It's almost 3:00 am and I'm lying on my couch with ear-buds in so as not to wake my sweet husband who has to get up early tomorrow. It's just me and the cats and my swollen, red eyes. Yes, I've been crying like a baby because I've been watching Mother and Child. I had heard an NPR interview with the director, Rodrigo Garcia, over the summer and made a mental note to watch it. I'm sorry it's taken me this long. The ice storm is heading our way so I stopped at the library after work and found it. Needless to say, though I'll not enjoy the headache and baggy eyes tomorrow, it was by far one of the best films I've seen in quite a while. If you get the chance and see it in the movie store, or like me, chance upon it at the library, take it home and watch it with a box of Kleenex's close by.
Monday, 31 January 2011
Sunday, 30 January 2011
.embrace the winter weather.
So Scott and I managed to stay away from all fast-food restaurants until today - which I guess we can say is the new week - when we tried out a Popeye's. But we did make it a whole week eating our farmer's market food, so maybe we could just say that we were just awarding our good behavior with some guilty-pleasure fried chicken.
While I've been reading lots of negative comments on Facebook about the snowy, icy, and frigid weather, I have to say that I've not been one to complain about it just yet. I might not like having to trek in the snow to catch my shuttle for school or having to wear snow boots and then change into flats or heels for teaching, I don't mind getting to come home to our warm apartment, curl up on the couch with blankets, and read or watch TV - which by the way, if no one has noticed, Parks & Recreation has returned for its second season on NBC after being bumped in the Fall thanks to Outsourced - boo! So Thursday nights allow for a wonderful night of TV viewing in the McDaniel household with Community, The Office, and P and R, and I don't even feel guilty for sitting in front of the TV that long because it is snowy and icy out.
But today was perhaps the first day I realized I'm, in fact, secretly looking forward to spring's arrival and I'm hoping to try out some new things on our small balcony. Jenna Woginrich is a farm writer/blogger from New York who has written books about the pleasure of the homemade and beginning farming. Scott and I hope to have a farm sometime in the future so we perked up when we heard her story on NPR's The Splendid Table today. She was explaining the surprisingly easy lifestyle of raising hens in urban areas - I couldn't believe that people actually have hen coops outside their New York apartments! Now while I'm not planning on going out and purchasing a small hen and pre-made hen coop as a project this summer (I think our balcony is too small unfortunately) I love the idea of having one soon - so it will just have to wait for now. You can see some of the pre-made coops here. I do, however, want to start an herb garden and perhaps a couple of tomato plants. My only concern is that our balcony gets too hot, because it was difficult keeping the plants we had last year watered enough. So I suppose I will have to do some research before tackling this little project. And I know that some herbs can be grown inside but we have no more room!
So to those of you have begun complaining about the winter weather, embrace the coziness of the indoors and join me in making spring plans - it'll be here before you know it!
While I've been reading lots of negative comments on Facebook about the snowy, icy, and frigid weather, I have to say that I've not been one to complain about it just yet. I might not like having to trek in the snow to catch my shuttle for school or having to wear snow boots and then change into flats or heels for teaching, I don't mind getting to come home to our warm apartment, curl up on the couch with blankets, and read or watch TV - which by the way, if no one has noticed, Parks & Recreation has returned for its second season on NBC after being bumped in the Fall thanks to Outsourced - boo! So Thursday nights allow for a wonderful night of TV viewing in the McDaniel household with Community, The Office, and P and R, and I don't even feel guilty for sitting in front of the TV that long because it is snowy and icy out.
But today was perhaps the first day I realized I'm, in fact, secretly looking forward to spring's arrival and I'm hoping to try out some new things on our small balcony. Jenna Woginrich is a farm writer/blogger from New York who has written books about the pleasure of the homemade and beginning farming. Scott and I hope to have a farm sometime in the future so we perked up when we heard her story on NPR's The Splendid Table today. She was explaining the surprisingly easy lifestyle of raising hens in urban areas - I couldn't believe that people actually have hen coops outside their New York apartments! Now while I'm not planning on going out and purchasing a small hen and pre-made hen coop as a project this summer (I think our balcony is too small unfortunately) I love the idea of having one soon - so it will just have to wait for now. You can see some of the pre-made coops here. I do, however, want to start an herb garden and perhaps a couple of tomato plants. My only concern is that our balcony gets too hot, because it was difficult keeping the plants we had last year watered enough. So I suppose I will have to do some research before tackling this little project. And I know that some herbs can be grown inside but we have no more room!
