My vacation so far hasn't been as restful as I thought it might be. I woke up to tutor this morning at 6am, worked for about an hour, had breakfast, and cleaned until 10am. (Cleaning the house for my mom is her Christmas present this year.) Then my mom took my sister and myself, along with three kids who were visiting, to the Fort Worth Museum of Natural Science and history. It is an interactive children's museum. We had a great time! The museum only recently reopened after major remodeling, so all the exhibits were new to me. We stayed until 5pm, closing time, and then took pictures with the dinosaurs outside.
I only just arrived home. Now I have to edit a couple of essays before tutoring again, this time in writing! The essays are pretty good, and fun to read as usual. I am concerned that I will seem exhausted (which I am) over the camera, though. Hopefully this next hour of rest will alleviate that. Whew!
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Term's End
The term has ended. I think my classes went well. I felt quite rushed at the end of the semester, but I'm really happy with the way things turned out, both academically and socially. Now that I'm at home, I have a little more free time. Not that I should--I ought to be cleaning, building/testing a hydroponics system, and learning Spanish. But in the mean time, I have been reading about the values of different cultures.
First, I read Intelligence and How to Get It: Why Schools and Cultures Count. I loved it. The book attempts to counter the strong hereditarian viewpoint that intelligence is highly genetically determined. It revealed some holes in key studies that once convinced many that IQ was primarily genetically determined. Then it showed how large variances in IQ and achievement between groups can be environmentally explained and changed. This is what got me started reading about cultural values.
I found all the different values really interesting. Some of the ones I have read about so far are traditionally Jewish, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, and American values. I'm not finished yet, of course. (Ecuador's values really should be on my list....) I would like to know what different people value not only so I can understand different people's ethics when I travel, but so I can use the knowledge to choose my own values with greater freedom.
In all this reading, though, something kept cropping up that bothered me greatly: racism. It seems that many homogeneous groups with strong values look down on others not merely from an ethical standpoint but even from a biological one. I want to know what leads to this so I can prevent it in myself, so I can pursue what I strongly believe in and stand for it without excluding others. Cultures and values are such weirdly evolving things....
I don't know if anyone reads this, but discussing personal values and cultural preferences is something I'm really interested in. If you want to talk about that kind of thing, please ask me some questions later. I can do the same: What is important to you to be like? To do? Is working hard important? Being creative and finding an easier way of getting results? Family loyalty? Taking care of the environment? What turns of phrase do you consider polite or rude? What are the qualities of a good friend?
(Incidently, Amazon.com claims to sell Jewish values for a low price. If you spend more than $25 on them, Amazon will even ship for free...)
First, I read Intelligence and How to Get It: Why Schools and Cultures Count. I loved it. The book attempts to counter the strong hereditarian viewpoint that intelligence is highly genetically determined. It revealed some holes in key studies that once convinced many that IQ was primarily genetically determined. Then it showed how large variances in IQ and achievement between groups can be environmentally explained and changed. This is what got me started reading about cultural values.
I found all the different values really interesting. Some of the ones I have read about so far are traditionally Jewish, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, and American values. I'm not finished yet, of course. (Ecuador's values really should be on my list....) I would like to know what different people value not only so I can understand different people's ethics when I travel, but so I can use the knowledge to choose my own values with greater freedom.
In all this reading, though, something kept cropping up that bothered me greatly: racism. It seems that many homogeneous groups with strong values look down on others not merely from an ethical standpoint but even from a biological one. I want to know what leads to this so I can prevent it in myself, so I can pursue what I strongly believe in and stand for it without excluding others. Cultures and values are such weirdly evolving things....
I don't know if anyone reads this, but discussing personal values and cultural preferences is something I'm really interested in. If you want to talk about that kind of thing, please ask me some questions later. I can do the same: What is important to you to be like? To do? Is working hard important? Being creative and finding an easier way of getting results? Family loyalty? Taking care of the environment? What turns of phrase do you consider polite or rude? What are the qualities of a good friend?
(Incidently, Amazon.com claims to sell Jewish values for a low price. If you spend more than $25 on them, Amazon will even ship for free...)
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Hi All!
Sorry for the lack of posts. My semester has been pretty rough. Fortunately, I decided to drop a class, so I'm hoping that after this week it will be better. Although I dropped the class already, I've needed to play a bit of catch-up to get everything done.
In recent news, I'm taking D-Lab, and my project group is going to Ecuador. Fortunately, I've had all my travel shots already except for my second round of Hep A, which I'll get December. I really like my group, so I think we'll work well together. I have a lot of Spanish to learn.
