tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52507513594757368102012-02-16T14:03:45.499-05:00Current Barnard College student Jordan A. presents her personal creativity blog. As a writer, blogger, artist, knitter, and all-over curious person, she has a lot on her mind.Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.comBlogger4601100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-24644745725094616242012-02-14T13:42:00.000-05:002012-02-14T13:42:53.814-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Happy Valentine's Day! Take today to love, thank, and give back to yourself and all the people who've supported you along the way. Here's what I'll be doing:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">- Posting a silly Facebook status about love</div><div style="text-align: center;">- Drinking tea</div><div style="text-align: center;">- Taking a really intense break</div><div style="text-align: center;">- Meditating</div><div style="text-align: center;">- Contacting several of my close friends and saying "You Rock!" (un-ironically)</div><div style="text-align: center;">- Eating chocolate (courtesy of my father)</div><div style="text-align: center;">- Reading some inspirational poetry from Pablo Neruda and some life advice from Anne Lamott</div><div style="text-align: center;">- Going to Well Woman Game Night!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">What about you?</div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-2464474572509461624?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-87026824002157877952012-02-09T11:00:00.000-05:002012-02-09T11:00:57.399-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Though it may be a little gratuitous, with the recent passing of my esteemed mentor and teacher, Jessica Goldstein, I have been thinking a lot about high school and some of those lost memories. So, here's a short introspective.<br /><br />High school sometimes seems like a blur - ugly smells from the cafeteria, consistently awkward schedule changes, and the occasional detention with Ms. Lee (which didn't really seem like a punishment). I remember that many classes made me scream; even if I was with friends, even if I liked the teacher, even if I thought the material was easy. Theater class, however, was not like that. I never dreaded going into that strange octagonal room that Goldstein fondly named her "bat cave." It had a special brand of crazy that I knew how to handle.<br /><br />I was a quiet girl who didn't speak up in French class and who wore baggy black clothing outside of theater class. There I was loud. In charge. Encouraged to take risks, even if that meant doing something as wacky as putting a plastic chicken on my head and running about as a spirit from the dead. For all the years that I did high school theater, Goldstein was the woman who gave us a rueful "you kids" smile and let us press on.<br /><br />A lot of us flocked to theater as an elective that was easy or we knew how to do; there was the standard motley crew of acting kids and techies, overconfident jocks, and nerdy people who needed another class to add on. Some of us wrote papers for the International Baccalaureate and some of us were goofballs that never did the reading. Sometimes the same kid did both. But as much as we would skip class or fight with the teacher, when a sub came in, we were all on the same side. We knew that they had no power over us - and we had a mighty loyalty to Goldstein. Which is not to say that she didn't get played sometimes, but there was definitely an air of respect for her that was not otherwise present. Some of us, I among them, adored her to the fighting end even when she got on our nerves with inconsistencies.<br /><br />She refused to conform with school policies that would stifle us and administration that would snark at us for being unchaperoned. She let us have run of the theater with our creative expression, let us handle the backstage, taught us to value or waste our time according to our own goals. While these privileges were used and abused, they were always there, a show of measurable respect and honor that she had for us as young adults just as we had respect for her as a wacky adult that gave us more of herself than I ever imagined.<br /><br />I honestly thought that Goldstein would live forever.<br /><br />She graduated with my class of 2009, moving back to NY during that summer. While there were cries of "thank God!" and the theater got on a more traditional 2-plays-a-year track, I was glad not to have to be a part of Interlake theater without Goldstein. I can't imagine it would have been much fun. In my freshman year of college, Goldstein sat with me on the Columbia steps and told me how to love the city was to get away from it once in a while and that I could visit her when I needed that break. Now I'll never get the chance.<br /><br />I know it seems small, to love a high school teacher. After all, aren't we individuals and shouldn't we leave the past to the past? But Goldstein was more than just a teacher for me. I attribute so much of my ability to stand up for myself and to voice my opinions to her guidance. She encouraged me to write, to speak, and most importantly to not be afraid. She herself was never afraid to be silly, to feel her emotions, and to bring her full self into our lives. I will never forget it.<br /><br />Interlake theater kids and anyone else who wants to share a memory of Goldstein, please send me a message or comment here. I want to cultivate the memories that we have of her in a safe place.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-8702682400215787795?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-58337476055375412752012-02-08T00:00:00.000-05:002012-02-08T00:00:04.159-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;"><i>"We are not idealized wild things. We are imperfect mortal beings, aware of that mortality even as we push it away, failed by our very complication, so wired that when we mourn our losses we also mourn, for better or for worse, ourselves. As we were. As we are no longer. As we will one day not be at all.” ― Joan Didion, </i>The Year of Magical Thinking</div><br />This quote was with me all day yesterday, after I learned that my acting teacher in high school, Jessica Goldstein had passed away from brain cancer early that morning. She had been a great friend and mentor to me - one of those teachers that you talk about in your memoirs as someone who touched your life and made you really believe in yourself. One of those mythical people who, while they were all-too-human, still came through for you in every possible way and encouraged you to be the best person you could be.<br /><br />Many of my high school memories are peppered with memories of Goldstein. I remember her in her amazing laugh. I remember her telling us stories about Nepal and Russia and New York - places we suburban kids could only dream were much better than the city we'd grown up in. She was accomplished in so many ways, and yet she never condescended to us. She treated us like mini-adults and gave us much more sway than many of our other teachers. She fought for us, especially when we wanted to do something radical.<br /><br />She allowed me to put on one of my most glowing accomplishments: a stage-adapted version of <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2009/03/speak-in-pictures.html">Speak</a>, a novel by Laurie Halse Anderson about rape and its affect on a high school girl's psyche. She pushed me to be courageous, to press hard, and to speak with my loudest and clearest voice.<br /><br />I will miss her dearly.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Itf0_OYg7PQ/R3im5gsHZ8I/AAAAAAAAACQ/lXJwCRl6jQ8/s512/dramapage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Itf0_OYg7PQ/R3im5gsHZ8I/AAAAAAAAACQ/lXJwCRl6jQ8/s320/dramapage.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">&nbsp;<i>Lovely Goldstein, smiling amidst all our crazy high school antics.</i></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5833747605537541275?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-52927653579435040192012-02-03T10:25:00.000-05:002012-02-03T10:25:57.713-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Here are just some examples of the amazing CultureSHOCK performers and (as promised) some of my favorite Asian Americans on Youtube. Enjoy!<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://1.gvt0.com/vi/Z5_feKLhczE/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z5_feKLhczE&amp;fs=1&amp;source=uds"><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF"><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z5_feKLhczE&amp;fs=1&amp;source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Hari Kondabolu</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://3.gvt0.com/vi/uNU_Abkqryc/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/uNU_Abkqryc&amp;fs=1&amp;source=uds"><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF"><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/uNU_Abkqryc&amp;fs=1&amp;source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Kelly Tsai</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="225" mozallowfullscreen="" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/15813045?title=0&amp;byline=0&amp;portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="400"></iframe><br><a href="http://vimeo.com/15813045">&quot;Unification&quot; (from UNIFICATION 2009)</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user4885916">BROWNSTAR</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><i></i><br></div></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/02/caught-my-eye-cultureshock-performers.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5292765357943504019?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-90325491002544425952012-02-02T11:37:00.000-05:002012-02-02T11:37:24.945-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2V1dtnysrmA/Tyq6ef7CgDI/AAAAAAAABRA/QEqBM1equGI/s1600/IMG_20110509_171853.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2V1dtnysrmA/Tyq6ef7CgDI/AAAAAAAABRA/QEqBM1equGI/s320/IMG_20110509_171853.jpg" width="320"></a></div><br>My English advisor often tells me that you&#39;re only going to learn what you teach yourself - formalized lesson plans and reading lists are great and all, but if you&#39;re not engaging with the material on your own, it won&#39;t really stick. And I think that&#39;s very important in relation to the articles I&#39;ve written this week on <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/asian%20americans">Asian Americans</a>; that material rarely gets taught in the classroom, but is more often something that we have to approach on our own. So, today I want to generalize the process of learning something new. Whether that&#39;s learning about the social history of Asian Americans in the US or learning how to <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/how-roller-derby-challenges-stereotypes.html">roller skate</a> or learning a new language, here are 7 tips to getting yourself on the road to learn.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/02/teach-yourself-7-lessons-in-self.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-9032549100254442595?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-75390089986959187122012-02-01T10:27:00.001-05:002012-02-01T10:27:38.978-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-L6otVhnMMv4/TylZvAAJXHI/AAAAAAAABQ4/aMIIdcVGQGk/s1600/sheemusbed.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-L6otVhnMMv4/TylZvAAJXHI/AAAAAAAABQ4/aMIIdcVGQGk/s320/sheemusbed.JPG" width="240"></a></div><br><i>This is part three in a series of posts on Asian Americans, inspired by and in concert with a charity event being put on by the Columbia student group, <a href="http://www.aaacolumbia.org/">Asian American Alliance</a>. Click here to read the first and second posts in the series: <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/who-is-asian-american.html">&quot;Who is an Asian American?&quot;</a> and <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/will-all-asian-americans-please-stand.html">&quot;&#39;Will All The Asian Americans Please Stand Up?&#39;: The Politics of Self-Identification&quot;</a> and make sure to join in the conversation!</i><br><br>So, we&#39;ve found our Asian Americans. They are on board to identify as people that are politically and culturally distinct, but who want to organize and represent themselves as a group. Where do we go from here?<br><br>Take a moment, first, to envision who you view as an &quot;Asian American&quot; based on just the term alone. What does this person look and sound like? Where are they located? What type of job are they doing?<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/02/what-type-of-asian-are-you-and-other.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-7539008998695918712?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-37280142182480191912012-01-31T00:00:00.000-05:002012-01-31T00:00:04.754-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LT2YbNaS1lk/Tydu6InWY1I/AAAAAAAABQw/KhVwxwrwBXI/s1600/bashundaraskylight.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LT2YbNaS1lk/Tydu6InWY1I/AAAAAAAABQw/KhVwxwrwBXI/s320/bashundaraskylight.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br /><i>This is part two in a series of posts on Asian Americans, inspired by and in concert with <a href="http://www.facebook.com/events/167067486732323/">CultureSHOCK</a>, a charity event being put on by the Columbia student group, <a href="http://www.aaacolumbia.org/">Asian American Alliance</a>. Click here to read the first post in the series: <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/who-is-asian-american.html">"Who is an Asian American?"</a> and make sure to join in the conversation!</i><br /><br />Yesterday, I mentioned the idea of self-identification for Asian Americans - a topic that can be the fly in the butter for many individuals, but also for many groups trying to organize around this identity pool. Why is it such a challenge? Let me give a personal example.<br /><br />In the United States, I am highlighted by my difference. I am a <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/south%20asian">Bengali woman</a> (or, more often, the generic "Indian" woman). But when I interact with my family in Bangladesh or otherwise abroad, I am categorized as an American. But what <i>is</i> an American? In the US, non-white peoples are already coded as "less American" or otherwise foreign, so it can feel very strange to have to pick ethnicity or nationality as one's primary identity. <br /><br />As Asian Americans, are we more of one than the other? Do we identify most with our ethnic group, with our nationality, with our politics, or with something else entirely? We carry within us unique experiences that can relate to any one of those questions. The task is to integrate them and find where they intersect as we conceive of ourselves as whole people.<br /><br />Tomorrow: representation of these complicated Asian American folk.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3728014218248019191?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-14954054217617592602012-01-30T00:31:00.000-05:002012-01-30T00:31:29.043-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DGIpJMvadSw/TyYq3RH9pnI/AAAAAAAABMQ/ZoTdZrINEPo/s1600/hands.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DGIpJMvadSw/TyYq3RH9pnI/AAAAAAAABMQ/ZoTdZrINEPo/s320/hands.JPG" width="320"></a></div><br>This weekend, <a href="http://www.aaacolumbia.org/">Asian American Alliance</a> (a campus group that I am a part of) is putting on their annual charity culture show, called <a href="http://www.facebook.com/events/167067486732323/">CultureSHOCK</a>. It&#39;s going to be an electrifying event with a great lineup including Hari Kondabolu, Kelly Tsai, Brown Star, and many other Asian American performers and designers as part of our fashion show. All the proceeds will go to supporting <a href="http://caaav.org/about-us">CAAAV</a>, the Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence. As with all of our work, we&#39;ll be working to highlight the broad variety of cultures and politics that exist in the Asian American community. Simple, you say? I think not.<br><br>Throughout the planning of this event, we&#39;ve tried to encompass as much material as is possible to put into one show about Asian Americans - and it raises a lot of intense questions. Who gets to perform? What type of representation do we want to lay out there? How political do we get and how do we get that political message through the jovial/de-politicized atmosphere of a cultural showcase? And then there&#39;s the nagging question that undergirds our club&#39;s entire existence. The one that the Facebook event for CultureSHOCK puts with a little more vulgarity than I will in this post: &quot;what the f*** is an Asian American?&quot;<br><br>While the show will give you some ideas in its jampacked all-star lineup, I want to put down some answers this week in plain text form. Let&#39;s begin:<br><br><i>Who is an Asian American? </i><br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/who-is-asian-american.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1495405421761759260?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-56333687558998760852012-01-28T13:23:00.002-05:002012-01-28T13:23:52.890-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Virginia Woolf's New Year's resolutions, January 2, 1931 via Lauren Elkin:<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Here are my resolutions for the next 3 months; the next lap of the year.<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; To have none. Not to be tied.<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; To be free &amp; kindly with myself, not goading it to parties: to sit rather privately reading in the studio.<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; To make a good job of The Waves.<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; To stop irritation by the assurance that nothing is worth irritation [referring to Nelly].<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Sometimes to read, sometimes not to read.<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; To go out yes—but stay at home in spite of being asked.<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; As for clothes, to buy good ones.<br /><br />(thanks <a href="http://www.themigrantbookclub.com/2012/01/virginia-woolfs-new-years-resolutions.html">The Migrant Book Club</a>!)</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5633368755899876085?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-46018473141575806762012-01-27T10:46:00.000-05:002012-01-27T10:46:57.729-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ku8JdXNnDTY/SX5fpZ55iDI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/c19qq-21SeE/s1600/7jan26.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ku8JdXNnDTY/SX5fpZ55iDI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/c19qq-21SeE/s320/7jan26.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />At the beginning of every new semester, my shelves are graced with the delicate smells of the paper factory and the used bookstore. Thick textbooks and reprints of novels I haven't read come in waves through our mail system, and even two weeks in I am still receiving packages loaded down with titles like <i>And Introduction to Behavioral Endocrinology</i> and <i>Songs in Praise of Lord Krishna. </i>I'll hoist my bag on home and dump them all on my bed, in awe that by the end of three months, all (or at least most) of these <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/book%20review">books</a> will have been read and may possibly have to be shipped off to another destination.<br /><i> </i><br />As you might imagine, it can get kind of overwhelming.<br /><br />So, today I will indulge my instinct to run away from all that is new to the comfort and safety of my favorite "old" books, which in themselves are not aged, but I came across them much earlier in my life and am eager to reread them. Remember that little girl version of me that wanted to <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/gentle-goals-soft-manifestations-or-how.html">read all the books in the world</a>? She read these books and deemed them so important that she bought them for keeps and now carts most of them around whenever she moves to any new destination like, oh say, to New York City. Here's the short list:<br /><br /><i>The Selected Odes of Pablo Neruda</i> - Pablo Neruda<br /><i>Bird by Bird </i>- Anne Lamott<br /><i>The Pocket Muse - </i>Monica Wood<br /><i>Their Eyes Were Watching God - </i>Zora Neale Hurston <br /><i>The Abhorsen Trilogy</i> - Garth Nix<br /><i>The Namesake - </i>Jhumpa Lahiri<br /><br />What are your old favorites? Tell them to me in the comments!<br /><br /><i>Also, if you are clamoring for something new to read, I'm always posting up interesting articles and books over at my <a href="http://thecowation.tumblr.com/">Tumblr page</a>.</i> </div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-4601847314157580676?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-4236112942476538412012-01-26T00:27:00.000-05:002012-01-26T00:27:03.812-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ku8JdXNnDTY/SlLxuxkzOwI/AAAAAAAAAk4/xzPSSEV7G-o/s400/45july6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ku8JdXNnDTY/SlLxuxkzOwI/AAAAAAAAAk4/xzPSSEV7G-o/s320/45july6.JPG" width="240"></a></div><br>I was talking with one of my friends from high school recently and, as we nearly always do, started talking about parks.<br><br>We hung out a lot late at night, driving around our suburb till my gas tank got down low (and, being <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/seattle">Seattlites</a> of a kind, we lamented the carbon emissions) and then we would stop at a park. Sitting in the car, listening to whatever music was available, we planned our escape mission. We would both go to <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/barnard">college</a> on the east coast, have fabulous adventures, save the world; we would become non-profit managers and <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/writing">write</a> books and lead colorful lives in all the stereotypically naive ways that teens with ambition look at the future. We thought &quot;if we just get out of here, then we can do whatever we want.&quot;<br><br>It was only partly true.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/activist-artist-academic-on-integrating.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-423611294247653841?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-37545266052841955142012-01-24T00:00:00.003-05:002012-01-24T00:06:16.048-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bUsiaEqa87c/Tx46AhgbK1I/AAAAAAAABMI/FQXzYn4Yp4s/s1600/IMG_0707.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bUsiaEqa87c/Tx46AhgbK1I/AAAAAAAABMI/FQXzYn4Yp4s/s320/IMG_0707.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br />Today, I have the great pleasure to be featured on <a href="http://thinksimplenow.com/">ThinkSimpleNow</a>, a website that I have repeatedly recommended during the course of writing this blog. Check out my post on <a href="http://thinksimplenow.com/clarity/rituals/">The Power of Rituals</a> over at their website and, if you're interested in taking a few other leaves from my book, check out this collection of my top advice articles:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/gentle-goals-soft-manifestations-or-how.html">Gentle Goals and Soft Manifestations</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/change-and-destination.html">Change and the Destination</a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/pale-thin-light-looking-forward-after.html"></a><a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/on-gratitude.html">4 Ways to Bring Gratitude Into Your Life</a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/03/living-in-moment.html">Living in the Moment</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-to-live-your-life-like-its-one-big.html">How to Live Your Life Like It's One Big Experiment</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/3-ways-to-follow-your-dreams-even-tiny.html">3 Ways to Follow Your Dreams (Even the Tiny Ones!)</a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/12-true-things.html">12 True Things </a></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3754526605284195514?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-35453507788729498922012-01-23T00:00:00.000-05:002012-01-23T00:00:07.744-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.toshireagon.com/graphics/toshi-byBernieDeChant_5769.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://www.toshireagon.com/graphics/toshi-byBernieDeChant_5769.jpg" width="320"></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">(Photo credit: <a href="http://www.berniedechant.com/">Bernie DeChant</a> via <a href="http://www.toshireagon.com/about.shtml">ToshiReagon.com</a>)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div>There were so many amazing discussions and questions that were brought up at the <a href="http://womenspheresummits.com/">Womensphere conference</a> last week (some of which I encapsulated in <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/inspiration-from-womensphere.html">quote form</a> last Saturday), but I want to share today one of the earliest and most impacting images I took away from the conference: 200+ women in business clothes standing up and singing together at the prompting of <a href="http://www.toshireagon.com/">Toshi Reagon</a>.