28 June 2018:
"Take my life and let it be
A living prayer
My God to thee..." --Alison Krauss and Union Station, "A Living Prayer"
This week has been simply awful as it seems like all of the fears from November 2016 are coming to fruition. I wake up in the morning and remember where we are heading and it is just so painful. What brings comfort and strength? I don't know, but these words from "A Living Prayer" provide some comfort and guidance.
Thursday, June 28, 2018
Wednesday, June 27, 2018
Dear Prudence...
27 June 2018: "You will not be able to hate yourself out of this problem." --Dear Prudence dropping some serious wisdom on this week's podcast.
Tuesday, June 26, 2018
Nanette
26 June 2018: "But I have been questioning this whole comedy thing. I don’t feel very comfortable in it anymore. I built a career out of self-deprecating humor. That’s what I built a career on. And I don’t want to do that anymore. Because do you understand what self-deprecation means when it comes from somebody who already exists in the margins? It’s not humility. It’s humiliation. I put myself down in order to speak—in order to seek permission to speak. And I simply will not do that anymore, not to myself or to anybody who identifies with me." --Hannah Gadsby, in her comedy special, Nanette.
I started watching Nanette last night and the particular section I quoted above (discussed in more detail in this piece) really jumped out at me. I am always interested in what marginalized folks have to do to gain a voice--and the price they pay to do so. It is particularly interesting to think about this through the lens of comedy. As someone who likes to make people laugh, sometimes at my own expense, I find myself looking back at those moves and asking, "Wait, they laughed with me. But was it also at me? That doesn't feel great." (This happens less now than when I was younger...)
(Two posts in a row based on stand-up specials (by queer women, too), but avoiding repetition has never been reason enough for me to change my daily posting plans.)
I started watching Nanette last night and the particular section I quoted above (discussed in more detail in this piece) really jumped out at me. I am always interested in what marginalized folks have to do to gain a voice--and the price they pay to do so. It is particularly interesting to think about this through the lens of comedy. As someone who likes to make people laugh, sometimes at my own expense, I find myself looking back at those moves and asking, "Wait, they laughed with me. But was it also at me? That doesn't feel great." (This happens less now than when I was younger...)
(Two posts in a row based on stand-up specials (by queer women, too), but avoiding repetition has never been reason enough for me to change my daily posting plans.)
Monday, June 25, 2018
Rape Jokes
25 June 2018: “You wanna leave a legacy? Get in the way.” –Cameron Esposito, towards the end of her comedy special Rape Jokes, which you can watch here. It's available for free, but you can (and should, if you are able) kick in a donation to RAINN. It's money well spent--one hour of great comedy with moments of real gravity and importance.
Sunday, June 24, 2018
"Leopard"
24 June 2018: Listened to this story this morning on my walk. It's an amazing portrait of an eleven year old's mind. That it is read by David Sedaris, who then discusses it afterwards, is a terrific bonus. Give it a listen.
Saturday, June 23, 2018
Ballpark fun!
23 June 2018: An evening at the ballpark with a couple of my favorite people. Lovely. (And a free bobble head!)
Friday, June 22, 2018
"Us Again"
22 June 2018:
Rainy day = plans to go blueberry picking with my sister and the girls are canceled
+
Rainy day = evening plans to see a baseball game with fireworks after probably also canceled
+
Frustration/guilt over not getting enough work done yet this summer
+
Mopey/big thoughts in general
=
1 Bad Mood.
BUT....
1 Bad Mood
+
This song
=
1 Slowly-Getting-Better Mood
Rainy day = plans to go blueberry picking with my sister and the girls are canceled
+
Rainy day = evening plans to see a baseball game with fireworks after probably also canceled
+
Frustration/guilt over not getting enough work done yet this summer
+
Mopey/big thoughts in general
=
1 Bad Mood.
BUT....
1 Bad Mood
+
This song
=
1 Slowly-Getting-Better Mood
Thursday, June 21, 2018
"a great navigator..."
21 June 2018: “She should have been a man—a great navigator…her strong, impervious will would never have been doubted by opposition or difficulty” –Constantin Heger (who was her tutor in Belgium) on Emily Brontë.
Spent some time today thinking about Brontë and preparing for my seminar in the fall. Endlessly fascinated by how often nineteenth-century folks wish out loud that talented women were men.
Spent some time today thinking about Brontë and preparing for my seminar in the fall. Endlessly fascinated by how often nineteenth-century folks wish out loud that talented women were men.
Wednesday, June 20, 2018
Summer 2018 Grading: DONE!
Just clicked "submit" on final grades. Feels good, but a bit more mellow than during the regular semester. So cue mellow chair-dancing.
Truth...
20 June 2018:
I haven't been able to stop thinking about those babies crying for their parents. I saw this image on Facebook and it really spoke to me, especially as someone who regularly teaches abolitionist texts and wonders what I would have done back in those days.
So I contacted my senators and congressman today. And I will keep doing it. And I want to do more. We must do more.
I haven't been able to stop thinking about those babies crying for their parents. I saw this image on Facebook and it really spoke to me, especially as someone who regularly teaches abolitionist texts and wonders what I would have done back in those days.
So I contacted my senators and congressman today. And I will keep doing it. And I want to do more. We must do more.
Tuesday, June 19, 2018
Monday, June 18, 2018
Don't look away...
18 June 2018: I just forced myself to listen to this entire recording. It is excruciating and I found myself sobbing out loud. This policy is evil. What else is there to say?
Sunday, June 17, 2018
Saturday, June 16, 2018
Sleepy pep talk...
16 June 2018: Saturday syllabizing with some encouragement from my biggest fan. He's like, "you got this, but I need a nap."
Friday, June 15, 2018
More on A Tale for the Time Being
15 June 2018: This book is dominating my posts this week. One reason is obvious, as we are moving through it in my summer class. But it is also resonating as we move through yet another horrific week for our country...children ripped from parents, put in cages...it's too much. So these words from one of Ozeki's characters, who is struck by the power of literature, move me yet again:
“I find myself drawn to literature more now than in the past; not the individual works as much as the idea of literature—the heroic effort and nobility of our human desire to make beauty of our minds, which moves me to tears, and I have to brush them away quickly, before anyone notices” (257).
“I find myself drawn to literature more now than in the past; not the individual works as much as the idea of literature—the heroic effort and nobility of our human desire to make beauty of our minds, which moves me to tears, and I have to brush them away quickly, before anyone notices” (257).
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