My Rant

So, since I can write about anything again this week, I guess I am going to write about how fast this year went. I thought it was going to take a lot more time to get through my first year of college but it seriously flew by. I can’t believe it. Next year, there is going to be so much going on that I think it’s going to fly by too. I remember sitting down on my first day of high school and thinking that it was going to take forever for me to get to college and that I would never actually leave but now that I look back on it, time seems to be flying by. It’s weird and cool at the same time. I am excited to learn, to absorb, and to find my calling. I can’t wait until the day where I wake up and I have a family and a job and settle into normalcy—well as normal as I can be. I guess I also get more sentimental the older I get which is strange. I used to think about things and not get as sentimental but now, I’m like getting all weepy and shit and it’s just not okay. But I am really excited for next year: RA in Wilkins, Voices of Discovery facilitator, on the Pride E-Board, planning for MBLGTACC 2015, and 16 credit hours. It’s going to be a fun schedule and even this summer is going to be crazy. I have one internship, a full time job that can turn into another internship, and two summer classes. So basically I’ll have no life for the next four years which is okay with me.  I am honestly so happy about switching my major and everything that I’ve got going on that I really can’t talk about anything else. I am in like a super debating mood and I want to just talk about social justice type stuff and debate ethics and everything that goes along with that. I could talk for days about things and that’s all that I want to do. I can’t wait!!  And that is all from me!

Word Count: 360

My Bitch-Fest

So since this week’s is Choose Your Own, I guess I am going to update everyone about my life. Not that many people know each other but I figured that this is important enough that enough people would care. So, my sister moved out when she was 18, right after her graduation and since then, she hasn’t really talked to us. Well, on Tuesday, she called us to let us know that she has enlisted in the army and that she is going to be deployed to Afghanistan. Now, she is my second sibling to be enlisted in some of the armed forces and my second sibling to be deployed somewhere. I guess the biggest feeling that I have right now is shock because I never thought that she would have done this and I guess that I am just really worried about her.  It’s hard to actually believe that she is going overseas. She told us that she is going to be deployed for over a year and I guess I just can’t fathom it. It’s hard to believe and my mom is freaking out because I told her a few weeks ago that I might want to enlist to work with returning vets. And she basically called to tell me that I couldn’t enlist and that I had to stay stateside for as long as I live. So…I guess my family is just kind of crazy right now because she is the second person to go to Afghanistan, my cousin is there now and my Aunt is going crazy too. So now my Mom has my Aunt’s worry and craziness to feed from which is fantastic. So now they can call each other and have bitch fests over the phone together and send care packages and stuff like that. It’s going to be a fantastic thing for all. So, that concludes my rant for today. Thank you all for listening.

Word Count: 322

Why Close Reading?

Close reading is important because it gives us a chance to delve below the surface of the text and truly examine what the author is attempting to convey to us. It’s something that can help us get extreme meaning out of the story. Without close reading, there are so many allusions to other literature and different stylistic elements that the author places in their story to get the reader’s attention and pull them closer into the story. There are also other reasons for us to close read. One of the biggest reasons is that we might have missed some elements of the story if we just read the surface. We might miss certain key themes and elements that would have normally made the story easier to relate to or easier to understand. And going with understanding, if we don’t close read, we might not understand where the story is coming from or the purpose of why the story was written. Those are some key things that we would miss. Another reason close reading is important is because on the pieces that it’s most necessary for, they are pieces that are a social commentary or something that speaks to the bigger picture in our lives and if we don’t close read, we’ll completely miss it and we wont understand some of the meanings of the parts of the story. It’s also necessary to see where the author is coming from and their personal experiences because that can help us shape the story in certain aspects. Like the Yellow Wallpaper if you didn’t understand the history behind why she wrote what she wrote. Or the way that the specific story impacted her life directly and maybe why she was writing what she wrote. What specific meaning it held in her life. In doing that we become better readers and that’s why close reading is important.

