A prospective student sought out my guidance with the following question the other day:

“Is Trinity ‘clickish’?�

My immediate reply was no. But now, after some consideration, I realize that such a brief answer might be misleading.

YOU: Oh, no, Madi. Does that mean Trinity is in fact “clickish�!?
ME: I will tactfully avoid answering your question by posing a new question. And then responding that question for you. (or at least strongly assisting you in coming to your own uninfluenced conclusion...)

question: Are you “clickish�?

I see it like this.

There are clickish people and unclickish people.

The clickish types, who we will call clickans awareous, care about clicks.

The unclickish species, clickans ignoramous, couldn’t care less.

The clickans awareous has many friends of similar appearance and thought process and very few interests. Clickans awareouses go through life worrying about being “in� - associated with a certain group also called a “crowd.� They come in all shapes and sizes and are often found in medium-sized groupings of 5-10 individuals at pep-rallies, on sports teams, and smoking pot behind the gymnasium. Their conversations chiefly consist of bashing other sub-groups of clickans awareouses, including the adult variety - clickans been-there-done-thatous.

While this species might appear secure in their environment, DON’T BE FOOLED. Clickans awareous groups take painstaking measures to distinguish an original way of life; unfortunately, their repeated failures lead to feelings of inadequacy, self-consciousness and social nervousness. Additionally, every sub-group in this species (jocks, goths, cool kids, nerds, drama kids, skaters, seniors, freshman, etc.) fervently strives to differentiate themselves as unique, exclusive, and innovative compared to other sub-groups. While locally they might appear successful in this quest for originality, their failure is certain. Each region of human inhabitance has the SAME EXACT sub-groups.

So you can be certain that whenever you see one group of overenthusiastic, partially dressed, uncommonly pretty females standing in the front row of the stadium flirting with a group of males who, not far away, play with the skin off a dead pig, you know that there are about one million, nay I say, one gazillion and two identical sub-groups of clickans awareouses in the stadiums around the globe.

Now for a species I am more familiar with.

The clickans ignoramous has two or three close, reliable friends and many interests. They bounce from group to group, activity to activity ignoring the clickans awareous boundries. It is important to note that this species recognizes the existence of “clicks� - they just ignore them.

Interestingly enough, individuals of this species are comprised of a mixture of multiple sub-groups of the clickans awareous species. The difference here is that they do not identify themselves with any one sub-group.

Clickans ignoramouses embrace the variety in life. While sometimes feeling apart from “the group� because they don’t spend every waking minute trying to “fit in,� clickans ignoramouses usually mature feeling comparatively secure in their identity.

Of course I won’t taint your opinion on these two species by divulging which species I consider myself, but if those girls in front don’t sit down so that I can watch the game there is going to be some major ass kicking…and no, I’m not going to stand up to watch the game (my tax dollars pay for these bleachers) so quit telling me to “get up and “support the guys�…when’s the last time I saw any of those bozos support a women’s basketball game? Not to mention, I believe my idea of “support� differs greatly from yours. No, with all due respect, I’ll show my support for more admirable causes; in the mean time, can I just watch the game?

perhaps now i am ready to answer the following question: “Is Trinty ‘clickish’?�

No doubt about it, Trinity is a small school. HOWEVER, you shouldn’t assume, even for a moment, that because of its size Trinity, or any school for that matter, is “clickish.�

No, on the contrary. Because of its size, Trinity provides opportunities for you to participate in many activities and be a part of many groups (if you so choose).

Or you can stick with your one little group safely in your little comfort zone and embrace the “clickishness� of life!

Finally, to the good young fellow who originally posed this question, i offer my congratulations! you, my friend, did not seem like one subject to the fate of a clickans awareous. You appeared to be a stable, yet open-minded guy with a bold and sincere personality. The ease in which you started a conversation with a perfect stranger, namely me, bodes well for your college experience. You seemed intellegent and ready to diversify yourself. And for you, I doubt Trinity would feel “clickish.�

And for posing what I found to be a very thought provoking, memory provoking, and apparently thirst provoking (as i am now on my third dr.pepper since sitting down to write this blog) question you have gained the famed title as the featured guest on...

