I took a break from blogging, but I always seem to find cool stuff that I really want other people to see.
I just typed “medal count” into the New York Times site to see who is leading in the Olympics and I found a really cool graphic. Enjoy!
Taking action… May 20, 2008
I was sitting in class today thinking about Martin Luther King, Jr. My class had to read a letter that he wrote from the Birmingham jail as part of our studies about peace. MLK fought to his death for civil rights in America, and thinking about this has brought me to retract what I said in my last blog entry.
I think America should have a woman president. We have set the standard for so many things throughout history, and we should definitely bring a dominant female into world politics.
American women take their freedoms for granted, myself included. While there is no reason why everyone should not have equal rights, not everyone sees it that way, and there are still many, many parts of the world where women have no rights.
By electing a woman to lead our country, the United States is showing the world that women aren’t incompetent. While it may be a struggle, if it makes even the smallest change in the way that other parts of the world view women, it will be worth it. Maybe somewhere women will demand the right to vote. Maybe somewhere women will find their voice, and be able to choose who they marry. Maybe somewhere women will be able to walk out of the house without men, and not have to wear something like this:
It will not be easy to deal with hostile countries whose leadership lacks respect for women. But, on the other hand, there are many countries that would be supportive of such leadership, and stand behind the US.
So, I’ve changed my mind. America should not shy away from hostilities from other governments. America should make history, elect a woman as president, and set the standard for women’s rights.
P.S. I don’t think Hillary Clinton is the woman for the job, but four years is a short period of time. We can try again then.
Politics. May 13, 2008
When I was young I used to say that I would be president when I grew up. I wanted to do something that no woman had ever done before, and that few people thought would be a reality in my lifetime.
In 2008, Hilary Clinton is a front-running presidential candidate. At first, I saw this as a really exciting prospect. A woman president is what feminists have fought for for decades. Though there are obvious questions and skepticisms about having a female president, it’s a very realistic prospect for America. America is ready for a woman to be president, but what about the rest of the world?
Politics are a sensitive matter. There are a lot of things to be considered. One of these, which is all too frequently ignored, involves international relations. Much of the world despises the current leadership of the country. President Bush’s administration did not go over well, not only with the United States, but with the world. Diplomatic relations are strained, and probably will be long after the transfer of power after the 2008 election.
In other parts of the world, a woman president is far from a reality. In some places, women must cover their entire bodies and are not allowed to leave the house without a male escort. In others, women are considered property. In the U.S., women take for granted the rights that we have.
So how will the rest of the world react to working with a female leader? Chances are, not well. Relations with the Middle East are currently torn, and having to negotiate with a woman does not seem like something that leaders there would ever even consider.
As a county, we have a decision. As a feminist, I would love to see a woman in charge of this country. But, as an educated individual, I know that that might not be what is right for our relationships with other nations. Politics are a touchy subject, and its time that we as a country stopped being so selfish and started thinking on a global level.
Enough. April 30, 2008
I’m done complaining. Because, seriously…at least I haven’t been locked in a basement for my whole life…
Ugh… April 28, 2008
The tone of my writing has taken a turn for the worse lately. I know that whining is not the point of blogging, but I am having a hard time keeping a good attitude lately.
I’m not quite sure what happened. I have a great life. I go to a great school, I have great friends. I love my job, and I’ve finally started studying what I really think I am meant to do with my life. My life is not hard by any means, but for some reason, I feel as if I have screwed up.
Recently, in trying to make life decisions, I can’t come up with a reason for wanting to be a writer. Sure, like all good journalists, eventually I’d like to write a novel. At this point, I don’t have any idea what I would write about. I used to want to be a travel writer, but there are very few jobs these days that would allow me to do that. I’d like to work with web design, but I don’t exactly have any of the skills that are required to do so. I can’t decide what classes to take, when or where to have an internship, or what to do after graduation.
It’s frustrating. Infuriating even.
There was a speaker in one of my j-classes the other day who made $18,000 at his first job out of college working at a newspaper. Good grief.
Seriously. I warned you I was being negative.
The allure of a big university… April 14, 2008
Last year, former president Bill Clinton spoke at the spring commencement ceremony. The year before, it was presidential candidate John McCain. It was announced today that NBC correspondent Brian Williams will be this year’s speaker.
This is one of the reason’s I love going to a big school. Most of the colleges that my high school classmates attended will have someone like the state governor speaking at their graduation. Not at Ohio State.
I can’t wait to see what’s in store for my graduation next year.
Mayday, mayday… April 13, 2008
I wrote an article about Skybus closing that ran on the front page of The Lantern last week. The airline shut down on a Friday night, canceled all its flights, left its passengers stranded and its employees jobless. No notice whatsoever. In the same week, ATA and Aloha Airlines filed for bankruptcy.
My dad e-mailed me on Friday night to let me know that Frontier Airlines has also filed for bankruptcy. Their hub is in Denver, and I currently hold a ticket to fly home for the summer on June 9th. The only difference is that Frontier is going through a “reorganization” process, and promises to keep flying.
I’m still worried.
I was looking around on Expedia.com this weekend for a flight for my cousin, from Ohio to Colorado, for my 21st birthday in July. I ran across another fun tidbit of information. Most of the major airlines are either raising the prices for over-sized baggage, charging extra to check more than one piece of luggage, or both. This all comes into effect in about a month.
