I'm so over summer...Fall can't get here soon enough!
On another note, my $947 traffic tickets have been brought down to just $152! =]
MIRTH:
Blogging the delicious, the inane, the delightful, and the laughs of a twenty-something.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Wish List
I'm so over summer...Fall can't get here soon enough!
On another note, my $947 traffic tickets have been brought down to just $152! =]
Saturday, July 25, 2009
The Big Picture & a side of feminism
It's friday night, and my inability to decide what I'd like to do tonight has lead me to do, well, nothing. No no, I shouldn't say nothing, but I am staying in and reading up for my thesis.
I don't know if I've talked about this here before, but I need some perspective, so here it is: this post will be about my thesis (disgruntled readers, turn away now! this is bound to be uninteresting for nearly everybody!). For those curiously-minded, I am a graduate student in history--especially ancient roman history--specifically women/religion in the ancient roman empire. I'm nearly done with my MA program; I just need to finish up that pesky thing called the thesis. What, pray tell, am I writing this tome about? What is it that I spend days and nights dreaming, thinking, crying, praying, typing away at, scratching my head over? What is the topic that I've dedicated the last year and one-half to?
Well, it goes something like this (taken from a writing exercise from Kate Turabian's Manual of Style):
I am studying the topic of female priests/patrons in the first 3 centuries of the Roman empire, because I want to find out how women across the roman empire were obtaining public power/status in their communities through their works as both priestess and patroness, so that I can help others understand that women in ancient rome were not simply mothers and wives, that their influence was not merely in the domestic sphere, and that they could have power in their own right, as women equally able to change the face, customs, behaviours, way of life of their cities as any man--something that history in general seems to forget or overlook.
I will be the first to admit that I recognize that I, myself, am overwhelmed by what I'm arguing. I won't go into very much detail (because this post is already riveting as it is), but let me just say that it is a daunting task, and I am easily intimidated. Hence the laggy-ness on my part over the course of this summer to make any sort of real progress on my thesis.
However, when I come across a statement as such as this: By erecting large-scale structures, women effectively inserted a feminine voice, an alien prescence, into a predominantly masculine culture (Margaret L. Woodhull, "Matronly Patrons in the Early Roman Empire: The Case of Salvia Postuma" [I wish this thing had footnotes lol]), which, on the surface seems like a rather ordinary statement, but is really a comment on extraordinary behavior of women in a time that was so overtly masculine, and what a remarkable position these women were in to be able to stand right along side their male counterparts, and how important it is to recognize the efforts of these women, my heart bursts into a firey passion that screams out that THIS, this, is why I do what I do.
Women are so neglected, so marginalized, so downplayed in the history books, in the social studies books in schools. I think back to my own education, and how I didn't get an appreciation of a woman in history until I was in 7th grade, when I did a presentation of Eleanor of Aquitaine. I read the book, Of Scarlet and Miniver, a supplementary reading because I can't even remember if there was even a biographical slip of Eleanor in that social studies book, and through that book, forgiving all its romanticizing and character illusions, I found myself, for the first time, admiring an historical woman. And I mean, I really really admired her. But what, I was 12? 13? at the time? And I found that I did not have that feeling of admiration, of witnessing a woman's experience of history, for the rest of my middle/high school education. And how unfortunate is it that young girls are made to study the history through the eyes of men, and how they could potentially go through all that education without even once understanding her own self through that history, of not being able to see her own existence in the pages of that history because women are not taken seriously. And for all those haters who think that women do not have a place in their type of history because they didn't participate in wars, or politics, I just have to say that that means nothing because women were there too. Woman have always been there.
okay, enough of that. I didn't mean to rant on about feminist history haha.