<br><br>After the opening remarks by the conference organizer, Analisa Balares, Toshi was the first guest she brought out. As you can imagine at 9am in the morning, most of us were still groggily saying our hellos to our tablemates and talking about traffic. Little did we know about our upcoming musical debut. <br><br>The room stood slowly. There were some early adopters who had bounced up out of their seats, clapping and smiling, while there were those who remained seated for the entire time. We all still sung in somewhat timid voices, not ready to speak above the rest, not at this early juncture where we had all just come together.<br><br>I won&#39;t blame this timidity entirely on internalized sexism or the incongruity it held with the idea of &quot;professionalism&quot; purported by these high academic conferences. No, I believe that the restraint employed by many of the women (myself included) was simply due to the fear of stepping into a different form of leadership.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/image-from-womensphere-emerging-leaders.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3545350778872949892?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-64363467361520121192012-01-21T10:54:00.000-05:002012-01-21T10:54:31.331-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">As I mentioned on the past two posts, I attended the <a href="http://womenspheresummits.com/">Womensphere Emerging Leaders Summit</a> this week, whose theme was Creating the Future. I left the conference feeling truly honored to have listened to these amazing women speakers who are all doing great work in their fields. Here are a few of the many inspiring quotes that I took down throughout the the first day of the conference (click on any of their names for more information about the women behind the words):<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">"One of your biggest weapons is the sound of your voice." - <a href="http://www.toshireagon.com/">Toshi Reagon</a><br /><br />"A crisis is a terrible thing to waste." - <a href="http://www.worldpolicy.org/michele-wucker">Michele Wucker</a><br /><br />"There is no substitute for shared experiences." - <a href="http://www.womensphereglobalsummit.com/angela-leaney/">Angela Leaney</a><br /><br />"Leadership is not a part-time job." - <a href="http://www.womensphereglobalsummit.com/angela-leaney/">Angela Leaney</a><br /><br />"It's important to be comfortable with discomfort." - <a href="http://www.visionspring.org/about/women-leaders.php?id=8">Lisa Shalett</a><br /><br />"You have all this runway in front of you. What are you going to do with it?" - <a href="http://www.womensphereglobalsummit.com/susan-tardanico/">Susan Tardanico</a><br /><br />"I got put on this earth as a woman. I don't want to be a man. I want to be what I was put on this earth to be." - <a href="http://www.womensphereglobalsummit.com/madeline-nelson/">Madeline Nelson</a><br /><br />"The legacy you live is the legacy you leave." - <a href="http://people.forbes.com/profile/virginia-p-ruesterholz/84101">Virginia Ruesterholz</a><br /><br />"Sometimes when people say 'no' really loudly, it tells you that you that it's a really good idea." - <a href="http://lightwave.ee.columbia.edu/bergman/">Keren Bergman</a><br /><br />"You only really need to be 85% right." - <a href="http://lightwave.ee.columbia.edu/bergman/">Keren Bergman</a><br /><br />"If you're feeling helpless, help someone." - <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/morley_sings_women_of_hope.html">Morley</a><br /><br />"Being fearless is not an absence of fear." - <a href="http://www.thefearlessfactor.com/books/">Jacqueline Wales</a></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-6436346736152012119?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-21319102233832245142012-01-20T00:00:00.000-05:002012-01-20T00:00:05.104-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="post-body entry-content"><i><b>This Thursday and Friday, I have the great privilege to be attending the <a href="http://womenspheresummits.com/">Womensphere Emerging Leaders Summit</a> (of which I'll be writing a solid retrospective next week), so rather than suspend posting, I'll be putting up two of my favorite posts from the past about women, leadership, and busting stereotypes. Enjoy!</b></i><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yKyP33YXsD8/ThqY_iz4u3I/AAAAAAAABA0/7YzDwR-zZf4/s1600/rat-city-shorts.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yKyP33YXsD8/ThqY_iz4u3I/AAAAAAAABA0/7YzDwR-zZf4/s400/rat-city-shorts.JPG" width="268" /></a></div><br />This weekend, I had the wonderful opportunity to attend the <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/roller%20derby">roller derby</a> championship bout of the <a href="http://ratcityrollergirls.com/">Rat City Roller Girls</a> in Seattle. It was at the Key Arena, which is a <i>huge</i> venue, and there were a ton of people who came to watch. It was a phenomenal bout with <a href="http://ratcityrollergirls.com/teams/grave-danger/">Grave Danger</a> finally taking home the championship title.<br /><br />For those who are unaware of this particular sport, roller derby is a sport played by <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/women">women</a> on roller skates who basically beat each other up – the main gist is that there is one jammer from each team who can score points by lapping all the other players and there are blockers who want to prevent the opposing team from scoring a point. Roller derby, like soccer, is extremely nuanced. There is a lot of skill and strategy involved, not only because you’re on skates, but also because you have to know when and how to position blockers so that you can get your jammer through. Watching the teams do it for the first time may seem like chaos, but once you realize all the different rules and strategies going on, it’s really satisfying. Oh, and did I mention the violence?<br /><br />Anyway, as I was cheering myself hoarse and giggling at all the pun-filled derby names, I started thinking a lot about how roller derby is really an interesting sport. It’s not mainstream, it’s not money-making, and it’s not male-driven, which are three things that sports fans often opine as the reason that we like sports. Roller derby instead takes a lot of stuff that we assume about sports and turns them on their head. Here are a few that I’ve noticed:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=5250751359475736810&amp;postID=2131910223383224514" name="more"></a><b>1. It’s all ladies.</b> In a country where women sports stars are often marketed for their beauty in order to drive ticket sales, roller derby prides itself on being a haven for women who are strong and fiercely competitive. The audience of this bout seemed pretty evenly split with male/female spectators, so that busts the stereotype that only women want to watch sports with women in them as well.<br /><br /><b>2. There’s no need for an athletic build.</b> Athletes, women and men alike, often have to be a certain body type in order to enter into certain sports – in roller derby, there is a wide array of body shapes and sizes, and it instead depends on how well you can maneuver on wheels. Don’t get me wrong: these ladies are athletes. I cannot tell you how many muscles it takes to man those skates, but there is no necessitated body type for one to become a roller derby star.<br /><br /><b>3. Sexuality, vulgarity, and intelligence are prized.</b> You only have to look at the names of some of their derby names to know that derby girls are nerds. And sexy ladies. And badasses, all rolled into one. In mainstream sports, when tennis players like the Williams sisters want to flaunt their sexuality, they are shamed – in roller derby, they are beloved. And there are no “dumb jocks” on these teams; all of these women can show off their wit just as they can show off their skills.<br /><br /><b>4. Violence and strength.</b> No one can tell me that these ladies are pushovers. Women who are strong often are pegged as having masculine traits, but I believe that roller derby challenges the assumption that strength is an inherently masculine property.<br /><br />I encourage you to take in a local roller derby bout whenever you have the chance – I myself am working on trying to become a roller girl sometime in the future. See you out on the track!<br /><br /><i>Read more of my opinions on <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/roller%20derby">women</a> and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/feminism">feminism</a>, as well as <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2010/10/nerd-girl-inc-my-favorite-sport.html">how I got into roller derby</a>.</i> </div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-2131910223383224514?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-33414633275689656472012-01-19T00:00:00.001-05:002012-01-19T00:00:00.679-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b><i>This Thursday and Friday, I have the great privilege to be attending the <a href="http://womenspheresummits.com/">Womensphere Emerging Leaders Summit</a> (of which I'll be writing a solid retrospective next week), so rather than suspend posting, I'll be putting up two of my favorite posts from the past about women, leadership, and busting stereotypes. Enjoy!</i></b><br /><br />Last Friday, I spent several hours teaching 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade girls about <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/body%20image">body image</a> in downtown Manhattan at Girls Prep Charter School. So this week I am weighing in on single sex education.<br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=5250751359475736810&amp;postID=3341463327568965647" name="more"></a><br />Going to Girls Prep, and talking to their amazing health teacher Lo (who is also a former Well Woman and hosts a foodie blog: <a href="http://amateurchefofbrooklyn.blogspot.com/">The Amateur Chef of Brooklyn</a>) has gotten me thinking about single sex education in a new way. <br /><br />Previously, I never thought much of separate education for girls at such a young age. Sounds strange, doesn't it? I go to an <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/barnard">all women's college</a>, but I didn't give much thought to the idea for younger children. And, I must admit, I was converted pretty easily to the idea that Girls Prep was getting these girls ready to go into the world as <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/women">women</a>: they had strong personalities, were encouraged to pursue active and diverse activities, and got the opportunity to discuss issues in class that I did not confront until middle school.<br /><br />As with all things, however, there are more complications to this story than allowing girls to flourish in an environment designed for their benefit. After speaking with Lo about the background of her program and single sex education itself, about a million questions formed in my head for every topic we discussed.<br /><br />For instance, when is single sex education appropriate and when is it another challenge? While it appears to be useful in the elementary school or college context, should middle schools and high schools be single sex? How do you make sure you're not replicating the same hierarchies and stereotypes in an all-female school that you would see in a co-ed one? How do you manage or talk about the other influences that the children are getting from the outside world (yes, unfortunately, school is not the only place these girls are getting messages from)?<br /><br />Overall, I believe that my experience at Girl's Prep showed me that women and girls really <i>are</i> being heavily influenced from a young age about their appropriate role. In a co-ed classroom, which I have experienced all my life (both as a workshop teacher and a student), girls are socialized to be demure and are complimented about their bodies/looks rather more often than their skills - that's the domain of boys' compliments. Single sex education definitely makes up for the treatment differential that I've seen in those classrooms because the teachers are really focused on the girls. The girls themselves also reciprocate by showing their true colors: they are sporty, loud, engaged, smart, silly, shy, loving, emotional, stoic, bossy, and so much more. But, most importantly, they are <b>not just one thing</b>. Unfortunately, they are often reduced to fitting one mold in co-ed classrooms.<br /><br />But I also believe that it can't be done without some extreme commitment and serious planning. So, while Lo definitely gives her 100% to these girls, the same cannot be said for every all-girls school teacher in the country.<br /><br />What do you think about single sex education? Where do you think the pitfalls are? The successes? Let me know!<br /><br /><i>You may also be interested in my opinion pieces <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/03/discrimination-and-mixed-metaphors.html">Discrimination and Mixed Metaphors</a> and my writings on <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/feminism">feminist topics</a>.</i></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3341463327568965647?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-71153811345880823182012-01-17T00:00:00.001-05:002012-01-17T00:00:05.053-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IhR6Zn1sPKU/TxT4WCU8diI/AAAAAAAABL4/MAzOSadWj3o/s1600/SDC12591.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IhR6Zn1sPKU/TxT4WCU8diI/AAAAAAAABL4/MAzOSadWj3o/s320/SDC12591.JPG" width="240"></a></div><br>As <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/immigrant-mourning.html">I shared last week</a>, there was a recent death in my family. As a result, I&#39;ve been struggling to process the event while still keeping myself on a regular schedule, spending time with people as they return to campus, and getting ready for the new classes that started today. In some ways, the regularity and the busy school atmosphere are helping me to take my mind off of the loss, but it&#39;s definitely going to take some time to come to terms with. The thought regularly crosses my mind that this is not the worst of it - the hardest part will be returning to Bangladesh and knowing that that person will no longer be there.<br><br>But, while I find it very important to keep that in mind, I believe that its not the sole thought that should take over my spirit throughout these tough times. As a result, I have been thinking of ways that I hope to buoy myself up and work forward from this loss, and I hope to share them with you. Loss can appear in many forms other than death - small and large, there are many life events that can feel as if they will shatter our spirits and hold us hostage. All we can do in those times is to turn inward and keep our attention on the light that comes from within us, even when it feels as if that light has only a weak glow to offer.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/pale-thin-light-looking-forward-after.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-7115381134588082318?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-34580446119612850732012-01-16T00:00:00.001-05:002012-01-16T00:04:41.233-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Today? A round-up of wisdom, some clichéd and others not, that bears repeating.*<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://api.ning.com/files/CCRjzAqgIqiQOSUisX4ok5I-K5awvtvrYgIXriTe09b5SBf1XEoJZQhJsgRsDeR0VsQkWii8SVa21cYeOk9aqgeJSypuMI8U/bestthingsinlife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://api.ning.com/files/CCRjzAqgIqiQOSUisX4ok5I-K5awvtvrYgIXriTe09b5SBf1XEoJZQhJsgRsDeR0VsQkWii8SVa21cYeOk9aqgeJSypuMI8U/bestthingsinlife.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">(via <a href="http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/30-pieces-of-inspiring-funny">My Modern Met</a>)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><b>The world will not end should you decide <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/12/introspective-on-taking-breaks.html">not to engage with it.</a></b><br /><br />"Be different from one another, and love our differences with big, open hearts." - <i>Sally McGraw from <a href="http://www.alreadypretty.com/">Already Pretty</a></i><br /><br /><b>The memories you make are all you get to keep.</b><br /><br />"Most of us have an invisible inner terrible someone who says all sorts of nutty stuff that has no basis in truth." - <i>Sugar via <a href="http://therumpus.net/2011/12/dear-sugar-the-rumpus-advice-column-92-your-invisible-inner-terrible-someone/">The Rumpus</a></i><br /><br /><b>Loving yourself is not an option - rather, it is the denial of an essential truth.</b><br /><br />"Saying <i>I have to</i> suggests that we do not have a choice, and that we are not in control of our lives... For starters, you don’t have to do anything! You know that. The world will not come to an end if you don’t do something (in most cases)." - <i>Vanessa Paxton via <a href="http://thinksimplenow.com/happiness/the-power-of-language/">ThinkSimpleNow</a></i><br /><br /><b>Take care of your emotions as if they were a bath: too hot and they burn you, too cold and they make you shiver. Let them drain out when it's time and build up when you need them. Don't leave the water unchanged for too long.</b><br /><br />"You have permission to: not ever feel the need for permission." - Danelle LaPorte on <a href="http://www.daniellelaporte.com/inspiration-spirituality-articles/your-permission-slip-from-the-universe/">White Hot Truth</a><br /><br /><b>Revision to the Golden Rule: Don't treat others the way you want to be treated - ask them how they want to be treated and honor that decision.</b><br /><br />"…What matters is the work: the string of words propelled by God becoming a poem, the weave of colour and graphite scrawled upon a sheet that magnifies His motion. To achieve within the work a perfect balance of faith and execution. From this state of mind becomes a light, life-charged." <i>- Patti Smith via <a href="http://nextness.com.au/creativity/what-matters-is-the-work-25-lessons-for-creatives-in-patti-smith%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%98just-kids-%E2%80%99/">Nextness</a></i><br /><br /><b>Love the challenge. Love <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/change-and-destination.html">the process</a>. Don't settle for less.</b><br /><br />*If you're counting the picture, we have 12 True Things. Good eye!<b> </b>Here's a bonus:<br /><br /><b>You will become <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/gentle-goals-soft-manifestations-or-how.html">what you manifest</a>.</b></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3458044611961285073?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-39536273973999970842012-01-15T13:18:00.000-05:002012-01-15T13:18:07.752-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5xYb11uqdQE/TxMYIcsRC_I/AAAAAAAABLw/sV_J9oV9wsY/s1600/IMG_0685.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5xYb11uqdQE/TxMYIcsRC_I/AAAAAAAABLw/sV_J9oV9wsY/s320/IMG_0685.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>When the food is in the oven, I start taking random pictures.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Here's to a bountiful, relaxing Sunday. </i></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3953627397399997084?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-22597473500959603362012-01-14T00:45:00.001-05:002012-01-14T00:45:37.647-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;">"Learning to love the process."<br />- a letterpress visual art piece by Ian Coyle (see the piece and many others <a href="http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/encouraging-words-for-2012">here</a>)</div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-2259747350095960336?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-15096362989795803232012-01-13T00:01:00.000-05:002012-01-13T00:01:59.161-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">This week, rather than focusing on a specific book, article, movie, or art piece that touched me, I want to give a list of all the things that have gotten me through this week and continue to make me feel strong in a time of great weakness. In different ways, for different reasons, these pieces of media have made me think and brought me some entertainment, laughter, and peace. Hopefully they can give you just as much strength as they have given me.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.themoth.org/">The Moth podcast</a>, particularly the stories by Charlene Strong and Elif Shafak.<br /><br />Mindy Kaling's book <a href="http://theconcernsofmindykaling.com/the-book"><i>Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (and Other Concerns)</i></a> in audiobook form, which she herself reads and is hilarious because of it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.julianbarnes.com/bib/senseofanending.html"><i>The Sense of an Ending</i></a> by Julian Barnes - a book given to me by my father as a New Year's gift.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.corinnebaileyrae.net/">Corinne Bailey Rae</a>'s music.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1509636298979580323?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-19310610969862046752012-01-11T00:32:00.000-05:002012-01-11T00:32:27.393-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dgKrfRuQ5i4/TrPl6OV6viI/AAAAAAAABEI/b7Mku7BKIzg/s1600/SDC12596.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dgKrfRuQ5i4/TrPl6OV6viI/AAAAAAAABEI/b7Mku7BKIzg/s320/SDC12596.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />It is harder to live.<br /><br />You <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-to-live-your-life-like-its-one-big.html">experience</a> too much or not enough. You struggle uphill without a clear plateau in sight. Your priorities shift and what you've been working towards is suddenly invalidated. You stumble. You lose. You become covered in dirt and must wash yourself clean.<br /><br />You listen to sad music when your spirits are up. You do everything incorrectly even when you know what needed to happen. You don't ask questions because it's scary to look vulnerable. You <i>especially</i> don't want to look vulnerable.<br /><br />We are imperfect beings because otherwise we are unable to <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/lessons">learn</a>. We're not meant to know exactly what to do at all times. It's never made more clear than when you look back on the moments of your life and realize that they're an amalgamation of embarrassing, sad, fallible, and occassionally thrilling glimmers that can still produce a cringe or a rueful smile in your everday life. The state of happiness cannot exist without its opposite: we take the bitter with the sweet. Our strength is the product of our struggles.<br /><br />I intend to make this post a hopeful one. Usually I write about my endeavors and <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/ced">artistic works</a> on this day of the week, but I honestly admit to you that I have been "messing up" for the last few weeks on that front. I have been taking care of myself and making art has been put on hold. I have been re-evaluating and turning over in my mind every emotion in the book - even before this period of mourning, the semester had been studded with rough patches I had wanted to sit down and work through for some time. So I have been repeating the words that I started this piece with: it is harder to live. We are only given the burdens we can carry and, ultimately, we emerge as better people because of it. Believe me, I know what it is to be low down in the trenches.<br /><br />For now, my thoughts are shrouded in a layer of "I'm not doing enough/doing it right/doing anything important." I am being a huge worrywort because I have taken this time for myself to rest and heal the raw patches of my heart. But I know that there must be a reason for this struggle, a reason to put these parts of my life on hold for the moment and just to breathe. To recognize the importance of slowing down and recapturing the energy of the universe in my own fragile body. I recommend it to others almost daily - now it's for me to practice what I preach.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1931061096986204675?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-2196703992680092062012-01-10T00:16:00.000-05:002012-01-10T00:16:55.420-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ku8JdXNnDTY/TQhAE3I_xKI/AAAAAAAAA2M/0O480JiFPRQ/s1600/SDC11639.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ku8JdXNnDTY/TQhAE3I_xKI/AAAAAAAAA2M/0O480JiFPRQ/s320/SDC11639.