I'm also taking Design and Manufacturing II, in which I'm making M&M yo-yo's. My study/design buddy is named Melissa, and she's really on top of things. The group overall is pretty good. We really need to buckle down and figure out how to make our thermoformed 'm' logo on Friday. The class also has problem sets. Note: I hate problem sets, but our TA is awesome. Hopefully this will make the p-sets not too painful.
The third class I'm in is The Challenge of Global Poverty. I feel like I've fallen behind slightly. Kind of like the regions we're studying... Anyway, the next topic we're covering is education, which is right up my alley. I think it's prime time to start doing well on those essays. As a bonus, I also recently found a study buddy for the final. She's already making her review sheet. Holy smokes. I'm looking forward to working with her.
In later news, I should have info soon regarding the project I'll be working on for D-Lab. Our project proposal is due next Friday, so I may link to it.
Adios,
Amber
Sorry for the lack of posts. My semester has been pretty rough. Fortunately, I decided to drop a class, so I'm hoping that after this week it will be better. Although I dropped the class already, I've needed to play a bit of catch-up to get everything done.
In recent news, I'm taking D-Lab, and my project group is going to Ecuador. Fortunately, I've had all my travel shots already except for my second round of Hep A, which I'll get December. I really like my group, so I think we'll work well together. I have a lot of Spanish to learn.
I'm also taking Design and Manufacturing II, in which I'm making M&M yo-yo's. My study/design buddy is named Melissa, and she's really on top of things. The group overall is pretty good. We really need to buckle down and figure out how to make our thermoformed 'm' logo on Friday. The class also has problem sets. Note: I hate problem sets, but our TA is awesome. Hopefully this will make the p-sets not too painful.
The third class I'm in is The Challenge of Global Poverty. I feel like I've fallen behind slightly. Kind of like the regions we're studying... Anyway, the next topic we're covering is education, which is right up my alley. I think it's prime time to start doing well on those essays. As a bonus, I also recently found a study buddy for the final. She's already making her review sheet. Holy smokes. I'm looking forward to working with her.
In later news, I should have info soon regarding the project I'll be working on for D-Lab. Our project proposal is due next Friday, so I may link to it.
Adios,
Amber
Monday, September 7, 2009
Hectic Days
You'd think the semester had started. Right now it's rush at pika, and quite a lot is going on. Today, I went to the beach, cooked dinner, helped out with bubble tea, and watched movies on the roofdeck. Pretty much everyone around here is just as busy. It's fun stuff, but I think I'm ready to settle down and unpack.
In previous news, however, work week is over! Woon and I helped design the new tree house bridge. It's now wider and has rope railings. (It's not yet complete, though; this could be a problem later.) The deck is sealed, the bathrooms are clean, I'm no longer covered in silicone sealant... Everyone worked really hard. I was especially glad when Lissa and Brian came and helped out. I can't wait to see their new apartment later!
In other news, Alorah was elected house manager (and man, she works hard). She and I are living in the maze now. I think I may have a steady job this term. (Physics TA FTW, if the section I'd be teaching will fit in my class schedule.) A lot of amazing new people moved into pika--including Aaron, who is friendly enough to more than make up for the lack of sunlight in Boston. I'm beginning to learn tango. I owe my team a report, Faith some mysterious gifts in the mail, Randy a postcard, Alorah a somewhat cleaner room, and... life is really good right now.
Much love to all,
Amber
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Update
I am now almost completely well, only a bit of coughing left. My brother and sister have kept me excellent company. My servants, er, uh, I mean parents (just kidding, Mom!) were really nice, too. I especially appreciated the tea and soup.
Before my stay in Texas is over, I'm hoping to visit friends in Arlington, Dallas, Denton, and Duncanville. Arranging rides, however, might be a bit tricky since I don't have a license yet. I'm hoping to figure that part out by this evening.
In the meantime, though, I think I owe you guys a story.
As part of IDDS this year, we went to visit small villages all over Ghana to ask the residents about their lives, what they thought of our projects, if they had any suggestions for us, et cetera. My first visit was to Agyereago (Ah-Jerry-Ago), at the end of my first week in Ghana.
The moment I stepped off the bus in Agyereago, I found myself surrounded by children. They had all run out to meet us. I heard shouts of "Obruni!", which literally means "white person" and refers to anyone who is clearly not African. Ah, kids. There were twenty or thirty children, and they knew what to do. A little girl led me to see the village planning committee, several men and women who were waiting for us outside one of the houses. I was feeling rather shy at the time, and waited for the rest of the group to gather before shaking hands*.
Once we had all made introductions, the meeting and hosting plans began. I had trouble paying attention to the meeting, though, as the girl who led me to the planning committee was sitting next to me. She decided we should hold hands and was quite excited to talk with me. I risked being rude to the adults to whisper with her for a couple minutes, but then I tried to be quiet. Fortunately, she didn't seem to mind too much.
