On Recreation

1- Random greetings to Clio Bluestocking, who has written an excellent post in response to Historiann’s call. 2- We are expected to dislike research and have difficulty with writing, but what is difficult for me is giving of myself to the point where I barely have enough plasma left to function.  I am not cut … More On Recreation

On Not Voting

There are elections tomorrow and I am not voting, because I am leaving this afternoon and I will not be back until Sunday. Were I not so overloaded with work I would have remembered to vote early, and were I not so used from birth to Tuesday elections I would remember more easily that we … More On Not Voting

On weight. On pregnancy. On what we worked for. Sobre la juventud actual

This is another of my not exactly true, composite stories, which meld various stories to make a point. My size is 8. I can be size 6, 4, 2, but it takes work and at some point long ago I realized it would be far more practical to simply remain at 8. There is someone … More On weight. On pregnancy. On what we worked for. Sobre la juventud actual

La vida real

After class I went to the library to put things on reserve. Walking fast for exercise in 50F weather – “cold” for here – I passed a woman near my age who was also on her way to the library but who was walking more slowly, talking on her cell phone. “That is excellent,” she … More La vida real

Occupying Portuguese

My Portuguese class is advanced grammar and conversation with Brazilian cultural content. Today we streamed Occupy São Paulo on the Internet to listen to Portuguese and see how much everybody could understand without subtitles or a written script. Then we discussed Occupy in general; here is what the students said, along with some demographic information … More Occupying Portuguese

Still working…

…at this late hour. My good humor is starting to fail after almost a whole semester of truly having no time outside work. In addition to everything else planned and unplanned this semester, I have now been instrumental in the creation of 1 new major program, 2 new graduate certificates, and 1 new study abroad … More Still working…

Rocinha, occupied in pre-Olympic effort.

Three thousand troops backed by helicopters and armored vehicles occupied Rio de Janeiro’s largest slum without firing a shot on Sunday, the biggest step in the Brazilian city’s bid to improve security and end the reign of drug gangs. The occupation of Rocinha, a notorious hillside “favela” that overlooks some of Rio’s swankiest areas, is … More Rocinha, occupied in pre-Olympic effort.

Occupy

Mexico City is occupied. Here is a related comment by John Ackerman: Por mucho que públicamente reconozcan la importancia de la participación ciudadana, lo que realmente les conviene a los partidos es que la votación se circunscriba al voto corporativo. Asimismo, durante los procesos electorales los movimientos sociales son vistos como francas amenazas para las … More Occupy