May Day

I watched the live streaming of the Students rioting last night for a couple of hours. An excellent decision had been made to appoint the Only Optimist left in the country as Voice Over Man. 'This will all begin to die down as night falls. Many of these young people will have trains to catch, it looks like rain, and oh... they've lit a Big Fire.' In my college, the Provost Peter Lee held a Mayday Ball every year, where he served 'punch' (vodka watered down with strawberries). Every First Year had an invite, but after that they were discretionary. Being an Arse wasn't a bar, being a Bore, was. The last time i attended Mayday, i went with Helen. We got our punch, and a glass of wine each- no point queuing unnecessarily- and sat with 50 odd Young Folk in designer gear, mainly beige, with a hint of taupe, until we could bear the dullness no longer. 'You look a bit glum, Peter.' 'I'm giving this up, these are the most uninteresting students i have ever known, they have got steadily worse as the years have gone on , and now, these...' Noise of Disgust. We left. There was still punch left. I don't condone the reported violence towards people , and they need to work on the placards, but yesterday was the first inkling i have had in 15 years that students are still capable of voicing Opinion and demonstrating Passion without reference to its effects on their Own Ambitions and Expectations. I got my Return Ticket to Mayday when Peter caught me leaving the 2nd year party that i had gatecrashed with a bottle of his wine 'concealed' in one half of my cardigan and half a bagette in the other. He cross- examined me about Pushkin for 15 minutes while i nodded, guessed and blagged for as long as either of us could stand it. Then he let me leave. I had been entertaining. I went and looked up Pushkin. It isn't just about Turning up,and remembering your Hat and Gloves: it's about what you Hear, and what you Say and finding out how (not what) to Think. And about learning that if you lower a Partially- Opened Camenbert through a lakeside window, you must not  forget to retrieve it before morning. Your life- lesson for the day, Class of 2010: Geese Will Eat Anything, even Dairy.