Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Monday, December 3, 2007
toe
Johnny, the red-toed boy, post-op, still numbed, hopped up on vicadin.
Lucky you, you didn't have to see the toe without the bandage. It's super bruised and bloody. But it's fixed, which is what counts.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Our Laundry
our laundry piles up so much that it no longer is contained in the hamper. it spills over and eventually we're throwing clothes on the floor next to the hamper. Friday night i decided to wash our clothes. i fill up two of the biggest trash bags i have ever seen and head for the basement. i take up three washers (it would've been four, but there are only three washers in the basement, so i made them fit in three.) this was the easy part. we, the farnugas (farnan + muga= farnuga), are famous for never folding our clothes after we wash them. they stay in the big trash bags and we pull clothes out as we need them. one time Jane (one of our housemates) folded all of our clothes for us, pretty sad. so in this picture, you can see two trash bags full of clothes and some on the chair. this was my attempt at folding and putting them away. i got as far as 4 shirts and sweater, then put them on the chair. and, yes that is Ashley sleeping in the bed.
johnny
Friday, November 30, 2007
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Happy Birthday Erin!
hope the day of your birth has been a happy one.
a little picture of happiness for you.
p.s. a happy belated birthday to jewelianne.
a little picture of happiness for you.
p.s. a happy belated birthday to jewelianne.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
tuberculosis
i received an email yesterday from smith health services saying that a girl on campus is being treated for tuberculosis, and that anybody who's been in contact with her recently should be tested. i was just informed by the girl whose room johnny and i stayed in over thanksgiving break that the girl lived in the house we stayed in, and everybody who lives in that house has to be tested. now we have to get tested.
p.s. everybody needs to harrass johnny to make an appointment to get tested. i'm getting tested for free through smith, but obviously he doesn't have that option. unless you want him to get tb, bug the hella outta himma.
p.s. everybody needs to harrass johnny to make an appointment to get tested. i'm getting tested for free through smith, but obviously he doesn't have that option. unless you want him to get tb, bug the hella outta himma.
wtf america
So right now in my "Gender, Law, and Society" class we're doing a unit on domestic violence. I thought I'd share this particularly lovely case with you. The case is called Castle Rock v. Gonzalez. It went to the Supreme Court in 2005. Enjoy.
So this occured in the town of Castle Rock, Colorado. On June 4, 1999, Jessica Gonzales and her husband divorce, and she gets a restraining order against him because he abused her during their marriage. On June 22, 5:15 pm, the husband comes and takes their 3 daughters (thus violating the restraining order). Jessica calls the police over and over and over, begging them to do something, and they refuse. Finally Jessica gets ahold of her husband and he says he has the kids at an amusement park in Denver. She tells the police, and they still don't do anything. She visits the police station in person at around midnight, and they take the report and send her home. They still don't do anything. At 3:20 am, the husband shows up at the Castle Rock police station, opens fire, kills a bunch of cops, and kills himself. Then they find the 3 daughters dead in the trunk. He had killed them with a gun he bought after he had taken them to the amusement park.
And here's the kicker: the husband worked at a diner in Castle Rock which the cops frequented often, so he and the cops were buddy-buddy.
So Jessica Gonzalez sued the police department for refusing to take action. If finally goes to the Supreme Court, and what do they say? She loses, because apparently the cops had no obligation to enforce the restraining order. Awesome.
Now this woman is going to International Courts, including the UN Human Rights Committee. Here's the great part. If she wins, the U.S. doesn't have to do anything about it, because we suck and WE ARE THE ONLY DEVELOPED COUNTRY WHICH REFUSES TO RATIFY THE Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which was adopted by the UN in 1979.
So this occured in the town of Castle Rock, Colorado. On June 4, 1999, Jessica Gonzales and her husband divorce, and she gets a restraining order against him because he abused her during their marriage. On June 22, 5:15 pm, the husband comes and takes their 3 daughters (thus violating the restraining order). Jessica calls the police over and over and over, begging them to do something, and they refuse. Finally Jessica gets ahold of her husband and he says he has the kids at an amusement park in Denver. She tells the police, and they still don't do anything. She visits the police station in person at around midnight, and they take the report and send her home. They still don't do anything. At 3:20 am, the husband shows up at the Castle Rock police station, opens fire, kills a bunch of cops, and kills himself. Then they find the 3 daughters dead in the trunk. He had killed them with a gun he bought after he had taken them to the amusement park.
And here's the kicker: the husband worked at a diner in Castle Rock which the cops frequented often, so he and the cops were buddy-buddy.
So Jessica Gonzalez sued the police department for refusing to take action. If finally goes to the Supreme Court, and what do they say? She loses, because apparently the cops had no obligation to enforce the restraining order. Awesome.
Now this woman is going to International Courts, including the UN Human Rights Committee. Here's the great part. If she wins, the U.S. doesn't have to do anything about it, because we suck and WE ARE THE ONLY DEVELOPED COUNTRY WHICH REFUSES TO RATIFY THE Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which was adopted by the UN in 1979.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Sunday, November 25, 2007
HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
first of all, today is pam's 19th birthday!!!! happy birthday pam!!!!!!!!!!!!
now here's a look at where we were at midnight, right when pam turned 19. what a special moment.....
also, as you view these pictures, keep in mind that this is the second time in a day that johnny has eaten at mcdonald's. initally he was contemplating the 20 piece nugget and the double quarter pounder, but he finally settled on the 8 piece nugget and the double quarter pounder. i'm really scared.
sorry the pictures are so blurry....my camera was being weird. maybe it just doesn't like being in mcdonald's, like me. it was pretty funny though, cause i kept taking pictures with the flash on and this one guy (drugged....?) was freaking out cause he kept seeing the flash and he didn't know where it was coming from. idiot.
umm....why is mcdonald's ketchup fancy?
in other news, i've decided to eliminate sugar from my diet for a month to see how i feel. the 2 women who hosted thanksgiving dinner have been doing it, and they said they feel so incredibly much better since they've started doing it. i'm not looking for a change in appearance, just a change in how i feel. i've been eating crappier lately and i don't like it. i worked out yesterday for the first time in awhile, and it felt amazing. while i was at the gym i saw the professor who's mentoring me on my boren fellowship application, and it was kind of awkward but then he said hi and we talked about how canadians celebrate thanksgiving.... he just finished running a full marathon, and it tweaked his knee so he's in recovery now.
the end.