My Paper

I am going to be writing about fairy tales and how Disney tends to change the fairy tales and make them different just to sell them to a different audience. Because, a little history lesson folks, back in the day, fairy tales weren’t meant for children. They were meant for adults to give them a sense of right and wrong and to remind them what they are and aren’t supposed to do. The reason that they are written with such simple writing and are so easy to read is because when fairy tales were first around, most of the common folk didn’t have that great of reading abilities. So when you wrote for someone like that you had to make it easier. But then, Disney came in and they decided to change it all around. And in doing so, they’ve changed how society sees fairy tales and the use for fairy tales all together. Not only have they done that but they have also injected their own beliefs into the story and reinforced a lot of gender stereotypes and a lot of racism into their stories. I mean, why did our first princess of color have to happen in the 21^st century? I know there was Pocahontas but she never really exemplified a princess. They actually enforce the stereotypes of Native Americans in that story.

There is just a lot that I don’t agree or like that Disney does and they tend to take the best stories for their own and change them so that the original meaning isn’t the same anymore. After that, they copyright the shit out of it so that way it can never be reproduced in any way without Disney’s sole say so and agreement with how they want their story represented. Even though I am not an English major anymore, I still love English, the stories, and the writing that goes into it. And to have one company single-handedly destroy stories, it makes me sad and unhappy.

Cinderella: A Review

When we think of Cinderella, we think of the blonde girl that has light blue eyes and finds her Prince Charming.  We think of the story by Disney that furthers patriarchal dominance and sexism. This great story that almost every child is introduced to when they are young, teaches us that there is a clear divide between men and women and that women need to find their Prince Charming. This story has been handed down by generations without giving much thought as to what it’s teaching our children and how we are furthering these thoughts if we meant to or not.

However, I am not talking about that Cinderella; I am talking about one that was published years before Disney even heard the story. The Brothers Grimm Cinderella talks about greed and the costs of being greedy and wicked. This is a book that is meant for more of an adult audience. While it does follow a similar story to the Disney version, it is a lot more graphic and gory. It also shows Cinderella outsmarting the Prince and her family. Cinderella seems to confuse and confound everyone. She isn’t made to look like some girl who is solely going after the Prince because he has money, she seems to have intelligence and she is a hard worker.

I guess the biggest thing that I would like to stress about this book is that it is meant for adults and solely adults. The Disney version does a nice job of making this story for kids; this version is not for kids. It’s something that I personally like because I am not one of those people who like happy endings in stories. I am more of a realist I guess I would say. I know that everything doesn’t work out perfectly and I really don’t like it when books and movies do that. This story has an amazing ending, it starts off with the two wicked sisters cutting off parts of their foot to fit in the shoe that is meant for Cinderella and then when the Prince is informed that they aren’t the correct person, he actually figures out its Cinderella. At the end, the two sisters attempt to sneak into the wedding and get their eyes pecked out. It’s part of a punishment and part of a lesson that we have to take with us. It tells us about wickedness and greed and metaphorically what you lose when you indulge in those things.

I feel like this book is something that more adults and teenagers should read. The Brothers Grimm makes it so easy to understand what’s happening and what their message is about greed.  I feel like most people forget that fairy tales were normally meant for adults and not children. They were supposed to give adults an easy way to access their moral compass and help remind people the causes of their actions and how they should behave.  Without these stories and these reminders, we lose what we had to help us make decisions and we lose those little reminders that we once had.

Spring Break

Spring  Break! I am too excited to go chill on a beach, soak up some sun, and swim a little. It’s so great to go somewhere warm and not have to worry about this damn wind or any F*CKING snow that decides to pop up unannounced and unwanted, kind of like Sarah Palin. It’ll be so great to get a tan because I am so pasty that Casper would be horrified by what I look like right now. Isn’t that just awesome?!?

In reality, I am going to go back to my house and go to my orientation for my job over the summer. I am not going to any tropical place or anywhere remotely warm unless Illinois decides, much like our politicians, to do something shady and tease us with the prospects of warmth. I know you guys are probably sensing a lot of sarcasm but what you guys should really get from this is a blog post dripping is sarcasm. I honestly will be spending my week at home, doing homework, and praying that this school year is almost over. Some small part of me wishes that I was kidding but, sadly, I’m not.

