The end (?)

I, like Ximena, would like to bring up the end.  Because not only has our class now finished The Handmaid's Tale, but we are essentially finished with blogging as well.  This represents my last required post (though hopefully not the end to my blogging career).  I can't believe that less than a year ago I was totally stumped on how to write my selections for World Lit.  It took me several hours just to commit to the first post I wrote and rewrote and rewrote.  Now, I feel as if I'm simply talking to an old friend.  One who has watched me grow (and maybe mature a little bit) into a true college student.  And now, with the end of freshman year on the horizon, I can't help but feel a little intimidated once again.  In the words of Offred, "whether this is my end or new beginning I have no way of knowing: I have given myself over into the hands of strangers, because it can't be helped." (295)

Of course, in Offred's story, this future has the possibility of being much more bleak than mine.  She is either going to be freed or submitted to the eyes for god-knows-what kind of punishment.  The worst I can claim happening to me is dealing with O-chem in my near future.  But I also feel that I am experiencing an end and a beginning.  I will no longer be the naive freshman who secretly carries a map in her backpack.  I will no longer be in world lit, which has become a source of thought and reflection for me, even outside of class.  And, I will no longer be living on campus where chores like cooking and cleaning the bathroom are done for me.

It's rather hard to believe that it's only been a year and yet much in my life has ended and even more has yet to begin.  I could try listing off the future possibilities but it wouldn't do justice to reality.  But I think I can connect myself to the second part of Offred's statement as well.  I have, in a way, given myself over to strangers.  Or former strangers would be more accurate.  I came to UT knowing a small hand-full of kids from my high school.  From there, I threw myself into groups like Plan II and Texas Taekwondo and gave myself to the activities that both participate in.  I've become friends with all sorts of people and in a way, given my life over to them and this new life I have.  It's part of growing up and moving into college I suppose, and I can't wait to see where it leads me next!

Just a few of the people I've given my life and time to.
Picture thanks to Tina Tran.

But I digress.  The point of this last blog was to cover gender discrimination in The Handmaid's Tale as well as in real life.  And I must say, the commander offers a perfect example of sexist stereotyping with much of what he says and does.  For example, while at Jezebel's, he postulates that "Nature demands variety, for men.  It stands to reason, it's part of the procreational strategy.  It's Nature's plan...Women know that instinctively.  Why did they buy so many  different clothes, in the old days?  To trick the men into thinking they were several different women.  A new one each day." (237)

How the hell he got this idea, I haven't a clue.  Women do not buy clothes to put on different personalities.  They do not try to appear varied simply for the sake of a man.  It's like he read an abstract on one of Freud's papers (such as his strange theory of "penis envy") and took it as truth.  My real concern is that there are actually people who believe hookum like this.  Yes, there are polyamorous creatures in the animal kingdom but there are a surprising number of animals who mate for life.  It's not "nature's way" to be a man-slut.  That's just an excuse.  And of course, I can argue on the other side as well.  Maybe I'm old fashioned but anyone taking multiple lovers is just asking for emotional (and potentially financial) trouble.  It just ticks me off that the commander find it "natural" to sleep around. It is an ignorant and scientifically unfounded idea!

This is degrading, and honestly, pretty silly when you think about it.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_2NEuKgGJyMU/Sd-IYdZKxjI/AAAAAAAAHzk/XmWKDPBiDmI/s1600-h/Playboy_Bunny_Costume2.jpg

