I was under the false impression that as one came closer to graduation, with fewer and fewer requirements to fill, schedule planning became easier.

Why did I ever think this? For the past three years I've been free to rearrange my classes, postpone things, shuffle them around, decide to take them next year. But this year, there is no next year. And if I postpone a class till next semester, I risk having it conflict with another class I need to take to either graduate or complete my minor. Which means summer school or another semester. That stresses me out.

I have never had this much trouble with my schedule before. Good thing I didn't try to squeeze a Landscape Architecture minor in. That would have been chaos.

I had to drop Portuguese. When they said Portuguese for advanced students, they meant it. At least 1/5 of the class already had a basic understanding of the language. The rest seemed to be fluent or very comfortable with another romance language, especially Spanish. Half had spent time in Brazil. Perhaps my 4 years of Spanish would have been enough....IF I had taken this class my freshman year. Too much Spanish has left my head to get through Portuguese . So...buy-bye Portuguese.

Which left me with 11 units. You need 12 to be full-time in the CED. So I added a random 1 unit polysci guest lecture class to bring me back to 12. The class seems easy...almost too easy. The prof had no qualms about making fun of students, insulting us for taking the class, and the university for offering it. The intention was to be sarcastic and funny.....and he was! But I left the class feeling like I was a slacker.

But here's the real curve ball of my week...the Prof for Econ 3/Environmental Econ 1 this semester seems just awful. Especially when compared to the Prof that I had for the same class last semester, but had to drop to take studio. And after talking to my friends, who have had both this prof and last semester's prof, my worst fears were true. The Prof this semester just throws formulas at you with little explanation. The class is easy for people that are good with algebra and formula processing, but really doesn't teach you anything in the end.

If there's one thing I learned through the college level math classes I have taken, is that I need SUBSTANCE behind my formulas. I need something to grasp on to, to apply them to. I need well explained examples of how things work in real life according to the formula, I can't just be told that they work and that's that. It is the difference between the B+ in Stats and a D+/C- in Calculus.

The whole point of taking Environmental Economics was so I could link something I dread, Econimcs, to something I have a solid understanding and strong interest in, Environmental Policy. The prof last semester really seemed to grasp this and got me kind of excited about it. The prof this semester was DRY and boring, and just got right to the graphs and formulas with little explanation.

If postponing Econ 3 to next semester means I'll get a prof that explains things better.....then I really want to drop it this semester. But maybe I am just over reacting and jumping ship too early....I don't know.

So in an attempt to cover all my bases, tonight I've been scrambling to find another class to replace it, that still works towards my degree.

After 14 years of religious education I vowed to never take a religion class again....but guess what I've signed myself up for. ...Religion90a. Introduction to Islam. Same time as Econ 3. I'll skip Econ 3 and check it out tomorrow. Hopefully it'll be interesting enough to make me feel more comfortable with this last minute schedule shift. That way I can get my last breadth requirement out of the way, and only have Econ and my minor to worry about next semester.

I hope this all works out. Wish me luck.

Here we go...

Coming back a week early was an excellent decision. Good job, me.

My friends and I all actually have the time to hang out with each other. Saw Garden State last night with almost the whole crew. The movie was really good...the car ride back to the house was really humorous. I have the tendency to say things sometimes that really aren't supposed to be funny but are. And I guess when you have seven people in a car designed to fit 5 at most, things are even funnier.

I've got to meet up with some of the freshman I know too. Lauren and I even sat in on some of the boring freshman convocation speeches on the Glade with her lil sis, a frosh. (hearing the band play drew me in) Ran into Seth and Bongo Burger (yum) with Erik and his mom. Then after Erik's mom left the three of us went to the park and rode the awesome slide there a few times. Then we walked Seth back to our old stomping grounds, La Loma, and visited Hanah at Stern. Seeing all those freshman made me think about how much has changed sine we were in their shoes, and how quickly time has flown by. Jeesh.

In other news, picked up my Cal Football "true blue" shirt today. Also got Kay and Kat to buy there season tickets last night. The excitement sure is building. Hoping for the Rose Bowl, making a trip down to USC, fun stuff. Talk about change, all the classes that have come to Cal after us have no memory of that god awful 2001 season with Holmoe. (1-10...big game loss...empty stands...sad sad sad).

Kat and I also signed up for the GRE in late October. Yikes. The GRE. Graduation. Grad School. A job. Anxiety attack...anxiety attack...breath, nick. breath. hehe.

Tomorrow I have to help out with the City Planning orientation, and then at night we're having a going away dinner for Steph, who's leaving us this semester for Italy. It'll be sad to see her go, but I'm looking forward to tomorrow because pretty much everyone will be there. (Even Ryan..who's not going back to Modesto after all!)

Hopefully a few of the high school crew will make it up sometime before classes start. And then on Monday I'll start my last year with Portuguese. I'm gonna try and make my grandma proud.

I'm back in Berkeley, and I'm feeling pretty excited about it. We'll see how long that lasts. hehe.

Well, Mountain View. What can I say. My hard work over the last month did have an impact, much more of an impact that I thought it would. But there was no way I could undo 2 and a half years of misconceptions and mistakes . I came back home this summer to find that our City Council really had no clue what it was doing. It seems like they finally realized this last Tuesday night, but still moved forward with an ordinance that the majority of them did not really feel comfortable with.

I won't bore you with the details, but here are some articles about the ordinance:

My Mountain View Voice Op-Ed

The Mountain View Voice's Editorial

Post-Ordinance Article *
*this article says the vote was 6-1. It was 5-2. The two women on the council voted against the voluntary ordinance. (We need more women on the council.)

Anyway, with that chapter of my life behind me, I'm looking forward to moving on. Of course, this issue is far from over and MVPA still has a lot of work to do. I just need a couple weeks to sit back, relax, and get back into the groove of school.

It looks to be an exciting semester on a lot of fronts. I know quite a few freshman who I'm looking forward to visiting and hanging out with every now and then, including my cousin Marisa who's just down the way at Mills College in Oakland. My Aunt's running for Mountain View-Whisman School Board, and hopefully I'll have some time to help her. And the elections in general should be exciting, 4 seats up for grabs on the council means the potential for a major power shift. Plus, the presidential elections....yikes. My club, BUSSA, is also about to start its first full year, which is going to be really cool I'm sure. I should be planning a trip to Europe this January with Leo and Lauren too. And those Cal Bears are sure looking good, can't wait for our football games.

And it being my senior year, every moment with my friends here will be extra important. Before we know it we'll all be off to new lives. I want this year to go by nice and slow, in a good way, but I know that's impossible. It's gonna flash by. So here's hoping it's a memorable one.

Tonight is the final public hearing on Mountain View's historic preservation ordinance. This last week has been crazy. I am burnt out. Tired of all the e-mails, all the meetings, all the letters. Now I have to drag myself off to one last meeting.

Only problem is, we're hoping the council tables the mess of an ordinance they have before them and just revisits the issue later. Yeah...later. Which means that this all might never end. I hardley expect the council to follow that advice, much more likely is that after tonight MV will have one of the crappiest preservation ordinances (whether voluntary or mandatory) in the state. Gag.

I was right in my last post. This is like finals. Maybe even worse. At this point going back to school will be a vacation.

Random assortment of thoughts:

This summer is quickly, and I mean quickly, coming to an end. These last couple of weeks are going to be INTENSE. Like...finals... in a weird way. Not only do I have my job at the theatre and the four articles I still need to write for the Voice to finish, but Mountain View's preservation ordinance goes to the council for a final decision (we think) on August 17th. 3 days later, its back up to Berkeley for a week of nothingness. I look forward to that.

But until then I'm in high gear. This ordinance stuff is really stressing me out. I have to read old novels from high school english class to ease my mind before I fall asleep. Just one last push before what will likely be a bitter defeat for historic preservation in Mountain View. *sigh* I'm expecting the worst but still fighting for the best.

Matt and Kim have gone off to Hawai'i for school. My cousin Vanessa will soon join them. It's hard to believe that three people so important to my life are going so far away. Not used to that at all. I'll probably see them as much as I did before, but its just weird that they won't be around to just drop by. Especially Matt. I could always call him to hang out whenever I was home....ever since 7th grade. But I am really excited for all three of them and I'm really hoping to spend my spring break Hawai'i!

And I guess its all right that Vanessa is leaving, cause I'm getting a new cousin come December. (just kiddin Vaness if you ever read this....you are irreplaceable.) But everything seems to be checking out okay with my Uncle Victor and Aunt Elise's new baby. The 10th cousin. He will dethrown Sabrina, who has enjoyed a 14 year reign as the youngest cousin. I'm looking forward to meeting him.

Let's see...anything else? LA was really nice. I flew down by myself and took a two-hour taxi-van ride (thank you SoCal traffic) from the airport to Disneyland. Most randomly, one of my fellow riders was a Mtn. View native, transplanted to Portland. She went to Awalt High School when they closed my parents high school and renamed it Mountain View High. I might end up interviewing her for an arcticle I'm working on.

My parents and Chris were still on there way down from Davis orientation, so I met up with Kim who was there with her dad and sis. It was nice to spend the evening with them, and kind of surreal to jump off a plane, sit in traffic, and suddenly be in Disneyland with them. Once the family got there, we had a really nice time. We spent some relaxing days at the park, spending more time just sitting and watching the crowds then riding the rides. We do Disneyland right. We also made it up to the Getty Center, which is just amazing. If the architect, Richard Meier, brings even a fraction of its style to San Jose's new city hall, this valley will have a landmark to be proud of.