What is going on!?
I travel…a lot. In 2007 I traveled to Colorado, Texas, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Washington D.C., several places in Mexico, New Jersey, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Hampshire. So far this year I have been to Colorado twice, once with a stop in Kentucky.
While none of this travel has been cheap, I’m sure it would cost a significant amount more to travel to these places now than it did a year ago, or even six months ago. I have plans to go to New York in May, and as previously mentioned, I will be traveling back to Colorado in June, and hopefully to Vegas sometime this summer. When I was a freshman, a mere 2 years ago, it cost around $200 for me to fly roundtrip between Colorado and Ohio. Now I’m happy if I can find a flight for less than $400.
Gas prices are outrageous right now. The Shell station down the street from my house has gas for $3.35 a gallon this weekend. When I turned 16, a mere five years ago, gas cost $1.50 a gallon, and I thought it was way too much money to fill up my tank for $30. That was when my parents paid for it. If they did that now, it would save me around $40 a week (it costs $55 for me to fill up my trusty little ‘95 Saab). That’d be nice.
I’m not sure what I’m trying to say. Gas prices are soaring. I know there is a whole conversation to be had about oil, the middle east, the environment, etc. I’d rather not have it. I try to drive as little as possible, and air travel is quickly slipping out of my reach (I’m a full-time student and a part-time waitress…money is not something I have a lot of). There has got to be some way to save the airline industry. Hybrid cars are cool, if you have the money to buy one. Maybe hybrid airplanes could soon become a reality?
Make the best of what’s around April 3, 2008
Recent budget cuts at OSU have led to the discontinuation of summer publication of the Lantern, the student-run school paper. As a student staff member at the Lantern, this upsets me, simply because its is something that I have become a part of, and I recognize the paper’s importance as a learning tool for journalism students. Many people have voiced their opinions about the decision through the opinion section of the paper. One particular opinion article struck me with its claim that the journalism program has been going downhill for years, starting with the loss of its accreditation five years ago.
Excuse me? I pay 21,285 in tuition dollars a year to be a part of a program that isn’t even accredited? How did I NOT KNOW THIS?
I’m a pretty literal person, so I looked up the definition of accredited. It is this: officially recognized as meeting the essential requirements. As if it isn’t a big enough slap in the face to know that I’ll only be making $25,000 a year for the rest of my life, but now to find out that my program doesn’t meet the minimum requirements for college journalism programs. Does that mean that my degree doesn’t meet the requirements? Should I even bother getting a degree at all?
I had the choice of attending any college that I wanted (spare some out- of-reach Ivy Leagues), and I looked all over the country. Granted, I wasn’t sure what I was studying at the time, but should I have stayed home? Colorado State is 3 miles away from my high school, and it has an accredited journalism program. Instead, I’m 1300 miles away getting a sub-par degree.
I guess I have no choice but to make the best of it, but how?
Skinny bitch. April 2, 2008
I didn’t set out to become a vegetarian. I work at a steakhouse for crying out loud. A friend of mine, who happens to be a vegan, told me to read the book Skinny Bitch. Predictably enough, it was written by two former models, aka “skinny bitches.” It is basically a how-to guide on becoming a vegan, preluded by numerous reasons why you should jump on the wagon. I did not know this when I agreed to read it.
I have a strong enough stomach that horror stories about meat-packing plants haven’t bothered me in the past. But for some reason, this book really got to me. It wasn’t just the talk about the inhumane and unsanitary conditions in the plants, but its use of logic to explain why humans weren’t meant to eat meat. It boiled it down to this – animals that were meant to eat meat, have the tools to eat meat. Examples: Claws and sharp teeth. We don’t have those, and while we did manage to come make our own tools, that’s not exactly what meant to happen.
It’s logic. And it made sense. Kind of like their unreserved descriptions of what little sense it makes to steal milk from another animal and consume it. I love milk. There’s no way you could make me give up milk. Or cheese. Or chocolate. Nope. I can’t be a vegan, I’ll just stick with vegetarianism.
We’ll see how long this lasts, but I’m having fun reading up on my new lifestyle, and exploring places to eat. I’m not doing this to become a “skinny bitch.” Although I think I’ve already mastered the latter.
As my fellow vegetarian Abraham Lincoln once said, “Whatever you are, be a good one.” Well damn it if I’m not going to be a great vegetarian.
If it weren’t for the last minute, nothing would get done… March 6, 2008
I am a habitual procrastinator. I am not sure when it started, or why, really. For the past 3 years or so, it has been a New Year’s Resolution of mine to stop putting off work, start prioritizing better, and tackle my punctuality issues.
There are 3 main reasons why I normally procrastinate:
1. I know that I can succeed at what I need to get done, and don’t feel the need to spend much time on it.
2. I don’t think I can succeed at what I need to get done, and feel that it’s best to put it off until the last minute, therefore spending the least amount of time feeling stupid or inadequate.
3. I have “better things” to do.
I decided in class today that I would bite the bullet and give this blogging thing a try. After all, I’m a writer, so this shouldn’t be that hard, right? We’ll see…
