A time to grow

Talked to L about the Eco-Melancholia in my environment-themed class and she reminded me: “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” 

 My class loves the idea! I'm finding a place on campus for us to do a poetry-reading + planting ceremony.

And on and on

Lots of tears at the therapist's today, and I worried aloud about having to teach in a couple of hours. She wisely said that I was offloading them in her office so I didn't have to take it with me to class. She turned out to be right.

Walked to class and back like a champ. And then I shelled out for a deep-tissue massage after class just to make sure I would keep feeling okay.

So Bae

I'd taken the BART in to the city when I arrived, but I was running a bit late and took a taxi back to the airport. I'm so glad I did! I got to see the sunrise over the bay, have a great conversation with my Eritrean cabbie, and got an upgrade at the gate from a kind, young woman who called me "milady." OK.
Late yesterday I was elected caucus chair for the year, and I'm not sure if that deserves congratulations or commiserations yet. Not bad for a day which started with me and my roomie EH poring over the weather app and trying to figure out what the wavy gray lines were. (Fog, duh.)

Madras Madcaps

SR and I have been taking this picture we call the "Madras Madcap" series at NWSA because we both spent time in Madras and like to wear hats and things:

            2019                                        2018                             2017
    

Panels, panels everywhere

For someone who was was dismayed about three nights away and was ready to leave the day they arrived, I ended up having a pretty good conference. I went to every panel I could and learned so much. Special love to MG's activism panel and the Kashmir Studies Collective.

DTW ----> SFO

 

I took the shuttle to the airport in the ice and snow sometime around 4 (am) and Delta then spit me out in San Francisco and I had to hurry to the Hilton in Union Square to grab my NWSA badge (but it turned out I hadn't registered!) and I had to pay for registration (but I couldn't find the card I wanted to use and thought I had lost it and needed to report it lost, but it tuned out to be there all along!) and then I couldn't find the room I was supposed to be presenting in... but I finally did and I somehow presented, answered questions and then took myself off for some quiet and a tea. It was as much of a jumble as this here picture: Christmas tree, skating rink, homeless person on the wet grass, and all.

I do declare

 

Nu (whose finger is in the picture) and I found this Vivek Velanki exhibit by accident. His grandmother, whose passport is the first exhibit is from Madras (like me!). 

I recommended it to the poco students at MSU.

By the time I got home

By the time I got home
I was worthy of love
I was dressed in hope

your words don't reach
are just not as sharp
I see myself here

I see myself here
not as you see me
not as you say I am

November surprise

Snow was predicted for today, but it seems to have caught everyone by surprise after all. It was so perfect and powdery and pristine out. Also surprising: Me being out in it.

And later today, from At's article in the school paper about carrying his passport card on him: "The real reason I hold on to the card is because of my immigrant mom, who is worried about her son being stopped by the police and detained by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (I.C.E.). She herself carries numerous documents in order to prove her legal residence and her parental relationship to my sibling and me." 💖 

Tiny Dragons

With L and Nu at the MSU Global Festival, where Nu could have gotten their passport stamped at all the booths, but decided they were too grown up 🙄. We  had a good time, nevertheless. I found lots and lots of stocking stuffers--all the proceeds go to funding international studentships, so I didn't even feel any guilt.

The dragons are also a tiny way of celebrating the new D.A. of San Fran, the lovely and kind Chesa Boudin, whom I knew way back when in Oxford. I'd been paying attention to Chesa's campaign since he aired it on his personal FB page months and months ago. I tried to tell At, but he didn't pay attention until Bernie Sanders endorsed him. I hope it teaches At a nice lesson about paying attention to his mama 😛.

Cave (2019)

Fake fire, fake furs, small happinesses...

Earlier in the day, Nu and I went to see Harriet with C. I know there have been some (small) controversies about casting and veracity, but we all liked it. Some parts were especially difficult to watch, and as always slavery seems unintelligible--how do you come up with something so fucked up?!

Nu was quite generous to me :). Usually, my almost teen is annoyed if I make involuntary startled sounds at the movies. But when I whispered my apologies at this one, they shot back: You're not the one who should be apologizing.

I wanted to caption each frame with the work of Angela Davis, Ijeoma Uluo, Brittany Cooper, and Robin DiAngelo. My words were much less sophisticated though. At one point, I was all "Cry me a river, jerk." My best work came when I led a round of applause at the end of the movie. Nu and I think we'd see it again with the boys (next week) and the puppies (on demand).

_