institutional-memory

Sometimes, jostled by the 1 train, I miss driving. Colorado is a wide and open land; jagged, regal mountains spill into yellow plains under the expansive sky. Interstate 70 scrapes the side of Denver and curves westward to become a heavily trafficked, occasionally perilous mountain corridor. Its long tunnels, steep grades, and packs of long-haul trucks make me break out in hives, particularly in rain or snow.

At Columbia, the foremost sign of spring is the clattering of bleacher construction. Like cherry blossoms, they bloom almost overnight and disappear just as quickly; when they’re gone, an entire class of students goes with them. Like bleachers, students are part of the architecture until they aren’t. The removal of rebuildable architecture always takes something with it; grass needs to be resodded, pavements repaved. Some of campus escapes the need for rebuilding; it endures in brick, stone, and archive. But so much of Columbia—and I’m speaking quite literally now—is lost every spring.

There is often conversation surrounding how tour guides present Columbia as a utopia of perfect students with thrilling city lifestyles. How do you describe Columbia to people at home? How honest are we supposed to be?

I was four years old when I first arrived in Beijing. I remember passing by the Tiananmen gate and staring at the magnificent structure in awe. I remember looking into the eyes of the giant portrait of Mao hanging right above the city gate, trembling in excitement and fear. That was my first encounter with the city I would later call home.

I can’t remember the last smooth subway ride I took in New York City. Subway rides are typically lurching, clattering events, punctuated by stops and starts so abrupt that forward becomes backward. I used to get thrown in all directions by the erratic motion. It took practice, many $2.75 fares, and a certain willingness to let myself move with the rocking driving to get to the point of enjoying subway rides.

Did you know that a baseball game at Baker Field between Columbia and Princeton, held on May 17, 1939, was the first televised sporting event in the United States and broadcast by NBC?

Brian Min's column last week about removing the Thomas Jefferson statue seemed full of good intentions, but I disagree with his ultimate conclusion to remove the statue. After spending a semester at the University of Cape Town last year and being involved in activist efforts lobbying for the removal of the Cecil Rhodes statue, I've found myself thinking a lot about racist symbols and what should be done about them.

Hi. I'm Kevin. I'm a senior in Columbia College studying biochemistry. I'm sexist, and I'm also a homophobe.