Topic: College Daze update

Sold one book while working at the bookstore today to a girl who is a member of the Wash U. co-op, a group of people living together to promote social responsibility.  Apparently, there’s a whole group of disgruntled people there who are already mobilized to create change, so i’m looking forward to meeting them.

Another man came in, did the flip through the book things as most people do.  I told him the book was mine, and he told me he wants me on his radio show!!! Apparently, he does shows on strange things like goth culture, but he said my book is hitting the exact issue he’s been trying to hit w/ his show.  What is it that drives people to rebel?

Went to visit a friend at the alumni house, this amazing woman Rita, and met 2 other young alums who are working there.  One bought a book, and they told me about Founders Day, a huge alumni event this Sat., Chirs Matthews from the news program Hardball is the keynote speaker.  Major networking opportunity.  And, this afternoon Rita is being the sweetest most wonderful person in the world, and i’m going to her house to try on some of her son’s suits to wear on Sat., since it’s a formal event, and i didn’t put any formal gear in my backpack.

Next Tues., at 4pm, i’m organizing an event for all students back from study abroad to meet me at the bar Blueberry Hill.  I started a tradition (it’s not really a tradition, it was only one day, but it could become one) to do something on a random Tues. afternoon that was purely for enjoyment.  Not for school or work.  So, i decided an afternoon in the pub would be good.  I’ve become friends w/ the guy in charge of the study abroad dept., and he sent an e-mail out to 100+ students, so hopefully a few show up.

That’ll do.

-dan

I’m still convinced, Michael Moore will be responsible for Bush losing.  He’s currently going all around America trying to get young people to vote.  Fahrenheit 9/11 comes out on dvd in a few weeks.  Think about this.  Bush narrowly beat Gore last time.  Now…those who voted for Gore, will likely vote for Kerry.  And a large number of those who voted for Bush, will now vote for Kerry.  And, a large number of apathetic non-voters in the last election, will have become awakened to politics, probably due to either reading one of Michael Moore’s books or seeing his movie.  And, they’re certainly not going to vote for Bush.  You know that feeling in your stomach that tells you this one is going to be close.  I think that’s just the media trying to keep this close to the wire.  They make it seem like our country is more divided than ever.  It seems more like the only thing people are divided over is who is going to win.  This country is certainly more united than ever to remove Bush from office and give Kerry a chance to not fuck things up so much. 

A side topic, is, what happens after the election.  Kerry wins.  Everyone is happy.  But, that’s when the real work begins.  All of a sudden, the news shifts away from politics, and will start covering murder trials again.  It would be great to see this kind of political intensity all the time.  Currently, I’m not working in the media field, so I have little hope of that changing.  I believe educational institutions are the lone places where we might hope to see real changes take place that keep people’s minds tuned to the bigger picture of life that is lost to all except those who fight to seek it on their own.  Ignorance and apathy are both natural and comfortable states of being.  Robert Pirsig has a great quote from “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance,” that goes something like, “mental reflection is so much more interesting than tv, it’s a shame more people don’t swith over to it.  They probably think what they hear is unimportant, but it never is.”  It is our job, as educators, as students, as everyone, to encourage people to monitor their time in front of the tv, and to support discussions on topics that matter to us, but may seem less important than just getting by on the little day to day things like deciding what to wear, and what to have for lunch (although deciding what to have for lunch can be a pretty important decision).

Topic: Quick update

Met w/ a dean this morning, who is running a forum this Sat. on student apathy.  She is perhaps the only dean who considers this to be a problem, and has worked months to get this forum to happen.  She laughs that others view her as too far out there, but she spends her time advising students in a way different than most.  She actually advises them on how to be people, not just students.

She told me stories of countless freshman, who don’t talk in class.  She asks them, “don’t you guys have any questions?” and most just say, “No.”  The whole thing is outrageous.  She also found the website for Evergreen St. and said she and some other faculty often talk and dream about Wash U. running itself like their school does.

This is probably the first activist faculty member I’ve come across.  She’s organizing for me to be a part of the panel of speakers, which includes some distinguished faculty.  She will also help me promote my book at the event. (I also get a free lunch and dinner out of the occassion!)

She joked that it’s ironic that the type of discussion we had an fighting apathy has to almost be held in a private forum.  There was another person w/ us, a senior who is interning on the project. 

Well…need to get back to work, another hour at the book store, good opportunity to spread the word.  Yes, my friends, things are just getting started.  It is not coincidence that I am finding the right people.  It just took me to first find myself.  Now, I am able to see what I couldn’t as a student.  Now I am able to find anything I need to find.

Topic: For those who are more liberal than conservative, but don’t have a very strong academic understanding of politics, I just found this site

http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/

Has many links to articles and authors to give some insite as to what reasons liberals have for hating conservatives.