Books, books- as far as the eye can see

Although Margaret Atwood's The Handmaids Tale focuses primarily on the socially constructed layers of dystopian society of Gilead, the means by which different classes are controlled is of high interest for me.  In particular, the restrictions from reading for all women strikes me as one of the most horrible restrictions possible.  What can I say?  I'm an avid reader myself and simply the idea of such a life is terrifying in the extreme.  Just think about an average day and how often you read signs or e-mails or assignments or anything else for that matter.  Now take that all away.  Suddenly your range of knowledge can decreased to the small confines of pictographic representation.  So much is expressed in the written word and much of our collective knowledge is conveyed this way.  We read not only for pleasure but as social currency.  Just look at the world of Gilead- it doesn't function as a society but as a world of individuals (at least for the women) who must live in constant fear of the state.  They have no way to speak to each other or to relay written messages and hence become even more isolated.  In a world such as this, it's easy to understand Offred's intense emotions relating to something as simple as a pen.  "The pen between my fingers is sensuous, alive almost, I can feel its power, the power of the words it contains." (186)

An old children's game becomes a powerful symbol of control.
http://www.onlineusanews.com/scrabble-word-finder-8231.php

I'm also once again reminded of a twilight zone episode.  When something so integral to life pre-dystopia is removed, all that can be felt is longing for that which is missing.  It's not like Offred is of a generation that grew up in such a world and never learned to read.  She is a relic from the old world order and still feels the draw of its many opportunities.  And you can tell the longing she has for those days: "On these occasions I read quickly, voraciously, almost skimming, trying to get as much into my head as possible before the next long starvation." (184)

I know I keep stressing this point but I really can't imagine a world where reading is no longer allowed.  Or, where it's not allowed for women at least.  Men, in all their infinite power, are allowed this frivolities still.  I don't think Offred quite understood why forbidden the Commander's office is so forbidden until she actually entered it.  "Books and books and books, right out in plain view, no locks, no boxes.  No wonder we can't come in here." (137)  Imagine stumbling into a treasure trove of restricted items such as this.  It's like being in a candy store where you can smell the chocolate but have no money to purchase any.  I hate to be cliche but knowledge really is power.  And books are an excellent source of knowledge on all subjects.  Let's not waste the wealth of knowledge we can find in books.  I know I'm going to pick up a book right now.

Books are more than paper and ink, they represent the transference of ideas.
http://16thstreetj.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/books-pile.jpg

Defining Humanity

Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is an amazing and appalling story of a dystopian world where women have become little more than chattel.  Having read it in high school english, I recall the discussion we had over whether such a world could really come to fruition.  There are many ways by which the novel mirrors techniques of oppression found in our world today.  Not to mention Handmaid's Tale is set in the not too distant future where their past is our current reality.  And while some of these connections can get downright spooky, I am personally of the opinion that this nation could not realistically fall into such a scenario.

Maybe this is naively optimistic of me but I don't think women could completely segregate themselves into the class system displayed in the novel.  The distinct separation between wives, handmaids, aunts, and marthas is drastic beyond belief.  Each cast seems to bear unnecessary disdain for the others.  This isn't like how UT and A&M are rivals.  They can't even seem to relate to each other on a human level. As Offred says of the commander's servants, "To them I'm a household chore, one among many." (48)  It's as if they're experiencing classism within classism.  I feel that if the world ever did become like that, the women of the varying groups would have a better support net for each other.  After all, we're biologically designed to function in a group.  I can't imagine a world really being that strictly regimented.

I don't think it's humanly possible to obey all the rules set down by Gilead.
http://browse.deviantart.com/?qh=&section=&q=handmaid+tale#/d1qeuem

Also, I find it difficult to believe that interactions between men and women could be so formulaic and structured.  Neither men nor women can be completely logical when it comes to the other sex.  Although the goal of Gilead is to make women non-entites, I don't think it could logically succeed. In the description of how Offred uses butter as cream for her face, she says "we are containers, it's only the insides of our bodies that are important." (96)  But that's not entirely true.  Ok, the society of Gilead strictly enforces this ideal but think on the individual level.  Physical attraction is hard to deny, even if they try to shelter it as much as possible.  Yes, the handmaids wear a ridiculous gown and wimple to hide them but such measures would be ineffective in real life.  The way someone talks or walks or generally interacts with the world can be just as sensuous as a low cut top in such a sterile environment.

