safety first.

last night i went along to what may be my last film at the michigan theater. it was a real treat...i went to see harold lloyd in "safety first." as ever, at the michigan the film opened with the gorgeous organ playing, but because "safety first" is a silent film and it was customary to play along, the organist played throughout the entire film and it was just marvelous.

yesterday i spent the day with my staff colleagues in tcaup for their annual staff retreat. i was invited by mary anne, the dean's assistant who basically runs the college. she was so insistent and because i respect her, of course, i went along. she promised it would be fun and not a slate of ice breakers and "visioning." it wasn't we had a brief scavenger hunt through some of the gorgeous old buildings on central campus, a tour of one of the "green" buildings on campus (yeah indoor compostable toilets, yeah 100% wool carpet, yeah recycled jet windshield, yeah photovoltaics, yeah rubber floors, yeah aspen tiles). we had lunch at the botanical gardens and made four rain barrels for growing hope, that local non-profit i have mentioned before. anyway, the emphasis was on green -- because the college is aiming to add a green roof and the staff wanted to investigate options and to introduce new habits and practices to each other. so we got sacks of green cleaning materials and light bulbs and good stuff.

and i learned that i won the faculty service award. this is an honor and a total surprise. it is all the more incredible because i was so critical and vocal about my concerns about the direction and practices of the college. considering i was shunned at the faculty retreat in october after i called to attention to some unthinking sexism, it was stunning and very nice to be congratulated and handed a fat check at this retreat. i share the award this year with senior senior colleague who held several leadership positions in the college this year. (and who was coincidentally one of the targets of much of my criticism.) i am not aiming to be so vocal in ohio, but i am impressed that the people in michigan heard and i guess respected my criticism. it is another example to me about how to stick to your principled positions with grace. the other major lesson for me is that goofiness, humor, and sharp shoes can lube difficult interactions.

for the record: i have not been in any dog fights, doping scandals, or betting rings.