Harvest Dinner 2013

My congregation had a Harvest Dinner this year.  They asked for people to adopt a table to decorate.  They said that we could pick any theme, so of course I picked Star Trek!  Here are the pictures of my table.

Auntie Day 2012 (late)

Sorry for the late Auntie Day blog!  I didn't have time during the semesters, and couldn't think of stuff to write.  So here are the pictures!  I need to get something up before tomorrow, which is Auntie Day 2013!
We didn't have a theme when we started out our day, but it became Keep Portland Weird!

Voodoo Donuts!!!

I had wanted to to check out the Portland landmark of Voodoo Donuts, and the family was happy to oblige!  I liked the cocoa puffs donut best.

Maple & Bacon

They told me not to touch the giant donut.  It was really hard not to!

Keep Portland Weird!

Powell's Book Store

You need a map for this book store!

Buffalo Exchange (used and vintage clothes)

Portland Food Truck!

We went to the food truck of my roommate's father.

Charmed Season 2: Victims & Villains

After I recorded who the victims were in Season 1 of the 1990's television show Charmed, I was asked to look at the victims and the villains.  Here you go!

E1:  Witch Trial
Victim:  Sisters
Villain:  Demons that they vanquished in Season 1 (White man, black cloud, White men, race-less demon man)

E2:  Morality Bites
Victim:  Sisters
Villain:  Karma?
Ha ha!  This was filmed in 1999, and they said that MTV's Real World would still be on (is it?), and that it'd be on the moon!!!
Also, this episode makes it so obvious that all witch hunts are really about misogny.

E3:  The Painted World
Victim:  Sisters
Villain:  White warlock couple (heterosexual)

E4:  The Devil's Music
Victim:  Young White women at concerts.
Villain:  Demon
A creepy, White business man also harasses Prue, not taking a "no" from her.  Either personally or professionally.

E5:  She's a Man, Baby
Victim:  White men
Villain:  White woman (succubus demon)
When Prue becomes a man, she becomes a very stereotypical man.  She suddenly cares about sports and can fix things around the house.  She also felt more "manly" after hitting another guy.  Us, essentialism.

E6: That Old Black Magic
Victim:  White and Indian male hikers, old White woman
Villain: White woman witch (but evil)
There was a silly Blair Witch reference in this episode.  Oh, the '90s!

E7:  They're Everywhere!
Victim:  Young White man
Villain:  Two White male warlocks, although one might be Middle Eastern.
OMG, Alyssa Milano  is cold a lot!  You can tell because this is the time before padded bras were common.  
E8:  P3 H2O
Victim:  Random people on a lake:  White male police officer, old, White lady, the sister's mother, who was a witch (White woman)
Villain:  Water demon

E9:  Ms Hellfire
Victim:  Witches (only saw one young, White woman)
Villain:  White male demon

E10:  Heartbreak City
Victim:  Cupid, a White man
Villain:  Hate demon, a White man

E11:  Reckless Abandon
Victim:  Men of a wealthy White family, including a baby
Villain:  White man ghost

E12:  Awakened
Victim:  Piper, then a Black woman nurse, and White guy, and they say "others"
Villain: "exotic" infection, incarnated as a ninja toy that appears to be White and male

E13:  Animal Pragmatism
Victim:  Three college women who wanted love (two White, one Asian)
A pedestrian and soccer mom were killed off-screen.  Later, a White man was killed.
Villain:  Animals turned into White men (Why would a snake automatically be of European descent?)

E14:  Pardon My Past
Victim:  Phoebe
Villain:  White male sorcerer, and Past Phoebe

E15:  Give Me a Sign
Victim:  Prue
Villain:  White guy (Antonio Sabato Jr.!) who later becomes a victim, White male demons
Also, Phoebe cast a spell related to Piper's love life when Piper specifically asked her not to.  Consent, hello?
It was supposed to be cute when Prue teases a guy about using her powers to take his pants off, but it sounds rape-y to me.

E16:  Murphy's Luck
Victim:  White woman (Amy Adams!!)
Villain:  ethnically-ambiguous male demon.
Also in this episode, Phoebe thinks that being in Psych 101 can help her talk to a suicidal woman.  Seriously?  

