Big News!

Guys! I finally declared my major!! I am now an OFFICIAL Political Science major at Hunter College! I'm really excited. To be honest though, the actual process was a little anticlimactic. I printed out a paper, filled it out, got it stamped by the head of the Political Science department, and the took it down to Hunter OneStop. It took like, 20 minutes.

So my first act as a Political Science major was... to finish my Political Science paper. Yeah, I have been putting that off for a few days now so I figured I'd get it done. But then my friend Sam was going to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to do work for his drawing class, and I really wanted to tag along. The Met is located on 5th Avenue and 82nd Street, only two train stops and a couple blocks from the Hunter campus. Since I was already in the neighborhood, I decided to go meet him there. The really cool thing is that I am writing this to you, from the Met! (yes, my paper is done, I promise) Alright, so maybe I'm not giving the artwork the respect it deserves, but to be honest, art isn't why I go to museums.

I like people watching. I love watching how people interact, and New York City offers endless opportunities for it. However, there is a certain atmosphere you can only get in a museum. Everyone is a bit more open, a bit more friendly. Strangers smile at each other when they notice that someone likes the same piece as them. There's a casual stroll people adopt in a museum as well - not as fast as the bustle on the street, but they barely stop moving.

And the benches become these stationary island fo couples holding hands, artists studying compositions, and people who really want to stay and meditate on the aspects of specific artworks.
If you sit on these benches, I feel that you become part of the art as well. Dozens of people have come over and glanced at Sam's drawing, and several have come over to try and read a bit of this over my shoulder. And that's alright - we're all here for the same reason.

I love the atmosphere of museums. This quiet camaraderie of people who respect art coming together. But, I will admit, the Met is not my favourite museum. I much prefer the art and attitudes at the Museum of Modern Art on 53rd street. The Met had a large collection of old-world, classic, naturalisitic art. To be frank, I am not impressed by ladies in flouncy dresses or various portraits of Jesus and all his friends. I prefer art that has a less distinct meaning, and a more abstract component. I really only come to the Met for historical purposes and to people watch. But, since its free, I do that relatively often. (Didn't I mention that the Met is on our Macaulay Cultural Passports, as well as the MoMA?)

Well, cue the crying children. I think I'll take that as my sign to leave.