Offred gazing up at one of Gilead's punished offenders.
http://browse.deviantart.com/?q=handmaid%20tale&order=9&offset=24&offset=24#/d2rjunf

I think this book is an intriguing read because of the twisted biblical references and the secretive way it alludes to how such a society could come into existence.  But in all honesty, I think we're safe from this actually ever happening in real life.

Literature within the Literature of Fun Home

This tragicomic simply provides too many interesting topics on conversation for me to follow but one that I felt I could really latch on to was the presentation of writing and literature within the comic.  Throughout the entire book, the use of parallels of famous novels and stories are used to mirror Alison's own life.  In a way, that's rather ironic considering her statement that "I didn't understand why we couldn't just read the books without forcing contorted interpretations on them." (200)

I know I've often thought along those same lines.  I don't understand why we feel the need to label everything in literature and provide some abstract explanation for why the main character chose to wear a red shirt instead of blue.  In real life, the archetypal distinctions aren't so clear.  Not everything has a hidden meaning or literary reference.  Although I suppose the myths and fables we tell are based on some true piece of history which has been contorted through the years.  Hence, is it really all that unexpected that Alison's father was killed by (possibly) his reaction to seeing a snake?

The oroboros is an ancient symbol of the continuity of life.
http://supremegod.deviantart.com/art/Ouroboros-Tattoo-136139643

"The serpent is a vexingly ambiguous archetype." (116)  How true indeed, for it as meant many things including cyclical life (oroborus), sin of eve, and according to Freud- a deep seated fear of the phallus.  So which one to we believe is true of Alison's father?  Was he just one part of the cycle that helped create her views on life and homosexuality?  Or was he paying for the sin of deceiving his family?  How about the possible representation of his own fear of his sexual tendencies?  All are interesting claims in my opinion.

But perhaps the most telling bit of literature is Alison's comment on her own writing experiences as a journalist.  "By the end of november, my earnest daily entries had given way to the implicit lie of the blank page, and weeks at a time are left unrecorded." (186)  Because in the end, we must remember that Fun Home is not just an introspective piece of fiction.  It is the (true?) telling of Alison Bechdel's childhood and the formative experiences she had with her family.  It's a story that can't be neatly tied up in a bow.  Pieces are always bound to be missing and the point of view clouds the "truth" of the situation. Though who can really call any part of life true when it's so subjective?  I think I'll have to leave off here because any further will start to get too existential for my taste.

Although an entertaining book, this is still further proof that you can read too much into anything.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_owJWLQ436YE/TLZwZf8y9_I/AAAAAAAAAsM/tpVJQwwI2BI/s1600/literature.jpg

Fun(eral) Home

After reading merely the first few chapters, I'm struck with the immense volume of issues contained within the novel.  It has topics reaching from death, betrayal via affairs, homosexuality, and a distinctly facsimile replication of how a family 'should be.'

And while the plethora of topics all beg to be discussed, I find myself most drawn towards the issue of death.  (I suppose that makes me a morbid person?)  But I think the reason is many fold.  For one, being interested in the science of medicine is rather similar to the undertaker's profession.  Pre-med training requires working with a cadaver (body donated to science) so the thought of living with a parent in that vocation is intriguing to me.  Especially because of the upbringing of the author, there seems to be a disconnect from most usual emotional reactions.  "It could be argued that death is inherently absurd, and that grinning is not necessarily an appropriate response." (47)

Flamingos might seem to have a strange relation to death but it seems an obvious connection to me.
http://melissacartercreations.com/gpage8.html

I know I've had my own strange reaction to death but it wasn't this morbid grinning.  When my grandfather died, I was in 4th grade.  I remember flying up to Missouri for the funeral around christmastime.  They had a huge christmas tree set up next to the casket in the church and my brother and I wandered over there to view the ornaments.  Eventually we got bored of this and started a game of tag.  In retrospect, chasing each other around the coffin of our deceased family member shows incredibly bad social awareness.  But on the other hand, why must death be such a horrendous thing to be feared?  We all know we're bound to die sooner or later.  It's what happens to all living organisms.  I remember this one woman at my church always said she wanted a party instead of a funeral.  And when she died, that's exactly what we did.  We had a flamingo-themed celebration of life.  I remember my mom explaining it to me but I was too small to understand the bigger implications until I got older.  So I really do hold this intrinsic belief that we should celebrate the time we spend here.