So to those of you have begun complaining about the winter weather, embrace the coziness of the indoors and join me in making spring plans - it'll be here before you know it!
Saturday, 29 January 2011
.what's in a name?.
This week in my Feminist Memoir class, we devoted most of our time to writing with prompts and examples from other memoirs. It was comforting therapy for the week I was having so far (which turned out fine in the end), and I really enjoyed having to sit down and write, getting to share and hear others' stories.
One of the prompts made us first list all the verifiable facts about our name - how it's spelled, what it means, who else shares it, how we get it, etc. - and the second part required us to take the "creative leap" and make connections, writing about our names from the "inside out." I enjoyed it so much I had my own Eng 101 students do in class yesterday and I can't wait to read them when I get their midterm portfolios on Monday. Here's what I came up with! (Try it - it's fun!)
My name is Jade. J-A-D-E. Most often when I tell people they call me Jane or Jada. But it's Jade like the color, the stone, the Chinese buffet down the street. Mom got it from an 80's movie she adored when her and Dad were dating, but I can never think of the title*. The theme song was "Endless Love" - and that's their song too. For the longest time our car tags said JDE-ISRL for my name and brother, Israel's and people thought we were Jewish. I'll never forget being stopped in a drive-thru when we were on vacation and having someone ask if it stood for Judea-Israel. But it's just Jade. J-A-D-E.
*I've since figured out (by asking Mom) that the movie is in fact called, "Endless Love" also...
I love my name,
but I hate having to introduce myself.
I've almost come to the conclusion
that a green-colored name badge would be a good hint.
"Hi, my name is Jade."
"Hello Jane" -
it always goes the same way.
I'm left wondering whether I should rudely interrupt
and spell it out - J-A-D-E, not J-A-N-E!
Other times I make the mistake
of putting the emphasis on the "duh" sound
and people mistake it for Jada.
Most times I let it slide,
hoping they'll eventually figure it out,
but other times I do interrupt with a proud correction
of the name given to me by two love-struck parents-to-be,
who heard the name in their favorite 80's movie.
One of the prompts made us first list all the verifiable facts about our name - how it's spelled, what it means, who else shares it, how we get it, etc. - and the second part required us to take the "creative leap" and make connections, writing about our names from the "inside out." I enjoyed it so much I had my own Eng 101 students do in class yesterday and I can't wait to read them when I get their midterm portfolios on Monday. Here's what I came up with! (Try it - it's fun!)
My name is Jade. J-A-D-E. Most often when I tell people they call me Jane or Jada. But it's Jade like the color, the stone, the Chinese buffet down the street. Mom got it from an 80's movie she adored when her and Dad were dating, but I can never think of the title*. The theme song was "Endless Love" - and that's their song too. For the longest time our car tags said JDE-ISRL for my name and brother, Israel's and people thought we were Jewish. I'll never forget being stopped in a drive-thru when we were on vacation and having someone ask if it stood for Judea-Israel. But it's just Jade. J-A-D-E.
*I've since figured out (by asking Mom) that the movie is in fact called, "Endless Love" also...
I love my name,
but I hate having to introduce myself.
I've almost come to the conclusion
that a green-colored name badge would be a good hint.
"Hi, my name is Jade."
"Hello Jane" -
it always goes the same way.
I'm left wondering whether I should rudely interrupt
and spell it out - J-A-D-E, not J-A-N-E!
Other times I make the mistake
of putting the emphasis on the "duh" sound
and people mistake it for Jada.
Most times I let it slide,
hoping they'll eventually figure it out,
but other times I do interrupt with a proud correction
of the name given to me by two love-struck parents-to-be,
who heard the name in their favorite 80's movie.
Saturday, 22 January 2011
.no more nuggets.
So as bad as I feel admitting this, over the course of the holiday season (both Thanksgiving and Christmas) Scott and I consumed (at least) two of the new 50 piece McNugget meals by ourselves. Yes, as I said, I'm not too proud to admit this. For some reason we were both craving the crunchy, guilty pleasure meat that is the McNugget. It was also quite enticing knowing that we could feed ourselves (for both lunch and a snack later) on less than $12 which included the 50 pieces, two large fries (oh yes, the delicious steaming, salty fries of McD's) and two large drinks. Now, before everyone starts thinking horrible thoughts about us, we were mostly snacking on them en route from Ohio to Virginia during the holidays, but there was also one day we ventured to the McDonald's down the street from our apartment (in the cold and snow) and stood in line to get the lovely 50-piece box (and I swear to you, a couple beside us were in disbelief that we could be waiting for the meal-deal. I could just about bet that they were hoping we had friends somewhere waiting to share them. But just for spite, we sat down right in the "restaurant" and dug into the box together).
