Scholar of the Qur'an

I don't have time to write towards the end of block. Big paper, midterms. Ask me something about women, family planning, marriage, divorce, children, etc. and I can tell you what the Qur'an says about it, what the sunna and the hadith and shari'a have on it, what Egyptian law and reforms concern it, and as a bonus some of the following: the fiqh of the qadis (jurisprudence from Islamic jurists), fatawa issued by muftis, and the position of the four schools of law - Hanafi, Hanbali, Shafi'i, Maliki.

News: I'm running out of real money, I need all of my silly hats, it snowed yesterday, I need glucosamine+chondritin. Elaboration after Wednesday afternoon. Also, Hi Grandma.

TO THE ARC!

School news: Oh man, we had the awesomest, most intense discussion on religion in general today. We just weren't stopping! It went from 9:30 to 10:45 and Bob had to cut us off to take a break.

XC news: If I take out one girl in the next meet, I'm going to conference and possibly NCAA regionals.

Dorm news: We got a new guy down the hall but I don't know his name yet; Justin got in a massive bike accident and broke his arm (also, he looks like a burn victim); Sammi's mom is going to visit and Sammi is going to have a car. You know what that means.
TO THE ARC!


[from left: Chelsea, Molly, Me]
Today's sched:
3:30 pm XC Practice. Hard workout.
6:30 pm Dodgeball with Hammy's team.
7:30 pm Dinner at Bob's house plus some discussion on sexism in Islam.
8:30 pm Shower. Ha ha.
9:00 pm Total immersion in the library's periodical section with an expedition to the Middle Eastern studies section, until I pass out.
?:?? am Return to room, pack for Kansas meet.
?:?? am Pass out again.

Individual Letters #2

Professor. Bob. Professor Bob. Mr Lee. Sir.
Today we had breakfast and class in Bob's living room for the second time. (I still feel funny calling my professor by his first name. Most of us kind of mumble instead of calling him anything.)
For the first time in this class we read nonfiction: Naguib Mahfouz's Midaq Alley. We had a great discussion on: Egypt before WWII vs. after WWII, and What was wrong with Egyptian culture? and Was it irreversibly "infected" by some of the negative aspects of Western influence?Dad: I am scanning and emailing to you a form or two, plus Boettcher's (our health center) recommendations for the area's chiropractors. Dr. Jonathon or Tony can see if they know any of them (or let us know if they're any good). Also, of course everyone at Dr. Jonathon's can read this blog! It's for all family and friends.

Mom: What's the deal with my immunizations? Will I take care of that when I'm home in P-Town?
Sorry I've been so swamped. 1) I never got a tangible assessment/report from Kathy Gillis. 2) I have a link for you in Comments. 3) I will scan and email to you (for Dr. Liedel) the pertinent documents later tonight.

Aaron: Have you been swimming, playing soccer, or doing karate? Because I have done a little bit of all of those here. My friend Eliza has a black belt.
Luke: I need answers to four things: are you, in your own opinion, succeeding in football; have you made friends that are girls; do you know anyone on student council; and what Class of '07 grads have people at Jesuit talked about and why?

Grandma Carole: Sammi and I - well, our room has turned into an informal lounge. Everyone has started to come in here to hang, do homework, and tell their life stories. For your sake, I promise that I am kicking them out at 11:30 tonight and I will be asleep before midnight.

Becca and Katie: Don't know if you'll read this, but what classes are you guys taking?
(Becca is at U of O Honors and Katie is at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York.)

Oklahoma

Back from Oklahoma. Ugh, long car trips. I went 23:00 in the invitational. No worries, my time should drop big every race. But no expectations.

Midterms went very well. So did my second paper, six pages this time. I know loads about religious mysticism, and the first couple of ruling dynasties after Muhammad's death, plus the Ottoman empire. (click map) Not so much the French occupation of Egypt. There the test got me bang to rights. But what the hey. I know the difference between Sunnis and Shi'is, aka Shiites, aka Shi'as.

The Search for Islamic Order: Yesterday and Today

My FYE is really challenging, but I love it and I really like my professor. Yesterday we had class at his (beautiful) house. It's so relaxing, using a nice bathroom.
Good news: CC is providing all of the accommodations that I requested. Yay! They're asking for a longer letter from Dr. Leidel, though, Mom. Dad and Mom: thanks for the mouse, notes, etc.
Last night I went salsa dancing with Sammi and her friend José and basically our whole wing* and RA Tim. Then we had a midnight hall picnic. Today we're lofting my bed.

*Here are my friends in West/Southwest wing of Slocum (3rd floor): Keita, Luke, Soccer Jeff, Short Joel, and Blond Dan; FYE-Lauren, Louisa, Sammi, Eliza, and Christy. Louisa and Eliza were on my Priddy trip. I really like Eliza, we're kinda similar and she's tops.

Meeting, Greeting, and Acclimating

It's official, I'm Rafter. Good choice, because there are bundles of Kates, Katies, Katherines, Kaitlins, Kathys . . . mostly Kates, really. People remember mine the first time, and they're all happy to comply, no small feat. However, I'm told I'm a memorable person even without the unusual moniker.
I met Sammi and her family yesterday. I really like Sammi, she's cool. She likes watching hockey, playing volleyball, equestrian, and classic literature. I also met my adopted family: Matt, Erica, and 2.5-year-old Jackson. Matt grew up in Southern California and went to high school at Catlin Gabel. They have two other adopted freshmen, but I forgot their names, even though I sat with one of the guys at tonight's epic accapella concert.

The room looks good. On Sammi's side there's Los Angeles Kings paraphernalia, tasteful bedsheets, and lots of books; on my side there's Monet prints and the banner of France (my RA said it looks like a Boy Scouts flag), a mess, and lots of books.
I enlisted the team's help for a little extra decorating. Dialogue:
Me: Here's $10 for you guys while you visit the awesome dinosaur museum while us freshmen have to go back to campus for orientation activities. I figure the least you guys can do is get me a dinosaur poster for my room.
Justin and the XC team: We're getting you a picture of a raptor, Raptor. Nope, you don't have a say in the matter.
Me: OK.

So do I go pick my things up from Bed, Bath, and Beyond ? I'm getting tired of fashioning random objects into pillows.

Running is going fine. Chelsea and Molly and I found the trail behind the neighborhood across the highway. Molly's home is at an even higher elevation so she is used to hills and heights, and the heat is getting to Chelsea, so I usually find myself spaced out between the two. I can now go for pretty much a whole (slow) hour. Thank you Steens!

Here's what I know about my Priddy trip: It's in New Mexico. Five-hour drive. We will interact with the horses a little bit. We won't have to shovel much manure. No showers, but one swimming pool. We will paint a lot. Wear old clothes. Bring mess kit. It's okay to go on runs, so I've made plans to go on a few with this guy Colin - Basketball/Tennis Colin, not the XC Colin I already know. Brad, who is on XC, is going on my Priddy trip. He is also in my "The Search for Islamic Order" FYE class. The professor is Robert (Bob) Lee, and he talked to the 2011 class today about academics. From what I hear, we're going to get our butts kicked, but I have the right attitude about learning here. Note to self: check mailbox.

I need to get to bed because we're running at 7am tomorrow morning. Last night we -- kids from Slocum Hall -- played volleyball past 11:30 (and then watched Planet Earth) and we played from 7:30 to 9 again today. My arms might be covered in bruises tomorrow; yet I expect to master pretty much all sports by the end of this year, including hockey, basketball, swimming, Frisbee, soccer, foosball, and pool.