I've been feeling the urge to overhaul this place for awhile now, so familiar readers will notice a completely different look, and lots of updates. For the first time since 2007, I put some new pictures on here, updated my profile, started a section where I can post any writing credits and updated my writing resume (which was about two years overdue).
So, I hope you enjoy!
I hope to be blogging more in 2010. It's funny, I was looking at my old stats, and it seems I've increased by 5 posts a year, steadily, since I started this blog in the summer of 2007. I'll see if I can really amp that up in 2010! I'd love to get on some sort of weekly schedule.
I also changed my URL - I just felt funny about having my full real name on there. It made me feel like I didn't really have any privacy, and of course a blog isn't really private, but still, changing it up a little makes me feel a little freer to post more candidly. And that's important to me. So, the new address is http://chrysanthymum.blogspot.com. The Chrysanthemum part comes from my India trip - Willa Rose named me Chrysanthemum and I loved it. It's probably a good thing I didn't go with my other India nickname (sex pot)!
So Chrysanthymum it is for now.
Also, in light of the new year, I don't exactly believe in resolutions, which are usually all about self-restraint, but I totally believe in goal setting and intention setting, I'm kind of hooked on it, you might even say. And along with writing, blogging more and kicking ass in school, I want to set an intention to be more honest and authentic. For anyone who watches The Office, think Pam in "Cocktails" from Season 3 (love that episode).
Authenticity can be an issue for me in blogging. I have no idea who does or doesn't read this, and because of that I can tend to tread too lightly for my own likely, and it's my freakin' blog, so it matters if I like it.
So, I feel I should issue a bit of a warning to the feint of heart: I'm going to tread less lightly. If you are offended by sex, drugs, rock 'n' roll, cursing, atheism, political thought on the left side of liberal, metaphysics, you might want to avert your eyes! I would rather be real, even if people don't like it, than to sit here, not blogging b/c I'm so worried what this or that person will think of me. It's no way to live, so, yeah, I'm going to try less knee-jerk self-censorship. Don't say I didn't warn you!
Currently Listening:
"Elepant" - Damien Rice - Listening to 9 Crimes - such a great album. LOVE his voice in this song, holy shit.
This has got to die
This has got to stop
This has got to lie down
Someone else on top
You can keep me pinned
It's easier to tease
But you can't paint an elephant
Quite as good as she
And she may cry like a baby
And she may drive me Crazy
'Cause I am lately lonely
So why d'you have to lie?
I take it I'm your crutch
The pillow in your pillow case
It's easier to touch
And when you think you've sinned
Do you fall upon your knees?
And do you sit within your picture?
Do you still forget the breeze?
And she may rise, if I sing you down
And she may wisely cling to the ground
Cause I'm lately horny
So why would she take me thorny?
What's the point of this song?
Or even singing?
You've already gone
Why am I clinging?
Well I could throw it on, and I could live without
And I could do it all for you
I could be strong
Tell me if you want me to lie
'Cause this has got to die
This has got to stop
This has got to lie down, down
With someone else on top
You can both keep me pinned
'Cause it's easier to tease
But you can't make me happy
Quite as good as me
Well you know that's a lie
Friday, January 1, 2010
Monday, December 7, 2009
Killing Time Waiting for my Final
And my brain is full, I don't think there is any point in trying to stuff in any more details about biology. Anyway we had a practice final and I got 78 out of 80, so I'm probably fine, I hope.
So, today is the last day of my first term. Overall, it's been really good. Really loving the biology class, and my lab group started studying together. That's been great! We're all contributing, splitting up tasks like writing up vocabulary, going through practice tests, teaching each other things the others don't get so well. I know it has been a huge benefit on both ends. It's great to have people to clarify things you don't quite get, and it's also very helpful to teach something to someone else. I feel like my knowledge of how to solve genetics problems really solidified when I wrote it out to show another girl in my group. And studying with these guys is fun! Our ages range from 22 to 39 and a lot of times we take our study sessions to the bar, or go grab a beer before class or after a test. It's been really fun, and it's kinda cool to have people to talk with about this stuff b/c most people I know aren't really into biology.
Apparently our study group is pretty effective, we kind of have a study group stalker (this guy who really, really wants to be in our study group next term, which is fine as long as there is some contribution).
It's been a LOT of information though! In these 9 weeks we covered the very basics of evolution, basic biological chemistry (mostly involving carbon and water), proteins, DNA & RNA, lipids, the cell and alllll its components, cell communication and signaling, aerobic respiration, photosynthesis, cell division, cell division in gametes, genetics, DNA replication, how genes work, transcription and translation, gene expression in bacteria, gene expression in eukaryotes, genetic engineering, genomics, bacteria, and viruses.
It's like holy shit that's a lot of material! And a lot of it is pretty detailed. I am enjoying the challenge, and learning a LOT. One of the things I love is that our book is very well illustrated. The artist who drew them has a Ph.D in biology and really tried to draw things as they really look. I am learning that I am a very visual learner. Whenever we're going over something in study group, I'm always, "Oh yeah, it's that picture with the purple enzyme..." The enzymes are definitely the coolest looking things in the book. My favorites so far are phophofructokinase (plus that name is so cool), the spliceosome and the basil transcription complex. A lot of the enzymes look like these blobby monsters. They're kind of adorable (or "cute" as I'm told is the "in" word here in Portland).
One of my favorite things is called dideoxy sequencing, which is just a really, really cool and innovative way to determine the sequences of smaller stretches of DNA. The guy who thought that up, Sanger, just had to be soooo fucking brilliant to put that together and that sort of genius just kind of turns me on, lol. I am hot for dideoxy sequencing (although actually doing it now is not quite as cool as the original way, and probably really doing that kind of sequencing would be tedious and boring, I just think the invention is sooooo cool).
It's also really interesting to have a working knowledge of what genetic engineering is and how it's done. I'm sure what is in our book is very cursory, but still I know a lot more now, about things and concepts that are sort of tossed about a lot and how they are done. Our book brings up some ethical concerns about it, but what I thought was cool was that our prof really went into a lot more of that, including things I had never thought about and lots of things I had. In fact there is a class next term called Genes and Society which is all about the ethics of genetic stuff, by this woman who's gone all over the world studying the effects of genetic engineering. I really wish I could take it but I am half time so I can't or it will put me over my financial aid bracket which would be no good at all. I might see if it's going to be offered again next year, and if not maybe I will see if I can sit in. Gotta say, a lot of this stuff is soooo fascinating! In our study group, I was the one who wrote up the genetic engineering chapter so feel very familiar with it (I also had the sex/cell division in gametes chapter, lol).
All right, well just stopping by b/c it's been awhile. I think I am actually going to go review viruses one more time, eat some dinner and then head over to the classroom. Almost wish the test was earlier in the day, feeling pretty antsy just sitting here killing time.
