Rant

Sorry in advance - it's 2AM and I'm pretty tired, but I just want to rant for a brief second. So for Spanish class, we're currently studying feminicide in Cuidad Juárez, Mexico. Our homework this weekend was to watch a movie on reserve in the library - it's fiction, but it's centered on this issue of young women, often workers in the maquilas (factories) being kidnapped and brutally attacked and killed. I won't go into detail about what was actually shown in the movie, but it was horribly, horribly graphic and involved rape and brutal murder and a lot of awful things that they just straight-up showed on screen. Now I'm already stressed out and in a really shitty mood, and I'm sitting alone on the 4th tier of Magill at 10:30pm, watching what I thought was going to be just another Spanish movie, and freaking out because I feel like I have to finish it, or at least keep watching enough to know the ending.

Like, can I get a trigger warning? ANY kind of warning? I don't remember her ever saying in class that the movie we were going to be watching would be graphic or violent, or anything like that. And I don't know if I'm overreacting or not, so I want to know what other people think. I was just so upset that I ended up basically fast-forwarding through a lot of the second half of the movie because I just couldn't watch it. And I saw plenty to be able to figure out what was going on in the movie, and even though I know it wasn't real, those images are haunting. Should we have been warned? Should watching that kind of thing be optional, even if it's for class or some other intellectual purpose? Or should people just be able to deal with it because it's fiction, like a horror movie?

Accent Vlog!

I stole this from Jessi, cause it seems like a fun idea, and also because I've never made a vlog before. I want to know if anyone thinks I have an accent or say anything weird, cause I don't think I do, but hey, it's all relative :)

So here are the words and questions:

Aunt, Route, Theater, Iron, Caramel, Water, Sure, Data, Crayon, Toilet, New Orleans, Pecan, Syrup, Pajamas, Caught/Cot, Dawn/Don

• What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house?
• What is the bug called that curls into a ball when you touch it?
• What is the bubbly carbonated drink called?
• What do you call gym shoes?
• What do you say to address a group of people?
• What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs?
• What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining?

 

Some words that I think should be added but didn't think of before I made it: Museum, Enough, and Marinara.

"Museum" is kind of like "theater" in that I used to say myoo-Zam like "sam," but got made fun of so now I say "myoo-Zee-um." For "enough," I used to say "ee-Nuff," but someone made fun of me so now I say "uh-Nuff" or "eh-Nuff." My friend also told me the other day that I say "marinara" wrong (with both a's like in "arctic" instead of "air"). According to Josh, people in Washington (state, not DC) actually pronounce the t's at the end of words, like "quiet" or whatever, but I don't..or in the middle of words really (like Jessi said, "little" = liddle). Oh and in Boston we have this word "frappe," which I say as one syllable, like "frap." But it just means a milkshake. I say milkshake in everyday life or in a restaurant, but if you're getting one in an ice cream shop specifically it's probably on the menu as a frappe. Isn't that weird?

How do you guys say these things? Or better yet, post a vlog so I can see! :)

Ramble on Maintaining My Jewishness in College

I decided that for the first time since sophomore or junior year of high school, I'm going to keep Passover this year. There are a few reasons for this. It has nothing to do with God, or an actual belief in the Passover story. In fact, my dad just told me that since the Egyptians have no record at all of the Israelites ever having been in Egypt, much less enslaved and then magically freed, the whole thing is likely a myth that the higher-ups fabricated back in the day to make the Jews appreciate (and feel indebted to) God. It's actually mainly because I feel like I haven't met my Jewish quota for the year, and I feel really disconnected from the whole thing. I went to Rosh Hashannah eve services with JSU, and then fasted on Yom Kippur because I didn't feel like actually going to temple. I've never really liked services all that much anyway - I'm much more of a community Jew than a God-focused one. So I'll do things like fast and not eat bread because I'm part of the community. Even so, I never go to any JSU events or Shabbat dinners, and if I had planned this ahead, I could've participated in the Passover co-op instead of doing it on my own. So yes, it's in the spirit of community, because many Jews are also abstaining from eating leavened bread at this time, but I'm also kind of failing at actually actively being part of the community.

