Category: The Professor

What do we do now?

A week after Election Day, the BBGE gathered at The Dean’s house to discuss Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, the fictional tale of a father and son trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world. Some sort of event happened an unspecified amount of time prior to the events described in the book, and resulted in the father and son wandering along a road in a desolate world, desperately searching for their next meal. The story takes place over a few months, and through the book’s format, which is essentially one long chapter broken down into short, mostly-chronological anecdotes, the reader can’t help but feel as if he/she is walking on the road alongside the protagonists, living each day as if it might be the last. Through McCarthy’s borderline-monotonous-and-consequently-effective descriptions, it becomes extremely easy to empathize with the characters and the dire situation in which they find themselves. This book affected me by making me believe such a reality was possible, and by forcing me to wonder how I would handle such a dramatic life change. (We all know how much I love change.)

Considering that the recent presidential election was on the liberal minds of all BBGE members, it was surprising when no one wondered aloud who was running the country when this fictional apocalypse occurred. What was not surprising, however, was how quickly any of our conversations that night quickly transitioned into discussions on said election. As you probably imagined, like the majority of my fellow Vermonters, I celebrated Barack Obama’s victory on Election Night, and like quite a few of those same Vermonters, I stayed up late to hear his speech; a speech and a moment that nearly led me to tears. I discovered that among my fellow BBGE members, I was not alone. Obama was an historic candidate on so many different levels and his campaign slogan “Change we can believe in,” though awkwardly phrased, had inspired all of us nonetheless. And with 53% of the national vote, it could be argued that this country mandated that January 20, 2009 be a day of change. Whatever that vague change may be is still undecided.

While President-Elect Obama prepares to transition into the Oval Office of Change, we the voters return to our everyday lives with our everyday problems. The Professor remarked that, like so many others, she felt the symptoms of election withdrawal: the emptiness that can suffocate you when, after an 18-month election season, the need to check election polls and view SNL videos and discuss political gaffes has quickly vanished and been replaced by the realization that as historic as this moment was, none of your problems have disappeared. And it’s in this moment that I’m reminded of the underrated 1972 film The Candidate, starring Robert Redford as Bill McKay, a 30-something son of a California governor hand-picked to lose a Senate election against the popular Republican incumbent. After surviving and thriving in a primary, a debate, and a tiring election campaign, McKay surprisingly wins a close election and responds by asking his advisors, “what do we do now?” In one of my favorite movie endings, the film ends without McKay ever receiving an answer. And I imagine that that’s kind of how this country is feeling right now.

A NY Times critic said it felt as if The Candidate “had been put together by people who had given up hope.” I think it could be argued that Obama’s campaign was so successful because it was aimed at inspiring the very same kinds of people capable of making such a film. After living so many years desperate to believe in a candidate, voters were ecstatic when they finally found someone about whom they didn’t have to make excuses. Gone were the days of “he’s great, but,” and “I like what he says, but,” and “sure, he has the same values, but,” and in their place stood the realization that for the first time in their adult lives, they were face to face with someone in whom they could finally believe. Their Mr. Right, if you will. “He’s great,” without adding a “but.”

But “what do we do now?” When people get what they want, they often wind up wanting more. Who knows why really? Faced with an uphill struggle against two wars, a faltering economy, a record deficit, and hardly any national pride, my guess is no president could achieve instant results, no matter how Mr. Right he/she was, and so I’m curious to see how long the country gives Obama before they start giving up on him. And equally important is how Obama will respond if they do.

But I think that despite this country’s recent history of picking the wrong guy, she finally nabbed the right one this time. And I have hope that he will pass her tests with flying colors. I have to have hope. Because as great as Cormac McCarthy’s story was, no one wants to walk down a road alone.


BBGE Recap, Episode II

August 19, 2008 – The Russian’s new house (Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortensen)

For this recapper (Mr. Benchly), the Best Book Group Ever (BBGE) began at 6:15 p.m. when he realized he had forgotten to make a salad for BBGE. After a quick trip to the store during which he planned a salad that would require the least amount of work, Mr. Benchly placed said salad in his mother’s wooden salad bowl and wondered aloud whether or not anyone in the book group would notice such a grown-up kitchen dish coming from such a non-grown-up. Unsure of which house was The Russian’s, Mr. Benchly looked around and saw a number of BBGE cars parked on a corner and assumed they were on to something. He walked through the front door to discover The Russian, The Canadian, CAT, The Heinous Shrew, The Professor, and The Mother had already arrived. Any other time and he would have been embarrassed by his tardiness, but not while carrying a grown-up salad bowl. The Dean was busy being a dean; The Newbie was busy sleeping off her exhaustion.