After the meeting was over, we all went on a quick tour of the village and were introduced to our hosts. Our host family was very nice. The eldest, and head of the household, was the grandmother. She was 73 and still worked the fields like a pro, so I'm told. Also in the family were her son, his main wife, and their four kids. By the time we arrived at their house, they had already prepared us dinner. The first night was cassava with spinache sauce**.
By the time we finished dinner, however, it had turned dark, and my head was swimming with too many names. I took my anti-malarials and slipped under the mosquito net to sleep.
*Shaking hands is a standard way to greet in Ghana just as it is in the US. However, I had to learn the full hand-shaking etiquette upon arrival. When you meet a new group of people in Ghana, you're supposed to shake hands with each person in the group, starting with the rightmost person.
**I could be mixing this up with another meal, but perhaps it is not so important. Cassava with spinache sauce is a very common dish. It is also quite easy to make! The cassava is cut in semicircle slices about an inch thick, and is served uncooked. The spinache sauce is made from finely chopped boiled spinache, vegetable oil, and sometimes crawdads or fish. The sauce is spiced to taste, and you leave the guest to dip the cassava in it.
Before my stay in Texas is over, I'm hoping to visit friends in Arlington, Dallas, Denton, and Duncanville. Arranging rides, however, might be a bit tricky since I don't have a license yet. I'm hoping to figure that part out by this evening.
In the meantime, though, I think I owe you guys a story.
As part of IDDS this year, we went to visit small villages all over Ghana to ask the residents about their lives, what they thought of our projects, if they had any suggestions for us, et cetera. My first visit was to Agyereago (Ah-Jerry-Ago), at the end of my first week in Ghana.
The moment I stepped off the bus in Agyereago, I found myself surrounded by children. They had all run out to meet us. I heard shouts of "Obruni!", which literally means "white person" and refers to anyone who is clearly not African. Ah, kids. There were twenty or thirty children, and they knew what to do. A little girl led me to see the village planning committee, several men and women who were waiting for us outside one of the houses. I was feeling rather shy at the time, and waited for the rest of the group to gather before shaking hands*.
Once we had all made introductions, the meeting and hosting plans began. I had trouble paying attention to the meeting, though, as the girl who led me to the planning committee was sitting next to me. She decided we should hold hands and was quite excited to talk with me. I risked being rude to the adults to whisper with her for a couple minutes, but then I tried to be quiet. Fortunately, she didn't seem to mind too much.
After the meeting was over, we all went on a quick tour of the village and were introduced to our hosts. Our host family was very nice. The eldest, and head of the household, was the grandmother. She was 73 and still worked the fields like a pro, so I'm told. Also in the family were her son, his main wife, and their four kids. By the time we arrived at their house, they had already prepared us dinner. The first night was cassava with spinache sauce**.
By the time we finished dinner, however, it had turned dark, and my head was swimming with too many names. I took my anti-malarials and slipped under the mosquito net to sleep.
*Shaking hands is a standard way to greet in Ghana just as it is in the US. However, I had to learn the full hand-shaking etiquette upon arrival. When you meet a new group of people in Ghana, you're supposed to shake hands with each person in the group, starting with the rightmost person.
**I could be mixing this up with another meal, but perhaps it is not so important. Cassava with spinache sauce is a very common dish. It is also quite easy to make! The cassava is cut in semicircle slices about an inch thick, and is served uncooked. The spinache sauce is made from finely chopped boiled spinache, vegetable oil, and sometimes crawdads or fish. The sauce is spiced to taste, and you leave the guest to dip the cassava in it.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Home
I am now safely home! Please forgive my prior lack of posts. You can tell from the IDDS blog that it was possible to upload in Ghana, just very trying. In any case, I now have absolutely no excuse not to post. The challenge is now to please your exquisite literary tastes.
Recent Events
I arrived in Dallas yesterday. My family picked me up at the airport, and...I think we told stories to each other on the way home. Home. I washed the bedbugs off my clothes, and had a long hot shower, and stole, er, appropriated, my brother's bed. Since then I've been to the doctor and pharmacy, acquiring two new courses of antibiotics! Life is exciting. Actually, so was the surprise tiki-themed party my family threw me tonight. It had grilled portabellas. Mmm.
Highlights
So, which of these things do you guys think I ought to tell a story about?
You guys leave lovely comments and are so nice. But Paula's must be addressed!
Drawing:
I can probably best tell how Nathan draws by showing the pictures of the things I drew in his how-to session. (I wrote Nathan's tips next to each picture.) The pictures start out kind of bad and get better as the lesson goes on. Do I have the courage to take photos of them and display them publicly, in order to elucidate his drawing tips? Maybe. I'm...going to think on that tonight.