Currently listening:
"500 Miles" - Tori Amos - really getting into this album (abnormally attracted to sin, and must say I love that title), and this is probably my favorite so far. I'm just digging it, loving the lyrics, singing it all the time. I am definitely on yet another Tori kick.
He walked 300 miles
just to bring, to bring me bread
His body like a sculpture
almost decorated
And I’ll wake him as the dawn does
and we’re breaking on the bus
saying this was made for us
and now
In lovers communion for 500 miles
and in 500 miles
will he break, bring me again
In lovers communion for 500 miles
and in 500 miles
will we break even break
step it up
grab your phone, get your suitcase
there’s no time to waste
a big adventure awaits
Sad news
France suffered a late snow
The blooms break through the ice
And San Francisco,
Her guitar man finally confessed
He loved that actress
With hearts touched by frost
We fought in the land of a midnight sun
I lost myself
I lost myself
I walked 300 miles
just to bring, to bring him bread
In love some gifts are simple
Others I underrated
So I wake him as the dawn does
and we’ll face what any lovers must
blueness pales within a flame’s lust
In lovers communion for 500 miles
and in 500 miles
will he break, bring me again
In lovers communion for 500 miles
and in 500 miles
will he break, even break
will we break, even break
Break, even break
Don’t slide, don’t weep
my life even
break
Okay, this is NUTS - right as I was about to hit post, the power in my building went out. I had to forgo the rereading of notes and get ready in complete darkness! The hardest part was finding my glasses in the dark, lol, and then I also had to find my scantron form. On my way out my apt manager told me I shouldn't leave (our door has this electrical key thing to open) b/c she was afraid I wouldn't be able to get back in, but I was like sorry lady gotta take my exam. So I did, and it went well. It was pretty straightforward. No real hard thinking/puzzling through questions like usual. Just straight up do you know your shit. Hopefully I did.
So, today is the last day of my first term. Overall, it's been really good. Really loving the biology class, and my lab group started studying together. That's been great! We're all contributing, splitting up tasks like writing up vocabulary, going through practice tests, teaching each other things the others don't get so well. I know it has been a huge benefit on both ends. It's great to have people to clarify things you don't quite get, and it's also very helpful to teach something to someone else. I feel like my knowledge of how to solve genetics problems really solidified when I wrote it out to show another girl in my group. And studying with these guys is fun! Our ages range from 22 to 39 and a lot of times we take our study sessions to the bar, or go grab a beer before class or after a test. It's been really fun, and it's kinda cool to have people to talk with about this stuff b/c most people I know aren't really into biology.
Apparently our study group is pretty effective, we kind of have a study group stalker (this guy who really, really wants to be in our study group next term, which is fine as long as there is some contribution).
It's been a LOT of information though! In these 9 weeks we covered the very basics of evolution, basic biological chemistry (mostly involving carbon and water), proteins, DNA & RNA, lipids, the cell and alllll its components, cell communication and signaling, aerobic respiration, photosynthesis, cell division, cell division in gametes, genetics, DNA replication, how genes work, transcription and translation, gene expression in bacteria, gene expression in eukaryotes, genetic engineering, genomics, bacteria, and viruses.
It's like holy shit that's a lot of material! And a lot of it is pretty detailed. I am enjoying the challenge, and learning a LOT. One of the things I love is that our book is very well illustrated. The artist who drew them has a Ph.D in biology and really tried to draw things as they really look. I am learning that I am a very visual learner. Whenever we're going over something in study group, I'm always, "Oh yeah, it's that picture with the purple enzyme..." The enzymes are definitely the coolest looking things in the book. My favorites so far are phophofructokinase (plus that name is so cool), the spliceosome and the basil transcription complex. A lot of the enzymes look like these blobby monsters. They're kind of adorable (or "cute" as I'm told is the "in" word here in Portland).
One of my favorite things is called dideoxy sequencing, which is just a really, really cool and innovative way to determine the sequences of smaller stretches of DNA. The guy who thought that up, Sanger, just had to be soooo fucking brilliant to put that together and that sort of genius just kind of turns me on, lol. I am hot for dideoxy sequencing (although actually doing it now is not quite as cool as the original way, and probably really doing that kind of sequencing would be tedious and boring, I just think the invention is sooooo cool).
It's also really interesting to have a working knowledge of what genetic engineering is and how it's done. I'm sure what is in our book is very cursory, but still I know a lot more now, about things and concepts that are sort of tossed about a lot and how they are done. Our book brings up some ethical concerns about it, but what I thought was cool was that our prof really went into a lot more of that, including things I had never thought about and lots of things I had. In fact there is a class next term called Genes and Society which is all about the ethics of genetic stuff, by this woman who's gone all over the world studying the effects of genetic engineering. I really wish I could take it but I am half time so I can't or it will put me over my financial aid bracket which would be no good at all. I might see if it's going to be offered again next year, and if not maybe I will see if I can sit in. Gotta say, a lot of this stuff is soooo fascinating! In our study group, I was the one who wrote up the genetic engineering chapter so feel very familiar with it (I also had the sex/cell division in gametes chapter, lol).
All right, well just stopping by b/c it's been awhile. I think I am actually going to go review viruses one more time, eat some dinner and then head over to the classroom. Almost wish the test was earlier in the day, feeling pretty antsy just sitting here killing time.
Currently listening:
"500 Miles" - Tori Amos - really getting into this album (abnormally attracted to sin, and must say I love that title), and this is probably my favorite so far. I'm just digging it, loving the lyrics, singing it all the time. I am definitely on yet another Tori kick.
He walked 300 miles
just to bring, to bring me bread
His body like a sculpture
almost decorated
And I’ll wake him as the dawn does
and we’re breaking on the bus
saying this was made for us
and now
In lovers communion for 500 miles
and in 500 miles
will he break, bring me again
In lovers communion for 500 miles
and in 500 miles
will we break even break
step it up
grab your phone, get your suitcase
there’s no time to waste
a big adventure awaits
Sad news
France suffered a late snow
The blooms break through the ice
And San Francisco,
Her guitar man finally confessed
He loved that actress
With hearts touched by frost
We fought in the land of a midnight sun
I lost myself
I lost myself
I walked 300 miles
just to bring, to bring him bread
In love some gifts are simple
Others I underrated
So I wake him as the dawn does
and we’ll face what any lovers must
blueness pales within a flame’s lust
In lovers communion for 500 miles
and in 500 miles
will he break, bring me again
In lovers communion for 500 miles
and in 500 miles
will he break, even break
will we break, even break
Break, even break
Don’t slide, don’t weep
my life even
break
Okay, this is NUTS - right as I was about to hit post, the power in my building went out. I had to forgo the rereading of notes and get ready in complete darkness! The hardest part was finding my glasses in the dark, lol, and then I also had to find my scantron form. On my way out my apt manager told me I shouldn't leave (our door has this electrical key thing to open) b/c she was afraid I wouldn't be able to get back in, but I was like sorry lady gotta take my exam. So I did, and it went well. It was pretty straightforward. No real hard thinking/puzzling through questions like usual. Just straight up do you know your shit. Hopefully I did.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
I Just Had the Coolest Afternoon!