I guess it’s not all bad. I’ll get to see my Six Flags family and all the people that I’ve missed. I get to see my puppy and all my friends that go to other colleges. I am already making plans as we speak. I just have to remember to write that paper that I have to turn in a few days after break. Also, the great part about Spring Break is that I register for classes two days after break. Yeah, RA’s get special privilege. Whoot, whoot.

I am sure that everyone here is probably so jealous of my Spring Break and you know what? You should be! I get to cuddle with my dog and create more antics with my friends. I don’t need any warm weather or beach or sunshine! I can do everything I want to do here and not have to worry about getting a sun burn or flying anywhere or anything like that!

**Begins to sob** 

Word count: 358

Movie Fan vs. Home Movie Store

I can honestly say that the first time I went to The Movie Fan, it was a bit overwhelming. At home, I had just one Blockbuster and one Hollywood Video. That was pretty much all we had until RedBox started popping up everywhere. The mere fact that The Movie Fan has so many videos and great deals at such low prices is pretty amazing. I have been to The Movie Fan so many times since I’ve been here and I love it more and more each time. They have so many great deals and you can actually spend a weekend watching movies for less than 5 dollars. As broke college students, that’s so amazing and wonderful that we can do that.

I can honestly remember renting four or five movies for like three dollars and it was probably one of the most amazing things in the world because I rented them for like $1.90 which was pretty fantastic. I remember that we had a horror movie weekend and it was honestly the best weekend. Also, they have tons of older movies so you can get the movies that you cannot normally find anywhere else.

I went to the movie theater just once this year. It was for the LGBT Film Festival and it was pretty cool. It is a very old-timey theater but it’s really nice. Whoever owns it keeps it up and really makes sure that it’s nice.  They ask for donations and they don’t charge admission to the theater the time I was there. They had a great place but they aren’t very advertised so it makes it difficult to know what movies they are playing and what their prices are. It is also a very low key theater that doesn’t have any corporate sponsorship which makes their funds harder to come by and some things a little more pricey.

I am not sure if you guys can tell but, I am a huge movie buff. I love watching horror, comedy, and thriller movies. Those are my favorites. I don’t have very many favorite movies; I just like genres of movies. So, if you guys have any good suggestions, let me know! I am always down to see something new and crazy.

Word Count: 374

MBGLTACC

MBLGTACC Day 1:

So, today was pretty epic. I went to a workshop and it was pretty cool. We talked about how we identify and what society tells us is acceptable vs. non-acceptable. We also discussed how we are labeled into boxes and these boxes then lead us to make stereotypes about people to whom we don’t really know. It was really insightful. After that, we made the venture on a hugely packed bus back to our hotel to eat dinner. After dinner, we went back to Iowa for the keynote speaker and Andrea Gibson (WHO I LOVE!) and we got to listen to her. 

The Keynote speaker was a man that was a preacher and gay and an activist. He also told our whole conference that he had AIDS, something he had never told anyone at a keynote before. Which was pretty great. He was kind of inspirational and had a few great quotes. He gave me a few great quotes and I really liked him. 

As for Andrea, my love for her goes so deep that I would love anything and everything that she did. Which she did some pretty great stuff and I loved it way too much. I almost lost it a few times. She was such a powerful speaker and she just commanded attention no matter what she was doing. 

Tomorrow will be all about the events that I go to along with the Drag Show and Dance. It runs pretty late which means I might not get to update that tomorrow. I cannot wait. 

MBLGTACC Day 2:

Okay, well Day 2 isn’t officially over but I feel like I have to update you because I am going to a dance tonight and I wont be home until 2 am. So, I am going to post.

I went to several conferences today after being crammed onto a bus and arriving late. I went to a politics one and we learned about networking. It was really informative and I learned a lot. It was pretty great. I met some cute boys from Nebraska which seemed to have a shit ton of people come to this thing. It was pretty great. We learned about politics and pretty much what you need to do to influence change. The second presentation I went to was about language as a social construction. While I didn’t agree on some of their points, it was pretty informative. I think that phrases like “That’s so gay” need to be removed from our common language. The presenters were talking about understand the person’s definition of the word and why they think about it like that. I mean, I think that it’s valid to find out why they think that/what they have defined that as but I also think that it’s important to remind people that we wont accept those words and they can be hurtful and hateful. 

