This semester, I've had the pleasure of taking a class on Feminist and Queer Theory here at Western. It's got that magic mix of all great seminars: great topics, great students, and a wonderful teacher. The discusions are lively and at every class I feel like I've learned a lot.
Last Thursday, the awesomeness of this class reached new hights. One of the students asked our instructor, Cris, if we could take our normal break about an hour early in order to watch the pumpkin drop (I'll explain that in a sec). While Cris is normally rather indulgent, she hesitated to sanction such a silly activity. Fortunately (and perhaps ironically given the class subject) Cris gave into peer pressure and let us go to this important UWO tradition.
What is the pumpkin drop? I'm glad you asked! Every year the school organization Engineers Without Borders holds an annual fundraiser featuring the destruction of a large Corcubita Moschata (Latin!). People gather and watch as a freakishly large pumpkin plummets to the ground, pelting people, pedestrians and pets with its sundered particles.
In the past I have felt a great deal of animosity towards schools stunts like this. But since we've been in Canada, things have been different. I really wanted to go to homecoming, and was sorry to miss it. Hockey games call my name as never before. And watching a five hundred pound pumpkin fall to the ground, explode with a resounding WHOMP! and throw gooey pieces all over people was totally awesome. I don't know if being in a different country changes my perspective or what, but I'm digging all the fun cliche things related to my new school.
That. Looks. Awesome.
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The splattering is quite intense. Yay for feminist theory! We had a touch of that in my theology class this semester.
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