Wow.
Okay, I just had an awesome afternoon. Today I met with a woman who works as a naturopathic physician who is totally blind. I mean, WOW. Totally inspiring. It's one of those times that reminds me that my visual impairment is NOT an excuse to not do things! I mean this woman is a doctor! She went through classes like gross anatomy and diagnostic imaging with no eyesight at all. How amazing is that?!?! It makes me feel like, yes, I can do science stuff, and there are all kinds of alternative techniques to do visually-intense things, in school and in life.
She also invited me to a group of blind and visually-impaired knitters and I'm going to do it. I'm good with my hands, and that is something that I've always felt that if I were taught how to do, I could really do by feel. So I am going to go get my knit on and be a stitchin' bitch! It'll be really nice to get connected with the visually-impaired community too. I'm psyched about that!
I came away from that appointment feeling really fired up and inspired. I also felt SO affirmed in my decision to attend school rather than that program in CO. She had some insight about that and the organization that totally backed up the feelings I was getting about things. I still want to make a post about that someday, about groups and organizations and their "central dogma" to use a bio term, but feel I need to really carefully consider my words b/c I am worried about the response. Anyway I felt like I learned SO much from her today about what I can do to succeed in science classes. She keyed me in to some really great strategies and techniques, and she's local so I feel like she's someone I could talk to if anything came up. WOW.
Not to mention, if I haven't already that there is a visually-impaired chemistry prof. at my school, who just happens to be the brother in law of a good friend of mine from Orcas. He helped me move in even! So I just have to say, it's yet another thing that makes me feel like I am SO GLAD I am here. I feel like Portland is just teeming with resources. And I was kind of in a funk, so this inspiring afternoon was just what the doctor ordered! It really is good to remember that whatever I choose to do in life, the eyesight is not a good enough excuse not to. I mean hell now they have blind people working for NASA, and there is a woman in WA who is working hard to be an FBI investigator even though she is blind. So it's like, fuck yeah!
The coolest part was, this was a chance meeting in a way. One of the presenters for my one-credit class a few weeks ago said something that made me want to ask her a follow-up question. The class is huge, so I waited at the end of the line to talk to her and when we met, she asked me about my eyesight and I said yeah I am visually-impaired, and she said, "Oh I have to connect you with this person I know, she's brilliant..." and so she called me a few hours later with this woman's contact info, and we talked and decided to meet this afternoon. It was just awesome! This seems to be the place of chance encounters, let me tell you. There is a crazy story about how a girl who used to live on Orcas randomly met the director of the company that put on my India program, and they bonded over the fact that they both knew me, and then there were some other WILD coincidences with that. Just makes me feel like I am in the right place!
Okay well, I have to get ready for class. We have our second exam on Monday, on much harder material but still I am going to fucking ROCK IT!
Currently Listening:
"Someone Else's Life" - Joshua Radin - I still don't know what to think of this guy. It's like I can't tell if he's really emotionally sincere, or a real tool. I mean, I like him a lot but I do get a feeling that something is lacking somehow, some element of rawness or depth or intensity or something. Still, I like. A lot. And he worked with Tori, a major point in his favor in my book!
Somehow
I'm leading someone else's life
I cut a star down with my knife
And right now
I still see the way the moon
Plays this tune
Though our lights died.
My hands shake
My knees quake
It's every day
The same way.
Cos then came you.
Then there's you.
I keep your picture
In my worn through shoes.
Then there's you.
Then came you.
When I'm lost,
I look at my picture of you.
And somehow
I'll make tonight our own
I'll show you every way I've grown
Since I met you
And right now
I'll be the boy in your next song
I'll learn the parts and play along
If you let me.
My hands shake
My knees quake
It's every day
The same way.
Cos then came you.
Then there's you.
I keep your picture
In my worn through shoes.
Then there's you.
Then came you.
When I'm lost,
I look at my picture of you.
If you let me,
I'll show the world to you.
Yes, if you let me,
I'll know just what to do.
Cos then came you.
Then there's you.
I keep your picture
In my worn through shoes.
When I'm lost
In your eyes
I see a way for me
Okay, I just had an awesome afternoon. Today I met with a woman who works as a naturopathic physician who is totally blind. I mean, WOW. Totally inspiring. It's one of those times that reminds me that my visual impairment is NOT an excuse to not do things! I mean this woman is a doctor! She went through classes like gross anatomy and diagnostic imaging with no eyesight at all. How amazing is that?!?! It makes me feel like, yes, I can do science stuff, and there are all kinds of alternative techniques to do visually-intense things, in school and in life.
She also invited me to a group of blind and visually-impaired knitters and I'm going to do it. I'm good with my hands, and that is something that I've always felt that if I were taught how to do, I could really do by feel. So I am going to go get my knit on and be a stitchin' bitch! It'll be really nice to get connected with the visually-impaired community too. I'm psyched about that!
I came away from that appointment feeling really fired up and inspired. I also felt SO affirmed in my decision to attend school rather than that program in CO. She had some insight about that and the organization that totally backed up the feelings I was getting about things. I still want to make a post about that someday, about groups and organizations and their "central dogma" to use a bio term, but feel I need to really carefully consider my words b/c I am worried about the response. Anyway I felt like I learned SO much from her today about what I can do to succeed in science classes. She keyed me in to some really great strategies and techniques, and she's local so I feel like she's someone I could talk to if anything came up. WOW.
Not to mention, if I haven't already that there is a visually-impaired chemistry prof. at my school, who just happens to be the brother in law of a good friend of mine from Orcas. He helped me move in even! So I just have to say, it's yet another thing that makes me feel like I am SO GLAD I am here. I feel like Portland is just teeming with resources. And I was kind of in a funk, so this inspiring afternoon was just what the doctor ordered! It really is good to remember that whatever I choose to do in life, the eyesight is not a good enough excuse not to. I mean hell now they have blind people working for NASA, and there is a woman in WA who is working hard to be an FBI investigator even though she is blind. So it's like, fuck yeah!
The coolest part was, this was a chance meeting in a way. One of the presenters for my one-credit class a few weeks ago said something that made me want to ask her a follow-up question. The class is huge, so I waited at the end of the line to talk to her and when we met, she asked me about my eyesight and I said yeah I am visually-impaired, and she said, "Oh I have to connect you with this person I know, she's brilliant..." and so she called me a few hours later with this woman's contact info, and we talked and decided to meet this afternoon. It was just awesome! This seems to be the place of chance encounters, let me tell you. There is a crazy story about how a girl who used to live on Orcas randomly met the director of the company that put on my India program, and they bonded over the fact that they both knew me, and then there were some other WILD coincidences with that. Just makes me feel like I am in the right place!
