December 13, 2012

Hit two parties last night. The Chancellor’s do at the student center was enjoyable, I thought, and I got to talk to people I haven’t seen in semesters, in years, most of whom rolled their eyes at outrages or administrative transgressions I, luckily, didn’t know about. You learned not to ask, “So, how’s it going?” The crowd was thick with police and groundskeepers and very thin in faculty. Food: surpassing. Met History’s new Asheville history prof, who is handsome as a model, and at whom I had to prevent myself from staring. Someone said they were taking attendance. In conversation, two friends decided that the quality they admired in me (maybe the only one) was insouciance. I don’t seem to myself the least bit insouciant. I think of myself as grimly attached to each moment, and almost pathetically sincere. Happy for the camouflage, though. The next party, at Brew & View, was louder and frayed at the edges, but excellent good fun. Professors there expressed astonishment that I had gone to the official party, which apparently in the past had proved disappointing. Or perhaps, if I savored the vibe right, attendance was thought of as a kind of toadying.  I never toady, so the accusation of it never bothers me.  Wandered toward Biltmore for rehearsal, having two frothy white drinks at the Bohemian bar beforehand. Drinks at Avenue M afterward, This morning’s slight but outspoken headache suggests that I’ve been drinking too much. Dark through the windows. A package arrived from Dutch Bulbs, which means I have some more planting to do. I have no recollection of the order, so my fist Christmas surprise will be opening the box.