On a completely different note, I got my office assignment and my office number for the semester <3 I was completely giddy, but it won't feel official until I get my KEYS. Oh, but, there are 9 TAs for the course, 7 boys and 2 girls, and get this, they paired off all the boys together, and put me with the girl, and all the boys are together at one end of the floor, and me and this girl are on the opposite end! Also, because the number of boys just far exceeds the number of girls in our department, I just happen to know all the other boys, and the girl that I'm sharing an office with is a complete stranger to me. Figures, right?
I don't know if I've talked about this here before, but I need some perspective, so here it is: this post will be about my thesis (disgruntled readers, turn away now! this is bound to be uninteresting for nearly everybody!). For those curiously-minded, I am a graduate student in history--especially ancient roman history--specifically women/religion in the ancient roman empire. I'm nearly done with my MA program; I just need to finish up that pesky thing called the thesis. What, pray tell, am I writing this tome about? What is it that I spend days and nights dreaming, thinking, crying, praying, typing away at, scratching my head over? What is the topic that I've dedicated the last year and one-half to?
Well, it goes something like this (taken from a writing exercise from Kate Turabian's Manual of Style):
I am studying the topic of female priests/patrons in the first 3 centuries of the Roman empire, because I want to find out how women across the roman empire were obtaining public power/status in their communities through their works as both priestess and patroness, so that I can help others understand that women in ancient rome were not simply mothers and wives, that their influence was not merely in the domestic sphere, and that they could have power in their own right, as women equally able to change the face, customs, behaviours, way of life of their cities as any man--something that history in general seems to forget or overlook.
I will be the first to admit that I recognize that I, myself, am overwhelmed by what I'm arguing. I won't go into very much detail (because this post is already riveting as it is), but let me just say that it is a daunting task, and I am easily intimidated. Hence the laggy-ness on my part over the course of this summer to make any sort of real progress on my thesis.
However, when I come across a statement as such as this: By erecting large-scale structures, women effectively inserted a feminine voice, an alien prescence, into a predominantly masculine culture (Margaret L. Woodhull, "Matronly Patrons in the Early Roman Empire: The Case of Salvia Postuma" [I wish this thing had footnotes lol]), which, on the surface seems like a rather ordinary statement, but is really a comment on extraordinary behavior of women in a time that was so overtly masculine, and what a remarkable position these women were in to be able to stand right along side their male counterparts, and how important it is to recognize the efforts of these women, my heart bursts into a firey passion that screams out that THIS, this, is why I do what I do.
Women are so neglected, so marginalized, so downplayed in the history books, in the social studies books in schools. I think back to my own education, and how I didn't get an appreciation of a woman in history until I was in 7th grade, when I did a presentation of Eleanor of Aquitaine. I read the book, Of Scarlet and Miniver, a supplementary reading because I can't even remember if there was even a biographical slip of Eleanor in that social studies book, and through that book, forgiving all its romanticizing and character illusions, I found myself, for the first time, admiring an historical woman. And I mean, I really really admired her. But what, I was 12? 13? at the time? And I found that I did not have that feeling of admiration, of witnessing a woman's experience of history, for the rest of my middle/high school education. And how unfortunate is it that young girls are made to study the history through the eyes of men, and how they could potentially go through all that education without even once understanding her own self through that history, of not being able to see her own existence in the pages of that history because women are not taken seriously. And for all those haters who think that women do not have a place in their type of history because they didn't participate in wars, or politics, I just have to say that that means nothing because women were there too. Woman have always been there.
okay, enough of that. I didn't mean to rant on about feminist history haha.
On a completely different note, I got my office assignment and my office number for the semester <3 I was completely giddy, but it won't feel official until I get my KEYS. Oh, but, there are 9 TAs for the course, 7 boys and 2 girls, and get this, they paired off all the boys together, and put me with the girl, and all the boys are together at one end of the floor, and me and this girl are on the opposite end! Also, because the number of boys just far exceeds the number of girls in our department, I just happen to know all the other boys, and the girl that I'm sharing an office with is a complete stranger to me. Figures, right?
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
The London/England List: away we go!