OH YEAH. also.... i had a panic attack last night becuase i started thinking about how i have NO idea what the dress code is going to be for my hillary clinton internship this winter. what do ya'll think? am i gonna have to go shopping for a whole new "professional" wardrobe, or are they gonna let us wear jeans? obviously you have no way of knowing, but......
now here's a look at where we were at midnight, right when pam turned 19. what a special moment.....
also, as you view these pictures, keep in mind that this is the second time in a day that johnny has eaten at mcdonald's. initally he was contemplating the 20 piece nugget and the double quarter pounder, but he finally settled on the 8 piece nugget and the double quarter pounder. i'm really scared.
sorry the pictures are so blurry....my camera was being weird. maybe it just doesn't like being in mcdonald's, like me. it was pretty funny though, cause i kept taking pictures with the flash on and this one guy (drugged....?) was freaking out cause he kept seeing the flash and he didn't know where it was coming from. idiot.
umm....why is mcdonald's ketchup fancy?
in other news, i've decided to eliminate sugar from my diet for a month to see how i feel. the 2 women who hosted thanksgiving dinner have been doing it, and they said they feel so incredibly much better since they've started doing it. i'm not looking for a change in appearance, just a change in how i feel. i've been eating crappier lately and i don't like it. i worked out yesterday for the first time in awhile, and it felt amazing. while i was at the gym i saw the professor who's mentoring me on my boren fellowship application, and it was kind of awkward but then he said hi and we talked about how canadians celebrate thanksgiving.... he just finished running a full marathon, and it tweaked his knee so he's in recovery now.
the end.
OH YEAH. also.... i had a panic attack last night becuase i started thinking about how i have NO idea what the dress code is going to be for my hillary clinton internship this winter. what do ya'll think? am i gonna have to go shopping for a whole new "professional" wardrobe, or are they gonna let us wear jeans? obviously you have no way of knowing, but......
Friday, November 23, 2007
Thursday, November 22, 2007
masculinity
So I'm reading about a theory by a feminist named Nancy Chodorow which tries to explain women's oppression and gender differences, and specifically how boys/men develop a notion of masculinity. IT'S SO INTERESTING.
Here's a quote about her theory, because I'm not even going to begin to try to paraphrase it. I know it's long and complicated, but it's very interesting, and it's gonna take me FOREVER to type, so....
"Chodorow's purpose was to seek to explain why women and not men perform mothering functions. According to her theory, girls' identification with their mothers brings with it a sense of continuity with others. In contrast, boys, in order to attain gender identity, must reject identification with their mothers. Boys not only grow up to see girls and women as 'other,' but have a strong need to do so in order to maintain their own gender identity. Because fathers do not 'mother' infants, boys' identification with their fathers is in a sense an identification with an idealized masculinity, and thus rigid and stereotypical.
"In this way boys construct their masculinity 'largely in negative terms.' This construction is more precarious than gender construction in girls and is harder to maintain. Indeed, it must be maintained through a lifelong rather rigid differentiation from women as 'other' and a basic contempt for women. 'A boy's contempt for his mother serves to free him not only from his mother but also from the femininity within himself.'
So basically, I guess she's saying that it's because of this lifelong need to continually reestablish his gender identity that man oppresses/abuses/sexualizes woman. Obviously it's very high-in-the-sky theoretical, but interesting to ponder....
Here's a quote about her theory, because I'm not even going to begin to try to paraphrase it. I know it's long and complicated, but it's very interesting, and it's gonna take me FOREVER to type, so....
"Chodorow's purpose was to seek to explain why women and not men perform mothering functions. According to her theory, girls' identification with their mothers brings with it a sense of continuity with others. In contrast, boys, in order to attain gender identity, must reject identification with their mothers. Boys not only grow up to see girls and women as 'other,' but have a strong need to do so in order to maintain their own gender identity. Because fathers do not 'mother' infants, boys' identification with their fathers is in a sense an identification with an idealized masculinity, and thus rigid and stereotypical.
"In this way boys construct their masculinity 'largely in negative terms.' This construction is more precarious than gender construction in girls and is harder to maintain. Indeed, it must be maintained through a lifelong rather rigid differentiation from women as 'other' and a basic contempt for women. 'A boy's contempt for his mother serves to free him not only from his mother but also from the femininity within himself.'
So basically, I guess she's saying that it's because of this lifelong need to continually reestablish his gender identity that man oppresses/abuses/sexualizes woman. Obviously it's very high-in-the-sky theoretical, but interesting to ponder....
thanksgiving
Happy Thanksgiving!
Here are some pictures from our Thanksgiving dinner....
Here's me and Johnny, holding "Fast Eddie" and sitting next to Chloe. Eddie was ADORABLE...he's a combination Beagle-Pug (a "Puggle") and he was feisty and fun. Chloe's made of a billion things, including Chow-Chow. Apparently Sharon and Mary, the women who threw the party, were walking the two dogs at the part awhile ago, and Chloe was sitting down so her tail was covered, and this one lady started running up and freaking out cause she thought Chloe was a bear.
Here's Marissa, Pam, me, and Johnny. If you recall, Pam is our daughter. Marissa is Pam's friend. We're a pretty cool makeshift family, if I do say so myself.
Pam and Eddie being cute.
That's Sharon in the back and Mary in the front. Sharon works at Smith and she's the one who invited us to dinner. They're both amazing, and hilarious, and sweet, and Mary is a fantastic cook. They're also a wee bit obsessed with their dogs.
Here's a picture of the dinner table after the pies were set out. We had pumpkin pie, apple pie, strawberry-rhubarb pie, and pumpkin cheesecake. Also, Johnny ate a TON of turkey swimming in gravy, and he was very happy.
All in all, it was a great night, but we both miss all of you so, so, so much.
