Snowmageddon

Loyola has officially been closed since last Friday afternoon. No one could have guessed that Baltimore would have experienced a record snowfall of 79cm. Last weekend, everyone was under the impression that we would have school starting Monday, but the school sent out a series of emails notifying us that the school would remain closed until the following Monday.

The City of Baltimore has completely shut down for most of the week. Yesterday it was illegal to travel on any city streets. The city wasn't prepared to handle the sheer amount of snow. The city is still in a state of emergency and will probably receive emergency money from the Feds to aid in the removal of snow.

Maryland Transit Authority (busses/light rail) has also closed down for most of the week. It's safe to say that I've experienced a little cabin fever. I use the MTA to get around the city. I wouldn't mind getting off of campus as I usually do several times during the week. I enjoy going out into the city and I try to visit a different neighborhood in Baltimore every week or so. Baltimore has so much to offer, and I've only experienced a small portion of it.

I can't help thinking about all the people that don't have a place to go during this blizzard. Baltimore has several programs that provide temporary shelter during extreme weather, but problems surrounding homelessness must be multiplied during this weather. This really hit home to me when I was locked out of my dorm room late at night earlier this week. Although I knew that I was fully welcome to sleep in one of my friend's dorm, just the notion of not having my own place to go to was bothersome. Having to rely on the charity/generosity of others isn't ideal, and yet people without steady employment and housing must experience this all the time.


The lack of things/work to do on campus has made me think about the nature of work a little bit. For me, it would drive me crazy not to have at least some work to do. I've heard people say that, if permitted, people would choose to just sit around and watch TV all day. I can't possibly ever see myself doing that. I can't imagine not learning or doing something productive with my time.

I've recently been listening to a lot of 80s Synth music (Yaz, Depeche Mode, Men without Hats, ect.) Its funny how music seems to go in cycles. A lot of the sounds and rhythms in these songs are reflected in popular music of today.

I received an email from the Town of Scarborough about working at the beaches this summer. Looks like I'll be doing the same thing again--collecting money for parking and maintaining washrooms. It should be a good summer and hopefully I'll start to serve tables at Myst too!

Last week I attended an banquet revolving around the issue of hunger. I didn't quite know what to expect when I attended, and I actually showed up late because I was just getting back from Care-A-Van. Basically, all the people that attended were given a card with a description and colour. Each colour was equivalent to a social/economic class (lower/middle/upper). There were three groups of seating: tables with silverware, plates, and many courses (upper class), basic chairs, rice, beans and lemonade (middle class), and just seating on the floor with rice and water (lower class). Each person was told to sit in the group according to the description on their card. I received the middle class one while my friend Anthony received a lower class card. The event was supposed to showcase the distinctions in the way that classes affect food distribution in our society. Essentially, most Americans would be in the upper class group when compared to the rest of the world. People described how it felt awkward to be eating at a table while people all around them were eating on the floor. The visual of clear distinctions between poor/rich was striking and made an impact on me. It was an interesting concept and reconfirmed my conviction to keep doing hunger/homelessness related service.

That's all for now. I hope everyone enjoys their weekends!