Anyway, my first and so far only meal after sundown last night was lunch this morning, at which they had my favorite: burgers. I always put cheese and lettuce on my burger, so I just did that but with a fork and knife instead of putting it on a bun. Good Jew, right? Wrong. It took two of my non-Jewish friends to make me realize that cheeseburgers aren't kosher. ...Fail.

I keep saying I'll go to JSU events, especially cause there's non-DC food at a lot of them (food: a main Jewish priority), but I'm always just too busy or unmotivated or don't have a friend to go with. But all my life before college I was always at temple at least once a week for Hebrew School, which I went to through 12th grade; I served on two committees and was on the board of my youth group for three years. I'm facebook friends with both my rabbis (wait, everyone chill out, they're both young), and I'm still in touch with my youth group advisor (who incidentally graduated from Haverford in '07). But I got here and, poof, no more community Jew. I guess at home I didn't have to try. I also didn't have to feel bad about not keeping kosher for Passover, since I was at temple all the time anyway and didn't really see the purpose (quota, like I said, even if it's subconscious). But here I have to try, and actively think about how I'm going stay a part of this community. I have no back-up quota for if I don't want to go to High Holy Day services because I don't really like praying anyway, but still feel enough like a part of the community. If I don't go, and I don't keep kosher for passover, then I've done nothing Jewish the entire year, and then I feel like I'm abandoning it, which I don't want to do.

I don't know where this ramble was going. I think my cheeseburger fail earlier today just made me see the difference between my intentions, or my ideal, and what has actually ended up happening once I came to college. In theory, I'd love to go to JSU or whatever and keep up that part of my identity, but it just hasn't happened, and I feel like I'd be lying to myself if I made a promise to start being active once I come back from abroad. I guess we'll see.

Oh, and for your amusement, here are some Passover- or exodus-related videos:

Things You Learn in College, but Not in Class

Except I edited it, because not everything is applicable...

• Quarters are like gold. Flip-flops become as important as soap, and shampoo.
• Asleep by 2:30 AM is an early night.
• New additions to the food groups: Coffee, chips, soft serve, and oreos.
• Make sure your alarm clock has back-up batteries.
• Duct tape heals all wounds.
• Showers become less important.
• Sleep becomes more important.
• 10 minutes is more than enough time to get ready for your first class.
• Going to the mailbox was never an ego-booster (or ego-breaker) before.
• You begin to nap again.
• The book your professor wrote is always required for his class.
• E-mail becomes your second language.
• Lacrosse parties are exactly like they are in the movies.
• Ten-page papers used to sound impossible, now they’re a Godsend.
• You never realized so many people are smarter than you.
• You never realized so many people are dumber than you.
• Bum rides, money, notes and snacks as much as you can get them.
• Plain pasta never constituted a complete meal before.
• Forget putting the toilet seat down, you just pray that they flush.
• Frisbee becomes a contact sport.
• Care packages rank up there with birthdays.
• Pop a vitamin and breakfast is covered.
• Learn to love your roommate, especially when he leaves you the room.
• You always thought that worshipping the porcelain god was just an expression, but it’s not.
• Printers only break down when you desperately need them.
• Even though the beds are long, they are also extra narrow.
• Things that were a huge deal in high school are now commonplace.
• You never thought you would share so much about yourself with people you have known for such a short time
• Any game can be made into a drinking game.
• Disney movies are more than just classics.
• Find one thing you like in the dining hall and go with it.
• You will hear more stupid nicknames than you ever thought possible.
• Phone calls almost never happen and when they do, you just don’t get the messages.
• Cereal makes a meal any time of day.
• Keep your high school term papers; nowadays, everything is recycled.
• ATMs are the devil’s advocate.
• Beware the boy in the Care Bear toga.
• You almost forget how to drive.
• You’ll drink anything if it’s free.
• You get really good with excuses for skipping class.
• The girl you’re going to marry may live right next door, so keep your stereo down.
• Ordering food at 1 AM is a common occurrence.
• You never realized how cool you can be.
• TV becomes a bigger time sucker than ever before.
• You realize how great your hell summer job was once you have to study.
• Keys have never been so important, yet you seem to lose them more than ever before.
• You learn to sleep with light, noise, extreme temperatures, and roommates snoring.
• You don’t have to cover your textbooks anymore.
• You become a juggler with the balance between school, friends, girls/boys, activities, work, parties.
• You live for chicken finger day at the cafeteria.
• People that were geeks in high school seem okay now.
• You begin to realize that college is about the ideal lifestyle, except for those pesky classes.
• You get good at rationalizing on whether to do homework or not.
• Procrastination becomes an art.
• Jeans may be worn as many times as the wearer desires.
• The only reason you ever dress up is when everything else is dirty.
• With all the wealth of knowledge around you, you start to feel like you’re on intellectual welfare.
• Going to the mini-mart is a major treat.
• Amount of alcohol consumed is inversely proportional to grade point average.
• You have two kinds of shoes: everyday shoes and party shoes.
• Classes: the later the better.
• The cute people actually talk to you now.
• Care packages make it all worthwhile.
• The longer you’re there, the less you talk about home.
• Always wear your safety goggles. They’re not kidding.
• You don’t learn last names.
• Card games never lasted for hours before.
• Vacuuming happens every semester, if you get around to it.
• Boys will dance in college.
• People who never talked to you in high school are now your best friends when you come home.
• You are NEVER alone.
• It’s amazing how late you can stay up doing absolutely nothing, yet falling asleep in class or in the library takes an average of two seconds.
• You spend a ridiculous amount of time pondering the mystery of whether the Lucky Charms in the cafeteria are the real thing. (They're not.)
• People magazine is your deep philosophical reading material.
• All you have to do to make new friends is have mom send some cookies.
• You never realized how quiet your house was.
• Dishes aren’t dirty enough to wash until they have bugs and / or mold in them.
• You get along so much better with your family now that you never see any of them.
• Your life will never be the same again.