The author's father had a granite obelisk as a gravestone which seems
beyond appropriate for his life choices.
http://www.texemarrs.com/032009/obsessed_with_sex.htm

But there's another response to death I'd like to bring up- that of the slow climax building up to the final tragedy.  In the author's case, "Dad's death was not a new catastrophe but an old one that had been unfolding very slowly for a long time." (83)  But this can be true of other situations as well.  Specifically I'm speaking of wasting away because of disease.  I think that is one example where celebrating the beauty of life becomes much, much harder.  Because what's beautiful about slowly falling apart?  I'm really having trouble phrasing this correctly, probably because I'm dealing with this issue right now.  Over winter break, my family found out my Grandma has cancer and not of the curable variety. Since then, it's been a careful dance of side-stepping what I can.  I know it sounds like I'm shirking my familial duty but I'm not sure how to handle what's going on.  My mom continues to be frank with me and what to expect in the near future and that makes me feel too logical and lacking in emotion.  But then when I talked to dad (whose mother is my Grandma), he was just incredulous that he might never see her again. It's rather unusual to hear my dad be so direct about his emotions.  He's the engineer and the one who usually just sees the world as a conglomeration of facts.  So when I talked to him, I didn't know how to soothe or comfort or be of any help at all.  And the whole situation puts my own parents mortality into question.  I've always known I have relatively old parents but I never linked that to length of time span.  And frankly, that train of thought paralyzes me with fear.  So while I'm highly engaged in reading Fun Home, I'm having trouble putting my own emotions about real life into context.

Taekwondo Dreams

 Sweat pours between my eyes as I gulp water from a massive plastic water bottle.  Coach Smith gestures next to me, talking more with his hands than words about how the girl opposite me is kicking only on reaction.  As he explains a drill to set up the tokichauggi (multiple kicks in a single motion), I hear the referee call me back into the ring.

 As I settle back into the rhythm of the match, all my focus goes into the red hogu (body shield) bobbing in front of me. The girl wearing it tries to bait me into an attack and I react in kind, sliding forward into just out of her range.  She doesn’t bite so I throw the kick, following up with a cover punch to block her attempted return volley of kicks.  I can see she’s off balance and press the advantage.  With all the speed mustered from my months of training, I land three round house kicks before dodging back out of range.  Out of my peripheral vision, I see the ring judge move in and end the fight.  He lines us up, has us bow towards each other, and then announces the victor.  We shake each other’s hand as well as with the coaches before returning to the team.  Although the score is plainly displayed as 12-3 in my favor, I listen attentively to Coach Smith explain the next skill I need to perfect.  It’s as if my entire day, and possibly life, is devoted to the sport of taekwondo.

 Now I know what I just described doesn’t seem like a leadership position.  In fact, it doesn’t even seem like an organization and most would argue that taekwondo is a solo sport.  However, I couldn’t disagree more.  There is an immense amount of work that is always going on behind the scenes for every tournament, match, and practice.  Having served this semester as historian and officer for the Texas Taekwondo club team, I’ve been privy to the multitudinous organizational challeneges.  Most of which are on a grand scale such as transporting eighteen plus members to California, have them all register correctly for competing, having adequate transportation once in California, and getting them all home again.  The list of tasks behind a single competition was daunting, yet it was all was completed on time.  And while this has still been only my first year to participate on  the team, I’ve found that my involvement with the leadership portion has led me to dream of a bigger and better organized Taekwondo team.