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><i>In light of the recent death of one of my family members, I have been musing on personal faith and its context in my brief life. This faith has sustained me through both tragedies and triumphs in the past and continues to support me each day. I know that many of my readers are not religious, so please do not take this story as an attempt at conversion - it is exactly the opposite. Personal faith must be approached on one's own path, and this is my story of arriving at it.</i><br /><br />I first learned about my religion through the media. Growing up in a secular household, with one parent Christian and the other <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/Muslim">Muslim</a>, I had never really thought about Allah from the perspective of organized religion. He was a being in the abstract sense when I was younger - I have no memories of faith beyond the paper-thin symbolism of winter holidays. I didn't know about Ramadan then.<br /><br />I've written previously about 9/11 and its role in <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/911-growing-up-reactionary-youth.html">making me a reactionary activist</a> to the Islamophobia that followed. But seeing Islam as a personal religion is different than seeing it in the activist light. No, it came to me in another package: <i>The Autobiography of Malcolm X.</i> I read this book at an age that was much too young for its subject matter, though I appreciate that it came into my life at that point (and am intensely curious to see what different impressions I get when I finally read it again). Malcolm X was a convert to the Muslim faith, someone who did not take the teachings for granted and approached them with careful eyes. Though he did not bring Islam to me, the words of his book displayed to me that the religion is loving as it is powerful, and as familiar.<br /><br />At that time in my life, I needed a force like that. I had been bullied in school and was suffering from depression, though at the time the only names I had for it were apathy and loneliness. I chose personal faith over personal destruction, though the idea was still abstract. To this day, it comforts me to know that this choice was the one that kept me stable and allowed me to fully experience the life that I lead now - faith has passed with me through the shocking times and the beautiful ones, and it resides within me to return to lest I forget.<br /><br />I suppose that's why I am returning to it now. The reassurances that my faith provides keep the sadness at bay. There <i>is</i> an end to suffering and there <i>is</i> a better place that we pass into once we are in the care of Allah once more. But more than that, the strength and dignity of our religion keep me working to improve my own circumstances and take stock of the life I am leading: what can I do better to take care of myself and those close to me? What can I do to better the world that we live in, so that we are not waiting in vain to pass into death? Even as I am alone, I gather strength and perspective. We are only given the burdens we can carry, and I will carry on with the number of days, months, and years I have left.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-219670399268009206?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-6688153608793664782012-01-09T01:19:00.000-05:002012-01-09T01:19:36.880-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">How does one feel sadness properly?<br /><br />This week opens for me with a very recent death and a very raw period of mourning. As much as I believe that death is a natural inevitable process, it still shakes you to the core when it comes close. It's almost enough to make me want to write clichéd sentences moralizing about those who have passed on and those who remain here with us. Almost.<br /><br />But more than that, I feel very strongly that I must talk about the experience of being in mourning as an immigrant. I am part of the satellite family that lives several time zones away, and I am apart not only from our larger family, but from my own small family as well. Though it is never easy to drop everything and deal with a family emergency, we don't even have the option to return home. We can only orbit around, waiting for a time to return to them. We grieve alone.<br /><br />I find it odd that this aspect of the immigrant experience is understated. Intellectually, I know that it is overshadowed by the rhetoric of the American dream and the opportunities of entering a new life, forging an individual path, and participating in capitalism, but my heart is focused elsewhere. It shows me the profound loss that is involved in moving halfway across the globe for so-called opportunities. The inevitable missing of births and deaths, the broken families, and the hard edge of being alone - my heart takes in these feelings and tries to blunt them so that I can be sad in a proper manner. So that I don't tie in my individual sadness with the infrastructure that contributes to it. So that I can still feel good about the place that I live in, have been adopted into, even as I yearn to be with my family and take rest.<br /><br />Months back, during Thanksgiving, I wrote <a href="http://therumpus.net/2011/11/dear-sugar-the-rumpus-advice-column-90-94-ways-of-saying-thank-you/?full=yes">a piece on gratitude for Dear Sugar</a> and I talked about returning to Bangladesh for the first time last year. I wrote:<br /><br /><i>"I am grateful for that empty place at the table. I am thankful that sometimes people need not know each other to care for them. We are contributing to the stockpile of love in the universe – whether that’s through writing advice columns or finding gratitude in the hardest moments. What we manifest is who we ultimately become."</i><br /><br />I am caring and I am loving from afar. I cannot reach that empty place at the table, and neither can many of my family members. But it is there.<br /><br />How does one feel sadness properly? I want to address this question in my posts this week. Look out for some more writing on sadness and mourning in the next few days. And thank you, as always, for reading.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-668815360879366478?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-12453188698533990672012-01-08T00:00:00.000-05:002012-01-08T00:00:02.634-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">This week, I want to give a shout-out to <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/">Smitten Kitchen</a>, <a href="http://www.joythebaker.com/">Joy the Baker</a>, and <a href="http://thepioneerwoman.com/">The Pioneer Woman</a> for being amazing cooking blogs that have provided me with recipes to cook with and the inclination to photograph everything (especially when it comes out deliciously). Take a gander at what I've been making since Christmas Eve.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jbKFX067bpM/TwZgukUYWvI/AAAAAAAABKQ/oKcMrY8HMlc/s1600/IMG_0620.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jbKFX067bpM/TwZgukUYWvI/AAAAAAAABKQ/oKcMrY8HMlc/s320/IMG_0620.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br />Here's a list of all the foods I've made/improv'ed in the past few weeks:<br /><div style="text-align: center;">Hummus | Pita | Mushroom artichoke pasta | Artichoke olive crostini (mine came out blegh, but yours might be better) | Chicken tikka masala | Cheese grits | Strawberry yogurt parfaits | Pumpkin oatmeal (in our rice cooker!) | Homemade Poptarts | Veggie stew clearinghouse (for all those random leftover veggies) | Spinach artichoke dip | Shrimp and pasta in cream sauce | Chicken and noodles (almost a soup, but the noodles soaked up all the broth - still tasty, though!) | Pesto goat cheese pizza | Cornbread | Black bean barley soup</div><div style="text-align: center;">...stay tuned for more.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iVBWY-rc2-Y/TwZgvmv1gJI/AAAAAAAABKY/zSYaVcqMas0/s1600/IMG_0621.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iVBWY-rc2-Y/TwZgvmv1gJI/AAAAAAAABKY/zSYaVcqMas0/s320/IMG_0621.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zm1bjauRhRQ/TwZgwqq8U1I/AAAAAAAABKg/UCpgQXrSJn4/s1600/IMG_0625.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-udas-6bsRxw/TwZg1U_pvcI/AAAAAAAABLI/FjtxDFHF7dE/s1600/IMG_0674.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-udas-6bsRxw/TwZg1U_pvcI/AAAAAAAABLI/FjtxDFHF7dE/s320/IMG_0674.JPG" width="213" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zm1bjauRhRQ/TwZgwqq8U1I/AAAAAAAABKg/UCpgQXrSJn4/s1600/IMG_0625.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zm1bjauRhRQ/TwZgwqq8U1I/AAAAAAAABKg/UCpgQXrSJn4/s320/IMG_0625.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gfMiJTmpf1E/TwZgzmI4WBI/AAAAAAAABK4/Xp4a9VU32PM/s1600/IMG_0660.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gfMiJTmpf1E/TwZgzmI4WBI/AAAAAAAABK4/Xp4a9VU32PM/s320/IMG_0660.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5hK3SXQtNsA/TwZgxj2ItpI/AAAAAAAABKo/4bgmWNaasfY/s1600/IMG_0639.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5hK3SXQtNsA/TwZgxj2ItpI/AAAAAAAABKo/4bgmWNaasfY/s320/IMG_0639.JPG" width="213" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5hK3SXQtNsA/TwZgxj2ItpI/AAAAAAAABKo/4bgmWNaasfY/s1600/IMG_0639.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5bsNtFOXoSE/TwZgyU7FJkI/AAAAAAAABKw/s4temUhCp84/s1600/IMG_0645.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5bsNtFOXoSE/TwZgyU7FJkI/AAAAAAAABKw/s4temUhCp84/s320/IMG_0645.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QqnhSkGTAZ0/TwZg0nrqWOI/AAAAAAAABLA/rvPeub7mAlg/s1600/IMG_0664.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QqnhSkGTAZ0/TwZg0nrqWOI/AAAAAAAABLA/rvPeub7mAlg/s320/IMG_0664.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-udas-6bsRxw/TwZg1U_pvcI/AAAAAAAABLI/FjtxDFHF7dE/s1600/IMG_0674.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-o-p7sJPCg50/TwZg2PrVFqI/AAAAAAAABLQ/N4KDBdk88Qw/s1600/IMG_0739.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-o-p7sJPCg50/TwZg2PrVFqI/AAAAAAAABLQ/N4KDBdk88Qw/s320/IMG_0739.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VkmDikIs78g/TwZg2loj03I/AAAAAAAABLY/xwgy7uMOEMU/s1600/IMG_0743.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VkmDikIs78g/TwZg2loj03I/AAAAAAAABLY/xwgy7uMOEMU/s320/IMG_0743.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TH2z9LQ8XZw/TwZg3kpPj8I/AAAAAAAABLg/y30jKvXzADA/s1600/IMG_0755.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TH2z9LQ8XZw/TwZg3kpPj8I/AAAAAAAABLg/y30jKvXzADA/s320/IMG_0755.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NdVdNBbswjI/TwZg4Gr0AbI/AAAAAAAABLo/4VM0Jyjt1Zw/s1600/IMG_0773.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NdVdNBbswjI/TwZg4Gr0AbI/AAAAAAAABLo/4VM0Jyjt1Zw/s320/IMG_0773.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1245318869853399067?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-52121353710086202272012-01-07T00:00:00.000-05:002012-01-07T00:00:10.249-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;">"We live in time--it holds us and moulds us--but I've never felt I understood it very well. And I'm not referring to theories about how it bends and doubles back, or may exist elsewhere in parallel versions. No, I mean ordinary, everyday time, which clocks and watches assure us passes regularly... And yet it takes only the smallest pleasure or pain to teach us time's malleability. Some emotions speed it up, others slow it down; occassionally, it seems to go missing--until the eventual point when it really does go missing, never to return." - Julian Barnes, <i>The Sense of an Ending</i></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5212135371008620227?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-39368150863871597482012-01-06T00:00:00.030-05:002012-01-06T00:00:09.735-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.poetryfoundation.org/uploads/articles/b378f4ec16/448x/writing-like-a-white-guy-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="209" src="http://www.poetryfoundation.org/uploads/articles/b378f4ec16/448x/writing-like-a-white-guy-cover.jpg" width="320"></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Image credit: <a href="http://www.poetryfoundation.org/">The Poetry Foundation</a></i><a href="http://www.poetryfoundation.org/"> </a></div><br><a href="http://www.poetryfoundation.org/article/243072">This article</a> caught my attention (and held it rapt) quite some time ago, but I just now have had a moment to sit down and reflect on it in written form. I&#39;m an English and psychology major (some days one more than the other) and have come to questioning what these two courses of study really entail. Particularly with the English major, there is one important question that continues to test my commitment to it: <b>is being an English major a colonization of myself?</b> I found it hard to form a response. My words get all caught up.<br><br>As a <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/south%20asian">South Asian</a> woman whose country was colonized by the British and who spurns canonical literature, I use English (the &quot;master&#39;s tools&quot; for anyone with Audre Lorde on the brain) in a wholly different way than they would be by a white author. Yet I still have grown up in a culture that prizes certain works, makes reference to them, and uses English as the medium through which all &quot;proper&quot; and &quot;high&quot; literature is considered. Anything else is lost in translation or sub-par. Minority authors are just that - part of a specific subset that is not as revered or canonical as the classics. So am I also prizing certain literature over others? Am I making English a prioritized language and disrespecting my ethnic heritage, my mother tongue (for which a war was fought to preserve, no less)? I have been consistently frustrated by this question, going back and forth over whether its even relevant and whether anyone has the same concerns I do.<br><br>Jaswinder Bolina&#39;s <a href="http://www.poetryfoundation.org/article/243072">&quot;Writing Like a White Guy&quot;</a> article articulates an answer to this question in a truly remarkable and sensible way.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/caught-my-eye-writing-like-white-guy.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3936815086387159748?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-9347549563345644272012-01-05T00:08:00.001-05:002012-01-05T00:10:31.395-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AK1Vj4y-bX0/TwUvlCBxjsI/AAAAAAAABKE/Cnp3vHBj5JM/s1600/2jan26.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AK1Vj4y-bX0/TwUvlCBxjsI/AAAAAAAABKE/Cnp3vHBj5JM/s320/2jan26.JPG" width="320"></a></div><br>There once was a girl who wanted to read all the books in the world. She believed sincerely that she could chew her way through book after book, never re-reading and never looking back. She would read the good with the bad, the classics with the post-modern, and eventually conquer all the material there was out there.<br><br>That girl grew up a little bit, started <span id="goog_70901547"></span>writing her own work<span id="goog_70901548"></span> in the same proportion as she was reading. Created many good <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/stories">stories</a>, learned a great deal of <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/lessons">lessons</a> about writing and publishing and how expansive the world of literature is. But she still held on to the idea that she could finish every book in the world someday. <i>Someday.</i><br><br>And then the fated day came when that little girl became a teenager and felt like the entire world was too overwhelming. Including the world of books. She threw her head down on her desk, long hair flowing, and felt her illusions unraveling - there was simply too much to get through! Oh, the crushing defeat...<br><br>Ok, so perhaps my childhood fantasy went on a little too long. But, at one point in my life, I sincerely believed I could conquer all the written material in the world. I realize that&#39;s impossible now. And this hyperbolic personal example serves to illustrate my greater point: expansive expectations are the stuff of fantasies. They are bound to disappoint.<br><br>Gentle goals and soft manifestations, however, make magic happen.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/gentle-goals-soft-manifestations-or-how.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-934754956334564427?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-17779447333660531692012-01-04T00:03:00.000-05:002012-01-04T00:03:19.632-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9DQUYUpkPak/TwPdbKZ_hTI/AAAAAAAABJ4/pgAxbf3TRfQ/s1600/IMG_9677.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9DQUYUpkPak/TwPdbKZ_hTI/AAAAAAAABJ4/pgAxbf3TRfQ/s320/IMG_9677.JPG" width="213"></a></div><br>I talked a bit on Monday about <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/celebrating-life-in-small-moments.html">beginnings (and endings)</a>. About how there are a lot of them in this life to take note of, that we don&#39;t often choose to see. I was thinking about how I could make that concept concrete in my own life this year, starting at the generally accepted level of every day.<br><br>This year, I am going to embark on an experiment that I&#39;ve been trying to get moving ever since... well, forever. Especially since watching <a href="http://vimeo.com/19428188">this video</a> that I posted quite some time ago on my <a href="http://thecowation.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a>. I want to be creative for 30 minutes every day in a variety of ways, related to any project or no project at all. Devoting that little amount of time will be a small gift to myself each day this year.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/30365-project.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1777944733366053169?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-69759099054675515862012-01-03T00:08:00.000-05:002012-01-03T00:08:52.395-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sTCR2lajsXU/TwKMwqBZSWI/AAAAAAAABJU/02xNCpTIOHI/s1600/4july10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sTCR2lajsXU/TwKMwqBZSWI/AAAAAAAABJU/02xNCpTIOHI/s320/4july10.JPG" width="213"></a></div><br>New Year&#39;s resolutions always fail. Period. Full stop. This blog post has officially ended before it began.<br><br>You&#39;re probably wondering now why I, a generally positive person who dispenses advice on <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/bucket-list-and-work-boots.html">bucket lists</a> and <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/productivity">productivity</a>, would be so strongly anti-resolution. There are a lot of things that I could be against in this world - why New Year&#39;s resolutions? Why something that is supposed to be fun and silly and made once a year? Let me explain:<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/why-im-against-new-years-resolutions.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-6975909905467551586?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-92217440519299880252012-01-02T13:13:00.001-05:002012-01-02T13:14:34.638-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DRRZ-a1Ug_E/TwHzYrF_2QI/AAAAAAAABI8/jBquymBEfwE/s1600/IMG_0646.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DRRZ-a1Ug_E/TwHzYrF_2QI/AAAAAAAABI8/jBquymBEfwE/s320/IMG_0646.JPG" width="320"></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>From humble beginnings...</i></div><br>In the spirit of ringing in the new year, let&#39;s talk about beginnings.<br><br>First, a cliche: for every beginning, there is an ending. I have been thinking a lot in the context of endings recently - our school semester ended, then the year, and several more personal events ended their long sagas during the month of December. It&#39;s a mixed bag of positive and negative. Sometimes you are dreading the imminent conclusion and sometimes you are looking at the potential opportunities to follow. Beginnings and endings? Inextricably linked.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2012/01/celebrating-life-in-small-moments.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-9221744051929988025?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-35256686476290649772011-12-31T00:37:00.000-05:002011-12-31T00:37:39.827-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Yesterday, I wrote up my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/12/cowation-retrospective-of-2011.html">retrospective of 2011</a>, so today I offer you some further great reading to reflect on for the year - pieces I've loved and wanted to follow up with. Here's to a new year and new material to come!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aRCuhW7NW1I/Th6OtLzsk8I/AAAAAAAABBI/9Et06kxwvU8/s1600/votebotcomic1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aRCuhW7NW1I/Th6OtLzsk8I/AAAAAAAABBI/9Et06kxwvU8/s320/votebotcomic1.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><u><b>Guest posts</b></u><br />I've been submitting several pieces into the larger internet world this year, including one I didn't know was published on <a href="http://therumpus.net/2011/08/jordan-alam-the-last-book-i-loved-the-brief-wondrous-life-of-oscar-wao/">The Rumpus: Last Book I Loved - The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao</a>. This year I was writing for <a href="http://www.refusethesilence.com/author/jordan/">Refuse the Silence</a>, a blog about women of color on college campuses. I blogged with <a href="http://washingtonbus.org/blog">HellaBus</a> and the <a href="http://zines.barnard.edu/">Barnard Zine Library blog</a>, including a feature on the event I read at, Meet Me At the Race Riot. My interview responses were posted on the <a href="http://www.brooklynzinefest.com/meet-your-zine-maker-11-barnard-zine-library">Brooklyn Zine Fest blog</a> and I got a mention on <a href="http://www.brownpundits.com/">Brown Pundits</a>. All great work that I hope to continue in the coming year!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dgKrfRuQ5i4/TrPl6OV6viI/AAAAAAAABEI/b7Mku7BKIzg/s1600/SDC12596.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dgKrfRuQ5i4/TrPl6OV6viI/AAAAAAAABEI/b7Mku7BKIzg/s320/SDC12596.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><b><u>Life Lessons</u></b><br />I've been learning a lot about the power of <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/03/living-in-moment.html">living in the moment</a>, having positive <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/body-talk-how-to-deal-with-negative.html">body image</a>, and being mindful of <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/12/introspective-on-taking-breaks.html">break-taking</a>. I've also really enjoyed learning about <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-to-live-your-life-like-its-one-big.html">living life like it's an experiment</a>, <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/6-tips-from-writing-workshops-opening.html">writing</a> well, <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/3-ways-to-follow-your-dreams-even-tiny.html">following your dreams</a>, <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/05/what-blogging-has-taught-me.html">blogging</a>, keeping <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/5-ways-to-find-balance-in-productivity.html">balance</a>, <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/on-gratitude.html">gratitude</a> and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/just-water-please-5-lessons-about-habit.html">habit formation</a>.<br /><br /><b><u>Political/Identity pieces</u></b><br />I talked a lot about my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/where-are-you-from-race-vs-national.html">South Asian identity</a> this year. I wrote about <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/denim-and-black-cloth-feminism-and.html">Muslim women</a>, becoming <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/911-growing-up-reactionary-youth.html">an activist</a>, and embracing <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/05/single-sex-education-for-women-girls.html">single sex education</a>. It was quite an amazing year for self-exploration!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ryYoNAXsCmY/Tr00FQ5iHXI/AAAAAAAABFA/8OhnO11Fk8M/s1600/2011-11-06+15.51.45.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ryYoNAXsCmY/Tr00FQ5iHXI/AAAAAAAABFA/8OhnO11Fk8M/s320/2011-11-06+15.51.45.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><u><b>On Location</b></u><br />As I mentioned <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/12/cowation-retrospective-of-2011.html">yesterday</a>, I attended a lot of events this year: everything from <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/10/on-location-slutwalk-nyc.html">Slutwalk NYC</a> to <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/ced-round-up-seattle-pride-parade.html">Seattle Pride</a>. I attended <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/on-location-meet-me-at-race-riot.html">Occupy Wall Street</a>, a <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/prayers-for-troy-davis.html">vigil for Troy Davis</a>, and several writing events at <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/05/writing-live-nuyorican-poets-cafe-and.html">the Nuyorican and The Moth</a>. I attended the <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/02/on-location-stand-up-for-womens-health.html">Stand Up for Women's Health Rally</a>, <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/04/take-back-night-re-envisioning.html">Take Back the Night</a>, and the blogging event <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/04/aint-i-woman-recap.html">Ain't I A Woman?