London Musts
:British Museum
:Big Ben
:Buckingham Palace
:Grosevnor Square
:Trafalgar Square
:London Eye
:Piccadilly Circus
:Golders Green Borough
:Westminster Abbey
:Hyde Park
:St. Paul's Cathedral
:Tower of London
:Greenwich
Out & About England Musts
:Stonehenge
:Jane Austen Museum in Bath
:Roman Baths at Bath
:Chatsworth House in Derbyshire
:Lake District/ Peak District
:Lyme Park
Sunday, July 19, 2009
In the Kitchen...
I love that summer affords many an opportunity for cook-outs, outdoor get-togethers, BBQs, picnics, bonfires, wine-and-cheese nights, and of course, friendly dinners. It's always a time for friends and food, and also gives me an opportunity to get in the kitchen and make something. A lot of the time the things I want to make don't do well for travel, so my family/people at my house get to suffer through my cooking. Maybe I should host more dinner parties at home to overcome this issue--but then, my family is pretty crazy and I wouldn't want to willingly bring them upon anyone.
Anway, this is just a post featuring stuff I've made over this past week, and not much else.
proscuitto wrapped melon. I don't eat any pork save proscuitto.
Honey and soy glazed salmon.
Rice krispie treats!! [attempt #2 = success =) ]
tonights dinner: boiled sprimp& roasted asparagus.
lemon garnish #2--hey I'm not that creative.
not pictured: baked granola <3
Anway, this is just a post featuring stuff I've made over this past week, and not much else.
proscuitto wrapped melon. I don't eat any pork save proscuitto.
Honey and soy glazed salmon.
Rice krispie treats!! [attempt #2 = success =) ]
tonights dinner: boiled sprimp& roasted asparagus.
lemon garnish #2--hey I'm not that creative.not pictured: baked granola <3
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Happiness is in the Doing.
or so they say.
I've been toying with the notion of happiness of a while now, and although I have nothing profound to share as a result of my ponderings, I think it is always a good thing to re-evaluate yourself and what happy means to you in the moment.
This was all brought up because not to recently I noticed that maybe I wasn't as happy, wasn't as satisfied, with myself or the way in which things were going in my life. And it was an odd realization because I had previously known myself to be perfectly content with me, my projects, and my everyday life. So where had I gone wrong? How long had I been living in discontent? How had I let this happen, after working to get to such a good place? More importantly, how do I get back? I must get back, and yet, I was utterly confused.
So what did I do? I've been trying to fill my life with the things that bring me the most peace, the most joy, although I must admit that I relapse into non-happy behaviour more than I like. I took a short trip to Seattle, bought books, watched movies, read jane, and cooked my heart out. Its still a process--I am nowhere near gratified in my existence. I need to read more, go to church more, write more, visit with friends more, laugh a lot more, and maybe even cry even more than that.
I need to be grounded and keep myself centered and focused. I need to shake off these clouds and feel the moments that exist between the people that care about me, the infinity of the causes which I support and the goals I want to acheive, the importance of the work that I do now, and the hope that exists in the necessity of my dreams.
I've been toying with the notion of happiness of a while now, and although I have nothing profound to share as a result of my ponderings, I think it is always a good thing to re-evaluate yourself and what happy means to you in the moment.
This was all brought up because not to recently I noticed that maybe I wasn't as happy, wasn't as satisfied, with myself or the way in which things were going in my life. And it was an odd realization because I had previously known myself to be perfectly content with me, my projects, and my everyday life. So where had I gone wrong? How long had I been living in discontent? How had I let this happen, after working to get to such a good place? More importantly, how do I get back? I must get back, and yet, I was utterly confused.
So what did I do? I've been trying to fill my life with the things that bring me the most peace, the most joy, although I must admit that I relapse into non-happy behaviour more than I like. I took a short trip to Seattle, bought books, watched movies, read jane, and cooked my heart out. Its still a process--I am nowhere near gratified in my existence. I need to read more, go to church more, write more, visit with friends more, laugh a lot more, and maybe even cry even more than that.