Here are some pictures from our Thanksgiving dinner....
Here's me and Johnny, holding "Fast Eddie" and sitting next to Chloe. Eddie was ADORABLE...he's a combination Beagle-Pug (a "Puggle") and he was feisty and fun. Chloe's made of a billion things, including Chow-Chow. Apparently Sharon and Mary, the women who threw the party, were walking the two dogs at the part awhile ago, and Chloe was sitting down so her tail was covered, and this one lady started running up and freaking out cause she thought Chloe was a bear.
Here's Marissa, Pam, me, and Johnny. If you recall, Pam is our daughter. Marissa is Pam's friend. We're a pretty cool makeshift family, if I do say so myself.
Pam and Eddie being cute.
That's Sharon in the back and Mary in the front. Sharon works at Smith and she's the one who invited us to dinner. They're both amazing, and hilarious, and sweet, and Mary is a fantastic cook. They're also a wee bit obsessed with their dogs.
Here's a picture of the dinner table after the pies were set out. We had pumpkin pie, apple pie, strawberry-rhubarb pie, and pumpkin cheesecake. Also, Johnny ate a TON of turkey swimming in gravy, and he was very happy.
All in all, it was a great night, but we both miss all of you so, so, so much.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
it's snowing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
like i said.....SNOW! pictures to come....
in the meantime, i have a gov exam in exactly 38 minutes, so i need to stop thinking about snow and start thinking about international law and humanitarian intervention and terrorism and globalization and democracy.............MEHHHHHHHH
p.s. thanks for the posts! (you know who you are....)
in the meantime, i have a gov exam in exactly 38 minutes, so i need to stop thinking about snow and start thinking about international law and humanitarian intervention and terrorism and globalization and democracy.............MEHHHHHHHH
p.s. thanks for the posts! (you know who you are....)
Monday, November 19, 2007
so.....
...the other night (the night of Ashley's rambling post) i come home from work and Ashley is going stir crazy. she's bouncing off the walls and talking really fast. She's had 50 cups of coffee and very little, if any, human contact. When Ashley gets like this she tends to get a bit physical. She starts beating me up; she's punching and kicking me. Her face is the face of pure evil. laughing the entire time she's beating me. she finally calms down after a brutal half hour. she sits down on the bed and i go on the computer. I'm still trying to catch my breath when i hear come up behind me and starts giving me a massage. i think to myself 'oh, she's trying make up for beating the crap out of me' just then she slugs me as hard as she can in my back and then laughs hysterically. she did this a few times. she would start massaging, then punch and laugh. i don't know how the rest of the night played out because it was all a blur...send help
-johnny
-johnny
Saturday, November 17, 2007
ear zit
I have a huge zit in my ear and it hurts real bad and I can't listen to my headphones to drown out the sound of Johnny's damn tv because the headphones hurt my zit and i tried to shove the headphones in anyway and it hurt and now i feel nauseous.
rambling
Even though I've had a pretty decent day, I'm feeling frustrated and agitated right now and I'm not sure why and Johnny's leaving for work so I can't complain to him so I'm just gonna ramble to you all. Enjoy.
I drank like 4 cups of coffee this morning so I've felt jittery all day.
I just ate a gross dinner and it was annoying because for some reason I couldn't get my food to stay on my fork so I could never get good bites and half my food spilled on the floor so then I had to get down on the ground and clean it all up.
I hate TV and the sound of it makes me feel like killing someone.
I have a lot of work to do and I've been working all day and I've gotten hardly anything done and people keep distracting me.
Whenever I go to the bathroom I want to throw up because this one girl in my house keeps getting bloody noses and there's blood splattered all over the wall and bloody toilet paper filling the trash can.
I want to exercise because I feel like bla but I can't find the time and it's too cold to run outside but it makes me feel agitated and claustrophobic to go to the gym.
So far Johnny's tried to leave like 60 times and I've locked the door behind him so nobody could come in and then I come back and sit down and 2 seconds later he's pounding on the door cause he forgot something and then I have to get back up and let him in and then wait for him and then lock the door behind him.
I just went downstairs to get hot chocolate and (1) they didn't have the marshmallows out and (2) the hot chocolate just came out all watery. I can't ask them to fix/refill it because they seem totally suspicious of me lately. It's getting very nerveracking.
Wow.....I'm not going to reread this post because it must make me seem like a whiny little brat.
And now that Johnny's gone I feel lonely.
-Ashley
I drank like 4 cups of coffee this morning so I've felt jittery all day.
I just ate a gross dinner and it was annoying because for some reason I couldn't get my food to stay on my fork so I could never get good bites and half my food spilled on the floor so then I had to get down on the ground and clean it all up.
I hate TV and the sound of it makes me feel like killing someone.
I have a lot of work to do and I've been working all day and I've gotten hardly anything done and people keep distracting me.
Whenever I go to the bathroom I want to throw up because this one girl in my house keeps getting bloody noses and there's blood splattered all over the wall and bloody toilet paper filling the trash can.
I want to exercise because I feel like bla but I can't find the time and it's too cold to run outside but it makes me feel agitated and claustrophobic to go to the gym.
So far Johnny's tried to leave like 60 times and I've locked the door behind him so nobody could come in and then I come back and sit down and 2 seconds later he's pounding on the door cause he forgot something and then I have to get back up and let him in and then wait for him and then lock the door behind him.
I just went downstairs to get hot chocolate and (1) they didn't have the marshmallows out and (2) the hot chocolate just came out all watery. I can't ask them to fix/refill it because they seem totally suspicious of me lately. It's getting very nerveracking.
Wow.....I'm not going to reread this post because it must make me seem like a whiny little brat.
And now that Johnny's gone I feel lonely.
-Ashley
Friday, November 16, 2007
stoners
So it's midnight and Johnny and I just got back from Stop and Shop where we wandered the aisles for far too long and picked out the most random food to eat tonight. At one point Johnny was like, "On a scale of 1 to 10, how much do we look like huge stoners right now?" And he was right.
Johnny's really excited because he's gonna eat beef jerky for the first time in years tonight.
