agreed that the comments are the best part of this blog.
i'm at an internet cafe, and there are monks and nuns waiting to use the computer so i feel too guilty to sit here writing a lot. just wanted you to know that i'm alive, much better than i was but still unable to stomach a lot of food. the dalai lama got here today so the town is the definition of chaos. i've been going on a lot of walks with newly-made friends. still haven't gone shopping seriously yet, but once i feel 100% i will go back to varanasi and get some great presents. the silk merchant who is friends with jay was the guy whose family took such great care of me at the peak of my illness, so i have a lot to repay him and his family for. dalai lama's teachings start tomorrow.
okay! i'm alive! sorry so short again. i don't know if that is going to change.
BYE!
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oh wife!
ReplyDeletei still miss you dearly and i'm very glad to hear you're getting better. say hi to some buddhist monks for me. and if you get to talk to the dalai lama, tell him that all your humble friends at Smith are still raving about his lecture.
love you!
sara
Sounds romantic - being taken care of by a silk merchant's family. Who is Jay? Can't wait to hear your impressions of the dalia lama. taking walks, wish I were there with you.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to research varanasi.
you are THE BEST ever at choosing presents - but don't worry about dad and me.
Hey, I forget, did you bring your camera?
love, mom
Now we're in our second day of teachings. I don't think that the teachings are anything like what we expected them to be. They start at around 9 am, which means we're there at around 7:30 so we can fight people off for our "seats," which are really just little cushions that we sit on cross legged on the ground. When the Dalai Lama gets there, we are warned by these really low, gutteral chants over the loudspeaker which are impossible to describe. Everyone stands up, and once he finallys sits down (he's old and he has a bunch of monks constantly fussing around him so it takes him a minute) everyone (but a few irreverent people like me) starts to do prostrations on the ground. Then he just talks for two hours about this text which we have all read and have all been learning about, so it's really easy. He's speaking in Tibetan, of course, so we have these little radios channeled into the English translation, and unfortunately the translator's voice is very soothing and sometimes we fall asleep. It lasts for about two hours, and then we get up, rush to get lunch (or today in my case do this) and then we go back for another two hours. Yesterday was terrible, my whole body was just aching. Today so far has been much better.
ReplyDeleteOkay I have to run back! I love you guys. In the meantime, Smithies tell me who is back at Smith now, and Sara how is your internship going? Dad, I can't open the email about Cini, what's going on? Lizard, how was your vacation? Anyone else with news, feel free to comment. Oh! What's going on with the news news? I am completely unconnected. Israel is attacking Gaza or something? Nobody seems to know what's going on. Okay 1,2,3 GO!
Hello poopface
ReplyDelete(katie's friends: do you know why we in her family call her "poopface"? It's because once, when she was 5 and I was 8, she was curious about a pile of dog poo in our back yard [German Shepherd, big poop], touched it, and then got it on her face. what a funny kid!)
vacation was great, though new year's eve was actually a bit of a let down. my theory is that that's intrinsic to this holiday. basically we just had some big logistical issues that kind of dampened the fun. but north carolina was very good. we should get a beach house there, you'd like it (though not as much as nantucket, of course). gearing back up for work sucks, and the weather is shitty so you're not missing anything there. genie and spooky are good; genie lost a little of her face chub over break, so she looks prettier. as for the world, gaza is a shitshow, the senator appointed to replace obama will probably get in, and the dean of my law school was nominated for solicitor general (person who represents the federal government before the supreme court). it's supposedly a stepping stone to the supreme court, which would be very cool. well, mostly bc i feel like she's my people, not because of how she'll rule -- she's actually fairly moderate. also a closet gay. would it be good to have a gay on the court, even a closet one, or does her closetedness ruin everything? smithies, a vote, please.
that's my rundown. keep us posted. tell those nuns and monks waiting in line that they should meditate on patience bc you have people to talk to!
love,
Lizard
PS is it all as atmospheric as i'm imagining in my head?
PPS did you know we're graduating? i feel like i have one foot out the door. do you?
