Walking Journal #13

PROMPT: It occurs to me that the reason I love walking is because it facilitates thinking. Also, while reading a recent interview I was reminded of a genre of the blues called the walking blues. In the walking blues the singer is alone with his thoughts, usually leaving town, coming back to town, or walking the streets of town looking for answers. This is a roundabout way of saying that this is an open topic journal. Just walk and think and observe. As always, seek and value complexity, ask questions, and remember that there are no simple solutions. Nothing heavy, just tell your reader what's on your mind...

On Saturday night, I took a walk to the football stadium with friends, along with what seemed to be the majority of other students on campus, as well as a good portion of the town. I’m not a huge fan of football, but I love the atmosphere of the games: it’s one event that draws together our entire school for a night, as well as connecting the town to the University. Leaving my dorm, it occurred to me that there were exceptionally more people out walking than normal for a Saturday night, usually people are concentrated in a few areas on weekend nights, but for football games it seems the entire student body storms the campus in a sort of migration to the stadium. Upon arrival at the stadium, the sheer mass of people was extraordinary. It’s incredible how a game can draw so many people to one place: everyone from families of Reno to a few families from my home town in Folsom, to University students: from spirited pom-pom wavers to the casual football fan.

The game itself is never what draws me to football games: my roommate and I met friends at the game, and this aspect is what I go for. The pure social atmosphere of a game is where the real fun happens. Games remind me just how friendly our University is: whoever you sit next to, the chances are that the person will talk to you. The college football atmosphere is much different than my high school games: going to high school games involved sitting with one specific group of friends, either watching the game or socializing, but not really mixing with anyone outside the group. College games are the opposite. It’s easy to make friends with the crowd: there are always the people that are immersed in the game, the ones that yell at the refs when they don't like a call and start cheers against the other team, those that could care less about the game but will talk for hours about what’s going on at the campus, and the casual mix of both.

Football games have a unique ability to pull an entire campus together, uniting against the common enemy. Nevada has a particularly spirited group of fans, giving the games an atmosphere of pure energy and will to win. Unfortunately, this past game we lost, but the way that a simple football game can pull an entire University into the action is a feat more valuable than winning one game. 

Walking Journal #12

PROMPT: Your second prompt is related to the architecture of your neighborhood. What do the buildings look like? What style are they built in? How do they compare to other neighborhoods? What does architecture reflect in regards to the values of our society? 

Walking through campus, there’s a clear theme that runs through the architecture: old fashioned, brick, sturdy looking buildings, sprinkled here and there with a modern touch. The Davidson Math and Science Center is a good example of this: the modern flair of the building is exemplified by sharp lines and endless windows, but the classic brick style still draws the eye at a glance. The Palmer Engineering building is another grand building, complete with a large flight of stairs and columns up to the entrance. Similar features are echoed throughout campus: the Knowledge Center repeats the grand staircases and brick theme, but anyone who fails to notice the incredible technology within the building itself would be missing out. Buildings surrounding the Quad wouldn't appear to be modern at all, but make up for it in elegance. Ivy and majestic architecture are reflected by these buildings. And, although there is everything from elegant, old-fashioned buildings, to gorgeous brick, to modern buildings, the campus retains a sense of unity. The styles echo one another just enough to meld into a single campus while retaining their unique identities.

The architecture on campus is very important to me: it’s one of the first things I noticed when I first toured the University, and it’s one of the reasons that I felt at home here. UNR was the last campus I toured before deciding on a college. I had toured countless other campuses: from UC Davis, UC Santa Barbara, UC San Diego, to the University of San Francisco. All of the campuses had much to offer, but on tours, the campuses didn't seem like home. There was little sense of unity between buildings, and often the campuses themselves seemed too big and spread out to have any sense of togetherness. The University of Nevada was different: one unified campus, with a sense of individualism. Another thing that drew me to the campus was familiarity: the campus is built in the same style as many areas of my home town. From our outdoor mall with modern brick buildings and even to my old high school, the University’s campus just seemed like home.

The look of a place can have a profound effect on its inhabitants. For me, the look of the University is what drew me here and has made me feel at home on campus. The beauty of campus reflects that the University is an important commodity to Reno. 

Walking Journal #11

PROMPT: In your neighborhood or in the neighborhood of your choice, consider the history or events that have transpired there. Do a bit of research first, and then visit the site of something notable. For instance, Commrow used to be the red light district, and the area near Second Street and the river on the east side of town was once Chinatown (I think). The possibilities are endless and don't have to be related to a place, per se, like the examples above, but can relate to an event, instead. For instance, the Center St. Bridge is where Marilyn Monroe throws her wedding ring into the Truckee in The Misfits. Try to compare and contrast then and now, or imagine yourself into the place as it was and register changes.

Places can carry a lot of meaning: it's not only the scenery that gives a place its atmosphere, nor the people who walk the streets, but something more than that. For me, places carry memories. Notable things that happen in a particular place will forever be stored in that place for me: just waiting to be revisited. My dad grew up in San Francisco, and for as long as I can remember, going to San Francisco has always been associated in my mind with father-daughter days. Especially because my dad and I share a love of history and science, so visiting the California Academy of Sciences to get a glimpse at the new Planetarium, seeing the King Tut exhibit at the de Young, and trips to the San Francisco Zoo are beloved memories. As I've gotten older and grown more independent, all it takes is a visit to Golden Gate Park with my dad to recall old times.

An earlier family trip to San Francisco

Golden Gate Park in San Francisco has its fair share of history: it was planned during the 1860’s and has endured since then. Golden Gate Park has had minor roles in movies as well, including The Pursuit of Happiness. It’s also become a major center of San Francisco. Places like Golden Gate park have a sense of history about them: from the Academy of Sciences to the de Young to the mobile art galleries: all of it screams culture and history. It’s impossible not to recognize the history of a place when the history is a deeply embedded part of what makes a place unique. Whether it’s the history and culture in a “historical” sense or memories that define a place, history gives a life to place.  

For me, San Francisco, and specifically Golden Gate Park, will always be father-daughter days with my dad. The memories that you create in a place define what that place means for you: just like past historical events give a place its identity. The mood and atmosphere of a place can be affected by events that have transpired in the past: effectively stamping a place with history. There isn't necessarily a clear-cut then and now, because the past gives meaning to the present, and the history of a place is always being expanded.