Crazy Idea:
As for my idea, I had almost forgotten! Thank you for reminding me. I bounced the idea off of Niall, who does the IDDS blog and promotes Acts of Random Kindness. So I feel ready to write a bit about it now. My idea is to create a web application/forum/thing that helps people meet others by doing nice things for them. I see it as being kind of a community like Couchsurfing or Hospitality Club.
For example, an elderly woman in Boston might join such a group and write, "Hi, I'd like some help with my garden. 1-3 people. In return, I can feed you dinner." Some people would respond, do weeding, and have some awesome chowder at her house. Afterward, the gardeners might post something about her like, "Wow, what an amazing lady. Totally trustworthy and a great chowdah chef."
What do you guys think of this idea? Does it already exist? Does it sound viable?
Thanks, and I hope you enjoyed the post. Please let me know if I should write more about a given topic...<3
Recent Events
I arrived in Dallas yesterday. My family picked me up at the airport, and...I think we told stories to each other on the way home. Home. I washed the bedbugs off my clothes, and had a long hot shower, and stole, er, appropriated, my brother's bed. Since then I've been to the doctor and pharmacy, acquiring two new courses of antibiotics! Life is exciting. Actually, so was the surprise tiki-themed party my family threw me tonight. It had grilled portabellas. Mmm.
Highlights
So, which of these things do you guys think I ought to tell a story about?
- Sitting next to a chocolateer and a baker on the way to Paris. (How cliche.)
- How big butts are popular in Ghana, and related stories.
- Having a birthday party in Agyareago.
- The Moldovan party bus.
- Two out of work civil engineers, one private beach, and four hours to kill in Dubai.
- Something else?
You guys leave lovely comments and are so nice. But Paula's must be addressed!
Drawing:
I can probably best tell how Nathan draws by showing the pictures of the things I drew in his how-to session. (I wrote Nathan's tips next to each picture.) The pictures start out kind of bad and get better as the lesson goes on. Do I have the courage to take photos of them and display them publicly, in order to elucidate his drawing tips? Maybe. I'm...going to think on that tonight.
Crazy Idea:
As for my idea, I had almost forgotten! Thank you for reminding me. I bounced the idea off of Niall, who does the IDDS blog and promotes Acts of Random Kindness. So I feel ready to write a bit about it now. My idea is to create a web application/forum/thing that helps people meet others by doing nice things for them. I see it as being kind of a community like Couchsurfing or Hospitality Club.
For example, an elderly woman in Boston might join such a group and write, "Hi, I'd like some help with my garden. 1-3 people. In return, I can feed you dinner." Some people would respond, do weeding, and have some awesome chowder at her house. Afterward, the gardeners might post something about her like, "Wow, what an amazing lady. Totally trustworthy and a great chowdah chef."
What do you guys think of this idea? Does it already exist? Does it sound viable?
Thanks, and I hope you enjoyed the post. Please let me know if I should write more about a given topic...<3
Saturday, August 8, 2009
The End is Near
My team and I are in the finishing stages of our project, and our final presentation is on Monday. After that, we have a report to write, and then it's off to Maker Faire Africa!
I know I haven't been keeping in touch much, so I owe you guys at least a picture. I hear they're worth a thousand words each, so hopefully you won't be too angry about my lackadaisical posting habits after I've put some up. ;)
This one is of Aaron and me at the Temple of Peace, Love, and Music in St. Petersburg:
This next picture is...oh wait, the internet is having trouble. Bye, guys. Keep your eyes peeled for the next episode of Amber's Travels!
I know I haven't been keeping in touch much, so I owe you guys at least a picture. I hear they're worth a thousand words each, so hopefully you won't be too angry about my lackadaisical posting habits after I've put some up. ;)
This one is of Aaron and me at the Temple of Peace, Love, and Music in St. Petersburg:
This next picture is...oh wait, the internet is having trouble. Bye, guys. Keep your eyes peeled for the next episode of Amber's Travels!
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Delightful to be back ;)
I certainly owe you all another post. I have decided to intersperse stories of travel through eastern Europe with stories of IDDS in Ghana, according to my particular inspiration.
Today, I went to two how-to sessions and helped a friend make a presentation. Since then, I've been reading about recycling human excreta in the form of compost. (Don't worry, you'll get to read about that last one after a few paragraphs.)
How-To #1
The first how-to-session was about marketing "bottom of the pyramid" technologies, products that have been developed specifically for people who make less than one to two dollars per day. The session was run by a guy from IDE, International Development Enterprises, who came to visit us. I enjoyed hearing him present on marketing strategies, manufacturing requirements, and supply chains, but what I found most helpful was finding out about his interactions with treadle pump manufacturers.
