doctoral candidate in rhetoric and scientific and technical communication
Archive for December, 2005
happy holidays!
0
The other day, I was driving to work and I saw bright lights coming from one of the streets across from campus. I drove through the neighborhood to see what could be lighting up the streets so brightly on a cold December morning.
I saw this home. It made me smile. All of these bright lights greeting the early morning dawn.
–
I got my grades. I got straight A’s. So, thanks for all of your thoughts. I appreciate it.
I think that I just worry myself about it all instead of believing that I will do well in school.
–
And, I’m in bed again, this time with some stomach flu that is plowing its way through the offices at work.
Blech.
the writing is on the wall
06 years ago
by dawn
in just a thought
I’m thinking about removing the comments section from my photoblog (not this part of my site, only the photoblog). I rarely get any comments there and I’m getting more spam than comments.
It’s kind of a hard decision, though. When I do get comments, I enjoy them. It’s nice to know what people think about the things I’m doing with my photography. It’s nice to get some positive feedback.
I don’t have much time to go around leaving comments at other peoples’ sites, though, and when that happens, my comments go way down.
I don’t want to feel compelled to comment at other peoples’ sites in order to get comments, either. When I comment, it is not so they will comment on mine. It’s because something moved me to comment. Something made me want to take the time to leave a response.
I don’t leave many responses, so when I do, it means something.
I’m the same way at flickr. I’m not popular there by a long shot. I don’t have a lot of people commenting on my images nor do I have a huge amount of people favoriting my images (although I have a lot of people adding me as a contact – which is odd). It doesn’t bother me, though, because I don’t comment on many peoples’ images and I have very few favorites. If I comment or I favorite, it means that I’m moved to do so. A favorite is just that…favored – over everything else I’ve ever seen.
–
I wanted to thank everyone for their thoughts yesterday. I’m being so silly about school. I know I can get good grades if I just focus. The problem is that life gets in the way and focus is sometimes impossible.
–
Today is one of those days where I’d like to be at home, between my soft, cozy sheets. I’m still tired and I’d rather be lounging about in bed.
I’m having trouble keeping my eyes open this morning. That’s an odd thing for me and not at all typical.
thankful
0
I’m done.
I’m finished.
Yep.
It’s over.
Finally.
This has been one of the longest semesters I think I’ve ever had.
Well, not actually. Last December was longer.
But this one was tough.
Between having a job that wasn’t paying the bills, getting the darned skin cancer again, then trying to play catch up, starting a new job, then getting sick and having trouble catching up, it’s been a very long semester.
As of 2:15 this morning, though, I finished the last of my papers.
After getting 2 1/2 hours of sleep (I didn’t actually fall asleep until around 3:30, I was too wired) and proofing them this morning, I turned them in via the web and/or e-mail as requested.
I’ve already seen the grade for one of my classes (out of the 3). I got a 98% in that class. Holy cow! I’m so proud of myself. That’s pretty awesome. There was so much work in that class and I’m surprised I did that well.
I’ve successfully passed professional editing. Now I just have to wait and see if I pass the other two.
Cross your fingers for me (okay, I’ll pass – but I’d like to get A’s in those two, as well – a B in grad school is simply not done and a C is like death).
So, cross your fingers. Please?
on reflection
0
I’m done whining. Yesterday was such an odd day. I couldn’t quit crying. Everything remotely sad made me just start crying like crazy.
I was acting crazy, too. the waterworks would start and I’d look over at Dakota and ask him what was wrong with me. The silliest things were making me cry.
Maybe I just needed to get it out of my system: the stress of the semester, the illness, the getting older. Today I feel rejuvenated and like my old self again.
So, no more whining about how rough my life is. I know I have it good. I have a job I love, a pup who adores me and comforts me when I cry, a home that I own, a family that is supportive, and a school career that I am excited about. That’s good stuff.
milestones
0
Yesterday was my 39th birthday.
I suddenly felt old. There haven’t been many birthdays that have made me feel that way but this one did.
My brother said it was because I’ve been sick (and still am recovering) and because I’m so tired. It’s been a long, difficult semester and I’m worn out.
I don’t know if that’s it.
Part of it was that I was taking stock of my life.
I’m not married.
I don’t have any kids.
I don’t have many friends.
Besides my family, I can count on one hand the friends who remembered my birthday (and all of you read my blog – so thank you for remembering – two friends I have never met and 2 friends I have).
–
My brother told a parable to his daughter yesterday. He told her the story of the tortoise and hare – with a twist. He was the tortoise and I was the hare and it had to do with our education.
He has told me to slow down. He says I don’t need to go full-time in graduate school. He says that working full-time and going to school full-time is making me sick. I don’t have time for fun. I don’t have time to relax. I am working, working, working – getting sick – working, working, working – getting sick. There is nothing else.
I worry about slowing down. I want to get my degrees. I want to reach my goals.
But I don’t want to die doing it.
