I just spent the better part of my afternoon with Jack Healey, who was the director of Amnesty International for 12 years. We talked about his work with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as well as his work abroad and, well, we just talked about everything. I think he's a really laid back guy for somebody who's accomplished as much as he has.
Also, I've been checking repeatedly for the past few days, and now I finally feel kind of official. Obviously it doesn't really change anything at all, but I'm on -L-'s list. I feel, well, like I'm officially a MoHo... Not that I wasn't before, but you know how when you walked at your high school graduation and they gave you the fake diploma and you were just kind of like, "Dude, WTF?" and then the real diploma came in the mail and it was official? Or like, when you finished your eagle project and turned everything in and finished your big long nasty board of review, and it was kind of done, but not really? And then you actually had your eagle court of honor and it was official? Maybe this isn't making sense to anybody else, but... yeah... I'm going to quit while I'm ahead.
-Stephen
Showing posts with label Commencement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Commencement. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Skiving and Touching
So, last night I had about a billion things to do, and I didn't really do any of them. I mean, I kind of worked on a few of them, and I did get a little bit done, but not nearly as much as I should have. I was instead actively engaged in skiving off. No, that's not dirty, it means to do pretty much nothing, and avoid working on things. At about 6:00, gimple and I started talking about the spring block party. Then at about 7:00, he dropped off facebook, and I managed to get a little bit of work done. Then at 8:00, I got a call, and I went up to the spring block party with Brady, Calvin, and Gimple. We ran into Stephalumpugus, and the Jet too. Well, as cool as the party was, we left and went to go watch a movie at Steph's house. I missed an Alternative Commencement meeting to hang out. Fortunately, it wasn't a super important one, and I don't regret it. I'm still getting everything done that I need to on that front.
Now, more about that touching. See, I normally don't make a habit out of touching girls. I mean, I've done it a few times in the past, but I much prefer touching... well... anyway... Touching is such a complicated thing. There's platonic touching, like being crammed together in a car or most touching; then there's loving touching, like a mother-son hug; that's not to mention anything of caressing touching, like hand holding and cuddling. Well, last night, Steph and I interdigitated, and it kind of confused me, because it wasn't really caressing touching. I mean, we went through the motions, I put my arm around her, and held her other hand, and we did the whole thumb-caress-thing. I mean, all things considered, it was some pretty intense hand holding! But, it wasn't really the same as other times that I've touched girls. In the past they've always seen it as a sign of commitment, which meant that it was pretty much time to end things. But this was a different kind. It wasn't exactly like platonic touching, the kind that just happens in normal activity, and it wasn't like the loving touching of the mother son hug. It just sort of, was... I need to come up with a new classification of touching. As a side note, I think I may have made Brady somewhat uncomfortable, because with my arm around Steph's shoulder I needed somewhere to put my hand, and his arm was sort of there. To me, that was platonic touching; it was just a natural part of us being crammed so close together, but yeah...
Anyway, I'm going to take today as an opportunity to do all those important things like laundry, more complicated cooking, baking, nail cutting, but nothing really super important. I might just do what ATP is doing an curl up in a ball and watch movies once I finish everything else...
-Stephen
P.S.
Brett's getting interviewed by Newsweek!
P.P.S.
Brett will be called by his middle name in the Newsweek article. Brett has never gone by his middle name, ever. He has expressed confidence in his safety in regard to this now.
Now, more about that touching. See, I normally don't make a habit out of touching girls. I mean, I've done it a few times in the past, but I much prefer touching... well... anyway... Touching is such a complicated thing. There's platonic touching, like being crammed together in a car or most touching; then there's loving touching, like a mother-son hug; that's not to mention anything of caressing touching, like hand holding and cuddling. Well, last night, Steph and I interdigitated, and it kind of confused me, because it wasn't really caressing touching. I mean, we went through the motions, I put my arm around her, and held her other hand, and we did the whole thumb-caress-thing. I mean, all things considered, it was some pretty intense hand holding! But, it wasn't really the same as other times that I've touched girls. In the past they've always seen it as a sign of commitment, which meant that it was pretty much time to end things. But this was a different kind. It wasn't exactly like platonic touching, the kind that just happens in normal activity, and it wasn't like the loving touching of the mother son hug. It just sort of, was... I need to come up with a new classification of touching. As a side note, I think I may have made Brady somewhat uncomfortable, because with my arm around Steph's shoulder I needed somewhere to put my hand, and his arm was sort of there. To me, that was platonic touching; it was just a natural part of us being crammed so close together, but yeah...