-http://thecareercloset.com/2009/11/21/things-you-learn-in-college/ 

Happy Pinwheel Day!

Here are all the reasons why today is awesome:

• It's Pinwheel Day! For those of you outside the Haverbubble, Pinwheel Day is when the magical black squirrel comes in the night and covers Founders Green with pinwheels. (Actually, it's probably the arboretum.) It signifies spring, and I think it's supposed to be on the first super-warm day when it won't get cold again. It's also on a weekday I think.
• I made myself eggs over easy in the DC this morning, which is one of my favorite breakfasts
• I got my picture taken with the HCBlackSquirrel, which got posted on Twitter!!! Check out @HCblacksquirrel
• It's super warm and beautiful out
• There are gorgeous flowers everywhere
• It was grilled cheese for lunch
• I basked in the sun
• There is a lovely breeze in my room
• It's Pinwheel Day!

Existential Thoughts on Life and Death

You guys, I don't want to be depressing. But sometimes shit is fucking depressing, you know? I can't get this off my mind. I have this acquaintance. Friend. I don't know. I eat breakfast with her a couple times a week, but that's all I ever really see of her, and she's a good friend of a good friend. Beyond that, since some people at Haverford now read this, I don't want to identify her. But like, her sister died. In some freak accident on an exchange trip. I don't know what happened because I haven't asked, and honestly I'm getting this info from someone else's blog in the first place. But I can't stop thinking about it. Why the fuck would that happen? These two English teachers at my high school, Mr. Flaggert and Mr. Koup, always used to say in class whenever we studied anything remotely existential or involving death that it's like, at any second a plane could fall from the sky, or you could scratch your hand on the desk and get an infection, or someone could hit you driving home - anyone could die at any second. And then when I was a senior, they found this random blood clot in Mr. Koup's leg and he was in the hospital for a couple days, but they caught it removed it and he was fine. And we were all like "Holy shit it's true, he could've died from this random blood clot - anyone can die at any second." But you don't really grasp something like that. Why do "freak accidents" happen to random people? Why a 16-year-old with friends and a family? It's like this giant fluke in the world. And it's not even really my thing; I never knew her, and I'm not even that close to her sister. But I can't stop thinking about it. I just don't get why anyone should have to go through this.