All righty. That should do it for now. I'll probably update this thing August 17th, post-ordinance adoption vent. Until then, enjoy the rest of your summer people.

Funny ...I'm sitting here thinking too bad I can't bring my laptop with me to LA tomorrow so I can work on my articles during the car ride home (its battery is dead) . Then I realize that within my own lifetime people didn't have laptops on which to write articles while on assignment or on trips. Weird. Writing on paper. Hmmm. Maybe I'll give it a try.

Doing the interviews for these first two articles has been more fun than I ever expected. I especially enjoyed yesterday's interview with an 90 something year old lady who has spent her entire life in Old Mountain View. She lives in a house built in 1880 surrounded by the last acre of her father's orchard. Stepping on to her property was like stepping back in time.

She was unbelievably sweet, and had a lot of interesting stories to tell. I really hope I can do her justice in the article. It's amazing the changes she's seen in her life time. The area that now most people consider the heart of "old" Mountain View wasn't even built when she was a child in the late 1920s.  It was great just chatting with her, even after my tape ran out. She wanted to know all about my family, and when I told her my mom is Mexican-American she exclaimed, "Oh that's why you have such beautiful eyes!' Aww shucks.

I had another interview today with a guy that's lived in Old MV for about two years. He was really cool, and it was so great to talk to someone with such a positive attitude about the Mountain View community. He's been here such a short time but it is already well connected to it, and he has a really good grip on what makes this city so special, it's diversity, it's unpretentious nature, and its unique sense of place. The fact that people like him are moving here makes me really optimistic about this city's future.

And finally I ended up calling a guy for an interview that sent me an e-mail yesterday complimenting my web page. He's Filipino-American, a dad of 15-month old baby. Very cool guy. Lives where the high school used to be, wife works in the new office building a block away, walks everywhere, except to Safeway. Loves it here. A City Planner's dream come true! The urban village does exist!

Anyhow, just overall, it's been really fun. I'm about half way through my second article, with four more to go. The next four should be a bit more challenging, but I'm looking forward to it. I also had a good meeting with the editor of the Voice, we talked about articles I can write in the fall about Mountain View history. She likes my story proposals, but I've proposed some pretty touchy, complex, and delicate pieces on par with my Washington Street series. It's gonna be a challenge to write them, especially during school. But I'm very excited about the prospect of telling these stories.

And finally, working at the Stanfurd Theatre is nice. So far I have avoided the cashier position most of the time and stayed at the door greeting people and taking tickets, or serving drinks. Let's hope I can keep that up. I can't count. It's sad. Most of the new hires since I worked there last summer are stanfurd co-eds who claim to not like football much and not really care about the rivalry. I just respond by saying, "I've heard more of that in the past two years...wonder why...maybe it's cause we have something you want..hmmm?" And their faces turn Cardinal Red. Hehe. Hopefully I can razz them enough to make them care by next year. God knows that school could use a resurgence of spirit. 

I got bored for a second and started reading away messages and came across Tejas':

"a cold and wet November dawn and there are no barking sparrows. just emptiness to dwell upon

I fell into a winter slide and ended up the kind of kid who goes down chutes too narrow..."

I have had enough. Something must be said about the abuse of November in song lyrics by emo-bands.

I'm tired of all these whiny white boy emo bans dissing my month, November. Nothing against emo-rock, which I usually enjoy. But please Jimmy Eat World. Please Postal Service. Please...The Shins.  And yes, please...The Early November. The November bashing must end.

November is not dark and depressing and rainy. It's not empty.

November is fun! You eat turkey, lots of turkey! It's home to Thanksgiving, one of the few holidays that's still simple and oriented around family-friend togetherness. It's a nice lull in the holiday storms of Halloween and Christmas. I love November. And it's football season. (But you probably don't like Football...try college football, that won me over.) Oh! And elections are in November! Exciting! (and hopefully not depressing this year...vote people, vote...unless your voting for Bush.).

Also, in case you didn't know, November starts with the letter N. Many good things start with the letter N.  And, of course, I was born in November.

So stop using it in all your sad depressing lyrics emo twerps. November shall no longer be your metaphor for all that is melodramatic in life.

End this. Now.

Or else I'll sic my grandma on you.

She was born on November 13th.

-------------------
Addendum:

The2Stepper:  i think november gets such a bad wrap because its the worst month of the quarter...december has christmas...october has beautiful fall colors and halloween candy 
Auto response from Nap98: around.   
The2Stepper:  novembers like the slump in between  
The2Stepper:  except for the 1/12 of the population that has their birthday there  
The2Stepper:  although i would actually imagine its more than 1/12 of the population...at least in the U.S. or other hallmark countries  
The2Stepper:  because valentines day is nine months prior  
Nap98:  haha

All right. Time for DC photos. The city is damn photogenic, in a very different way from Boston. I've kept these photos really small so the blog doesn't take forever to load like it did with Beantown.



The WWII Memorial on our first night. A column exists for each state, I took this picture of New Mexico's for my grandpa. The Washington Monument is in the background.



The WWII Memorial's Rainbow Pool and Fountain at night.



An awesome Mariachi group from Los Angeles packed in the crowds at "Nuestra Musica" on the Mall. My grandpa had seen them before.



Georgetown is the oldest part of DC. Kind of like Boston's Backbay, a very old area filled with very trendy stores.



A nice shot of the Capitol.



Who's seen Farenheit 9-11? Everyone that reads this thing. You probably can't make it out this small, but they're throwing a peace sign.



Grandpa standing in front of a plaque at the WWII Memorial showing what he did during the war, amphibious landings.



The four of us at the entrance to the WWII Memorial.



Sabrina at the Jefferson Memorial.



The Lincoln Memorial was really beautiful, especially on our last evening in DC.

It took a trip to Washington DC to make me feel the slightest bit patriotic this Fourth of July. After seeing Fahrenheit 9-11 a couple nights before the trip, I wondered how I could muster up the spirit to be amongst a sea of flag-waving, "God Bless the USA" singing Americans...

...but DC did it. The museums, and especially the memorials, helped me look past the current administration, the war, and all the politics and get back in touch with the roots of this country and all the lofty hopes and ideals it is constantly struggling to attain. We've stumbled, yes. We sure are stumbling right now. But there is still a lot to be proud of.

Being at the WWII Memorial with my grandpa was especially moving People came up and thanked him, saying their father, or grandfather, or uncle, or whoever served in the war. You could tell that many of the people at the memorial were visiting to honor someone they had lost....not in the war, but after it. It memorial was built too late for so many WWII Veterans who have passed on of old age. I am so lucky to have shared that experience with my grandpa. I'll cherish the memories forever.

But what really did it for me, was the "Nuestra Musica" festival the Smithsonian had set up as part of their big annual American Folklife Festival on the National Mall. The performers and announcers made sure to remind the audience that this was a showcase of LATINO musicians, Americans, not exoctics from foreign lands. That Latino culture is also American culture, and has been here for centuries.

The multi-state. multi-ethnic conglomeration of Americans present on our nations mall loved every minute of it. They packed into the performance tents watched the awesome performers, sang together, and danced together. Watching them dance was amazing.

People who had never met each other, of every color and race got together on that dance floor and let it loose. Old people, young people, even a guy in a wheelchair danced. Each person brought their own unique twist to the dance floor (I've never seen people dance to Cumbia or Tejano music the way some of them did!) The less experienced tried to learn from each other and borrow each other's moves. And when someone didn't have a partner when they got on the dance floor, a few seconds later they did.

That dance floor gave me something to celebrate on the Fourth of July. It represented what I hope America is about. A very diverse group of folks coming together, learning from each other, but staying true to themselves, all while making something far from perfect, but still beautiful.

Back from DC. Great trip. More later. Very tired, in a good way.

Job situation seems to be solved. Back at the theatre on Saturday, doing some freelance for the Voice. Better late than never.

I just noticed how the ads on top of our blogs, try to pick up on their content with some "related searches." Kind of funny to see what comes up. Here's a look at what I see right now:

Candice:
Ads: Dance Tight Distributors and Tights at Discount Dance
Related searches: "Hot Pants" and "Pants"

Hmm...all right. That dress code post.

Erik:
A blank white space sponsored by Google.

Even the ads couldn't figure it out.

Kat:
Ads: "Dude Where's My Car - On sale Now" and "ipower Web Hosting"
Related searches: "Dude, Where's my Car" and "Funny stuff"

Dude.

Lauren:
Ads: "Days in Deals- Wash DC" and "No Jet Lag- Great Remedey"
Related searches: Paula Cole

Wonder where Paula Cole came from?

Tejas:
Ads: "iPower Webhosting" and "Create your Blog Today"
Related searches: blog and fear

He does reference his blog a lot. Fear eh? Haha.

I need to get out of Mountain View...and go some place less politically charged...like DC. Haha. Yeah. I'll be there in a day though and I'm looking forward to it.

God I can't wait till this whole preservation ordeal is done with. It's like watching a very slow and painful death. Kill my dream already! Kill it!

Things aren't that bad. Something good can still come of this. But after over two years of debate, MV is gonna end up with an ordinance that allows for the demolition of historic landmarks without public review or city approval. The property rights group is angrier, louder, better funded, and has more connections. (one of them is an old friend and furd frat brother of the mayor). They skew the facts, resort to name calling (According to them, Chris and I are "arrogant zealots", btw) and have scared the city into buying an almost Libertarian philosophy. In taking the high road, not stooping to their level, my group may have preserved its honor and respectability but not the buildings we were trying to save. Oh well, lesson learnt.