[I have a picture of him gnawing on beef jerky but blogspot is being retarded and won't let me upload it. I'll upload it later.]
And I'm really excited cause I got dried dates. And Coffee Mate.
We also completely cleaned the room right before we went shopping, and I wanted to do a before and after shot but the camera battery was dead. We have literally 4 loads of laundry, but we could only afford to do 2 so we had to sift through for the absolute essentials. Gotta prioritize. Underwear and socks first.
Here are all of the books I have to return to the library.
Johnny's really excited because he's gonna eat beef jerky for the first time in years tonight.
[I have a picture of him gnawing on beef jerky but blogspot is being retarded and won't let me upload it. I'll upload it later.]
And I'm really excited cause I got dried dates. And Coffee Mate.
We also completely cleaned the room right before we went shopping, and I wanted to do a before and after shot but the camera battery was dead. We have literally 4 loads of laundry, but we could only afford to do 2 so we had to sift through for the absolute essentials. Gotta prioritize. Underwear and socks first.
Here are all of the books I have to return to the library.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
it's a girl!
Johnny and I would like everyone to meet our daughter, Pam Weir. She's going to be 19 years old on Nov. 25, she's from Arizona, she's very active in politics, and she lives right across the hall from me and likes to come stand awkwardly in my doorway. She's very cute and nice and fun and she calls Johnny and I "Poppa" and "Momma," respectively. We're very proud of her. She's everything we could have hoped for in a daughter.
Monday, November 12, 2007
an uncanny resemblance
Johnny and I are watching "Full House" (don't ask me why....ALI), and I joked that Johnny looked like Bob Saget, and apparently he was made fun of all the time as a kid for looking like Bob Saget. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA........
Another resemblance:
Sometimes people think we're brother and sister.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
home sick
Alright, so I'm not as bad off as this picture makes me seem. I've just had a pretty rough couple of weeks and i won't go into details because i know you all know; i just wish i was at home not having to deal with it. What that thought bubble is really saying is, "i wish i could still be a little boy." Being an adult is rough. I've put off growing up for so long that becoming an adult seems unattainable, as if i waited too long and am stuck in perpetual childhood. A "man-boy" for the rest of my life. I'll join the circus and tour the country frightening little children everywhere. This might have been my future at one point, but i feel differently about things now. i feel that i have a goal; i know what i want to do and i just need to figure out how to do it and that is why I'm here. So i might be home sick and a little down from time to time, but overall I'm content. I'm learning. I'm growing up.
- johnny
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Beijing 2008
Check out the amazing buildings they're constructing in Beijing for the 2008 Olympics:
Of course these are the plans, so they look much more romanticized, but they're already constructed and you can see the real life images on google. The sad thing is (yes, there's always a sad thing) that apparently the government is trying to cover the thousands of deaths there've been of construction workers building these structures. I guess they recruited the workers from the rural areas and didn't train them too well about construction/safety stuff (because it would have costed too much, I'm sure), and now they're dropping (literally, as those buildings are pretty damn tall) like flies.
Of course these are the plans, so they look much more romanticized, but they're already constructed and you can see the real life images on google. The sad thing is (yes, there's always a sad thing) that apparently the government is trying to cover the thousands of deaths there've been of construction workers building these structures. I guess they recruited the workers from the rural areas and didn't train them too well about construction/safety stuff (because it would have costed too much, I'm sure), and now they're dropping (literally, as those buildings are pretty damn tall) like flies.
Oh, China.
-Ashley
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
schedule conflict
Johnny is getting up to go to work and I'm finally about to stop studying. Now that's depressing.
Sunday, November 4, 2007
what am i gonna do with this boy
Soooo...... Johnny just realized that he's been walking around/sitting all night with a huge razor blade/box cutter in his pocket. Umm...
dictionary.com
To any of my readers who utilize the services of dictionary.com, I would appreciate it if you discontinue use of this website until I receive feedback from them indicating that they have pulled a particularly deragatory ad that I (and you, likely) have seen numerous times.
------------------------------------------------------------------
To whom it may concern,
I am writing in objection to an ad I have seen on dictionary.com numerous times. The ad depicts an animated cartoon of a woman in scant clothing jumping on a trampoline, with a man's hand holding a water balloon aiming at her. Its caption reads: "Wet the girl, get a hot ringtone." It is an interactive ad, encouraging the viewer to aim the hand and hit the girl with the water balloons. The ad is linked to http://679.ringtonemecca.com/.
I, and I'm sure I'm not alone in this, find the ad offensive and deragatory towards women. I would very much appreciate your not accepting advertising from this company, and I will encourage everyone I know to discontinue their use of your services until the ad has been pulled.
Thank you, and I appreciate your time and efforts in helping to remedy the already severely deragatory treatment of women in the media.
Sincerely,
Ashley Farnan
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------
To whom it may concern,
I am writing in objection to an ad I have seen on dictionary.com numerous times. The ad depicts an animated cartoon of a woman in scant clothing jumping on a trampoline, with a man's hand holding a water balloon aiming at her. Its caption reads: "Wet the girl, get a hot ringtone." It is an interactive ad, encouraging the viewer to aim the hand and hit the girl with the water balloons. The ad is linked to http://679.ringtonemecca.com/.
I, and I'm sure I'm not alone in this, find the ad offensive and deragatory towards women. I would very much appreciate your not accepting advertising from this company, and I will encourage everyone I know to discontinue their use of your services until the ad has been pulled.
Thank you, and I appreciate your time and efforts in helping to remedy the already severely deragatory treatment of women in the media.
Sincerely,
Ashley Farnan
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Saturday, November 3, 2007
spring '08 classes
Soooooo...... registration for next semester's classes is upon us! I'd like to tell you about some of the classes I'm considering taking, and I'd very much like to hear your opinions. Also, as many of you know, Smith is part of the 5 college consortium, meaning Smith students can take classes at Amherst, UMass, Mt. Holyoke, and Hampshire colleges, meaning....I have 5 times the typical number of classes to choose from, which makes my life very hard.
Also, to get my viewers more involved, I'm inserting a poll to the right to allow you to vote on the class you think sounds most interesting. Have fun!