 And in all honesty, there’s no shame in starting out with the little things.  Just from observing this year, I’ve noticed that organizational control is difficult to come by.  For example, the team purchased over the last few years burnt orange jackets and bags.  And while they’re extremely useful for creating a solid team appearance at events, keeping track of all the gear is a statistical nightmare.  With changing members each year, it’s too easy to accidentally leave the team with an expensive UT jacket still in your possession.  A standardized system of labeling and tracking gear with a program like Excel would dispel confusion and calm rising emotions by removing the catalyst of unfairness.

 Another simple but noticeable change would be to set, in advance, the rules of practice and what is expected of each member.  At the beginning of the year, the team had each of us sign a statement which spelled out some of the basic expectations required to be a member.  While the principle behind such an idea is certainly solid, it still had some flaws.  Early in the season, the team was over-whelmed with the influx of new members which nearly doubled the team’s size.  We simply weren’t prepared for the logistics of having that many people in the martial arts room. When members started missing practice without explanation, the captain implemented the rule requiring absentees to e-mail within 24 hours and present an acceptable reason for their absence.  This system would have worked if we had simply delegated someone the task of monitoring attendance.  As so aptly put in 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, “we accomplish all that we do through delegation- either to time or to other people.

”  So the rational next step is to preemptively decide on punishments for failing to meet team requirements.  If everyone knows that missing practice means running three miles at 6am with the team captain watching, we are much less likely to miss practice.  And when the team is all present to train together, we’re that much more likely to succeed in any tournament.

 But I think what will provide the most growth and expansion for Texas Taekwondo is the adoption of relatively new technology like Facebook and Twitter for both inner-team discussions and interaction with the world at large.  Because we’ve become such a large team in a very short amount of time, keeping everyone connected is a priority.  Often weather or other uncontrollable factors change plans and checking that everyone is aware of the switch is of the utmost importance.  My duty as historian this year has put me in charge of updated and modifying the Texas Taekwondo Facebook page in which I saw the enormous potential for growth.  Not only did I discover Facebook to be a handy tool to deliver messages to the team, it also has evolved into a means of creating a dedicated fan base for the group.  As is so often referenced in World Literature class, internet immortality is a vital component for success in later life.  I’ve appreciated being forced into having prior experience with technology like making portfolios and updating blogs because it has made me more consistent in my role as historian to keep our digital profile alive and relevant.

 However my knowledge is far from perfect.  So far, I have had no formal training in computer or technology skills.  Any and all techniques are things I've just picked up from friends.  This led me to the belief that having a specific computer programming basis to work off would provide a better baseline for future endeavors.  Hence, I plan to take at least one course in college on computer programming, probably one that uses a simple but effective program like C++.  By extending my current knowledge of technology programming into something more advanced, I could better expand our realm of influence on the web.  But I'm careful not to forget that programming is only the basis on which to display a message. The message itself is what conveys to others the true spirit of the group.  And in that vein, I feel that taking a journalism writing course would greatly improve my ability to reach a wider audience.  The Texas Taekwondo team already has a website but in order to attract more prospective members, it needs to have interesting articles worth reading.  The striking difference between creative writing and journalistic reporting justifies applying for a class in the communications school to better learn journalistic writing.  By the end of a single semester in such a course, I suspect that the long term aspirations I have for the team could come to fruition.

 By long term, I mean the distant yet not unattainable plans that I foresee in the genesis of Texas Taekwondo.  So far, most of the adjustments I’ve mentioned are things that could be easily instigated by next year but along with other small changes, would lead to a perception shift of the sport as a whole.  We had humble (and recent) beginnings as “the nationally competitive sport team [that] was later created in 2005 by former national team member Tony Smith.

