Dean Elmore’s Coffee and Conversation is on its summer vacation. Coffee and Conversation will resume on Friday, September 11th from 3-5pm in the Howard Thurman Center in the George Sherman Union.
Coffee and Conversation was lucky enough this past semester to have coffee and cookies provided by Clear Conscience Cafe (C3). C3 is owned by a BU alum, Daniel Goldstein, and is open all summer in Central Square in Cambridge (Central Square on the Red Line T.) If you are in town this summer and want to go exploring, check them out for the same coffee, hot cider, tea and cookies that you enjoyed all semester!
If you think of any topics for Dean Elmore over the summer, be sure to send them to us. Have a productive and fun summer, and we’ll see you soon!
Whatcha reading this summer? Or, when you’re hanging out, at lunch, engaged in cocktail chatter, or trying to keep others interested in you, what will you say you’ll read this summer? Here’s my analysis of themes for a proposed summer reading list:
And, here’s my big, ambitious summer reading list (with one movie thrown in for fun):
What are you reading? Given my themes, what else should I put on the list?
Commencement – we go onward! The time for sermons full of advice, caution, counsel, inspiration, and if we are lucky, we’ll receive a little incitement and good thinking points beyond knowing how much of a mess we’re in and that we can fix it. An brief aside from Commencement affairs to share a little Saturday afternoon incitement.
Jay Smooth is one of my favorite people on the Web. I like his posts — lyrical, quick, witty, current, often-hip, with plenty to consider. In this recent post, Jay Smooth’s commentary about Asher Roth starts a conversation on race in today’s America. (Check out his style and the questions he asks about us living in Obama’s America.)
Useful exhortation? Is Jay Smooth on point? Does he have a prescription for how to handle these slights? Can Jay Smooth’s analysis help us to be more aware and more confident when we talk about race? Insightful? Forward-looking? Nonsense? Too pop?
Back to Commencement — here’s to the Class of 2009.
We welcome the Class of 2013 to our vibrant community!
Here’s your chance to see the campus and register for classes during the summer on us – that’s right, free Orientation registration. Take a look at the place where we live, play, and work:
Dear Friends in the Boston University Class of 2009,
A few of you have asked me a question that has left me stumped: “Dean, I’ve just finished my last exam, I’ve got some time on my hands and a week before I take the great walk to pick up the sheepskin, so what should I make sure to do before I leave?” A great question. Not sure I was actually stumped – I just wanted to think about the question. Here’s my long-winded answer: before you take advantage of your glorious graduation weekend, and, in between your Senior Week activities, be sure to:
ask for a recommendation from a faculty or staff member;
if you haven’t done so, have someone look at your resume;
work the “room” at the Senior Champagne Reception – it’s a great time to catch up one last time;
find a way into historic Fenway Park – even if you don’t like baseball, it’s worth going and soaking up the vibe;
see the Big Apple Circus;
visit Mt. Auburn Cemetery, in Cambridge, and stand under an apple tree – it’s a place full of history (or historic figures) and quite peaceful;
read a hard copy of the Boston Globe;
canoe on the Charles River. Paddle out towards Concord; get out; and, check out the historic scene at the Concord Bridge;
take an afternoon swan boat ride with your sweetie on a beautiful day;
eat Dim Sum in Chinatown;
can’t beat a walk to the North End of Boston to pick up a big, fattening, delicious cannoli;
plan your own reunion – re-connect with friends and roommates from freshman year;
go to the BU Pub – it’s a good scene;
see history yourself – put on your most stylish, comfortable pair of kicks and walk the Freedom Trail;
write a letter to an incoming student about your experiences here – don’t forget to wish her or him well (drop the letter off in my office and I’ll make sure he or she gets your inspiring note);
visit the Top of the Hub;
pull out those stylish, comfortable kicks again and walk a big chunk of the Esplanade with friends;
have a cup of espresso with an interesting person in Boston you’ve been dying to meet;
visit the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum – a truly unique Boston experience;
visit the USS Constitution to see history and another side of the Boston Harbor;
take a faculty member to lunch;
take a Duck Boat tour or Boston trolley tour – you can learn a lot;
strut from one end of campus to the other;
write down some of your memories – keep them forever;
firm up your network;
pay it forward and volunteer. Make one of the last and lasting things you do in Boston, be about serving a community or person in need.
don’t be a stranger – leave me your contact information so we can touch base again;
say thank you to someone who has made a difference during your time at Boston University; and,
stay free. Hug and kiss those you love. Leave with a clean slate and an open heart free of hatred or ill will towards anyone.
Big thanks to Josh S. for being the first member of your class to get me thinking on this. I hope this answers a cool question. Wishing you a life of inner peace and outward success. Be good. Stay well.
With smart phones, tweets, status updates, and e-mails, rumors spread faster than the W.H.O. can change the flu pandemic alert. Word on the street has been that three students on the Charles River Campus have come down with the much-talked about Swine Flu (or H1N1). I’m here to tell you: don’t believe the hype!
My colleagues at the U have a steady line to the Boston Health Commission and other State and local agencies that keep track of where and how this flu spreads. The good doctors have confirmed only one case of H1N1 in a student studying within the Dental School on the Medical Campus. The Student Health Service crew on Comm Ave is going pro-active – they’ve pumped up monitoring during finals week and into Commencement. That means that we’ll keep a special eye out for any flu-like illnesses, including cases that are not suspected of being H1N1. And, so we can limit the spread of the flu, we’ll reach out to students showing symptoms. (True story — they even put up a Web site on campus Swine Flu news!)
Bottom line – better safe than sorry. Chill. Relax. Like Paul Pierce, this is the truth — there are no additional reported cases of Swine Flu on the Medical or Charles River campuses.
Here’s to mom’s legendary advice: stay away from sick people; don’t show up if you’re sick (even for the fun stuff); no one else wants your germs, so use a tissue; and, wash your hands. Holler with questions and let’s keep an eye out for each other.
With washed hands, I wish you well on your exams and plenty of peace,
Kenn Elmore
BTW: Found an interesting post from a doctor (well, a Ph.D.) on Swine Flu’s impact.
With smart phones, tweets, status updates, and e-mails, rumors spread faster than the 