Topic: Every day is an adventure

-met w/ a professor of architecture, actually, he’s more of an artist.  runs courses that give students a tour of st. louis, and teaches urban youth about art.  Extremely outspoken about the politics of Wash U.  Can’t stand conservative intellectuals who try to ram their agenda down students throats, and control the curriculum so that it meets their own interests, not the students.

-began work at the campus book store.  pushed my book a bit, made 2 sales.  first time working at a register, actually an exciting experience, although it would grow old if i did it for too long.  3 hours a day is fine by me. 

-taking part in a symposium on sat. on student apathy

-working to get a special column in the school paper to highlight my project

-giants beat cleveland yesturday!!!

-apparently, there’s a whole world of professors who want to support what i’m doing here, so i have pleanty more meetings to look forward to

-on thur. will be attending a class discussing “education reform” will be interesting to learn about what i’m actually doing, and to see students learning about it but not doing it

Topic: A system of hope

http://www.evergreen.edu/

Topic: A system of neglect

Any educational system, in my mind, the succeeds for some and not for all, is an educational system that has failed.  An educational institution must be flexible and responsive to the needs of those who are not thriving.  Unfortunately, students, many many students, slide through the cracks.  And the problem is not that the system does not work for them, the problem is that the system is not looking out for them.

I am a prime example of this.  By my senior year, I knew I was in the wrong place.  However, I was in a system that could do nothing for me, but encourage me to just get through the system.  That to me, is not the sign of a healthy system.  My friend Deepani is reading my book, College Daze and not only did she say she was personally moved by it, but she revealed to me the same feelings I had in college, the same feelings many will have.  The feeling of having your imagination, creativity, and free-thinking limited because the people around you are all the same, because the education you have is limited to what classes you need to take, because of the expectation that the purpose of being in college is to prepare you and aid you in getting a certain type of job, when inside you know that you are not the person that the college thought you would be.

I’m trying to lay out the specific argument that will make things changed, by hammering it home to students, professors, and administrators.  The institution of Wash U., exists to set an academic standard and to maintain what they hold to be academic integrity.  That philosohy is what guides the curriculum they provide to students, the number of credits they need to take, the distributions they need to take, and what experiences away from campus will count towards a diploma.  Students’ experiences are tailored by the philosophy of the university, and students, who at this school pay about $120,000 for a diploma, and give four years of their lives, are trusting that the experiences that the university has set up for them will be helpful in shaping their future.

THIS IS NOT THE CASE.  This is where my argument comes in.  The fact that the intention of the educational philosophy of this school is not working.  It’s not working when students have little concept of the world outside of their campus.  It’s not working when students go abroad, and remember nothing of their classes, but only the experiences.  It’s not working when students cram and forget facts, and mindlessly write papers.  It’s not working when students graduate and have no basis for how to survive in the real world with the experiences they’ve gotten over their four years. 

It’s not working when students are apathetic about school.  A healthy institution of education must inspire.  Few do.  The existance of so many apathetic students is a direct result of the philosophy of the administration, which seeks only to ensure that students are engaged in what they have deemed to be reputable academic experiences. 

Kurt Hahn, the foudner of Outward Bound, would call this neglect.  To not impel students into value forming experiences, to not impel them into challenging situations, to not make students live for life, is neglect.  While I am trying to create changes by working with the system, I also must show that something isn’t working.  I am not condeming those in charge, in a legal, or even a moral sense, however, I must show what is happening to students. 

My hope is that in maybe 40 years time, when my generation is up and running in D.C., we will have politicians who first and foremost understand how education can both create and solve most of the problems we have today.  Just imagine an ideal form of education, all the way through college.  Now, what can we expect from hundreds of thousands of 22-year old Americans?  We can expect that they’ve all been sent abroad by our new system of education, thus making them more self-aware of our own country.  We can expect that we will have solved our obesity crisis, since our new system of education will include as much physical as intellectual activity, and students will also learn to eat well at schools.  We can expect that students will know how to live financially, as they will all have been exposed to simple living concepts, as well as mindful thinking, that will allow them to buy fewer things that they would traditionally buy simply because of marketing that preys on their psychological needs.  We will have less depressed or ADD diagnosed students, because education will be developed in a way that is fun, engaging, and energized, so those who are active will no longer be confined to a classroom.  The new system of education will be community based, so students are open with each other, and teachers are there to help develop students’ feelings of self-worth, and to solve the problem of loneliness that many suffer from.  Our society will have less problems of poverty, because students in this new system of higher education will be impelled into service, and will lend a hand to those who need it.  Our society will learn to better use its resources, as all students will have much exposure to nature, and to respect the environment.  Our society will be less ignorant, and will demand a smarter and tougher media, because our students will be smarter, and will be as interested in politics and other issues that are bigger than themselves.  If we need a problem solved, we will solve it through our new system of education, a system that is built on the philosophy not of academic integrity, but of experiential education.

