Summer on campus

The last week of May weather here in Madison has been chilly, grey, and rainy - currently it's 62°.

Not only that, despite the financial downturn, the University, a.k.a. the state of Wisconsin, and the city of Madison, have numerous building and road construction projects that were planned and funded before the economy collapsed, and so are going forward (in fact, I have heard whisperings of contractor deals, where the builders and road construction companies are doing the work for less than what they bid, just to keep all their guys working).

Some of it amounts to a perfect storm - the City is repaving and regrading a stretch of a major thoroughfare that goes right past two sites where the University is building a big new research facility and where they've knocked down an ugly, 1970s, satellite student union building, to rebuild one that'll be nicer (we hope).

Besides all that, they are ripping out the parking ramp that is below my building - the one that had stalagtites dripping down from its warm cavelike ceiling, and corrosive pigeon crap. The drilling began this week, and goes on from about 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. everyday. I am thinking about packing up my computer and heading off to work at home.

Random iPhone shots of springtime on campus:
The Wacker, a machine for pounding down the dirt before cement is poured

Courtyard of the Helen C. White building on a damp day - I think the water stains on the outdoor stairs look like a ring of dancers holding hands, although only one has a head.

The back of Lathrop Hall, one of the handsomest classical buildings on campus, with a blooming tree and a green one.

A blooming tree inside a cage on library mall, which is also under construction.