Okay well, I have to get ready for class. We have our second exam on Monday, on much harder material but still I am going to fucking ROCK IT!
Currently Listening:
"Someone Else's Life" - Joshua Radin - I still don't know what to think of this guy. It's like I can't tell if he's really emotionally sincere, or a real tool. I mean, I like him a lot but I do get a feeling that something is lacking somehow, some element of rawness or depth or intensity or something. Still, I like. A lot. And he worked with Tori, a major point in his favor in my book!
Somehow
I'm leading someone else's life
I cut a star down with my knife
And right now
I still see the way the moon
Plays this tune
Though our lights died.
My hands shake
My knees quake
It's every day
The same way.
Cos then came you.
Then there's you.
I keep your picture
In my worn through shoes.
Then there's you.
Then came you.
When I'm lost,
I look at my picture of you.
And somehow
I'll make tonight our own
I'll show you every way I've grown
Since I met you
And right now
I'll be the boy in your next song
I'll learn the parts and play along
If you let me.
My hands shake
My knees quake
It's every day
The same way.
Cos then came you.
Then there's you.
I keep your picture
In my worn through shoes.
Then there's you.
Then came you.
When I'm lost,
I look at my picture of you.
If you let me,
I'll show the world to you.
Yes, if you let me,
I'll know just what to do.
Cos then came you.
Then there's you.
I keep your picture
In my worn through shoes.
When I'm lost
In your eyes
I see a way for me
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Class Sign-Up Predicament (A Blessing in Disguise?)
So I have a bit of a predicament for signing up for classes.
I have to take between 6-8 credit hours each term this year. If I take less than six, I don't get financial aid. If I take more than eight, then it's more than half-time, and I simply can't afford it even with the financial aid. Also if I take eight or less all year, then next year I can be considered an Oregon resident for the rest of my schooling, which will make all the difference in the world. I will seriously be paying less going full-time next year as a state resident, than I am this year at half-time. By a pretty significant amount!
So pretty straightforward, right? 6-8 credits shouldn't be too hard to manage. Most classes are 4, so it should be easy.
Except that the Biology class I'm taking is a 5-credit class b/c it includes the lab. So that alone is not enough, and if I add any regular class, that puts me at 9 and I'm over my limit. So what it basically means I have to do is take some more unusual classes.
This quarter it was fine, there was an easy 1-credit class to add, kind of a career exploration class for science people. We see presentations every week, and have to turn in assignments answering questions based on the presentation and have a final essay to write at the end. It's just pass/fail, no real grade, but I am loving the class, and the assignments are pretty easy, just some self-reflection basically.
It's funny, I took a similar class in the physics department when I was in school before, and it was a lot easier, there were no assignments, no final essay, all you really had to do was show up. And at that time, it really turned me off to physics, because other than teaching, all the careers we heard about were related to defense. And anyone who knows me knows that there is absolutely no way I would EVER do that. So that class was a real bummer even though it was a lot less work. I'm glad I'm liking my current class a lot better!
But the point is, there are no classes like that next term. There are still some cool options, though they took some digging in the class schedule to find. There's a handful of PE classes I might be interested in - self-defense, swimming, yoga, belly dancing - as well as some potential music classes - voice, piano, guitar - aimed for beginners who are not music majors, like myself. I am really thinking about signing up for voice for next term.
I have wanted voice lessons my whole life so bad. As a kid, anytime I asked, my mom said I didn't have enough natural talent, which just crushed me every time. I remember the summer before my junior year of high school, I was writing a lot of poems and songs, and I kind of strategized all summer, preparing my case to ask again. There was a program for music lessons for visually-impaired people that made lessons super affordable, and I could cover the rest out of allowance. I thought that might help my case. And then after the second day back in school I finally worked up the courage to ask again, and got the same response. It was the perfect start to probably the worst year with some of my darkest days. I never asked again, and though I always thought about signing up for something like that in college, I never had the guts b/c I knew what kind of response I would get from my family. It's like, how many times are you going to let someone punch you in the face? So I never went near that topic again. As an adult I could never really afford it, though I never really stopped thinking about it, through the years. When I was in India, there were a few times where it really came to me how much I wanted to be musical, and how I've sort of given up, and how I don't want to give up b/c it means too much to me. I promised myself I would look into it upon my return to the US.
So now, the opportunity is there, it would be part of my tuition, and it fits my schedule (could go to that right after bio class) and the prof gets good reviews. It's a little scary b/c it's been so emotionally loaded a topic for me, and I've felt a lot of hurt around the topic. I think if I take a class like that, it's going to stir some stuff, shake me up some. Maybe that's a good thing. It feels like it could open up a can of worms of feelings that have been kinda stuck and lodged inside. Maybe the possibility of not shaking stuff up is a lot worse. I think when you grow up in a situation that feels oppressive and gives you certain beliefs about yourself, it is all too easy as you get older, to take over the oppression yourself and keep holding onto those beliefs. I don't want to live like that. I know I don't have any kind of stunning voice, but still I think I am okay, and if I take the class, it can only get better, right? I love to sing and I want to do it better, better express myself through music.
So I think I'm going to sign up for the class for winter quarter. It scares me, a lot, but sometimes those are the things that are really worth doing. And then in spring I might take the piano class. Sometimes, even (or especially) in school, you just have to follow your heart.
I never would have found this class if I wasn't in the predicament of needing to dig to find classes that are 1-3 credits, so even though at first I was like fuck, how am I going to stay within my credit range, I think it definitely turned out to be a blessing in disguise!
Currently Listening:
"The Good Left Undone" - Rise Against (who I saw at Lolla). Okay I must say that I completely misunderstood the chorus of this song the first time I heard it. I thought he was saying, "All because of you/I haven't slept in so long/When I do I dream/Of running in the ocean/reaching for the shore/Where I can let my hair down/I forgot your voice..." Not so terribly terribly off, but, definitely different.
In fields where nothing grew but weeds,
I found a flower at my feet,
bending there in my direction.
I wrapped a hand around its stem
and pulled until the roots gave in,
finding there what I've been missing.
And I know....
So I tell myself, I tell myself, it's wrong.
There's a point we pass from which we can't return.
I felt the cold rain of the coming storm...
All because of you,
I haven't slept in so long.
When I do I dream
of drowning in the ocean;
longing for the shore
where I can lay my head down.
I'll follow your voice;
all you have to do is
shout it out!
Inside my hands these petals browned;
dried up falling to the ground,
but it was already too late now.
I pushed my fingers through the earth,
returned this flower to the dirt;
so it could live, I walked away now.
