DTWOF: The Blog : Smith College

Friday, March 31, 2006

Smith College

burrito
Originally uploaded by Alison Bechdel.

I spoke last night at Smith, for I think the fourth time in my career. God, I love that place. I meant to take a picture of the campus, or the audience, but I was so frazzled I didn't even remember I had my camera with me until after it was all over and I was getting a burrito to eat on my drive back home from MA to VT. Thus this irrelevant photo in the burrito shop.

But what a great audience those Smithies were! They laughed at everything and indulged my discursive pointy-headedness. The student who brought me discovered my work on PlanetOut when she was ten. Ten! Every time I go back to Smith College, I'm a thousand years older. But the students are all still ten. Well, maybe twenty.

Before my presentation I had a lovely visit with my friend Susan Stinson. We talked about writing and she let me ride her awesome trike around campus in the lovely spring afternoon.
When did I start bandying about the word "awesome" like this? I'm sorry to contribute to its utter devaluation by overusage. But Susan's trike really did inspire awe.

# posted by Alison Bechdel @ 3/31/2006 10:48:00 AM

Comments:

lovely (twice) AND awesome.

at least you still look like a badass in your burrito photo. It is enough to make up for it.

would you add a section to your website listing your appearances? perhaps you already have it embedded into your upcoming new site.

# posted by

Anonymous : 3/31/2006 11:54:00 AM

Go ahead and say "awesome". As Lois said when she went to picket the Democrats, it'll make you feel like a young punk again.

# posted by

Anonymous : 3/31/2006 12:24:00 PM

Dykes on trikes? It could become a parade staple. :-P

# posted by

Ng Yi-Sheng : 3/31/2006 01:08:00 PM

And Smith College loves you!

# posted by

Anonymous : 3/31/2006 06:06:00 PM

i wish you could come talk at my college....damn being so far away from the rest of the world!!!

use 'awesome' like its going out of style - and good luck figuring out how you want to post the strip online. so many of us are really ready to contribute dollars to your art either way, so let us know how sometime... you must let us live out our fantasies of renaissance-era artistic patronage!!!

# posted by

Anonymous : 4/01/2006 06:22:00 AM

Isn't Susan wonderful? Of course, she is awesome.

When are you coming to Houston? Or even to BookWoman in Austin?

# posted by

maxine : 4/01/2006 08:17:00 AM

You being at Smith was awesomeness personified. Also, I welcome the heady discursive ramblings.

~D
(the one who asked about self-referential strips, but who was dying to ask if anal-retentive really had a hyphen)

# posted by

Obstructing Reality : 4/02/2006 11:52:00 AM

"Thus this irrelevant photo in the burrito shop."

But of course it was the best burrito shop in New England, Bueno e Sano!

# posted by

Anonymous : 4/14/2006 09:28:00 PM

Hey, I saw you at Smith in maybe 1991 or '92 -- it was so excellent. I "discovered" you shorly after coming out during my first year, seeing some cartoon postcards in the LBA space near the old student center. Gah, guess that makes me an old time fan!

# posted by

Antioch College Bookstore : 4/22/2006 11:50:00 AM