Every week, I curate a list of the best links and articles to make you think and keep you informed. Enjoy!
Thoughts on this week: It's been a long, hard week over here at the PhDog house filled with lots of work and catching up. But Gary and I are both good, our car is now fixed ($2,000 later), and we are blessed with amazing friends, including a new friend and her adorable pup. We have so much to be grateful for.
What I’m Reading in real life: Transformation Now! Toward a Post-Oppositional Politics of Change by AnaLouise Keating. I'm reading this for my dissertation--it will likely be one of the most formational texts I read. I love reading Keating's work because it feels so familiar, so much like myself. I'm so grateful to my director who introduced me to her work.
What I’m watching: I finally finished The Handmaid's Tale, so Gary and I are back to working our way through Elementary. So good.
What I’m listening to: Not much, to be honest. Still my usual Pen Addict Podcast.
What else I’m digging: This nail polish that I bought because I was obsessed with it when Kara over at Boho Berry was wearing it in her daily journaling videos. I'm not really a nail polish kind of girl anymore, but I've gotten many compliments on this one!
My Writing
This week: Bullet Journal Set Up for October 2017
What I read this week:
Popery (Catholicism/Spirituality/Religion):
Is This The Name Of A Pokémon Or An Early Church Heretic? (Buzzfeed): The true mark of knowledge of the early Church... how do you score?
Pens/Pencils/Stationery:
19 Things Stationery Addicts Do That No One Else Does (Buzzfeed): Yes.
Paperbacks (Reading, Books, and Writing):
Emily Dickinson's Bedroom (Atlas Obscura): One of my colleagues shared this with me because she knows about my Dickinson obsession--renewed by the recent film about her life, A Quiet Passion. Anyone want to sponsor a pilgrimage for me to go stay in Dickinson's home?
All 54 Of The 6-Toed Cats That Live In Ernest Hemingway's House Have Survived Hurricane Irma (Ravishly): Because priorities.
32 Times Paulo Coelho Simplistically Defined What It Means To Both Be In Love And Be Hurt (Quote Catalogue): Because I love The Alchemist and don't have time to read it right now.
C.S. Lewis on Learning to Think in Greek (Sententiae Antiquae): I very much enjoyed reading this and remembering my own experiences falling in love with and thinking in Greek. "The great gain was that I very soon became able to understand a great deal without (even mentally) translating it; I was beginning to think in Greek. That is the great Rubicon to cross in learning any language. Those in whom the Greek word lives only while they are hunting for it in the lexicon, and who then substitute the English word for it, are not reading the Greek at all; they are only solving a puzzle." So true, Lewis.
Academia, Education, and Teaching:
Ever thought of podcasting your research? (The Thesis Whisperer): As someone who has often thought of doing a grad student podcast, I thought this was pretty cool.
How to start podcasting your research (The Thesis Whisperer): The companion article to the one above. If anyone wants to help me start the #phdlife podcast, let me know!
How to get rid of your academic fake-self? (David Berlinger): This was posted in one of my PhD support groups on facebook. I think it's super helpful and interesting. It's amazing how rare these qualities are in academia and how much we have accepted that.
The academic handmaiden’s tale (The Thesis Whisperer): This is something we need to take more seriously in academia.
All the Classroom’s a Stage (Chronicle Vitae): This is a great article. I particularly appreciate the consideration of power dynamics within the acting that takes place in the classroom.
Life in General:
- Women Aren't Nags--We're Just Fed Up: Emotional labor is the unpaid job men still don't understand. (Bazaar): I appreciated this article on emotional labor, even as a single woman. Read this: "According to Dr. Michele Ramsey, Associate Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences at Penn State Berks, emotional labor is often conflated with problem solving. “The gendered assumption is that ‘men are the problem solvers because women are too emotional,’" she explains. "But who is really solving the bulk of the world's problems at home and in the office?” As the household manager for my husband and three kids, I’m fairly certain I know the answer." As the person who has often been referred to as mom by people older than me, I, too know who is doing the problem solving, whether in the office or in my former home. I can relate to the partner who walks around a mess ten times a day because they expect me to clean it. It's confounding, exhausting, and insane.
