Participation & Observation

The campus is now pretty crowded. Most of the students are moving in these days. The parking slots in front of my residence hall Charter Oaks, deserted for one whole week, look like that now...

Among the cars there are a lot of hot rides. Indeed, Americans really have partiality for cars...

Sitting at my desk writing these lines, I am listening to the bouncing beats of 50 Cent's In da Club blasting out from the huge music system in the living room. My american roomates moved in today. They have brought with them TV's, a XBox, a drinking roulette, a barbecue and a lot of other stuff. They are nice guys and they have cars. That's good for me! Steve and Bobby seem to be real party kids and laid back. So I am sure we gonna have a good time together.

The school start party marathon started last night. Having a quite night of retirement yesterday, I will take part today. Long planned, I hope that Irene won't destroy my plans showing her bad rainy face before the night. However, I feel excited, but also afraid of getting mad. In the last days I was thinking often about how it feels and what it means to be a student here. Although the semester still didn't start really, it is apparent that life here is pretty possessive. The european lifestyle of individualism doesn't seem to exist here. If it is the big family barbecue with approximately 1000 people yesterday, the watching of the soccer game today, or just being in the appartment with my roomates - collectivism marks the main pattern of orientation. This idea is so strong that there is no other choice as participation. Student now, Husky Forever!

Nevertheless, something resists within me and will always resist. I feel it is the german liability to musing, which avoid my complete adaptation here. This part of my personality feels like being in a inner immigration. However, it's influence is small fortunately, probably because this environment doesn't provide a real option. Being a crank would cause isolation. That's not the way things work here. I am in the country of the go-getters. So I just jump in at the deep end as a participant observer/observing participant. I am excited to see how I will manage this tension especially at the big party tonight. I have my camera with me trying to catch impressions of an american student party! So there's a lot at stack. I know me and some of you know me probably too. Regarding the experience, the odds are high that I get lost tonight. I would bet on my blackout! :) However, I promised my mum to be a goody boy. We will see...