But I know...
Not a day goes by when I don't feel this burn.
There's a point we pass from which we can't return.
I felt the cold rain of the coming storm...
All because of you,
I haven't slept in so long.
When I do I dream
of drowning in the ocean;
longing for the shore
where I can lay my head down.
I'll follow your voice;
all you have to do is
shout it out!
All because of you.
All because of you.
All because of you,
I haven't slept in so long.
When I do I dream
of drowning in the ocean;
longing for the shore
where I can lay my head down.
Inside these arms of yours.
All because of you
I believe in angels.
Not the kind with wings,
no, not the kind with halos;
the kind that bring you home
when home becomes a strange place.
I'll follow your voice;
all you have to do is
shout it out!
I have to take between 6-8 credit hours each term this year. If I take less than six, I don't get financial aid. If I take more than eight, then it's more than half-time, and I simply can't afford it even with the financial aid. Also if I take eight or less all year, then next year I can be considered an Oregon resident for the rest of my schooling, which will make all the difference in the world. I will seriously be paying less going full-time next year as a state resident, than I am this year at half-time. By a pretty significant amount!
So pretty straightforward, right? 6-8 credits shouldn't be too hard to manage. Most classes are 4, so it should be easy.
Except that the Biology class I'm taking is a 5-credit class b/c it includes the lab. So that alone is not enough, and if I add any regular class, that puts me at 9 and I'm over my limit. So what it basically means I have to do is take some more unusual classes.
This quarter it was fine, there was an easy 1-credit class to add, kind of a career exploration class for science people. We see presentations every week, and have to turn in assignments answering questions based on the presentation and have a final essay to write at the end. It's just pass/fail, no real grade, but I am loving the class, and the assignments are pretty easy, just some self-reflection basically.
It's funny, I took a similar class in the physics department when I was in school before, and it was a lot easier, there were no assignments, no final essay, all you really had to do was show up. And at that time, it really turned me off to physics, because other than teaching, all the careers we heard about were related to defense. And anyone who knows me knows that there is absolutely no way I would EVER do that. So that class was a real bummer even though it was a lot less work. I'm glad I'm liking my current class a lot better!
But the point is, there are no classes like that next term. There are still some cool options, though they took some digging in the class schedule to find. There's a handful of PE classes I might be interested in - self-defense, swimming, yoga, belly dancing - as well as some potential music classes - voice, piano, guitar - aimed for beginners who are not music majors, like myself. I am really thinking about signing up for voice for next term.
I have wanted voice lessons my whole life so bad. As a kid, anytime I asked, my mom said I didn't have enough natural talent, which just crushed me every time. I remember the summer before my junior year of high school, I was writing a lot of poems and songs, and I kind of strategized all summer, preparing my case to ask again. There was a program for music lessons for visually-impaired people that made lessons super affordable, and I could cover the rest out of allowance. I thought that might help my case. And then after the second day back in school I finally worked up the courage to ask again, and got the same response. It was the perfect start to probably the worst year with some of my darkest days. I never asked again, and though I always thought about signing up for something like that in college, I never had the guts b/c I knew what kind of response I would get from my family. It's like, how many times are you going to let someone punch you in the face? So I never went near that topic again. As an adult I could never really afford it, though I never really stopped thinking about it, through the years. When I was in India, there were a few times where it really came to me how much I wanted to be musical, and how I've sort of given up, and how I don't want to give up b/c it means too much to me. I promised myself I would look into it upon my return to the US.
So now, the opportunity is there, it would be part of my tuition, and it fits my schedule (could go to that right after bio class) and the prof gets good reviews. It's a little scary b/c it's been so emotionally loaded a topic for me, and I've felt a lot of hurt around the topic. I think if I take a class like that, it's going to stir some stuff, shake me up some. Maybe that's a good thing. It feels like it could open up a can of worms of feelings that have been kinda stuck and lodged inside. Maybe the possibility of not shaking stuff up is a lot worse. I think when you grow up in a situation that feels oppressive and gives you certain beliefs about yourself, it is all too easy as you get older, to take over the oppression yourself and keep holding onto those beliefs. I don't want to live like that. I know I don't have any kind of stunning voice, but still I think I am okay, and if I take the class, it can only get better, right? I love to sing and I want to do it better, better express myself through music.
So I think I'm going to sign up for the class for winter quarter. It scares me, a lot, but sometimes those are the things that are really worth doing. And then in spring I might take the piano class. Sometimes, even (or especially) in school, you just have to follow your heart.
I never would have found this class if I wasn't in the predicament of needing to dig to find classes that are 1-3 credits, so even though at first I was like fuck, how am I going to stay within my credit range, I think it definitely turned out to be a blessing in disguise!
Currently Listening:
"The Good Left Undone" - Rise Against (who I saw at Lolla). Okay I must say that I completely misunderstood the chorus of this song the first time I heard it. I thought he was saying, "All because of you/I haven't slept in so long/When I do I dream/Of running in the ocean/reaching for the shore/Where I can let my hair down/I forgot your voice..." Not so terribly terribly off, but, definitely different.
In fields where nothing grew but weeds,
I found a flower at my feet,
bending there in my direction.
I wrapped a hand around its stem
and pulled until the roots gave in,
finding there what I've been missing.
And I know....
So I tell myself, I tell myself, it's wrong.
There's a point we pass from which we can't return.
I felt the cold rain of the coming storm...
All because of you,
I haven't slept in so long.
When I do I dream
of drowning in the ocean;
longing for the shore
where I can lay my head down.
I'll follow your voice;
all you have to do is
shout it out!
Inside my hands these petals browned;
dried up falling to the ground,
but it was already too late now.
I pushed my fingers through the earth,
returned this flower to the dirt;
so it could live, I walked away now.
But I know...
Not a day goes by when I don't feel this burn.
There's a point we pass from which we can't return.
I felt the cold rain of the coming storm...
All because of you,
I haven't slept in so long.
When I do I dream
of drowning in the ocean;
longing for the shore
where I can lay my head down.
I'll follow your voice;
all you have to do is
shout it out!
All because of you.
All because of you.
All because of you,
I haven't slept in so long.
When I do I dream
of drowning in the ocean;
longing for the shore
where I can lay my head down.
Inside these arms of yours.
All because of you
I believe in angels.
Not the kind with wings,
no, not the kind with halos;
the kind that bring you home
when home becomes a strange place.
I'll follow your voice;
all you have to do is
shout it out!
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Survived My First Exam
I had my first exam today. I was nervous, but I had studied hard for it. It went really well! If anything I was overprepared. I really took the time to make sure I understood everything. There were a few things I was struggling with and I looked them up online or later in my textbook b/c I didn't want to get tripped up.