When he was in charge of producing and distributing treadle pumps, he had to work with the manufacturers a lot. Usually, the manufacturers had poor quality control standards, would try to take as much of his money as possible, and occasionally tried to cheat him. He was forced to develop several strategies to keep from getting scammed.
The most important thing I learned from this is that... I don't particularly want to work with manufacturers. In fact, I still have doubts about whether I can believe in the power of a device to change the world enough to sell it to people. I want to focus on people and services much more than on devices themselves, and I'm still figuring out how best to do that given my desire to make things. Anyone who wants to chat more about keeping a human/services focus is welcome; I'd love to hear your thoughts on it!
How-To #2
This session was "Learn how to draw like Nathan." Nathan is another IDDS participant who draws fantastically. He also does very informative quick sketches. I'm hoping to improve my sketching skills since most of my team (the build-a-kid-friendly-latrine team) learned English, our one common language, non-natively. Communicating via drawings and text is much faster for us!
During the session, Nathan focused on drawing basic shapes and combining them to create objects. He also discussed proportions, lighting, and using level of detail to direct the viewer's focus. We sketcher-extraordinaires-to-be suggested example images to Nathan and then practiced drawing them. If anyone wants to hear more about this, I'd love to tell more later...
Presentation
In my latrine project team is a really cool guy named Gago (or Gazang Caidan) from Tibet. He Has been working on a lot of projects in his home village, Nor Mgo, and decided to present them in powerpoint for everyone's enjoyment. He doesn't have much experience with computers (though he does pretty well with them anyway) so he asked for my assistance making the presentation. While we were putting all of the pictures together, we talked about his projects. From Gago, I learned quite a lot about buddhist monks, chinese police, orphanages, finding teachers and donors, the dalai lama, and how to care for yaks. I even got to eat a traditional Tibetan lunch!
Compost
Yeah, woo-hoo! Feces! Actually, it turns out composting breaks things down pretty thoroughly, killing parasites and other unfriendly pathogens. So at the end... I don't think you can really say the mix contains feces anymore. Thermophilic composting is especially good at getting rid of nasty buggers, since every known human pathogen starts to die off if you turn up the heat to 60 degrees C for an extended period of time. Thermophilic composting is caused by heat-loving bacteria that begin to warm your pile as they chow down. They survive like it best when you add a lot of delicious high-carbon snacks to your manure, shield your compost pile from the wind, and keep it at medium humidity. I learned most of this from Jenkins' The Humanure Handbook, if you want to hear more.
Secret Crazy Idea Purposefully Not Mentioned in the Opening Paragraph
I have this idea for a project I'd like to start working on. I'd rather flesh it out a bit more before posting more about it, though. If anyone is interested, I'd love to discuss the idea with you, especially if you enjoy romantic plans for making the world a better place, silly ideas, or critiquing.
And that was my day so far. According to Gago, the frogs currently croaking outside our hostel sound like baby yaks. Many baby yaks to you, my friends, good luck with women, and good night.
<3
Today, I went to two how-to sessions and helped a friend make a presentation. Since then, I've been reading about recycling human excreta in the form of compost. (Don't worry, you'll get to read about that last one after a few paragraphs.)
How-To #1
The first how-to-session was about marketing "bottom of the pyramid" technologies, products that have been developed specifically for people who make less than one to two dollars per day. The session was run by a guy from IDE, International Development Enterprises, who came to visit us. I enjoyed hearing him present on marketing strategies, manufacturing requirements, and supply chains, but what I found most helpful was finding out about his interactions with treadle pump manufacturers.
When he was in charge of producing and distributing treadle pumps, he had to work with the manufacturers a lot. Usually, the manufacturers had poor quality control standards, would try to take as much of his money as possible, and occasionally tried to cheat him. He was forced to develop several strategies to keep from getting scammed.
The most important thing I learned from this is that... I don't particularly want to work with manufacturers. In fact, I still have doubts about whether I can believe in the power of a device to change the world enough to sell it to people. I want to focus on people and services much more than on devices themselves, and I'm still figuring out how best to do that given my desire to make things. Anyone who wants to chat more about keeping a human/services focus is welcome; I'd love to hear your thoughts on it!
How-To #2
This session was "Learn how to draw like Nathan." Nathan is another IDDS participant who draws fantastically. He also does very informative quick sketches. I'm hoping to improve my sketching skills since most of my team (the build-a-kid-friendly-latrine team) learned English, our one common language, non-natively. Communicating via drawings and text is much faster for us!
