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A couple of days ago I received an email from the president of San Francisco State University (my current home for self-torture in the name of betterment). The brief message was of a congratulatory ilk, proudly informing the student body that, for the second year in a row, SFSU leads all the universities in the nation with regard to the number of international students enrolled.
Pretty cool, thought I. I love the idea that thousands of students come from all over the world to live and learn in San Francisco. I love hearing dozens of different languages spoken every time I walk across campus or get comfortable in the library.
The same day I received that satisfying email, I was riding a late-night train home from class, weary after another long day spent pushing my brain until it began making hissing noises (that can't be good, right?). I found myself sitting within earshot of two young male students: one Japanese, one German; both thickly accented. The German lad--tall, blond and strapping--confided to his Asian friend that he rarely drank beer.
His friend, barely able to contain his shock, replied, "But, dude, you're German!"
"In an ironic turnaround, Iraq brought regime change to the United States." -- Amy Poehler on last week's Saturday Night Live
And... Mark Morford, the SF Chronicle columnist whose musings I frequently enjoy, is spot-on today: Gay Marriage Is Still Evil?
I got out of class at 10pm last night and (glad to be on west-coast time, at least) proceeded to stay up far too late, riveted to CNN and sharing the experience over the phone with a few like-minded friends.
I'm very excited to be living in San Francisco today, as the city rejoices in its own widely-respected Pelosi's impending ascendancy to the vital role of House Speaker. We're stuck with Schwarzenegger, but I did not believe things would change much if his opponent were elected, so I resign myself to accepting Mr. Austria.
While I am--quite obviously--thrilled with the election results overall, I harbor no delusions that the state of this country is going to drastically change overnight. I know that, for most of us, life moves along in very much the same manner regardless of who is in power (although I do hope our new Congress will pay more reverence to the Constitution and, frankly, the law).
Pelosi promises the Democrats intend to lead "the most honest, the most open and the most ethical Congress in history." Nobody knows if that idyllic vision will come to pass. But those of us who've been paying attention know that the current bastion of duplicity and deceit could not sink much deeper, making any change to its membership a likely improvement.
What thrills me the most is that Americans seem to have woken up from the fog of fear and false patriotism that spread over us like a blanket after September 11. I am happy that those tainted politicians who were, in the simplest terms, doing their constituents wrong have been essentially fired from their jobs. (Perhaps those who have been skirting the law will be reprimanded, though I'm not holding out hope.) I am elated that the majority of Americans resolved to no longer stomach the bullshit and they made their voices heard. As Pelosi said, "The American people voted for change." Quite simple, really. We want change in our country; we need change in our leadership.
Last night, the oft-derided but indisputably bright Hillary Clinton said, "... [T]he vice president said regardless of the outcome, the administration would go full speed ahead in the same direction. I think the American people have said, 'Not so fast!'"
Well-put, Senator. I, for one, have a renewed faith in many of my fellow Americans this morning, which is far more valuable to me than what happens in Washington any day. This morning, I'm proud once again to call myself an American. Let's hope our new leadership can move forward in a way that makes it possible for all Americans to say the same.
I am optimistic for the outcome of tomorrow's election to usher in a much-needed change in the direction this country's been heading. I am eager for our new Congress to embark on the difficult task of restoring us to a respected nation with a positive future. I will be happy and thankful to see the GOP lose the power it has so abused over the years, to the detriment of so very many. It's time for a shake-up and I'm excited to see my country switch gears and return to a positive path that other nations can respect and admire instead of fear and detest. It is a grand hope, but as I said before, I am optimistic.
Walking home late the other night, I passed by my favorite local bar, a wine-and-beer-only lounge around the corner from my apartment. A group of noisy 20-somethings had spilled out on the sidewalk to suckle on some nicotine sticks and engage in a loud game of "I Never."
For those of you unfamiliar with such drunken diversions, "I Never" is a simple game of one-upping your fellow players with shocking revelations of things you've never done. For example, "I never did it outdoors," or "I never went without underwear," or "I never injected myself with an illegal substance."
As I approached, I heard a few rather tame examples, mostly from giggling, childish girls very clearly unrehearsed in the art of radiating any sort of feminine charm.
But, just as I passed by (forced to walk in the street in order to get around the juvenile mob blocking the entire sidewalk), I heard this brilliant pronouncement from an Asian lad with spiked hair: "I never used a mirror to look at my own asshole!"
Ahhh, youth.
And, some Halloween miscellany:
A sign on the door of my bank yesterday requested that people kindly remove their Halloween masks before entering, due to security concerns. This made me chuckle. Imagine a bank full of menacing clowns, skeletons, witches, Dubyas, etc. The security cameras wouldn't know where the hell to train themselves. Brilliant.
Perhaps my favorite thing about Halloween is that delicious handful of people you encounter throughout the day--the ones you can't quite discern if they're wearing costumes or not. Those cool eccentrites make head-scratchers out of everyone around them, at least for one day of the year. And I, for one, love them for it.