Anyway, I'm going to take today as an opportunity to do all those important things like laundry, more complicated cooking, baking, nail cutting, but nothing really super important. I might just do what ATP is doing an curl up in a ball and watch movies once I finish everything else...
-Stephen
P.S.
Brett's getting interviewed by Newsweek!
P.P.S.
Brett will be called by his middle name in the Newsweek article. Brett has never gone by his middle name, ever. He has expressed confidence in his safety in regard to this now.
Sunday, April 15, 2007
BYU Alternative Commencement
So, just in case anybody didn't know, Brett is the faculty Liaison for the BYU Alternative Commencement, and he had a few things that he wanted to share with everybody, starting with the BYU Alternative Commencement mission statement.
"Last month, Brigham Young University invited Vice President Dick Cheney to speak at the school's April commencement. Many students, faculty, alumni, and community members feel that Cheney represents neither their standards nor those of the University.
BYU Alternative Commencement is a grassroots effort comprised of BYU students, faculty, alumni, and friends determined to make their voices count by marching to an alternative commencement following the official graduation ceremony.
We want this event to be an alternative commencement, but also a commencement about alternatives. Instead of responding with criticism and traditional forms of protest, we want to give students, faculty, and community members an opportunity to express dissent in a constructive way. Our program will focus on alternatives, as well, featuring speakers who offer creative, democratic solutions to the problems facing our country and government. By holding an alternative commencement, we seek to honor speakers who embody a spirit of political optimism and ingenuity. We hope that this event will counter cynicism and wholesale criticism by encouraging discussion and empowering graduates to offer positive solutions to daunting problems. We believe that preparing students to make this kind of visionary, creative change is what commencement should be about.
Please join us after the official ceremony to listen to human rights acitivist Jack Healey, former U.S. Senate candidate Pete Ashdown, and third party advocate Ralph Nader."
Now, the thing about Ralph Nader coming to campus is that he wants a decent amount of money, about 15,000 dollars. Healey and Ashdown are far more reasonable, but even so, we need to raise some money. Any little bit counts. If you can donate just a couple dollars, please visit http://byualternativecommencement.com/id10.html
-Stephen.
"Last month, Brigham Young University invited Vice President Dick Cheney to speak at the school's April commencement. Many students, faculty, alumni, and community members feel that Cheney represents neither their standards nor those of the University.
BYU Alternative Commencement is a grassroots effort comprised of BYU students, faculty, alumni, and friends determined to make their voices count by marching to an alternative commencement following the official graduation ceremony.
We want this event to be an alternative commencement, but also a commencement about alternatives. Instead of responding with criticism and traditional forms of protest, we want to give students, faculty, and community members an opportunity to express dissent in a constructive way. Our program will focus on alternatives, as well, featuring speakers who offer creative, democratic solutions to the problems facing our country and government. By holding an alternative commencement, we seek to honor speakers who embody a spirit of political optimism and ingenuity. We hope that this event will counter cynicism and wholesale criticism by encouraging discussion and empowering graduates to offer positive solutions to daunting problems. We believe that preparing students to make this kind of visionary, creative change is what commencement should be about.
Please join us after the official ceremony to listen to human rights acitivist Jack Healey, former U.S. Senate candidate Pete Ashdown, and third party advocate Ralph Nader."
Now, the thing about Ralph Nader coming to campus is that he wants a decent amount of money, about 15,000 dollars. Healey and Ashdown are far more reasonable, but even so, we need to raise some money. Any little bit counts. If you can donate just a couple dollars, please visit http://byualternativecommencement.com/id10.html
-Stephen.
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