So here are the classes: (also, I realize this is a hella long post, so if you don't wanna read it, just leave a comment that says, "Ashley, you is CRAZY and i no ain't readin all this junk a lunk!")
SWG 214 Migration, Gender and Transculturation (at Smith)
This course will provide students with an understanding of transnational encounters and intercultural communication by focusing on the contemporary German, Spanish and Mexican society and women’s migration in this context. Issues of power in terms of defining and representing culture(s) in relation to gender, ‘race’, ethnicity, class, work and sexuality will play a central role. In particular we will work with examples of ethnographic research and visual material (videos). On the basis of this material we will explore the moments of mobility and transformation by looking at the local cultural articulation of identity, space and culture. By doing this we will focus on the moments of migrancy, diaspora and shifting boundaries and borders. This will contribute to a comparative approach to understanding transnational processes and their local articulations. At all times an emphasis will be placed on relating theoretical material to ‘lived’ culture and visual culture.
SWG 323 Sex, Trade, and Trafficking (at Smith)
This seminar will examine domestic and international trade and trafficking of women and girls, including sex trafficking, bride trafficking, trafficking of women for domestic and other labor, child prostitution, sex work, and pornography. We will explore societal conditions that shape this market, including economics, globalization, war, and technology. We will examine the social movements growing up around the trafficking of women, particularly divisions among activists working on the issue, and study recent laws and funding initiatives to address trafficking of women and girls. Throughout the seminar, we will apply an intersectional analysis in order to understand the significance of gender, race and class to women's experiences, public discourse, advocacy, and public policy initiatives around sex trade and trafficking.
SWG 85 States of Poverty (at Amherst)
In this course students will examine the role of the modern welfare state in people’s everyday lives. We will study the historical growth and retrenchment of the modern welfare state in the United States and other Western democracies. The course will critically examine the ideologies of “dependency” and the role of the state as an agent of social control. We will analyze the construction of social problems linked to states of poverty, including hunger, homelessness, health care, disability, discrimination and violence. We will ask how conditions of poverty are defined in terms of their affect on the lives of women and children. These issues will be considered by taking a broad view of the welfare state beyond the impact of public assistance and social service programs, to the role of the police, family courts, therapeutic professionals, and schools in creating and responding to the conditions of impoverishment.
PoliSci 32 Human Rights Activism (at Amherst)
This course is intended to give students a sense of the challenges and satisfactions involved in the practice of human rights work as well as a critical sense of how the discourses calling it forth developed and continue to evolve. We intend to provide specific historical and cultural context to selected areas in which human rights abuses of women and men have occurred, and to explore how differing traditions facilitate and inhibit activism within these areas. The semester will begin by exploring the historical growth of human rights discourse in Europe and the United States, culminating in the emergence of the post-World War II Universal Declaration. We will then turn to the proliferation of these discourses since the 1970s, including the growing importance of non-governmental organizations, many of them internationally based, the use of human rights discourse by a wide range of groups, and expanding meanings of human rights including new conceptions of women's human rights. The third part of the course will explore criticisms of human rights discourses, particularly the charge that for all their claims to universalism, these discourses reflect the values of European Enlightenment traditions which are inimical to conceptions of rights and justice that are grounded in culture and religion. Throughout the course, rights' workers will discuss their own experiences, abroad and in the U.S., and reflect on the relationship between their work and formal human rights discourse.
And, because I'm required to take at least 2 Africa-related courses before going to Africa, here are some of the Africa courses I'm considering for this semester:
BLST 20 African Cultures/Societies (at Amherst)
This course explores the cultural meaning of indigenous African institutions and societies. Through the use of ethnographies, novels and films, we will investigate the topics of kinship, religion, social organization, colonialism, ethnicity, nationalism and neocolonialism. The principal objective is to give students an understanding of African society that will enable them better to comprehend current issues and problems confronting African peoples and nations. Limited to 50 students. Second semester. Professor Goheen.
HIST 161 History of Africa since 1500 (at UMass)
BLST 47 Colonial and Post-Colonial Africa (at Amherst)
This is a history of Africa from the late nineteenth century to the present day. In the first half of the course, we will study the imperial scramble to colonize Africa, the integration of African societies into the world economy, the social and medical impact of imperial policies, and the nationalist struggles that resulted in the independent African states. We will also examine the divisiveness of ethnicity in post-colonial states. In the final half of the course, we will investigate three cases: Congo-Zaire-Democratic Republic of Congo and the state as a source of chaos; the cultural and political dynamics of racial and individual identity in Botswana; and the historical background of the recent troubles and land-seizures in Zimbabwe.
SS 291 State and Politics in Africa (at Hampshire)
Sub-Saharan Africa faces multi-faceted difficulties including a crisis of the state. The state loomed large in all post-colonial scenarios of African development as the major agency of economic growth and of popular participation. The 1960s and 1970s brought mixed returns on those expectations, but the 1980s dashed prior hopes with international debt, structural adjustment economic policies, and repressive regimes. The turn of the past decade found angry people in the streets demanding democracy, while the end of the Cold War meant that major Western countries were willing to 147let go148 of some very unpopular leaders the West used to support. But despite democratic openings, and the unleashing of political voices, several states are marked by their failure to function as well as they did two decades ago, and a few have all but collapsed. Meanwhile economies are growing slowly and poverty maybe spreading. The way out of the general crisis will require state reform and that will require an understanding of the forces that created the current situation.
Please keep in mind how much I'm going to HATE MY LIFE when I'm spending all of next semester on the bus.
-Ashley
Also, to get my viewers more involved, I'm inserting a poll to the right to allow you to vote on the class you think sounds most interesting. Have fun!
So here are the classes: (also, I realize this is a hella long post, so if you don't wanna read it, just leave a comment that says, "Ashley, you is CRAZY and i no ain't readin all this junk a lunk!")