The last meeting was pretty insightful. It was about Speaker’s Panels and just creating them. It was pretty epic. I learned a lot and I think that I can take a lot back to my school. There isn’t much to write about that because I already know so much about it which is good.  

Day 2: Cont. & Day 3

Day 2: Cont.

So left off on the workshops and the dance; which was amazing. Basically it was drag show and Pandora Boxx was hosting it. She is from RuPaul’s Drag race. If you don’t know what that is, go look it up on Logotv.com. It’s kind of like America’s Next Top Model but for Drag Queens. They did several performances that lasted from 10 pm to around 12 am. Then we danced from 12 until 2am. Needless to say, it was a very long night after a day with very little sleep. I had a lot of fun and I danced with my best friend from high school who goes to a different college. It was truly wonderful.

Day 3

I went to two workshops today. The first one was being “out” at work. I realize that some people of the straight cisgendered community might not understand some of my lingo. Basically being “out” means letting everyone you know your orientation, identity, or expression at work. That can encompass anything from the people that you like to sleep with, to whom you like to engage in relationships with, and how you dress. “Cisgendered” means that your anatomy and the parts you were born with are what you feel comfortable with. For men it’s a penis and testes and for women it’s breasts and a vagina.  A note to everyone reading this: JUST BECAUSE YOU SAY YOU ARE A MAN OR A WOMAN; IT DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU HAVE TO HAVE EITHER OF THESE ANATOMICAL PARTS. Some men have vaginas and some women have penises. This a direct commentary to our gender binary and our social construct of how we view “men” and “women.” The reason I put those two in quotes is because not everyone identifies as being a part of the gender binary.  Back to the topic, this whole workshop was about what can happen if you are out at work. For many people, their company can immediately terminate them for being part of the Queer community. For other companies, they can easily disguise it.  I really liked the workshop although I think the male-presenting person presenting it could have used a little more work and his disability played a big role in his presentation abilities. Which is neither good nor bad, I just think it was.

The second workshop that I went to, it was about the *Trans community and gender roles. It showed us how gender roles and how gender archetypes played into how we are socialized as people. It was very interesting and honestly my favorite of the whole conference. I mean, I loved the first workshop that I went to but this one speaks to my heart with gender and gender roles. I love it so much.

Notes: I guess I learned a lot more about the whole community. I would say the biggest thing that I learned was to ask pronoun preference and use more inclusive pronouns as in: zed, sir, her, they, them, and themselves. Also, never assume anything of anyone and don’t attempt to put people in boxes because even though we like to do that, that leads to negative stereotypes very quickly. Also, just because someone identifies a certain way, that doesn’t give you license to determine what you think their identity means. That’s for them to decide no matter how different from how you would think it is. That’s the beautiful part about our world. We are all different. If you have any questions please ask! 

Free Write

Well, our first free write. I guess I should let y’all know why I am not in class. I am going to MBLGTACC which is a conference in Ames, Iowa. I know, you are all thinking what the hell is in Ames, Iowa and what the hell does that acronym stand for? Well the other ISU is in Ames and the acronym stands for Midwest Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Transgendered and Allied Collegiate Conference. Which itself is a mouthful. It’s basically a giant conference with workshops that talk about sexuality, gender, expression, bullying, media, and anything else under the sun that has to do with the Queer community. I honestly can’t think of anything better. The one thing that is holding us back from true equality is the fact that there isn’t widespread education on both sides. The Straight and Queer communities need to be equally as educated so they know who they are degrading and separating with the laws that they have enacted the Queer community needs to learn about itself. We need to learn to be all inclusive and treat everyone equally because that’s what we want.