During the session, Nathan focused on drawing basic shapes and combining them to create objects. He also discussed proportions, lighting, and using level of detail to direct the viewer's focus. We sketcher-extraordinaires-to-be suggested example images to Nathan and then practiced drawing them. If anyone wants to hear more about this, I'd love to tell more later...
Presentation
In my latrine project team is a really cool guy named Gago (or Gazang Caidan) from Tibet. He Has been working on a lot of projects in his home village, Nor Mgo, and decided to present them in powerpoint for everyone's enjoyment. He doesn't have much experience with computers (though he does pretty well with them anyway) so he asked for my assistance making the presentation. While we were putting all of the pictures together, we talked about his projects. From Gago, I learned quite a lot about buddhist monks, chinese police, orphanages, finding teachers and donors, the dalai lama, and how to care for yaks. I even got to eat a traditional Tibetan lunch!
Compost
Yeah, woo-hoo! Feces! Actually, it turns out composting breaks things down pretty thoroughly, killing parasites and other unfriendly pathogens. So at the end... I don't think you can really say the mix contains feces anymore. Thermophilic composting is especially good at getting rid of nasty buggers, since every known human pathogen starts to die off if you turn up the heat to 60 degrees C for an extended period of time. Thermophilic composting is caused by heat-loving bacteria that begin to warm your pile as they chow down. They survive like it best when you add a lot of delicious high-carbon snacks to your manure, shield your compost pile from the wind, and keep it at medium humidity. I learned most of this from Jenkins' The Humanure Handbook, if you want to hear more.
Secret Crazy Idea Purposefully Not Mentioned in the Opening Paragraph
I have this idea for a project I'd like to start working on. I'd rather flesh it out a bit more before posting more about it, though. If anyone is interested, I'd love to discuss the idea with you, especially if you enjoy romantic plans for making the world a better place, silly ideas, or critiquing.
And that was my day so far. According to Gago, the frogs currently croaking outside our hostel sound like baby yaks. Many baby yaks to you, my friends, good luck with women, and good night.
<3
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
St. Petersburg
Hello All!
I how have semi-reliable internet! I may even be able to upload pictures. I apologize for the delay in stories, as I am now already in Ghana. However, it seems best to just go back and tell them.
The first stories are from St. Petersburg. First, some things about the city:
St. Petersburg was built about 300 years ago. Many of the original buildings are still around. It is also the site of Russia's first conservatory, built in 1862. St. Petersburg has also historically been full of awesome people, such as my hosts, Aaron and Sasha.
Aaron had been studying performance and music composition at the Rimsky-Korsakov conservatory. Informally. (He had also been studying Russian and the art of conversation in non-native tongues.) Sasha, on the other hand, is a native Russian, Aaron's roommate and piano teacher.
I stayed in Aaron's room while we were in St. Petersburg. Sasha was pretty busy while I was in town. (He made sure to take a few photos with Aaron and me, though, and to invite me back for piano and Russian lessons.) While Sasha was out, Aaron and I ... wait for it... took tours of the city with two other conservatory professors.
Hehe. One of the professors was Max, who bought us all ice cream. The other was...(Aaron, I'm blanking on his name again)...never mind. The other spoke excellent English and told us about the modern period in Russian architecture.
I'll tell more about modern period architecture or stories of St. Petersburg on demand. Such demand may appear after viewing photos that I totally am going to put up soon. >.>
In the mean time, I send each of you off by quoting Sasha's final words to us: "Good luck with women!"
I how have semi-reliable internet! I may even be able to upload pictures. I apologize for the delay in stories, as I am now already in Ghana. However, it seems best to just go back and tell them.
The first stories are from St. Petersburg. First, some things about the city:
St. Petersburg was built about 300 years ago. Many of the original buildings are still around. It is also the site of Russia's first conservatory, built in 1862. St. Petersburg has also historically been full of awesome people, such as my hosts, Aaron and Sasha.
Aaron had been studying performance and music composition at the Rimsky-Korsakov conservatory. Informally. (He had also been studying Russian and the art of conversation in non-native tongues.) Sasha, on the other hand, is a native Russian, Aaron's roommate and piano teacher.
I stayed in Aaron's room while we were in St. Petersburg. Sasha was pretty busy while I was in town. (He made sure to take a few photos with Aaron and me, though, and to invite me back for piano and Russian lessons.) While Sasha was out, Aaron and I ... wait for it... took tours of the city with two other conservatory professors.
Hehe. One of the professors was Max, who bought us all ice cream. The other was...(Aaron, I'm blanking on his name again)...never mind. The other spoke excellent English and told us about the modern period in Russian architecture.
I'll tell more about modern period architecture or stories of St. Petersburg on demand. Such demand may appear after viewing photos that I totally am going to put up soon. >.>
In the mean time, I send each of you off by quoting Sasha's final words to us: "Good luck with women!"
