On The Move…

I’ve had a great day today. For some reason I felt absurdly upbeat and happy all day. Even though the ESPP thesis-writers’ and e-recruiting intro sessions should have been quite a downer. Maybe it’s because I got quite a lot of sleep last night.

So I’m currently enrolled in the following classes:

VES 71: Silent Cinema – this would satisfy my last Core requirement (Literature & Arts B, non-literary arts). Today was the first actual lecture with actual content about silent cinema, and I was really startled and surprised by how strangely riveting and compelling the films were. I’d been suspecting that as a 21st century viewer weaned on music videos, TV-thrillers and CGI-packed action films, these pre-1930 films would be unbearably primitive, jerky, badly acted and relatively contentless. But in fact they were nothing of the sort. Maybe I’ll talk about why some other time.

Ec 1010a: Microeconomics – Taught by my favorite Ec professor. It’s a huge class… I quite like it so far. Ask me again when the problem sets and exams start up.

Ec 1018: Cultural Economics – really cool class taught by a great visiting professor (from the IMF) with a lovely Italian accent. What’s not to love? Other than the econometrics with which I have no prior exposure…

ESPP 99r: Thesis Research Seminar – I still currently have neither a fixed research topic (or even area), nor a confirmed thesis advisor/sponsor… I should work on that.

Soc 162: Medical Sociology – excellent professor, interesting material. A bit heavy on the reading, and also a little bit of a stretch outside my field. I’m not entirely sure if I’m going to take this for a letter-grade, or at all.

Lit-Arts A-64: American Literature and the Environment – supposedly one of the best professors at the college, with a remarkable and profound new field scholarship. It does meet at 9am though, which is a timeslot I’ve successfully avoided since freshman year.

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Speaking of 9am classes, I have to get to bed. Now.

I’m almost done unpacking. I’m hurrying against the immovable deadline of the social I’m hosting in the suite tomorrow for the Singapore-Malaysia-Indonesia community (and friends). I’m excited.

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Classes started two days ago, and already I’m feeling a touch overtired. Today I managed to fall asleep in a cultural economics class while holding a grande soy green tea latte, leading to the tipping of the cup and having starbucks spill on the upholstered seat and carpet. And then later I dozed off again and drooled on my Barneys COOP shirt. Embarrasing. I really liked that class though, and I shall strongly consider taking it.

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The experience of being a senior is really different. I no longer feel like I have to take any classes, given that I’m essentially done with almost all requirements and electives suddenly seem like a pointless distraction from the central focii of senior year – honors thesis, grad school/job applications, consolidating relationships with friends and faculty. We’ll see what I decide to take in a little bit.

Time to finish a little more unpacking and call it a night.

There’re so many boxes left to open…

Given how many things we lost in the horrendous scramble to pack up the room in June, I’m now calling it “The Great Move-Out Disaster of 2006”.  We lost bathroom accessories, our futon, our new bike, my Madagascan tea… and more.  Tragic.

In other news, I’ve finally started sorting out my pictures, and I’ve put up the best 200 or so on Flickr.  So go see the pictures from Dins World Tour 2006. 

Singing at Sentosa (7 Aug 2006)

Originally uploaded by J Y.

It has been years since I’d last seen the Musical Fountain on Sentosa, so when we first arrived I was initially taken aback by how grand and beautiful the setting was for the Dins’ performance.

From left: Steve, Jon C, Rowan, Colby, Jon W, Evan, Adam, Sam, Ricardo, Jeff, me, Alan

 

Din Bodybuilding…?! (12 Jun 2006)Originally uploaded by J Y.

An international bodybuilding competition was being held in the same arts/performance complex where we were singing in Dublin. Naturally we took the opportunity to fool around on the stage.

From left: Evan, Adam, Sam, Ricardo, Rowan, Jon, Jeff, Steve, me

Roman Holiday (8 Jul 2006)

Originally uploaded by J Y.

We spent a day lounging by the pool at a summer villa outside of Rome that belonged to Marco, our host and president of the Harvard Club of Rome.

From left: Marco, Jeff, me, Donatella (Marco’s mother)

Whew!  Almost done with the summer.  It’s now down to the last couple of days in Singapore, and boy is there a considerable bunch of stuff to get done.  Most of it’s accomplished, or near-accomplished, at least.  The furs are being stitched, the bags are partly packed, the lenses and recordings have been ordered, the dinners have been scheduled.

There are a couple of things that have gone undone, of course.  I read just four of the dozen books I lugged from school, I didn’t get to type up my FW 06/07 (and FW 07/08) style reviews and I never got to peruse The Student Body (not that this is a significant regret, from what I can tell).  Oh well.

Bangkok was both relaxing and enjoyable.  The pre-flight massage I got in the airport was wonderful.  The hotel was familiar and comfortable.  The shopping was good, as always.  The food, however… meh.  It was alright, but I wasn’t inspired by anything other than the rhume I had that last night.

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Just two more days.  I’m looking forward to driving to school from NYC.

And I promise pictures!  Eventually!! 🙂