E17:  How To Make a Quilt Out of Americans
Victim: Sisters, two random old White men
Villain:  Three old White women (who later become victims); White male demon
This episode suggests that being old and single is the worst fate EVER, worthy of giving up your soul to change.  Ug.
Some of the dialogue is about Phoebe needing glasses.  Amazingly, she wears them for the rest of the season!

E18:  Chick Flick
Victim:  Moviegoers (mostly White)
Villain:  White male demon, but also horror film villains (White woman and man)

E19:  Ex Libris
Victim:  White women; Black woman and her father
Villain:  White guy, gray demon

E20:  Astral Monkey
Victim:  Monkeys and White, male criminals
Villain:  White male doctor, although he was also a victim

E21:  Apocalypse Not
Victim: Sisters
Villain:  The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse, who all happen to be White men.

E22:  Be Careful What You Witch For
Victim:  Sisters
Villain:  White male gypsy and White male demon

The overall summary is that White men are most likely to be victims, surprisingly.  Only five victims weren't White, out of 24.  Out of the villains, they are heavily dominated by White men.  There were only six White women villains out of the 30 villains, and no female villains of color.  So, basically, this show about White sisters is really about what they do for, and to, White men.  Huh.
This count might be slightly different if I didn't include all of the random, "collateral" victims, and just looked at who was the main target.

I'm not sure that I can keep up these records during the school year, but if I can, then Season 3 will be looking at what the show is telling people through the storytelling.  For example, at this point, several men have learned of their secret, and each man has rejected them.  The show is saying that when men learn who a woman really is, and that she's powerful, that women can expect to be rejected by men.

Notes for Nephew's Visit

Instead of writing a blog that details what my nephew and I did when he visited me, here are the planning notes for the trip.  I couldn't help but add some comments, though!

July 8th-12th :)

July 8th flight:

Portland, OR (PDX): 12:45 pm

Long Beach (LGB): 3:07 pm

All by himself!  

Amtrak starting July 11th: San Luis Obispo, CA to Portland, OR - Union Station

Full Day Ideas

• Hiking
• Shooting lesson
• Kayaking: One reservation was cancelled, and one required us to get up at 5:30am, so we didn't go kayaking. :(

Afternoon/Evening Ideas

• Pool
• Game night:  10th with TJ
• Live music: 9th, 7pm, at the Crystal Palace

Why I Can't Travel

I've traveled a lot this summer, but was considering one more trip.  Unfortunately, new and exciting bills are starting to pop up.  Here they are:

Dental work on Piggie, and boarding : $400
Mouth guard for me: $350
Framed two posters: $350
Fix A/C on Washington car (Black Beauty, or BB): $250
120k service on California car (Vera): $250
New laptop:  $650

Plus three trips to the family, and having my nephew visit.

Oh, and I don't get paid for two summer months...

However, the real reason that I'm not taking my friend up on her offer of a visit to Omaha is that I'm running out of time this summer.  I had 19 projects that I wanted to accomplish this summer, and I've only done four of them.  Plus, with all of my traveling, it seems like I've barely spent much time at home.  I was at home and bored for a few days a month ago, but mostly I've been on the go.  But, the extra costs that I shared above are good reasons, too.

The Innocent Victims of Season 1 of Charmed

I watched the first few seasons of Charmed when it was on, and somehow lost track of it before the show ended.  I started re-watching the entire series to catch up.  Plus, who doesn't love witches in tank tops?  After watching the first few episodes, I started to get worried that most of the "innocents" that the Charmed Sisters were to protect, or who would die as an indicator that there was a demon around, were women.  So I decided to start this blog, and keep it up through the entire series.
But, come on, the whole series?  That's ridiculous.  So here is Season 1. 

And because I'm me, I also noted the race of the innocent victims. 