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Kiev
Hi Everyone! I don't have much time right now, but Aaron and I have safely made it to Kiev. We will be here until tomorrow, probably. More updates to follow, with many pictures.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
First Summer Video
I have promised my friends I would share pictures and video of my experiences this summer. Here's the first video; it's mostly for me. These are a bunch of the people I've been spending time with so far. In order of people filmed, they are Jon, Karen, David, Emily, Alorah, and Rod. We are all living at pika for the summer. This is Jon and Karen's room, aka Club Loeb.
At the end of this week, I'll be leaving for Russia. Hopefully, this video will help remind me of the awesome times we've had together.
At the end of this week, I'll be leaving for Russia. Hopefully, this video will help remind me of the awesome times we've had together.
Agenda
Tomorrow:
Packing
1) Sort laundry.
2) Wash dishes.
3) Get rid of notebooks and other things I don't need.
4) Acquire boxes.
5) Put the few things I'll need into a backpack.
6) Put the other things into boxes!
7) Move those boxes to the skylight or to the basement.
Then I'll be done packing. Shazam! All I'll have to add is a toothbrush.
Flights
1) Fix my ridiculous flight problems.
2) Email Joe about flights and international insurance.
3) Ask the UROP department for my transportation reimbursment. (Then I'll have travel moneys.)
I hope that's it. Travelling sure is a lot of work.
Other
1) I have to do my house duty: cleaning the bathroom.
This will be a full day.
Packing
1) Sort laundry.
2) Wash dishes.
3) Get rid of notebooks and other things I don't need.
4) Acquire boxes.
5) Put the few things I'll need into a backpack.
6) Put the other things into boxes!
7) Move those boxes to the skylight or to the basement.
Then I'll be done packing. Shazam! All I'll have to add is a toothbrush.
Flights
1) Fix my ridiculous flight problems.
2) Email Joe about flights and international insurance.
3) Ask the UROP department for my transportation reimbursment. (Then I'll have travel moneys.)
I hope that's it. Travelling sure is a lot of work.
Other
1) I have to do my house duty: cleaning the bathroom.
This will be a full day.
Identity
I've been thinking a lot about my identity recently. Who am I? Have I created this identity? Who would I like to be?
I currently see myself as
1) An engineer
2) Someone who creates things
3) Socially conscious
4) A bit of a dabbler
5) Female, I suppose
I think I create my identity based on my actions and choices. This means the person I am is changing constantly. Right now, my identity is on the verge of taking a great leap.
I would like to go from being socially conscious to a social force, elegant, savvy, and in charge. I would like to go from being simply an engineer to someone who creates both physical and social change. Although I want to continue gaining the skills necessary to create simple tools, I would also like to create more complex things that fit into existing infrastructures. I want them to both be useful and look nice. I would like my creations to raise societal questions, and to enable people to come together and respond to those questions.
I would also like to live a life that assumes no lasting legacy, yet is still worthwhile. I would like to be a more honest, open person than I am now, to make connections with people all over the world, and to make great use of the short time I have.
The key to making these changes is to start acting. I'm creating my identity, so I'd better start now. Changing identities is a scary process, though. It means leaving behind the old identity. (I'm quite fond of mine.) What if I fail at being the person I'd like to be? What if I'm not good at the tasks I set before myself?
Oh well, I've done this before. I'm here now. The process turned out well last time, so I may as well try again.
Au revoir, friends.
I hope this post makes sense. I'll post more on the topic later, so be sure to make me clarify!
I currently see myself as
1) An engineer
2) Someone who creates things
3) Socially conscious
4) A bit of a dabbler
5) Female, I suppose
I think I create my identity based on my actions and choices. This means the person I am is changing constantly. Right now, my identity is on the verge of taking a great leap.
I would like to go from being socially conscious to a social force, elegant, savvy, and in charge. I would like to go from being simply an engineer to someone who creates both physical and social change. Although I want to continue gaining the skills necessary to create simple tools, I would also like to create more complex things that fit into existing infrastructures. I want them to both be useful and look nice. I would like my creations to raise societal questions, and to enable people to come together and respond to those questions.
I would also like to live a life that assumes no lasting legacy, yet is still worthwhile. I would like to be a more honest, open person than I am now, to make connections with people all over the world, and to make great use of the short time I have.
The key to making these changes is to start acting. I'm creating my identity, so I'd better start now. Changing identities is a scary process, though. It means leaving behind the old identity. (I'm quite fond of mine.) What if I fail at being the person I'd like to be? What if I'm not good at the tasks I set before myself?
Oh well, I've done this before. I'm here now. The process turned out well last time, so I may as well try again.
