Janet and Aldo were in Philadelphia, for the first time. We went for the annual convention of the...

Janet and Aldo were in Philadelphia, for the first

time.

We went for the annual convention of the American

Sociological Association. It was their centennial, and we figured we might not be

around for the next ..

Both of us together attended only a small number of sessions. The opening plenary was conducted by the very dignified ASA President, Troy Duster.

Its focus topic was the Tsunami and its impact on the peace in Aceh, Indonesia. Some of Aldo’s colleagues had worked there in relief logistics, but this was the first sociological account we heard.

While Aldo was

captive session

after session to

dimly lit hotel

rooms, Janet

savored the city’s

rich museums

and murals.

Just as Philadelphia instigated the development of black sociology – W.E.B. DuBois wrote “The Philadelphia Negro” here - , it recognized black artists earlier than elsewhere.

[See painting next slide]

There were several other

famous paintings on

show, including one that

appears time and again in

medical history books, and also

some creative works in other

categories of art – sculpture,

glass, even this rattan chair

filled with an exotic fan.

The Centennial filled me with pride for the sociological

profession. But I turned very

emotional when, in a technical

workshop, I found it was taught by

the son of my Ph.D. supervisor of 20 years back, then in Germany.

Here was this young man, whom

I had known as a toddler, brilliant

like his late father!

My first time on the “spouse track” at a conference gave me an opportunity to try out my “new hair” and new stamina. My pedometer registered 14,000 steps or so per day, and I was filled with gratitude for my returning health and growing confidence in the future.

That was Philadelphia. Thought you might enjoy a postcard from the Beninis..