E1: Something wiccan this way comes- young women witches (One White woman was shown)
E2: I've got you undertaken skin- young women (Two White women were shown)
E3: Thank you for not morphing- the sisters
Although the Charmed sisters are obviously women, they are also the main characters of the show, and supposedly super-powerful, so I'm not counting them in the "innocent victim" category.  With power comes people who want to take, regardless of your gender.
E4: Dead man dating- Chinese man
E5: Dream Sorcerer- young women (One White woman was shown) 
Additionally in this episode, Prue gets attacked in a bath tub. Really?  Let's just reinforce that naked women are vulnerable, why don't we?
I have noticed good thing during the shows is that the sisters are shown eating.  Mostly snacking, but also meals.  It's nice to see women who actually eat.  Rare, but nice.
Also, Phoebe made it clear that she had safe sex.  Lots of safe sex. :)
E6: The wedding from hell- young, White straight couple, and the groom's (White) mother.
E7: The fourth sister- The sisters, and a teenage girl (White)
E8: The truth is out there, and it hurts- scientists (one White man, one Black man) and the (White)  mother-to-be of a future scientist.
Although I give kudos for having a scientist of color, why is the one woman who is attacked not a scientist?  She's basically just a carrier, a vessel.  She's attacked for what's in her uterus, not for anything that she personally accomplishes. 
E9: The witch is back- the sisters. Two random White men with their last name were killed, too.
E10: Wicca envy- the sisters
E11: Feats of Clay- 3 male thieves
E12: The wendigo- 2 White men, and Piper.
E13: From fear to eternity- 13 unmarried witches. All White, young, and pretty.
Yet again, Prue is attacked while naked.  This time, in the shower instead of the bath tub.
E14: Secrets and guys- Black boy with powers
E15: Is there a woogy in the house?- Everyone who went in the basement: White gas man, White woman professor, White male neighbor, White male police detective (and Prue's sometimes-boyfriend), and Phoebe.
E16: Which Prue is it, anyway?- The sisters
E17: That 70s episode- the sisters, or may be their mother (She's also a powerful witch, but White and female, too).
E18: When bad warlocks go good- White guy, but a random blond (White) woman also was almost sacrificed.  A pagan symbol was drawn on her chest.  Not over her heart, but riding the tops of her breasts.  Classy.
E19: Out of sight- 2 boys, and a good person (a Black man)
More mentioning of safe sex, though; woot!
E20: The power of two- Revenge killings (man, old White man, old White woman)
I think Detective Trudeau (Prue's sometimes-boyfriend) should have his own show.  Except that, when he learns of Prue's powers, he says that he can't date her because he doesn't want a wife with as dangerous of a job as he has (as a police detective).  This is quite the double standard.
E21: Love hurts- A White woman and a White man.  He is a White Lighter, and she's a White Lighter To Be.
This episode had a controlling (ex?)boyfriend stalking a women.  He was a demon, but he did say what abusers typically say to their victims. 
E22: Deja vu all over again- the sisters, but Prue's sometimes-boyfriend sacrifices himself so that the sisters can live. You rarely see a man sacrifice himself for a woman.  BTW, he's still White.
Also, this episode made me cry.

And those are the victims in Season 1 of Charmed!  There were 22 women threatened or killed, 26 men threatened or killed, 35 White people threatened or killed, and only 4 people of color threatened or killed; 48 victims' gender was known, while only 39 victims' races were known.
My hypothesis that more women would be in danger than men (not counting the Charmed Sisters) was incorrect; there were about equal numbers of men and women killed.  It might be interesting to only look at one main victim, rather than everyone who was harmed in an episode, though.
Unsurprisingly, the show is very, very White.  I had hope that this would not be the case because one of the secondary characters is a Black man (Prue's sometimes-boyfriend's police partner).  The beginning of the season had some men of color as victims, too, but that soon faded to only Whites.  It is interesting that there is no women of color anywhere on this list.  I wonder why?

Dog Personality

After dog-sitting for a few days, it's really obvious how I have the personality of dogs. 
In no particular order:

1. Dogs get super-excited about food.
2. Dogs love to take naps.
3. Dogs express their joy very enthusastically.
4. Dogs can go from enthusiastic to napping in seconds.
5. Dogs love to wander around outside.
6. Dogs love finding new things.
7. Dogs love going for a walk.
8. Dogs love to be cuddled and pet.
9. Dogs can be trained, but their humans have to be very, very patient.
10. Dogs love routine.

