and a sunrise.  And sprinklers.  Suspiciously enough, there were no Easter bunnies nor were there any Easter eggs.  The two staples of the holiday… absent.  It’s absurd, I mean, where were they?!  I don’t really have time to worry about this, though.  I have to focus on quite a diametric subject:  an essay about sexuality in Nazi Germany.  What a great note on which to end this cute little Easter blog.