SWG 214 Migration, Gender and Transculturation (at Smith)
This course will provide students with an understanding of transnational encounters and intercultural communication by focusing on the contemporary German, Spanish and Mexican society and women’s migration in this context. Issues of power in terms of defining and representing culture(s) in relation to gender, ‘race’, ethnicity, class, work and sexuality will play a central role. In particular we will work with examples of ethnographic research and visual material (videos). On the basis of this material we will explore the moments of mobility and transformation by looking at the local cultural articulation of identity, space and culture. By doing this we will focus on the moments of migrancy, diaspora and shifting boundaries and borders. This will contribute to a comparative approach to understanding transnational processes and their local articulations. At all times an emphasis will be placed on relating theoretical material to ‘lived’ culture and visual culture.
SWG 323 Sex, Trade, and Trafficking (at Smith)
This seminar will examine domestic and international trade and trafficking of women and girls, including sex trafficking, bride trafficking, trafficking of women for domestic and other labor, child prostitution, sex work, and pornography. We will explore societal conditions that shape this market, including economics, globalization, war, and technology. We will examine the social movements growing up around the trafficking of women, particularly divisions among activists working on the issue, and study recent laws and funding initiatives to address trafficking of women and girls. Throughout the seminar, we will apply an intersectional analysis in order to understand the significance of gender, race and class to women's experiences, public discourse, advocacy, and public policy initiatives around sex trade and trafficking.
SWG 85 States of Poverty (at Amherst)
In this course students will examine the role of the modern welfare state in people’s everyday lives. We will study the historical growth and retrenchment of the modern welfare state in the United States and other Western democracies. The course will critically examine the ideologies of “dependency” and the role of the state as an agent of social control. We will analyze the construction of social problems linked to states of poverty, including hunger, homelessness, health care, disability, discrimination and violence. We will ask how conditions of poverty are defined in terms of their affect on the lives of women and children. These issues will be considered by taking a broad view of the welfare state beyond the impact of public assistance and social service programs, to the role of the police, family courts, therapeutic professionals, and schools in creating and responding to the conditions of impoverishment.
PoliSci 32 Human Rights Activism (at Amherst)
This course is intended to give students a sense of the challenges and satisfactions involved in the practice of human rights work as well as a critical sense of how the discourses calling it forth developed and continue to evolve. We intend to provide specific historical and cultural context to selected areas in which human rights abuses of women and men have occurred, and to explore how differing traditions facilitate and inhibit activism within these areas. The semester will begin by exploring the historical growth of human rights discourse in Europe and the United States, culminating in the emergence of the post-World War II Universal Declaration. We will then turn to the proliferation of these discourses since the 1970s, including the growing importance of non-governmental organizations, many of them internationally based, the use of human rights discourse by a wide range of groups, and expanding meanings of human rights including new conceptions of women's human rights. The third part of the course will explore criticisms of human rights discourses, particularly the charge that for all their claims to universalism, these discourses reflect the values of European Enlightenment traditions which are inimical to conceptions of rights and justice that are grounded in culture and religion. Throughout the course, rights' workers will discuss their own experiences, abroad and in the U.S., and reflect on the relationship between their work and formal human rights discourse.
And, because I'm required to take at least 2 Africa-related courses before going to Africa, here are some of the Africa courses I'm considering for this semester:
BLST 20 African Cultures/Societies (at Amherst)
This course explores the cultural meaning of indigenous African institutions and societies. Through the use of ethnographies, novels and films, we will investigate the topics of kinship, religion, social organization, colonialism, ethnicity, nationalism and neocolonialism. The principal objective is to give students an understanding of African society that will enable them better to comprehend current issues and problems confronting African peoples and nations. Limited to 50 students. Second semester. Professor Goheen.
HIST 161 History of Africa since 1500 (at UMass)
BLST 47 Colonial and Post-Colonial Africa (at Amherst)
This is a history of Africa from the late nineteenth century to the present day. In the first half of the course, we will study the imperial scramble to colonize Africa, the integration of African societies into the world economy, the social and medical impact of imperial policies, and the nationalist struggles that resulted in the independent African states. We will also examine the divisiveness of ethnicity in post-colonial states. In the final half of the course, we will investigate three cases: Congo-Zaire-Democratic Republic of Congo and the state as a source of chaos; the cultural and political dynamics of racial and individual identity in Botswana; and the historical background of the recent troubles and land-seizures in Zimbabwe.
SS 291 State and Politics in Africa (at Hampshire)
Sub-Saharan Africa faces multi-faceted difficulties including a crisis of the state. The state loomed large in all post-colonial scenarios of African development as the major agency of economic growth and of popular participation. The 1960s and 1970s brought mixed returns on those expectations, but the 1980s dashed prior hopes with international debt, structural adjustment economic policies, and repressive regimes. The turn of the past decade found angry people in the streets demanding democracy, while the end of the Cold War meant that major Western countries were willing to 147let go148 of some very unpopular leaders the West used to support. But despite democratic openings, and the unleashing of political voices, several states are marked by their failure to function as well as they did two decades ago, and a few have all but collapsed. Meanwhile economies are growing slowly and poverty maybe spreading. The way out of the general crisis will require state reform and that will require an understanding of the forces that created the current situation.
Please keep in mind how much I'm going to HATE MY LIFE when I'm spending all of next semester on the bus.
-Ashley
Thursday, November 1, 2007
it's a sad world
I'm going to make this post educational, and by educational I mean shocking and depressing, because if there's anything I've learned in this realm of higher education, it's that the more you learn about the world the more depressing the world seems and the more you realize how horrible humans really are. Have fun!
So here are some lovely facts recently compiled by UN in a study on global inequality:
1) The richest fifth of the world's people consume 86% of all products, while the poorest fifth purchases 1.3% (this includes everything from meat to paper to cars).
2) The 3 richest persons in the world have assets greater than the combined Gross Domestic Products (all the finished goods produced by a country in a year) of the 48 poorest nations. In other words, if the 3 richest people sold everything they owned, they could buy the total output of these 48 countries.
3) If the poorest 47% of the world's people (that's about 2.5 billion) pooled their yearly incomes, they could just purchase the assets of the world's wealthiest 225 individuals.
4) A tax of 4% levied on the wealth of these same 225 wealthy people would pay for basic and adequate health care, food, clean water, and safe sewers for EVERY PERSON ON EARTH.
