This Just in From Weather.com
...FRIGID WIND CHILLS OVERNIGHT... ON THE HEELS OF AN ARCTIC COLD FRONT THAT MOVED THROUGH THE NORTHEAST FRIDAY AFTERNOON...THE COLDEST AIRMASS OF THE SEASON WILL SETTLE INTO THE LOCAL REGION OVERNIGHT. IN ADDITION TO THE VERY COLD AIR...A BRISK WIND WILL BE BLOWING FROM THE NORTHWEST FOR A WHILE OVERNIGHT. THE COMBINATION OF GUSTY NORTHWEST WINDS THROUGH THE EARLY MORNING HOURS SATURDAY AND TEMPERATURES IN THE LOWER AND MIDDLE TEENS WILL RESULT IN WIND CHILL VALUES DROPPING TO BELOW ZERO AT TIMES ACROSS THE NEW YORK CITY METROPOLITAN AREA. WIND CHILL TEMPERATURES AT THESE LEVELS ARE DANGEROUS TO BE OUT IN FOR EXTENDED PERIODS OF TIME. IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT ANYONE PLANNING ON SPENDING TIME OUTDOORS OVERNIGHT TO COVER ALL EXPOSED FLESH AND LIMIT THE TIME SPENT OUTSIDE.
Well, this is a first. I do believe this is the coldest I've ever been. I went to the India Arie concert tonight with Jen, a friend in my program. We went looking for some Thai food after the show. After a train ride and a long five-block walk, we found some. I wasn't wearing a hat and so I had lots of exposed flesh up top. I'm just now getting the feeling back in my lips. My chin is still cold. The blood has returned to the tips of my ears, and so they're burning. And I can feel my eyelids again. Even covered flesh suffered. The insides of my knees are still cold to the touch. So maybe the walk I took after Jen and I finished eating at 12:30 wasn't the smartest thing to do. This cold is extremely powerful. But it's great, though, and I wanted to be in it. The temp. is now 9 degrees. The "feels like" temp. is -8. Sweet.
Last night, I went to a bar called Subtonic with some friends. Before that, we hit Fuelray, which is always a pleasure. We walked to Subtonic and just as we began our journey, the snow started falling. It was soft at first, but the minute we hit 2nd Ave., the wind picked up and the snow was falling hard and sideways. It was great. I had my first snow fight around 2 a.m. after we left the bar. The snow was too soft, though, so I wasn't able to take advantage of my experience as a catcher (in softball).
So I'm back in NYC. I was happy to be home. I was happy to see my stuff. I can't say I'm totally ready to start school. I already feel the pressure I'm putting on myself and it scares me a bit. But it can't be as hard and/or shocking as my first semester was. Only time will tell. I definitely don't feel like I studied enough last time. So that will have to change. Hopefully I can manage my time better. I've got the same schedule so I'm only in class for two days each week.
I still haven't dealt with the NYPD. Katharina received a letter saying she didn't have to appear. They screwed up the paperwork. I'm going to call on Monday. I just hope it's not an all-day thing. And I hope the court-appointed defense lawyer is in a good mood the day I go because I don't want to have to say something that might land me in jail. Although it would make for a good story. I seem to have plenty of those. So I have no idea what to expect but let's just hope it's quick and painless.
I've thought a lot about affirmative action and President Bush the last couple of days. I watched his press conference the other day announcing the White House's intention of filing friend-of-the-court briefs challenging the University of Michigan's policy. I was happy to see that Condoleezza Rice weighed in on the topic. Crediting her experience at Stanford U. as its provost with shaping her thoughts on affirmative action, she stated that race does need to be considered in diversifying universities. An enlightening thought? Not quite. Will it help? Nope. But it was still nice to see she made it. I'm actually still mad at her for turning down an opportunity to be featured in a Government Technology cover story, but what're you gonna do?
Anyway, the bottom line is a politician is a politician is a politician and they all sound alike. They all tip-toe around the hard line, trying to avoid language that will potentially offend the voting citizen of color. Listening to his press conference was a bit nauseating. I recorded it so I watched the best parts over again. And I talked back to the television a little. Not too bad, though.
I have a story. It's a little off the topic but nevertheless related in some way. When I was in my final semester at Chico St., Prop. 209 was the hot topic of discussion. It was to be on the ballot the following November. In keeping with the affirmative action debate, there was a gathering of about 200 people to discuss/debate the usefulness of the EOP (Educational Opportunity Program) one beautiful spring night in a campus cafe. EOP made it possible for me and a lot of other people to attend Chico. There were Chico faculty and staff at the front of the room representing varying views. But there was one in particular of the white persuasion who expressed his dismay at the existence of a program that seemingly gave preferential treatment to students of color. Of course EOP is actually a program that helps admit economically disadvantaged (or, as I like to say, the po') students with bad high school grades; it's not an explicitly minority-based program. Anyway, the nice professor went on to say that these programs weren't worth the money because there were only a few students left by the time graduation rolled around. It's true. In my class that summer, there were about 120 people maybe. At best, about 30 or so graduated. Maybe a little more.
To this guy, these 30 or so, which included me of course, weren't worth the money it cost to have EOP and programs like it around. So, red in the face with anger, I raised my hand and calmly began to speak. I had no choice in the matter. I told him that I was graduating in two months and that, if everything went as planned, I would graduate with a 3.020 (I was so excited with the .020 aspect of that). I also told him that one of the professors during my Summer Bridge summer saw my potential and encouraged me to apply to the honor's program. I did and I was accepted. I then told him that these are the chances that programs like EOP affords students who would otherwise go unnoticed. I feel very lucky for the education I received. There were a lot of people with whom I came into contact who helped me along the way and are still helping me. Work study sucked but cleaning classrooms during the summer got me through high school. My grades sucked. My SAT score was abominable. USC admissions folks laughed, I'm sure, upon seeing my application.
So that's where EOP came in. If it weren't for that, I would have ended up at a junior college and perhaps would have remained in L.A. So whatever. These are my thoughts at 4:35 on a Saturday morning. It's not quite a soapbox but these are the things Bush makes me think of.
