Walk up the mountain this morning before class. A light drizzle. Snowy peaks in the clouds. Felt good to be moving. Yesterday, six hours with Prof. Simon Critchley on "Tragedy's Philosophy" arguing that tragedy articulates a philososphical view that challenges the authority of philosophy. That's right. Mind bending. I got about ten percent but still recovering from jet lag. Today shooting for double that. B'fast with A.D. Carson, black rap artist/basketball player from Clemson Univ. in South Carolina. Ask him what's its like being in the south. "It's like being on the plantation", he says. Grew up middle class black in southern Illinois, studied creative writing at SIU, now in Ph.d program at Clemson. Check out his website AydeeTheGreat.com. Another two days with Critchley. Then into the unknown. Nick from western Colorado says the upcoming profs are awesome. Woke up this morning feeling in this time zone, finally. The daffodills and tulips still in bloom. It's light until 9:30 pm. But I'm here. Saas Fee is empty, between winter and summer seasons. Chalet construction everywhere. It's kinda like Vail. Mountain resort town with views to die for. People from everywhere, asking big questions. Some looking as disorientated as I. The old timers sit by themselves, engaged in advanced discussion. Students largely on their own. Very little administration. No tests. Just a supervised thesis. My kind of education. I love it.