For more information on how this system is already revolutionizing education in America, please visit www.elob.org

And, now i’m going to have some leftover terriyaki chicken and hang out on my campus, where I am still anonymous, but will soon become an important figure.

-dan

Topic: Waiting for the watershed

Every person I meet, who I tell, “I just wrote a book about college,” immediately grows excited.  On Sun., I’m grabbing dinner and a drink w/ one, possibly two professors, who I’ve never met, but who are interested in talking to me.  Another friend of mine, who is a senior, just so happens to be taking a class about education reform.  The professor she says, is discussing many of the ideas in my book, about how school serves to mold people to become functional cogs in the wheel of society.  I’m hoping to meet that prof., to start attending that class (for free, while everyone else is paying $3,000) to contribute like i never did in a college class before, and hopefully to see if my book can be incorporated into the class.

I’m learning a bit more about this college.  I met w/ a dean to discuss my idea for a 3-credit course to send students to do an outward bound south africa course.  The first thing i noticed, was immediate skepticism, rather than any curiousity as to what the program was about.  The dean’s primary concern was the academic reputation that the school must uphold when giving credit for a course.  It revealed to me a rather inhumane approach to education, however, while education is the aim, it is evident that the universities job as a degree distributing institution is compromising the educational experience of students.

Students are made to jump through hoops in order to receive a degree.  They must be a student for four years.  For those four years, they must take a number of classes, which cuts into the ability of students to pursue non-academic experiences.  For those four years, students must concern themselves with grades, with majors, with distributions.  Students who want to go abroad for a semester are limited in where they can go by the university which has determined what programs have the reputation of being highly academic (although, the truth of what students go abroad for couldn’t be farther from what the university would like). 

In the years to come, i hope to attack this problem on two fronts.  First, on the high school level, I want to begin a campaign to have high school graduates take a gap year or two before college.  I can’t see any strong arguments against such an experience by either high schools or colleges, it’s now just a matter of encouraging and promoting the experience.

The second way to confront the problem of higher education is to continue to do as I am now, exposing higher education for its true value, rather than its perceived value.  To encourage students to take time off and think after college.

In the long run, any hopes to strengthen the collective education of this country, to ensure we have thinking citizens, to ensure we have thinking journalists, and thinking politicians, will require first, that we have thinking schools.  If we can’t have schools question themselves and change, than war, poverty, dirty politics, cynicism, apathy, and other problems of today, will continue to be the problems of tomorrow.

TOPIC: SMALL POSITIVE STEPS

In just 24-hours of being back in St. Louis, two very good things have happened.  First, my roommate had a friend who is a ticket broker, and the two of us went and camped out on Tues. night for Cardinals playoff tickets.  It was my first time camping out in a city, and it was a beautiful night, right by the stadium, and just a good time eating junk food and catching up w/ my boy!  With $3,000 each in hand, we bought as many tix as we could for the league championship series and divivisional series.  I felt a little bit bad about what we were doing, taking tix away from fans who had also camped out, and allowing others with more money to buy these tickets later (traditionally, I’d hate people like me) however, I got paid $200!!!  And, if the Cardinals make the world series, I have the option of camping out again, and getting paid even more than that.  The ethics are questionable, but that much money certainly outweighs who gets those tickets, and besides, if I didn’t do it, somebody else would (how’s that for an ethical argument).

So…besides being $200 richer, I also made a new faculty friend.  The person I met, was in 100% agreement with me that there are huge problems with education here at Wash U., and she re-assured me that there are several other professors who are concerned with more than just teaching their subject, but are concerned with how students are developing as people.  So…through this person, I’ve gained two more faculty contacts who want to speak with me.  It’s all one-day at a time.  In between meeting these people, not much progress is made, however, each meeting has proven to be fruitful.  Today, I meet with a dean about my idea to send Wash U students to do an Outward Bound course in S. Africa and receive 3-credits for it.  I’m going in open-minded, but also not expecting this person to jump up and down and help this project work out.  However, if unsuccessful, I am very interested in the reasons why, and it is here, if i face resistance that I find to be counter-educational, that I hope to expose the intentions of those who are taking students money in the name of education!

