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Palm Court Podcast

By: Palmer Media
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  • Summary

  • Join voices of New College of Florida through the years as we share our stories and reflections on the cultural movement that has emerged from the small, quirky, public liberal arts college in Sarasota, Florida. Dig deeper into the history and meaning of the college that's been pulled into the Culture Wars being fought on U.S. campuses in these polarized times.
    Copyright 2024. All rights reserved.
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Episodes
  • Jono Miller | A 54-year Journey with New College, the Place and Its Trees

    Jono Miller | A 54-year Journey with New College, the Place and Its Trees
    Jun 14 2024
    In this episode of the Palm Court Podcast, we sit down with Jono Miller, a New College stalwart with a 54-year relationship to the campus. We explore Jono's origin story, from discovering New College in a catalog to wading into Sarasota Bay with John Morrill. He shares his experiences in student activism, environmental advocacy, and shaping the college's landscape. We delve into Jono's ongoing efforts to protect New College's natural heritage amid recent administrative changes, including the recently threatened Uplands area, the loss of historic trees, and the lack of transparency in campus development plans. In the wake of the "hostile takeover," he remains committed to preserving the college's unique character. In a rapid-fire segment, we uncover Jono's numerous contributions to New College, from naming dorms to designing tiles. His insights reveal how small, thoughtful changes can have lasting impacts on campus life. We also touch on Jono's wider environmental work in Sarasota County, particularly along the Myakka River. Throughout the conversation, Jono's deep connection to New College shines through. He sees the college as three intertwined elements: the program, the people, and the place. Jono may in fact be the human being most deeply embedded in New College's ecosystem. While the current situation is difficult, Jono's unwavering dedication inspires us all to keep fighting for the New College we know and love. Notes: Jono Miller is a founder of NCF Freedom, which has been in headlines over the past year. The first Earth Day was on April 22, 1970. The carpet-bombing of Cambodia lasted from 1969 to 1973. Zorn’s Lemma has some relics of the Kingsley Hall experiment, and the journal Change mentions Kingsley Hall in a retrospective from the USF merger. Part of the Uplands is listed as a National Historic Register District. Map of the Uplands Preserve and an aerial photo with both Ringling estates. (Compare with cached construction plans presented Jan 2024, then quietly taken down. Note the pharaonic scale of the proposed Freedom Institute west of the pond.) Horseshoe crabs have prehistoric breeding rituals and are indeed bled for life-saving medications. Deborah Rabinowitz, “Seven Forms of Rarity,” 1981. Port Manatee Jail has a floral legacy. The Caples Food Forest became an iconic part of student life. Other colleges (some Catholic) have noted the alumnae/i Latin issue. The Summer 1988 Nimbus has pieces on the Lorax Rebellion (p. 7) and identifying by entering year (on p. 10). Plant species: LIve Oak (Quercus virginiana). “For centuries, it has been a symbol of safety, strength, and resilience.” Cabbage Palm (Sabal palmetto). ““To be in palmetto hammocks, coastal marshes, swamp forests, wet prairies, or revegetating cane breaks with Jono Miller is to walk into a world of wonder.” Slash pine (Pinus elliottii) and loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) “are highly important to both Florida's ecosystems and its economy.” Red (Rhizophora mangle), black (Avicennia germinans), and white mangroves (Laguncularia racemosa) “are important for local fisheries.” Royal Poinciana (Delonix regia). “Also called flamboyant or flame tree, royal poinciana provides dappled shade in summer, with wide, spreading branches and brilliantly-colored flowers.” Mango (Mangifera indica). Arecibo researcher Kit Reilly’s memorial “mango asterism” originally consisted of Graham, Mallika, Neelum, Fairchild, Cogshall, Torbet, Lancetilla, Nam Doc Mai, Manilita, and Parvin varieties. The ACE Building “Spanish tile” tessellation was based on I.M. Pei’s design of a Minoan engraving. Poli-sci prof and Kentucky Colonel Peggy Bates lived in the dorms. “Understanding Dentils” (inverted or otherwise). Myakka River State Park is known to some as skunk ape habitat, to even more as a beautiful wilderness with a treetop boardwalk. Sen. Bob Johnson was an early Uplands benefactor.
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    48 mins
  • Captain Jonathan White - The Lorax Speaks, A Career in Public Service, and Much More