”   But since that first competitive team, we’ve strived to become a force to be feared.  I want to have Texas Taekwondo enter a tournament all decked out in burnt orange and moving as a single unit.  I want this image to create a sense of trepidation in all the other competitors at the meet.  And that recognition shouldn’t be something solely limited to other taekwondo teams.  My vision is to have the University of Texas recognize the hard work these student athletes put in.  I feel that we should be seen on par with groups like Texas Baseball or Basketball.  This awareness could take the form of a nicer facility for practice or even just more students interested in joining the program and learning what it’s truly about.

 The most tangible form of awareness that I wish to achieve is to host a major taekwondo competition here on campus.  I feel that this would serve as a two-fold advantage for team.  On one side, it would get the team more involved in the process of planning and carrying out a tournament.  It would be a good chance to have the team work towards a group goal instead of the individual interests of matches and victories.  And the hunt for new upcoming leaders is never over.  As older students graduate, it’s important to have tested the mettle of the younger ones and develop the skills they’ll need later on.  The other key benefit to a tournament hosted on UT campus is that it would allow for outside students to visit and get a taste of one of UT’s unique sports teams.  By spreading the word through a variety of media such as flyers and e-mail announcements, we could  draw a crowd to help support and cheer on the team.  As a fighter with a history of being a performer, I know exactly how great a difference it can make when you have a crowd chanting for you.  I want the team to be able to experience that intense passion of having an entire community backing you.

.

 While I know that improving the Texas Taekwondo team isn’t exactly a goal that will save the world, I still know there’s plenty to be gained from improving the community it creates.  Many of the students on the team didn’t expect the transformation from friends to family on the taekwondo team, which is exactly what happened.  The hard work fostered a family atmosphere where everyone is accepted as an integral part- from white to black belts.  The basic tenements of taekwondo state that “taekwondo students can improve themselves physically, and mentally by training. The final goal is to achieve harmony with nature and oneself.

”  It’s not a ninja movie where the goal is to learn crazy kicks and knock out opponents.  The real aspiration is to train yourself in self-discipline which can be applied to all aspects of your life.  The dedication you learn produces a strong foundation of character that can never be taken for granted.  The taekwondo team trains body, mind, and spirit and I want that experience to continue to grow and influence students on the University of Texas campus.

WORD COUNT: 1,823

WORD COUNT WITHOUT QUOTES: 1,769

Photo Credits:

-Match video: Raymund Lee

-Me kicking: Raymund Lee

-Group waiting to fight: Me

-Warm up in Jackets: Tina Tran

-Group Photo: Mr. Rodriguez

[1] Stephen R. Covey, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People: Restoring the Character Ethic (New York: Free Press, 2004), 171.

[2] "About," Texas Sport Taekwondo 2010. http://www.utsporttkd.com/about-2/.

[3] "Ethics," General Taekwondo Information, 1994-2010. http://www.barrel.net/ethics.php.

The Great American Melting Pot, Part 1

While I usually like to open up my blogs with a personal story or explanation, in this case I just want to start with a quote:

"Minority students wait until they know me better before they ask my race.  But it's usually the second question white students ask, and I don't understand why." (402)

The American melting pot has many ingredients.
http://livesimplechicago.wordpress.com/

I want to bring your attention to this point because when I read it, I immediately realized that I am the proto-typical white student.  Whenever I meet a student of racial color, I'm immediately curious to know where they're from.  I don't necessarily indulge in that curiosity but it's always sitting in the back of my mind.  So what is it about us white students that makes us so automatically curious?  There are plenty of caucasian immigrants from interesting, foreign nations but we don't go around asking each other "where are you from?"  Why is it implied that white students are natives while colored skin indicates a foreignness?  I know that it could relate to the fact that recent history has seen an influx of Oriental and Indian immigrants but in Texas, there have been latino/(a)s fir as long as we've been a state.  So I find it really strange that this latino student is constantly asked where he's from when it shouldn't be all that unusual.  Then again, he was attending a northern school according to the text and I suppose there's a different blend of ethnicities up there.