Now, we had both already heard the many criticisms of the "all white meat" promises from commercials and so on, but nothing had stopped us in our eating tracks until we read this article from The Huffington Post. The article claims that McNuggets, along with other food items from McDonald's, contain only half of the "all white meat" they claim. The rest can pretty much be summed up in 13-plus letter words that you've probably never heard of, but can be better understood by saying "non-food ingredients."
Needless to say, Scott and I have taken a vow to never consume (if at all humanly possible) the oh-so-delicious-but-quite-hazardous Chicken McNuggets. Since reading this article we've not dawned the doors of a McD's (not even for a Frappe), and have made an attempt to stop eating at fast food chains altogether. I'm sure it will be hard considering our busy schedules (and love for fast food), but we're in this together and we're taking it one day at a time. Today, we went to the Farmer's Market and purchased some fruit, veggies, and trail mixes for snacking in the hopes that we can deter our appetites from dollar menus and super-sized thoughts, and I'm going to work hard to stay away from the snack machines at school (even though they call my name during my night classes).
So wish us luck and happy eating!
Now, we had both already heard the many criticisms of the "all white meat" promises from commercials and so on, but nothing had stopped us in our eating tracks until we read this article from The Huffington Post. The article claims that McNuggets, along with other food items from McDonald's, contain only half of the "all white meat" they claim. The rest can pretty much be summed up in 13-plus letter words that you've probably never heard of, but can be better understood by saying "non-food ingredients."
Needless to say, Scott and I have taken a vow to never consume (if at all humanly possible) the oh-so-delicious-but-quite-hazardous Chicken McNuggets. Since reading this article we've not dawned the doors of a McD's (not even for a Frappe), and have made an attempt to stop eating at fast food chains altogether. I'm sure it will be hard considering our busy schedules (and love for fast food), but we're in this together and we're taking it one day at a time. Today, we went to the Farmer's Market and purchased some fruit, veggies, and trail mixes for snacking in the hopes that we can deter our appetites from dollar menus and super-sized thoughts, and I'm going to work hard to stay away from the snack machines at school (even though they call my name during my night classes).
So wish us luck and happy eating!
Sunday, 16 January 2011
.a litany to honor women.
Last night, after dinner with friends, they showed us a copy of their Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals. Scott and I both thumbed through the book, and as I was browsing the contents one of the prayers caught my eye; it was a litany to honor women. Since we don't have a copy of our own (yet), I came home and Googled it, and found it on "being ryan byrd"'s blog. This prayer really touched and spoke to me, and so I wanted to share it with you today.
A Litany to Honor Women
We walk in the company of the women who have gone before, mothers of the faith both named and unnamed,
testifying with ferocity and faith to the spirit of wisdom and healing.
they are the judges, the prophets, the martyrs, the warriors, poets, lovers and saints who are near to us in the shadow of awareness, in the crevices of memory, in the landscape of our dreams.
We walk in the company of Deborah,
who judged the israelites with authority and strength.
We walk in the company of Esther,
who used here position as queen to ensure the welfare of her people.
We walk in the company of your whose names have been lost and silenced,
who kept and cradled the wisdom of the ages.
We walk in the company of the woman with the flow of blood,
who audaciously sought her healing and release.
We walk in the company of Mary Magdalene,
who wept at the empty tomb until the risen christ appeared.
We walk in the company of Phoebe,
who led an early church in the empire of rome.
We walk in the company of Perpetua of Carthage,
who witness in the third century led to her martyrdom.
We walk in the company of St. Christian the astonishing,
who resisted death with persistence and wonder.
We walk in the company of Julian of Norwich,
who wed imagination and theology, proclaiming "all shall be well".
We walk in the company of Sojourner Truth,
who stood against oppression, righteously declaring in 1852, "ain't i a woman!"
We walk in the company of the Argentine mothers of the Plaza de Mayo,
who turned their grief to strength, standing together to remember "the disappeared" children of war with a holy indignation.
