Present Joys

I’m one-and-a-half weeks into the fall 2011 semester! So I thought I’d take a minute to write down my first impressions of my classes. I’ll probably think this is hilarious when I re-read it at the end of the semester.

• Figure drawing with Boryana Rusenova Ina. She seems cool and nice, and the homework looks like it’ll be manageable. It’s fun being on the second floor of AMF because we are all alone up there. Pretty sweet deal for a monday 8am class.
• Electronic publishing with Kimberly Burghy. I can already tell this will be a terrible class. Lots of computer busywork. I don’t think the teacher and I will become friends. At least, not without significant effort.
• Photo I with Barbara Schwartz. The teacher struck me as a little absent-minded but very kind and personable. I’d never explored CCAD’s media studies department and darkroom, so it was fun to do that. Not excited about the material costs in this class, but overall it looks to be pleasant and not-too-stressful.
• Scientific applications for the artist with Julie Posey. This is a weird class; most everyone else are juniors and seniors. I balked when I first saw the syllabus, but I don’t think the work will be unbearable. The teacher is definitely a queer bird but she’s growing on me. Curious to see how this class will end up.
• Team ad concepts with Marcia Tabler. I was dreading having to be in this team class and do team things, but being with Marcia Tabler helped ameliorate the pain. She is a great person who I already know and enjoy on a personal level, so this doesn’t really feel like a new class.
• Illustration methods with Benton Mahan. This class is two three-hour periods on wednesday, before and after lunch. The vibe is very similar to my freshman design class, which was one of my favorites. I’m looking forward to having that long span of time to just work work work. The teacher is gentle and kind and a generally wonderful guy.
• Ad concepts with Mark Burleigh. The highlight of the week. He kept our attention for the whole 3-hour class period just by lecturing in a very off-the-cuff manner. I’ve been waiting for a design teacher like this!
• I’m also doing Intro to anthropology as an “online course”. I have no clue how this is going to go. My plan is to work as far ahead as I possibly can.

All-in-all, my schedule this year isn’t that much different from freshman year’s: I’ve got laid-back studio classes in the morning, comfortable lunch breaks monday and wednesday, lunchtime LA classes during lunch on tuesday and thursday, and ad classes tuesday and thursday afternoons.

It’s been three months since my last tea order, and I’m just about out of what I have! Time for some new summer teas. The theme for this order is low maintenance! Most of these teas will admirably take a beating. I can make a pot at 10am and finish drinking it at 5pm when it’s cold. Unfortunately, that’s how I roll in the summer.

Season’s Pick Keemun BOPF. “Season’s Pick” is code for “on sale”. I always like to have Keemun around, and since I bought a high grade last time, I figured I’d opt for something coarser this time around. Cheap Keemun is good cold, which is perfect for summer.

Lapsang Souchong. Until a few months ago, my cabinet was never without some kind of Lapsang Souchong, and I’d drink it every saturday morning, no exceptions. This february, I decided to take a little break from it. But I have missed it a lot and will be very happy to have it back in rotation.

No.1 Tippy Orthodox GFOP Darjeeling. I’m really not a Darjeeling connoisseur but this is a pretty safe bet. The most expensive tea I ordered this time around, but one of the least expensive Darjeelings.

Rose Congou. I ordered some of this last spring (originally discovered an alternative to Lychee tea) and really enjoyed it. It’s a somewhat astringent black tea with dried rose petals (which really do add a lot of flavor). Freakishly inexpensive: $3.90 for 125g!

Yunnan TGFOP. I haven’t had any Yunnans for a couple months and I’ve really missed them. This tea is unique among the rest of what I ordered because I’ll always put milk in this one. Good for when I want to pretend it isn’t summertime.

Summer Blend. According to my logs, I haven’t had this since aug 2009. It’s a great, refreshing black tea with juniper and bilberries. Really unique and delicious, but very sensitive to over-steeping.

I just got a new tea shipment from Upton Tea Imports, my favorite source for tea! It’s been just about three months since my last order, so I was in dire need. I tried to keep it pretty modest, though. Six new bags.

Gu Zhang Mao Jian Organic. A China green tea which I’ve never tried before. It sold out right after I placed my order, so I’m glad I was able to get some. If the flavor grabs me when I try it, I will report back.

Pai Mu Tan Imperial. I’ve always got to have some China white tea around for friday mornings, whether it be Silver Needle, Shou Mei, or a Pai Mu Tan. I just ran out of an old berry-flavored Pai Mu Tan—I ordered it on a whim and was pleasantly surprised, but even so I will be happy to have something naturally-flavored for a while. The Imperial part means the leaves are bolder, which is always a plus for me.

Season’s Pick Earl Grey Crème Vanilla. It’s still on sale, and I always like having some Earl Grey around to drink on sunday afternoons. The crème vanilla flavor was a little hard to get used to when I first tried this tea, but I quite like it now. The dairy flavor seems to cut the bergamot’s acidity. Good for long, unattended sunday afternoon steeps.

Tie-Guan-Yin Oolong 2nd Grade. Because I haven’t had a good, fresh tie-guan-yin in a long time, and I want to start taking it to school on mondays and wednesdays. The second grade part is because I don’t like tie-guan-yin quite enough for first grade!

Golden Nepal (Kanyam Estate). The last time I had a Nepalese black tea was years ago, and I don’t think my palate was quite mature enough to appreciate it. I’m quite excited about this new stuff; it was the first tea I drank of this new shipment and it’s delicious. Like a Darjeeling, but heartier. Have you noticed a theme here? I originally thought I’d take it to painting class on tuesdays and thursdays, but after realizing how delicate it is, I think I’ll just drink it at home. I’m currently taking a Golden Yunnan to painting, and the Nepal lacks the Yunnan’s brisk maltiness, something I can’t afford to give up when I’m painting!

China Keemun First Grade. The best of Upton’s standard Keemuns. I am becoming quite a Keemun connoisseur (I’ve still got two almost-finished Keemuns in my tea cabinet at the moment) so I figured I’d treat myself to the good stuff. And when you really think about it, 125 grams of good quality Keemun for $7.40 is cheaper than most any other beverage you could drink, short of tapwater. Tea is the best.