I decided to stop at ten similarities.  What are some others?

"Why Does the World Exist?" by Holt

Since I lost a Facebook posting of my and my friends' reviews of Star Trek: Into Darkness, here's a book review. 

My review from GoodReads:

Why Does the World Exist: An Existential Detective Story by Jim Holt
I hate this book. It's a bunch of (White) men pontificating on an obtuse topic that has no practical value. Despite my best efforts, I did finish reading it. But I will be blaming my book club for years to come about the waste of my time.


The only vaguely positive thing that might have come out of reading it is that I now know that people have tried to answer this "Why is there Something rather than Nothing?" question for centuries.  That's it.  I learned it's a tough question.  An impossible question.  And that  people have wasted their time on it for a very long time.   

What Not to Say on A Feminist Blog

Everyone should read this:  http://www.fugitivus.net/2009/08/25/a-few-things-to-stop-doing-when-you-find-a-feminist-blog/

Membership Care Committee

Recently, I joined the Membership Care Committee at my fellowship.  Because it's such a small congregation, this small group (of women) are in charge of both membership stuff and the, well, caring stuff.  I joined to contact new visitors since that's an effort that many congregations aren't very good at.  But joining this committee also means that I'm asked to do some of the caring part.

I'm not a touchy-feely person.  I mean, I'm all about cuddling with people that I care about, but being empathic and supportive to just anybody?  Not really my thing.

Today, we had a memorial service at the fellowship.  The 33-year old brother of one of our members, another young adult, died suddenly.  I really wanted to be there for the young adult and her family, so I was willing to do this caring bit. 

I helped set up tables and chairs, I laid out platters of cookies, and helped keep the drinks cool.  During the service, I also took the 4-year old daughter of the young adult to the playroom. 

I found that I really enjoyed being of service.  Being able to support someone, or some family, during a really hard time for them was very gratifying.  I'm still not touchy-feely, but I guess I can fulfill all duties for the Membership Care Committee.

Accidental Five Miles

This evening, I went to my first running club event.  We met near the river walk path.  I figured that I wouldn't keep up with most of them, but didn't want to have them loop around without me.  So I was very relieved when the host stayed back at all of the turn-offs to wait for me (and the woman behind me). 

The running went well.  The first mile, as always, made me regret going.  But then I got in a groove, like I usually do.  Jogging isn't as light and refreshing as it used to be, but that's probably because I weigh around 20 pounds heavier than I used to. 

After running 2.6 miles (round trip), the group met up again near the parking lot.  It took me 30 minutes, which is my normal time (3 miles on flat ground is taking me about 35 minutes at this point).  Some runners were going to keep going the other way, so I said that I would walk behind them but that they had to make sure to find me and tell me when to turn around or I would just keep walking!

As they jogged away, I also started jogging, albeit slowly.  I still had some energy left in me.  I saw them take a side path, so I followed it, too.  That's the last that I ever saw of them.  I eventually hit the main path again, and took it back to the parking lot.  That second run (with walking intervals) took another 35 minutes, and covered 2.3 miles (round trip). 

As I was jogging, I got pretty angry at the other runners.  As a woman, I don't want to be running alone on side paths but they didn't seem concerned about me once we started on the second run. 
It reminded me of some hiking groups I have been a part of; they say that they are welcome to all levels, but end up leaving people behind.  It's no fun to be left behind. 

Plus, the sun was starting to set.  That always makes me worried that I'll be running in the dark.
And I got blisters.

In sum, my first experience with this running club wasn't that great.  Well, it started out really good, but then turned not-so-good.  On the bright side, it wasn't too hard to do the 5 miles, not counting the blisters.

TV & Eating

When lecturing about classical conditioning, I often mention how people who generally snack while they watch TV end up feeling like they're hungry whenever they watch TV.  Even if they just ate.

I'm not immune.  When I'm working at home, I usually take a break for lunch or dinner and watch something on Netflix while eating.  So whenever I want a break, I want to be hungry.  And when I do watch TV without eating, I feel like something's missing. 

But I've also noticed something else about TV and eating.  When watching certain shows, I end up craving certain foods.  For example, I want coffee and cherry pie whenever I think about Twin Peaks.  If you ever watched even a couple of episodes of that show, you know that the main character had coffee and pie almost every episode. 