We walk in the company of Alice Walker,
who named the lavender hue of womanly strength.
We walk in the company of you mothers of the faith,
who teach us to resist evil with boldness, to lead with wisdom, and to heal.
Amen.
A Litany to Honor Women
We walk in the company of the women who have gone before, mothers of the faith both named and unnamed,
testifying with ferocity and faith to the spirit of wisdom and healing.
they are the judges, the prophets, the martyrs, the warriors, poets, lovers and saints who are near to us in the shadow of awareness, in the crevices of memory, in the landscape of our dreams.
We walk in the company of Deborah,
who judged the israelites with authority and strength.
We walk in the company of Esther,
who used here position as queen to ensure the welfare of her people.
We walk in the company of your whose names have been lost and silenced,
who kept and cradled the wisdom of the ages.
We walk in the company of the woman with the flow of blood,
who audaciously sought her healing and release.
We walk in the company of Mary Magdalene,
who wept at the empty tomb until the risen christ appeared.
We walk in the company of Phoebe,
who led an early church in the empire of rome.
We walk in the company of Perpetua of Carthage,
who witness in the third century led to her martyrdom.
We walk in the company of St. Christian the astonishing,
who resisted death with persistence and wonder.
We walk in the company of Julian of Norwich,
who wed imagination and theology, proclaiming "all shall be well".
We walk in the company of Sojourner Truth,
who stood against oppression, righteously declaring in 1852, "ain't i a woman!"
We walk in the company of the Argentine mothers of the Plaza de Mayo,
who turned their grief to strength, standing together to remember "the disappeared" children of war with a holy indignation.
We walk in the company of Alice Walker,
who named the lavender hue of womanly strength.
We walk in the company of you mothers of the faith,
who teach us to resist evil with boldness, to lead with wisdom, and to heal.
Amen.
Saturday, 15 January 2011
I spy...a bumper sticker
I saw this delightful bumper sticker last night and it made me very happy:
"Too bad all the people fit to run the world are too busy teaching school."
"Too bad all the people fit to run the world are too busy teaching school."
Thursday, 13 January 2011
An Update...Finally!
I was reminded by a friend that I needed to update my blog. The truth is, it's been on my mind, but I've been extremely busy with classes starting back, teaching English and guitar lessons, and lazying about the apartment with Scott after all the busy Christmas festivities (and yes, this was a priority!).
Since my last post, Scott and I celebrated our one-year anniversary together, and I have to say, I can't believe it's been a year already! "2010" seems to have flown by, and our first year of marriage was 12 months of laughing, learning to live in the same space, traveling, and growing as a couple! We've had so much fun together and I love knowing that at the end of the day I get to come home to him (and our two cats of course).
We had a little scare with our sweet Sammy - who has now become quite a diva, I'm afraid. He started squatting different places in the apartment and acting irritated when he urinated. As we had suspected, when we took him to the Emergency Vet Hospital they said he had a serious urinary tract blockage. Nearly 6 overnight stays at the vet and $800 later, we had him back in our apartment with a new, strict diet and a newly-acquired sensitive disposition. His blockage had been our fault, (apparently!) for making him suffer long rides in the car traveling from OH to VA. Needless to say, we won't be taking them home with us anymore and all our traveling will be less stressful for us and the cats. So no real complaints here, except that he now pouts and meows if we're not paying him enough attention (especially Scott!)
The new quarter of classes started a couple weeks ago and I'm taking "Feminist Memoir" and "Virginia Woolf/Elizabeth Bowen." For the memoir class we will get to meet and have lunch with one of the authors and we'll be writing our own feminist memoirs - which I've been so excited about I already started! Right now I'm having fun writing with no inhibitions, but I know when it comes time to turn it in, some of it will change and be deleted. It's interesting to think about as we are reading other women's memoirs - they're so courageous in revealing all their personal secrets with complete strangers. Our class discussions have been both analytic and therapeutic as we discuss the different literary elements of the memoirs, as well as our own differences and similarities with the narrators.