</a> Such a sweet year for being out there in the world.<br /><br /><b><u>Series</u></b><br />I did a lot of series this year. There was <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/caught%20my%20eye">Caught My Eye</a>, <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/project%20x%20project">Project x Project</a> (and its follow-up <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/ced">Creative Every Day</a>), and <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/diy%20interlude">DIY Interlude</a> where I explored my own creative process. I also experimented with making a <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/how-to-make-micro-mini-zine.html">zine video tutorial</a> and another video on <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/08/what-does-progress-mean-to-you.html">progress</a>. So, on top of everything, I feel that this year was also great for experiments.<br /><br />And that marks the airing of all my 2011 pieces of note. Now that the closets are cleared, let's welcome in the new year!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3525668647629064977?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-57392692036684189072011-12-30T13:12:00.000-05:002011-12-30T13:12:20.969-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">2011 has been a fast-paced emotional and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/creativity">creative</a> rollercoaster for me: I moved from having my sophomore meltdown to being a fairly stable junior in college, I met my family for the first time, I made great strides in focusing on <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/self-care">self-love</a> and getting away from hurtful relationships; I <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/chopped.html">cut off all my hair</a>, created some of my greatest <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/05/diy-interlude-part-v-conclusion.html">art pieces</a>, and went to a bunch of amazing activist-y events to show my support. This year&#39;s been a big one.<br><br>Throughout, this blog has been a part of that experience - documenting my follies, triumphs, and experiments in between. It was only really this year that I started blogging again in earnest, and it&#39;s already time to reflect back on what a momentous year it&#39;s been. Tomorrow I&#39;ll be listing some of my favorite articles and pieces from 2011, but today is the retrospective of what got me here. So let&#39;s put on our traveling caps and take a momentary time shift through 2011!<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2011/025/2/2/rickshaw_picture_six_by_thecowation-d380dvy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2011/025/2/2/rickshaw_picture_six_by_thecowation-d380dvy.jpg" width="240"></a></div><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/12/cowation-retrospective-of-2011.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5739269203668418907?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-37554182589869919332011-12-27T12:27:00.000-05:002011-12-27T12:27:47.873-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GsCYxGkigVs/Tvn_4_JGe_I/AAAAAAAABIw/S-Vorv1OuPs/s1600/walrus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GsCYxGkigVs/Tvn_4_JGe_I/AAAAAAAABIw/S-Vorv1OuPs/s320/walrus.jpg" width="320"></a></div><br>I was disappointed with my recent visit to the Museum of Natural History. I hadn&#39;t been there in quite a while, but walking into the Asian animals room immediately brought back memories of how the museum gives me some serious creeps. I started looking at the museum map, which indicated rooms for &quot;Asian Peoples&quot; and &quot;African Peoples,&quot; which also made me feel odd. It had the clear purpose of taxonomizing &quot;them&quot; as a racialized other. Beyond that, when we entered the exhibits, the plaques read as if each of these &quot;peoples&quot; were in a vacuum - this is what happens in Hindu marriages and this is what jihad means <i>for ever and always</i>. The curators were very sure of their ideas, but the words seemed just about as accurate and nuanced as the taxidermy animals seemed alive.<br><br>In fact, the only exhibit that I was particularly impressed with was the floor dedicated to dinosaurs - on that floor there were signs that said some absolutely magical things. &quot;Little is known.&quot; &quot;Probably.&quot; &quot;Potentially.&quot; And, my favorite, &quot;it is yet to be discovered...&quot;<br><br>It might not be abundantly clear why this is so fabulous. Shouldn&#39;t I prefer definitive plaques over wishy washy ones? But these words got me excited. It was a small admission by the curators of the museum (in whatever convoluted language they desired) that <i>they didn&#39;t know</i>.<br><br>And that phrase, &quot;I don&#39;t know&quot; is the first crack in the ornamental vase from which curiosity can flow.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/12/value-of-i-dont-know-cultivating.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3755418258986991933?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-71575797203030597712011-12-26T11:12:00.000-05:002011-12-26T11:12:43.653-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">As you may (or may not) know, I do not celebrate Christmas. Although I could celebrate it in a secular way, the holiday has never really held that much appeal for me. However, I do know that it is a day of great joy and festiveness for a lot of people, thus there's a general good vibe on that day that I like to take part in. I hence resort to other forms of celebrating life as we know it on that day - such as doing ridiculous things or otherwise soaking up the good energy.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZRrMfm42nH8/Tvibp1hTwXI/AAAAAAAABIY/V0qe5YGH11Y/s1600/IMG_0620.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZRrMfm42nH8/Tvibp1hTwXI/AAAAAAAABIY/V0qe5YGH11Y/s320/IMG_0620.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br />This year, I made hummus and pita from scratch in our kitchen and ran out of chickpeas for the mixture just when my hands were good and covered in sticky dough. I was listening to Lupe Fiasco and - after pausing said brilliance - had to flee the apartment in a flour-covered hoodie and barrel down 6 blocks to buy another can of chickpeas and finish the ever-so-important hummus recipe. When the clock struck midnight, I was checking the dough in the refrigerator for the last time before morning and going to bed. <br /><br />My Christmas present was my father waking me at 8am to say that he'd arrived at my apartment and we spent the morning again covering our hands in sticky dough and trying to figure out the best possible method of making our pita into something that resembled the Middle Eastern variety - because, being Bengali, any bread we try to fry instantly becomes a paratha.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bziUU4Poy9w/Tvib5rRvORI/AAAAAAAABIk/yrJvw16hx0Q/s1600/IMG_0628.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bziUU4Poy9w/Tvib5rRvORI/AAAAAAAABIk/yrJvw16hx0Q/s320/IMG_0628.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br />In the end, we walked all over the city, particularly through the barren trees of Central Park and marveled at the quietness. In my apartment, on the streets, in the park... all was hushed. We ate ice cream in the cold. We spent time in whatever way we pleased.<br /><br />It is in these moments that I feel that <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/03/living-in-moment.html">living in the moment</a> really takes on meaning. Oftentimes we go about our day on autopilot, moving from one spot to the next with some sort of envisioned end result. But <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/change-and-destination.html">destination mentality</a> distracts us from the small moments that make life a fun and exciting batch of choices. Every moment, we have the ability to look at our situation and recognize its sanctity. Though it may sound obscure when our mornings are filled with pressing meetings and our afternoons are bound by schedules and our nights are too short to catch even a wink of sleep, when the holidays roll around, it's all we think about. I have said it before in many different ways, but here again:<br /><br /><b>We must invest in ourselves the good energy that comes on holidays everyday. We must bring out joy in the small moments. And we must allow ourselves the capacity to feel all emotions, not just the easy ones, and move through them in our regular lives.</b><br /><br />Enjoy your post-holiday relaxation, everyone!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-7157579720303059771?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-62668419414842032802011-12-24T10:33:00.001-05:002011-12-28T20:28:17.418-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;">"Every unaccepted pronouncement isn’t hidden wisdom. And every speaker of provocative things isn’t a genius. Saying someone has the courage to say the unsayable is meaningless without analysis of what exactly is said."</div><div style="text-align: center;">- Tami Winfrey Harris, "'He had the courage to say unpopular things': No praise for courting controversy" (via <a href="http://www.racialicious.com/2011/12/22/he-had-the-courage-to-day-unpopular-things-no-praise-for-courting-controversy/">Racialicious</a>)</div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-6266841941484203280?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-42699456910636647232011-12-23T11:12:00.001-05:002011-12-23T11:13:10.169-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YjPZ3C3sRFo/TvSoVtO9XHI/AAAAAAAABIM/2gAq2KXhBEQ/s1600/SDC12561.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YjPZ3C3sRFo/TvSoVtO9XHI/AAAAAAAABIM/2gAq2KXhBEQ/s320/SDC12561.JPG" width="240"></a></div><br>Apropos of my <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/12/stress-college-life-and-self-worth.html">Tuesday post on the college environment</a> (and to kick off the start of this academic break), I wanted to talk about the extended break I took from creative endeavors for the past few weeks. You might be wondering: &quot;Why talk about taking breaks? It&#39;s cool, we all take them.&quot; But for me, a break has long indicated some much more troubling factors than just simple lack of interest.<br><br>For many years, taking a break for me was a sign of failure. It was a sign that I was giving in to apathy, which is highly related to my bouts with depression over the years. I was excessively busy in high school for just this reason - to stop moving was to stop ignoring my emotions and have to actually deal with them. To stop moving at that point in my life felt like a small step towards death.<br><br>It may seem extreme now, but I think young people have the hardest time dealing with their emotions. They haven&#39;t been trained to sit with them (as is done in certain therapy techniques) and it often is not encouraged by our culture to cultivate the wide range of emotions we can feel at any given moment. As we grow older, we can internalize these patterns and fall somewhere along a spectrum - the extremes of never acknowledging deep emotions or drowning in them, or perhaps the healthier middle range with a skew towards one side. But when we are young, those patterns are still being felt out and we try to justify our actions with them as best we can. There are many theories on this, but I will keep to my own personal story.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/12/introspective-on-taking-breaks.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-4269945691063664723?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-33046412136185965642011-12-21T12:21:00.000-05:002011-12-21T12:21:54.532-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">As I hinted about on my blog a while ago, I will not be <i>entirely</i> ineffective this winter break. Rather, I will be &quot;doing it big,&quot; as we once would say at my high school - I am going to embark on a multi-level creative project that involves joining the very disparate elements of my creative life and synthesizing them to the best of my ability. Which begs the question: what does that look like? Below is a preliminary recording of me trying to figure that out.<br><br><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" height="26" width="640"><param value="true" name="allowfullscreen"><param value="always" name="allowscriptaccess"><param value="high" name="quality"><param value="true" name="cachebusting"><param value="#000000" name="bgcolor"><param name="movie" value="http://www.archive.org/flow/flowplayer.commercial-3.2.1.swf"><param value="config={&#39;key&#39;:&#39;#$aa4baff94a9bdcafce8&#39;,&#39;playlist&#39;:[{&#39;url&#39;:&#39;transitionsintro.mp3&#39;,&#39;autoPlay&#39;:false}],&#39;clip&#39;:{&#39;autoPlay&#39;:true,&#39;baseUrl&#39;:&#39;http://www.archive.org/download/IntroToTransitionsProject/&#39;},&#39;canvas&#39;:{&#39;backgroundColor&#39;:&#39;#000000&#39;,&#39;backgroundGradient&#39;:&#39;none&#39;},&#39;plugins&#39;:{&#39;audio&#39;:{&#39;url&#39;:&#39;http://www.archive.org/flow/flowplayer.audio-3.2.1-dev.swf&#39;},&#39;controls&#39;:{&#39;playlist&#39;:false,&#39;fullscreen&#39;:false,&#39;height&#39;:26,&#39;backgroundColor&#39;:&#39;#000000&#39;,&#39;autoHide&#39;:{&#39;fullscreenOnly&#39;:true},&#39;scrubberHeightRatio&#39;:0.6,&#39;timeFontSize&#39;:9,&#39;mute&#39;:false,&#39;top&#39;:0}},&#39;contextMenu&#39;:[{},&#39;-&#39;,&#39;Flowplayer v3.2.1&#39;]}" name="flashvars"><embed src="http://www.archive.org/flow/flowplayer.commercial-3.2.1.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="640" height="26" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" cachebusting="true" bgcolor="#000000" quality="high" flashvars="config={&#39;key&#39;:&#39;#$aa4baff94a9bdcafce8&#39;,&#39;playlist&#39;:[{&#39;url&#39;:&#39;transitionsintro.mp3&#39;,&#39;autoPlay&#39;:false}],&#39;clip&#39;:{&#39;autoPlay&#39;:true,&#39;baseUrl&#39;:&#39;http://www.archive.org/download/IntroToTransitionsProject/&#39;},&#39;canvas&#39;:{&#39;backgroundColor&#39;:&#39;#000000&#39;,&#39;backgroundGradient&#39;:&#39;none&#39;},&#39;plugins&#39;:{&#39;audio&#39;:{&#39;url&#39;:&#39;http://www.archive.org/flow/flowplayer.audio-3.2.1-dev.swf&#39;},&#39;controls&#39;:{&#39;playlist&#39;:false,&#39;fullscreen&#39;:false,&#39;height&#39;:26,&#39;backgroundColor&#39;:&#39;#000000&#39;,&#39;autoHide&#39;:{&#39;fullscreenOnly&#39;:true},&#39;scrubberHeightRatio&#39;:0.6,&#39;timeFontSize&#39;:9,&#39;mute&#39;:false,&#39;top&#39;:0}},&#39;contextMenu&#39;:[{},&#39;-&#39;,&#39;Flowplayer v3.2.1&#39;]}"> </embed></object><br><br>Transitions. The broadest theme imaginable, but one that has fascinated me more and more as I have looked through my old work and started new projects as well. I hope that this art project will summarize a lot of the transitions I&#39;ve been making personally and that others have gone through in their lives as well because, often, we don&#39;t know what a transition is until we&#39;ve passed through it! Why not highlight them in medias res*?<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WjEoTFRQRnA/TvIVPCDYmII/AAAAAAAABIA/C9WhEUeRtl0/s1600/IMG_20110402_150409.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WjEoTFRQRnA/TvIVPCDYmII/AAAAAAAABIA/C9WhEUeRtl0/s320/IMG_20110402_150409.jpg" width="239"></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/12/in-transition-exploratory-art-project.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3304641213618596564?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-71062866285638661912011-12-20T10:50:00.001-05:002011-12-20T10:52:25.001-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3CHWAfZsExI/TvCuiK73MTI/AAAAAAAABH4/1fUuFDCGv4k/s1600/SDC10219.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3CHWAfZsExI/TvCuiK73MTI/AAAAAAAABH4/1fUuFDCGv4k/s320/SDC10219.JPG" width="240"></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div>I&#39;ve written before about <a href="http://www.thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/5-ways-to-find-balance-in-productivity.html">balancing academics and creativity</a>. Now that we are coming upon the end of finals and yet another dramatic spike in personal free time (a.k.a. winter break), I feel that it must be brought up once more, but in a slightly different light. This time I want to address stress.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/12/stress-college-life-and-self-worth.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-7106286628563866191?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-41883036402615865442011-12-19T00:45:00.000-05:002011-12-19T00:45:31.758-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lfd_Uy8Qt7I/Tu7PWUtFdHI/AAAAAAAABHw/7q3YgwVCR5U/s1600/SDC12597.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lfd_Uy8Qt7I/Tu7PWUtFdHI/AAAAAAAABHw/7q3YgwVCR5U/s320/SDC12597.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>These past few weeks have marked the end of my first semester as a college junior. I have completed 1/3 of my final exams and am gearing up for the final push to the end of semester. I fell into burnout mode more readily than I wanted to - the need for rest was like a literal boulder on my chest and I honestly couldn't have put out a word of inspirational writing even if I had wanted to. I even had to cut short correspondences to my friends because they all came out the same: "How are you?" "Good. Tired." End quote.<br /><br />This week, as we approach the last bit of finals and the start of a long sojourn from our studies, I have been mulling about in my own head. I have a lot of creative energy that wants to put itself out there, but little motivation to do anything but sleep till noon and perhaps watch some James Bond movies. It's not as bad as it sounds - I have been brainstorming ways to re-purpose our suite's zillion plastic and paper grocery bags and have been genuinely enjoying myself. But I have been missing the blogosphere and its regular kick-in-the-butt way of getting me to write my daily piece. Thus, this week I am returning to my regular blog schedule and will hopefully be beefing it up as I enter a period of almost complete and total autonomy over my actions.<br /><br />If I had a sign to put on my door this break, it would read: Expect greatness to come.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-4188303640261586544?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-6902711644060706222011-12-07T18:41:00.000-05:002011-12-07T18:41:40.644-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">...something big is coming.<br /><br />I'm not sure what yet, but my pent-up creative feelings are ready to explode into something magnanimous and awesome. Stay tuned for more, lovely readers, stay tuned for more.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-690271164406070622?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-15125249158874027592011-11-30T10:04:00.000-05:002011-11-30T10:04:30.438-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">In case you couldn't make it to the <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/on-location-meet-me-at-race-riot.html">Meet Me at the Race Riot zine event</a>, here is a complete videocast of it for your enjoyment:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/LqoW-uhC7W8" width="320"></iframe></div><br /><i>And if you're in a video-watching mood, make sure to also check out my tutorial on <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/how-to-make-micro-mini-zine.html">how to make a micro-mini zine</a>.</i></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1512524915887402759?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-37367054617306776252011-11-26T12:13:00.000-05:002011-11-26T12:13:44.215-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;">"Prodigy is, at its essence, adaptability and persistent, positive obsession. Without persistence, what remains is an enthusiasm of the moment. Without adaptability, what remains may be channeled into destructive fanatacism. Without positive obsession, there is nothing at all."&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: center;">- Lauren Oya Olamina in Earthseed: The Books of the Living (read as an epigraph to Octavia Butler's <i>Parable of the Sower</i>)</div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3736705461730677625?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-2178798288322907782011-11-24T10:15:00.001-05:002011-11-24T10:20:41.323-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Happy Thanksgiving!<br><br>Now that you&#39;ve getting a hefty dose of tryptophan and starches in your diet (and more than a small serving of my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/counternarrative-thanksgiving-edition.html">counternarrative argument</a> from yesterday&#39;s post), I want to introduce some levity into the idea of Thanksgiving. <br><br>I think it&#39;s a great holiday because it highlights - however strangely - the need for community and the need for gratitude in the American way of life. Gratitude and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/thankful">being thankful</a> can often be overlooked or overshadowed as we go about wielding our extreme individualism and slaying the demon of <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/productivity">time management</a>. In our culture, gratitude often only makes a holiday appearance, but today I want to tell you how you can carry it into the rest of your year. Here are some ideas:<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ElkYjItndGw/Ts5e-CkGcsI/AAAAAAAABHo/aIvEIMIQLoU/s1600/SDC10912.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ElkYjItndGw/Ts5e-CkGcsI/AAAAAAAABHo/aIvEIMIQLoU/s320/SDC10912.JPG" width="320"></a></div><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/on-gratitude.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-217879828832290778?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-42537316036935783922011-11-23T11:28:00.000-05:002011-11-23T11:28:54.051-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1jgxkRJsT8E/Ts0eyKvIpFI/AAAAAAAABHg/tBjDBbpD5Bs/s1600/SDC12585.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1jgxkRJsT8E/Ts0eyKvIpFI/AAAAAAAABHg/tBjDBbpD5Bs/s320/SDC12585.JPG" width="173"></a></div><br>Thanksgiving is a day to eat. Thanksgiving is a day to spend time with family and friends - and to eat. To overeat, even. To express the bounty of our labor in as grandiose a way as possible.<br><br>No matter how many times we are told that Thanksgiving has a different and deeper meaning, these are the images we return to in our advertising of Thanksgiving and its aftermath, Black Friday. There is - as with all US holidays - an inherent layer of consumerism that pervades all the nice feelings that we might think about the holiday itself. There is also a glossing over of the people who are less privileged on Thanksgiving and the Native Americans who were actively displaced historically, though they are linked to this holiday.<br><br>Today I want to draw attention to these points. Before we make merry, we have to think critically about the choices we make in regards to our cultural celebrations. We <i>are</i> making active choices to participate in the culture, whether it seems like it or not, and that has to be explored. Thus, I am proud to introduce the first edition of Counternarrative: Thanksgiving.<br><br><i>*By the way, I am not a Thanksgiving hater, no matter how this post may make it seem. I just want to provide some context and thoughts on the ideas that are implicit in our participation in the holiday. As you were.</i><br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/counternarrative-thanksgiving-edition.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-4253731603693578392?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-20270860151091364712011-11-21T09:11:00.000-05:002011-11-21T09:11:44.651-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">You know when you&#39;re on hyperdrive and you just can&#39;t slow down even for a second? For me, that feeling pervaded the tail-end of this last week. This semester, I often feel more real working and attending these events than I do in the classroom. Now that&#39;s not to say that I&#39;m going to gallavant off and never finish my degree, but sometimes the activist and creative work that I do really does satisfy me in a way that writing academic papers can never touch. Who says you can&#39;t take a break from it once in a while? Here are the highlights.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/on-location-meet-me-at-race-riot.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-2027086015109136471?