Au revoir, friends.
I hope this post makes sense. I'll post more on the topic later, so be sure to make me clarify!
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Party Time!
The governor of New Hampshire just signed into law the marriage equality bill. This calls for a celebration!
What to do, what to do?
What to do, what to do?
More Inspiring Things
I just read an email from Josh. He sent it in response to a picture David and I sent of a dinosaur in a top hat. How can I ever manage to write as eloquently as him? In an attempt to attain such a virtuous level of skill, I'll be reading poetry and novels recommended by friends. In the meantime, however, I'll confine myself to writing only a list for the remainder of this post.
Inspiring Things:
Inspiring Things:
- Clouds moving into the horizon and upwards at the same time
- The man singing "Losing My Religion" at the Central Square T Stop
- The abandoned building that runs along Waverly Street between Chestnut and Putnam
- Lily in a tree house
- The prospect of picnics on the roof of pika
- Seeing geese milling about while running the BU-Harvard bridge loop barefoot
- Mixing unusual foods in a dish that turns out okay but not quite right
Monday, May 18, 2009
Singing on the roofdeck
After my final exam today--my last assignment of the year--I decided to do something deeply meaningful and self-directed. To celebrate life with other people. To do something spontaneous.
My first thought was to celebrate with my roommates, but they were not to be found when I arrived home. So I proposed several ideas to some friends and other housemates: hula-hooping, singing and guitar, wandering around Boston, music jam in the dark on the roofdeck--but they were unexcited. By the time the evening rolled around, I had succeeded only in eating dinner and attempting to rescue a moth that had become trapped in our room.
In the process of ousting this very confused moth, I ended up on the fire escape (our "balcony"), looking in at Alorah, one of my newly returned roommates, through the now closed fire escape window. I ran back inside by climbing down the fire escape and entering pika from the floor below, excited to tell her how I felt I must urgently do something deeply meaningful.
Despite having two finals yet to take, she was enthusiastic when I proposed we sing sea chanteys, and that I give her a viola lesson on the darkened roofdeck. So she rounded up Rod while I tuned my viola. He decided to join in our jam and got a saw to play!
We started with me showing Alorah how to hold a viola. Alorah asked a lot of inciteful questions and was a fast learner. She played hot-crossed-buns. Then Rod showed us how to play the saw. It sounded etherial, and Rod said we could get an even better sound out of a longer saw. Alorah then sang a slow sea chantey for us--she had such a beautiful voice! Rod and I had never heard her sing before. Together, we sang three chanteys, and I learned to play them on my viola.
Along the lines of my previous posts, what was inspiring about this? Definitely Alorah's voice! We should sing more chanteys together. And maybe some Russian folk music--that would be amazing.
I felt so proud when Alorah and Rod complimented my playing. It was quite strange. I like to play music to connect with other people, and I think pride in my ability would set me apart from them more than it would bring us together. The solution to this is probably to play with other people more often. Then they won't be so excited to hear my viola--in a good way.
My first thought was to celebrate with my roommates, but they were not to be found when I arrived home. So I proposed several ideas to some friends and other housemates: hula-hooping, singing and guitar, wandering around Boston, music jam in the dark on the roofdeck--but they were unexcited. By the time the evening rolled around, I had succeeded only in eating dinner and attempting to rescue a moth that had become trapped in our room.
In the process of ousting this very confused moth, I ended up on the fire escape (our "balcony"), looking in at Alorah, one of my newly returned roommates, through the now closed fire escape window. I ran back inside by climbing down the fire escape and entering pika from the floor below, excited to tell her how I felt I must urgently do something deeply meaningful.
Despite having two finals yet to take, she was enthusiastic when I proposed we sing sea chanteys, and that I give her a viola lesson on the darkened roofdeck. So she rounded up Rod while I tuned my viola. He decided to join in our jam and got a saw to play!
We started with me showing Alorah how to hold a viola. Alorah asked a lot of inciteful questions and was a fast learner. She played hot-crossed-buns. Then Rod showed us how to play the saw. It sounded etherial, and Rod said we could get an even better sound out of a longer saw. Alorah then sang a slow sea chantey for us--she had such a beautiful voice! Rod and I had never heard her sing before. Together, we sang three chanteys, and I learned to play them on my viola.
Along the lines of my previous posts, what was inspiring about this? Definitely Alorah's voice! We should sing more chanteys together. And maybe some Russian folk music--that would be amazing.
I felt so proud when Alorah and Rod complimented my playing. It was quite strange. I like to play music to connect with other people, and I think pride in my ability would set me apart from them more than it would bring us together. The solution to this is probably to play with other people more often. Then they won't be so excited to hear my viola--in a good way.
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