It's equally interesting to be reading these feminist memoirs for class, in addition to the collection of stories Scott got me for Christmas called, Jesus Girls: True Stories of Growing Up Female and Evangelical. The book had been recommended to me sometime ago by a friend here in Ohio. There are so many complexities and issues that arise when you grow up "female and evangelical," and it's been interesting to be able to hear echoes of my childhood in the voices of these women - nights spent at prayer meetings, AWANA, church politics, etc. And it's not necessarily a glorification of that kind of childhood, either - it's very much a critique and critical reflection, which I love! Similar to the feminist memoirs we're reading in class, the authors push you to reflect and ponder your own personal experiences.
I'm equally excited about the Woolf/Bowen class, but we've only had one meeting because of snow. I'd never previously heard about Elizabeth Bowen in any of my Lit. classes, but I've enjoyed reading her novels based in London during WWII.
Along with my literary studies, I am a part of a small team of grad students researching developmental reading and writing students and trying to develop a new curriculum that would help them to be better prepared for success in college. It has been an eye-opening experience as I'm learning so many pedagogical theories - it can be quite overwhelming at times wondering what kind of teacher you want to be. Just when you have it figured out in a neat purposeful statement, you read something else that leaves you stumped! But I'm thankful for this opportunity to learn so much about developmental students and classes. It would quite a challenge to be able to teach one someday and I'm hoping I get the chance.
Well that's what's been going in my life lately! I'm afraid I won't be as faithful about updating as I was this time last year, but hopefully I can update every now and then.
Since my last post, Scott and I celebrated our one-year anniversary together, and I have to say, I can't believe it's been a year already! "2010" seems to have flown by, and our first year of marriage was 12 months of laughing, learning to live in the same space, traveling, and growing as a couple! We've had so much fun together and I love knowing that at the end of the day I get to come home to him (and our two cats of course).
We had a little scare with our sweet Sammy - who has now become quite a diva, I'm afraid. He started squatting different places in the apartment and acting irritated when he urinated. As we had suspected, when we took him to the Emergency Vet Hospital they said he had a serious urinary tract blockage. Nearly 6 overnight stays at the vet and $800 later, we had him back in our apartment with a new, strict diet and a newly-acquired sensitive disposition. His blockage had been our fault, (apparently!) for making him suffer long rides in the car traveling from OH to VA. Needless to say, we won't be taking them home with us anymore and all our traveling will be less stressful for us and the cats. So no real complaints here, except that he now pouts and meows if we're not paying him enough attention (especially Scott!)
The new quarter of classes started a couple weeks ago and I'm taking "Feminist Memoir" and "Virginia Woolf/Elizabeth Bowen." For the memoir class we will get to meet and have lunch with one of the authors and we'll be writing our own feminist memoirs - which I've been so excited about I already started! Right now I'm having fun writing with no inhibitions, but I know when it comes time to turn it in, some of it will change and be deleted. It's interesting to think about as we are reading other women's memoirs - they're so courageous in revealing all their personal secrets with complete strangers. Our class discussions have been both analytic and therapeutic as we discuss the different literary elements of the memoirs, as well as our own differences and similarities with the narrators.
It's equally interesting to be reading these feminist memoirs for class, in addition to the collection of stories Scott got me for Christmas called, Jesus Girls: True Stories of Growing Up Female and Evangelical. The book had been recommended to me sometime ago by a friend here in Ohio. There are so many complexities and issues that arise when you grow up "female and evangelical," and it's been interesting to be able to hear echoes of my childhood in the voices of these women - nights spent at prayer meetings, AWANA, church politics, etc. And it's not necessarily a glorification of that kind of childhood, either - it's very much a critique and critical reflection, which I love! Similar to the feminist memoirs we're reading in class, the authors push you to reflect and ponder your own personal experiences.
I'm equally excited about the Woolf/Bowen class, but we've only had one meeting because of snow. I'd never previously heard about Elizabeth Bowen in any of my Lit. classes, but I've enjoyed reading her novels based in London during WWII.
Along with my literary studies, I am a part of a small team of grad students researching developmental reading and writing students and trying to develop a new curriculum that would help them to be better prepared for success in college. It has been an eye-opening experience as I'm learning so many pedagogical theories - it can be quite overwhelming at times wondering what kind of teacher you want to be. Just when you have it figured out in a neat purposeful statement, you read something else that leaves you stumped! But I'm thankful for this opportunity to learn so much about developmental students and classes. It would quite a challenge to be able to teach one someday and I'm hoping I get the chance.
Well that's what's been going in my life lately! I'm afraid I won't be as faithful about updating as I was this time last year, but hopefully I can update every now and then.
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