"Although my cousins wanted to get darker, I know that they didn't want to be as dark as I was." (406)

Here are some statistics you might not have known.
http://spanish-translation-blog.spanishtranslation.us/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Hispanic-Origin.gif

And I just had to say, this is the exact same point we made only weeks earlier in class.  Are they tanning to become as dark as a different ethnic group?  Apparently the answer is no.  So why do they tan?  I've seen people look like a crispy french fry and consider themselves beautiful.  I know that there's an aspect of tan skin giving off a "healthy glow" but that only applies to some extent.  At some point you just look burned.

And lastly, I'd like to point out that racial markers aren't the only thing that can stigmatize students.  Financial situations can cause barriers as well.  I know for a fact that my dad can identify with the quote, "As financial aid students, Ben and I shared a completely different experience from all the boarding students and the wealthy day students." (416)  He was in the exact same position in high school in regards to monetary standing.  My grandpa really wanted my dad and his sister to get the best possible education so he worked as a manual laborer around Ft.Lauderdale and put every penny towards keeping his kids in a rather expensive prepatory high school.  And though my grandpa was just trying to do what he thought was best for his kids, my dad absolutely hated it.  Over spring break we went back to Florida to visit my grandparents and every day that we drove to their house, we passed Dad's old school.  All he really had to say about it was how he never fit in because all the rich kids participated in expensive activities and got new things like cars and boats for their birthdays.  My dad just couldn't keep up with that kind of stuff, and honestly had no desire to do so.  But it still created a social paradigm that bothers him to this day.  It used to be that whenever I tried to talk about high school with him, he just couldn't relate.  I had a completely different experience all because I fell into the same financial bracket as most of my fellow classmates.  And while I might've had a more bland high school experience (with few ethnic groups represented and everyone at about the same financial level), I'm thankful to now be experiencing the huge diversity of UT with an open mind.

Bob Bullock Museum

I'm no stranger to the Bob Bullock Museum here in Austin.  In fact, just like the hordes of kids running around last tuesday when we visited, I too wandered the exhibits as a school trip to look at all the mannequins and reach out to touch anything labelled "PLEASE DO NOT TOUCH."  What can I say?  Kids will be kids.  But now that I've returned and actually taken the time to read the displays and examine the artifacts, I feel a resurgence in my interest in Texan history.

A floor mural of the diversity of Texan history.
Photo by me.

I mean, we are a state very proud to have once been called an independent nation.  But I'm jumping ahead of myself.  The exhibits starts with the entrance of the European and in my opinion it says something about our current culture.  In all truth, there were humans in Texas long before the Spanish Conquistadores but we always tend to marginalize their history.  I understand part of it is due to the way they recorded history so we have less direct knowledge.  But I think there's also a tendency to over-emphasize the culture of the Spanish, French, and English who later arrived on Texan shores.  However, the Bob Bullock Museum does a good job of explaining the drastic changes which occurred with the arrival of the Europeans.  In some ways, Native American life was improved by the changes like the introduction of the horse.  They also enjoyed a relatively fair trade with the French who were not so much colonialists as backwoodsmen.  But, according to one of the educational videos playing on the first floor,"by 1790, about 2,800 hardy Spanish settlers called Tejas home."

Personally, I tend to enjoy the parts of history displayed on the second floor a little bit more.  I hate to say it but war is a more interesting topic that simply settlement of the land.  And the second floor of the Bullock history museum covers the whole of the Texan revolution.  From the early shots out of the "Come and Take It" cannon through the 18 minute battle of San Jacinto.  Nothing like some video clips of re-inacted battles to catch the attention of museum-goers.  However, on the same floor it goes on to display some other interesting changes in the grand ol' state.  For one, I had no idea the nursing school in Galveston was founded in 1890.  And it was around this same time that Texas began to gain an influx of some rather unusual cultures.  Russians, Swiss, Czechs, Scots, and Italians all immigrated to this state and settled in to call it home.  When I read this, I was reminded of Fredericksburg and the very German history of the town.  We tend to think of Texas as just cowboys, dustbowls, and oil.  But there's really a lot more to the story than just the traditional myths.

