Sunday, October 05, 2008

USA - what a strange weekend.


Where do I even begin? Its 2:00pm and I'm pretty much just starting my day. A bunch of people in my program went down to Ohio and Michigan to look at eco-friendly buildings for the last two days and it was, well, quite the experience.

The Agenda
1. Go to Oberlin College, look at Environmental Studies building.
2. Go to some organic farm associated with Oberlin College.
3. Watch Michigan football game, learn about advanced stadium recycling program.
4. Tour Michigan State's Natural Resources faculty Dana building.
5. Go home.

What actually happened.
1. Left about 3 hours late.
2. Outside Oberlin, got accosted by a neuroscience/biology major doing ballet on a bike who lives "on the far North of Campus in a building who looks like an X". Calls himself "Mike on a Bike". Toured the Adam Joseph Lewis Centre for Environmental Studies at Oberlin College, Thought, "Cool building, love the city, holy crap this is the smallest ES faculty I've ever seen."
3. Finally had dinner at midnight. We went to iHops. There is no iHops in Canada (that I'm aware of).
4. Went back to Oberlin in the morning to take pictures. Spent oodles of time at this organic farm with a straw bale building. (So cool!) Got lectured about why Obama needs to win. Did I really need a lecture on this? No.
5. Only had 8 minutes to stop for lunch. I HATE the Einstein Brothers Bagel Company because they didn't have any lox left. What self-respecting bagel joint can't sell a jewish kid some lox on a freaking bagel??
6. Watched 100, 000 people give a shit about Michigan football. Wow! It was so intense. Also got another lecture, this time from students, on why Obama needs to win. (Oh and the recycling program? Didn't get to see it in action. Apparently they pay kids at the local Catholic high school to pick up the recycling on Sundays...)
7. Everybody want to go home. But no, we have to tour the bloody Michigan State Building.
8. Everyone is tired and miserable.
9. We stop at a restaurant called "Big Boy" on the way home. This makes everything considerably worse. To me, Big Boy represents why Obama needs to win the election. Nobody needs portion sizes as big as a tennis racket. And the mascot is so creepy! It was like so weird science fiction surreal sequence where you're in a foreign country with your friends and you don't know hw the hell you got there, all you know is that you want to leave.
10. We get home at 4am. Tired.

The end.

Now I'm lounging around in my new souvenir sweater, contemplating homework.

11 comments:

MEAGHAN! said...

your souvenir sweater fits you better than any one I've ever gotten. My freakin HAWAII sweater makes me look like a particularly grumpy pile of socks. Devil & Daniel Johnston is really really good, i loved it.

Miss Karen said...

Wow sounds like quite a expedition! I find the Big Boy mascot really creepy too and here is Australialand, we always marvel at the portion sizes in the States - it's ridiculous!

Ana said...

You look aewsome in the souvenier sweatshirt, like some charecter out of a movie.

Anonymous said...

iHops? That's funny; it's actually IHOP. As in, International House of Pancakes.

Jazzy Stardust said...

wow, busy day haha. and that mascot thing really really does remind me of a freaky SF sequence. I like how your head...is the size of his eye...

Dustin hoffman??!?! Ah, no its mr. Bryan Ferry. Roxy Music is love.

Dot said...

Big Boy is Dr Evil's spaceship, isn't it?? I <3 Austin Powers.

beccajanie said...

i love those little shoes in outfit two.

That big boy character is creeeeeepy.

Caileigh said...

hey annonymous ..
relax
it's a pancake house
fack.
Isabel
i love you
you = adorable
thanksgiving soon!
love me?
<3

Miss Woo said...

The Big Boy is really creeping me out, and I thought Ronald Mcdonald mannequins are bad. And love how you team the sweatshirt with the perfect oxfords!

ps: your Patti Smith comment made me lol, so true.

Anonymous said...

Isabel! I love you and miss you!!!!!!! Didn't they have a big boy or something in perks of being a wallflower?
Love,
Shelby Seu XOXOX

leslie said...

Big Boy is an American icon. He is far more historically significant than the Statue of Liberty or the Washington Monument.

I love that picture of you two.