But in the end, it comes down to the City Council. And the current council is not the same council that got this ball rolling in the first place. The only one who truly seems to care about preservation is off in Afghanistan. The rest of the bunch is surpringly conservative for a town like Mountain View. I guess we'll have to wait another 30 years for the city to get this right. Until then my group is going to have its work cut out for it, using education and advocacy to save landmarks without an effective ordinance.

I spent this past Wednesday through Saturday at San Luis Obispo with Martin and Dustin. Quite the adventure. Martin goes to CalPoly so we stayed at his place down there. He turned 21 on Saturday, and the plan was to hit the bars on Friday night at midnight. Ends up Martin and Dustin decided to drink every night we were there. I ended up driving them and Martin's friends around every night in Tin's car.

(FYI it's Martin with a Spanish accent over the i...so Marteen...we call him Teen sometimes, but its spelled Tin. Just wanted you to be able to read this right)

Anyhow, I volunteered to be the DD for a variety of reasons. First of all, while they assured me ways home would be found, I saw from the start that once people were drunk they insisted on driving when they shouldn't be. I didn't want to risk that happening.

Secondly, Martin's house was a dirty. Superfund site dirty. Food in various levels of decay dirty. So dirty it stank and made my stomach turn dirty. It made the messiest the Pink House has ever been look sparkling clean. (in fact, it made me realize how damn good I have it at that house!) Thank god Martin's room was comparatively clean. The bathroom however, was awful. I didn't want to wake up with a hang over in that house.

And third, I'm low on cash and drinking is expensive. I only had 10 bucks in my wallet when we went to the bars. I had one beer. With no job this summer, I feel really bad about spending money on things I don't need.

I won't go into more detail...but Martin and Dustin weren't the most fun people to be around when they were drunk. Up till this weekend, every drunk person I've been around has been a jolly drunk. But after a certain point, Dustin gets angry and aggressive and Martin get moody and emotional. Much cooler when they're sober. Haha. Nevertheless, it was still kinda cool to see what the CalPoly party/social/bar scene is like. Worlds apart from Cal. Or at least the Cal I know. I can see the benefits, but I know now more than ever that when I chose Cal over CalPoly, I made one of the best decisions I've ever made or will ever make in my life.

The days however, were great. We went to Morro Bay and checked out the tide pools, went on an awesome sunset/night hike to the top of Bishop's Peak with two of Martin's housemates, and spent an afternoon in Pismo. Fun times. Martin's friends down there are pretty cool. I had fun hangin' with them.

So yeah...the trip had its tough times. Survivor: SLO times. But overall I'm still really glad I went. Even the parts of the trip that weren't so great at the time are already funny (or at least absurd) memories.

Tonight Martin's family threw him a bday party/BBQ at their house. A sizeable grouping of my high school friends were there. Dustin, Martin, Matt, Kim, Jamie, and Lauren B. We all really had a great time. Martin was the only one of us who drank (as it should be, he is celebratin his 21st after all..but he was only a little buzzed).

But the night, in a way, reinforced why I love my group of friends from high school so much. We are that rare group of SFHS alums that can have tons o' fun together without drugs or alcohol. God I sound like an afternoon special. But it's true. Tonight was the first night we were all together as 21 year olds, and while we all enjoy drinking every now and then, it's not something we think we need to loosen up or feel comfortable enough to have a really good time together. I'm glad to see that hasn't changed now that we're all 21. Some nights just being around them gets me on a natural high and I become really goofy and feel really at ease. Tonight was one of those nights. We can make each other drunk I guess...without alcohol if that makes any sense.

Long live Team Fuzzy Bunny Unicorn Zebra Pants!

Don't ask.

I just got back from a really nice lunch with my grandpa. We talked about a lot of stuff, including the DC trip. He really is excited about the trip and was telling the waitress about it and the party. Cool. That's what I needed to hear.

Now..if only Palo Alto would get back to me.

So, my Boston photos in the previous post seem to go off-line every now and then. Sorry bout that.

I'm well into my summer vacation, and have yet to land a job. Even a voluntary one, and now its too late to really find anything good. I'll probably end up working at the Stanford Theatre again, but won't be making much money since they are hardly ever open this summer it seems. Anyways, I told them when I could work...but haven't heard back.

Palo Alto continues to lead me on. Interviewing me in April. Saying they'd get back to me in a couple weeks. Getting back to me in mid-May saying I was not chosen. Calling me the next week saying, "whoops, you're actually one of three finalists!' Saying they'd get back to me in a week. Not returning my e-mail a week later. Not returning my call two weeks later. Returning my second e-mail giving me bad news about not being chosen. BUT saying they would like to hire me for an hourly job assisting their historic preservation planner. Saying they'd get back to me last week and that I should call if they don't. Not returning my call. I'm still hoping this can work out...someday.

And since no jobs seem to be in my immediate future, I'm considering going to Cal Poly with Martin and Matt later this week.

Other thoughts:

Santa Cruz with Martin, Dustin, Jamie, and Rachel was a lot of fun. First official trip to the beach of the summer. Had a great time hanging out with a good chunk of my old high school crew.

My day in Berkeley last Thursday was very nice. The DCRP/BUSSA meetings went well, and it was good to see Kat, Candice, and Kay for lunch.

My grandpa's surprise birthday party went really well.

...now it's kinda up to me to make sure his present from the whole family, a fully paid trip to Washington DC to see the new World War II Memorial, goes well too.

Chris, my lil cuz Sabrina, and I will be taking him there from July 2nd to July 7th. The whole thing was my idea, and I planned everything, from the hotel to the flight, to getting everyone's approval and contribution. Right now, the trip is really stressing me out, because I have to figure all the logistics out and am feeling a lot of pressure to make sure that my grandpa has a good time.

I have to worry about how far he can walk, if he can withstand the heat and humidity, where we can get food for him that fits his strict diabetic diet, what sites we are going to see, who will be watching over my grandma while we are gone, etc. And he's not letting me forget any of that. I expected he would have some concerns about the trip. But I also hoped he would show some more excitement about it and spend some more time thinking and talking about the fun we could have. It would make all the stress I've gone through and am going through to plan this bearable. But instead, I get a litany of concerns from him, followed by "well, it's all up to you Nick, you're the leader here I'll just do what you say." Ack. But that's my grandpa for ya.

Hopefully, once we are there, everything will work out and it'll be a great trip.

Time for Boston Photos!

The North End

This is a photo of the North End, Boston's oldest neighborhood. I loved it here. The neighborhood used to be cut off from the rest of the city by a freeway, but now because of the infamous "Big Dig" where they are putting the freeway underground, its connected again. Paul Revere's house is here (and I visited it)so is the church where they lit the lanterns ("one if by land, two if by sea"). The neighborhood has been predominantly Italian for decades, with very narrow streets, small markets, and many beautiful little churches. All in all, as close to Europe as I have ever been!

The Public Garden

The Public Garden was near my hotel in the Backbay neighborhood. It's one of the oldest parks in the city and America and is filled with beautiful old statues, and a pastoral lake where you can rent swan boats and paddle around. I really liked this old angel fountain.

Beacon Hill

Beacon Hill is one of the most ritzy neighborhoods in Boston. Very blue blood. It's home to beautiful brick rowhouses, cobblestone streets, corner markets, the original Cheers, lots of little dogs, and John Kerry. It's right in the heart of the city, behind the State Capitol.

This cobblestone street is really eye catching. It kind of captures the feel of the whole neighborhood, and is frequently photographed.

Beacon Street is the main street of the neighborhood. Unlike other wealthy neighborhood shopping areas, the stores here are pretty practical, but very immaculate and classy. You have high end restaurants, antique shops, and the nicest looking 7-11 I have ever seen. This little market's storefront really stood out.

Boston Public Library

The Boston Public Library's main branch was across the street from my hotel on Copley Square in the Back Bay. It is one of the first public libraries in the country, and is beautiful both inside and out. As my other pictures show, the sky was usually overcast most of the trip. The sun came out and streamed through the library's lobby windows for a moment when I snapped this photo.

The State Capitol

The MA State Capitol is an awesome building. This photo is looking up towards the main rotunda's golden dome.

...that's all for now. I might post some more later.

Wow. What a busy summer so far.

I'll put some pics up of my Boston trip soon. But the trip was a lot of fun and the city was great! And if things pan out.... Boston won't be the only eastcoast city I'll be visiting this summer! More on that later too.

Still waiting to hear from Palo Alto. Jeeze. Time to call the Stanford Theatre again. I can't sit around forever waiting for Palo Alto to get their act together. (Although I'd very much like to) But I need money.

In other news...Chris is now a SFHS Alumni. It's crazy! I'm so proud of my little brother. He didn't get any recognition at graduation for the stuff he did this year, but the Mtn. View paper got it right and profiled him in this week's article about the SFHS class of 2004. He shares the article with a profile of the super-star valedictorian and the student body president. And Chris was the first of the three to be profiled. Right on, MV Voice. They've always treated us Perry bros quite nicely.

Check it out:

Lancers Ready for Next Step

Same edition, he's the author of one of the Teen Voice articles. (I helped him write this one)

The Pressure To Drink

That's all for now. Hope your summer is going well.

Let's see...some Semester highlights?

Trips to SF. On rainy days with Leo and Lauren for their project along the Embarcadero. With Erik last Sunday to escape studying for finals for an afternoon at the Ferry Building. With Steph, Candice, Dan, and Erik to hang out at the beach and then getting followed by the scary naked guy. To meet my family for a night on the town to see the Lion King. With BUSSA to visit MOMA and to have some burritos in the Mission after. One of the best things about Cal is being close to such a world-class city.