TOPIC: BUDGET LIVING

I’ve managed to escape the rat-race.  I am living for free on a friends couch.  I spend about $5/day on food.  I carry a water bottle around.  I have cereal for breakfast, make 3 pb&j sandwhiches for lunch, have grapes and trail mix for lunch, and make dinner that lasts 3 meals.  Tonight I’m making terriyaki chicken with pineapples, rice, and beans.  While my parents are still paying my health insurance, I am probably living with food costs half that of most people.  When I hear people complain of financial troubles, I can’t sympathize, because I know that most people are wasteful when it comes to food.  In addition, you hear how hard it is to find a job.  My roommate at Starbucks is doing just fine on $30,000 a year, and says there’s pleanty of opportunities, actually, they’re looking for workers constantly.  So…if people changed their perspectives on work, and on spending, I think we would no longer have the same problems of financial hardships.  Also, when I see commercials about the financial hardships of college, and stock brokers who want to help you prepare to send your kids to college, I don’t sympathize.  Those hardships are unecessarily caused by the way college has been marketed.  We are wasteful when we spend $100,000 in the name of an education and a degree. 

When our culture begins to question how we spend out money, we will begin to notice that we’re making life a lot more difficult than it needs to be.  We’ll be able to work less, worry less, and play more.  That’s the culture I’ve created for myself.  What do you think of this culture, of your culture?

TOPIC: FEELING RE-BORN AFTER AUSTIN

It’s been a few days since I’ve posted.  Just got back into St. Louis this morning, after 17 hours on a bus from Austin.  I’m finding the long bus rides to be wonderful opportunities to catch up on reading, writing, and just letting my mind wander and think about life a bit.

So…Austin City Limits was absoulutely fuckin’ amazing.  For the third day, Sunday, we got to the gates as they opened at 11am.  The show was at Zilker Park, a huge park w/ about 8 stages spread about.  As the gates opened, my friends and I began running, blanket in hand, to the main stage where Jack Johnson, the Roots, and Ben Harper would be performing.  The stage speakers began playing the Super Man theme song, and when we realized we were practically the only ones running, we slowed down and just started running in circles, getting dizzy w/ excitement.

Our reward for arriving early was that we were right up as close as we could get to the stage.  By the time Ben Harper played, at 8:30pm, there were possibly 70,000+ behind us.  It was something to see, especially as everyone put their lighters in the air as Harper song about our world of war.

Just as exciting as seeing Harper play, was seeing the person who introduced him.  An native of Austin, and a good friend of Harper’s, this person came out and told a story of how the two of them went cliff diving the day before, to kind of shake up their soul a bit, a cheat death.

The person, was none other than Lance Armstrong.  The man who has cheated death himself, dying of cancer, and going on to win 6 consecutive Tour de France’s, the most grueling bycicle race out there.  I was going nuts, screaming, nearly in tears from excitement. 

I rediscoverd a passion for music, like I never had before.  The Roots show was like having Red Bull poured into your vains, pure energy for one hours.  Jack Johnson, the Hawaiin surfer, played his usual chill, happy songs, while we were all sweating in 90 degree heat.  The night before, I saw Trey Anastasio from Phish, lying on the lawn, I awoke from his music and felt as though I had just been given a massage of both body and soul.  So relaxing.  A new band i heared was the Jon Butler Trio, from Australia.  The guy plays a mean slide guitar, and has extra long fingernails on his right hand to play his 12-string.  In between songs he would file his nails.  The basist would get up on the speaker to watch and chear on the drummer as he’d solo.  You could tell they loved what they were doing.

And…girls in Austin are hot!!! Maybe it was the fact they were all in bikini tops.  Maybe it was the sexy straw cowboy hats many were wearing…with their hair in pigtails.  I manged to eye-down the most beautiful girl in the world, who waved me over to chat.  I never saw her again, but for the rest of the weekend I felt as though I had lost the woman of my dreams. 

I also was the only American in my group of 12 friends from camp.  I kinda like having so many int’l friends.  On the bus, they’d be singing Aussie chears, or we’d sing jewish songs that we learned at our camp.  Waiting on line for the buses, we’d see who could get the most high fives from strangers.  Aftre one show ended, I did an 5min. air guitar solo in front of one of the stages, which actually brought on a small crowd to chear me on.

I return to St. Louis w/ these amazing memories, and w/ little worries on my mind, although i have much to do still, and I have officially moved into super budget mode.  That means bologna sandwhiches and such.  Tonight, I’m camping out w/ my roommate to buy Cardinals playoff tix for a broker.  That should net me a much needed $150!

Well…i’ll leave the update at that.  This is Dan, the South African traveling, book writing, camp working, Outwrad Bound loving, college improving, US wandering, couch sleeping, Lilienthal, signing off.

And…if you haven’t yet bought a copy of my book, “College Daze,” click here and buy a copy.  Proceeds go to my bologna sandwhich fund.