Why your morning habits are standing between you and your goals (The Mission): I'm really working on waking up earlier and being productive in the mornings because I know it's my sweet spot for getting lots of shit done at once. Unfortunately, I also haven't been sleeping well and like naps in the mornings (I am my father's daughter). These methods do help. What do you do to make mornings productive?
I Sold My Wedding Dress To A Guy Named Jeff (Ravishly): An excellently written piece.
Tough Stuff:
21 Powerful One Sentence Reminders To Read When You Are Doubting Your Growth And Healing (Thought Catalogue): These are helpful. "Your trauma does not own you and it never will; remember that when it is trying to convince you that you are forever broken." I need that reminder often.
The Gift of Presence, The Perils of Advice (On Being): I love this paragraph: "Here’s the deal. The human soul doesn’t want to be advised or fixed or saved. It simply wants to be witnessed — to be seen, heard and companioned exactly as it is. When we make that kind of deep bow to the soul of a suffering person, our respect reinforces the soul’s healing resources, the only resources that can help the sufferer make it through." I have a friend who really struggles with this. He wants to fix or save everyone. I struggle with that, too, to be honest. But recently, in my severe depression, he's found that hard. I needed someone to just sit with me, to be with me while I suffered. I didn't need someone to fix me. It's a hard thing to do, to make space for someone in their suffering. But it's a true expression of love.
Please Stop Infantilizing Me — Especially In The Workplace (Ravishly): So, let me tell you a story. During my second year in grad school, a new campus minister joined our team at the Center for Faith and Vocation. Now, he knew I was going to Notre Dame for my MA. He knew I was a full time campus minister. He *knew* this. But a few weeks into his time there, he saw me coming from my Starbucks hours on campus (man, I wish that was still a thing) and asked, "Are you coming from class?" I managed to stop myself from responding angrily and just said that no, I was coming from my Starbucks hours.
This article is SO TRUE. People, even people who know you, sometimes peg you into this intern/student/child role just because you're a woman, especially for women under thirty. It's a constant struggle for me to not remind people about my multiple degrees, awards, and my recent publication everytime they do this. I have to take it in stride because even though what they're doing is incredibly insulting, they will overreact and be insulted if you call them out. So, here's my call out to everyone who does this: PLEASE JUST STOP. It's better for everyone.
Gabrielle Deydier: what it’s like to be fat in France (The Guardian): This was so eye opening. It's sad that even in the States, where obesity is literally the norm, this same attitude is more common than you think. Did you know that people are statistically more likely to assume you're unintelligent if you're a fat woman? I did. Yes, even though I'm in a PhD program. Yes, even though I have an MA from one of the best schools in the country. It's so sad--and so problematic.
Why we need to listen to undocumented poets (PBS): SUCH an important topic!
An Empowering Way to Respond to Hurtful People (Thrive Global): This is an excellent article with some great advice. I am trying to be grateful for the teachers I've met who have shown me how not to be.
Just for Fun:
- My Mom Picked My Date Based on What Their Apartment Looked Like (Buzzfeed): I loved reading this. So fun! My mom would not have had the same reactions, but I think it's a fun idea.
Simplicity and Minimalism:
- Defend the Sacred (Barefoot Five): This line: "I could spend all day talking about how twisted up things are. I could also go on and on about how corrupt the system is. Actually, now that I'm thinking about it, I could easily write a book on the current state of the planet and how desperate the situation has become..." Preach, sister. Preach.
Money, Budgeting, and Finance:
How This 23-Year-Old Makes Six Figures From Her Online Business - And Helps Others Do The Same (Forbes): These kinds of stories are fascinating to me. Like, who pays that money for these people's advice? She's a kid! But kudos to her, I guess.
Dogs:
10+ Adorable Comics That Hilariously Sum Up What It’s Like Living With A Dog (Bored Panda): Because I think this is adorable.