City Planning Studio! What can I say, we rocked! We were told twice that we were better than the city planning grad studios, once by the Chair of the Department of City and Regional Planning. The people in studio were great, we had a lot of fun. Especially the folks in my two teams. Late nights in Wurster listening to BEPs over and over again (Let's Get Retarded), and ugh...my first all-nighter in Wurster. Even that was kinda cool. Not really, but ya, it paid off.

Haha...my first Thursday night at Cal as a 21 year old. Thanks for being so *helpful* Miss Profiet on our walk back to the house you lil punk. I forgive you for pushing me into the shrubs, weeds, whatever you want to call them.

BUSSA. What a cool group of people. and some fun activities. I started this semester with the intention of helping start a club for students studying City Planning. I never thought that it might happen so soon and be successful. I'm really looking forward to serving as Coordinator for the club next year and seeing it further establish itself.

CP118 with Leo and Lauren. Well not the class so much, all though the class was certainty interesting. But the lunches after. Endlessly planning trips to Europe, making fun of each other, complaining to each other, or just talking. Next winter, our Europe plans better become a reality. My range of dining options has also expanded vastly this semester. Thaaaanks guys.

Parties! At the girl's apartment. At Steph's place. For Flavia's birthday. For Hanah's Birthday. Good times. We need to have a good one at our place still though.

Friday lunches with the crew. When I could make it. The discussions never failed to be entertaining.

And lastly, just normal nights at the house. Watching TV, joking around, hanging out. This is a nice place to come home to.

Summer, hopefully, will be nice. But I'm looking forward to Fall already.

Well...

I'm done! My Junior Year at Cal, is over. And I must say, I kicked ass academically this year, both semesters. On the other fronts, I had a really fun time in the house, with Leo and Lauren, and with BUSSA, over this past semester.

But of course, for me all endings are bittersweet. Friends are graduating this year, starting their adult lives. And seeing them leave just reminds me that I'm leaving this time next year...and it scares the crap out of me. I am not ready to leave Cal. Maybe I will be next May, but I doubt it. Between now and then I've got a lot to figure out. And I can't imagine saying goodbye to all my friends here, leaving this house, leaving this whole life behind.

Over the past few days I've found lots of ways to distract myself from not studying. Since Erik's been gone one of my procrastination activities have been to read the many inspirational posters/cards he has up on his wall. One, from some guy named Buddha says:

The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.

I should work on that.

Meanwhile, I want to have a lot of fun this summer. Head start, I'm off to Boston on Saturday morning! Good way to start my vacation while you poor saps on the quarter system are still taking midterms (sorry...sorry...sorry).

Gentes da Diáspora

Ei-los que partem
novos e velhos
buscando a sorte
noutra paragens
noutra aragens
entre os povos
ei-los que partem
velhos e novos
Ei-los que partem
de olhos molhados
coração triste
e a saca às costas
esperança em riste
sonhos dourados
ei-los que partem
de olhos molhados

Virão um dia
ricos ou não
contando histórias
de lá longe
onde o suor
se fez pão
virão um dia
ou não

-Manuel Freire

I've signed up to take Portuguese next semester, with the hope that come January, I'll be using some of it in Portugal.

Click on the poster. View the trailer, and prepare to laugh.

This just in...apparently the city of Palo Alto Human Resources made an error when they said I wasn't chosen as a finalist for the paid planning internship position! I got a message from the planning department to let me know I'm still in the running as a finalist!

What a great day.

It's over! My City Planning studio is over! It's actually kinda sad. I love studio and I hope this isn't my last. Studios have been one of the biggest highlights of my college experience. The final review today went really well for everyone. (and I must say, my group in particular really pulled it together and were dished only compliments by our panel of reviewers...a Berkeley City Planner, the architect of the biggest Development firm in Berkeley, and a well known and respected Urban Designer)

In the end our teary eyed Professor showered us with praise and wished us well, and we did likewise to her. People were patting each other on the back, many of us have become friends over the course of the semester. Overall, it ended on a really really good vibe for the 15 of us. I can safely say I learned a lot too. We put a lot of hard work and it really paid off. Woohoo!

But now that it's over...time to study for finals (boo!). Of course, before that there's a party tonight (yay!). And at least I can safely assume that in at least once class, I have a big fat A coming my way (yay for studio!).

So....I was in Studio from 5pm on Sunday to 8am on Monday. Yep, my first all-nighter in Wurster. I dodged that bullet in 11b, who would've thought it'd hit me in a City Planning studio? I made my way home by 8:30...finished up some photo shop, went back to studio at 12:30.

And I slept at 10. Slept through my alarm and woke up at 12:45...missed a review session. Oops. Kinda outta it and grumpy today. But something really cool cheered me up in ED100....I got a shout out from Professor Roy. It was really flattering. The class was having an open question/answer review session and the topic of nostalgia versus history came up.

While answering a question on the topic, Prof. Roy started talking about theme parks and said "In fact, Nick wrote a great paper on Disney theme park's use of history, about a year ago...right Nick?"

I looked at her and smiled goofly and nodded....thinking..does she want me to say something. But I stayed quiet...I was still getting over the fact that I was served a compliment in front of a lot of my friends and classmates by a prof. that is one of the most well respected in the CED.

It felt good...especially since in that class things often go over my head and I don't feel confident enough to ask questions and participate. It really made my day.

Happy Cinco de Mayo.

I want Pan Dulce.

So...no Europe this summer for me. But Leo and Lauren and I are planning on going in January (brrrr). Found this off a European weather/travel web page:

For Sightseeing/Culture in reasonably comfortable weather conditions:

Spain: with the exception of Madrid[cold] and the North[wet], Spain is generally warm and pleasant in January. The best bet for a dry cultural experience is in the south, visiting the magical Moorish cities of Seville, Cordoba and Granada, where the days are warm and the nights coolish. Barcelona too is a lively, interesting city, though it can be a little chilly/wet in January. Swimming in the Mediterranean in winter is no fun, nor is the sad, overbuilt coast that is now dedicated to sod-the-culture, we want sun, sea and sangria tour groups.

Portugal: A bit wet, but often warm with blue skies in January. Try the pleasant old-fashioned atmosphere of Lisbon, or further south to the Algarve for outdoor pursuits.

Italy: The southern part of Italy has generally mild winters with blue skies, so Rome, Naples, Pompeii, Herculaneum and Sicily are excellent cultural targets, while Amalfi takes good care of those who need a scenic uplift. Venice is chilly, damp and foggy, but has an interesting, spooky quality, enhanced by the lack of tourists [and relatively welcoming locals].

Seville, Cordoba, Granada, Barcelona, Lisbon, Algarve, Rome, Naples, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Sicily, Amalfi...and a spooky/interesting Venice? Sounds like some good choices to me!

So this weekend was pretty cool.

Thursday was very productive. I met with the prof who is my advisor for the first time, and we had a very nice conversation. I actually got some good advice too! Go fig. She looked over my resume as well, and gave it a thumbs up. So I felt confident taking it down to the CED "Show and Tell" that evening, where CED alumni set up tables about the company's the work for. Carey & Co, an Architectural Preservation and Planning firm was there. I would love to have an internship with them. I had a great conversation with the Vice-President (a CED arch alum) and submitted my resume. Sent an e-mail that night. Still waiting to see if anything comes of this.

My uncle got married and I missed it though. But it was at 2:00 on Friday in San Jose City Hall, kinda hard to get to seeing that I scheduled to meet with my studio prof at 5:30. Argh. Then Mikey gives me a hard time about it even though I already feel bad I didn't make it. Butt nugget punk. Hehe.

I've been spending most of the weekend either writing my ED100 paper or thinking about writing my ED100 paper or worrying that I'm procrastinating because I'm not writing my ED100 paper, or working on studio. I will be quite relieved after tomorrow when my LAST paper of the year will be turned in and I can focus my complete attention on designing a new streetscape and parking/retail complex for University Avenue (that's my part of the studio project).

But nevertheless, the weekend was lots of fun. Steph's 21st bday party was great. I managed to drink enough to have a good time....but also remember every thing that happened. (Okay that sounds bad. It's just that the two times I've been drunk since my 21st, I over did it. No regrets, never been sick, I just need to get a better idea of my limits.) Anyways, remembering everything is both a good and bad thing I suppose. I make some pretty dumb comments when I'm drunk. The truth is, I know they're dumb as I am saying them, I'll say strange things to garner a laugh (him....I am my father's son). And Lauren enjoys recounting each phrase to me the next day, while I hit myself in the head.

So after a night of drunkenness, poor Kat has "the worst hang over ever." Check out her blog for a transcript of our humorous morning-after exchange. That afternoon, Lauren, Eric, Erik, Candice, Kay and I headed down to the Presbyterian Church to see Kat's final Wind Ensemble performance. It was very nice, and I couldn't help but think it was 'very Berkeley' of the group to be out drunk partying the night before and then quietly watching a symphonic performance some ten hours later.

And on that note...Chris is still waiting to hear back about his Berkeley appeal. I think I'm just as, if not more, wound up about it then he is. He's submitted his SIR to Davis already, so if he's not a Golden Bear, he'll be an Aggie. No shame in that, Davis is a great school and he's looking forward to going there if that's the way the ball bounces. But I've been reading the "college confidential" discussion boards, which are inhabited by overly-paranoid high school seniors to see if any of them have heard back from their Berkeley appeals. Apparently some have, with a few successes. It gives me hope. I wouldn't be surprised if we find out by tonight.

All right, time to head down to campus.

After yet another city planning lecture discussing the evils of Disney, I'd like to reiterate something.