–
I’m feeling old.
pink
0
This entry is made in honor of all of the people who have been surviving breast cancer continuing to fight this disease. They are an inspiration. While October may be Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we all need to remember to do proper and complete exams all year long. The American Cancer Society recommends the following steps to do a Breast Self-Examination (BSE).
- Do BSE each month, 7-10 days after your period begins. After menopause, do BSE on the first day of the month.
- While standing in the shower and with fingers flat (do not use the tips of your fingers) move your hand gently over every part of each breast. Check for lump, knot or thickening. Use right hand for left breast and left hand for right breast.
- Standing before a mirror, with your hands at your sides, visually check for lump or depressions (hollows). Then, placing palms on hips, press down firmly, flex your chest muscles and check again. Don’t worry if your breasts don’t match — chances are they will be a little different.
- Now, raise your arms overhead. Look for changes in the contour of each breast as well as swelling and dimpling of the skin and changes in the nipple.
- To examine your right breast while lying down, place a pillow or folded towel under your right shoulder and lay your right hand on your forehead, elbow bent and slightly forward. This distributes breast tissue more evenly on your chest. Move your hand down and then up all around the area shown. Repeat on other side.
- With fingers flat, use left hand to press an imaginary clock face on your right breast. Check for lumps or depressions. A ridge of firm tissue in the lower curve is normal. Move in an inch toward nipple and make the same circling motion again and again until you reach the center. Repeat with right hand, left breast. Be sure to press firmly.
- Gently sqeeze the nipple of each breast. Check for any discharge, clear or bloody. Report any lumps, thickenings, or discharges you discover during the examination to your doctor immediately.
- For more information on Breast Cancer and Awareness, please visit the following links:
invisible
0
This post is made in honor of all of the women, men, and children who have had to live under the threat or had to endure the atrocity of domestic violence.
The phone number for the National Domestic Violence Hotline, within the U.S. is 1-800-799-SAFE.
Domestic Violence is still a very misunderstood phenomena within modern society. Very often, a victim of domestic violence is asked what s/he did in order to make the abuser so angry. The victim of abuse is often given the impetus to make everything right, to insure that the abuse does not occur again. This is not only placed on the victim by the abuser, but by well-meaning family and friends who do not clearly understand the cycles of abuse.
There are many levels of abuse that can occur within an abusive relationship. One can be a victim of one or all of these forms of abuse.
- Emotional and Verbal Abuse: This type of abuse can be the most insidious and is likely the abuse that leaves the deepest and most long-lasting scars. The symptoms of this abuse are most often humiliation, name-calling, manipulation, mind games, and put downs.
- Isolation: Very often, a victim is told not to see family or friends and is kept at a distance from most people. The abuser can take it so far as to keep the victim home from work and/or other activities in order to assert complete control.
- Threats and Intimidation: Threats of violence (to the victim, friends, family, children, pets), suicide, and threats to take away children or pets is a common occurrence within a domestic violence situation.
- Physical Abuse: This can, very often, occur after the escalation through the other steps. Sometimes physical abuse does not occur but it does not lessen the impact of the other elements at all.
While men can be victims of abuse, it is most often the women who live within abusive situations. To better understand the prevalence of abuse in our society, I thank the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Departmental Administration – Human Resources Management – Domestic Violence Awareness Handbook (http://www.usda.gov/da/shmd/aware.htm for its information.
- Women were attacked about six times more often by offenders with whom they had an intimate relationship than were male violence victims.
- Nearly 30 percent of all female homicide victims were known to have been killed by their husbands or boyfriends.
- In contrast, just over 3 percent of male homicide victims were known to have been killed by their wives, former wives or girlfriends.
- Husbands, former husbands, boyfriends and ex-boyfriends committed more than one million violent acts against women.
- Family members or other people they knew committed more than 2.7 million violent crimes against women.
- Husbands, former husbands, boyfriends and ex-boyfriends committed 26 percent of rapes and sexual assaults.
- Forty-five percent of all violent attacks against female victims 12 years old and older by multiple offenders involve offenders they know.
- The rate of intimate-offender attacks on women separated from their husbands was about three times higher than that of divorced women and about 25 times higher than that of married women.
- Women of all races were equally vulnerable to attacks by intimates.
- Female victims of violence were more likely to be injured when attacked by someone they knew than female victims of violence who were attacked by strangers.
While there is no way to completely list the victims, the causes, or the effects of domestic violence in one page, the links below will give more information. Please be informed on this issue. It is all around us and each of us should know how to deal with a situation (should it be a neighbor or a loved one) and how to find help for someone who is being abused.
For more information on Domestic Violence and Awareness, please visit the following links:
National Domestic Violence Hotline
environment and politics
06 years ago
I linked these two issues because, to be honest, the environment plays a huge part in politics for me.
My politics can only be labeled as liberal. I am not a conservative person, politically, whatsoever. I believe that is the onus of each American to contribute and support one another. If this comes in the form of taxes, then so be it. I think, in recent years, we’ve lost a fundamental part of our society when we’ve forgotten that each person in our community, our state, our nation, is a neighbor, is brethren. We are willing to adopt children of other nations, willing to send military support to other countries, but we, as a nation, are so adamant about keeping our money for ourselves and not helping our own people. We do have children who go hungry each day in the U.S. We do have severe environmental issues within our own country. We have homeless, abused, and lost people.