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-6228575116542627152011-11-17T10:13:00.000-05:002011-11-17T10:13:00.055-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I haven't been <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/ced" target="_blank">creative every day</a> for a while (although, yesterday's <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/how-to-make-micro-mini-zine.html">zine-making video</a> clearly kicked me into high gear), but I have been thinking about it just as much. So, it was time to put my money where my mouth is and start creating again! Here are my three newest projects:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-B17HcaVGsHg/TsUhss2XzZI/AAAAAAAABHI/83pznTGr_8g/s1600/sweater.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-B17HcaVGsHg/TsUhss2XzZI/AAAAAAAABHI/83pznTGr_8g/s320/sweater.jpg" width="193" /></a> </div><br />I started this <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/sweaterdress">sweater</a> back in the summertime, but shelved it due to increased working hours and lowered sleep levels. I am proud to say that it came out wonderfully - it is the first sweater that I've made that actually <i>fits</i> me, and that is something that deserves a round of applause.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lbASLqpWCE8/TsUhrFRp2oI/AAAAAAAABHA/xUYUzBnxEQE/s1600/SDC12810.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lbASLqpWCE8/TsUhrFRp2oI/AAAAAAAABHA/xUYUzBnxEQE/s320/SDC12810.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />Yesterday, I read at a zine event called <a href="http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=143128309120898">Meet Me at the Race Riot</a>, which kickstarted me into making an entirely new <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/zines">zine</a>. I've had this impetus for a while now, but the deadline really pushed me from the brink of "I'll get around to it" into the ravine of "I need to get this done <i>now</i>." Here is the lovely result! You can get it in print or in a PDF if you <a href="mailto:jordanalam@gmail.com" target="_blank">email me</a> - I have elected not to put up this edition electronically just yet.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i9AozuJY4XY/TsUjGxPuM9I/AAAAAAAABHQ/WIXz43960to/s1600/IMG_20111116_125252.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i9AozuJY4XY/TsUjGxPuM9I/AAAAAAAABHQ/WIXz43960to/s320/IMG_20111116_125252.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />And the final image is one of my on-the-job projects: I help put together this board for the Meet Me at the Race Riot event - it's got a vector image of myself holding a sign and a bunch of amazing zinesters' works put up there - my job is the coolest!<br /><br /><i>Check out some past <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/ced" target="_blank">Creative Every Day</a> postings, some of my other <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/knitting" target="_blank">knitting adventures</a>, or perhaps some more of my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/zines" target="_blank">zines</a> and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/collage" target="_blank">paper art</a>.</i></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-622857511654262715?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-54156618559606772922011-11-16T08:55:00.000-05:002011-11-16T08:55:34.357-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I'm going to be doing a <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/zines">zine</a> reading tonight at an event called <a href="http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=143128309120898">Meet Me at the Race Riot: Women of Color in Zines from 1990 to Today</a> (which, if you're in the NYC area, you should come to - check out the Facebook event for more information).<br /><br />As I was folding my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/zines">zines</a> for the event, I got extremely excited! So excited, in fact, that I thought I'd make a <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/video">video</a> in celebration - so for all you folding wizards/witches out there, here is my tutorial on how to make a micro-mini zine (a 16-page mini-booklet made out of just 1 sheet of 8.5x11):<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://i.ytimg.com/vi/-rzm3-Jq5Vk/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-rzm3-Jq5Vk?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-rzm3-Jq5Vk?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><br />You can access the micro-mini zine layout on my <a href="http://www.archive.org/details/Micro-miniZineLayout">Archive.org page</a>. And check out some of my zines, including <a href="http://www.archive.org/details/BearniverseIssue1">The Bearniverse</a>, there too!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5415661855960677292?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-38543057996701620022011-11-15T09:27:00.000-05:002011-11-15T09:27:42.941-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">In light of the changes I&#39;ve made to my physical appearance lately, I&#39;ve been thinking a lot about change and destination mentality.<br><br>For those who don&#39;t often ponder social constructions in their spare time, destination mentality is a state of mind that tells us that we should always be working towards an eventual end, such as coming to the final destination at the end of a long journey or finishing a project or <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/goals">goal</a>. It&#39;s a helpful tool when you are working on something that has a definite end, but it gets hairy when we start thinking about emotions and mindsets as our end goals. What does it mean, for instance to have &quot;reached&quot; success? To have &quot;found&quot; happiness? To have &quot;become&quot; good enough?<br><br>We expect - especially as Americans - that at some point our work will be finished and we&#39;ll have entered into these feelings and forever there we shall remain. We forget that constancy doesn&#39;t exist. The only constant in this life is change.<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0b7BDaOG-LM/TsJ1n0j10gI/AAAAAAAABG4/Gb7_RZl3C48/s1600/IMG_20110511_141848.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0b7BDaOG-LM/TsJ1n0j10gI/AAAAAAAABG4/Gb7_RZl3C48/s320/IMG_20110511_141848.jpg" width="239"></a></div><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/change-and-destination.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3854305799670162002?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-61281116186691115902011-11-14T20:29:00.000-05:002011-11-14T20:29:23.978-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">This weekend, I decided to make a drastic change...<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FPiOJtrd97k/TsG_kok_EbI/AAAAAAAABGw/HWZl0Nm3nGo/s1600/closeup.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FPiOJtrd97k/TsG_kok_EbI/AAAAAAAABGw/HWZl0Nm3nGo/s320/closeup.JPG" width="240" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Nll2HwM7ais/TsG_hpZOxMI/AAAAAAAABGo/rzvxy9nE2lI/s1600/hairafter.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Nll2HwM7ais/TsG_hpZOxMI/AAAAAAAABGo/rzvxy9nE2lI/s320/hairafter.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />...or two.<br /><br />I have been wanting to donate my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2009/10/hair-story.html">long hair</a> and get a nose piercing for a while, but I had not had the gumption to do it. I still don't know what gave me the impetus to do it, but Saturday just felt right.<br /><br />Now, before you ask, here are the answers to the two most common questions I have gotten these past few days:<br /><br />1. Did the nose piercing hurt? -- Yes, but much less than my earrings. And I was lying down for it so it was a different experience, more like yoga meditation than extreme anxiety.<br /><br />2. How did you feel about getting your hair cut? -- Lightheaded. In both senses of the word. I got really nervous when the hair first was being snipped off (my hands were really clenched together then!), and afterward my head just moved so easily on my neck that I felt like it was 20 pounds lighter.<br /><br />I have really enjoyed this experience and feel very different, but very excited about the changes. It was, I believe, just the right time.<br /><br /><i>If you're interested, you should read my personal <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2009/10/hair-story.html">hair-story</a> from two years ago.</i> </div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-6128111618669111590?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-44601676863605928872011-11-11T09:50:00.000-05:002011-11-11T09:50:05.342-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Armed with a cell phone camera and my wits about me this weekend, here are some of the sights I took in whilst making my way through DC. The President (this time of the United States) makes a guest appearance in these shots - though I do wish I had a better zoom on my camera to see him closer!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-y_Yz3rnLnhQ/Tr00EdPm5BI/AAAAAAAABE4/W-jeotbWUUQ/s1600/2011-11-06+15.09.35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-y_Yz3rnLnhQ/Tr00EdPm5BI/AAAAAAAABE4/W-jeotbWUUQ/s320/2011-11-06+15.09.35.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Tar sands protest when I first came into town.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ryYoNAXsCmY/Tr00FQ5iHXI/AAAAAAAABFA/8OhnO11Fk8M/s1600/2011-11-06+15.51.45.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ryYoNAXsCmY/Tr00FQ5iHXI/AAAAAAAABFA/8OhnO11Fk8M/s320/2011-11-06+15.51.45.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Beautiful Malcolm X Park.</i></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Paac6W64QaY/Tr00GEh1UYI/AAAAAAAABFI/RS1j4Rv9xNI/s1600/2011-11-06+15.54.06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Paac6W64QaY/Tr00GEh1UYI/AAAAAAAABFI/RS1j4Rv9xNI/s320/2011-11-06+15.54.06.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Statue of Jeanne d'Arc, in the correct French!</i></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a7M3wGvMDu8/Tr00GpxuILI/AAAAAAAABFQ/AqqkvCGqA_U/s1600/2011-11-07+19.16.27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a7M3wGvMDu8/Tr00GpxuILI/AAAAAAAABFQ/AqqkvCGqA_U/s320/2011-11-07+19.16.27.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Ben's Chili Bowl, an awesome panda, and my friend Catskill.</i></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MTass1C0F98/Tr00HQyvQyI/AAAAAAAABFY/fQwZDRlb-4I/s1600/2011-11-07+19.59.04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MTass1C0F98/Tr00HQyvQyI/AAAAAAAABFY/fQwZDRlb-4I/s320/2011-11-07+19.59.04.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>The Supreme Court.</i></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RmLBIsFi0CY/Tr00H2McvnI/AAAAAAAABFg/ZamtfmhFsPw/s1600/2011-11-07+20.47.48.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RmLBIsFi0CY/Tr00H2McvnI/AAAAAAAABFg/ZamtfmhFsPw/s320/2011-11-07+20.47.48.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Washington's place in the WWII memorial.</i></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YEHZ-iTwgD4/Tr00IcFFmGI/AAAAAAAABFo/msC2wLeAiIU/s1600/2011-11-07+21.04.52.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YEHZ-iTwgD4/Tr00IcFFmGI/AAAAAAAABFo/msC2wLeAiIU/s320/2011-11-07+21.04.52.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Lincoln.</i></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aHMdG6WO6vs/Tr00JDj7BdI/AAAAAAAABFw/sUxui1B-9I0/s1600/2011-11-07+21.19.43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aHMdG6WO6vs/Tr00JDj7BdI/AAAAAAAABFw/sUxui1B-9I0/s320/2011-11-07+21.19.43.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>MLK.</i></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-u2aCh9nQLYE/Tr0z85ziaGI/AAAAAAAABEg/Ll5dgwz9dic/s1600/2011-11-08+09.59.50.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-u2aCh9nQLYE/Tr0z85ziaGI/AAAAAAAABEg/Ll5dgwz9dic/s320/2011-11-08+09.59.50.jpg" width="320" /></a> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>The President boarding Marine 1 - he looks tiny, but mighty!</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>&nbsp;</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ks5KATEcvnM/Tr0z9hqNN6I/AAAAAAAABEo/QVWGLTFuLIw/s1600/2011-11-08+10.37.34.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ks5KATEcvnM/Tr0z9hqNN6I/AAAAAAAABEo/QVWGLTFuLIw/s320/2011-11-08+10.37.34.jpg" width="240" /></a>&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>After our White House tour.</i></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qC87yRRpJxA/Tr0z-f4p6zI/AAAAAAAABEs/1Vm6PvxG87I/s1600/2011-11-08+10.38.43.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qC87yRRpJxA/Tr0z-f4p6zI/AAAAAAAABEs/1Vm6PvxG87I/s320/2011-11-08+10.38.43.jpg" width="240" />&nbsp;</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i>Miniature Bus reunion with Leah!</i>&nbsp; </div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-4460167686360592887?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-17019461668603756072011-11-10T12:53:00.000-05:002011-11-10T12:53:09.575-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GEJO2zE2vEg/TrwPbehQPkI/AAAAAAAABEY/7BWKIswD4y0/s1600/2011-11-07+14.18.39.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GEJO2zE2vEg/TrwPbehQPkI/AAAAAAAABEY/7BWKIswD4y0/s320/2011-11-07+14.18.39.jpg" width="240"></a></div><br>While in DC, I went to the zoo. For an entire afternoon, I was wandering the grounds of the National Zoo, spending some quality time in the small mammal house, hanging out as a party of one. You might be asking: why did you spend an entire day at the zoo? Aren&#39;t there all these other fascinating/DC-specific things you could have done? And you would be right - there are many museums, cemeteries, monuments, and other places of interest in the DC area that I could have gone to.<br><br>But I chose to go to the zoo.<br><br>It is the trap of most tourists to feel like they need to experience everything a place has to offer in order to feel &quot;satisfied&quot; with their visit. Vacations turn into these long sprawls of scheduled time where people are more or less running from place to place, feeling just as harried as when they are in their regular workday (if not more!). On this vacation, I wanted to break with the idea that every one of our actions has to be productive or profitable.<br><br>The zoo allowed me to connect with my intention: to relax.<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TOTnQJncd4E/TrwPBVyapYI/AAAAAAAABEQ/C6HSF5m6Au4/s1600/2011-11-07+16.26.36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TOTnQJncd4E/TrwPBVyapYI/AAAAAAAABEQ/C6HSF5m6Au4/s320/2011-11-07+16.26.36.jpg" width="320"></a></div></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/clear-intentions-my-trip-to-national.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1701946166860375607?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-70559904483917122012011-11-09T09:59:00.000-05:002011-11-09T09:59:08.301-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">For the fall break, I went to Washington DC to visit the president... of our high school ASB, my good friend Stephen. It was an intense and restful period of time that I hope to write more about, so expect some life lessons from our nation's capitol and several thousand photographs.<br /><br />Special thanks to Leah for her sarcastic wit at the White House and putting me on the bus back home, Kathryn for showing me the majesty of the monuments at night, and of course Stephen himself for hosting me in his dorm room at AU. Miss you all already!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-7055990448391712201?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-28909500989417838822011-11-05T13:28:00.001-04:002011-11-09T09:59:23.640-05:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;">"The particularity of our problems can only be made bearable though the recognition of our universal humanity. We suffer uniquely, but we survive the same way. Not one of us made it without someone offering a firm grip." - Dear Sugar, "#84: The Distance of the Leap"</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Take a moment to recognize those around you, to appreciate them for their humanity and their strength.</i></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-2890950098941783882?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-47063468428703127032011-11-04T09:17:00.001-04:002011-11-04T09:20:03.368-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dgKrfRuQ5i4/TrPl6OV6viI/AAAAAAAABEI/b7Mku7BKIzg/s1600/SDC12596.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dgKrfRuQ5i4/TrPl6OV6viI/AAAAAAAABEI/b7Mku7BKIzg/s320/SDC12596.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />This week, I looked back through the archives of <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/lessons">life lessons</a> that I've put up over the last few months and picked out some of my favorites. I've been learning so much from just thinking about how to teach others the methods that have worked well for me, that it's nice to revisit some of my past ideas. Here's a brief retrospective:<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/03/living-in-moment.html">Living in the Moment</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-to-live-your-life-like-its-one-big.html">How to Live Your Life Like It's One Big Experiment</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/5-ways-to-find-balance-in-productivity.html">5 Ways to Find Balance in Productivity</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/3-ways-to-follow-your-dreams-even-tiny.html">3 Ways to Follow Your Dreams (Even the Tiny Ones!)</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/7-lessons-ive-learned-from-re-watching.html">7 Lessons I've Learned from Re-Watching Buffy</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/05/what-blogging-has-taught-me.html">What Blogging Has Taught Me</a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Let me know what your favorite life lessons have been, from this blog and otherwise, in the comments! </div></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-4706346842870312703?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-42426568923048422612011-11-02T09:25:00.001-04:002011-11-02T09:28:19.592-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QCDgoFVaeq4/TrFEppNAS4I/AAAAAAAABEA/rzTGU1B5bY0/s1600/SDC12581.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QCDgoFVaeq4/TrFEppNAS4I/AAAAAAAABEA/rzTGU1B5bY0/s320/SDC12581.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />In the interest of distracting my inner editor this <a href="http://www.nanowrimo.org/">National Novel Writing Month</a>, here are some tips on what to do when your writing seems unoriginal:<br /><br />1. Play a creativity game with yourself. <i>Perhaps <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/6-tips-from-writing-workshops-opening.html">these</a> or the ones on <a href="http://www.typetrigger.com/">this site</a>.</i><br /><br />2. Lock away your inner editor (possibly physically) by envisioning them as a real person/animal/thing and putting them in a dark quiet box.<br /><br />3. Grab another medium of expression and put all the "unoriginal" thoughts into a visual, musical, or physical form. <i>I would love to see an interpretive dance come out of this project.</i><br /><br />4. Write long brilliant lists and entitle them all "Swirling Thoughts." <i>As you know already, <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/lists">lists</a> are my life.</i><br /><br />5. Write it out, write it again, write all your ideas out in some form until the words melt into single letters that don't look like they should fit together. <i>Also known as free-writing.</i><br /><br />6. Seek out <a href="http://www.advicetowriters.com/">advice for writers</a>, including this <a href="http://nedhardy.com/2011/05/09/nobody-tells-this-to-beginners/">quote from Ira Glass</a>. <i>And <a href="http://nextness.com.au/creativity/what-matters-is-the-work-25-lessons-for-creatives-in-patti-smith%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%98just-kids-%E2%80%99/">this list</a>. And perhaps <a href="http://tribalwriter.com/2011/04/25/getting-through-the-creativity-gap-all-the-way-to-the-power-of-awesome/">this video</a>, although it's not related to writing per se.</i><br /><br />7. Listen to top 40 songs and imagine them as poems. <i>Bleh!</i><br /><br />8. Remember that you are forever learning how to write.<br /><br /><i>Bonus: Check out some <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/lessons">more lessons</a> and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/advice">advice</a> on <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/creativity">creative</a> ventures.</i></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-4242656892304842261?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-52130808359168447272011-11-01T10:15:00.000-04:002011-11-01T10:15:12.128-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I haven&#39;t been very <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/creativity">creative</a> as of late.<br><br>My blog has shriveled to a post a week, I have not committed myself to daily creative time, and my energy has been slowly flagging as the temperatures dip lower and lower here in <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/nyc">NYC</a>.<br><br>So you may be wondering how I will possibly write 50,000 words for <a href="http://www.nanowrimo.org/">National Novel Writing Month</a> (NaNo) this year. And to that I say: you and I both! But I think that giving myself a good kick in the pants because of a formal event might be a good start to getting back towards normalcy. If there was ever a jumpstart to writing, NaNo would be that spark. And so, today, off I go into the vast wilderness that is novel-writing. Ideas after the jump!<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/11/write-or-die-nanowrimo-2011.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5213080835916844727?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-69675266467938253832011-10-31T09:17:00.001-04:002011-10-31T09:18:44.074-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Halloween is my favorite holiday - and not just because it occurs a week after my birthday! To celebrate, I donned this lovely interpretation of &quot;a wolf in sheep&#39;s clothing&quot; (hat courtesy of my lovely friend Nina and shirt courtesy of my lovely roommate Liberty), baked pumpkin bread, watched <i>The Others</i> and drudged up this Halloween story I wrote sometime in my early high school days. And yes, going through all that old material was truly spooky.<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Qrr3KV23cEs/Tq6d0eLKWlI/AAAAAAAABD4/zm1DXuOxc9s/s1600/halloween2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Qrr3KV23cEs/Tq6d0eLKWlI/AAAAAAAABD4/zm1DXuOxc9s/s320/halloween2011.jpg" width="169"></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>You can also see some of my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/ced-round-up-summer-writing-camp.html">costumes</a> <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2009/03/spirit-week-09.html">past</a> and other <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2009/04/sakuracon-photographic-journey.html">great costumes</a> from <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2010/04/sakuracon-weekend.html">SakuraCon</a>!</i></div></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/10/halloween-story.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-6967526646793825383?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-12559967133617433242011-10-24T10:28:00.000-04:002011-10-24T10:28:27.977-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mmyMF-VktLg/TqV1bca_d9I/AAAAAAAABDw/OQ37XmZQOkA/s1600/IMG_0470.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mmyMF-VktLg/TqV1bca_d9I/AAAAAAAABDw/OQ37XmZQOkA/s320/IMG_0470.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br />Few holidays find me giving myself as much protracted self-love as birthdays. I get to gather all my friends around me to appreciate my very existence on this earth - what could be more awesome?<br /><br />Birthdays can also be a time of self-reflection and regeneration. A time to look back on all the growing you've done and celebrate the moments that have formed you, for good or for ill, over however many years of life have passed by. I myself did a retrospective of <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2010/10/lists-19x19-birthday-lessons-loves.html">life lessons by 19</a> last year for just this purpose.<br /><br />This year, however, at the (ripe old) age of 20, I want to offer an outward glance to the people who have shaped me along this life journey. I want to wish <i>them</i> all the happiness and love that the world has to offer through two birthday wishes that I myself want to take on in the coming year. Here it goes:<br /><br /><b>1. Love and forgive yourself every day in a small action.</b> There are so many days that go by uncelebrated, and yet so many ways to celebrate the very fact that you got to experience another 24 hours of our beautiful planet. I suggest <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/03/living-in-moment.html">meditation</a>, giving yourself time for a creative pursuit, and/or eating something flavorful.