The Lion King, was awesome. Especially the new songs by Lebo M, the South African songwriter who is responsible for those famous opening lyrics..."Nants ingonyama bagithi baba." (yep those are the actual words, thanks google). The broadway version adds a whole new level of depth and emotion to the stories and characters of the movie, especially through the new songs. Maybe because it's the first time I've ever seen a major play, but hearing the songs performed live was amazing. It was hard to believe that the people on the stage were making that music. The whole thing really moved me, and I think that has a lot to do with the themes conveyed by the story and the song lyrics; Life and death, the cyclical nature of time, coming of age, finding your place, seeking guidance from the past....they all really resonate with my own views right now.

Wait, there's no mountain too great
Hear the words and have faith
Have faith

He lives in you
He lives in me
He watches over
Everything we see
Into the water
Into the truth
In your reflection
He lives in you

I really like these lyrics and the meaning they try to convey; that those who have gone before us are watching over us, that by remembering them, they live on within us. That's some deep stuff to take from a Disney movie, and now, a play. But it's all too easy to be flippant about anything that comes from Disney. Regardless of the corporations aims, I have much respect for the group of people that brought this one piece of art together. So my profs can go on and on about Disney as a symbol of rampant capitalism, I don't care. The Lion King rocks.

These past few days have been excellent. On Wednesday night, for my mom's birthday I hopped on BART and met up with the family to go see the Lion King Broadway musical. It was everything I had hoped it would be, a must see if you enjoyed the movie at all. I just can't get over the music. It was awesome, and the whole family really had a great time.

I stayed the night in Downtown SF with my family, then we woke up early Thursday morning to come home to Mountain View (yes, I skipped all my classes....you only live once). Thursday was spent running errands with my mom in preparation for my auntie Lydia/godmother/nina's joint extended family birthday party with my mom. Various members of my extended familia had a nice dinner at Chevy's and celebrated with cake and ice-cream at my house after.

Of course, lately, whenever my extended family gets together there's bound to be some drama, and I was up till around 2am having a heated discussion with certain members of the family. Eh. Family isn't perfect, it's not a well run machine. There's no natural order of communication with a large family such as my own. Sometimes it's better to have a third party relay information, especially when a direct discussion would feel awkward or uncomfortable. Sometimes you have to put the concerns of others before your own. But that's no excuse to portray yourself as a martyr. You can't sacrafice your own identity for family. But at the same time, too heavy a focus on the self, the individual, what's best for you and only you, THAT is what can break a family, and a person, apart.

Anyhow....that most likely flew way over most of your heards. So, moving on,

I just got back from dinner at Kapp's with my dad. Downtown is hopping tonight! The weather is so nice that everyone is out and about. I ran into two people I know while walking along Castro Street, which was encouraging since I have a paper about how Downtown Mountain View is an anchor in community life. Hehe. The annual Downtown Parade is tomorrow, Chris is in it for MVYAG. It's always a fun event. Unfortunately I'll miss it this year, but for a good reason. Kim's bday should be really fun tomorrow, I hope she enjoys the surprise Matt has planned for her.

Alllllll right. Back to writing that paper.

Up in Berkeley for the whole weekend. It's been a while.

Ummm....I feel like I got a lot of nothing done even though I know I did quite a bit.

Thursday night I went to the SF MOMA with BUSSA. I'd never been to MOMA before, it was really cool. They had an interesting exhibit about a town up north that got destroyed to make way for a reservoir in the 1950s. Reminded me of Santa Rita, NM. We went to the Mission for some very spicy burritos after. It was a really fun trip.

Friday I was very productive, albeit non-academically. I decided it was finally time to restart the fish tank. Completely emptied it (which is a no-no, but it was beyond hope), gave it a good scrubbing, and plopped my three hardy lil Zebra Danios back into their home. I want to get some new fish to add some excitement to the tank. I also moved it into the dining room, where it's more visible. This means two things, one, I get to enjoy it more, and two, I'll have to clean it more. Taking the tank out of the living room allowed me to rearrange the furniture. The new-and-improved living room has been a huge success with the housemates so far. The entire house (sans Eric E.) went to Barney's with Jess for dinner. At night, I went to Phylis' 21st bday party at Flavia & Rory's place. Got Lauren P. and Erik to walk up there with me. They felt the party was too "architectury" for them....so we left after about 45 minutes. But I'm glad I went.

Saturday....I got some reading done for CP118. Took a walk up to the Rose Garden to admire the view of the bay and the City. Got Lauren and Leo to come pick me up for dinner. We ordered pizza and hung out at Lauren's house till around 1:30am. I ate too much pizza, which I think might be what is throwing me off today.

And today....well..today, I've been playing with some photo editing software for my studio project. But after a day of editing one picture, I'm not pleased with the results. So I feel like the day's been wasted. That and, these April showers have confined me into the house. I spent most of the evening pulling together some research for one of the two papers I have due soon. Sitting in front of this laptop for most of the day is depressing. It just reminds me how much more work I have to do.

How NICE it would be to have a car so I could go take some new pictures of my studio project area, buy some new fish, and get a bite to eat and go to the grocery store. Being up here in the hills without a car on a rainy day results in mild cabin fever.

Anyways..this weeks gonna be busy. Got lots of work to do and quite a bit of fun activities lined up as well. So, I better get to bed.

Hello from Wurster Hall. My studio to be specific.

I am very excited. I just found out that the City Planning Department has created a new class, CP140: Urban Design: City-Building and Place Making, taught by the graduate Urban Design prof. This is great. Suddenly my major seems A LOT more well-rounded. Next fall. I'm there. (even though its on fridays...booo!)

But I still think I should get a background in Landscape Design. The more I think about it and talk to people about it, the more it makes sense. My dad reminded me that he thought I should have done Landscape Architecture all along. I've always like Landscape Design. I can imagine myself really enjoying a job in that field. Being a run-of-the-mill city planner just doesn't seem to fit anymore. Maybe that's what the planners in Mountain View meant when they said Berkeley would set me up for "something better than this." All this uncertainty and fretting over majors is a part of the process. I ran into my LArch prof in the hall WHILE I was reading the new course bulletin for CP140 posted on the wall. She'd be more than happy to talk to me about trying to get that minor down. I'm scheduled to see her next tuesday. I think I'll try for this Landscape Design minor, even if it means sticking around another semester. After all, I like Fall Semester better than Spring, and wouldn't mind being here for another season of Cal Football. Hehe. But I guess I'd walk in Spring with the rest of the gang. So it'd all work out just swell. I think.

But ya....an Urban Studies Major with a minor in Landscape Design. How cool does that sound? I like it. For now. But it sounds a lot more like the type of career I want to have now. And just the idea of that makes me happy.

So much is suddenly up in the air right now and it's got me a little overwhelmed.

Lauren and Leo want to go on an architecture/city planning sight-seeing adventure to Europe around the beginning of June. Flight tickets are relatively cheap for that time period if we buy them right now...

Problem is, I have to wait to hear back from the city of Palo Alto regarding my internship. I kinda need the money to pay for the trip. But if I get the paid internship, I doubt I'd be able to schedule a trip to Europe. But then what would the point of making money this summer be if I can't use it on traveling abroad? That was the whole point. Catch-22.

And I don't have a passport. It takes 6 weeks to get one. May 30th is about 6-weeks away, that's cutting it a little close to buy plane tickets and hope my passport is here by then. I could pay for the two week express service, but that sorta defeats the purpose of buying our cheap plane tickets right now!

And in other news, I'm trying to figure out what I want to minor in before my telebears appointment comes up. I've suddenly come to the realization that I have a pretty keen interest in Landscape Design and that maybe after all this City Planning mumbo-jumbo, I might end up in a career in that profession instead. What I know for sure is, I want to be involved in a design profession.

The thought of being a City Planner just depresses me more and more. I blame Berkeley for this. It's given me a taste of what it's like to be on the other side of the counter, the designer not the reviewer. I do not want to be a beaurocrat in a planning office who's main job is to write zoning codes. I've done really well in all my past design studios and I want to have a chance to push it some more and see if I really have what it takes to be either an Urban Designer of Landscape Designer, or better yet, both via a dual degree. And the Landscape Design minor will not only give me a good background to go to grad school for Landscape Architecture, but also for Urban Design.

I never really wanted to be an Architect, I have a touch time visualizing buildings in my head. But I can spend hours visualizing landscapes. I was designing zoos and parks and my backyard's garden when I was 10. Suddenly me, Mister "I've known what I want to since 8th grade" is not so sure what he wants to do anymore.

The other minor which would be MUCH easier to finish is "History of the Built Environment." It is more in-line with my historic preservation ideals. But increasingly, I find myself losing interest in that overall field and finding that my passion for it is mainly rested in my passion for Mountain View's history. It doesn't seem wise to go to grad school and pursue a career in such a limited field.

So I was up late last night trying to figure out a schedule for either minor. Running into schedule conflict after schedule conflict and wishing that I had figured this all out years ago. I probably would have if I wasn't so busy trying to switch from Architecture to Urban Studies. Argh.

Nap98: you should come over for my family's confetti egg fight
Avengelyne01: ooh that sounds exciting
Nap98: haha
Avengelyne01: is this for easter?
Nap98: yeah
Nap98: its the only way to celebrate easter
Nap98: as far as i know
Avengelyne01: hehe
Nap98: otherwise its a boring holiday
Nap98: blahblah jesus died on the cross blablah
Nap98: give me some confetti egg smashing action!
Avengelyne01: lol
Avengelyne01: and candy
Avengelyne01: lots of candy
Nap98: right
Nap98: candy
Nap98: cant forget the candy

14 years of Catholic School sure gets your priorities straight.