    Captain Jonathan White - The Lorax Speaks, A Career in Public Service, and Much More
    May 22 2024
    Captain Jonathan White ('87) joins Mike, Grant, and Megan to share his origin story, in which he leaps straight from Lynchburg, Virginia's cradle of the religious right into a volatile time and place in New College history. We return to the story of the "Lorax Rebellion" student protest with a different perspective on how it came to be and the ways the destruction of the native grove represented a brutal defeat and loss of faith in institutions for so many. The lesson forged young Jonathan's steely resolve to quietly and steadily accrue power so that he could do good in the world. His transformative experiences participating in New College's first LGBTQ+ student organization and being a part of the 1987 "Second March on Washington" set the stage for his move to DC post-New College. However, the 90s were not without an uncanny series of career setbacks as Jonathan struggled to find his place in academia and beyond. He decided to try something different and reboot as a social worker, eventually getting his foot in the door at the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, slowly working his way up in the ranks—in uniform! It turns out Jonathan found his true calling in disaster management and crisis response at a time when the world most needed him. Many will remember then Commander White's brave testimony before Congress and his subsequent work reuniting families separated at the U.S.-Mexico border. Jonathan urges those who care about New College to take care of each other and not to lose hope but to broaden our scope and adjust our efforts toward achievable goals. Notes: Jerry Falwell’s Moral Majority was a keystone of conservative culture in the 1980s. The October 1987 “Second March on Washington” was in part a response to the government’s lack of response to the AIDS crisis as a public health matter, as well as a call for lesbian and gay rights. The SRQ authority is still doing deals with New College administrators. (In this case, the authority has some close, personal connections with the new administrators.) Dean Robert V. Barylski has recorded his own memories of New College events. Joe Caffentzis works as an administrator at Columbia University, and is also active in the Lovecraft fan community. The Lorax is a children’s book by Dr. Seuss that not everyone has read. There was an active aikido community, studying the Japanese martial art based on Taoist principles of reflection, redirection and circular motion; seiza is the formal sitting posture used to teach other body postures. . Justice for Janitors is a movement, a campaign, and an organization. “Kettling” is when police confine protestors (and anyone else on a particular sidewalk or street) for an extended period of time, not allowing anyone to leave. Whitman-Walker has been serving health needs of the LGBTQ+ community since the 1970s. The Public Health Service Commissioned Corps is a uniformed service of the U.S. government, active around the world. Hurricane Ike was a large, wet, Category 2 storm that, due to widespread flooding, is the third-costliest hurricane to hit the United States, after Andrew and Katrina. In 2019, White testified during congressional hearings regarding the Migrant Family Separation Policy. Ventilator shortfalls were sort of a big deal in 2020. The word “apocalypse” literally means “unveiling” (apo: “un” - kaluptein: “cover or veil”).
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    1 hr and 7 mins
  • Merlin Mann - Part 2: Lando, Olfactory Memories, "Gonna Break All the Windows..."

    Merlin Mann - Part 2: Lando, Olfactory Memories, "Gonna Break All the Windows..."
    May 10 2024
    In part two with Merlin Mann, the free-wheeling conversation picks up speed with the appearance of a special guest (code name: Lando, real name: Christian Pérez), discussing the cultural and creative passing of the baton and DIY inspiration between different New College generations. Merle pays homage to writing coach Jan Wheeler (who he was somewhat paradoxically referred to thanks to the intervention and urging of prof Pete Kazaks in the "Physics for Poets" class). Evocative smells and olfactory memories, both pleasant and painful, are evoked. Merle talks about revisiting the campus and the geography of Sarasota after decades away and everyone shares a surprising class they took at New College. The show wraps up in a Hegelian fashion, synthesizing the contradictions of the past and present, with hopes for progress and the perseverance of the New College spirit. Show notes: Other former Admiral Farragut Academy students include Stephen Stills and Lorenzo Lamas. Merlin’s “On Not Writing About New College.” Miles Davis as a young musician, filled with ecstatic wonder. William Zinsser’s On Writing Well. The Church of the SubGenius now does ShorDurMars online. Photo of Reverend Stang’s TA Event. White Rain was sold to Florida-based Diamond Products in 2000. “Mornin’ Bob” was the beloved physical plant supervisor, a slender man with iron sinews and a sunshiny disposition. The kenning “Mornin’” came from his traditional greeting, no matter what depraved nonsense he happened to have stumbled onto after sunrise. Guillermo Del Toro makes a model kit every weekend, and sometimes shows his work. H.C. Bosman, great writer (compare with H.L. Mencken). The Afrikaner Broederbond, real conspiracy (compare with the SACR). Nadine Gordimer’s July’s People (1981) was Merle and Grant’s incoming-class reading. On Lovecraft and Sonia Greene. Our Episode 11 kicked it with two canonical Surf Fux, throat and bass. Other New College bands mentioned: Ether Mice, Dog School, Skamena.
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    42 mins
Political Science Social Sciences
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