After Lucy and I did our usual Saturday morning things (taking the doggies downtown for a walk and visiting the library), I headed out for Cambridge. It was a beautiful day for a drive. I saw a turkey while driving along 202 by the Quabbin. I arrived at the Alewife T station and stood in a long line to buy tokens. All of the vending machines were out of order, the bathrooms all closed, and about half the escalators I saw were broken. I assume this is another effect of the state budget crisis. I arrived in Cambridge and walked up to the Royal East at 12pm. Unfortunately I had noted the time incorrectly, so I had to wait an hour for the luncheon to begin.
About eight of us met in Cambridge for the Esperanto luncheon at the Royal East. As usual, there was a spirited and interesting discussion on various topics of the day: immigration, language policy, the conclave to select a new Pope -- The best suggestion was to make that into a new reality show: The conclave has spoken! You've been voted out of the cathedral! I had a chance to chat with Jakobo about the newsletter -- it was supposed to go out in December. Hopefully people will get it before the Jarkuveno.
After lunch, I called Jared and Laura on my new cell-o-phone. (Laura reads my blog -- Hi Laura! -- and had suggested we get together since I was coming out). Originally she suggested I come out to where they were. It was probably very simple, but it sounded to me like she was saying "Take bus 65-buzz-87 toward Rpelzmis plaza. When you get off, call me, unless you see a tree! You can take any one the other 200 buses that come this way, but don't take one the 150 that go the other way!" I wondered whether there was someplace we could meet that I could walk to. We agreed to meet in Harvard. "But where will we meet?" I asked. "Just go there and walk around for a bit," she said. "After a bit, we'll connect up using the cell phones!" Silly me.
I had a chance to shop a bit and bought a couple Dark Chocolate Oranges like Alisa likes -- she wasn't able to find them this year anywhere around here, but a store there carried them. And, after a bit, just like Laura had said, we used the cell phones to figure out where to meet.
Jared and Laura were students of mine at UMass. I met Jared his freshman year and knew both of them over a period of several years. It's been fun to stay in touch after they've left the University. One thing I don't like about being a teacher in the established educational system is that it creates an artificial power asymmetry between myself and my students that often undermines establishing a real human relationship. I met with Jared and Laura back in August and have noticed as time passes, we're just friends, rather than "professor and student". It's a good feeling.
We ended up going to Toscanini's to get ice cream. I couldn't make up my mind, so I got two scoops: sweet cream and rum and raisin. Laura got cardamom and something else -- she made me try the cardamom ice cream, which was really weird. Jared got two scoops of peanut butter cup -- he knows what he likes. We chatted for an hour or so and eventually wandered back to their car so they could give me a ride back to the Alewife station. It was a great day.
StevenBrewer