Things are going rather smoothly right now. Calm before the storm perhaps.

All my classes are in a lull. No more midterms, papers due in a couple weeks (in my mind...that's far...far.....far away) and in city planning studio we have a fresh start with a brand new project and reorganized project teams.

An internship position landed in my lap via a conversation with an old friend from grade school who looked for any planning positions on the SCU website and found one with Palo Alto (paid!). How lucky.

I had my interview for the position today. It went really well. But I have a gut feeling that they'll stick me with a voluntary position and give the paid one to some more qualified graduate student. Damn grad students, always ruining my life. Not really...But anyhoo...

Only big snag right now is Chris not getting into Cal. Yes, yes, I know....some of you are just itching to blow this joint...it's hard to remember that there are thousands of eager lil high school seniors pounding on Sather Gate trying to get in. Now I have to help him through the whole rejection appeal process. With a 1 in 10 chance of getting in on appeal, and nothing to loose really, we figure it's worth a shot. At least we'll make someone feel really bad for rejecting him. He got into his two second choices, Davis and SCU, so the world will not end with a rejection from Cal. But Chris deserves to be here.

Update from the last entry...I did stop my lobbying and battling for preservation on Wednesday, as I promised myself. Unfortunately, the rest of break was spent battling allergies. I did manage to spend a couple days with my high school friends. We saw Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (good movie) and a fairly large group of us (Matt, Kim, Martin, Jen, Jamie and Rachel too!) spent a day hanging out in Santa Cruz. We had a great time.

I'm going to Boston in May for sure now! Really excited about that. Finally I get to go to an east coast city and explore. Woohoo!

Right then. All caught up.

Soooo....Spring Break.

Yeah. I better go somewhere next year so I don't feel like I've completely wasted my chance at having a some-what stereotypical college Spring Break experience.

Couldn't afford to this year, and no one really to go with anywhere. Everyone I know from Cal is off doin there own thing, and most of my high school friends are here in the Valley. So this break will hopefully have a good amount of R&R with the high school crew. We had a nice day together last Friday. We plan on having a get together this Friday. I hope to do something with some of them in-between as well.

I've also had some quality time with my family. We took a drive to San Juan Bautista on Saturday to enjoy the warm weather, but the fog beat us and by the time we got down there it was way too cold for the sandals and shorts we were wearing. After the very nice hour long drive through the country, we got out of the car for a couple minutes, froze our butts off, and ran back into the car to drive back to sunny San Jose. Went to the giant orange and enjoyed some Mark's Hot Dogs for dinner. I watched the Lion King DVD with my mom today, and then my whole family watched Lion King 1 and 1/2 together. Great movies.

But so far, it feels like the majority of my time has been spent putting one last punch of effort into this whole historic preservation mess here in Mountain View. I met with the head city planner leading the development of the ordinance on Friday. On Saturday morning I had a long conversation with Councilmember Perry (no relation). On Sunday I had an impromptu three hour conversation on the sidewalk of Downtown Castro Street with my dad, a random member of MVPA we ran into, and the owner of the city's oldest commercial building (b. in 1874) who's in our "rival" group, mvNpa. It was a very interesting and fun conversation and I think it fostered some understanding on both sides. (I'm sensing the formulation for a great intro to my second CP118 paper on how Main Streets foster community.) Plus, I had a two-hour MVPA meeting on Sunday. And Wednesday Chris and I are meeting with the Vice-Mayor. I've also been constantly working on trying to update and add to MVPA's web page.

Obviously, I came into break with a lot of energy to do as much as I can to get this preservation ordinance back on the right track before I retreat to Berkeley again. But my engine has run out of steam and I've grown tired of all this again. There's always more I could do. There are still three council members I could meet with if I really wanted to. There's a non-preservation related council meeting tomorrow I could give public comment at. There's neighbors I could talk to....letters I could write... and on and on it goes.

But now, I just want to go to the beach or something. Except for doing some research and taking some pictures of Shoreline Park tomorrow for a paper, and that meeting with the Vice-Mayor on Wednesday, I think I'm done working. From Wednesday afternoon onward, I plan on officially ending the productive part of my Spring Break and devoting my time to getting out of this town and having a little bit of fun.

Peeping Bambo's Watching You.



There's a deer living in our backyard. We should charge it rent.

For grade school Nick, this would be a dream come true. I was so fascinated with the idea that such a large animal still roamed freely amongst the hills of Santa Clara Valley. Remember, I was a little environmentalist back then and longed for the open space and countryside that my grandparents constantly reminded me used to surround Mountain View. My dad and I would go on hikes and I would be really happy if we came across a herd of deer. But usually we came across stranger animals, like a tarantula. (yes Kat, there really are tarantulas in California).

But now I look at this deer, outside my window, munching away or just sitting on the grass....and I wanna be like....awww...how cool. How pastoral. But it keeps scratching itself. And all I can think is that it probably has ticks, and that I better not go wandering in the backyard because I'll get lyme disease...

See what growing up does to you?

Also...the deer's been named Peeping Bambo by Erik. Apparently Erik likes to keep the bathroom window open when he takes a shower, and the deer likes to stare at him through the window. All I say is, close the damn window, you two are both strange animals.

I should be studying for a midterm....

But all I can think about is how the last four years of working towards the preservation of Mountain View's historic landmarks might end up going to waste. Judging from what I heard about the meeting tonight, most of the City Council just doesn't seem to get it. The opportunity to finally ensure that some of my hometown's landmarks survive into the future is slipping away because they seem to be afraid of a few angry property owners. (One of whom happens to be an old Stanfurd frat brother of the current Mayor and the son of a former Mayor)

I feel like my letters to the Council are ignored, the speakers from my organization aren't heard. Our arguments are clear and rational, but the anger and hinted legal threats from a few unhappy property owners seems to have swayed the council towards adopting a completely voluntary historic preservation ordinance, or no ordinance at all. City after city in the Bay Area and throughout the country has adopted a preservation ordinance with little trouble. But Mountain View can't seem to get it right, even though we've tried so hard to ensure that it does.

And I'm stuck here at Cal, studying for a midterm about Community, while the very community I care the most about seems to be headed on a crash course towards a decision I am sure we will come to regret in the future. Ironic.

I want to be able to at least claim a minor victory so that MVPA still has some wind behind its sails to carry on as a community organization. With or without a preservation ordinance, I feel my group could have a lot to offer to Mountain View. But with a really bad ordinance, it will be a lot harder to accomplish our goals. It could become a very depressing organization to be involved in, if we constantly see landmarks being torn-down, with nothing we can do to save them.

In a month and a day, the final decision will have been made. A battle I have been fighting since high school will have ended. At least round-one will have. Round-two might not come until I'm old and gray, if ever. I doubt the city will want to spend the time and resources studying this issue again in the near future, unless some major landmarks are lost in rapid succession.

But this isn't over yet. And I'll keep on trying to turn the tide, to ensure that some good comes out of all this. Because like my dad told me when I started to get involved with preservation in Mountain View; it's better to have tried and failed than to have never tried and come to regret not giving it your all later.

Nap98: hows the studying going
Th EIn KSt o nE: its not
Th EIn KSt o nE: but whatever
Th EIn KSt o nE: its just city planning
Th EIn KSt o nE: how hard can it be?
Nap98: right right
Nap98: im freaked out
Nap98: not so much because its hard
Nap98: but because i cant get myself to focus or care
Nap98: its so un-nick-like
Nap98: my head's in mountain view
Nap98: the city council had a meeting tonight and things are a mess
Th EIn KSt o nE: that sounds very nick like

He's right.

Bah.

Life has pulled some pretty tough punches on my family over the years. When my Uncle Mike got hit by a train two years ago, it seemed like events from the past were repeating themselves, and once again fate had been cruel to the Perry family.

My Uncle Mike is a really special person. He's mentally disabled, but slightly. Before his accident, you would never be able to tell from the way he looked, and only after a while when talking to him. This often caused problems, because people would expect more from Uncle Mike than he was capable of.

Growing up, he took me, Chris and our cousin Tiffany everywhere. We spent countless days of the summer walking, riding the bus, or taking light rail to places all over San Jose and the valley. We'd go bowling and mini-golfing, take train rides all the way to San Francisco and back, the toy store, the mall, San Jose Live, Great America, the park, the movies. Anywhere we wanted to go, as long as it was accessible without a car, he would take us. He had just enough wordily knowledge to make it safe for us to be off on our own with him, and just enough child-likeness in him to make whatever we did together as much fun for him as it was for us. He became "Uncle" Mike to all my cousins, on both sides of the family, and even some of my friends.

But then, one after the other, we realized Uncle Mike was different from our parents. We started to grow up, and he stayed just the same. I didn't know he had a disability until I was around 10...when I realized that I was becoming "smarter" than him. In some ways, we kinda discarded Uncle Mike like we would an old toy. But I realized this was the wrong thing to do pretty early, and continued to treat Uncle Mike with the respect he deserved.

Nevertheless, we made friends our age, and became old enough to go off on our own without him. When we did spend time with him, it became strange because of the role-reversal. Suddenly we were the adults in a lot of situations. He started to withdraw from us, you could sense he felt awkward. I never wanted him to feel like he was in any way inferior to us, but I think as he watched us grow up, he started to feel that way on his own. Especially with Chris, because they had always been best friends with the most in common. As Chris grew older, Uncle Mike lost his last real pal to hang out with. That must have been really hard on him.

But my family made an effort to include him in our lives as much as we could. We'd take him out with my grandma for the day, or go on little trips with him. In summer of 2001, we had him fly by himself for the first time to meet us in Disneyland and spend a week with us there. It's always been fun to have him around.

