Leaving Academia

Here's a thought: http://www.leavingacademia.com/

the past, secrets, and freedom

I was pleasantly surprised to find a quote from Michelle Wallace that I had scribbled in my journal a while back:

It is my conviction that the only way to avoid repeatingg the mistakes of the past is to openly discuss them. Whether in nations, families or individuals, the practice of being on speaking terms with your past lives is the only thing that makes it possible to trust yourself or anybody else. Freedom, liberation, happiness, and fulfillment don't come naturally. Rather they must be struggled for moment by moment against the tide of institutionalization, commodification, and repression.

I love that idea of "being on speaking terms with your past."

...and reproductive justice for all...

For quite some time I've been a supporter of the idea of "reproductive justice," a concept that arose over several decades from the activism of women of color for whom access to safe and affordable abortion is not the only pressing reproductive concern; instead, reproductive justice advocates argue that wealth should not determine one's access to a full range of reproductive choices. Practically, this position argues that poor women and women of color should not be coerced into having abortions or into being sterilized; hypothetically, reproductive justice advocates have argued that poor women and women of color should also have access to reproductive technologies (such as in vitro fertilization) and should not be barred from such access due to wealth.

What to make of Nadya Suleman and Dr. Michael Kamrava? Suleman, living on disability assistance and already supporting six children (some with special needs) conceived through artificial insemination, was implanted with octuplets (by Kamrava), which she recently delivered. According to inflammatory media coverage, residents of California are universally outraged and balking at the suggestion that their taxes foot the bill for Suleman's brood's lengthy hospitalization and future upkeep.

Suleman has been represented at best as obsessed and at worst as irresponsible and unstable.

Is this what reproductive justice advocates had in mind? Well, probably not. Still, I think her story is fascinating. My (futile) wish is that Suleman's example, rather than reifying classist beliefs that middle-class white women make "good" mothering decisions while poor women inevitably make "bad" mothering decisions, will cast a different light on our obsession with commodity motherhood as best exemplified by celebrity moms. By commodity motherhood I only mean media representations of babies as commodities or as vehicles for showcasing one's superior consumption practices.

I mean, is it just me, or doesn't Suleman look a little bit like Angelina Jolie?

Maybe she is unstable, but even unwittingly Suleman has raised some important questions that might render more transparent the American media's class-based double-standards for judging motherhood. Why, for example, was the media so quick to endorse and adore the McCaughey septuplets? (Remember the NBC Dateline special?) These children were produced through an ambitious regimen of fertility drugs; the parents fanatically rejected the idea of selective reduction through abortion; two children were born with special needs. And the McCaughey's were showered with gifts: a car, a home, several years' supply of diapers, promises of college tuition to any state schools in Iowa.

Suleman may be crazy but she called the media's bluff: You like babies? I'll give you babies.

Tumbles from the Veggie Wagon

The University is closed today due to the weather. This means we will not get to Walt Whitman in my American literature survey. I think Walt would be disappointed--despite downplaying the authority granted to secondhand book knowledge, he probably still intended folks to read his. Anyhoo, I'm going to "lean and loafe at my ease" for the rest of the day....

I had dinner with a job candidate the other night. I went to one of the newer restaurants in town, Clementine, which has been quite a nice addition to the 'Burg. I had a spinach salad of sorts with marinated tomatoes, a chunk of goat cheese in the middle, ringed with bacon pieces. Bacon for our vegetarian blogger? Yes, it was tasty. More interesting than the candidate....

Last fall I had a more extensive adventure into Carnivoria when I went to an event for the "First Ladies of VA" (Gov. Tim Kaine is married to Anne Holton, daughter of Linwood Holton, who was VA gov during the early 70s, so her mother, Jinx, is also a former first lady). It was a fancy affair on campus with a plated dinner; that is, you get what they serve you, which happened to be a lovely fillet mignon. I had run earlier in the day and skipped lunch, so after balking for two seconds, let me tell you, I went to town.

I don't know what to make of these meat-consuming moments. I was at the doctor's office shortly after the first ladies' event, and I asked to have my iron levels check just to be on the safe side, but all is well there (yeah, because I had just eaten a steak!).

H'Burg Aroma-cast: fresh, snowy, with exuberant high-tones of relief (schools are closed).

H'burg Aroma-cast

Nationally, the winds of change are a-blowin'. I've enjoyed several deep, cleansing yoga breaths myself.

The local scene, however, is dominated by H'burg's signature scent: dog kibble with undertones of chicken feed.

Recent Excesses at a Colleague's Party

This Is Just To Say

I have eaten
the manchego
that was on
the table

and which
you were probably
saving
for pasta.

Forgive me
it was delicious
so mild
and so firm.

the mouths of babes

Yesterday was my birthday--thanks for all the well wishes!

I really like my students, but let's face it, from their perspective anyone over twenty-five is indeterminately old. I was sitting in my office with a student when she noticed the piece of cake the dept secretary had given me. I shared with her that it was my birthday, and she responded, "Wow, I can't imagine what it would be like to be in my thirties!"

Yeah, well, neither can I anymore. Okay, office hours are over.

Here's another great student comment: on my colleague's course evaluations, a student wrote that my colleague is a "beacon of knowledge." I love it. I've taken to calling my colleague "BK" or just "The Beacon." (Btw, it's an apt title.)