Soooo Joe is making me write a blog tonight, and as an obedient movement liaison, I now comply.... Today, Joe, "Koko," and Esteban came and visited my lovely campus--none other than Texas Christian University--and we got to play. Playing is my favourite. We played Theatre of the Oppressed. (Side note: this spell check does not acknowledge the British-like persuasion of my spelling.) During Theatre of the Oppressed, we addressed what I believe is a problem on all college campuses: COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWN. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Theatre of the Oppressed... A group puts together a skit that addresses a difficulty they've encountered in organizing. Once they've finished, the other group identifies what the problem was, and the two groups discuss that problem for a bit. Then the first group does the skit again, but this time the other group joins in to offer support and work on the problem. This is my absolute favourite learning process. It is super-awesome because a) it is interactive and b) it allows people to address their specific needs in their specific context while allowing them to come up with their own solutions rather than pursuing a cookie-cutter approach. This works infinitely better than a lecture scenario that is expected to be universal. Much was learned. Ideas were sprouted. Enthusiasm flourished. One of our friends in particular enjoyed the activity, and now has a lot of good ideas for how we can organize better on campus. Now I shall tell you something that I believe all of us should know. Koko is Andrew's nickname from eight grade. How, you may ask, did he acquire said nickname? It is a little known fact that our brand spankin' new N to the C was once, back in his youthier youth, an aficionado of that brilliant card game we all know as Magic. He and his nerdier yet vibrant friends would use the cards and then run about in the wooded terrain of his childhood wielding PVC fashioned and foam-padded swords, determining who swung the more powerful and accurate swing by that time-tested device called "rock, paper, scissors." He and his friends then decided that their super-hero magic wizard code names would be based upon the first syllable of their real-life names. For instance, Michael became Mimi. John evolved into Jojo. And Andrew? He became Koko. Obviously. Peace, Love, and Fair Trade, Kate Lewis (your friendly Movement Liaison)