The exam covered a lot of material, especially the last chapter of the book that was on the test, which was an overview of all the parts of the cell, and was by far the longest chapter we'd covered, and was really dense, chock full of parts and processes and terms and tons of information that was different than the previous material (we basically went from some basic biochemistry stuff, building blocks, lots and lots of chemistry, to cell biology and there were just so many processes to understand).
And really, when I sat down to take it, it was easy. I didn't have to know half of what I had roaming in my brain from the material. I could have gotten away with studying a lot less, but hey, now I really understand some shit that will probably come back later on, so it's all good.
There were a few questions that were a bit tricky, maybe three out of the fifty, that I'm not totally sure I got right, but overall it was a lot easier than I expected.
I have to say I am feeling pretty good. I am not in the concurrent chemistry class that most people are taking, b/c I can't afford to, and even so they are thinking of making the chemistry class a prerequisite for our class, so I was worried about not having that background, but hey, I'm doing fine.
And best of all, I'm enjoying it! I really enjoy the prof. She gives sooo many relatable examples. I always used to think of myself as a physics person when it came to science, and it's like, oh shit, this is way more interesting and feels more, just relatable I guess, more earthly. I am loving it. My prof is funny and always throws jokes in and the only downside is she talks really fast so it can be hard to catch things, but all the notes are on blackboard, so it works out. Today's lecture (after the exame was over) involved erections, LOL. And viagra! But that is exactly what I mean, it's easy to pay attention and stay engaged in the class when you use examples like that. She mentioned tonight that she will be teaching the winter term of the class (up until now, it seemed to be up in the air), so I'm psyched to be able to continue with her as my prof.
I do sometimes wish class wasn't so huge. We have almost 300 people (a lot more of them were there today, since it was test day), so it is a bit hard to get to know people, except the ones in my lab group. I mean the class is just huge. I am taking another one-credit class (needed that to get financial aid) and that ended up being really huge too.
Gotta say, it is so nice to be in school as an adult. I am thrilled to be at PSU, b/c there are tons of other adult students, I am nowhere near oldest in my class, and that is nice. It makes me glad I made the decision for this school. And as I've said before, there are other disabled students (a few others in my class even). It's just nice to feel like I'm not outside of the student body. It also helps that my class is a night class. But yeah, it's great to be in such a different situation as last time I was in school. It's nice that I can come home to my studio apartment, that there isn't the whole feel of college being a big extension of high school with all its social bullshit. It just has a totally different feel to it this time around.
Last weekend in lab (yes I have a lab on the weekend, Saturday afternoon actually), we looked at e. coli and baker's yeast and some other things under the microscope, looked at some pond creatures and fossils as well. It kinda freaked me out, I've had bad experiences with lab classes before, and always kind of dread the microscope because of it, but it went well. I have my lab assistant now, which is a help, but I also did a lot of it myself. She's there to help if I need it, show me things that the TA is demonstrating in the front of the class, stuff like that. And she gets paid by the school. It is a pretty cool system.
Anyway I'm off for a good night's rest so that I can get up and do homework for my one-credit class and my lab, and make sure I don't fall behind on reading for the next test.
Life is good.
The exam covered a lot of material, especially the last chapter of the book that was on the test, which was an overview of all the parts of the cell, and was by far the longest chapter we'd covered, and was really dense, chock full of parts and processes and terms and tons of information that was different than the previous material (we basically went from some basic biochemistry stuff, building blocks, lots and lots of chemistry, to cell biology and there were just so many processes to understand).
And really, when I sat down to take it, it was easy. I didn't have to know half of what I had roaming in my brain from the material. I could have gotten away with studying a lot less, but hey, now I really understand some shit that will probably come back later on, so it's all good.
There were a few questions that were a bit tricky, maybe three out of the fifty, that I'm not totally sure I got right, but overall it was a lot easier than I expected.
I have to say I am feeling pretty good. I am not in the concurrent chemistry class that most people are taking, b/c I can't afford to, and even so they are thinking of making the chemistry class a prerequisite for our class, so I was worried about not having that background, but hey, I'm doing fine.
And best of all, I'm enjoying it! I really enjoy the prof. She gives sooo many relatable examples. I always used to think of myself as a physics person when it came to science, and it's like, oh shit, this is way more interesting and feels more, just relatable I guess, more earthly. I am loving it. My prof is funny and always throws jokes in and the only downside is she talks really fast so it can be hard to catch things, but all the notes are on blackboard, so it works out. Today's lecture (after the exame was over) involved erections, LOL. And viagra! But that is exactly what I mean, it's easy to pay attention and stay engaged in the class when you use examples like that. She mentioned tonight that she will be teaching the winter term of the class (up until now, it seemed to be up in the air), so I'm psyched to be able to continue with her as my prof.
I do sometimes wish class wasn't so huge. We have almost 300 people (a lot more of them were there today, since it was test day), so it is a bit hard to get to know people, except the ones in my lab group. I mean the class is just huge. I am taking another one-credit class (needed that to get financial aid) and that ended up being really huge too.
Gotta say, it is so nice to be in school as an adult. I am thrilled to be at PSU, b/c there are tons of other adult students, I am nowhere near oldest in my class, and that is nice. It makes me glad I made the decision for this school. And as I've said before, there are other disabled students (a few others in my class even). It's just nice to feel like I'm not outside of the student body. It also helps that my class is a night class. But yeah, it's great to be in such a different situation as last time I was in school. It's nice that I can come home to my studio apartment, that there isn't the whole feel of college being a big extension of high school with all its social bullshit. It just has a totally different feel to it this time around.
Last weekend in lab (yes I have a lab on the weekend, Saturday afternoon actually), we looked at e. coli and baker's yeast and some other things under the microscope, looked at some pond creatures and fossils as well. It kinda freaked me out, I've had bad experiences with lab classes before, and always kind of dread the microscope because of it, but it went well. I have my lab assistant now, which is a help, but I also did a lot of it myself. She's there to help if I need it, show me things that the TA is demonstrating in the front of the class, stuff like that. And she gets paid by the school. It is a pretty cool system.
Anyway I'm off for a good night's rest so that I can get up and do homework for my one-credit class and my lab, and make sure I don't fall behind on reading for the next test.
Life is good.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Student Life
Some general observations:
Things have changed A LOT since the last time I was in school, which was only seven years ago! I had to learn how to use Blackboard (online class program thing) for all my classes. It has its own separate email for each class, as well as discussion boards, review material, lecture notes, posted grades and assignments (some of which are completed solely via the web). Also, for my first lab class we had to make charts and graphs on Excel, which I've never used (luckily one of my lab partners is proficient).
It's not only the technology, but the material. Back when I was in high school, we had to memorize these classification groups for biology, you know, Kingdom, Phyllum, Order...all the way to Species. It turns out that is a bit outdated. Now they are mapping species similarity using genetics and it turns out that fungi are more similar in genetic makeup to humans and animals than they are to plants or algae. The mapping ends up looking like a tree-ish sort of thing.