Reflections-of-greatness: people i’ve influenced
Good Young Clickans Ignoramous (of whom i do not posses a photo)

good luck in college – fare ye well!

that is all.
mad ignoramous

Posted by Maddy at 5:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As I have often said, Summer is a wonderful and glorious thing. I love the heat, the sunshine, the pool, the strawberry lemonade, but the absolute best thing about Summer is the ingenious interlude from monotony students know as Summer break (or as students refer to it, simply summer) - a remarkable little phenomenon that occurs for only a small portion of our lives.

In school, we live from break to break: Fall break to Winter break to Spring break to Summer break. (Summer break being the longest most glorious of them all.)

YOU: Now Madi, you must realize that some persons may disagree with you. For example, I much prefer Fall and Winter break to that of any other season.
ME: Well, Fall break is lame. And Winter break is a wannabe Summer break, and therefore, equally lame.
YOU: (lamely speechless)
ME: and don’t use “persons� it pretentious, and pretentious people are lame.

Each year toward the end of May in grade school, high school, and in college, the question “So what are you doing this summer?� arises in the conversations of many students. For those of you in internetland unfamiliar with the student type of Summer, this question translates into the following: “for the next three months, during which you are probably not attending school, what are your plans?�

It is important to note that while they do occur simultaneously, the summer I refer to should never be confused with Summer the season, which, in your adult years, holds much less excitement than it does in grade school.

Have you ever asked an adult, “So what are you doing this summer?�

Please don’t, unless you want a ten minute speech about how “in the real world there are no Summer breaks, and when I was your age….blah blah blah blah blah…� and probably ending with some cliché tangent about walking up hill in five feet of freezing snow.

I’ll tell you straight, it’s a dumb question.

At some point around your junior or senior year in college you learn to rephrase the question to sound less like a naïve sloth.

“What are you doing for fun this Summer?�

or you could go with the harsher, real-world version: “Other than workin’ day and night to feed your family, walkin’ uphill everywhere in snow, and wakin’ up at 4:30 AM to milk the cow before goin’ out to fix the fence the cattle broke when they got into the crops you need to plow on the back 40, what are you doing for fun this Summer?�

i suggest using version two for the older crowd, they’ll love it.

YOU: So Madi, why should this summer business concern you?
ME: Ahhh, good question You. I happen to be extremely concerned with this summer business because….
I have officially embarked on my FINAL Summer break.
YOU: Oh wow! You must be sad.
ME: Not really You, I’m quite excited.
YOU: So what are you doing this summer? Or should I say, Other than workin’ day and night to feed your family, walkin’ –
ME: (interrupting) No, version one is still applicable to my stage in life. Version two is really only good for those over 80 years old.
YOU: Oh, right, sorry.
ME: No problem. But to answer your question You, this summer I am working, learning, and relaxing.

Here’s a quick rundown of my summer activities. And possible blog topics to look forward to with great expectations.

Working:
film projects all over Austin
riding horses at Graymar Farm

Learning:
voiceover workshops
commercial workshop
improvisation class
film acting classes

Relaxing:
horse shows
reading (which falls under the Learning category as well)

Now comes the time to celebrate, through perseverance, stamina, and determination you’ve read your way through this blog. Word after word my command of the English language has bombarded your mental faculty. Congratulations, You survived. You’ve reached your favorite and final section….

Reflections-of-greatness: people i’ve influenced
Stilts – The Newest Addition to Graymar Farm

Okay, so I know this is a stretch (or an outright disregard) of the requirements for a human subject, but it’s my game and I make up the rules, and I hereby abolish the rule for a human subject, so there.

For more information on Graymar Farm, my place of residence this summer, see www.graymarfarm.com.

The grand prize goes to whoever can guess why it’s called Graymar…let the games begin.

that is all.
madly

Posted by Maddy at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)