Scenes from Spring

A student that I'm tutoring from the high school recently told us (in a remarkably off-handed kind of way and totally out of the blue): "Oh, don't worry what people say. They see you running and they just think you're with the American military collecting information on political parties."

Well, I'm glad to hear the Department of Defense is world-renowned for its physical fitness, but how one makes the leap in logic from jogging to surveillance is beyond me. I can only assume this is the work of a few really bored individuals who vastly overestimate the reach of American, well, caring (though, truth be told, this sort of activity has been suggested by advocates of the intelligence community). Gee, and I really thought we were doing a great job as unassuming teachers in the community schools.

But to paraphrase Paul Simon--be careful, this sneaker is really camera.

Seriously, we were recently out on a fine spring afternoon, snapping photos around town. We quickly learned to be subtle, as it seems that locals find it a bit odd to see we Americans with a camera in our hands. C'mon folks! Would the Pentagon really arm us with the base model Nikon from Best Buy? And why would they want a picture of this budding tree?

Anyway, below you'll find some decidedly un-convert pictures from around town as the warm weather has begun its descent.