Can you believe it?
-Ashley
So here are some lovely facts recently compiled by UN in a study on global inequality:
1) The richest fifth of the world's people consume 86% of all products, while the poorest fifth purchases 1.3% (this includes everything from meat to paper to cars).
2) The 3 richest persons in the world have assets greater than the combined Gross Domestic Products (all the finished goods produced by a country in a year) of the 48 poorest nations. In other words, if the 3 richest people sold everything they owned, they could buy the total output of these 48 countries.
3) If the poorest 47% of the world's people (that's about 2.5 billion) pooled their yearly incomes, they could just purchase the assets of the world's wealthiest 225 individuals.
4) A tax of 4% levied on the wealth of these same 225 wealthy people would pay for basic and adequate health care, food, clean water, and safe sewers for EVERY PERSON ON EARTH.
Can you believe it?
-Ashley
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Yankee Candle Company Day!
Today we went to the Yankee Candle Company mega store, headquarters, "scenter" of the universe thingy in Deerfield, Massachusetts which is only 10 minutes away from Noho. it's been a few hours since we left this place and i still can smell candles. We walked around for three hours smelling candles ranging from "frosted pumpkin" to "sparkling angel" which begs the question, what do sparkling angels smell like? well, apparently they smell like apples, pine, berries and eucalyptus, go figure. the place was quite cool; it was covered with Christmas decorations.
we all picked out some candles. ash got "pineapple citrus" and i got "macintosh & peach." Jennifer picked out a bunch, her favorite being "midnight cove" or something like that.
after the candle place we ate at the always reliable Haymarket Cafe. I've never been disappointed with the food from this place. here are some pics of us enjoying our tempe burgers and curry coconut rice ball soup(?).
now we're home and ash and Jennifer are taking naps while i post. Ash has a late night of essay writing in her future while Jennifer has a late night of cemetery wandering in hers and I'll probably watch a movie or something.
-johnny
p.s.
here's my house:
Friday, October 26, 2007
i hate this man
Hate is a strong word, I know. But he's mean. He's mean and he makes people cry and he makes them feel like crap and he's mean and HE'S MEAN TO ME. He kisses professors' asses, but he treats students like they're unqualified idiots.
He actually looks like a nice old man in this picture, but don't be fooled. He's a bad man and nobody likes him because of it. It's his own fault when nobody goes to his funeral.
He actually looks like a nice old man in this picture, but don't be fooled. He's a bad man and nobody likes him because of it. It's his own fault when nobody goes to his funeral.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
here's how it's gonna be
Okay then. Two can play this game.
I'm officially boycotting this blog until someone posts. It's just not fair to me. I give and give and give in this relationship and nobody gives back. So I'm standing my ground.
Ever neglected by her so-called "loved ones",
Ashley
I'm officially boycotting this blog until someone posts. It's just not fair to me. I give and give and give in this relationship and nobody gives back. So I'm standing my ground.
Ever neglected by her so-called "loved ones",
Ashley
Sunday, October 21, 2007
why johnny is a prick
Not convinced yet that Johnny is a prick?
Here's a conversation we just had. Decide for yourself:
(In response to the girls across the hall who are very audibly excited about the Red Sox game)
Johnny: I hate fans.
Ashley: (giving him the benefit of the doubt, thinking maybe he was referring to our window fan, which is broken and thus makes a very loud and annoying sound when it's on) You mean window fans or fans of teams?
J: Fans of teams. Fans of anything, really. I just hate people who are having fun, or who are passionate about things.
A: You make me depressed.
Here's a conversation we just had. Decide for yourself:
(In response to the girls across the hall who are very audibly excited about the Red Sox game)
Johnny: I hate fans.
Ashley: (giving him the benefit of the doubt, thinking maybe he was referring to our window fan, which is broken and thus makes a very loud and annoying sound when it's on) You mean window fans or fans of teams?
J: Fans of teams. Fans of anything, really. I just hate people who are having fun, or who are passionate about things.
A: You make me depressed.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
weekend, finally
So it's about 2 pm on Saturday morning. I just woke up about an hour ago, took a shower, and now I'm drinking some yummy coffee (from my french press!), and I'm feeling well rested and calm and ready to take on the 75 page list of things to do this weekend. I'm going to try to keep the nervous breakdowns to a minimum this weekend, cause this past week was a little crazy.
Susan (pictured above), my roommate from last year, is here visiting this weekend. She took this semester off but she's hopefully coming back next semester. It's fun having her back, but it's crazy how all the drama that got cut off when school ended last year just started right back up again the second she got here. Girls......
I guess I'll stop stalling and start studying. Johnny's at work and he gets off around 5:30, and I think we're gonna go see a movie tonight called The Darjeeling Limited by this director that Johnny really likes. (I don't know if you read this, Uncle Dane, but it's the same director who did Life Aquatic).
Oh YEAH! P.S. For any of you who remember Christina Phelps, she sent me this picture the other day and it made me happy.
Friday, October 19, 2007
Thursday, October 18, 2007
dinner is the best part of the day
ALMOST DINNER TIME!!!!
Let me tell you about how meals work, because it's become an established routine in our lives: Johnny and I find a table in the loggia (the area right outside the dining hall). Sometimes, if we're feeling fearless, we'll actually venture into the dining hall together. I'll swipe my card; then I'll pretend to swipe my card and pretend to press the guest button for him. I've gotten pretty convincing at this little act. Once we get past that hurdle, we must face Holly. Holly is a big, scary woman who seems to live in the dining hall and finds happiness in humiliating innocent Smith girls and their boyfriends. Johnny and I got yelled at once last year, but so far no confrontations. She eyes us though, and it's a scary thing. Then we get food and dash out as fast as humanly possible.