<br /><br /><b>2. <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/3-ways-to-follow-your-dreams-even-tiny.html">Dream</a> outrageously. Do incrementally.</b> Get rid of the destination mentality that says you have to get somewhere in order to be someone. Work on the most outrageous dreams with the smallest of actions. Every footstep takes you further from where you started.<br /><br />Thanks to all the people in my life that have made this year and every other a special blend of intense experiences, deep conversation, and beautiful silliness. My love to you all!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1255996713361743324?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-57726537177984567662011-10-18T11:09:00.000-04:002011-10-18T11:09:53.917-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wT3Ddfnz1sQ/Tp2Vyc_L7FI/AAAAAAAABDo/QVm9W0pzTuI/s1600/SDC12597.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wT3Ddfnz1sQ/Tp2Vyc_L7FI/AAAAAAAABDo/QVm9W0pzTuI/s320/SDC12597.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />Last week, I found myself in a locked room. I had no key to get out, so I knocked - lightly at first, but then more insistently - hoping someone could come to my aid. No reply. I proceeded to become more and more frustrated and sincerely thought about throwing myself against the door, screaming, doing something extreme.<br /><br />This, my friends, is the locked room of my mind.<br /><br />For the last few weeks, I've been pacing around in it, measuring the length and width with my steps. I was experiencing the ultimate academic burnout. <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/emotions">Emotionally</a>, I was flat-lining and felt guilt over my lack of motivation. Physically, I was trying to rebuild a self-care routine out of sand. I felt trapped by my inability to be Superwoman, instead constantly dwelling on the mighty <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/lists">to-do list</a> that usually governs and stabilizes my life.<br /><br />But, for all that effort, the door would not budge. I was forced to sit with the uncomfortable tension of not getting everything done and not feeling up to doing even a little bit of it.<br /><br />At some point, I made a grand realization: no one cared about my work as much as I did. Not to say that no one cared about <i>me</i> and my accomplishments, but no one cared about <b>me finishing everything I'd set out to do just when I set out to do it.</b> I'll expand on this point:<br /><br />I missed many events, classes, and opportunities to study or socialize throughout the last weeks. And I felt madly, passionately guilty. But, at some point, the tension began to lift. And it was all because I realized that <b>people will forgive you for not being perfect</b>. In fact, no one expects it of you in the first place. We all have our moments of doubt and instability, so it may even be less effective to fight through them than to ride them out.<br /><br />No one was giving me a harder time than myself. So I made a decision - I could sit in that little room in my mind and kick at the walls, or I could use that space to chill out and let myself come back to center. I'm sure you can guess which one I've gone with.<br /><br />This week, I am slowly coming back into the world outside, not mustering through, but giving myself some room to feel comfortable again out here. Patience is the key.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5772653717798456766?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-53630769387502885222011-10-07T09:16:00.000-04:002011-10-07T09:16:03.400-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://desivideos.net/uploaded_images/FireMovieHindi_1442D/Fire_Movie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="284" src="http://desivideos.net/uploaded_images/FireMovieHindi_1442D/Fire_Movie.jpg" width="300"></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Image via DesiStudios</i></div><br>This movie came out in 1996, and I didn&#39;t hear about it until college. Clearly, I was deprived of some amazing works of art in my youth.<br><br>Fire is a movie about two <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/south%20asian">Indian women</a> who are in arranged marriages within the same family; the marriages are loveless and often they must bend to their husband&#39;s will regardless of whether he is being dutiful as well (sounds like a familiar narrative...).<br><br>The difference is that in Fire, the two women do get to fall in love - with each other. It&#39;s an amazing transition from viewing their acts as something wrong to finding the passion they need in one another.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/10/caught-my-eye-fire.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5363076938750288522?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-17961893884629975022011-10-04T10:29:00.000-04:002011-10-04T10:29:48.699-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gXhkw7lw0SY/TosXwKUUDwI/AAAAAAAABDk/lOFJoAR9y04/s1600/SDC12639.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gXhkw7lw0SY/TosXwKUUDwI/AAAAAAAABDk/lOFJoAR9y04/s320/SDC12639.JPG" width="320"></a></div><br>Unfortunately, although <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/10/on-location-slutwalk-nyc.html">my experience of SlutWalk</a> last weekend was powerful and gratifying, I can&#39;t say that it was perfect. There were some women who chose (as was their right) to be completely topless in the march. One woman in front of me was doing just that, chanting with the rest of us and having a generally good time. Until a man who wasn&#39;t part of the march came right up in front of her, basically halting her in the midst of the crowd, and tried to take a picture of her breasts.<br><br>The man was heckled out by the woman and people around her, but the incident sent a shiver down my spine. It reaffirmed why we were out there, yes, but it also made me wonder: how do we ever feel safe if we can&#39;t even be safe in that setting? And, perhaps even more key, how do we protect/aid each other in feeling safe and restoring safety?<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/10/at-slutwalk-nyc-are-we-ever-safe.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1796189388462997502?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-61442129964442855832011-10-03T09:14:00.001-04:002011-10-03T09:15:59.423-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aZH_kZjeDWA/Tomzu2EKpLI/AAAAAAAABDc/kPhHaUYQJB4/s1600/SDC12636.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aZH_kZjeDWA/Tomzu2EKpLI/AAAAAAAABDc/kPhHaUYQJB4/s320/SDC12636.JPG" width="320"></a></div>This weekend, I attended <a href="http://slutwalknyc.com/">SlutWalk NYC</a>. Now, despite my misgivings on the idea of reclaiming the word &quot;slut&quot; (see some great articles on this topic such as <a href="http://ontd-political.livejournal.com/8734503.html">this one</a>), I felt like the first message of the SlutWalk was an admirable one: <b>no one should be made to feel they called for sexual violation/violence due to their clothes.</b><br><br>The march was an amazing spectacle - tons of people (including 6+ of our fabulous Well Women) marching through the streets near Union Square shouting chants such as &quot;Yes means yes, no means no!&quot; and &quot;Rape is a felony, even for NYPD!&quot; for all to hear. It was great to feel the vibrant energy of the moment; there were people in all sorts of dress, from conservative to casual to sexy, with as many amazing signs as there were hands. And what was amazing to me is that it felt so... right. So uniting to have the crowd actually take an interest in this issue, not just a few isolated folks.<br><br>I will be writing more on the march in the coming week, but for now I&#39;ll just let the photos speak for themselves <i>(you can also see all bajillion pictures by liking <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Cowation-Creativity-Blog/212590285431153">The Cowation</a> on Facebook!)</i>:<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QflooxV_Dys/TomzWmdj6vI/AAAAAAAABDE/K-R_NJIcreE/s1600/SDC12645.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QflooxV_Dys/TomzWmdj6vI/AAAAAAAABDE/K-R_NJIcreE/s320/SDC12645.JPG" width="240"></a></div></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/10/on-location-slutwalk-nyc.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-6144212996444285583?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-72514149705181709432011-09-30T00:27:00.000-04:002011-09-30T00:27:54.483-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://2.gvt0.com/vi/ELMgw3FToXY/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ELMgw3FToXY&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ELMgw3FToXY&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>The Date is my favorite episode! Find yours at the <a href="http://www.awkwardblackgirl.com/episodes">ABG website</a>.</i></div><br />I love this video series. When I need a good laugh (in between <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/ced">art projects</a> and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-to-live-your-life-like-its-one-big.html">experiments</a>) I turn to Issa Rae's fantastic series to brighten my day. So why's it so great? Here's a rundown:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.awkwardblackgirl.com/episodes">Awkward Black Girl</a> is a mini-soap opera about a terrible office job, awkward interactions with co-workers, and the trials of romance. Best of all, it's extremely funny. By using stereotypes ironically and otherwise breaking social expectations of minorities and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/women">women</a>, the show appeals to my academic side along with my awkward inner core. With this series, I don't have to choose between seeing people portrayed non-stereotypically and getting a laugh. Which makes me wonder - why isn't all TV like this?<br /><br /><i>Check out more of what's <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/caught%20my%20eye">Caught My Eye</a> and some of my own <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/video">videos</a>.</i> </div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-7251414970518170943?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-56866645721425176442011-09-29T10:35:00.000-04:002011-09-29T10:35:32.139-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">For the past two weeks, I have been conducting <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-to-live-your-life-like-its-one-big.html">an experiment</a> on myself to answer the question: <i>what would it be like to drink only water for a week?</i> While I did not use the strictest scientific method (never record what happens, no controlled variables, etc.), I set out to discover whether I, as an avid soda drinker, could keep myself to water only.<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-snAH50kss_A/ToSAxCezYEI/AAAAAAAABDA/PUJsFmAkRf0/s1600/SDC12604.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-snAH50kss_A/ToSAxCezYEI/AAAAAAAABDA/PUJsFmAkRf0/s320/SDC12604.JPG" width="240"></a></div><br>And the results were quite intriguing - I learned quite a bit about my own hydration needs and the pull of temptation, but most importantly I learned about <b>habit formation.</b> And how hard it is to listen to the experimenter, even when that voice is your own. Learn more after the jump!<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/just-water-please-5-lessons-about-habit.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5686664572142517644?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-54654547169878047362011-09-28T09:20:00.000-04:002011-09-28T09:20:04.079-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I've been thinking about the distinction between working art and art that is just for its own sake. I make <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/art">art</a> of both types, and often the line between the two is faded and blurred (pardon the pun).<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CGO7vpTifHY/ToMdgG6NsLI/AAAAAAAABC8/K3zaw-rlnIQ/s1600/SDC12611.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CGO7vpTifHY/ToMdgG6NsLI/AAAAAAAABC8/K3zaw-rlnIQ/s320/SDC12611.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />For instance, this drawn collage of my left hand (hand-lage!) was created for its own sake. I wanted to <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/drawing">draw</a> hands, so I did. But functioning art, such as <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/zines">zines</a> about a specific topic or an informative video piece, carry both entertainment and a purpose beyond being interpreted by the viewer.<br /><br />But who determines that a piece has this special meaning? Does it have to be a direct one? These questions I have yet to answer for myself - what are your thoughts?<br /><br /><i>Take a look at some of the different types of art I myself create, such as my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/diy%20interlude">DIY collage</a>, <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/photography">photographs</a>, and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/ced">Creative Every Day project roundup</a>.</i> </div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5465454716987804736?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-2045594356807479072011-09-27T10:20:00.001-04:002011-09-27T10:22:45.250-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mag9Cge3nZg/ToHbFe14vxI/AAAAAAAABC0/HcYS7UgbVd0/s1600/SDC11508.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mag9Cge3nZg/ToHbFe14vxI/AAAAAAAABC0/HcYS7UgbVd0/s320/SDC11508.JPG" width="240"></a></div><br>A few weeks ago, I visited a friend I had not seen for quite some time. As she greeted me, one of the first things out of her mouth was: &quot;You&#39;ve gained weight, haven&#39;t you? You didn&#39;t have that chubby face last time.&quot;<br><br>As you no doubt have guessed from some of my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/03/why-eating-can-make-me-depressed.html">previous</a> <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2010/07/body-image-acceptance-journey-not-just.html">posts</a>, I am an avid self-love advocate and completely against accepting these kinds of comments without pushback - but this one left me in doubt.<br><br>I know that comments about one&#39;s body (especially from women to other women) are many things: they are normalized, often negative, and often intended to make the receiver police themselves in a way they may not have before. They also make the receiver feel like crap.<br><br>And indeed, regardless of how much time I&#39;ve spent learning about better body image and thinking up responses to these unsolicited comments, I could only find myself sputtering some sort of refrain and going quiet. The worst part came later, when I started questioning. Am I really heavier? Does that mean I&#39;ve become less healthy than before? And the best one: does this mean I have to forfeit the self-love and get back on track?<br><br>These meta-questions are all about that self-policing that is so encouraged by these words. It takes you out of your body and tells you that you need to justify what you&#39;re doing or change it. It&#39;s what sends people into fad diets and fat-shaming, into repeating the cycle of denial and guilt around tasty food, and into the impossible journey of trying to be &quot;perfect.&quot;<br><br>So how do we stop it?<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/body-talk-how-to-deal-with-negative.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-204559435680747907?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-32121923773740781652011-09-26T09:15:00.000-04:002011-09-26T09:15:49.245-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3lmYmEzGkKA/ToB63_z58CI/AAAAAAAABCw/wyXN5IhfhFA/s1600/SDC12608.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3lmYmEzGkKA/ToB63_z58CI/AAAAAAAABCw/wyXN5IhfhFA/s320/SDC12608.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />I got to the end of Erasmus* and began to fizzle out.<br /><br />This week was the first of many "normal" weeks that I'll be having this semester: chock full of required readings, event planning, and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/fear-of-falling-skating-and-thoughts-on.html">learning to skate</a>. And each day I come home more tired and more ready to cut out early on anything that I'm doing in order to get a few more minutes of sleep - and that does not exclude writing blog posts!<br /><br />The weariness that befalls me each semester at <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/college">college</a> is often rewarding, but nonetheless it takes a lot out of a person. Activities that I use to get away from academic work are often just as draining, but in different ways (roller derby, cough cough). But I struggle forward day by day, moment by moment, with my head working in <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/lists">lists</a> and my path traced out by schedules on notebook paper.<br /><br />However, I've noticed one discrepancy between class and outside activities: I <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/03/living-in-moment.html">live in the moment</a> more when I am doing outside activities than when I am in class. I start to drift off and think about what I'll be doing <i>next</i> rather than what I'm involved in at that moment. And I used to think that was ok, until it wasn't. Until I realized that I shouldn't be privileging some moments of my life over other ones. Fortunately, I know the trick to keeping present, even in the moments that I'm least engaged in.<br /><br />Breathing.<br /><br />Simple, but effective, I am making the commitment to myself this week to focus on breathing and living in the moment regardless of the situation. Because every moment of life is important; none has a special tag labeled "URGENT" that should be given more attention.<br /><br />Do you agree?<br /><br /><i>*Renaissance author whose book, </i>Praise of Folly<i>, required 130+ footnotes.</i></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3212192377374078165?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-2343697078922893752011-09-25T10:09:00.000-04:002011-09-25T10:09:02.092-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hE22IFEnyUw/Tn81njyV4SI/AAAAAAAABCs/-p3vzDN8DNU/s1600/IMG_20110922_203932.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hE22IFEnyUw/Tn81njyV4SI/AAAAAAAABCs/-p3vzDN8DNU/s320/IMG_20110922_203932.jpg" width="239" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-er47vZNT6rw/Tn81k8Q0xrI/AAAAAAAABCo/a9k67t1LziQ/s1600/IMG_20110922_204645.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-er47vZNT6rw/Tn81k8Q0xrI/AAAAAAAABCo/a9k67t1LziQ/s320/IMG_20110922_204645.jpg" width="239" /></a></div><br />This week, I attended the Troy Davis silent vigil on Columbia's campus - in remembrance, we did a small march and then a speak-out about our emotions surrounding his execution. The takeaway? <i>This is our moment: take charge in the issues you care about.</i></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-234369707892289375?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-35543396551467054802011-09-22T10:40:00.001-04:002011-09-22T10:49:06.745-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://feministing.com/files/2011/09/troy-davis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://feministing.com/files/2011/09/troy-davis.jpg" width="295" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Image via <a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_225192529">Feministing</a></i><a href="http://www.feministing.com/"> </a></div><br />I got a news alert at 12:30am telling me that Georgia executed Troy Davis. I should have just rolled over and went back to sleep, but I lay awake, staring out of windows and wondering what could have prevented this.<br /><br />I was not personally affected by this case - heck, I only really got involved after hearing the stir around his upcoming execution. But there is something about Troy Davis that hits me right in my core. It is those words that have oft been repeated after his death: "We are all Troy Davis." We are all subject to the same unchecked corruption that our government puts forth. We are all guilty until proven innocent. We are all affected by forces that we cannot directly influence nor change - everything from systems of oppression to judicial realities that prevent us from hearing the full story. We don't want to hear it sometimes; sometimes it shocks us. Like this case, like the DSK rape case, like the woman who got pulled off a plane for being brown on 9/11. This is the world that we live in. So what do we do?<br /><br />Stand up for your voice in this system. Fight the oppressive forces that push us down and silence us. And offer up prayers/good energy towards those who are affected by such tragedies which occur not far away, not in a distant land, but right here in our country. Right now.<br /><br />RIP Troy Davis. May you teach us so much.<br /><br /><i>Read more about the case at <a href="http://colorlines.com/archives/2011/09/a_hard_night_of_global_solidarity_as_georgia_murders_troy_davis.html">Colorlines</a> and the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/22/us/final-pleas-and-vigils-in-troy-davis-execution.html">New York Times</a>.</i> </div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3554339655146705480?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-56242234524590082712011-09-21T09:44:00.000-04:002011-09-21T09:44:52.603-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-V0CMhIjNbIA/TnnqSCOYkiI/AAAAAAAABCk/mb2htV51hcE/s1600/SDC12573.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-V0CMhIjNbIA/TnnqSCOYkiI/AAAAAAAABCk/mb2htV51hcE/s320/SDC12573.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />This weekend, I had a brief time when felt like I was starting to lose it. Life was jumbled with work and work with life so much that I felt restless and in need of some quiet creative time.<br /><br />Hence, I returned to that little gem of creating every day, but in a very different format than during the summer.<br /><br />Summer days pass long and uninterrupted, generally, so I had set no time for specific creative progress. Now, I've set aside two fixed hours during the day where I just sit around and do... well, anything. This week, I've written a poem, planned out a zine to be entitled Letters to Myself, and drawn a "hand-lage" (pictures coming soon). And overall its kept me a little more sane than before.<br /><br />Artists and writers never have time enough for their craft - if there were three circles in the Venn diagram of my life (school, work, and creative pursuits), I would say that creative pursuits is the one I long to do the most, but gets the least attention. For now, I'm fighting back with a schedule and a raised pen.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5624223452459008271?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-53466063114651337542011-09-20T10:20:00.002-04:002011-09-20T10:29:26.314-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-64WFvsKYXbg/TnihIJ38ljI/AAAAAAAABCg/oTqLtTWCJ6I/s1600/IMG_8532.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-64WFvsKYXbg/TnihIJ38ljI/AAAAAAAABCg/oTqLtTWCJ6I/s320/IMG_8532.JPG" width="320"></a></div><br>This post is in response to Rachel Hills&#39; intriguing Tumblr post <a href="http://rachelhills.tumblr.com/post/10161799093/some-questions-i-have-about-erotic-capital">&quot;Some Questions I Have About Erotic Capital.&quot;</a> In this piece (a response itself to Catherine Hakim&#39;s book, funnily enough), she asks her readers several questions about ideas of beauty and body positivity. Here&#39;s a breakdown:<br><br>1. Is valuing beauty the root of the problem in body hate, or is it that we are socialized to believe we&#39;re never beautiful enough?<br>2. &quot;Is it just a <b>female thing</b>, or do <b>men</b> experience it as well?&quot;<br>3. &quot;Have you managed to develop a <b>positive approach</b> to the way you look?&quot;<br>4. &quot;How do we stop <b>beauty positivity</b> from turning into <b>beauty privilege</b>?&quot;<br><br>I have been struggling with these questions, mostly internally, since I started down the route of body love and self-acceptance. How do we reconcile wanting to look good with not judging people based on looks? So, when I read this post, it got my brain cells a&#39; firin&#39; with delicious activity. Here are my thoughts.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/some-answers-i-have-about-erotic.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5346606311465133754?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-60982469301555625602011-09-19T09:26:00.002-04:002011-09-19T23:35:31.060-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-olzJGZzqBRk/SfZlj8gtf7I/AAAAAAAAAes/4W2GLcyrwEI/s1600/5mar27.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-olzJGZzqBRk/SfZlj8gtf7I/AAAAAAAAAes/4W2GLcyrwEI/s320/5mar27.