honeymooning grad school

These days are full of meeting new people, trying to remember names, figuring out exactly how many minutes it takes to bike to class, delving into subjects I've wanted to study for a long time (like ethnomusicology and photography), discovering places to dance!, and beginning to commit to a few things beyond the basics. Basically, I'm having a great time and am not nearly as overwhelmed as I anticipated (but maybe I'm speaking too soon? or maybe it's just the glorious fact that everything is in English and I understand what's going on?).

They say the first stage of cross-cultural adjustment is like a honeymoon--everything is great; there are some emotional highs and lows, but the sun is shining and life is good. Bloomington isn't exactly cross-cultural, but whatever you want to call it, I'll ride this honeymoon as long as I can. It will probably change with the weather, haha... check back here in about two months.

The Church talks a lot about a theology of suffering, a theology of going through the rough times. We memorize the Phil. 4:13 and Ps. 23 passages. But what about a theology of joy, even a theology of monotony, when everything is going along smoothly? I'm convinced that at the center of this theology must lay an outpouring of thanksgiving and appreciation. By my door, I have this verse posted:

Rejoice always
Pray without ceasing
In everything give thanks.

Then next to that, I've put up a sheet where I write things I'm thankful for. Some bits up there now: Baganda music in the archives, the smell of wet earth after long fall rains, tired green leaves ready to burst into color, blue skies, audio transformers, recognizing familiar faces at new places, bike brakes that work in the rain, and new friends over coffee. This kind of conscious daily thanksgiving helps, well, helps the honeymoon last. Of course I'm far from having this a 24/7 life attitude, but hey, it's a start right?

On another not-so-holy note, I got hit by a car the other day. Notice how I wrote that. I *got hit by* a car. It was clearly all the car's fault. Never mind that I was crossing a street during (the wrong direction's) green light, onto a one-way (the wrong way) street. Oh no, that $&#*@ car swiped my front tire and drove off. I didn't fall but the speed at which it happened certainly took me by surprise and I gave my best "what the hell?!" glare to the fading outline of the driver. Damn car. Ok, and stupid me. I really have got to let go of the aggressive riding style I adopted in Viet Nam. There are a lot of cars here and they go fast and stay in their lanes (imagine that!), leaving little space for bikers. I think it should be a requirement for drivers (and pedestrians, for that matter) to live for at least a month in a place like Viet Nam to understand the marvelous riverlike flow of traffic. In Viet Nam, when someone crosses a street, they just start walking and the traffic flows beautifully around them. But here, crossing pedestrians look at me speeding towards them and stop in their tracks, like "oa! that bike is headed right towards me." It's more like a cement wall than a river. See, one month in Hanoi would solve so many problems.

Ok, off my stump. Another week awaits me and I must begin it with sleep.

new horizons

After a whirl of traveling, seeing old friends and family, and packing or unpacking many times, I have learned that it's not natural for the body to travel over 16,000 miles in the span of a month. Someone once said that the body is not meant to travel faster than an oxcart, and I certainly see the wisdom of that now! But I've landed in Bloomington, Indiana and have permanently unpacked my boxes and bags, breathing a sigh of relief--"ah, now I can relax in grad school!"

Well, maybe not. I have registered for 12 credits, which I've heard is a dangerous amount. Oh, plus my job. The thing is, I'm really excited about everything I'm doing, so while I may burn up this semester, at least the fire will be a energizing, exciting one. I'm taking "The Study of Ethnomusicology" (lots of reading), "Intensive Reporting, Writing, and Editing" (lots of writing), "Photojournalism" (lots of visual work), and "Ghanaian Performance and Culture" (lots of singing and dancing!). So the hope is that the diversity of assignments will balance out the sheer mass of it all.

I'm working 15 hrs/week as a GA at the Archives of Traditional Music, mostly digitizing old analog field recordings. My introductory training included this defensive quote: "The field of audiovisual archiving rarely shares the glamour or profile of the industries whose output it protects. It is neither well funded nor well known, and is often very demanding of time and energy. It attracts and holds motivated individuals with a sense of vocation, for whom the achievements of their work are their own reward." Motivated--yes; sense of vocation--hmm? But I'm excited to get my hands back on audio equipment!

I would be remiss in this blog if I didn't give a shout out to my wonderful family for helping me move in and settle into my new house. Together we did in just one day what would have taken me over a month... unpacking, decorating, cleaning, shopping, etc etc. We even managed to squeeze in a picnic dinner and lots of good conversations. I should also note that my house has plenty of space for visitors, so my doors are open to you, my friends...