A family of geese! You can only kind of see it in this picture, but my window opens up to a view of one of the campus lakes. When I walk around it to class every day I often see ducks, geese, even cranes!

I really need a better camera, y'all.

When I first decided to come here, I was afraid that the culture shock would be traumatic. That I would hate it and long for the commotion and the hustle and bustle of living in a city. Now? I'm not sure what it is I thought I would miss about horns honking, sirens blaring, or the rude, self-centered attitude of 75% of the people there. I do miss Tommy's chili cheese fries though, and the pastramachilicheese at Johnnie's. But other than that, I feel quite at home here.

I marvel every day over how nice people are here. In order to get into the dorm complex you need to come through a locked-gate. Without fail, people hold open this gate for each other, even if you are so far away that they have to stand there holding it for you as you pick up the pace to a slow jog. Guys and girls do this for both girls and guys. And I've been happy to have the opportunity to return the favor myself several times. It's so true that a good deed begets good deeds.

People here smile at each other, even if they don't know each other. This kind of friendliness is taboo in Los Angeles. The store clerks do not seem bored and disinterested, but instead never fail to offer you a smile and some familiar banter.

As you can see, I just can't get over it. There is really something to be said for life in a small town.

The stillness and peace and quiet here is rather amazing too. Yesterday I went to my friend Kim's place at 12:30 pm for a lunch date, he was still asleep so he didn't answer the door but since he lives on the second floor I decided to stand outside his room for a bit, staring across the dorm complex. There was nothing. I saw a plastic bag blow across the grass, but not another soul. And it was so perfectly quiet, the silence broken only occassionally by the sound of a bird warbling.

So, I really love it here. I'm not sure that I could live here permanently, but I think four months of this is exactly what I needed after six years in LA. I think being here will go a long way in restoring my faith in the goodness of people.