This week in the office...

Some interesting occurances this week:

1) Had a British family come in for a tour. I have been corresponding with the father by e-mail for some time now. He insisted I come to dinner with them after work and have a beer or two. No big deal there. It's nice to get to know some of the students and their families better, especially when so many I just answer a few questions and never hear from them again, whether they come to the university or not. The father began telling me stories of his days in the British military, specifically the SAS, or Special Air Service. One word: badasses. So that was pretty cool.




2) Almost got my trip to the Middle East cancelled. I was pulled into a "pop quiz" meeting with two supervisors who wanted to know a) how I felt about the security situation in the areas where I will be travelling, and b) how worthwile I felt it was to recruit in these areas. Response A: I trust the organizers of the tours I participate in. If things get too risky, they will adjust plans accordingly. Besides, seeing what happened in London, and what could happen just as easily here in the US, there is no absolute safety. Doesn't matter where you are. Get used to it. Response B: Very, very worthwhile. Students there want to come to the US. Our government is putting a lot of effort into expediting the VISA process for students, to get their numbers back up to pre-9/11 levels and higher. It is not exaggerating to say that this is an activity that helps with long-range national security. The more students from this region who study in the US, form bonds and get to know us, then go home and become leaders, the better. That simple.

3) Our new catalog: it looks awesome, as usual, but one photo in particular, used to show a foundations art class in session, might prove problematic. It depicts a class fanned out with their easels, surrounding two nude models. Of course, you can't see any naughty bits. However, the figures are obviously nude, and there is a peek of buttock. This will not go over well in my territory. I will not be able to ship this catalog to many countries, or bring it with me. Even in countries where I can, conservative parents will not like this when they see it. Hell, forget my territory, there are many parts of red-state America that will not cotton to this.

A hypothetical conversation a friend came up with:

"Have you talked to J.C. lately?"

"Well, not really, he's in prison in Saudi Arabia."

"What?? Why??"

"He was caught carrying homosexual porn across the border."

"Yeah...we should have seen that coming."