The book group spent the first hour or so chowing down on appetizers on the kitchen counter (brought earlier by The Dean[?]). The salsa reminded Mr. Benchly of the salsa CAT served during a recent visit to her house, which was left over from a recent party at her house. The Dean was at this party and so Mr. Benchly’s theory was that The Dean brought this same salsa to the recent party at CAT’s house. It was fruity and good. There were other appetizers but this recapper didn’t try any because he wasn’t sure how to eat them. Other book groupers ate them, though, so he’s pretty sure they were good.

At some point, discussion turned to CAT’s recent trip out west with her soon-to-be live-in boyfriend, CAT Lover. After a few details that would subsequently be proven by other news to be inconsequential but which this recapper still remembers (e.g., CAT got free Cliff bars), CAT revealed that CAT Lover complemented the romantic setting of a gorgeous and isolated Wyoming mountain top with a question whose answer instantly made him CAT’s soon-to-be live-in fiancé, CAT Lover. Book group was pleased. As was CAT. And then The Dean showed up and CAT gave him the abridged story (sans the part about Cliff bars), and The Dean gave CAT two hugs.

Other book group relationship news included The Heinous Shrew’s decision to move into a new apartment with her boyfriend (aka, our veggie eggplant entrée chef) in the South End of Burlington. This recapper called her a traitor to the Old North End (ONE) while ignoring the not-discussed fact that he had also moved out of the ONE. The Heinous Shrew seemed happy with her decision, though slightly bummed that she would now have to cross Pearl Street for the first time in 13 years(?). There would be more relationship discussions, but not before dinner.

Dinner was served after 8 p.m. and consisted of said salad in the said grown-up salad bowl by Mr. Benchly, the aforementioned eggplant dish by The Heinous Shrew’s boyfriend, brought by The Heinous Shrew, a cheese/tomato veggie side by CAT, chicken and Cornish game hens by The Russian, Great Harvest bread by Great Harvest brought by The Russian, and wine brought by The Canadian and The Mother. It was decided that yet again, the BBGE had compiled a delicious dinner. After a quick walk down BBGE nostalgia lane in which we determined that our little book group was nearly five years old, talk turned to The Dean’s recent house guests who resisted the temptation to not pass gas in his house. CAT and The Mother thoroughly enjoyed The Dean repeatedly saying “fart.” At this point, and maybe in an effort to prove that book group wasn’t just about fart jokes, The Professor segued into a discussion on the book, which, unfortunately, it appeared as though only three and a half of us had read (The Professor, The Canadian, and CAT, plus half of The Dean). The Professor, The Canadian, and CAT gave us a very descriptive and rewarding panel recap and discussion of the book. For this recapper, it was like BBGE meets Cliff Notes. It should be noted that this panel discussion inspired The Mother to think about borrowing the book. Also worth mentioning is that she wouldn’t be able to borrow it from The Canadian because The Canadian had borrowed it from the library per CAT’s suggestion.

The post-dinner conversation over dessert brought by The Professor, ranged from The Russian’s tales of tails and how close she and her boyfriend are to opening their doggie daycare business, to The Heinous Shrew trying to give away her 1-year-old drunk girl cat (so named because he was acquired last year from a drunk girl downtown), to The Russian trying to give away her parents’ furniture (which both The Heinous Shrew and Mr. Benchly were interested in for their respective reasons), to the Front Porch Forum’s ability to find this recapper’s blog, to The Dean’s recent adventures in dating. We discussed The Dean’s options (Bachelorette #1 and Bachelorette #2); some of us liked #1 while others liked #2. The Heinous Shrew mentioned that The Dean should consider who was the easiest one to plan a date for and that’s the one he “should do.” This recapper was amazed at how red The Heinous Shrew’s face turned at the realization of what she had said. And thanks to the wonders of the Internet, we even saw a picture of Bachelorette #1 who, most everyone agreed, was super cute. The Heinous Shrew was dubious and claimed the picture could just be an optical illusion. The Russian then showed us two options for her new business logo and per BBGE standards, some liked the blue while others liked the green. The Dean was dubious because colors always look different on a computer screen.

After settling down and choosing our next book, meeting time/location, and food/wine bringers, it was time (9:45 p.m.) for book group to come to an end. And as this recapper left The Russian’s house with his mother’s grown-up salad bowl in hand, and as he drove home to his parents’ house where he’s staying until he moves into a new ONE apartment with a new roommate September 1, he thought of all the changes happening in the BBGE’s relationships, whether spoken or not. A lot happens in a month and he can’t wait to hear everyone’s updates next month.