I am really, really glad I chose school over the Denver Center. My mind feels engaged for the first time in ages, in real challenging material. I haven't taken bio or chem (and there is a lot of chemistry involved in this first term of bio) since I was in my first two years of high school. I remember parts of it from back then, which helps (and chem hasn't changed), so it's stirring up old knowledge but really expanding it. And we are covering material FAST. This is the start of my third week, and we're already on chapter seven of a huge book, and having our first exam next week. So it's been a lot of material, and challenging material, but I feel like I am keeping up.
And! I have learned some cool things:
My friend loves this one: In the human liver there are two enzymes that break down alcohol, one that does it fast and one that takes more time. Some people don't have the faster one, so their bodies have a harder time handling drinking, and the person gets super flushed (and pretty drunk) like immediately and just in general can't handle much of anything to drink. So if you are ever in need of an excuse to not drink and feeling peer pressure, you can blame it on your enzymes (or lack thereof).
Red blood cells look like donuts with a dimple instead of a hole.
I don't know if other things I've learned will interest anyone (and are a bit complex), but I've also learned about how snake venom works, how detergent (as in laundry soap) works, the basic gist of what causes mad cow disease, and lots of other fun things. Now when I get out of the shower, I think about Hydrogen bonds (water adheres to the body via H bonds, hair is more malleable and less stiff, also due to H bonds). I have to say, it's early, only had five lecture classes so far, but I am loving it. And I really like my prof. She brings in these really practical examples of the processes we're learning about and she takes time to answer questions in class and discuss things, while still moving through the material quickly.
And I feel like I'm keeping up. I'm staying on top of the reading (which is a LOT), getting practice questions right at the ends of chapters, getting questions in class right (it's a huge lecture, almost 300 students, and so we have multiple choice questions in class and we have to hold up our answers, it's not for grading, more for us to check ourselves and how well we're following). The upcoming exam feels intimidating, but I think I'll do well. I'm expecting a lot out of myself, hopefully not unrealistically. I definitely expect straight A's.
Lab is a bit more challenging, mostly for me visually but I should be getting an assistant soon. The first week we played with plant pigments from red cabbage (which luckily had already been distilled and all, so there was no smell), and this past week we extracted our DNA and put it through the same process as you would to do a PCR test (which is what is used for crime scene investigation, paternity testing, testing for genetic conditions, etc) and also got to really visualize and play with the rules of protein folding by playing with big foam noodles!
I am only taking six credits - that was the perfect balance where I could still get financial aid and enroll, and have enough aid/student loans left over to cover living expenses in case it takes me a bit to find a job (apparently the job market here in Portland really blows) - but it certainly feels like a full load of classes. There is a lot of reading for lab which is separate from the reading for lecture and we have quizzes every week (pretty sure I aced the first one, if anything I was overprepared). And then I have a one-credit class on Fridays that requires a lot of thoughtful, written responses, even though it's only one-credit and is pass/fail only.
So yeah, school is great!
For my Orcas peeps - hate to say this but I'm not coming up for Women's Wellness Weekend. I have my one-credit class on Fri, my lab on Sat, and assignments due for both that weekend, and my second exam is the day after the weekend ends, soooo not this time. Hopefully my schedule will be different next term and I can make it for the Spring one and read the shit out of some tarot cards for all the ladies! This time around though, school's gotta come first. It looks different, being older, and paying for school myself, and I feel committed to making it my first priority.
Anyway that's the quick update about classes. Still loving my place and my location, so happy I chose PSU as my school, and really scored on apartment location. My friend Holly is visiting, which has been really nice to have a friend around. We've done some shopping and arranging for my new studio apartment and exploring some of the local places to eat and areas of Portland. It's been fun and after she leaves tomorrow I will have to buckle down for some hard core studying for next week's exam.
Going to a few more upcoming shows too - Ani DiFranco, who I've always wanted to see, and the week after that, Joshua Radin, who I've posted here before. I can't decide if he's a real genuine songwriter, or kind of a tool, LOL, but maybe the live show will help me figure that out. Can't believe I'm actually going to see someone live who I discovered via Grey's Anatomy. What is this world coming to??
Things have changed A LOT since the last time I was in school, which was only seven years ago! I had to learn how to use Blackboard (online class program thing) for all my classes. It has its own separate email for each class, as well as discussion boards, review material, lecture notes, posted grades and assignments (some of which are completed solely via the web). Also, for my first lab class we had to make charts and graphs on Excel, which I've never used (luckily one of my lab partners is proficient).
It's not only the technology, but the material. Back when I was in high school, we had to memorize these classification groups for biology, you know, Kingdom, Phyllum, Order...all the way to Species. It turns out that is a bit outdated. Now they are mapping species similarity using genetics and it turns out that fungi are more similar in genetic makeup to humans and animals than they are to plants or algae. The mapping ends up looking like a tree-ish sort of thing.
I am really, really glad I chose school over the Denver Center. My mind feels engaged for the first time in ages, in real challenging material. I haven't taken bio or chem (and there is a lot of chemistry involved in this first term of bio) since I was in my first two years of high school. I remember parts of it from back then, which helps (and chem hasn't changed), so it's stirring up old knowledge but really expanding it. And we are covering material FAST. This is the start of my third week, and we're already on chapter seven of a huge book, and having our first exam next week. So it's been a lot of material, and challenging material, but I feel like I am keeping up.
And! I have learned some cool things:
My friend loves this one: In the human liver there are two enzymes that break down alcohol, one that does it fast and one that takes more time. Some people don't have the faster one, so their bodies have a harder time handling drinking, and the person gets super flushed (and pretty drunk) like immediately and just in general can't handle much of anything to drink. So if you are ever in need of an excuse to not drink and feeling peer pressure, you can blame it on your enzymes (or lack thereof).
Red blood cells look like donuts with a dimple instead of a hole.
I don't know if other things I've learned will interest anyone (and are a bit complex), but I've also learned about how snake venom works, how detergent (as in laundry soap) works, the basic gist of what causes mad cow disease, and lots of other fun things. Now when I get out of the shower, I think about Hydrogen bonds (water adheres to the body via H bonds, hair is more malleable and less stiff, also due to H bonds). I have to say, it's early, only had five lecture classes so far, but I am loving it. And I really like my prof. She brings in these really practical examples of the processes we're learning about and she takes time to answer questions in class and discuss things, while still moving through the material quickly.
And I feel like I'm keeping up. I'm staying on top of the reading (which is a LOT), getting practice questions right at the ends of chapters, getting questions in class right (it's a huge lecture, almost 300 students, and so we have multiple choice questions in class and we have to hold up our answers, it's not for grading, more for us to check ourselves and how well we're following). The upcoming exam feels intimidating, but I think I'll do well. I'm expecting a lot out of myself, hopefully not unrealistically. I definitely expect straight A's.