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Me as a tennis player, back in the times of yore.</i></div><br /><br />This weekend, I start going to the Gotham Girls Rec League Level 1 for beginning skaters. I'm extremely excited - but also very nervous! I have been skating sporadically throughout the summer, but this is the time where I will be getting back to it in earnest. I am happy to say that I am getting better and better each time I get back on, but I still have a knee-jerk reaction to hold back when I start going "too fast" or feel myself toppling over. Perhaps this is the common fate of humankind (Thou shalt not roll on wheels as a form of locomotion), but I have seen so many brilliant players that do it effortlessly that I can't help but feel envious.<br /><br />On a similar note of self-reflection, I have realized that I was at one point accustomed to getting 2 hours of exercise 5 days a week for at least half the year. It was a realization that made me go "whoa" aloud in my bedroom at 1am. I used to be a tennis player who, while not very good, really enjoyed the game and the exercise involved in it.<br /><br />I completely forfeited that when I came to <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/college">college</a>.<br /><br />And I've come to realize that exercise and movement is actually something I really need to be consistently happy. Perhaps because I was getting that throughout high school, I grew accustomed to it and felt that it was an integral part of my life. But now, when the choice is sleeping a little longer or getting in an hour of exercise, I choose to hit the snooze button.<br /><br />College may give me a lot of choices in lifestyle, but it binds with the same force. With the pressure of classes, homework, my job, and my internship all going down at once, I really have to carve out the hours for everything else - from art to exercise, they get pushed off to the side.<br /><br />I am seeing how important it is to make that time happen. Skating for 2 hours every week will be just one of my first steps.<br /><br /><i>Interested to read more about roller derby? Read my post about <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-roller-derby-challenges-stereotypes.html">How Roller Derby Challenges Stereotypes of Women in Sports.</a></i><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-roller-derby-challenges-stereotypes.html"> </a></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-6098246930155562560?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-85600752100742391102011-09-15T13:46:00.001-04:002011-09-15T13:48:33.465-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MsQpQ__tJ4c/TnI54PUaQxI/AAAAAAAABCc/lCp4VO4tcqE/s1600/thinnerbracelets1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MsQpQ__tJ4c/TnI54PUaQxI/AAAAAAAABCc/lCp4VO4tcqE/s320/thinnerbracelets1.JPG" width="213"></a></div><br>I told you about <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/bucket-list-and-work-boots.html">my bucket list</a> last week - well, I&#39;ve been making good on my claims to work on it, and it has spurred some other interesting conclusions. Namely, I&#39;ve found myself trying out new experiences more than ever before. Perhaps because there is an inherent joy in testing out all the great things you can do with your life, but I also believe that there is a bit of method to it.<br><br>A bucket list (or any sort of future-tense planning) puts you in the mindset that your life is plentiful, playful and ever-shifting depending on how you choose to live it. In essence, it makes your life an intentional experiment. <i>You</i> can choose what independent variables you want to manipulate to get a certain result in the dependent variable - which is, of course, always your own enjoyment or sense of self-reward.<br><br>But mindset gets you only half the way. From there, you have to put those thoughts into action. How? Well, that depends.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-to-live-your-life-like-its-one-big.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-8560075210074239110?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-34766639154077630112011-09-14T09:27:00.000-04:002011-09-14T09:27:26.682-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I&#39;ve felt quietly <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/creativity">creative</a> lately. On my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/bucket-list-and-work-boots.html">bucket list</a>, there is a section of creative goals. They include things like reviving my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/ced">Creative Every Day project</a> and finishing the draft of my long novel by the end of November, but these are all in motion rather than right here on the page. So, I want to dedicate Wednesdays to making my quiet creativity more public than private, in hopes that it will spur me to complete my bucket list parameters for this semester. And for you, dear readers, that means a little break from the literal and more of the artistic each Wednesday. Hope you enjoy it!<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gb8v44ZQeZs/TnCrDeCfpYI/AAAAAAAABCU/MipjGzMu-nE/s1600/b8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gb8v44ZQeZs/TnCrDeCfpYI/AAAAAAAABCU/MipjGzMu-nE/s320/b8.JPG" width="320"></a></div><br><div style="text-align: center;"><i>***</i></div><i> I was concerned when the faceless woman boarded the subway car and began walking towards me. I glanced up from my reading briefly and when I looked down again my eyes hooked themselves on individual words from the page, words like &quot;stuck&quot; and &quot;craft,&quot; breaking the flow of my concentration. I wondered whether she wanted to talk with me, opening the conversation with that guttural sound I know too well. It&#39;s the machine, I know, but even if it facilitates their speech, I still detest the background gurgle, like water being poured into an empty jug.<br></i><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/faceless-woman-and-quiet-creativity.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3476663915407763011?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-11734162445656929872011-09-13T16:23:00.000-04:002011-09-13T16:24:39.696-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">My friends have always said that I am busy no matter where I go, and this weekend was no exception. Here&#39;s a quick rundown:<br><br><div style="text-align: center;"><b>THURSDAY:</b> Fashion&#39;s Night Out</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>FRIDAY:</b> The Barnard Career Fair, MP3 Experiment, Columbia club fair, an Afro-Cuban dance class, and a birthday party (that quickly became an impromptu Well Woman meeting)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>SATURDAY:</b> Raw Elementz hip hop dance tryouts and roller derby volunteer crew duty for the bout between Brooklyn Bombshells and the Queens of Pain</div><br>When it&#39;s written down in list format, it looks... well, as intense as it was. My body is now sore from tip to toe. But, since my brain thrives on intensity, I will offer you some practical wisdom that I gleaned from attending each of these amazing events. Ready? Here it goes:<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/life-lessons-from-busy-weekend.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1173416244565692987?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-38288953904165013122011-09-12T09:20:00.000-04:002011-09-12T09:33:14.258-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R_3S5JcjJAQ/Tm4HBcm7ScI/AAAAAAAABCI/wttEq7Raqd0/s1600/SDC12559.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R_3S5JcjJAQ/Tm4HBcm7ScI/AAAAAAAABCI/wttEq7Raqd0/s320/SDC12559.JPG" width="320"></a></div><br>I went back and forth about whether to write a post about 9/11. In some ways, it is an insignificant day to me - at the time, I was 9 years old and believed that the next target was going to be the Space Needle, which was the only important tall building I could conceptualize in my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/washington">West Coast</a> upbringing. But it also marked an important turn for the relationship I and my family have to this country. In my work, in my daily life, the specter of that date 10 years ago hangs over me.<br><br>I am a <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/Muslim">Muslim</a> woman, but at that point in time I wasn&#39;t cognizant of it. We were not a religious family, and that was a fine thing in my youth. But the label was still on me. Though I could have theoretically passed as a Hindu (because of the common stereotype that all <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/south%20asian">South Asian</a> people are of that religion), I never wanted to hide the fact of my religious affiliation. The conception of Islam that I have now was formed out of a defense for it.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/911-growing-up-reactionary-youth.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3828895390416501312?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-29227784109196609142011-09-07T13:21:00.000-04:002011-09-07T13:21:11.302-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Yesterday was the <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/5-tips-for-incoming-college-freshmen.html">first day</a> of classes at Columbia, which ushered in the fruitful chaos that is the fall semester here at college. Though I&#39;ve been here for a week to work on Well Woman topics and generally ease myself back into New York-style living, the beginning of classes was wonderful. Sitting down with a bunch of strangers in order to explore a new and interesting (or required) topic is still exciting to me. Alas, I am a student at heart.<br><br>But another thought dawns on me whenever I sit down in one of our classrooms. I picture myself in the trenches of stats homework, putting on my size 8 work boots and wielding my pencil like a musket, spending hours in the morning and night trying to finish… The work is all consuming. And thus, I had to start thinking of how I would <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/5-ways-to-find-balance-in-productivity.html">shift my mentality</a> towards fun and creative pursuits.<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_QTOdwJYCU0/TmenqY1QWAI/AAAAAAAABCE/WTVotgr7BPc/s1600/SDC12536.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_QTOdwJYCU0/TmenqY1QWAI/AAAAAAAABCE/WTVotgr7BPc/s320/SDC12536.JPG" width="240"></a></div><br>So, I came up with a deceptively simple solution: a bucket list.<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/bucket-list-and-work-boots.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-2922778410919660914?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-60521833855370292682011-09-06T10:01:00.000-04:002011-09-06T10:01:59.850-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PxEsHvWOMvs/TmYnpDkwMnI/AAAAAAAABCA/k67a0en42tw/s1600/IMG_8534.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PxEsHvWOMvs/TmYnpDkwMnI/AAAAAAAABCA/k67a0en42tw/s320/IMG_8534.JPG" width="213"></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Me, as a terrified freshman.</i> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div>I love freshmen or - as <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/college">Barnard</a> would have us call them - first years. Having moved in early this year for <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/well%20woman">Well Woman</a> training, I got to see them as they went about their orientation activities and attended endless programming. And in between the student services fair, the perspectives on diversity training, the floor meetings, and the early morning introductory breakfasts, I remembered how overwhelming the freshman experience can be. So, since we are kicking off classes this morning, here are my 5 tips for freshmen, not just at Barnard, but at large:<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/5-tips-for-incoming-college-freshmen.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-6052183385537029268?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-3738918882327786782011-09-02T12:53:00.000-04:002011-09-02T12:53:43.921-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://manishathakor.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/DO-IT-ANYWAY-cover-e1287412957594.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://manishathakor.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/DO-IT-ANYWAY-cover-e1287412957594.jpg"></a></div><br>When I began my summer vacation, I was gung ho to chew through the large shelf of books that I&#39;d neglected to read during the school year. At that point, I didn&#39;t quite know yet how strenuous my job at the <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/politics-with-youthful-twist-working.html">Washington Bus</a> would be and how little time I would have to gnaw on dense <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/feminism">feminist</a> classics and other miscellany.<br><br>Of the precious few books that I did end up reading over the summer, <i>Do It Anyway</i> by <a href="http://feministing.com/">Feministing</a>&#39;s Courtney Martin was by far one of the best. I am a sucker for interviews about amazing activists, for one, but the book also takes upon itself the heavy task of reigniting positivity and inspiration in the activist community, which was refreshing. It acknowledges the hardships and complexities of activist work while injecting some much-needed excitement for the everyday struggle. <br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/09/caught-my-eye-do-it-anyway.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-373891888232778678?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-16396040850777340112011-09-01T00:15:00.000-04:002011-09-01T00:15:17.649-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NijVC9LWfRk/Tl8GsRasatI/AAAAAAAABB8/Dclxlk0TahU/s1600/SDC12524.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NijVC9LWfRk/Tl8GsRasatI/AAAAAAAABB8/Dclxlk0TahU/s320/SDC12524.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />&nbsp;Finally, I'm all moved in! This week, I am in training for my second year as a Well Woman peer educator (hence the bright green "Be Well" shirt pictured above) and generally settling back into life in <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/nyc">New York City</a>. Rather than bore you with the minute by minute, here are some highlights from the past few days:<br /><br />- Seeing a gang of "bikers" ripping up Amsterdam on dune buggies<br />- Watching a parrot man gesticulate wildly after coming out of Kitchenette<br />- Meeting all the amazing new Well Women peer eds and doing endless ice breakers<br />- Strolling to the 99 cent store and finding absolutely everything you need to move into a dorm<br />- Being hugged by almost every administrator I saw on the way from Barnard to EC<br />- Sitting on the Columbia steps and overhearing the gaggle of freshmen express their excitement at being there<br />- Reconnecting with the lovely ladies of Barnard that have moved in early this year<br /><br /><br />That's it for now! Next week, classes start, so I am hoping to update the blog as regularly as I can from that point on, but there may be some missed days. Never fear! My <a href="http://thecowation.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a> will never be silent.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1639604085077734011?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-81056823036481627762011-08-29T15:38:00.000-04:002011-08-29T15:38:41.055-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UnkQp6Rfk7k/SlgpG4Y8y8I/AAAAAAAAAnw/vV87MHiC4-8/s1600/1july10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" qaa="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UnkQp6Rfk7k/SlgpG4Y8y8I/AAAAAAAAAnw/vV87MHiC4-8/s320/1july10.jpg" width="320"></a></div><div closure_uid_nc0pdd="702"><br></div>I hate to be a cliché in my own life, but I believe that running away to <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/nyc">NYC</a> actually taught me a lot about <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/washington">Seattle</a>. I came out of high school with a fully formed desire to escape that place. Suburban, middle class, mostly white high school taught me – in some strange ways – that nothing I wanted was going to be easy to get. We had the academic standing, but the culture of our school was restrictive. While administration wanted us to perform well on standardized tests, they barred us from creative endeavors like theater programs and newspapers. And, unless it made the school look good, philanthropic and cultural clubs were also out.<br><br>That atmosphere left me, the motivated do-gooder with a creative bent, completely despondent.<br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/08/own-every-inch-seattle-appreciation-in.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-8105682303648162776?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-59747839356026147972011-08-27T21:48:00.000-04:002011-08-27T21:48:22.505-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://1.gvt0.com/vi/MsqEljgsxvE/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MsqEljgsxvE&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MsqEljgsxvE&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>A video on progress that I edited for <a href="http://washingtonbus.org/blog">the Washington Bus</a>. Animations and all.</i></div><br />I've made it! The long haul to the East Coast is finished, which means two things:<br /><br />1. I will be resuming regular daily blog content tomorrow.<br />2. I am thinking endlessly about how to make myself more connected to this NYC community as I have during the summer to my Seattle community.<br /><br />As I prepare for both of those things (as well as the coming hurricane), I will be thinking a lot about progress and change. Hence, I present to you a video I edited on what progress means to each of the Summer Fellows in my program over the summer. This video is reposted from <a href="http://washingtonbus.org/blog">the Hella Bus blog</a>. Enjoy!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5974783935602614797?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-54927150360741853842011-08-26T18:05:00.000-04:002011-08-26T18:05:45.703-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://0.gvt0.com/vi/ikalE52DJcQ/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ikalE52DJcQ&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ikalE52DJcQ&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>A goodbye video I edited for <a href="http://washingtonbus.org/blog">the Washington Bus</a>.</i></div><br />The time has come again for yet another one of my famous exits. The hours are counting down until my flight into hurricane-ready <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/nyc">NYC</a> and I am reflecting on every last moment of my summer in <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/seattle">Seattle</a> while simultaneously worrying about how my father and I are going to move me into the dorms in a city that is otherwise evacuating its residents. Since it has been quiet around the blog for the past month, those reflections are stored up in my mind, on my journal paper, and in photograph form awaiting upload. In the coming days, I will share all of these with you, dear readers, but for now I just want to give thanks.<br /><br />When I returned from New York in mid-May, I had a month essentially to myself. I taught myself some marketing skills, spent some time with some amazing high school friends, and genuinely relaxed for the first time in months. It almost looked like I would have a typical Seattle summer - indulging myself in artsy learning opportunities and working through my bucket list of fun things on my own. That quickly changed when I started <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/politics-with-youthful-twist-working.html">my job at the Bus</a>.<br /><br />As I've said in previous posts, my Fellowship with the Bus was honestly one of the best and most connective experiences that I've had in Seattle. For too long, I have felt that my hometown had nothing to do and little for me to get involved in; through the Bus, I have become more connected to this place than ever I could imagine. I have commuted to the city at all hours of the day and night, spent time with more amazing people than I thought possible, and explored enough events and locations to know the best and worst spots from here to Kirkland. In essence, I got exactly what I wanted: to connect back to the home that I thought I would never return to. And I am immensely grateful for it.<br /><br />That feeling, that connection, makes this moment peculiar. I am sitting in a coffee shop on Capitol Hill contemplating my summer and all the new faith I have in Seattle in being a place I could spend a good deal of my life in. And yet I am leaving. Back to a city where I am a party of one, where I have had both my best and worst experiences, and where I can no longer communicate face to face with the people I have built strong ties to in the last two months. It is as surreal as it is exciting, as amazing as it is saddening.<br /><br />I'm going to take over NYC this year. That is the energy that the Summer Fellows and my own new found strength has given me. This summer in Seattle has taught me that fun can be had even amidst tremendous amounts of work, and I am ready to take that philosophy back to Barnard. Tomorrow, I will touch down in the middle of this hurricane fearless and ready for the next big adventure. And this time, I won't forget to write about it.<br /><br />Thank you again, Summer Fellows, for supporting me and giving me greater power than I already had invested in me. You have built for me a better home in the place I grew up, and I hope that you will keep in touch as we all move forward into the next year.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5492715036074185384?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-85424089184232828782011-08-10T21:52:00.000-04:002011-08-10T21:52:03.625-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Quick! What do you do when work gets tough and you need a break?<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://regularrumination.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/a-good-hard-look.jpg?w=263&amp;h=400" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://regularrumination.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/a-good-hard-look.jpg?w=263&amp;h=400" width="210" /></a></div><br />For me, the answer was take on another project that is completely separate from my working life - in this case, reading and reviewing <i>A Good Hard Look </i>for <a href="http://www.blogher.com/">BlogHer.com</a>. Read my review, <a href="http://www.blogher.com/bookclub/good-hard-look-hearty-character-soup">A Hearty Character Soup</a>, over at BlogHer.<br /><br />To give a little context, BlogHer is a website that promotes women bloggers of all sorts, and the ads on the right side of the homepage are provided by their syndication. I have also elected to be a member of their Book Club, hence the reading involved. I hope to get more involved in the community that they have on the website when I am not swamped, but for now, I am contributing my thoughts to their growing pool of amazing reviewers and writers. Ah, the precious few thoughts that get put down on the page. Enjoy them!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-8542408918423282878?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-14220252851954666272011-08-01T03:00:00.000-04:002011-08-01T03:00:09.993-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_P_p8AL8s6PM/TRmlSzfPxuI/AAAAAAAAAZk/xKxcbVBdOMA/s1600/bleh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="333" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_P_p8AL8s6PM/TRmlSzfPxuI/AAAAAAAAAZk/xKxcbVBdOMA/s1600/bleh.jpg" width="500" /></a>&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(via <a href="http://icanhascheezburger.com/">ICanHasCheezburger</a>)</div><br />I am really good at not taking breaks.<br /><br />These past few weeks, I have been going through meteoric stress levels, intense weather changes that prompted severe illness, and general hopelessness towards completing personal goals. I tell myself that I need to take breaks and make it about me for a while, but my priorities have always been so stringent and my mental state so stubborn that I haven't actually done that. So, that has meant a lot of sacrifice.<br /><br />As you have probably noticed, it has meant moving away from this blog and the <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/ced-round-up-writing-my-novel.html">novel</a> I've been working on to distill all the precious bits of sleep and energy I have into my day job. It has also meant sniffling through amazing <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/journey-into-yakima.html">bus journeys</a> into different parts of the state, crying in public, and talking to friend after friend about the tenuous mix of tiredness, annoyance, and genuine sadness I've felt. Physical or mental, the weeks have been taking a toll.