I need to be grounded and keep myself centered and focused. I need to shake off these clouds and feel the moments that exist between the people that care about me, the infinity of the causes which I support and the goals I want to acheive, the importance of the work that I do now, and the hope that exists in the necessity of my dreams.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Some Photos from the Fourth
where: Poway Lake
when: the fourth of July 2009
My roasted corn with cheesers. I didn't eat this so I don't know how it turned out lol.
I love my straw hat! $2 bucks from target and my favorite summer accessory :)
when: the fourth of July 2009
My roasted corn with cheesers. I didn't eat this so I don't know how it turned out lol.
I love my straw hat! $2 bucks from target and my favorite summer accessory :)
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Drive-by Post! vrooom...
"Men have had every advantage of us in telling their own story. Education has been theirs in so much higher a degree; the pen has been in their hands. I will not allow books to prove anything." -Jane Austen, Persuasion.
Dear Jane. She was a feminist before feminism. Just another reason why I adore her. <3
Today I made a fantastic lunch completely on the fly (if I do say so myself): boiled shrimp with herbs and lemon, sauteed spinach and mushrooms and brown rice. I only wish I had taken a picture of it. I was pretty darn proud of myself! haha
sooo I didn't end up taking the art class. for many reasons which I don't entirely feel like explaining at the moment, its just not a good time. But let me just say, when I was in the art supplies aisle picking out the materials needed for the class, my heart was all aflutter. So definitely soon, just not yet.
Yesterday, after a disaster of a morning in which I didn't go to that art class, I ended up spending the morning at balboa park reading in front of zanadoo (sp?) and sipping on some mexican hot chocolate. After I was interrupted by a photo class as they scrambled to take pics for their assignments, I decided to walk the 13+ blocks up to flashbacks in hillcrest (I didn't have change for the meters and one of the things I enjoy is the free parking at balboa :) ). I bought a dress, a cardigan and a belt for $40 (not bad considering the cardigan itself would have been that price from urban outfitters), then ate lunch at sushi deli, and proceeded to get my hair cut. Shopping, lunch, and a haircut for under $100 bucks? Not too bad!
There is also a chance that I may be spending new years in London. This is a biggg maybe, but its still something worth dreaming about--especially those side trips to see all things Jane and Darcy!!!
on a side note, I really need to quit watching the reruns of the MJ memorial. sigh.
Dear Jane. She was a feminist before feminism. Just another reason why I adore her. <3
Today I made a fantastic lunch completely on the fly (if I do say so myself): boiled shrimp with herbs and lemon, sauteed spinach and mushrooms and brown rice. I only wish I had taken a picture of it. I was pretty darn proud of myself! haha
sooo I didn't end up taking the art class. for many reasons which I don't entirely feel like explaining at the moment, its just not a good time. But let me just say, when I was in the art supplies aisle picking out the materials needed for the class, my heart was all aflutter. So definitely soon, just not yet.
Yesterday, after a disaster of a morning in which I didn't go to that art class, I ended up spending the morning at balboa park reading in front of zanadoo (sp?) and sipping on some mexican hot chocolate. After I was interrupted by a photo class as they scrambled to take pics for their assignments, I decided to walk the 13+ blocks up to flashbacks in hillcrest (I didn't have change for the meters and one of the things I enjoy is the free parking at balboa :) ). I bought a dress, a cardigan and a belt for $40 (not bad considering the cardigan itself would have been that price from urban outfitters), then ate lunch at sushi deli, and proceeded to get my hair cut. Shopping, lunch, and a haircut for under $100 bucks? Not too bad!
There is also a chance that I may be spending new years in London. This is a biggg maybe, but its still something worth dreaming about--especially those side trips to see all things Jane and Darcy!!!
on a side note, I really need to quit watching the reruns of the MJ memorial. sigh.
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