4.04.2005


Yesterday I spent about two hours in San Francisco, and eight hours driving there and back. I wanted to stay and wander, but a torrential downpour started, and as I was wearing a transparent yellow skirt and a tank top, I was not prepared for the weather that I was greeted with. I had a really nice time, though; I went to the CCA Graduate Open Studios and got a chance to talk with some hopefully future professors and colleagues!

Oh my god, I was so nervous. The graduate campus is just one little building in a very industrial, flat neigborhood near Potrero Hill, and the architecture is so stark and modern that it makes you feel like you should have slicked your hair back and only worn solid colors as not to clash with the surroundings. I was afraid that everyone would be mean and snobby, you know, the way art students are supposed to be. :) But I was pleasantly suprised to meet some really nice and friendly people! I talked to this first-year student for about half an hour, and she reassured me that all the things I was worried about would be okay. Like, can I afford it? Do I still know how to write even though I've been spending a lot of time scanning groceries and watching SVU? Will everyone hate me? Will I find a boyfriend? Am I ugly? Well...you get the picture. I also got to hear the students read their work, and I was pleased to discover that it was really good. When I left, I was just so excited; I really feel like CCA will be a good place for me to be.

Because of the miserable rain, I hightailed it out of the city, but not without stopping to get some photos of my favorite place in the whole world (with the exception of Wilf's, of course), Joe's of Westlake. Truly an undiscovered gem on the outskirts of Daly City, Joe's has everything I need, including terrible Italian food, great drinks, waiters in suits, many elderly patrons, an ancient jazz band, no pretension whatsoever, and last, but not least, a midget waiter who insists on calling you sweetheart and making you order ice cream. Truly, I don't care about grad school, I just want to hang out at Joe's again.

3 comments:

readyrobot said...

ah joe's. a purveyor of fine salads, to say the least.

Derek said...

I'm There!

Anonymous said...

Joes of Westlake. That's where I lost my innocence.