<br /><br />But why do I share this with you, my readers? My blog doesn't usually deal with my personal life (though I suppose it does tangentially through my blatant editorializing of everyday life), but I wanted to share for two reasons:<br /><br /><b>1. To tell you where I'm at and where I'm going.</b> I really want to get back on track with the blog once I'm feeling better. I will never have all the time in the world to write here, but I will make do with the precious moments I do have. Once they're not being monopolized by sleeping, that is.<br /><br /><b>2. To ask you to learn from my mistakes.</b> I am notorious at pushing myself too hard and exploding into thousands of pieces upon impact. Don't copy me on that! I think it is partly due to our culture of efficiency and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/productivity">productivity</a>, which asks us to work until we are dog tired otherwise we won't feel "worth it," whatever that means. And I've internalized that by being a go-go-go person for my entire life. But you don't have to follow in my footsteps - you can instead read some of the clear-headed articles I've written about relaxation and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/03/living-in-moment.html">living in the moment</a>. And sure enough, sickness is one great way to be reminded to live in the moment. All you can concentrate on is that ache in your side or cough in your chest. Nothing else matters.<br /><br />Anyway, I will be posting more interesting articles in the weeks to come, but for now I will be taking my own advice and laying low for a bit. You can take a look at my thriving <a href="http://thecowation.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a> page if you want some great media to absorb until my return!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1422025285195466627?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-16458880866203889252011-07-25T11:50:00.000-04:002011-07-25T11:51:18.465-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">It feels very strange not to put up a blog post every day after having done so for the past few months; however, as of late I have been notoriously busy. Although I have posts lined up, I prioritize sleep over getting the blog up. So, I have made the decision to revert to putting up a blog post once per week until the stress of working and living my intense life has calmed down to the point that I can re-enter the blogging field. However, I will be putting updates on my <a href="http://thecowation.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a> for all to see regularly. For now, dear readers, please bear with me as I work to check off all the boxes on my very long to-do list.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1645888086620388925?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-14962324671040031472011-07-21T03:00:00.000-04:002011-07-21T03:00:06.598-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VqIjVIUft9g/Tie9Nt87tAI/AAAAAAAABBw/0kXQbEQUccA/s1600/doodles-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VqIjVIUft9g/Tie9Nt87tAI/AAAAAAAABBw/0kXQbEQUccA/s320/doodles-3.jpg" width="249" /></a></div><br />This and last week, I experienced a meteoric slow down in my novel-writing experiences. This was informed, in part, by the increase in busy experiences that were required of me at my job. Last week, we canvassed the neighborhoods Wednesday night, hosted a fancy fundraiser at the Chihuly Boathouse in the evening, and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/journey-into-yakima.html">journeyed to Yakima</a> on Sunday. All of these experiences were undeniably fun, but they did take away from the two things a novelist needs in abundance: energy and time.<br /><br />Basically, lacking those two things, I had a brain explosion.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So this week, I will show you some of the doodles I'm doing in recovery from that explosion and hopefully next week I will have more to say about my noveling progress.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2zGfBwIxz1A/Tie_i9hJ46I/AAAAAAAABB0/4axOk8twjMU/s1600/doodles-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2zGfBwIxz1A/Tie_i9hJ46I/AAAAAAAABB0/4axOk8twjMU/s320/doodles-1.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lz4zO4FT-EU/Tie_khZhySI/AAAAAAAABB4/o0fC9DAhlkY/s1600/doodles-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lz4zO4FT-EU/Tie_khZhySI/AAAAAAAABB4/o0fC9DAhlkY/s320/doodles-2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">(by the way, I am at 20,000 words when I should be at 32,000 by now - there's still time yet, however!)</div><br /><i>Check out some of my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/story">stories</a> and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/6-tips-from-writing-workshops-opening.html">advice for writers</a> while I get back my own novel chops.</i></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1496232467104003147?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-11859101774762920632011-07-20T12:14:00.000-04:002011-07-20T12:14:20.436-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pPnR9HBRc0Y/TiY0_kdb2dI/AAAAAAAABBY/uOO4nZcXlLM/s1600/SDC12445.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pPnR9HBRc0Y/TiY0_kdb2dI/AAAAAAAABBY/uOO4nZcXlLM/s400/SDC12445.JPG" width="400"></a></div><i>Happy barbecue eaters at the Yes on Districts office.</i><br><br><div style="text-align: left;">I have been an explorer for as long as I can remember - however, I have not yet had the opportunity to explore much of the great state of Washington, since I was either a) unable to drive or b) attending school across the country. So, naturally, this weekend I jumped at the chance to canvass in the city of Yakima for the Yes on Districts campaign. <br><br>Briefly, the Yes on Districts campaign will create 7 districts in Yakima (there are currently 4) so that each city council member represents a smaller number of people and can be more accessible/cater to their needs better. It is a proposition in an off-year election, so they needed all the help they could get raising awareness of something that could be monumental for Yakima. Thus, the <a href="http://washingtonbus.org/">Washington Bus</a> hooked us up with the opportunity to canvass with their group. Woo hoo! Adventure and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/politics-with-youthful-twist-working.html">local politics</a>!<br><br>We will be going back there in August with a greater number of volunteers for the final push towards the primary, so don&#39;t hesitate to contact me if you want to join us next time!<br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/journey-into-yakima.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1185910177476292063?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-20813944518286299532011-07-18T04:13:00.001-04:002011-07-19T12:22:05.800-04:00I'm taking a little break from blogging for the beginning of this week - I spent my week driving across the state, attending fancy fundraisers, and overthinking everything, so rest assured that I will be back with great insight in the next few days!<br /><br />P.S.<br />Although my blog is currently not being updated as much, my <a href="http://thecowation.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a> has a lot of great media for you to absorb. Go forth into the vast internet!<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-2081394451828629953?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-10093358369926952252011-07-14T03:00:00.000-04:002011-07-14T03:00:07.459-04:00<div style="text-align:left">This week&#39;s CED Round-up will be pretty short, due to the fact that I have consolidated most (if not all) of my creative energies on writing (all 16,946 words I have so far) of my novel for <a href="http://www.campnanowrimo.org/">Camp National Novel Writing Month</a> (NaNoWriMo). To contradict that last statement, here are two things I worked on this week that were not related to the novel - a VoteBot comic for the <a href="http://washingtonbus.org/blog">Washington Bus blog</a> and a business card:</div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d_3Zb4sZShM/Th6OtX34e9I/AAAAAAAABBQ/dkZzIYo9Hrg/s1600/basicbusinesscard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d_3Zb4sZShM/Th6OtX34e9I/AAAAAAAABBQ/dkZzIYo9Hrg/s400/basicbusinesscard.jpg" width="312"></a></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(click for the larger versions.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aRCuhW7NW1I/Th6OtLzsk8I/AAAAAAAABBI/9Et06kxwvU8/s1600/votebotcomic1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aRCuhW7NW1I/Th6OtLzsk8I/AAAAAAAABBI/9Et06kxwvU8/s400/votebotcomic1.jpg" width="300"></a></div><br><div style="text-align:left">Anyway, back to the writing. <br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/ced-round-up-writing-my-novel.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-1009335836992695225?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-31401021143704691822011-07-13T03:00:00.000-04:002011-07-13T03:00:02.768-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs13/f/2007/105/3/e/_powerup__by_Link3Kokiri.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="50" width="35" src="http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs13/f/2007/105/3/e/_powerup__by_Link3Kokiri.gif"></a><br>(Emoticon courtesy of <a href="http://browse.deviantart.com/customization/emoticons/animated/?qh=&amp;section=&amp;q=anger#/dvq0bo">Link3Kokiri</a> on DeviantArt)</div><br>Anger is an <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/emotions">emotion</a> that I have lived with forever, and many times I have felt consumed by it. When I fail to complete a small task or end up late at a meeting, I feel the anger reflected inward towards myself. When I view injustice towards <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/women">women</a>, <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/Muslim">Muslims</a>, and other groups, I feel a sort of unfocused anger outwards to the world. <br><br>The first type of anger, I have worked to control for many years and in the process have stifled the second type of anger, the outward kind. Recently, however, I’ve heard a new perspective on outward-directed anger: that it can be utilized for social change and need not be stifled, just directed.<br><br><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/value-of-controlling-and-using-anger.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3140102114370469182?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-38029327981818366192011-07-12T03:00:00.000-04:002011-07-12T03:00:06.677-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I8M9QJS5kk4/ThvgdQX1nOI/AAAAAAAABA8/a-idR27UnNk/s1600/shoes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I8M9QJS5kk4/ThvgdQX1nOI/AAAAAAAABA8/a-idR27UnNk/s320/shoes.jpg" width="320"></a></div><br>At the end of <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-roller-derby-challenges-stereotypes.html">yesterday’s post</a>, I wrote about my dream of becoming a roller girl someday. Thus far, that dream may be one of the most daunting ones I’ve ever undertaken. It requires the patience to develop a skill that does not come naturally to me – who thought that me, the wall hugger at the skating rink, would be willing to fall on her face just to learn how to jump on skates? And so, today, I wanted to impart a sort of action plan for how I will be following that dream and how you can follow your own.<br><br><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/3-ways-to-follow-your-dreams-even-tiny.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-3802932798181836619?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-85246988895933211642011-07-11T03:00:00.000-04:002011-07-11T03:00:11.907-04:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yKyP33YXsD8/ThqY_iz4u3I/AAAAAAAABA0/7YzDwR-zZf4/s1600/rat-city-shorts.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yKyP33YXsD8/ThqY_iz4u3I/AAAAAAAABA0/7YzDwR-zZf4/s400/rat-city-shorts.JPG" width="268"></a></div><br>This weekend, I had the wonderful opportunity to attend the <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/roller%20derby">roller derby</a> championship bout of the <a href="http://ratcityrollergirls.com/">Rat City Roller Girls</a> in Seattle. It was at the Key Arena, which is a <i>huge</i> venue, and there were a ton of people who came to watch. It was a phenomenal bout with <a href="http://ratcityrollergirls.com/teams/grave-danger/">Grave Danger</a> finally taking home the championship title.<br><br>For those who are unaware of this particular sport, roller derby is a sport played by <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/women">women</a> on roller skates who basically beat each other up – the main gist is that there is one jammer from each team who can score points by lapping all the other players and there are blockers who want to prevent the opposing team from scoring a point. Roller derby, like soccer, is extremely nuanced. There is a lot of skill and strategy involved, not only because you’re on skates, but also because you have to know when and how to position blockers so that you can get your jammer through. Watching the teams do it for the first time may seem like chaos, but once you realize all the different rules and strategies going on, it’s really satisfying. Oh, and did I mention the violence?<br><br>Anyway, as I was cheering myself hoarse and giggling at all the pun-filled derby names, I started thinking a lot about how roller derby is really an interesting sport. It’s not mainstream, it’s not money-making, and it’s not male-driven, which are three things that sports fans often opine as the reason that we like sports. Roller derby instead takes a lot of stuff that we assume about sports and turns them on their head. Here are a few that I’ve noticed:<br><br><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-roller-derby-challenges-stereotypes.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-8524698889593321164?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-83149873664967409872011-07-10T12:32:00.001-04:002011-07-10T12:32:33.588-04:00Just a heads up, next week I will be suspending The Q so there will be no new answers for that week; hopefully soon there will be something new and interesting coming to the blog instead, however, so look for that in coming posts!<br /><br />Here are your responses to last week's question: <i>What did you do for the 4th of July?</i><br /><br />@barnlib Jenna's answer: #zinereading in #Toronto http://ht.ly/5vNuH <i>(check out the link for other touring zine events)</i><br /><br />@LukeHenrySEO blew up fireworks with my 4 yr old (his first real 4th) ... scared the crap out of him! =)<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-8314987366496740987?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-80253904614255904532011-07-08T03:00:00.000-04:002011-07-08T03:00:06.118-04:00Though it definitely fits better with last week's posts on <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/how-to-value-your-work_29.html">valuing your work</a> and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/5-ways-to-find-balance-in-productivity.html">balancing productivity with creativity</a>, I re-read this article recently and it warmed my heart just as it did the first time:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.theoriginalsoundtrack.com/2010/05/tips-for-freelancers-artists-and-other-creative-types/">Tips for Freelancers, Artists, and Other Creative Types</a> is a witty guide to all of the cumbersome (yet practical) things that creative people need to learn how to do - learning how to cook is tip #1. Whether this post makes you scoff, laugh out loud, or get a little bit nervous because you have only obeyed 2/10 of the tips, it's sure to give you some food for thought.<br /><br /><i>Want to absorb some more media? Check out the rest of the <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/caught%20my%20eye">Caught My Eye series</a>.</i><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-8025390461425590453?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-48935765615408679792011-07-07T03:00:00.000-04:002011-07-07T03:00:01.629-04:00<div style="text-align:left">This week was all about <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/writing">writing</a> and on-site photography. This week I began writing a novel for <a href="http://www.campnanowrimo.org/">Camp National Novel Writing Month</a>, the summer version of November&#39;s amazing race to 50,000 words. It is totally nerve-wracking, but what makes it even scarier is that Camp NaNoWriMo goes on for <i>two months!</i> That means that I&#39;ll be writing 100,000 words over the course of two months, and I hope to do it all for the same story, so that in and of itself is absolutely terrifying. But I really want to top myself out this summer, so I am going for it. As a result, however, I have suspended work on my serial fiction <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/the%20observer">The Observer</a> until further notice. In the meantime, enjoy the miniature updates about my novel coming at you in the CED posts!<br>On the other side of things, I got to attend some stellar events this week - namely, Seattle Zombie Walk and the 4th of July at Gasworks Park! Pictures abound.</div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2mGhzeiK560/ThVOX1uTgHI/AAAAAAAABAc/pBzCBZ9we-8/s1600/IMG_0135.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2mGhzeiK560/ThVOX1uTgHI/AAAAAAAABAc/pBzCBZ9we-8/s320/IMG_0135.jpg" width="214"></a><br><i>This is my poor attempt at being a menacing zombie for Seattle Zombie Walk.</i></div><br><i><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Cowation-Creativity-Blog/212590285431153">Like The Cowation on Facebook</a> to see more of the pics!</i><br><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/ced-round-up-summer-writing-camp.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-4893576561540867979?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-78165129852557106182011-07-06T03:00:00.000-04:002011-07-06T03:00:13.584-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fBjkjea08_s/ThQAlp3UFBI/AAAAAAAABAE/yy0Ljyx0ZT0/s1600/IMG_0237.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fBjkjea08_s/ThQAlp3UFBI/AAAAAAAABAE/yy0Ljyx0ZT0/s320/IMG_0237.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br />Today, I'm giving a brief list, in no particular order, of expectations I have of the U.S. government. So brief, in fact, that I will constrain myself to one pithy sentence each - which will be a strain on my typically long-winded writing style. Here it goes.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">1. Keep AT&amp;T from absorbing T-Mobile because its a Mc-monopoly about to happen.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">2. Focus on domestic issues before dipping your toes into international waters.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">3. Encouraging youth to vote and to become representatives, bring us out of <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/politics-with-youthful-twist-working.html">unicorn status</a>, and create a more representative democracy.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">4. Trust <span id="goog_950377508"></span><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/Muslim">Muslims</a><span id="goog_950377509"></span> - full stop.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">5. Emphasize the power of local politics, so we don't elect the same person for 30+ years because they're familiar.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">6. Give me some transparency and diversity, so that I know a) what's going on, and b) that privilege and power are kept in check.</div><br /><i>Check out some of my other <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/lists">lists</a> and my pieces on <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/04/take-back-night-re-envisioning.html">political participation</a> and <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/06/politics-with-youthful-twist-working.html">how to get youth involved in politics</a>.</i></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-7816512985255710618?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-51830718789550839152011-07-05T05:16:00.000-04:002011-07-05T05:32:32.317-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">My fine readers,<br>In the last month I have been growing The Cowation and have made several changes to the design and other aspects of the site. I would like to take this opportunity to highlight those changes and give new readers a primer on how to use this site. Veteran readers (I prefer that term to &quot;old&quot;), I would love to hear your thoughts on the new design and how you find the site as a whole. Please share your favorite posts, pictures, or just wacky stories of how you met me/connected with the site. It&#39;s all appreciated here!<br><br><b>Here are the changes:</b><br><br>First, as you can see in the right sidebar, I have now been accepted into the BlogHer ads network. I will be receiving revenue from BlogHer for displaying their ads and when someone is directed to the ad from my website. In order to preserve transparency, I will also indicate when one of my posts includes links or provides me with revenue, whether that is in reviewing a product or through links.<br><br>Second, I have now included a <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/p/about-me.html">New Here? page</a> for people to get acqauinted to the site - you can check out that page for some of my favorite posts and to access this primer.<br><br>Third, there are now multiple ways that you can connect with The Cowation: you can subscribe via <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss">RSS</a> or <a href="http://feedburner.google.com/fb/a/mailverify?uri=blogspot/YfjZU">email</a>, <span id="goog_1802951229"></span>Tweet me <a href="http://www.twitter.com/thecowation">@thecowation</a><span id="goog_1802951230"></span>, Like the <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Cowation-Creativity-Blog/212590285431153">Facebook page</a>, go to the related <a href="http://thecowation.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a> and <a href="http://thecowation.deviantart.com/">DeviantArt</a>, or listen to me talk on <a href="http://www.soundcloud.com/the-cowation">SoundCloud</a>. These are all on a deck of buttons that are to the right of the screen. Since they can be pretty overwhelming, I am including a breakdown of how each of these options benefit you after the jump! Also after the jump, there is a primer on how to use the site if you&#39;re just starting out.<br><br><i>All of the following information and more can be accessed at the page <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/p/how-to-use-cowation.html">How to Use The Cowation</a>, which is also linked right above the Labels dropdown menu and in the <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/p/about-me.html">New Here?</a> page.</i><br><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-to-use-cowation.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-5183071878955083915?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5250751359475736810.post-87801961219241832272011-07-04T03:00:00.000-04:002011-07-04T12:16:33.093-04:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Quick! What are three things that people do on the <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/q-what-are-you-doing-for-4th-of-july.html">4th of July</a>?<br><br>If you answered: canvassing, voter registration, and wearing a VoteBot suit, then you are correct! Oh, and there may have been some fireworks thrown in there somewhere.<br><br>Although this way of celebrating the 4th of July is also atypical for me, it has gotten me thinking about all the different ways people can view and celebrate this momentous American holiday.<br><br>The 4th of July does not find me consuming copious amounts of alcohol, barbecuing, or flying a giant flag. I am not one to go out and see the fireworks, instead often opting to stay home and comfort my <a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/search/label/cat">cats</a> as they freak out about the loud noises (well, except for this year where my job is asking me to canvass potential youth voters). But I don&#39;t feel that any of these things paints me as less American. What then, does it mean to celebrate this holiday in an &quot;American&quot; way?<br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ku8JdXNnDTY/SWrVhQMSwbI/AAAAAAAAAGc/ctebpFOfV3s/s400/2jan11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ku8JdXNnDTY/SWrVhQMSwbI/AAAAAAAAAGc/ctebpFOfV3s/s320/2jan11.jpg" width="296"></a></div><br></div><a href="http://thecowation.blogspot.com/2011/07/4th-of-july-and-understanding-american.html#more"><b>READ ON...</b></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5250751359475736810-8780196121924183227?l=thecowation.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Jordan A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00993037473185954724noreply@blogger.com0