Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of las pasionarias of the American Right, has called for a “national divorce.” I begin my Impromptus today with this subject. I go on to talk head shops, and college, and other things. (True, college campuses can resemble — certainly smell like — head shops.)
Last Friday, I had an Arizona journal — concentrating on the campus in Tucson (the University of Arizona) and the campus in Tempe (Arizona State). I’d like to publish a couple of letters — both from ASU grads.
Jay,
. . . I’d like to make two comments as a Sun Devil and multi-decade resident of Arizona.
1) Students generally wait at stoplights because the ASU campus police write jaywalking tickets and if you don’t pay them you can’t get your transcripts, so you can’t prove you graduated. I got one in the late ’70s for $80, which was a huge amount of money to me at the time. I paid it because I had no choice, and I never jaywalked again. The cop was on a motorcycle and I didn’t see him until it was much too late. ASU students who are not rich tend to only get one jaywalking ticket during their time there.
2) The bush you called out as having lovely flowers is a Bougainvillea. While beautiful it is truly vicious and if you have to trim one be careful as the thorns will tear the flesh from your bones.
Wow.
And another:
Hi, Mr. Nordlinger,
. . . Most of those oranges are probably Valencia and not great for eating. But right around the corner from the Piper Writers’ House and Old Main, surrounding the G. Homer Durham Language & Literature Building filled with Marxist professors, there are delicious kumquat trees. “Kumquat” is just a great word too. . . .
No mention of the fact that the music building was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright’s son-in-law? FLW was the architect for the bigger version across the street — Gammage Auditorium. Missed opportunity, my friend.
You cannot bless the Sun Devils and the Wildcats [people from the University of Arizona] in the same sentence. Even though I have a lot of family, including my beloved sister, who went to U of A, I assure you they are mutually exclusive. . . .
Just a word about Frank Lloyd Wright’s son-in-law. He was Wesley Peters. I write about him in a book called “Children of Monsters.” Whatever for? He became a husband of Stalin’s daughter, Svetlana. Fantastically strange story.
Thank you, as always, to all readers and correspondents.