The Culture

Q: What are the people like?

A: I can't tell.  Everyone's got their hand in the air and their head in a book.

I kid.  There are plenty of Talkers, Gunners, Questioners, and Rodins (you know, the people who have a very pensive look, but are operating on a whole different level), but people are generally friendly towards each other, even 2 weeks in.  I think the big key here is that in college, everyone is more or less a blank slate (unless you come from the same high school, but even then, things change), and socialization and community building are essential parts of the experience, perhaps even the most important parts.  As I mentioned above, my approach to my own interactions with the community here are more measured and more tailored to my own interests and existing support system, and my guess is that's true for most people.  But people are friendly--they smile on the elevator, they chat pleasantly about profs and class, etc.  

That's not to say that I haven't stepped out to get a feel for what's going on: I signed up for some different listservs at the SAC Fair (not what they call it, but it's what it was), went to a discussion about attending a Jesuit law school, and went to a great Obama rally on Thursday for the law school's Obama group held at the bar across the street, the Billy Goat.  Rep. Patrick Murphy from (coincidentally) Ted's congressional district in PA spoke, then Prof. James Forman spoke to fire up the charges.  Both were fantastic, and I'm really looking forward to having Prof. Forman in the spring.  There were a ton of people there from my section (which, along with having it advertised before my Civ Pro class, tends to skew to the left), and generally lifted the fog of the cable news bubble of the week from our heads and got energized.