28 August 2009

Berkeley

We've been here 3 weeks today.  Wow.

Here is K at Boalt Hall, where he is currently chained to a desk.  That's actually not an indirect John Yoo joke, it's just the policy for first-years.  We biked over there last weekend (see bike in picture for proof) and K almost died. 

Now on to Yoo.  On the first day of school last week about 100 protesters came to Boalt to let the school know that Yoo should be fired.  They actually went into the building and disrupted his classes.  Several were arrested.  The local NPR station had pretty good coverage of it; the Dean was on for several interviews.  Subsequent to this, the sign below showed up in the window, and the Deal sent an email explaining that though he personally thinks Yoo sucks, Yoo cannot be fired unless first convicted of a crime. 
Today I biked over to Cal for another protest.  I missed getting a picture of a man in a black hood and black gown thing with "CAL" on his chest.  I watched several people attempt to hand out leafeletts with information while students ignored them.  It was like being in the 909, seriuosly.  K defends the students.  He says that there are so many people handing out so much shit that people just shut down while walking through there.  Perhaps, but still, how can you miss these folks?


K doesn't know this, but there can be a life in Berkeley outside of Boalt.  Please refrain from informing him of this, though.  I've been biking, and found this place after quite a climb:
The Berkeley Rose Garden was some sort of WPA project or something.  It opened in 1937 (give or take).  We live across the street from the Bay, and this place is up in the hills, and boasts a view worthy of the bike ride up there.
 
Among the fog, and you'll have to trust me here, is a Bay.  It's the glimmery thing there in the middle.  They have fog here!  I can't get over it.  I saw that it's 108 in Rivercity today, and the usual smog is made more awful with the fire smoke funnelled in to the valley.  Yeah, it's going to hit 79 up here today.  I actually put the sun shade in my car window this morning.  It's just awful.   OK, but the rose garden:
 
 
Yesterday I picked up K and we drove across the bridge to pick up S who is visiting her sisters and working on her tenure letter.  We went to the Monk's Kettle and had good local food with beer that make K happy.  It was a great and too-short visit.  S is headed to Jordan in October, and I wish her a safe and productive trip.
 

1 Comments:

Blogger Weeping Sore said...

Lovely pic of you you three. K looks like he just ate a small child and is trying not to barf before the camera flash. It was 106 in EC yesterday. I know because I stuck my head out of the door for about 4 seconds before my eyeballs began to melt.
Love the Rose Garden pics.

10:17 PM  

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