25 April 2007 – Wednesday
The weather here has taken an ugly turn with heavy dust in the air the past couple of days ? all very gray and breezy. The temperatures, though, rise steadily ? welcome to the desert and the Middle East.
On Monday evening, Abby?s ?leadership? class put on a huge Fashion Show here on campus. There was very serious political pressure to quash it ? the conservative elements had a hard time envisioning a show that had both men and women at it and both as models. Our own president refused to attend ? what kind of moral/supportive leadership is that? Abby persisted, the class did what it had to do (set the auditorium as a runway, got sponsors, sold tickets, organized seating etc.) and the place was packed. The models did a great job, and the sponsors came through with cool clothing for this generation (we squares would never wear the stuff ? ah, old age creeps in?). This was an excellent example for the students as to what is possible when the common goal is the focus and not one?s own self-interest. It also is an example of pushing the envelope a bit, which is what universities are supposed to do ? thank god some here aren?t afraid to push?even though we in the west would consider what goes on here incredibly tame.
Last night Nizar had a few folks over as we celebrated Conerly?s birthday. As I?ve noted before, we are an amazingly diverse lot ? American, Lebanese, Iraqi, Hungarian ? all enjoying adult beverages and each other?s company. It is always a pleasure to hear what academic plans people have, even under challenging and difficult circumstances. Good faculty are worth their weight in gold ? hard-working, caring, focused, pushing students, writing. I am always amazed at how inept administrations can be in dealing with faculty ? universities are indeed curious animals.