Ill&Annoyed

Current mood: exhausted

La conferencia está terminada oficialmente.  Fue divertida, pues estoy muy cansada.  Yes, the conference is officially over; it was fun, but I'm really tired.  I made the best of not feeling my best, but I wish I could have been more energetic and engaged.  Actually, lots of people seemed to be feeling a little under the weather, plus we were informed that it's an especially dusty and allergy-prone time of year here with the corn harvest.  (Corn, corn, and more corn...)  So, no fun to be illin' in Illinois.

This morning, we split into four teams for outdoor service projects at a local lake and state park.  In spite of my less than optimal state of health, I worked hard and had fun with most of my co-workers.  However, the "leader" for our project was a slightly crazy character known as Captain Ron.  We were even forewarned by a local alderman and park volunteer that he was "a little off," but we had no idea until we saw him wielding his chainsaw in a rather, well, unwieldy manner.  He made great fanfare about having served on some safety committee for 10 years; safety for whom and for doing what remains uncertain.  No one was physically injured under his supervision and tutelage, but a small tree he was felling actually brushed one girl's bangs on its way down. 

Captain Ron was also a rather brusque taskmaster.  At one point he was yelling at a couple of people, saying, "Hey you two!  There's work to be done!  Quit talking to each other and come over here and get to work!"  Thus, he amply qualifies as what I refer to as an "Annoyingf*ck," which is best pronounced in as close to a single syllable as possible.  [Again, I am limited in my range of full cursing glory, but this is the last night, dear blahg viewer, that you will be so deprived.]

But Captain Ron only happened to be louder with his blatant disrespect for anyone perceived as an underling.  At one point when I was hauling brush, this other man took a limb right out of my hands and said, "I'll take this one because it's heavy."  Clearly I was already successfully carrying it, which failed to register with he who was shorter than I and whom I likely could have benchpressed if I didn't have this damn cold-yuck.  Then later on my way to bathroom, I overheard one (which one, I know not) of our illustrious crew leaders say something obnoxiously loud and depracating about women and fishing.  Alas, I got my fill of patriarchal men this morning.  On top of all the lackluster social dynamics, I was also pretty much morally opposed to the task at hand, which involved raking beautiful 20-year+ leaf mulch down into a ravine where it will later be burned, supposedly to prevent sediment from building up in the lake.

Okay, enough of ill and annoyed...  One of the highlights of my day was our afternoon trip to Springfield to visit the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum.  It included some incredible 3-D interactive movie presentations and a surprisingly diplomatic and honest representation of various interpretations of his life and work.  Overall, the museum was an impressive architectural and multi-media achievement.

On our way back from the museum, we had the pleasure of a totally bizarre and hilarious act of ... what would it even be called?  As we drove through the last little town before Carlinville, we stopped at a stop sign.  We were the last van in the caravan, and all of a sudden I saw a flash of red streak by between us and the van in front of us.  I heard a girl say, "There's ___!" and didn't quite catch what she said.  So I looked out the windsheild, and lo and behold, there's a guy in a full Santa suit riding a kid-sized dirt bike and popping wheelies in the street in front of us!  Everybody in the van started laughing hysterically, somewhat incredulous about what we were witnessing, and laughing harder each time he did a wheelie.  Finally, he pulled over to the side of the road and turned around to go back in the opposite direction. 

Don't misunderstand; in spite of some of the fundamental challenges I've mentioned, it was a beautiful, productive, and overall great day (and I even got to play me some good ol' hacky sack after the service project).  But the totally random sight of Santa doing wheelies was enough to overcome every feeling of ill and annoyed that clouded my day.

Now I just need to go to bed and overcome the challenge of leaving at 5 am tomorrow morning to go back to B'rear Beloved...

[Backposted from MySpace 9/30/06

In Illinois I Am

Current mood: relaxed

I'm officially on the first leg of my first conference marathon (or I guess more appropriately biathlon). This is actually my first time in the state of Illinois. I'm not overly excited about the plains (very plain), but I am looking forward to our conference activities. I have about a half hour before we convene for our first formal gathering, which will include a "fiesta"-themed meal, ice-breakers, and what I'm frankly most looking forward to... the karaoke! I'm actually hoping for the opportunity to belt Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" cuz... well, I am and I wanna...

I'm also looking forward to another conference at the end of November that my friend Heather-ha talked me into coming to: " The Feminine Divine in Cross-Cultural Perspective" conference at Northwestern University (http://www.religion.northwestern.edu/news/conference.html). This will be my second trip to Illinois, but my first visit to Chicago. I'm super psyched because (1) I get to see Heather-ha, (2) free accomodations in her new abode, (3) the conference includes such feminist/ecofeminist divas as Starhawk(!), Carol Christ, and Charlene Spretnek, and (4) only costs $25! [As an aside... I wanted to write "twenty-five 'GD' dollars" because of my enthusiasm and my characteristic propensity to cuss like a sailor when I can, but the GD wireless provider where I'm staying is actually blocking such uncouth activities...] At any rate, this is an incredible opportunity to get out of town and do something just 'cause. Timi's also excited because this will be her birthday present this year.

Well, I must away for my first set of community-building activities. And I'm hungry anywho. Stay tuned for further bloggity blahgs from Tambone's travels...

[Backposted from MySpace 9/28/06]

 

 

Blahrg! Monday...