Now some of you reading this might be offended or have opposite views of me and that’s totally acceptable. I just want you to think about this, when you know more about a certain type of thing, you instantly become more knowledgeable and you can make a more informed decision. If you knew that I couldn’t marry the person that I loved because more people that have nothing to do with my life deem it “unnecessary” or an “attack” on the institution of marriage. I’m sorry but I don’t see love as anything different. Love is love is love is love.

Sorry for the preaching but I thought that needed to be in there. It’s something that strikes really close to home. And this conference, the congregation of Queer and Allied people is something amazing. It’s when we can feel free to talk about who we are as a community and learn more about ourselves. It’s a place of love, acceptance, and honesty. Something many people that are a part of this community don’t receive a lot of the time. I can’t wait, I think it’s going to be great and I get to facilitate some of the group work that the people I am going with are doing. It’s just going to be so awesome. I will most likely create another blog post when I get back letting you guys know what went on and what I learned even though it’s not required.

So, I hope you guys have a great class and I hope everyone takes some time to think about where they stand on this issue. Even if you oppose me, make sure it’s for your own reasons and you know what you oppose it. Who knows? We could have an awesome and insightful discussion afterwards!

Word Count: 487

Commercial

Well, on Tuesday, I watched Glee on FOX. As most of us know, FOX is a channel for young adults and adults.  Well I was watching and I saw this Macy’s commercial. Honestly, I didn’t understand and when I was sitting in the room with about 6-7 other people, they didn’t get it either. It was basically a commercial of people yelling about sales? Or to sales? Or because of sales? I am not really sure what was going on but they really need to rethink their whole technique of trying to reach out to people. I guess it was effective in one way because it stuck in my mind but it was also very ineffective because I have no idea what they were attempting to sell. It was just silly overall.

Honestly, I don’t even think you could tell who their target audience was. I guess from the timeslot that they selected, you could attempt to infer that way but still. It was crazy. It was just a bunch of people screaming. And it’s not like they were screaming a message, it’s like they were trying out to be a scream queen.

After awhile we figured it out. We figured out that Macy’s was under new management and that their prices were going to be like they were having a sale all the time. We also understood that people were screaming because they were upset about missing the sale that they wanted to go AGAIN. It was trying to appeal to shopper’s emotions about being frustrated.

Overall, I think their entire PR division or whoever is in charge of making the commercials should be fired or beaten with sticks for this failure of an idea. I guess it was a good idea but the way the implemented it was a complete and utter failure.

Word count: 305

Introductions

So, our first post is all about introductions. Well, I’ve always sucked at those. It’s not really the writing part; it’s the whole divulging everything to a bunch of people. I mean, I am very confident in my writing and I am really good at writing. I just hate doing all these crappy and clichéd, “What’s your major? What do you like? What do you dislike?” It’s like dating questions that pop up on overly popular dating websites.

Now that I’m done bitching I guess I’ll get down to it. I am a freshman English major. I want to get my minors in Spanish and Women and Gender Studies.  I guess that I have loved English for pretty much my whole life. I was very involved in my school’s yearbook and I was on the editing staff for three years. I loved every second of it. I mean, sure, times were stressful occasionally but I know how to manage it. I am going into the Publishing and Editing.

I am from Gurnee, IL which is about 2 and ½ hours away from here. I live about 15 minutes from the Wisconsin boarder and I work at Six Flags Great America. This summer coming up will be my 5^th summer that I have worked there. While it is fun, there are also some days that are horrible to work.  Apparently I come from a big town because my class had 1100 people when I graduated. Fun fact: We had to go to Northwestern to graduate because we didn’t have enough space at either one of our campuses to graduate.

Here at school I am involved in the Pride, our school’s LGBTQA group, I am going to be an RA next year in Wilkins hall and I am hoping to get a job at some point here for next year.

I love playing sports. The only sport I cannot play is golf. I am not sure what is about the damn sport but, I can never hit the ball with the stick. I feel ridiculous all the time because it’s the one sport that I fail at. I played football and volleyball in high school and when I was younger I played: soccer, baseball, volleyball, gymnastics, and a little lacrosse.

So, I’ve given you enough about myself. If you have any questions; ask!