And then, there was the accident. And our lives went into a tailspin. The thought of life without Uncle Mike is something I never imagined having to deal with so soon. Since he never really changed, it was easy to just think he'd be there forever. It became really clear how much he meant to each of us. How great it was to have someone in our lives that loved us so much and wanted nothing more than to just spend time with us.

The thought of loosing him was shattering. And it seemed like that's what would happen. Or, at best, he might wake from his coma, but be severely disabled, both physically and mentally. The doctors said things didn't look good at all for him, that it was a miracle he even survived getting hit by the train.

Those were very difficult times, and we contemplated taking him off life support. When we had what was to be our final meeting with the doctor, the family was prepared to request this, perhaps some of us more than others. We even met with a priest who was the hospital's Catholic chaplain, and he came to meeting with us and was going to give Uncle Mike the Last Rites. But when the doctor said that Mike was showing a few signs of minor recovery, that his organs were beginning to repair themselves, my brother, myself, and my cousin Tiffany began making eye contact with each other and spoke up. We wanted to give Uncle Mike a chance to fight. The family listened, and the doctors agreed.

My Uncle Mike's initial survival was amazing unto itself. His recovery has been nothing short of a miracle.

Going into his hospital room at Stanford those first few weeks was so hard. With a tracheatomy, dialysis machine, bruises all over, wires and tubes, his head swollen and shaved, stiches everywhere, he was hard to look at without tearing up. We told ourselves to have hope, but not expect too much. We though that at best, he might wake up from his coma.

When he started to show signs of hearing us when we talked to him, we didn't believe it at first, thought it might just be muscle spasms. My grandma stayed with him day and night, and we thought she might be seeing things when he would move his foot in responce to our voices. But then after a few weeks, when we would hold his hand, he would squeeze it in response to questions. We were all amazed.

Then he opened his eyes. We couldn't believe it. But we still didn't know how much he remembered, if those eyes knew who we were or who he was, if his mental disability had been made more severe.

But after a month he started whispering. It became clear that he was still "there" and that one of our greatest fears wasn't true. He did not jump in front of the train on his own. In typical Uncle Mike fashion, he tripped while running to catch the train and fell partially on the tracks so that the train hit his side and threw him across the platform as it came into the station. We were so relieved to hear that.

Over time he regained control of his limbs. He gained the strength to sit up. He was transferred out of Stanford to another hospital, and then to a nursing home where he received physical therapy. We'd visit him often there, and he proudly show us his progress. He could throw a ball. Then he could ride a stationary bike. Before long he could stand on his own, and finally he could walk again.

He's been home for over a year now. And yes, the accident still affects his life every day. He can no longer work at his old job as a busboy at SCU, and is a lot more dependent than he used to be. He has "some good days, and some bad days" as he puts it. But he's recovered more than anyone, even the doctors, ever thought he could.

My family took him out on Saturday and spent the day with him. We went to a Saint Francis Basketball game, dinner at Kapp's, watched the Cal game on tv, and just talked. Every time I see him now, I can't help but look at him and be in awe. He fought so hard to come back to us, to recover, to live. He's so appreciative of the little things, so grateful for just spending the time to talk to him. Even more than he was before the accident.

When my dad and I dropped him off late Saturday night, I told him that I had a lot of fun hanging out with him that day. We said goodbye and I walked towards the car. Just before I shut the door he yelled out from the porch "I love you Nick!"

And it really hit me then, more than it ever has before, how very lucky I am to have him in my life. He is a living reminder to have hope and strength even when times look really bad. He gives me faith that while yes, life can often be very trying and unfair, it can also be extremely rewarding and beautiful.

Today I went to church with my family, all four of us. Quite the rare event in itself, but even more rare because we went to Saint Simons.

Saint Simons....we stopped going there often after I graduated Saint Simons School in 1997, and stopped going all-together after Chris graduated in 2000. When we go to church now, we go to Saint Joseph's in Downtown Mountain View. We fit in better there, and our family has roots there streching back the the 1940s.

Saint Simons is strange for a Catholic church in the Bay Area. Because it's in Los Altos, it's pretty much all White with a sprinkling of minorities, mostly Asians. The lack of diversity made me uncomfortable today in mass. Strange to feel uncomfortable in a place I once knew so well. For 10 years, Saint Simons was a major part of my life.

I have SO many memories there. My first communion, May processions, singing a solo in front of the entire school (god, I had guts), ten years of Christmas plays, dozens of friday masses, stations of the cross, Sunday masses with my family, Confirmation, and my 8th grade graduation.

I'd like to be able to go back there and envision these memories, but I can't cause the church as I knew it is gone. Father Andre had it modernized and completely reconfigured into a "stage-in-the-round" type of layout after I graduated. Even though the stained-glass windows, statues, and paintings were saved...they've all been shuffled and moved around so much that the place is unrecognizable. And that's why it's so strange to go back. The building is still there but its like one of those surreal dreams where you know where you are but nothing is in its proper place.

Chris and I walked around the school after mass. The school itself has hardly changed at all since we went there. The breezeway, the upper hall and lower hall, the Science lab, Schram field, Mrs Shirey's office, the Computer lab, the library. It's all still there. We looked into our old classrooms and searched for ones that still had teachers we knew in them. We saw our class pictures hanging in the hall, and a new plaque for our recently departed eighth grade teacher, Judy Capaldo.

It's hard to believe that seven years have passed since my time at Saint Simons. I remember being a student there, and not being able to imagine being any place else. And here I am, supposedly all-grown-up and over half way through with college. That place, in more ways than I can say, formed who I am today. I owe a lot to it, and the teachers that taught me and always encouraged me to stand up for myself and do what I thought was right. And even though I had a lot of really tough times at that school, my parents, I think, made the right decision to send me there.

It's been many years since the four of us have been in Church in that building together. It brought back a lot of memories of times that are long gone, but sometimes feel like they were just a day ago.

It's kinda scary that I'm starting to rely on AIM's headlines to get my daily dose of news. Can't be any worse than the network news. But it is a bit strange.

"While we wait for the courts to act, it's time for the City of San Francisco to start respecting state law. It is time for the city to stop traveling down this dangerous path of ignoring the rule of law."

That's what our governator had to say about all the gay marriages across the bay. Huh. Easy way to skirt the real issue. Break it down to rule breaking. (Kinda like the whole illegal immigration issue.) It's pretty clear what his opinions are. But....those don't matter....this isn't about civil rights, it's about following the law. Sounds like something some governor of a Southern State in the 1950s would say when people began to challenge Jim Crow laws.

Of almost equally important news, at least according to the logic of AIM's headlines, Cal's own William Hung, our beloved American Idol reject, is becoming a huge celebrity, with a record deal in the works. Crazy. Good for him. But I wonder if we at Cal will feel the pain of this after America grows weary of his rendition of She Bangs. They sure are playing up the Cal link....the photo in the article has the giant Cal script logo in the back, and Will's wearing a blue and gold UCBerkeley t-shirt. Oh well...at least ...because of that photo, dozens of people in America probably just realized that Cal=UC Berkeley.

Will the questions back home change from "Oh! So you go to Berkeley, have you been in any protests lately?" to..."Oh! So you go to Berkeley, have you seen William Hung lately." Hmmm....well come to think of it, that wouldn't be so bad.

Ahhh......I remember this feeling. Too much to do, too little motivation to do it. Papers, midterms, readings, reading responses, STUDIO.

But now...coupled with my apathy, is a growing sense of urgency to make the most of my time here, because so little of it is actually left. The two don't go so well together. Sometimes, it feels like I'm slowly sliding towards the edge of a cliff, with graduation at the end....and a 100 foot plunge into a sea of who knows what at the bottom.

What am I going to do with myself after next year? Will I go to graduate school? If so, where and how wiil I pay for it? If not, where will I live? Who will I live with? What type of job do I want to have..or rather..what type of job can I get in this economy?

Yes...it's over a year away, but now, apparently, is the time to begin planning for what to do next. And I feel like a lot of people have a much better idea of what they want after college. Heck, my cousin, just 6 months older than me, is getting married, probably on the same day I'm graduating.

Up till this point, life is pretty much pre-scripted for everyone. One step leads to the next logical step. Some are lucky enough to have that continue their whole lives. But for others, after college, it's just a giant question mark. And Berkeley....and my major in particular, just makes that question mark even bigger because it opens up more oppurtunities, more decisions.

I am a planner. I need a plan.

So...for the second meeting of B.U.S.S.A on Sunday, we all went around the room and talked about ourselves while one of the members, Rhiddi, typed the group's constitution.

And for the first time in a while that I can remember...I was flat out asked my ethnic background. No tap-dancing around the subject...no hesitance. Usually, this topic doesn't come up unless I sort of invite it to. And if it does, I kinda have to say it without being asked...filling in the blanks of a question I know someone is kinda thinking about but uncomfortable asking.

I'm not one who gets upset when people want to know what I am ethnically, because I'd much rather have them know than assume I'm something I'm not. But a lot of people do get upset. They think it shouldn't matter. That our backgrounds don't matter. Whatever. For me, they do. I care a lot about my history, obviously, and my ethnic heritage is a part of my identity. It's something I want people to know about.

So I said, I'm Mexican and Portuguese. And the response, so far the best response I've ever gotten on this topic, was from the guy that got the group going, Mike, who said, "So...You Like Linguica AND Chorizo?"

Exactly.

And then Ben, the guy sitting next to me from Singapore...was like..."but Perry's not a Portuguese or Mexican name..it's British."

Wow...these people know there stuff.