Current mood: busy

It's Monday, my cold persists, and the pace of the semester continues to escalate and doesn't look to let up until early November (if even then).  In general though, I must say the day isn't bad for a Monday.  Since I've taken on my new position, I don't dread Mondays with the same furious fervor as I once did.  In fact, I've experienced far fewer of what I call "Double-dip" and "Triple-dip" Mondays ("Monday" squared and cubed, respectively), both of which used to be the rule rather than the exception.  It definitely pays to love what you do...  It's not that I didn't love or excel at my previous position, but my new job is such a perfect fit for me that it doesn't even seem like work most of the time.

To provide an example of the monumental momentum of the semester as well as the benefits of having a great job, let's evaluate some of my duties in the coming weeks/months.  I'm currently preparing for 2 back-to-back conferences at the end of September and beginning of October.  The first, Work Colleges Consortium, conference is in Illinois, and I'll be helping our student participants plan a presentation on Berea College's sustainability efforts. 

The second conference focuses on sustainabilty in higher education, and I'll be presenting on not only the College's sustainability initiatives but also those of the broader community, many of which I'm also involved in.  Berea is way cool and progressive for a small town in Kentucky, and I get paid to tell people about it.  See why I love my job?!  The added perk for this particular conference is that I recently have reconnected with my long-lost friend Brian Love (yes, through the magic of MySpace) and will get to see him for the first time in over 12 years.

The middle of October is filled with the usual itinerary of meetings, tours, events related to ... sustainability at Berea College, of course.  Then I have 2 more back-to-back conferences at the end of October and beginning of November with a talk on "Faith and Ecology" on campus in between.  The first conference is in Hilton Head (woo-hoo!), where I'll be presenting on BC's efforts to integrate College-produced meat and produce (and other local food products) into its dining facilities.  I'm a little unclear about my role in the conference in Louisville at the beginning of November, but I think it's a safe guess that it will include something about... sustainability at Berea College.  Plus, I'll likely get to see one of my dearest friends Courtney while I'm in L'ville (plus she's graciously going to house me and transport me to the airport for my trip to Arizona).

To add to the list of travel adventures above, there's also a chance that I may be the Berea reprentative at some upcoming alumni chapter meetings in some cool places I've always wanted to go, such as Southern California and Boone, North Carolina.  The only concern that I have and that I hope to address is how to off-set my carbon consumption with so much fossil-fueled transportation hither and yon.  I'm learning more about this process because I think it's important not to compromise my overall commitment to sustainability (personally and professionally) for the sake of telling people how sustainable we are.  So thar!

[Backposted from MySpace 9/18/06]

Head Cold--Blah!

Current mood: groggy

It figures... I get a sore throat and runny nose when I finally managed to schedule a visit to UK's anthropology program after years of procrastination.  My sole comfort at the moment is a bowl of Wanpen's excellent tom yum tofu (Thai hot&sour soup) and inspirational diva India.Arie.  I'm also looking forward to spending the night with ma cousine in Lex and having lunch with her between my busy day of meetings with profs and students tomorrow.  I'm also excited about visiting a class on gender and anthropology tomorrow evening. 

It's actually a challenging time for me to get away from work, in the midst of planning for 2 back-to-back conferences at the end of Sept. and beginning of Oct., but I figured it would be easier to connect with folks in the program earlier in the semester rather than later.  In general, my days have been a whirlwind of meetings and getting my new students acclimated since school started a couple of weeks ago.  I keep reminding myself that everything will get done, no matter how much (or how little--ha!) I worry.  And all this isn't counting general personal turmoil, which I don't even want to go into...

Well, it's time to grab a refill of tom yum.  It's already making my ears pop and soothing my throat.  Tom yummmmm...

[Backposted from MySpace 9/13/06]

BLAHG

Current mood: okay

I've avoided engaging in the blog phenomenon for a while for various reasons. One is a matter of time—having little spare time and not wanting to wile it away in cyberspace. Another is a matter of privacy—most people think I'm hard to get to know, which is true because I don't readily trust anyone in general, much less with my most intimate thoughts and feelings (not to mention the fact that online confessions of even the most innocuous sort could also easily be misused by loved ones, strangers, or authorities). Practicality is another issue since I just re-established a regular journaling habit again last year (a New Year's resolution that I'm proud to actually have kept up with), and I don't want to lose my momentum of physically writing in a journal. Then there's intention and prioritization: who am I journaling for, myself or others, and if it's both, when and what is most appropriate for which audience?

Yeah yeah yeah, blah blah blah… Which is why I've entitled this, my first ever (in a series of who knows how many), "blahg." Ultimately I think this is a pretty self-indulgent and somewhat mundane activity that may or may not be useful to myself or others—thus the triple entendre of "blahg" (blabber) "blahg" (blah) "blahg" (blog). The funny thing is that, if I do continue to blahg on a semi-regular basis, this might be the most accessible route for even those closest to me to understand/get to know me on a deeper level. Perhaps there's something to be said for the insulation and pseudo-anonymity that cyberspace provides—I have no trouble being honest but being vulnerable… well, my vulnerability might actually be a greater risk for you than me.
PostScript: Obviously, I'm still blogging and feeling okay about it (thus the new Blogger account). I'm honored that my online pontifications have resulted in my recent invitation to become an official Ornery Woman (look for my recent ornery blahg to be re-posted here soon).

[Backposted from Myspace 9/9/06]