I am not a straight-ballot Democrat. I will vote for the right person, whether that is a Republican, Independent, Green Party, or whomever. I want the best person to be in office. This means, of course, that it’s the best person from my point of view, for my issues.
I have worked many campaigns in my life, from very local (mayor) to national (Senate/Congress). I love politics. I find it fascinating and exhilerating. I have also worked on specific issues for elections (such as Prop 101 in Arizona, retaining women’s right to choose), in addition to working in the local elections office on election nights. I feel that it is a duty of Americans to donate time to this. We so often take our “right” to vote as something that is not a responsibility.
Too often, the environment becomes a toy in the whole political game. From placing higher restrictions on polluting industrial plants to placing plots of land on monument status, the use of quality environment is a pawn for current politics. I can say that I absolutely detest dams and what they do to the environment. I hate the way they kill rivers, hamper eco-systems, and change the way the earth looks. However, I can also say that I know dams are some of the cleanest producers of energy, they can create wonderful recreation areas, and they add to the employment of local areas. I think that is where the problem arises.
And, again, too often, in politics and the environment, the issues become black and white, all or nothing. While sustainable development is not a new term, it seems to be a forgotten one. There can be a happy medium. There can be preserved lands AND mining in outlying areas. There can be a National Park and timber industries next to one another. It’s a matter of finding a compromise, of helping one another. I think that it would be better to find a compromise than to lose it all.
What I find, most often, is that no one wants to hear the views of others. They assume, (incorrectly for the most part), that they already know all of the answers and know what the other “side” will say in regards to an issue. This leads to stalemates and no one really gets what s/he wants in a situation like this.
I challenge you. Find out what the opposition has to say and why they say it. Learn all sides of an issue before making a judgment or an assumption. Make informed opinions.
Get active, share your passions, make a difference.
More information on some of my favorite places and the liberal point of view follows. I don’t support all of the issues that are within these sites but it is a good jumping-off point.
woman
0
I don’t think I would have always called myself a feminist. I often use the word humanist or, as Alice Walker says, a womanist. I believe that anyone, regardless of gender, sexuality, age, physical being, or race, deserves to be equal with anyone else.
Perhaps this sounds like a given to you. Or, perhaps it sounds like something that is totally foreign. Whatever the case, I only know where I stand and why. I haven’t always been treated as an equal within relationships nor do I think that society always treats women as equals.
I want…I deserve…to be paid the same amount that a man would make if I have equal qualifications for a position. Women deserve to be considered as candidates for positions they are qualified for…as equals to men. Women’s bodies should not be legislated any more than men’s. I’m not a woman who wants to go to war, nor am I even remotely interested in being in the armed services, but many women are and because of that, we should be allowed and encouraged to join in any level or segment of the armed forces. We should, in all fairness, be a part of the national draft when it occurs.
We are not always equal in all things. This is a given. I will never have the upper body strength of most men that I know. I can live with that deficit. I do, however, have as much intelligence, patience, stamina, and fortitude as any man. And for that, I think that I should be held on an equal basis as any man for a job or a position that requires those specifications.
I could go on and on about women’s right to choose, about fighting against domestic violence, about supporting the Equal Rights Amendment, about joining NOW or other organizations or other issues that are dear to my heart.
I won’t.
Instead, I will give you links, let you read, and let you choose for yourself. We each have a role to live in life. It is up to us to make of it what we will. This is one step in which I do this. Other steps have been to volunteer for Planned Parenthood, to be an officer in the local chapter of NOW, and working with domestic abuse survivors. I have done all of these things and I think I will always work with these types of organizations. It is who I am.
What matters to you? Search it out.
Then do something about it.
These are links to sites that I find of interest in my quest for more knowledge, more understanding, and more tolerance.
dust bowl
0
Yesterday, on my way home from work (yes, I went home sick), I was listening to the Diane Rehm show on NPR. Diane was interviewing the author, Timothy Egan, who has written The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl. Egan shares the stories of the desolation and depression of the people who lived in the Great Plains during the 1930s.
I was touched by how people were brought together to battle this natural disaster. I was also touched by how they endured one thing after another: the winds, the dust, the grasshoppers and, finally, the thing that really broke them, the Depression. They survived everything until they lost everything to the banks.
A caller spoke of how he watched his mother and the other women put towels in window sills and under doors to stop the dust from coming in. Egan asked if any of us could imagine how that would feel, to have an ever-present film of dust over everything.
I live in a mini dust bowl. The winds blow here often and hard. I live in an area that has relatively few trees because it used to be bean fields. What was left was miles and miles of soil that lifts into the air easily.
Constants:
While I don’t live in the same kind of situation those people had to suffer through, I know how the presence of dust weighs on someone. It’s an irritant at first. Then it slowly becomes something that you sigh at and move on.
There is nothing you can do.