I had to explain the whole Anglicization of my name Periera to Perry (Thank you Ellis Island).

Anyways...it was great to get to know a group of people from such diverse backgrounds. Hearing there stories, why they got involved in City Planning, where they are from, their heritage...and telling my own. Just in this small group we have people from India, Singapore, Korea, the East Coast and LA. And its surprising the number of connections we found amongst each other as we shared our stories.

For example, when I asked Rhiddi what part of San Jose she lived in..she mentioned the giant Chuckee Cheeze's...which was built on land my great grandpa owned way back in the day as a family farm. Ends up after I said that, they assumed I was a "landed elite" of the Santa Clara Valley. Which would make my family millionares. Haha...if only. Had to explain that too. Hard to summarize how a family which once owned land throughout the valley for generations lost it all in a decade.

I'm hoping some really good things come from this club. There's something great about starting something new, having the chance to leave a legacy. I've done it twice before with the MV Youth Advisory Group, and MVPA. I'm really thankful that the oppurtunity to do it at Cal has landed in my lap. Exciting times.

Well...I think the Claritin finally wore off. My allergies were acting up this morning, and I needed to take it. I don't know whether it was the Claritin or the allergies themselves that just drained me today. Ech. All I wanted to do was lie down and rest all day. I almost fell asleep at 9:00. Haven't done that for a while. But hunger got me out of bed and here I am now.

I was gonna write a detailed description of this past weekend....but I'm tired again. I'll keep it short and sweet.

Thursday- Stumbled into a meeting of Urban Studies Majors that want to form an undergrad student org after my last class. Woohoo! (see Jan. 24 entry)
Friday - Went to SF w/ Leo and Lauren to visit the Embacadero and Ferry Building. Had a fun time at Kat's 21st bday party at night.
Saturday- Slept in. Played a couple games of poker with cheerios and pretzels with the housemates.
Sunday- Read in the Rose Garden, enjoyed the great weather. Had another meeting for the Urban Studies group, wrote the constitution...decided on the name Berkeley Urban Studies Student Association (BUSSA). Watched the grammies. Which were dumb except for the performances.

Overall, a great weekend. Look's like it's gonna be a very busy week.

Right then. Goodnight.

To go abroad, or not to go abroad?

It'd just be a month. August. I know I could do it. But I don't want to do it alone. Especially since its through Davis and not through Cal, so I won't have even a remote chance of knowing people. But the program sounds really interesting, based in southern Germany near the Black Forest and the French border, in the picturesque city of Freiburg. I'd be studying various forms of Community Development by visiting different cities in Germany, France, and Switzerland.

But for a guy who has only been outside this country once (and that was to Encenada in Mexico...which pretty much doesn't count)....who isn't, very...well, adventurous... when it comes to food (but Freiburg does have two McDonald's...I checked),...and who doesn't speak a lick of German (the class is in English..but still)....it's a daunting and frightening proposition to just fly over their alone. I've barely traveled in these United States....farthest I've been is Florida for a trip to Disneyworld, which again..doesn't really count because it's just an over-blown Disneyland.

I just don't know how to travel yet, so to do it a lone the first time is scary. And it's not just me, it's pretty much my whole family. The last folks on my mom's side to set foot in Europe were the one's from way-back-when that came here from Spain and had babies with the Aztecs and made us Mexicans. With one exception, my cousin Mikey went to England last spring. But they speak English there....kinda....so at least he had that going for him. On my dad's side my grandparents went to the Azores and Portugal in the 1950s, but they had roots and family there still. So basically, I'm not exactly used to traveling, and I come from a long line of non-globetrotters.

I just don't know. I'm trying to get Leo to come with me, but for some reason that architorture major wants to take an architorture summer abroad program. ABSURD! Well...not really. But from my skewed perspective... it just makes sense; he was born in Germany, speaks German, could get credit for this towards his major... he was destined to be my translator and tour guide for this. Haha.

I'll probably apply at the very least. But, I'll ask again...anyone wanna come with me? Please? I'll give you a dollar.

So, of all the classes I've taken at Cal, here is how they rate. This is for my own amusement, you probably don't care...unless you're thinking about what to take in future semesters.

1.) Architecture 171C - San Francisco Architecture
-See Previous Post

2.) Environmental Design 11A - Intro to Drawing Studio
-The top 3 are all very close together, studio is tough to rate because of the extremes within it, a lot of fun, but also a lot of hard work and frustrating days...but ultimately worth it in the end. Got to know some great folks in my section too. I put 11A before 11B, because I was better at 11A and can actually do something with my drawings whereas my models from 11B just collect dust.

3.) Environmental Design 11B - Intro to Design Studio
-See Above. But this class introduced me to Flavia, Phyllis and Rory, three people who my Cal experience would be so much less fun without. Plus a bunch of other folks who were fun to have class with. Oh..and Luke, my instructor's dog. Strange dog.

4.) City Planning 111 - Intro to Housing
-Eye opening course, my first with Professor Roy. Got a great paper out of it too.

5.) Chicano Studies 70AC - Latino Politics
-Another eye opening course, I learned quite a bit about my own family's history in relation to larger events and got to see a movie my great-grandma's were in...which moves this course up the list.

6.) Political Science 171 - California Politics
-Bruce Cain is an excellent professor and this class really gave me a better insight into how this wonderful state of ours works. If you're at all interested in California politics, take this class.

7.) Environmental Design 1 - Intro to Environmental Design
-Fond memories of my section in this course put it high up on the list. In this class I solidified my friendships with Leo and Lauren, met a couple other CED friends like Jacqueline and Melissa, and got to know a bunch of other people that I continue to enjoy taking classes with in the CED.

8.) City Planning 115 - Urbanization in Developing Countries
-Ananya Roy's classes are really interesting and she has very powerful lectures, but this class didn't quite do the same thing for me that CP111 did. Nevertheless, its pretty high up because Prof. Roy challenges my perceptions of what city planning is, and although this often frustrates and confuses me, its rewarding. Plus, I got to write a paper about Disney theme parks. The 5th grader Nick inside of me is absolutely thrilled that I was able to write about Disneyland in college.

9.) Ethnic Studies 150AC - People of Mixed Racial Decent
-Overall, I think that this class could have been better. But the very fact that there is a class like this, and that it introduced me to one of my all time favorite novels now, La Maravilla, and had the author come in as a guest lecture, puts it in the top 10.

10.) City Planning 110 - Intro to City Planning
-I enjoyed my GSI in this class, we got along really well and the projects assigned were interesting. And, the fact that I kicked ass grade-wise helps too. My first A+ at Cal. And I remember the lecture mentioning Mountain View a few times, which made me like the class even more.

11.) Geography 159AC - The Southern Border
-I wish I was able to invest more time into this class than I did. Prof Manz and Shaiken were great, especially Prof. Manz. The subject material was very relevant and well presented. My first and only class with Erik, and that was cool too.

12.) Geography 50AC - California Geography
-It was about California. It was about Geography. I got to write about my family's history for a term paper. What's not to like?

13.) ESPM 10 - Environmental Issues
-The prof in the class was really really cool. The class was a last minute filler but was really enlightening. Lauren R. was in the class with me too, and that was fun (when she was awake)

14.) Geography 70AC - The American Urban Experience
-I like this class, not so much because of the lectures (they weren't that great) but because of the project we had to do. I got to learn a lot about Uptown Oakland and had a good time doing it.

15.) Astronomy 10 - General Astronomy
-Lot's of fun to be in a class with Kat, Ryan, and BJ as a GSI....but I couldn't really get fired up about the subject material. Filipenko is a great prof, and I enjoyed his lectures. But Astronomy just isn't my thing. Pretty amazing stuff though.

16.) Geography 10 - World Regions
-Interesting, but not very much of what was said stuck with me.

17.) City Planning 39A - Frosh/Soph Seminar w/ Prof Emeritus Meier
-An experience that I wasn't quite ready for as a freshman... and maybe still not ready for? Not sure. Professor Meier had a totally foreign notion of what City Planning was, and a lot of the stuff we talked about was either waay out there, or just over my head. But he is an admirable individual and the class was certainty not as bad as its position on this list might suggest.

18.) Statistics 2 - Intro to Statistics
-Stats was interesting, I didn't hate this class. Didn't love it either, but the Prof made it tolerable and I got to bug Lauren P. during lecture.

19.) Math16A - Analytic Geometry and Calculus
-This class has the distinction of being the only class at Cal I really did not enjoy at all. I hate Math. I really do.

Wow, 19 classes. Plus 4 this semester. Getting close to the end. That was kinda fun. Makes me realize that I've really enjoyed almost all my classes here. Lucky me.

Looking back at the last semester, I've realized that San Francisco Architecture was the best class I have taken here at Cal. With only about 18 kids in the class, we really got to know each other and Professor Tobriner well. The tours to San Francisco were great, I've gained a whole new perspective on the City. For our papers, he let us write about things that really interested us. And at the end of the semester, he invited us to his house for a get together where we told stories and talked about our papers.

The people in the class were great too. Not only were some of my friends from studio in it, but the diversity of people that go to Berkeley was represented really well. We had exchange students from Scandinavia, New Zealand, Russia, Hong Kong, and Argentina...not to mention various parts of the United States. It was cool to actually work with graduate students too, and hear about the research they were doing.

I hope everyone that reads this blog and goes to Cal, gets the chance to participate in at least one class like this. They're out there, you just have to find them. That's pretty much the whole deal with Cal. The oppurtunities for a great educational expirience are out there, you just need to go out and find them yourself. You aren't spoon fed them like you might be in some schools. And personally, I like it that way.