I'm re-watching Roswell now.  Many of the scenes are at the main character's work, the Crashdown Cafe.  It's a diner.  People order french fries a lot.  And milk shakes.  So now I'm craving shakes and fries.

The only other food-related viewing incident that I've had was when I watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in the theater.  I guess I didn't eat enough before watching that movie, because I had a hypoglycemic reaction to watching all of that candy and sweets.  I started getting a headache, then got nauseous.  Classic response when my blood sugar level drops too quickly.  I guess just seeing the candy increased my blood sugar level, which then crashed since I didn't have any real (protein-filled) food. So I threw up.  I almost made it to the bathroom.  :/

I wonder what foods others crave based on what their TV show characters are eating?

Sleep & Sick Squared

I've had a head and chest cold for the past week.  Since it's been around so long, I think I'm going to call it Phoebe.
What's worse, is that I had a cold a few weeks ago!  I've never gotten sick so often. 

Yesterday was a full day of sickness.

I did get to sleep in, to about 10:30am.  I got out of bed about 11:30am and cleaned my apartment a bit.  I then called my mother, but she wasn't home.  Then I fell asleep in my Lazy Boy.  I some point, I moved to the couch.  I woke up around 3pm, and got up around 3:30pm. 

I called my mom again, and she was home, so we talked for awhile.  Our weekly chat.  I started to get a sinus headache while on the phone. 

After that, I had some stew and watched Netflix.  I felt like sleeping again, but thought that that would be ridiculous.  So I baked no-fat cupcakes.  Turns out, I had baked them before and they were gross both times.  When they were baking, I went into my office to work on a lecture, but really just checked stuff out online.  Then an old friend called, so I got to talk with her.  Happy times!

I had to get off of the phone to get ready to go to another friend's house.  Since I felt awful (still had that headache, plus the cough and congestion), I took some cold medication.  With one of those gross cupcakes.  During my shower, I felt worse and worse.  When I was all ready, I laid down.  Eventually, I texted my friend to say that I couldn't make it.  Within 5 minutes I threw up.  Ug. 

I went back to bed, but kept coughing.  I figured that the meds that I'd taken earlier were ejected, I took some Nyquil and watched another episode of Roswell on Netflix.  After that, I was able to get to sleep.

I'm feeling better today, but still coughing.  At least I'm not nauseous!  I think it was the cupcake. 

New Year Completion: 2012 to 2013

My accomplishments, wins, and breakthroughs this year were:
    Got a teaching job!!!
    Easily completed the Pendleton 5k Mud Run.
    Started dating Gary.

My unmet expectations, failures, and breakdowns this year were:
    Not getting a job closer to the kids.
    Not losing weight.

I learned this year: that I still enjoy teaching.

What am I doing that’s working for me?
    Visiting family.

What am I tolerating?
    Grading too much.
    Skipping workouts, or not working out hard enough.

What am I willing to take responsibility for?
    Over-grading.

I would like to acknowledge myself for:
    Bravely starting a new job and new life.

The breakthrough that I would like to have next year is: balance grading and the rest of my life.

The judgment, philosophy, or belief that I’m willing to let go of to support that breakthrough is that: I have to read everything. 

What I can count on myself for is:
    Loving my kids
    Intelligence
    Humor
    Trying
    Trying new things

No Resolutions

I don't do New Year's resolutions.  They are so worthless.  If I want to change my life, I won't wait until the new year, and I'll have a plan, not a resolution.  A resolution is a promise, and promises, even to yourself, can be broken.  But plans are a series of steps to get to your goal.  And the best plans have contingencies when you veer off of them.  That's way better than a resolution.

Tonight, I found that I do have three wishes.  I'm working on all of them already, so they aren't resolutions.  I don't have great plans for most of them, though.  May be that'll be an upcoming post?  But for now, here are my wishes:

1. Catch up with my work.  
2. Lose weight.
3. Become certain about my feelings for my boyfriend, and certain about the commitments I have or will make to him.

That's it! 

Hm.  They actually look somewhat more difficult when written out like this.