PPPS do you care whether we take an ireland trip that has us spending most of our nights in the same place or one that has us spending every night in a different place? are there any other things that would rule out an ireland pick for you?
Cindi has been adopted by mom and continues to enjoy our pastures and hanging out with his best buddy, the big bully, Dundee.
ReplyDeleteWe haven't turned on the heat in over a month. Every day in the 80's or 70's. Pretty terrific.
Falling asleep in church is a family tradition. Just try not to snore.
When do you get back to the U.S.?
Katie's friends-
ReplyDeleteas to Elizabeth's salutation to katie - that can be ignored. it's not a family thing or even a family story. guys, please, get in the proper spirit.
katie, it's a good thing I'm not there, sitting cross-legged for 2 hours (not that i can imagine such a thing). what if i happened to catch your eye and start laughing. is it all so, so serious? no transcendental moments?
Cini is now a Horgan-Gerber. couldn't bear to part with the little guy.
love ya, mom
hi gerbsies!
ReplyDeleteonce again, i'm enjoying the comments from your fellow Gerbers. Everything around here is pretty peachy, albeit boring. My internship is awesome, but it turns out its only for this week through next wednesday. So i'm going back to Smith next Thursday, which is pretty nice. I'm getting bored here. NYC is expensive when i'm not working, and a lot of other people are back at school, so i'm getting kinda restless. But i love the company i'm interning for. They're SO NICE, and its a much nicer work-community than SFPR. I also like their clientele a LOT more. They only represent interior design/architecture companies, including this company Ceramic Tiles of Italy and Cersaie, both of which are based out of Italy. I get to look at interior design magazines all day and i'm actually learning to write press releases. And everyone is so nice! They're taking me out to lunch next week. And they have an office dog! Because the president of the company actually lives in the brownstone, and the office is in the garden level. Anyway, i don't know if there will be any available positions for me, but they said they'd be happy to write me a killer recommendation and try to see if any of their Italian companies need work. I just love them.
Anyway Gerbs, i hope you are having a wonderful time, and it really seems like you are. When do you get back to Smith? I'll be there waiting!
love, wifey
I just talked to a retired cop in New York who ownes a house on W. 135th Street that he rents out through Vacation Rentals By Owner. He's very nice and said the accomodation will be available for 4 days around Thanksgiving. He's going to e-mail me the details. Hard to believe that you really may be living independely in New York 6 months from now!
ReplyDeleteum, family? i kind of have horrible news...ok calm down, katie, it's not horrible horrible. so here it is:
ReplyDeletewith the bar review course, you're only allowed to miss four classes a week. class meets every day. class begins (in ny) on may 18. see the problem?
parents, we should discuss this further by email, sparing the smithies the details
ReplyDeleteElizabeth, you asshole. Fine, you want to spread lies, I'll tell a cute TRUE story about you. If anyone is curious as to why we call Elizabeth Lizard, it is because Lizard, short for Lizard Breath, used to go around sticking lizards on her face, and to keep them on there she would secure the tails in her mouth. Sometimes, she would purse her lips just a little too hard and the tail would come right off! Mom was beside herself. It was a truly dirty habit.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, sorry to hear your New Years wasn't great. I mean, mine wasn't wild and crazy either, if you can believe it. Actually, I am pretty sure I was asleep well before midnight. Oh well, like you said, these holidays are usually sort of huge disappointments.
It is probably not what you're imagining, since it is nothing like what I think of. The actually teachings are pretty surreal, especially with the chanting and all of the monks and nuns milling around. There is still a pretty heavy fog of sadness, though, because there are all of these recently-exiled Tibetans sitting right in front of us, riddled with disease and really only there to worship the Dalai Lama, even though they clearly don't understand most of the content that he is saying. It's just really hard to find words for how strange everything is.
I would answer your Ireland question, but it seems like there might be some complications. I am willing to be easy, if the trip still happens at all. Whatever anyone else thinks. I just want to ride around, I think it sounds like a lot of fun. Perhaps something which has different types of scenery closeby, so it isn't the same exact thing every day if we are staying in one place? You can figure it out.