The quaint town of Fredericksburg.
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/ed19/d644a/

In fact, Texas has a varied economic basis.  According to the monopoly-like Q&A on the ground of the third floor, Texas exports shrimp, cotton, textiles, rice, oil, sugar cane, pine, citrus, cinnabar, and angora sheep wool.  While we might have been a predominantly cotton based industry in the 1800s, the discovery of oil propelled Texas towards a more industrial-based economy instead of soley relying on agriculture.

And (my personal favorite part of the third floor) as WWII enveloped the nation, Texas became a prime training ground for fighter pilots.  Even women were allowed to enter the air as either WASP or test pilots for new aircraft.  It was a changing socio-political scene which helped with the gender equality battles that were to be fought afterwards.

Female pilots helped pioneer the way into the sky during WWII.
http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~bump/images/story/FemalePilots.jpg

So, while I wasn't the sugar-crazed primary school student running from picture to picture this time around, some of my childish amazement remains.  We are a state of immigrants and natives, of agriculturalists and industrialists, of religious conviction and technological advancements.  And no museum can really hold all of the interesting facts there are about Texas, though the Bob Bullock makes a worthy attempt.  And next time I travel to another city like San Antonio or Dallas or even Fredericksburg, I'll be reminded of the diversity which makes up the whole.

Taniguchi Gardens

Let's be honest, I'm a huge Japanese culture aficionado.  My name in my world lit class isn't Wolf, but the Japanese translation of Ookami.  My mom and I make it a habit to go out for dinner and order sushi.  And, when I have the spare time, I love to watch anime in its original language.  So yes, I am big on Japanese culture.  Yet, I can't help but still feel an outsider to some of their customs and traditions.  Unlike introverts, I have trouble finding an inner calm to quiet my restless spirit.  Meditating this semester in class has helped some but I still get antsy after too long.  I'm looking forward to our visit to the Taniguchi Gardens for this very reason.

My friend actually painted this piece and to me, it seems to represent how
all growth stems from the flow of water.
http://guard5girl5geek.deviantart.com/favourites/#/d36f864

"The gurgling sound of the water was healing.  The stillness of the ponds was calming." (224)

The one thing I have found able to put me at ease is water.  For all my fiery personality type, I absolutely adore swimming, floating, and otherwise relaxing in water.  It's probably because of the Texan heat, which doesn't allow for much activity outside during the summer unless water is involved but almost all of my best memories are associated with the substance.  Certainly, there are times when I'm just romping around in the waves of the ocean with my little brother or kayaking across town lake to spy what's around the next bend.  But I have many more quiet moments as well.  My Dad taught me to appreciate our pool at nighttime.  To go float in the water right after sunset and watch the shooting stars is a spiritual activity akin to attending church.  Hence, I can only infer what beauty we'll discover in Zilker's botanical gardens.  I'm sure we'll honor Isamu Taniguchi's wishes in that "It is my wish you have pleasant communion with the spirit of the garden." (214)

A garden is an interesting synthesis between our need for order and the search for natural beauty.
http://www.helloaustin.com/media/articles/large/5236_image3_large.jpg

On a rather less related note, I think it is important that while we visit and meditate at the gardens, we focus on the tragedy that Japan is still facing.  While news coverage of the aftermath of the tsunami that hit Japan's shores has waned, the damage seems to still be increasing.  And just look at the statistics.  "The bomb dropped at Hiroshima had less than 2% of the power of one of the thousands of nuclear devices in the world today." (216)  That was a localized, wartime disaster.  In a way, it could be expected as part of the total war both sides engaged in during the 1940s. But now they are facing an even more widespread crisis with the nuclear generators.  And as the 3rd largest economy in the world, we can't claim what happens over there wont effect us financially or emotionally.  I urge any and all readers of this blog to please, please find a way to donate to Japan and help the lives of millions.