Lab is a bit more challenging, mostly for me visually but I should be getting an assistant soon. The first week we played with plant pigments from red cabbage (which luckily had already been distilled and all, so there was no smell), and this past week we extracted our DNA and put it through the same process as you would to do a PCR test (which is what is used for crime scene investigation, paternity testing, testing for genetic conditions, etc) and also got to really visualize and play with the rules of protein folding by playing with big foam noodles!
I am only taking six credits - that was the perfect balance where I could still get financial aid and enroll, and have enough aid/student loans left over to cover living expenses in case it takes me a bit to find a job (apparently the job market here in Portland really blows) - but it certainly feels like a full load of classes. There is a lot of reading for lab which is separate from the reading for lecture and we have quizzes every week (pretty sure I aced the first one, if anything I was overprepared). And then I have a one-credit class on Fridays that requires a lot of thoughtful, written responses, even though it's only one-credit and is pass/fail only.
So yeah, school is great!
For my Orcas peeps - hate to say this but I'm not coming up for Women's Wellness Weekend. I have my one-credit class on Fri, my lab on Sat, and assignments due for both that weekend, and my second exam is the day after the weekend ends, soooo not this time. Hopefully my schedule will be different next term and I can make it for the Spring one and read the shit out of some tarot cards for all the ladies! This time around though, school's gotta come first. It looks different, being older, and paying for school myself, and I feel committed to making it my first priority.
Anyway that's the quick update about classes. Still loving my place and my location, so happy I chose PSU as my school, and really scored on apartment location. My friend Holly is visiting, which has been really nice to have a friend around. We've done some shopping and arranging for my new studio apartment and exploring some of the local places to eat and areas of Portland. It's been fun and after she leaves tomorrow I will have to buckle down for some hard core studying for next week's exam.
Going to a few more upcoming shows too - Ani DiFranco, who I've always wanted to see, and the week after that, Joshua Radin, who I've posted here before. I can't decide if he's a real genuine songwriter, or kind of a tool, LOL, but maybe the live show will help me figure that out. Can't believe I'm actually going to see someone live who I discovered via Grey's Anatomy. What is this world coming to??
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Albinism Special on 20/20 Tomorrow (Friday)
Well I've been a bit out of the loop - heard about this awhile ago but didn't know it was coming up until a friend forwarded me an email. Here it is:
UPDATE: 20/20 Special: Overcoming Social Stigma of Albinism
Scheduled to air Friday, October 2nd at 10pm Eastern/9pm Central
Albinism
ABC News has added web articles and video clips to its site promoting the planned hour-long albinism special, scheduled to air on 20/20 this Friday evening. Visit the 20/20site for the latest information.
In support of tomorrow's 20/20 broadcast about albinism, NOAH invites members to contact their local ABC news station to offer to do an interview on the topics of living with albinism and/or living with a child with albinism to bring greater awareness to albinism in your community.
Here is the NOAH site: www.albinism.org.
I don't have TV and it probably won't be surfacing where I usually get my TV shows, so would be curious to hear what others think - I know I have at least a handful of readers who also have albinism. There really are some social stigmas that go aong with albinism - about the eyesight and the paleness. I personally a very glad that NOAH exists. I remember going to conferences when I was a kid, and feeling like those times, along with going to blind camp, were the only times I didn't feel like a complete outcast freak. So, I am glad the condition is getting some more positive exposure. I hope this show will also help clear up some common misconceptions that can still be prevalent.
I encourage everyone who can to watch!
On a side note, when I first got the email about this, I wasn't thinking of the show 20/20 and was just thinking eyesight, lol.
I'll be doing my own part, in a personal revolution sort of way (though a really subtle one) to overcome some stigma (more about visual impairment in general I guess) by starting to maybe take on something. And no, you don't get to know what it is, not unless or until it develops further. Cryptic enough?
Anyway, watch the show!
Currently Listening:
"No Surprises" - Radiohead - it's been in my head since the House premiere. I'm not hugely into Radiohead, and this song has kind of caught me off guard.
A heart that's full up like a landfill,
a job that slowly kills you,
bruises that won't heal.
You look so tired-unhappy,
bring down the government,
they don't, they don't speak for us.
I'll take a quiet life,
a handshake of carbon monoxide,
with no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises,
Silence, silence.
This is my final fit,
my final bellyache,
with no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises please.
Such a pretty house
and such a pretty garden.
No alarms and no surprises (get me outta here),
no alarms and no surprises (get me outta here),
no alarms and no surprises, please.
UPDATE: 20/20 Special: Overcoming Social Stigma of Albinism
Scheduled to air Friday, October 2nd at 10pm Eastern/9pm Central
Albinism
ABC News has added web articles and video clips to its site promoting the planned hour-long albinism special, scheduled to air on 20/20 this Friday evening. Visit the 20/20site for the latest information.
In support of tomorrow's 20/20 broadcast about albinism, NOAH invites members to contact their local ABC news station to offer to do an interview on the topics of living with albinism and/or living with a child with albinism to bring greater awareness to albinism in your community.
Here is the NOAH site: www.albinism.org.
I don't have TV and it probably won't be surfacing where I usually get my TV shows, so would be curious to hear what others think - I know I have at least a handful of readers who also have albinism. There really are some social stigmas that go aong with albinism - about the eyesight and the paleness. I personally a very glad that NOAH exists. I remember going to conferences when I was a kid, and feeling like those times, along with going to blind camp, were the only times I didn't feel like a complete outcast freak. So, I am glad the condition is getting some more positive exposure. I hope this show will also help clear up some common misconceptions that can still be prevalent.
I encourage everyone who can to watch!
On a side note, when I first got the email about this, I wasn't thinking of the show 20/20 and was just thinking eyesight, lol.
I'll be doing my own part, in a personal revolution sort of way (though a really subtle one) to overcome some stigma (more about visual impairment in general I guess) by starting to maybe take on something. And no, you don't get to know what it is, not unless or until it develops further. Cryptic enough?
Anyway, watch the show!
Currently Listening:
"No Surprises" - Radiohead - it's been in my head since the House premiere. I'm not hugely into Radiohead, and this song has kind of caught me off guard.
A heart that's full up like a landfill,
a job that slowly kills you,
bruises that won't heal.
You look so tired-unhappy,
bring down the government,
they don't, they don't speak for us.
I'll take a quiet life,
a handshake of carbon monoxide,
with no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises,
Silence, silence.
This is my final fit,
my final bellyache,
with no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises,
no alarms and no surprises please.
Such a pretty house
and such a pretty garden.
No alarms and no surprises (get me outta here),
no alarms and no surprises (get me outta here),
no alarms and no surprises, please.
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