Glad to hear we finally own Cini. Did whatsherface just give him to you, Mom, or did she actually make you pay?
Sitting cross legged is getting better. My back is still sore, but it's my own fault for not taking working on my posture seriously. I feel really motivated to go back and practice sitting straight for semi-long periods of time. It just seems like something I should be able to do.
Sara, I'm so happy your job environment is nice. What kind of dog do they have there? Even if they don't offer you a job, it's still a good thing to have a positive experience--just one more good recommendation. Not to mention, maybe they don't have something now, but it's possible that there will be an opening later on.
I am jealous you are going back to Smith. I'm getting really Smith-sick. I can't wait to see everyone!
Dad, already planning for next Thanksgiving? You don't think it would be easier to find someplace a little closer, or at least in a neighborhood that is a bit more fun? It's up to you, though.
I get back to the states the day before classes start, so the night of the 25th (if that is a Sunday). I shouldn't be getting in too late, and the family and close friends will definitely be hearing from me by earlyish Sunday, since I will have a long layover in Detroit. Actually, Mom and Sara or Meredith, I was hoping my mom could send my computer to one of you two earlier so I could have it when I get back. I am concerned about having to reregister for some classes, and it would be easiest if I could do that on Monday morning when it opens, since a lot of the classes I will need to get into are going to be competitive since they are senior seminars. Could someone give my mother their address through this thing, or send it to her email (jacknlil@hotmail.com) and then Mom can send it to one of you. Everything else goes to me, though, Mom.
Alright monks are waiting again. bye!!
corrections:
ReplyDelete*thought of. not think of. I'm here, I don't have to imagine it anymore.
*content of what he is saying
*may
Katie's "Lizard" story certainly is amusing, whether true or no is beyond me just as Elizabeth's "Poopface" story is.
ReplyDeleteI'm always trying to plan ahead and most times it turns out to be a benefit. Thanksgiving space will book early I think. The apartment is only a couple subway stops and a short cab ride. It looks very nice.
The Erg (Water-Rower) is really growing on me which is good because the tendons aren't ready for the 4 mile brisk walk. Jacky says hi.
The teaching environment with real-world oppressed and impoverished people in the room sounds surreal.
77 degress down here today. Wonderful. What a stark contrast.
For the official record, neither the poop story nor the lizard story are true. Sadly.
ReplyDeleteAnd as for Ireland, I may have found a way to still go, but I have a few more questions to answer before I can say for sure. Stupid bar exam, ruining my whole summer!
BTW we might be going to the Inauguration now. You get to meet the Dalai Lama, we (me and Mom) get to hear Obama give his first presidential speech. The Gerber-Horgans are rocking hard this month!
25 degrees up here, and grey grey grey, in case you were wondering
P.S. Good luck, Sara, on the job! And to all the rest of you who are similarly job searching but who haven't posted your details on here.
Wendy-
ReplyDeletemy address at Smith is box 7353, 1 chapin way, northampton MA 01063. You are more than welcome to send katie's computer c/o me, and i will make sure it is waiting for her in her room when she gets back. I leave for Smith this Thursday (early), so anytime you send it this week, i will be there to get it.
gerbs-you are missing some cooooollldddd weather. when i get back to smith, there will be a high of 11 degrees. THAT IS NOT A HIGH. i feel cheated. and MOCKED by the weatherchannel.com.
and lastly, i have enjoyed both the Lizard and the Poopface story. I wish I had siblings to make up stories about. I guess I have cats...but it's really not the same. sigh.
Hi Sara,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the address. I'll try to mail the computer today or tommorrow.
Love hearing your news, glad the internship was great.
Katie, I checked out Varanasi (?sp) and boy, it's right on the Ganges River and teeming with people. I also read an article about the dying silk weaving industry in Varanasi- silk weaving by hand is being replaced by machines and more women are dressing in western clothes than traditional saris. A hard story to read.
mom
As I write this, mom is dutifully off to the post office with your computer addressed to Sara.
ReplyDeleteShe and Elizabeth are meeting for the Inagurationon Tuesday cheering in change while fighting the recession...
Keep safe.