However, we usually aren't brave enough to attempt this feat. Thus, Johnny sits down in the loggia, armed with a new book every time that he never intends to read. I think he just looks at the pages and hopes no one will talk to him. I go in and get his meal first. Usually this involves some kind of pasta that I know he won't eat, some kind of fried product that he will unfortunately eat a LOT of, and maybe some broccoli. It's no easy task to find food for Johnny. For those of you who know Johnny's food preferences, you must feel sorry for me, because he's the pickiest person I've EVER met. There's often tension surrounding this fact. And he always requests sprite, which is strange because I'm pretty sure he knows we don't have sprite. He'll never learn. So I walk by Holly and out to the loggia armed with one huge plate of food.
And then in I go again. Hold my breath, pass Holly, no eye contact. I make some humongous salad with everything humanly possible stacked on top, and sneak out. We start eating, and Johnny inevitably demands salt and pepper. I swear, even if we're eating chocolate, he'll request salt and pepper.
Then comes dessert. If there's popsicles, we take like 25 of them -- it's basically the only reason I have a fridge. Johnny really likes these Star Bars ice cream things, and I love it when they make these yummy peanut butter bars with chocolate on top. Mmmm....or hot chocolate.
Then dinner ends, and I have to carry all 50687 dishes we've accumulated back into the kitchen, past Holly, dump all the food, put the dishes in the dishwasher thing, and look like a pig who ate 129438u4938430948 dishes worth of food.
The end. Good story, huh?
Wanna see what's for dinner tonight?
Mulled Cider
Chef’s Special
Boneless Chicken Breast
Eggplant Rounds, Vegetable Sauce
Wild RiceRoasted Root Vegetables – Beets, Parsnips, Turnip, Carrots, Fennel
Steamed Peas
Petit Rustic Rolls
Salad Bar, Dressings
Orange Pound Cake
MMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....I remember the root vegetables from last year. If I were Rachel Ray I'd say "Yum-o!"
If you're ever interested in seeing what Johnny and I are eating, go to http://www.smith.edu/diningservices/menus.php. We're King/Scales. Yup.
Judging from this menu, Johnny will probably eat rolls and 7up tonight. Oye.
-Ashley
Let me tell you about how meals work, because it's become an established routine in our lives: Johnny and I find a table in the loggia (the area right outside the dining hall). Sometimes, if we're feeling fearless, we'll actually venture into the dining hall together. I'll swipe my card; then I'll pretend to swipe my card and pretend to press the guest button for him. I've gotten pretty convincing at this little act. Once we get past that hurdle, we must face Holly. Holly is a big, scary woman who seems to live in the dining hall and finds happiness in humiliating innocent Smith girls and their boyfriends. Johnny and I got yelled at once last year, but so far no confrontations. She eyes us though, and it's a scary thing. Then we get food and dash out as fast as humanly possible.
However, we usually aren't brave enough to attempt this feat. Thus, Johnny sits down in the loggia, armed with a new book every time that he never intends to read. I think he just looks at the pages and hopes no one will talk to him. I go in and get his meal first. Usually this involves some kind of pasta that I know he won't eat, some kind of fried product that he will unfortunately eat a LOT of, and maybe some broccoli. It's no easy task to find food for Johnny. For those of you who know Johnny's food preferences, you must feel sorry for me, because he's the pickiest person I've EVER met. There's often tension surrounding this fact. And he always requests sprite, which is strange because I'm pretty sure he knows we don't have sprite. He'll never learn. So I walk by Holly and out to the loggia armed with one huge plate of food.
And then in I go again. Hold my breath, pass Holly, no eye contact. I make some humongous salad with everything humanly possible stacked on top, and sneak out. We start eating, and Johnny inevitably demands salt and pepper. I swear, even if we're eating chocolate, he'll request salt and pepper.
Then comes dessert. If there's popsicles, we take like 25 of them -- it's basically the only reason I have a fridge. Johnny really likes these Star Bars ice cream things, and I love it when they make these yummy peanut butter bars with chocolate on top. Mmmm....or hot chocolate.
Then dinner ends, and I have to carry all 50687 dishes we've accumulated back into the kitchen, past Holly, dump all the food, put the dishes in the dishwasher thing, and look like a pig who ate 129438u4938430948 dishes worth of food.
The end. Good story, huh?
Wanna see what's for dinner tonight?
Mulled Cider
Chef’s Special
Boneless Chicken Breast
Eggplant Rounds, Vegetable Sauce
Wild RiceRoasted Root Vegetables – Beets, Parsnips, Turnip, Carrots, Fennel
Steamed Peas
Petit Rustic Rolls
Salad Bar, Dressings
Orange Pound Cake
MMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....I remember the root vegetables from last year. If I were Rachel Ray I'd say "Yum-o!"
If you're ever interested in seeing what Johnny and I are eating, go to http://www.smith.edu/diningservices/menus.php. We're King/Scales. Yup.
Judging from this menu, Johnny will probably eat rolls and 7up tonight. Oye.
-Ashley
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
here's the problem
the reason why I've been lacking in posts is that i haven't had much to post about lately, unless you want to know that i laid in bed today eating nutella covered peanut butter crackers while watching "The People's Court" (God, how i wish i was joking). the good thing about the blog is now i know how boring my life really is, so I've decided to join ash in volunteering at Safe Passage or i could volunteer at a retirement home (i love me some old people).
i don't even have to volunteer. i could get reacquainted with drawing, go for walks, or join a bowling team. Ash suggested picking a subject and studying it until I've learned everything i could about that subject then move on to another one. i had a few ideas: Italian films, grammar, cars (how to repair or know enough not to get ripped off at a repair shop), or the presidential race. i just need to to do something for my sake and for the readers of our blog. if you have any suggestions, feel free to post.
johnny
p.s. cakes has two midterms tomorrow, so lets wish her luck. i'm sure she'll do fine.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
i'm gonna die
I don't think I'm going to make it to Friday. I took a nap from 10-11:30 - PM. How sick is that?
I keep telling Johnny to post, but he's a bum.
Auntie Cynthia: So I got assigned a faculty member to advise me on this fellowship I'm applying for, and his name is Howard Gold. I thought that was kinda weird....
Ali: I was in a meeting when you called, and then I had a study session after that, and then I got your message on my room phone, and then I fell asleep, and now I'm half-dead, so how about I call you Friday, k? I love you!
-Ashley
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